Cazale Community and Cultural Center

About Us

What We Do

The Cazale Community and Cultural Center is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of young people living in Haiti. We aim to enhance positive social interactions and help the youth build self-esteem and confidence. We do this by offering tutoring and year-round extracurricular activities. We currently have an after school center in Cazale, Haiti that is servicing about 90+ students in elementary and middle school everyday with the help of 1 director, 5 teachers and 1 student helper. The center is open after-school from 2pm to 7pm and on Saturday’s from 10am to 5pm. We offer access to a library, English classes, as well as music lessons where students can learn to play instruments. Weekend activities include board games, dance, arts, computer literacy classes and sports. We also provide students with access to excursions outside of Cazale. Every year we host a 1-week summer camp for about 100 youth in Haiti in collaboration with youth in New York. This summer camp builds off of the topics discussed during the after-school program including promoting community service, health and hygiene, self-esteem and the overall goal of loving your neighbor as yourself. Yearly, we also host a CCCC Genie summer contest on the radio wherein contestants compete in a Jeopardy-like game and are able to receive prizes if they place in the top 4.

Founder's Biography
Soledad moved from Port-au-Prince, her homeland in Haiti, to New York in 1981. A few years ago, she saw a need in her homeland and wanted to do her part to pay it forward. In 2017, she decided to take a leap of faith and open an after-school center in Cazale, with the hope of having a safe space with electricity where students in the town could come and do their homework, read, and play. What began as a goal of having one or two teachers, basic furniture, and lighting, evolved into a full daily after school program that serves close to 100 students. Less than five years after its inception, the CCCC has a thriving after school program that offers dance, music, and computer literacy classes, as well as an annual summer camp that serves on average 100 kids each summer. Soledad’s long-term goal for the CCCC is to become the “YMCA of Cazale” and eventually expand to other parts of Haiti. In addition to managing the affairs of the CCCC, Soledad is the proud mother of her two children. She is also the Director of Production and Operations at a product development firm in New York City, where she has worked for over 30 years. Soledad enjoys traveling and is a board member of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church.
-Soledad DesRuisseaux (Founder)

OUR TEAM

Board Members

Soledad DesRuisseaux-Jacques

Founder & President

Soledad’s long-term goal for the CCCC is to become the “YMCA” of Cazale” and eventually expand to other parts of Haiti. In addition to managing the affairs of the CCCC, Soledad is the proud mother of her two children. She is also the Director of Production and Operation at a product development firm in New York City, where she has worked for over 30 years. Soledad enjoys traveling and is a board member of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church