Our Story
The spirit of Haitian culture is an important part of Jou Nouvo’s mission. As Kerline Tofuri, Jou Nouvo Founder and Board President explains, “Growing up in Bon-Repos in a family of farmers, Haitian culture has its roots in our belief of ‘Konbit’, which means working together as a team, a tribe, to complete a task through until the end. There is joy, singing, and dancing. There is learning and laughter. There is a picture of people coming together to exchange ideas, encouragement, and empowerment to realize concrete or transformative change for the welfare of everyone, for self, for community, and for Haiti as a country.”
Retaining the spirit of the Haitian culture is for each participant of Jou Nouvo to find deep within themselves the ability to be or become independent, whether it be via education or work. Despite their struggles, they are strong, and they are together. As a group, we are a family. Everyone at Jou Nouvo can express their views in any language that they feel comfortable with. We all strive to respect our environment and to treat each other with honesty and kindness.
Jou Nouvo came from the first conversation I had with old friends, women that I grew up with, when I went back to Haiti in 2017 after many years in US. I saw the struggle they were having because they didn’t have access to education. I saw the determination they had to send their kids to school because they knew this was the only way out, but they couldn’t. And as a group, we decided it was a new day. We decided that we were going to change things instead of sitting and waiting and feeling desperate. It was a commitment to each other that there was going to be a new day in Bon-Repos.
Kerline Tofuri
It’s heartbreaking as a parent to think you can’t send your child to school. It just warms your heart to see what education does. Education is that spark of hope. It opens the possibility for community gathering, learning and progress.
John Huycke
Kerline Tofuri
Jou Nouvo Founder and President
BA Cultural Anthropology, Social Services
Field, Family Advocate
In 2007, Kerline Tofuri became Founder of Jou Nouvo-New Day, Inc. by offering adult literacy classes as a platform to address educational, social, economic, and health inequalities with and for families in Bon-Repos, Haiti.
Kerline holds a Bachelor of Arts in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Massachusetts, Boston. She is a trained instructor of English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).
Kerline is currently a Family Advocate with the Community Advocacy Program (CAP), a program of the Center for Community Health Education, and Research Service (CCHERS) at Northeastern University’s, Office of Urban Health Programs and Policy, the Bouve College of Health Sciences.
John Huycke
Chairman of the Board
Business Executive, MBA, CPA
John Huycke is an international business executive with an MBA from IMD in Lausanne, Switzerland, a CPA from Ontario, Canada, and a Bachelor of Commerce from Queens University in Kingston, Canada. Having lived and worked in several countries in Europe and North America, John brings a broad perspective to implementing our mission in the community.
John and his family sponsor 8 girls in Tanzania, India, Peru, and Haiti. They especially cherish the moments of being warmly welcomed in Bon-Repos by Leetchmie, Medjine, Chrislove, and the extended Jou Nouvo family. In close partnership with Kerline, the Huycke family is deeply engaged in growing Jou Nouvo’s initiatives and launching new education opportunities including university scholarships (HYEF) and the Girls Scholars Program.
John is especially proud of realizing our long-standing dream to build Bon-Repos’s first and only Community Center which now serves as a badly needed safe-haven and vibrant gathering place for families, children, and staff.
Our Team in Haiti
Lynn Balmir, Program Director
“I really enjoy spending time with them because as a woman myself I think this is amazing being able to empower young girls and watch them empower each other as well.”
“Haiti is a beautiful land. All the bad situations we’re dealing with right now are temporary. That’s why Jou Nouvo’s work, to make a meaningful difference in the local community, is most needed. I believe our services can be expanded to the whole country.”
- Julie Francois, Administrative Assistant and GSP Coordinator
- Medjine Charles, Administrative Assistant
- St. Pierre Destine, Driver
- Glada Antonie, Housekeeping and Kitchen Staff
- Micheline Joseph, Housekeeping and Kitchen Staff
- Jean Obed Dorceus, Security Guard
- Rosemond Plaisimond, Maintenance
- Inel Diverso, Maintenance
- Altema Johanne, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Cazelais Ilfra, Facilatator
- Celimene Dalencourt, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Fery Larose, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Marie Narah Vilon, Cooking Class Monitor
- Dieunite Demar, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Marie Guerline Belfort, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Marie Maude Telemaque, Class Monitor/Instructor
- Oslyne Gustinvil, Housekeeper, Notre Dame
- Jimmy Champagne, Computer Lab Supervisor
Our Team in the United States
Nikenson Romage
Development Officer
Bachelor's degree in administrative management, Mentor
From 2019 to 2023, Nikenson Romage led the operations of Jou Nouvo-New Day, Inc. in Haiti as Program Director. During this time, he brought one of our flagship projects
to fruition by successfully overseeing the construction
and launch of our beautiful community center. He then implemented our Bon-Repos leadership succession by developing our current Program Director Lynn Balmir
to be well positioned to succeed him.
Nikenson holds a bachelor's degree in administrative management from Quisqueya University in Haiti.
He is currently based in the USA, where he has joined
our US team as Development Officer to continue the
cycle of hope. He is a Lead Mentor for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta.
Cathy Huycke
Sponsorship Coordinator
Cathy and her family began sponsoring children in Tanzania, Peru and India in 2006 and in Haiti, with Jou Nouvo in 2014. Inspired by Jou Nouvo's work and dedication to educating children, Cathy later became Sponsorship Coordinator for the Children and University Scholarship Programs.
A graduate of MBA from the Ivy Business School at University of Western Ontario, London Canada and a Bachelor of Commerce from Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada, Cathy is also a Chartered Financial Analyst. Cathy worked several years in Global Asset Management, including Director and Department Head for Merrill Lynch’s Discretionary Asset Management group at Merrill Lynch in Geneva, Switzerland before moving to a non-profit focus.
Over the years, I’ve had the greatest opportunity to witness the positive and lasting changes Jou Nouvo’s work is making in the lives of people in my community. I see the women in our Adult Literacy program show up to our afternoon classes with their baskets of goods on their heads after a long day of street vending. As they go through the program, I hear them express their satisfaction at being able to write their names, sign their children’s report cards or endorse bank cheques. They are happy to be able to read songs and Bible verses in church, and read stories to their children. Not to mention, many of them have their children in our Child Sponsorship Program, who have only been able to start school thanks to Jou Nouvo.
Our Board
- Vladimir Jeune
- Jou Nouvo Board Member - Born and raised in Haiti
- Doctor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center
- Associate General Counsel at EMD Serono, Inc.
- Chrissy McDonald
- Jou Nouvo Treasurer
- MBA Finance, CPA
- Providence College, RI
- Liz Robinson
- Jou Nouvo Communication and Marketing
- Chief Strategy Officer and Owner, LRobinspires
- Brand and Marketing Strategist
- Simmons University; Advertising, Sociology
- William Cass
- Jou Nouvo Board Member
- Owner of the Suffolk Group, LLC
- Public Relations
- Robert B McConnaughey
- Jou Nouvo Board Member
- SVP – Head of IR Advisory and Community Impact at Corbin
- Advisors; Impact Investing Executive
- Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment; Masters of
- Environmental Management
Jou Nouvo Advocates
- Denise and Mike Miller
- Aidan Rooney
- Susan Davis
- Chris and Rick Ashburn
- Stephanie Bayt
- Christian Putnam
- Michelle Zupancic
- Dan St. Peter
- Gemma Yu