VOA标准英语2010年-Helping Haiti is a Personal Mission fo

Haitian-born actor Jimmy Jean-Louis of the popular NBC series 'Heroes' at the 'Sustainable Haiti' conference in Miami, 18 Mar¹ 2010

A year-and-a-half ago, Pan American Development Foundation (PADF) asked Haitian-born actor, Jimmy Jean-Louis to be its Goodwill² Ambassador for children. Jean-Louis, is perhaps best known for his role as the "Haitian" in the NBC hit series "Heroes".  Independent, non-profit PADF has over 150 people all over Haiti working on projects such as protecting human rights, community-driven development and disaster relief. After January 12, PADF partnered with Hollywood Unites For Haiti, his own foundation. 

As rewarding as the work has been, the actor is now on a personal mission to help rebuild the country where he was born and where he still has family.  An emotional Jean-Louis talked about the devastation³ he saw after the January 12 earthquake and during his subsequent visits back to his homeland.  

"Right after the earthquake it was that sense of - I was happy to go back to my parents, because they were there, when the earthquake took place," Jean-Louis explains. His parents' home is located in Tabarre, just outside Port-au-Prince. Jean-Louis says his family is doing "good...better" after the earthquake. 

"My parents lost their house, my sister lost her house - pretty much everybody lost whatever they had in Haiti. But it's just material," Jean-Louis notes. "I think everybody is in that same state."

Jimmy Jean-Louis didn't lose any close relatives on January 12 but he did lose some distant relatives. And his house collapsed⁴, killing⁵ a 28-year-old man who was living there. After telling the story, the actor pauses to contemplate⁶ the tragedy of a young life lost so suddenly - there's sadness in his eyes.

Although he lives a somewhat charmed, Hollywood life, Jimmy Jean-Louis says he always enjoys going back to Haiti - even now.  

"What goes through my mind when I go back to Haiti? It's always joy regardless of the situation. Even with the earthquake it's one place where I feel complete," he says. "I just feel being myself whenever I'm in Haiti." 

Jean-Louis just got back from Haiti. Accompanying him were Dominican-born actress Dania Ramirez who also stars in "Heroes" and former National Basketball Association player Cliff Robinson. Robinson played for the New Jersey⁷ Nets until 2007.

Jean-Louis says what he saw was very painful. He mentions the St. Louis de Gonzague neighborhood that has become a "huge" tent city. People are living in very tight quarters he says.  The actor remembers thinking about those tent-dwellers while lying in bed at his home in Haiti on a rainy night. He says the area where the tent city is located is flat meaning a heavy rainfall floods their living quarters.

"It's heartbreaking to know that they're living under those conditions," an emotional Jean-Louis says. "Some of them don't even have any food the next day - or at least have some kind of ... comfort - so it's a really bad situation, it doesn't matter how you look at it. Now we have to find solutions."

Jimmy Jean-Louis hopes celebrities⁸ who travel to Haiti will keep the country in the news and on people's minds.

"Both of them [Dania Ramirez and Cliff Robinson] now are going to be able to reach out to a lot of people because they have a big network," Jean Louis says. Robinson has access to NBA fans while Ramirez also has many fans due to her appearance in the popular movie "X-Men".

But Jean-Louis hopes the involvement and visits by more Hollywood celebrities will keep attention on the country. 

"If it's a question of having to do the effort without being pushed, they might not do it," he says. "[But] There are still a lot of people in Hollywood dedicated⁹ to the Haitian cause."  Jean-Louis cites actor Sean Penn who has spent a lot of time inside Haiti helping¹⁰ to rebuild and provide humanitarian¹¹ assistance. Penn established a private Haiti relief foundation with a U.S. businesswoman.  He says movie director Paul Haggis has also taken many celebrities to Haiti during his visits. Among them: Josh Brolin, Diane Lane and Madeleine Stowe.    

Asked whether he thinks the "Sustainable Haiti" conference discussion forums¹² will have any impact in real terms on Haiti, the actor says he thinks change will happen. He also thinks it would be beneficial to organize a similar type of conference inside Haiti.

Stories on Haiti have significantly diminished in the press, more than two months after the devastating¹³ 7.0 earthquake. But Jimmy Jean-Louis hopes his effort as PADF ambassador and those pursued by his foundation, will make a difference.

"What I've been trying to do is keep that issue alive," he says. "We just have to keep reminding them, we have to. In America, in Asia, in Europe we have to keep Haiti on the map. We have to keep Haiti in the news, because otherwise we're not going to have the help that is necessary to do what we need to do to rebuild Haiti." 

The actor says it will require money and constant attention and he's committed to making sure that happens. 
 

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

3 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 contemplate   

vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视

参考例句：

• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate.战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。
• The consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate.后果不堪设想。

7 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

8 celebrities   

n.（尤指娱乐界的）名人( celebrity的名词复数 )；名流；名声；名誉

参考例句：

• He only invited A-list celebrities to his parties. 他只邀请头等名流参加他的聚会。
• a TV chat show full of B-list celebrities 由众多二流人物参加的电视访谈节目

9 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

12 forums   

讨论会； 座谈会； 广播专题讲话节目； 集会的公共场所( forum的名词复数 )； 论坛，讨论会，专题讨论节目； 法庭

参考例句：

• A few of the forums were being closely monitored by the administrators. 有些论坛被管理员严密监控。
• It can cast a dark cloud over these forums. 它将是的论坛上空布满乌云。

13 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。