Steph Forster
from steph:”i am a 28 year old multifaceted , diverse individual with a robust arts back ground in a variety of mediums. in addition i possess strong leadership & public speaking skills which i have developed by founding & managing my arts organization as well as my record label. i am a professional painter, photographer, indie music+film producer & IT/social media consultant. my objective is to continually develop my networks in the profit & not for profit sectors and learn from those I encounter so that I can become a better leader. i have a heart for the marginalized and use the resources i obtain from my consulting work to finance my humanitarian projects in haiti. i currently reside in port au prince haiti with my husband david ( aka MikeLab ) & work remotely with my international clients. i have been working in south east asia and china for over 4 years and in haiti for 2 years. i was born in selkirk manitoba canada and moved to british columbia canada at age 19 and have permanent roots established in vancouver bc canada. i travel back and forth between haiti & canada on a regular basis as i have many initiatives in vancouver bc canada through my arts organization & many humanitarian based initiatives in haiti that require me to be connected to the business community to obtain resources and funding for long term sustainability. i am always looking to partner with others and develop new relationships while managing existing relationships. i enjoy surfing, reading, traveling, helping others, giving, loving, listening, creating and changing the world.”
How did you get involved in Haiti?:Stephanie is the CEO & Founder of the Nehemiah Arts Foundation Vancouver BC an arts organization that was founded in 2008 to act as a springboard for various arts initiatives around the city of Vancouver as well as global initiatives for those living on the margins. She believes in providing opportunities in the arts for the “underdog” artists by creating events geared towards those living on the margins ,suffering from the bondage of addiction and social/economic barriers .
In 2010 after Haiti’s Devastating Earthquake Stephanie’s Vancouver Based Arts organization, Nehemiah Vancity, partnered alongside additional NGO’s on the ground that have been in Haiti Long Term to bring in aid.Stephanie’s Goal is to continually develop creative solutions that remedy artistic challenges the nation of Haiti is faced with. She has set up and established an indie record label with a base in Haiti providing haitians with an income as well as teaching them business skills through local Haitian Arts Co-Ops & one on one mentoring .The Record Label (Nehemiah Records www.nehemiahrecords.com ) started while Stephanie was filming her documentary “Voices of Haiti” & recruited Haitian hip hop artists to rap to beats on her films soundtrack. Stephanie has also developed a ”Haiti” series of Custom SkimBoards that feature the stories of those living in the tent cities as well as orphanages, the proceeds from the Haiti Series of SkimBoards assist in the long-term funding for Nehemiah’s artistic endeavours in Haiti.You are also able to buy Steph’s Art work/Prints for additional methods of support, you may view her work on her fanpage.
Stephanie went down to Haiti at the end of June & for the Month of July in 2010 to assess, survey and data mine for her Documentary Film Voices of Haiti/Voix d’ Haiti which she began Producing/Filming during her first time on the ground in Haiti. You can read about her time there through out this blog by accessing the archives. In 2011 Stephanie & her crew headed back into Haiti several times to finish the filming & production of Voices of Haiti/Voix d’ Haiti a Bilingual Documentary which is currently in post production .The Film will be used to raise the necessary funds to develop additional Haitian Arts Co-Op’s & further the reach of Nehemiah’s Arts initiatives in the years to come. The film will be available for purchase/download online upon its release in August 2012 & will be free to Haitian citizens. You Can follow the continual progression of this project on this site as well as FaceBook, Thank you for your ongoing support & Contributions to make this possible.
