The year was a difficult one, but it ended with thunderous applause as the new young professionals, with their smiling faces mirroring many hopes, made their entrance into the chapel.
Mass then began in the Salesian chapel. In addition to the 94 graduates, several hundred parents and friends of the graduates filled the temple, providing a warm and festive atmosphere to celebrate this important milestone.
The 94 young people from the 19th promotion event received training in various manual trades, from IT to construction, from plumbing to electricity, from tiling to Windows platforms, from cooking to cutting and sewing and cosmetology... The event was marked by moments of excitement and pride, as the new graduates now prepare to face the job market.
TIMKATEC: hope for vulnerable young people
TIMKATEC is a Haitian NGO founded in 1996 by Fr Joseph Simon, a Haitian Salesian priest (1929-2023). This charitable organisation supports and trains vulnerable children and young people, mainly in Pétion-Ville, offering them vocational training, basic education, shelter, food and essential care.
In an interview granted to his confreres in Haiti, Fr Grégoire Laguerre, SDB, current head of TIMKATEC, recounted the difficulties encountered during the year and pointed out that it was only thanks to the “charitable works” of a few generous private donors that some gaps could be filled. However, this aid remains insufficient and fails to fully facilitate the continuation of training and assistance to these young people, despite their important role in boosting their professional future.
Responding to needs in the face of insecurity and precariousness
Currently, several thousand children in Haiti do not attend school. According to the United Nations Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention and UNICEF, 25-30% of gang members are minors. Unschooled or inadequately trained young people are, in fact, easy prey for criminal groups, victims of the precariousness and fragility of their environment, and many of them end up participating in illegal activities to ensure their daily livelihood.
This is why TIMKATEC has always been committed to combating this danger through vocational training, despite limited support from state structures. Without great means, but with the help of charitable works, the non-profit organisation offers training in trades that can help save the boys and girls most at risk.
While Haiti faces growing insecurity, where many young people are recruited by gangs, the diplomas made possible by TIMKATEC were a moment of hope and celebration, showing that even with little, much can be done.
