Un Techo para mi País Announces Opening Of Miami Office
At the event “Shaken. Chile & Haiti: Faces of an earthquake. Stories of a reconstruction – Photo Exhibit by Petra Barth”, held last Friday, June 4th, the non-governmental organization celebrated the opening of its new office in Miami.
Download Press Release in English
Download Press Release in Spanish
MIAMI, FL – Un Techo Para Mi País and The Haitian Heritage Museum were pleased to present “Shaken. Chile and Haiti: Faces of an earthquake. Stories of a reconstruction,” featuring approximately 30 photographs by Petra Barth. The exhibition, which will stay at the museum for three months, is accompanied by slideshows of photographs from construction sites of Un Techo Para Mi País in Chile and Haiti.
During this occasion Un Techo para mi País officially announced the opening of its Miami office. The office will be located at 2050 Coral Way, Suite 508 (Miami, FL 33145) and will help coordinate fundraising strategies in the United States. The non-governmental organization is at the moment focusing its efforts on the reconstruction of Chile and Haiti.
“I’m proud to see that after a year since we began this challenge in the US, we are now sharing this milestone with the people that supported us from the beginning. All committed to make our project their own, the project to eradicate the reality of extreme poverty in Latin America.” said the Director of Development of Un Techo para mi País, Rafael Achondo.
“The opening of this office in Miami is the first step of an ambitious initiative, seeking to involve the private sector, the media, the universities and US society in general, in the mission that thousands of university students are already committed to, in order to improve the life quality of over 200 millions families in our continent,” he stated.
Roberto Awad (Advisory Board Chairman, Un Techo para mi País), Eveline Pierre (Executive Director, The Haitian Heritage Museum) & Rafael Achondo (Director of Development, Un Techo para mi País)
The event was attended by approximately 150 people, including Un Techo para mi País Miami’s Advisory Board, the organization’s main sponsors and supporters, and Chile and Haiti officials. The Haitian Heritage Museum’s board and representatives also attended.
This was also the official launching of the campaign in response to the emergency situation. The non-governmental organization, Un Techo para mi País, has launched the fundraising campaign to help the Chilean and Haitian victims with the construction of transitional housing in both countries. The organization made a public call to individuals and businesses to support the reconstruction work in Chile and in Haiti through its website and social networks, with the slogan “TRAGEDIES THIS BIG ARE FELT ALL OVER THE WORLD”.
Notes to Editors
The work of Un Techo para mi País has been supported by different official representatives. In Chile’s case, the government formally solicited the participation of the organization in the reconstruction of the country. In addition, the former president of the United States, Bill Clinton, acknowledged the work in Haiti and congratulated the NGO for its commitment. The Inter-American Development Bank has also been involved to create a reconstruction strategy for the next four years via its Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF).
To date, Un Techo para mi País has already achieved two tasks in Haiti: building a total of 116 transitional houses and mobilizing more than 500 volunteers. In Chile, close to 20,000 houses have been built involving a total of 70,000 volunteers over the last three months.
Un Techo para mi País (UTPMP) is a Latin American non-profit organization that mobilizes youth volunteers to eradicate the extreme poverty that affects more than 80 million people in the region. We work together with Latin America’s most marginalized populations, constructing transitional homes and implementing social inclusion programs to empower slum residents with the tools to improve their quality of life.
The Haitian Heritage Museum is a non-profit organization that is committed to highlighting and preserving Haiti’s rich culture and heritage locally, nationally and internationally.
Petra Barth was born in Bavaria, Germany in 1964. She originally studied Design in Milan and worked for many years in the fashion industry. In 1999, fulfilling a lifetime ambition, she became a full time freelance photographer working primarily in Latin America and Asia. She studied at the Corcoran College of Art and Design with Joe Cameron, Andy Grundberg, and Bill Newman.
Petra worked in India, Cambodia, Myanmar, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, Haiti, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Bahamas, Europe and the United States.
The event was held Friday, June 4h at The Haitian Heritage Museum. The exhibit will remain at the museum for the next three months.
