Jimmy’s Story

The Latin American nation of HAITI or “Land of High Mountains” is situated at the boundary between the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea on the Hispaniola, the second largest island in the Caribbean. Haiti is full of vivid beauty and rich culture, a blend of European and African traditions. Its history includes heartbreaking tragedy such as slavery and earthquakes.

Haiti shares its enchanting setting with the Dominican Republic, stunning landscapes of mountaintops peeking through lush vegetation, beaches with turquoise water and white golden sand. Sadly, though, it is one of the world’s poorest countries. Besides poverty, there is corruption, poor infrastructure, lack of health care and education for its citizens many Haitians have overcome such obstacles through their approach to faith, family, art and everyday life.

I invite you to immerse yourself in the emotions of a friend from Haiti as he recalls his journey to America.

My name is Jimmy Noel. I was born in Gervais, a small town in Haiti with about 2,000 people. I was the third son with the darkest complexion. This bit of information will make more sense later in the story. The town of Gervais was always quiet as far as I can remember except for the sound of the trees clapping through the wind and cows marching to the river.

I recall spending most of my childhood with my grandfather and grandmother who had many mango and banana trees as well as cows and horses that I loved to watch all day long. Obviously, Haiti was hot most of the time and I disliked the heat. Despite that, I could not resist playing outside with other kids “totally naked,” jumping in the river and racing in high currents to see who would be the  first  to the other side. That was indeed fun… fun… fun! As the days were slowly going by and the sun was gradually setting to the west, my friends and I kept counting down to race. Who is going to make it to the sun first?

We moved to Saint-Marc where I lived until I turned 18.  Saint-Marc is one of the biggest cities in Haiti and the main port of entry for consumer goods.  It was vastly different compared to Gervais. Saint-Marc was busy with lots of people, cars and other things I was not familiar with, including electricity. Electric service is not widely available in Haiti – only 25 percent of the population has access to electricity.

I can remember the awkwardness I experienced on my way to Saint-Marc – the sensation of sitting in a car for the first time. I kept asking myself, “Why were the trees moving toward us and moving away from us at the same time?”  I quickly became “a city boy.” I went to school in a uniform – white and blue striped shirt, a blue pair of pants and shoes shining like the sun. I had fun as well. I would run down every street with no shirt on with my oldest brother. He was the shy one, unlike me. I got into trouble frequently and was punished  because I was constantly doing something I should not have been doing. My sisters were too afraid of my mother to do anything wrong. My mother was a strong-minded woman who meant what she said. If she said we could not play games, she meant absolutely no games. However, I found it difficult not to give in to what I genetically was programed to do. I played many games such as jump rope, hide and seek, hot hands, hopscotch, soccer – oh yeah soccer!Football, referred to as soccer in U.S., is the predominant sport in Haitian culture. Haitians are quite passionate about this sport.

As the teenage years arrived, I began to see a dramatic change in friends and my family’s attitude towards me because of the darkness of my skin. I would not say they hated me because I was dark, but it was unsettling to some and for others it was an excuse to bully me.  I was highly motivated, though, and always kept high spirits.

At the age of 15 or 16, I sought knowledge like water. I wanted to build houses so I began to collect boxes to make small houses. I wanted to become a math teacher so I began to ask my teachers hundreds of questions. I wanted to build my own furniture so I practiced being a carpenter. I wanted to make shirts and skirts so I practiced tailoring. Then one day I met a Haitian artist sitting on his porch on a hot Saturday afternoon painting a beautiful piece of Haitian’s culture. I watched him for days. Finally, I decided to talk to him about becoming an artist and with simple acknowledgment, he nodded his head up and down. I cannot remember his name, but he spent a good eight months giving me art lessons. By the end of these informal sessions, I could draw faces and anything I could see. Haiti’s culture is reflected in its paintings, music and literature.

At 17, I felt confused and started to question many things.

I did not know what I wanted to do career wise; there were limited options for college in a family of five children. I knew I was good at sales because my mother would often use me to sell her merchandise at her clothing business, but I did not enjoy that. I wanted to pursue a professional soccer career, but my mother refused to help me get into a league. I often felt hopeless.  On those days, I would skip class and walk on the beach with the beautiful white sands, water clear as crystal, watching the fish swim against the reef and listening to the sound of the waves.

At the age of 18, my mother received a letter from my father in the U.S. that would change my life forever. I, along with my sister, was granted permission to go to America. I left everything behind, including friends and the rest of my family. Additionally, I only had two weeks to say goodbye. In March 2006, I landed in Roanoke.  Six months later I was speaking broken English (Haitian Creole and French are spoken in Haiti).

A short time later, I met a beautiful girl in high school with bright seductive eyes and before I knew it, I was in love. I attended Virginia Western Community College, then went to Bluefield College in West Virginia to get my bachelor’s degree in business management and leadership. We got married and have three beautiful children. I operate my own company, Noel Custom Cleaning Services LLC.

In Haiti, there is a saying that goes like this: “USA is the land of money.” While this may be true, nobody ever told me that I would have to work very hard to get it. I am thankful for the freedom we have here and equal opportunities. I like the fact that the government system is strong, and the freedom to discuss what is wrong and right is the most powerful liberty of all. While I love America, I miss Haiti because I was born there. “I would like to dedicate this article to all the families and people who have emigrated from Haiti chasing the sun in search of new opportunities.