Laundromats and Haiti - An Unlikely Alliance

Laundromats and Haiti - An Unlikely Alliance

Melanie Hope Greenberg created a book providing early learners with a slice of life from Haiti and a glimpse of Aunt Lilly's adopted home In Brooklyn, NY.  Aunt Lilly grew up in Haiti and came to Brooklyn to find work and she lives there still.  Through the many paintings Aunt Lilly paints she provides readers a glimpse into her beloved Haiti and its singing birds, beautiful flowers and an idyllic life, in Haiti, on the island south of Florida (and the United States).
Using Aunt Lilly's work in the laundromat early learners are also given a look into another life as well.  Many urban children might be very familiar with laundromats - laundromat; coin wash where clothes are washed and dried without much personalized professional help.  However, in some laundromats there are attendants, much like Aunt Lilly, who take in bundles of clothes and wash and dry them while the clients are at work.  In other laundromats, the users must stay and do their own washing and drying using the coin operated machines in the facility.  I'm guessing that the larger urban areas are the ones that have attendants in the laundromats - in larger cities such as Brooklyn, NY.  Smaller cities such as Cedar Rapids, Iowa have self-service laundromats. Often we assume children know about these places and are aware of the nuances of their existence.  Not true.  The six-year-old who made this video really had not been in a laundromat.  His experience with washing and drying clothes had been in his house with the family's own personal washer and dryer.  He has never lived in an apartment building, never shared washing facilities.  For many other children that is an accepted part of their life.  This book will be a mirror for some children and a window into another experience for others. Aunt Lilly's Laundromat by Melanie Hope Greenberg provides an opportunity to discuss the function of laundromats - and the experiences related to the function of washing and drying clothing.  According to ISBS World there are a few more than 21,000 laundromats in the United States as of 2019.  For more information see: Laundromats in the US Number of Businesses 2000-2025; retrieved from https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-statistics/number-of-businesses/laundromats-united-states/.

Beyond the function of laundromats - this book also provides a discussion starter for locating and learning about the country of Haiti.  Aunt Lilly's paintings showcased by Greenberg throughout the book gives us all a view of the lush beauty of an island many of us will never see.  Few curriculum units in our nation's schools deal with Haiti but the country is a close neighbor of the United States and our citizens should be aware of the country and the culture.  According to National Geographic "Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with 80% of the population living in poverty." (https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/countries/haiti/).

When Pryor Optimus (6 years old) was introduced to Aunt Lilly's Laundromat he not only had an opportunity to learn about laundromats but he became aware of Haiti as well.  We looked at the maps in his activity room downstairs and discussed the fact that Haiti was part of an island and was located south of Florida (a state that was in his schema).
Watch Pryor Optimus's book readers you tube video taking a peek at Book Readers: Aunt Lilly's Laundromat.  

 Aunt Lilly grew up in Haiti and came in Brooklyn NY and opened her laundromat.

Coincidently while discussing Aunt Lilly's Laundromat, family friends were involved in making 4000 draw string bags to be filled with toiletries and small gifts for the children of Haiti - to be sent for school children during the holidays.  While attending a local firefighter's fundraising breakfast (with a flea market at the venue) we found 100 hot wheel cars - just right toys to stick into 100 of those bags.  While Pryor really loved hot wheel cars, after a discussion, he said, "I still like this blue hot wheel car, but I will let some other boy or girl have it.  They will like it too."  A small step toward compassion and caring for another human.

So at first glance Aunt Lilly's Laundromat is a simple story of a woman who works in the city, helping her neighbors, and sharing her own joy of life.  But it is really so much more -- it is a starter for much more learning.  As with all great books this book tells a good story - one that will draw readers back time and again to search through the details and to soak in the intricacies of the illustrations (did you notice as Pryor Optimus does - the snake and bugs on the vases? or the dots in the pictures, or the lush country side of Haiti?).  This book like many others, does not need  to teach everything about laundromats or about Haiti but each can provide an awareness, a slice of life that can be built upon as other books are read, and as other experiences become part of the learners' lives.

"A good book is not nearly as simple as it might look." ~ Clair Patricia Hansen

Read --
Aunt Lilly's Laundromat by Melanie Hope Greenberg (2018).

And find out more about the author and her other books on her blog at http://melaniehopegreenberg.blogspot.com/.