EIS Founder's Story

In 2016, I left Haiti for the USA, faced with a significant decision: to live near my family in Florida or with friends in another state. Initially, I chose family, residing with them for eight months before relocating to Ohio. In Ohio, I found support from a wonderful family and had a job waiting for me at Mission Possible's stateside office, where I continued my work from the Haitian office where I'd dedicated over a decade of my life.

Living in my friend's basement, I worked tirelessly and saved for my future education and career. Although I had friends and spoke English, the transition was challenging, even for everyday tasks like grocery shopping. Reflecting on this period, I realized how fortunate I was to have a strong support system and language skills. This experience made me ponder the difficulties faced by immigrants who lack these advantages when transitioning to a new country.

This inspired me to create resources through EIS (Empowering Integration Solutions) to aid immigrants in navigating their new life in the United States. EIS strives to provide immigrants with essential information and resources, empowering them to make informed decisions as they start anew, just like a child entering the world. EIS was born from a long-standing desire to help others and a series of recurring dreams about saving people, particularly children.

EIS aims to "save" immigrants by offering them a helping hand as they leave behind their former life and embark on a new journey in the US, often starting with minimal experience. An incident involving a Haitian immigrant in need of assistance highlighted the necessity for such support, emphasizing how newcomers in a community, unfamiliar with the language and without connections, can benefit from EIS. After months of brainstorming, Empowering Integration Solutions officially launched in August 2023.

-- Hachemy Gabriel
Founder, ATA Member, Fluent in English, French and Haitian Creole