Cooperative Living November/December 2015 - 17

Background
Over the past 50 years, NRECA
International has worked to provide
people in developing countries with
access to safe, reliable and affordable
electricity. For 110 million people in 42
countries who have benefitted from the
organization's work, life has improved
through the better education, health,
clean water and economic opportunity
that all come with access to electricity.
" In a nutshell, better healthcare, education,
economic viability and safer
streets - much of which we take for
granted here in the U.S. - all start with
power, " said Zuraidah Hoffman, international
communications manager for
NRECA, in an email.
" You can tell the story a number of
different ways, whether it's to do with
clean water, women's equality, access to
education for children, or preserving
vaccines, but none of that can happen
without safe, affordable and reliable
electricity, " he added.
Medved was in Haiti from May 16
through June 6. He participated in the
Haitian Rural Electric Cooperative
(HREC) Project, which will create the
first electric cooperative in Haiti. Upon
completion, the project will serve up to
1,600 consumers between the towns of
Port-a-Piment, Coteaux and Roche-aBoteaux,
running on a new diesel-solar
hybrid-generation system.
" I got the call on a Wednesday afternoon
to see if I wanted to go, and I
emailed Greg (Rogers, SVEC manager of
district operations) Wednesday night,
and Thursday it was confirmed, "
Medved said.
He left eight days after the trip was
confirmed, not much time to take
care of the usual chores before leaving
the country.
" In the previous 12 months I had
spent six weeks out of the country,
three weeks in Mexico (doing mission
work) and now three weeks in Haiti, "
Medved said.
The Trip
Right away, Medved noticed that
things were different in Haiti, very
much apparent on the way to Coteaux,
where he said driving was almost a contact
sport.
" It was the craziest driving I've ever
seen. The driver would honk four or
five times a minute, not in a mean
way, but like a 'hey, I'm here,' "
Medved said.
Where the group stayed in
Coteaux, the people were very nice
and appreciative of what he and the
others were doing.
" The people were very kind in
Coteaux, they knew why we were
there, to give them power. Some of the
children have never experienced having
electric service. The town had electricity
seven years ago, but doesn't have it now. "
Most days, he said, he and his fellow
workers would climb poles to string primary
or secondary lines. Medved said
they set about 50 poles, eight by hand,
November-December 2015/www.co-opliving.com
In Haiti Medved climbed more poles
in three weeks than he has in three
years at his cooperative.
and
noted that he climbed
more poles in three weeks in Haiti
than he has in three years with his
cooperative.
Something else very different in Haiti
is the lack of cold, fresh water.
15
From John Medved's Journal:
May 23 - Today we strung
some wire and hung a
transformer. We went to the
market, it was like something
you would see on [Anthony
Bourdain's] No Reservations.
There was a donkey on the
loose running through the
market. I ate a seed from a
Miracle tree in Dana's yard. It
is bitter, then when you drink
it [it] is sweet. We went to the
beach, it was packed. The place
[where] we hung out and ate
was very neat. It was in the
trees. They served us grilled
lobster for dinner.
Cooperative Living November/December 2015

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