Homeward Bound
Career paths into the NGO sector often take unexpected turns. “My story is very much about making a plan and then life happens,” says Tracy Hutchinson Wallace, Corporate Communications Officer at Habitat for Humanity in Trinidad and Tobago, the southernmost Caribbean islands.
Hurricane Gilbert in 1988 derailed her intentions to study medicine at the University of the West Indies in Jamaica. A category five hurricane almost 600 miles in diameter, Gilbert struck with devastating impact across the Caribbean. Ms. Wallace transferred her enrollment to the University’s Trinidad campus, close to home, figuring she’d wait a year then pursue her medical degree in Jamaica. That never happened. Instead, she stayed put and earned a degree in biochemistry.
Tracy Hutchinson Wallace
Ms. Wallace shifted course again after a friend working for the nation’s first independent television station invited her to stop by. She arrived during the live taping of a Catholic Mass. She met the Station Manager who offered her a temporary assignment. Over the next 12 years Ms. Wallace progressed from production assistant to an operations manager who produced sports and live events.
After a short stint in government communications that put her broadcasting skills to work, the Red Cross called, seeking someone to launch a communications program in English and French. Ms Wallace speaks both languages. She embraced a challenge that focused on disaster resilience. After more than a decade steeped in entertaining television audiences, she welcomed the unexpected chance to illuminate humanitarian issues.
“My background in advocacy for NGOs came through the broadcast media,” Ms. Wallace says. She sees herself as a really good example of letting paths unfold. “Do not shut your eyes to any possibility,” she counsels. ‘Take opportunities even if they are not part of your original plan. You learn something from every job and you may end up surprised to learn what your true passion is.”
The next twist came during a sabbatical from the Red Cross. Habitat for Humanity needed a communications professional to beef up its visibility in Trinidad and Tobago. Ms. Wallace accepted the job and dove right in where need is great. According to Habitat’s website, thirty percentof the country’s population is classed as poor, meaning a maximum monthly household income equal to US$148, or indigent, meaning a maximum monthly household income equal to US$62 — ruling outcommercial loans or subsidies from the Housing Development Corporation(HDC) or Trinidad Mortgage Finance Company(TTMF). Even families that do quality can wait decades for government housing assistance.
“People in Trinidad and Tobago juggle funds to choose between paying rent, buying nutritious food or buying medicine,” says Ms. Wallace. “A fourth of the population cannot afford to live somewhere decent with good sanitation, running water, strong walls and roofs. Habitat is very much needed.”
Although the magnitude of the challenge is daunting and resources are limited, many Trinbagonians, as residents call themselves, are getting help. Through June 2019, Habitat TTO has provided 877 shelter solutions, trained more than 4,000 individuals in financial, technical, lie skills and disaster reduction programs, and served some 24,000 people all told. Low-income homeowners secure affordable mortgages. Alternative shelter solutions house potential homeowners. Corporate and individual donations furnish funding for construction and materials.
Red tape imposes an extra administrative burden on disabled citizens, says Ms. Wallace. In Trinidad and Tobago, anyone who owns land is not eligible for housing subsidies. That policy makes building a house impossible for disabled people who own property but cannot earn a steady living.
In 2018 Habitat TTO launched a petition to remove the hurdle. The petition was unsuccessful but, once again, fate intervened. They learned about a young man named Andy who is deaf and suffers from related speech impediments. He owned a crumbling house that had belonged to his parents for four decades. As a property owner, never mind the condition, he could not seek public subsidies to make his home livable. Unscrupulous family members were trying to persuade Andy to cede ownership to them with a promise that he could remain in the house, a deception that bad law encourages, warns Ms Wallace.
Habitat found someone to donate part of the up front costs to repair the house. The Caribbean Policy Development Centre, a coalition of Caribbean NGOs, also pitched in. Volunteers including a speech pathologist, University students and members of the Deaf Community mobilized in support. Over three months, they helped Andy build his house and install a septic system. “Now Andy is in a house that is well built and shows how Habitat can assist vulnerable groups,” says Ms. Wallace. “For me, that is one of our biggest success stories.”
