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About
Shelley Jean is an entrepreneur who works on behalf of the poor in Haiti through sustainable job creation. Her heartbeat is to provide a solution to the orphan crisis and through here fair-trade certified business, Papillon Marketplace, has become a beacon of hope for mothers and fathers who would otherwise have to abandon their children to orphanages or worse because they can’t afford to keep them. Shelley has spent most of the last decade residing in Haiti, speaks Haitian Creole, and has become a resource not only for working with the poor but also on current events in Haiti.
Shelley is a mother to her four amazing children, two of them adopted from Haiti, and currently splits her time between Florida and Haiti. She is an author of two books, Shelley in Haiti (2017) as well as The Orphan Gospels (2019), co-founder of the non-profit organizations Apparent Project and Papillon Empowerment and speaks and writes about the topic of sustainability and solutions for poverty whenever she can.
THE HAITIAN ARTISAN GOODS THAT SHELLEY REPRESENTS HAVE BEEN FEATURED ON OPRAH, THE GAP, AND IN VOGUE MAGAZINE AND PRAISED BY DESIGNERS AND PRAISED
BY DESIGNERS INCLUDING DONNA KARAN AND STELLA JEAN
“Shelley could have slid through a life of leisure. A gifted artist, an entrepreneurial problem solver, a walking therapeutic clinic, a spiritual guide – it’s all hers, and more. But what she’s made of herself, as her unflinching story reveals, is a servant. And in becoming the servant she is, she found joy. If this book doesn’t inspire you, nothing will.”
– Mary Fisher, American Activist, and Author
Bookshop
What makes a country like Haiti so poor? Why are there so many orphanages? What can those of us from a place a privilege do to help in a country where the poverty seems relentless, systemic, and complicated? Are there better options than building more orphanages to help children in poverty? All of these questions and more are addressed in Shelley’s newest book, “The Orphan Gospels” where she wrestles with the complicated solutions to child abandonment and orphan care in an attempt to bring hope to the plight of the orphan both in Haiti and worldwide.
Shelley Jean traveled to Haiti determined to adopt an orphan she had discovered online. Although she was already the mother of two biological children, expanding her family by embracing a displaced child was, in part, a fulfillment of her compassionate Christian faith.
But when she witnessed the agony many Haitian women experienced when poverty —not lack of love—forced them to give up their children to orphanages, she was outraged.
Soon, a new mission blossomed. As she came to better understand and appreciate the people of Haiti, Shelley had a vision of creating jobs that would help some parents earn an income so that they could support their babies and raise them to become productive adults … read more
