Samuel Michel- President For You Haiti

Samuel Michel

Born in 1978, Samuel Michel grew up in a  village of La Gonâve Island, Haiti, called Mare Sucrin. Samuel had access to a primary school education because he was a sponsored child of Compassion International. As a young boy his dream and passion was to help his community. After primary school he moved to the city of Anse-A-Galets, where he continued with his secondary education. 

Leadership takes Trust

Two years later he had an accident where he burned the right side of his head. The accident was devastating but he was happy to be alive. It gave him the determination he needed to become a leader. His dream of helping others was closer to being realized when he met Damour Nadal. Together they teamed up to create an organization called the Association Friends of Children (AAE) in 2002. Samuel and Damour began building a strong community of trust and awareness. Their motivation and positive attitudes gave them the inspiration they needed to help their own community.  Together they offered the most vulnerable children, whose futures were at risk, guidance and coaching. Samuel’s goal was to build a school to provide intellectual training, supervision and care for children. After much hard work he completed the first part of the construction for his school in 2014. In 2015, under Samuel’s leadership, the grand opening of the school, Complexe Scolaire Amis des Enfants (CSAE) took place in September and 53 students were enrolled.

The Start of For You Haiti 

Increasingly, Samuel realized that there was nothing more fantastic in this world than to give a hand to those who are in distress. He nurtured his dream of putting himself at the service of the powerless in order to bring them joy and happiness. In 2015, he met Ada Neilson, Alana Kaye and Luke Blair (3 Australians), and the four of them created their vision of  a non-profit with the mission of improving conditions for the most vulnerable children in La Gonâve.

An Amazing Transformation

Today, the school that Samuel started has over 400 children enrolled. In addition to the academic training activities that Samuel has implemented in his community, he also cares for the health of the most vulnerable. More than 600 children receive regular health care, medical assistance and life changing surgeries. Furthermore, 22 full time jobs have been created by For You Haiti.  Through the tireless efforts and endless compassion of this public-spirited man, For You Haiti has been, and will continue to be, the heart of La Gonâve and its children.