Masonry Level 1 students practicing spreading mortar.
Summary:
Each month we are amazed at all that is accomplished throughout Extollo. Exciting things are happening as we close out 2023.
Through Extollo's three pillars: Skill Development, Economic Opportunity and Character Development, we are making a lasting impact in Haiti.
Simultaneous Classes
Our Admin and Classroom building was designed and built with offices and two classrooms so that we could one day hold two classes at the same time. At the end of November, the Trade School began both a Welding and Masonry class. This was a huge milestone and we are so proud of our Haiti team for all the preparation and hard work to pull this off.
Auto Care Maintenance
The staff has been given opportunities to learn new skills and conduct tests to diagnose problems. The team performed maintenance on the Extollo fleet including returning the Ford Ranger to active service after an overheating issue and preventative maintenance on the F-250.
Partnering with the Metal Fabrication Team, they were able to fix the Honda buggy by welding new components that were broken. Finally, the team identified the root cause of the issue with the park gear on the E350 Van, and applied out-of-the-box thinking to keep the van operational while parts are ordered for a long-term fix.
Good work team!
Tilt-Up/Concrete
Ten small (4ft tall) panels were poured this month.
Eight sample panels were poured to test the grading of the gravel, the concrete mix and the consolidation methods for the concrete.
The concrete mix was tested and the crew learned to make adjustments to find the perfect consistency.
HUGE Thank-You
After almost a year, the backhoe donated by WM Winkler Co, and the transport partially funded by the Moriah Foundation, arrived on campus! This donation is crucial to our tilt-up operations moving forward. We are so grateful for these partnerships and appreciate the developing relationships. Check out the instructional YouTube video that Les, WM Winkler's equipment manager, put together for our Haiti team. It unexpectedly went viral and now has over 10,000 views!!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7C1TeBH
More Equipment
A container was delivered to a shop in California and we will start loading materials and equipment to be shipped to Haiti. A tractor truck and container trailer have also been purchased and will be transported to Haiti. These will be modified for dual purposes to carry both shipping/storage containers as well as tilt-up house panels. We should be able to transport a complete house in one load on the new trailer!
A few more exciting highlights...
We have been working with the local mayor and have a possible site to lease land to erect our first tilt-up prototype pod development.
The Trade School is recruiting for an English-speaking construction work as well as an English teacher for our campus. We have a promising lead for the English instructor.
Our WhatsApp Alumni Group channel has over 160 names and is growing. We use this group to advertise for new classes/seminars, Trainer Tryouts and job opportunities.
While Character Development is woven into every aspect of what we do at the Training Center, here are a couple highlights of Character Development this past month.
Water Distribution
It has always been our mission to support local businesses and not create dependency. Now that the Bercy community is no longer suffering from a fuel shortage, and local water purification businesses are up and running, we will be phasing out our drinking water distribution. This past month, we distributed 4,675 gallons of drinking water to the Bercy community.
Hope for the Future
Thank you to those of you who have joined us for our Live-From-Haiti Zoom Calls as we dive deeper into Extollo's 3 Pillars of Strength.
You still have an opportunity to join us for the last two calls!
Find out more information and RSVP here.
