On January 1st, the women of Lafon celebrated Haitian Independence Day with a traditional pumpkin soup party, courtesy of CCH. During the time of slavery, the French forbade enslaved Africans from eating this beloved soup, simply to deprive them of joy. So when those enslaved people rose up and won their freedom in the Haitian Revolution, pumpkin soup became a symbol of national liberation.

It might seem like a small thing, but keeping traditions like this alive is especially important when times are tough. And times are definitely tough all over Haiti these days. Lafon is no exception. So it was a tremendous boon for the Women's Association to be able to provide this festive celebration for their community.


They sourced their ingredients locally of course, and preparing the soup was an all-day affair. The result, as you can see, was a sense of infectious joy that pervaded this small corner of the world, a reminder of why freedom is always worth fighting for, even when the struggle never seems to end.

–Michael Dylan Rogers
Board Secretary, Cultural Capital Haiti
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