On April 9, 2024, our Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the Everett Haitian Community (EHCC) Rev. Dr. Myrlande DesRosiers; Esq. represented EHCC in a panel discussion at Suffolk University.
On Tuesday, April 2, HCFA hosted its annual For The People celebration at the Boston Park Plaza. A highlight of the evening came when HCFA had the honor of presenting the 2024 Rob Restuccia Leadership Awards to Representative John J. Lawn, Jr. and the Everett Haitian Community Center (EHCC). The Restuccia Leadership Awards are presented annually to individuals and organizations whose leadership and dedication for their communities embody the spirit of HCFA’s former Executive Director, Rob Restuccia.
Reverend Myrlande DesRosiers and the team at the Everett Haitian Community Center exemplify what it means to effectively advocate on behalf of fellow community members. As a partner organization on the Vaccine Equity Initiative and the MassHealth Redetermination Campaign, HCFA consistently witnessed EHCC’s commitment to health justice.
HealthCare for All MA
Thank you to HealthCare For All, HCFA Executive Director Amy Rosenthal and HCFA leadership for awarding EHCC. This means the world to us.
To our elected officials present here tonight, fellow honorees, esteemed colleagues and attendees, community partners, and fellow CBOs, I welcome you and thank you for all that you do to make the Commonwealth an even better place. I stand before you, humbled and honored, to accept this award.
As I accept this prestigious award on behalf of the EHCC, I cannot help but marvel at the wonderful partnerships and my team members’ dedication. Some of my team members are here with me tonight; I’d like them to please stand.
We at EHCC could not undertake this worthy, critical, and important work of redetermination alone. This honor tonight is not just for EHCC but is shared with everyone who has been part of this incredible journey. To HCFA, thank you for supporting us with the necessary resources, guidance, leadership, and friendship. To our team, you are the unsung heroes, the backbone of every project, and the spirit behind our efficiency. HCFA, thank you for not just talking the talk but also walking the walk. We cannot discuss health equity without being intentional about how we approach it. You supported and collaborated with EHCC, a small but mighty Haitian-led organization, to bridge the gap in access for the Haitian community in Everett and surrounding cities, as well as for the Haitian community at large and our newest arrivals. You have given us, and other community-based organizations, a seat at the table and continue to welcome our perspectives and ideas as organizations that are on the ground and embedded in our respective communities. This is the true meaning of intentional partnership: pooling together resources to effectively tackle health inequity in marginalized communities while empowering smaller and diverse organizations in their missions to do so.
Your dedication, creativity, and spirit of collaboration have not only made it possible for us to work tirelessly to bring forth positive change and usher in a new chapter of equity and prosperity in the Commonwealth. EHCC is blessed to be part of this movement that is paving the way to a better tomorrow for all.
The Everett Haitian Community Center (The EHCC) founded a project called: The Annual Haitian Heritage Month and Flag Raising Ceremony in Everett. This project was created in 2016 and the EHCC has organized it for the past 7 years. Before EHCC’s pioneering efforts, Everett had not officially acknowledged or celebrated Haitian Heritage Month, nor had a Haitian flag-raising ceremony taken place. The EHCC takes immense pride in being the initiating force behind this historic accomplishment, as it symbolizes an official recognition of the vibrant Haitian community in Everett and honors Haiti’s rich history and heritage. In this collaborative effort with the city of Everett, the Everett Haitian Community Center has played a pivotal role in establishing this now cherished tradition, which celebrates and honors the rich heritage of the Haitian community in Everett and beyond. EHCC is the cornerstone of Everett’s Haitian Heritage Month Celebration and Flag Raising Ceremony.
The EHCC has worked tirelessly and invested significantly to establish and nurture this event over the years. Our commitment to inclusivity and community engagement has been unwavering, as evidenced by our longstanding practice of inviting community partners, churches, and Haitian/Haitian American residents from across Everett and Greater Boston to actively participate in and contribute to the ceremony since the event’s inception. This collaborative approach has been the bedrock of our success, fostering a sense of unity and inclusivity within the community. Each year, the EHCC meticulously extends invitations to organizations, institutions, and individuals in a manner that upholds the dignity, protocol, and traditions associated with the raising of our flag. This project embraces the opportunity to cultivate greater unity and inclusivity within our community. By upholding the spirit of collaboration that has defined our partnership each year to organize this event over the past seven years, we continue to harness the collective expertise, resources, and perspectives of all stakeholders to ensure that the Haitian Flag Raising Ceremony authentically reflects the richness and diversity of our community. This project stays true to its Haitian origins and traditions whereas, the flag raising in Everett has been organized since 2016 for the past 7 years on May 18th. as the Everett Haitian Community Center (the EHCC) had strategized and planned it to be.
By our Founder: The Reverend; Dr. Myrlande P.G. Guillaume DesRosiers