Editorial Note: This is part of a series that profiles the recipients of Lady Freethinker’s Urgent Need Fund 2024 grant program. The program was created to support nonprofit organizations involved in animal rescue and care, and those that promote better treatment of animals. If you’re interested in learning more about the program, click here.
On her way to work every day in Haiti, Marylin Esper Acloque would feed the dogs she saw on the street. Shortly after that, she began caring for companion animals people could no longer care for. She tried searching for an organization that could help her efforts but couldn’t find any, so she decided to open the first shelter and sanctuary in Haiti, Fondation Alliance Verte.
“There was so much to do for the animals, so much to do to educate and change the Haitian mentality that I was looking for help,” Acloque told Lady Freethinker.
Acloque’s first intake rescue was a skinny dog with a dislocated hip whom she spotted walking along the road a few months after Haiti’s catastrophic earthquake in 2010. She began feeding him, and after a few weeks, she rescued him with the help of some employees at the local veterinarian’s office. Although he seemed very depressed at first and “would look for dirt and rocks to eat”—likely because he couldn’t find food on the streets—he eventually displayed signs of contentment.
Dog In Shelter (Courtesy of Fondation Alliance Verte)
Haiti has no animal cruelty laws and cats are often stolen or raised for their meat, according to Acloque. The country has also been assigned a “Do Not Travel” advisory from the U.S. Department of State due to the high amount of violent crimes and civil unrest. Acloque, however, remains undeterred.
“Most of my family and friends left Haiti for the same reasons as everybody else. I am still here,” Acloque said. “I will never leave the animals behind and will spend my life here in Haiti taking care of them and continuing my mission.”
Thanks to our generous supporters, Lady Freethinker awarded Fondation Alliance Verte a $10,000 grant to provide food, vaccinations, spay and neuter services, kennels, and catios for their shelter animals. The grant came when the organization had just lost their most important donor.
Cat In Catio (Courtesy of Fondation Alliance Verte)
“Getting this grant was, actually, a miracle, and we will be forever grateful,” Acloque said. “We see it as an early Christmas miracle.”
Thank you for helping us support this inspiring organization and helping shelter animals in need in Haiti.
To learn more about Fondation Alliance Verte, please visit their Facebook or Instagram page.
