We rise by lifting Ouanaminthe.
Action Communautaire des Ouanaminthais is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit built by the sons, daughters and friends of Ouanaminthe. We fund education, health, youth and culture in the town that raised us.
A whole generation left. None of us ever really did.
We were educated in Ouanaminthe. We learned our first lessons in its classrooms. We worshipped in its churches. We played in its streets. Then we scattered across Haiti, the United States, Canada and Europe, and we built careers.
Ouanaminthe sits on Haiti's northeastern border, a town of traders, farmers, students and families who have carried themselves through decades no community should have to survive. It is a place with enormous energy and very little institutional support. What it has never lacked is people who love it.
That is the whole idea behind ACO. Not charity handed down from far away, but a hometown investing in itself through the people it produced. Doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants, educators and business owners, all pointing their resources back at the same few square miles.
We know the schools by name. We know the families. We know which neighborhood needs what, because we grew up in it. That is the difference between an organization that helps a place and an organization that belongs to it.
Local knowledge
Every project is chosen by people who were raised in Ouanaminthe and still have family there. Nothing gets funded from a spreadsheet.
Diaspora strength
Our members are professionals across four continents. We give money, and we also give expertise, networks and time.
Full accountability
Registered as a nonprofit in both the United States and Haiti, with 501(c)(3) status. Every dollar is tracked and reported to members.
Built to last
We are not running a one time campaign. We are building a permanent institution for a town that deserves one.
Small numbers, real weight.
Ouanaminthe is not an expensive place to change. Modest gifts go a long way here, and we can tell you exactly where they land.
DonateAmounts are illustrative of program cost ranges. ACO publishes an annual report to all members.
Puts school supplies in the hands of a child for a full term.
Covers a Noël Solidarité gift and holiday meal for three children.
Supports a student for half a school year through our education fund.
One full year of membership, funding every program we run.
Helps stock a computer laboratory bench or fund a community health screening day.
This is what your giving looks like.
Forty seconds from Noël Solidarité and Ouanaminthe En Blanc. Filmed by our own members on the ground in Ouanaminthe.
Six fronts. One town.
Everything we do falls into six areas, chosen because they are what Ouanaminthe told us it needed.
Education
Scholarships, school assistance, computer laboratories, teacher development and academic mentoring for students who have the ability but not the means.
Health
Medical missions, community health screenings, women's health initiatives and mental health awareness in a town with limited clinical capacity.
Youth
A leadership academy, entrepreneurship training, sports development and career mentoring, so young people can build a future without leaving.
Community
Parks, libraries, community centers and public beautification. Places where a town gathers are not luxuries.
Economy
Small business grants, a business incubator, agricultural support and professional networking that keeps money circulating locally.
Culture
Historical archives, cultural festivals, heritage preservation and oral history, so the next generation knows exactly who they come from.
Success has greater meaning when it is shared with the community that helped shape us.The founding conviction of ACO
Ouanaminthe En Blanc
Every August, guests dress entirely in white and gather for five hours of Haitian cuisine, live performance, music and reunion. It began in 2023 with 220 guests at Villa CODEVI. It has become one of the largest cultural gatherings in northeastern Haiti.
It is also our largest fundraiser. Every ticket and every sponsorship funds the scholarships, the medical outreach and the Christmas that hundreds of children in Ouanaminthe would not otherwise have.
Dress in white. Celebrate Ouanaminthe. Change lives.
Pick the one that fits your life.
Not everyone can give the same way. All three of these move Ouanaminthe forward.
Become a member
From one dollar a month. Members vote, serve on committees, lead projects and shape where the organization goes next.
Join ACOGive once
A single gift, whenever it works for you. Every dollar goes into programs for children and families in Ouanaminthe.
Donate NowGive your time
Mentor a student, help run an event, lend your professional skill, or recruit the next member. Time is worth as much as money here.
VolunteerYour generosity today creates opportunity tomorrow.
One project, one family, one life at a time. Join a growing network of Ouanaminthais and friends of Ouanaminthe who decided that giving back is not optional.