Our Mission
Jump for Haiti is dedicated to improving the lives of Haitian children through enriching and uplifting sporting and educational opportunities. By providing financial resources and developing unique programs, focused primarily on education and the sport of track and field, the foundation strives to open doors for Haiti's children that they have not had access to.
Founding Story
Although born and raised in the United States, Jump for Haiti founder Samyr Laine always felt an inextricable link to the country of his parents' birth. Samyr's first visit to Haiti didn't come until 2011, a year after the devastating earthquake of 2010. By this time he had already represented the country as an international track and field athlete for several years, but it was this trip that acted as the impetus for the establishment of Jump for Haiti. Spending time with the children at an orphanage in northern Haiti and seeing the destruction in Port-au-Prince for himself was both a humbling and extremely moving experience and he accepted the challenge to do more to make a tangible difference in the lives of Haitian children (principally in Haiti itself, but also those in need in the United States).
The access Samyr had to sports programs and school sports while growing up in the U.S. played a significant role in his eventually advancing all the way to the Olympic triple jump finals in London in 2012. He thus envisioned Jump for Haiti playing such a role for young Haitian athletes of the future. There is no overstating the lessons that can learned through sports and there is also no denying the strong relationship between sports and education. As such, Samyr worked hard to bring Jump for Haiti into existence upon returning home from the London Olympics and since 2013 the foundation has been working hard to provide Haitian children with some of the opportunities that he benefited so greatly from. Through its programs Jump for Haiti emphasizes hands on work with children in Haiti to expose them to track and field, encourage the learning of some of sports' most valuable lessons, emphasize the ties between sports and education, provide access to quality coaching and development and counsel the children on competing at various levels.
