Our Team

The Rayjon Board (Canada)

Top row: Joanna Catterson (Chairperson), John Barnfield (President & Co-Founder), John Spinozzi (Financial Director) Mary Weerdenburg (Secretary & Eyeglass Liaison), Deborah Austin (Projects Director), Peterson Benjamin (Haiti)

Bottom row: Dr. Glen Maddison (Medical Director), Terry DeMarco, Bryce McGarvey (Trips Director), Cheryl DeGroot, Brian Rea, Kurtis Lush

Right: Heather Smith (Executive Director)

Haitian & Dominican Leaders

Andre Jean-Pierre, Field Director

Responsible for oversight and management of all Rayjon-supported project activities in Haiti (Cap Haitian and St. Marc) since 2012.

Andre deserves special mention for his ability to build relationships, empower young leaders, and support Haitian-led initiatives.

He’s a wonderful husband and father to three beautiful children. He is also just one our favourite human beings, freely sharing his insight and contagious laughter. More about Andre

Renaud Thomas, Community Coordinator/Manager

Listen to Renaud explain how he believes Haiti will find solutions to its most difficult problems here.

More info About Renaud coming soon!

Elida Jeanty, Women’s Federation Liaison

More about Elida coming soon!

Learn More About Haitian & Dominican Leaders

Georges Thertulien, Director, Dominican Republic

More info about Georges coming soon!

Watch as Georges takes us on a tour of Barrio 41 & speaks about his hopes for the future

“It just feels good to know that I am not only giving back to my community but also to know that I am investing in the next generation of Haitian leaders and young people coming up.”

—Andre Jean-Pierre

“Yes, we have a lot of problems here…But, if you ask me a question like, ‘What can we do now for Haiti?’ My answer would be community solutions.”

– Renaud Thomas

“How much humility these people must have; they have so little, still, they seem to be so thankful for so much. I came to discover my own spiritual poverty.”

– Scott Burns

“My one week in Haiti taught me more about human dignity than anything else I have ever experienced. For anyone choosing to go next year, they will find as I did, that they will receive much more from the Haitians than we could ever hope to give them.”

– Elly Vukobratic

Read more about Haitian and Dominican leaders creating positive change here.

Our Mission

Rayjon Share Care supports partners in Haiti and the Dominican Republic to enhance their well-being and capacity. Rayjon provides a bridge between those who can help and those who need and want help in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and other developing countries.

Our Vision

A world in which people have an equal opportunity to thrive ─ empowered, independent and self-sufficient.

Learn More

Rayjon Organogram

Click here to view Rayjon’s Organizational Structure

Committees

Trips Committee:

The trips committee reviews all requests for Rayjon Trips including Awareness Trips, Work Trips and Project Engagement Trips and makes recommendations to the Board with respect to trip approvals, safety and policies. More about Rayjon Trips

Community Engagement Committee:

The Community Engagement Committee is responsible for fundraising, outreach/awareness, and coordinating volunteering for events. Sub-committees organize special major fundraising events (i.e. Fall Fair, DeGroot’s sale, Women Helping Women event, and more). More about volunteering with Rayjon

Finance Team:

The Finance team is comprised of the Financial Director, the Executive Director and Rayjon volunteers who carry out financial activities including donation receipting, accounting, account reconciling and audit readiness.

Projects Advisory Team

The Projects Advisory team provides support to the Projects Director and Project Manager to oversee the three Community Development projects supported by Rayjon in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. They are actively involved in building and maintaining relationships with Haitian & Dominican partners, supporting Haitian/Dominican led initiatives and direction, empowering local leaders, monitoring and evaluation, and ensuring all project activities align with Rayjon’s overall mission, goals, and Strategic Plan.

Fund Development Committee:

The Fund Development Committee provides strategic recommendations to the Rayjon Board in order to ensure long-term financial stability.

The Eyeglass Program:

The Rayjon Eyeglass Program is coordinated by a committee of volunteers who meet regularly to plan all activities related to Eyeglass Trips. It takes many volunteers in Canada who receive, clean, sort, and enter glasses into a database for use in clinics. Additional volunteers become members of the Eyeglass Teams, travelling to dispense prescription glasses to those in need. More info

Rayjon’s Impact on the World

Vaccinations for children and adults

Children educated from preschool to grade 13

Pairs of prescription eyeglasses prescribed & fitted in 9 countries

Impoverished elementary & secondary students received tuition support to attend school

Malnourished children received life-saving treatment

Women received loans & training to start small businesses

Adults learned to read & write