Born and raised in Port−au−Prince, Haiti, junior Clark Duverger witnessed from abroad the devastation of his birthplace, all the while uncertain of his family's safety.
"I don't know what to think now," Duverger said. "Everything I knew is gone. Places where I used to hang out aren't here anymore."
Without a television, Duverger was unaware of the earthquake crisis in Haiti until he began receiving calls from worried friends.
"I got a message that day from my friend who graduated from Tufts last year who is also Haitian," Duverger said. "I listened to her message, and she said, ‘I just wanted to make sure your family is okay.' I had no idea what she was talking about."
After checking Facebook.com, Duverger noticed that many of his Haitian friends were posting concerns about the earthquake that had just occurred.
"In my mind, it wasn't registering yet. You don't really know what an earthquake of that magnitude means," Duverger said.
When Duverger found out from a friend that the National Palace had crumbled, he started to worry about his father, who lives nearby.
Duverger and his mother began trying to reach his father, but weren't able to get through. The following day, his father's whereabouts were still uncertain.
"We kept trying and trying, everybody was trying, everybody was helping everyone," Duverger said. "I was watching TV, and it was just ridiculous, gruesome and chaotic. I didn't really know what to think. You don't want to think the worst."
Around 6 a.m. the following morning, Duverger received a text from his father letting him know that he was OK, but that his uncle and cousin were missing.
Though Duverger's father's house didn't sustain any damages, his cousin told him later that day that his uncle's house was leveled, and while two of his cousins managed to escape, his uncle and one of his cousins were killed.
"The crazy thing is, my uncle and cousin were actually in the States two or three days before for a wedding. Everyone was together, everyone was happy and celebrating," Duverger said. "When they arrived home, they called and said they were back home. Two hours later, it happened."
As he had spent much of his childhood in the neighborhood where his uncle and cousin lived, Duverger lost several other acquaintances as well.
"I used to go to their neighborhood all the time because in my neighborhood, there weren't many kids my age," he said. "I heard that the entire neighborhood was leveled, and a couple of people died from the neighborhood, people that I know."
The rest of Duverger's close relatives were safe, but their days were not without grief and discomfort.
"On my mother's side, my aunt and cousin's house was damaged and they had to sleep outside," he said. "My aunt told me how they had to sleep with dead people, because no one knew if a person was dead or sleeping. Everyone was dirty, everyone had blood on them."
Though Duverger said he doesn't consider himself to be an emotional person, the experience has at times been upsetting for him.
"When I'm around people who are emotional, who are affected by this and start getting upset, that's when I start getting upset," he said. "It's really messed up that my 11−year−old cousin had to experience that and will have to grow up with that."
Duverger and other members of his family in the United States have largely helped support family members in Haiti by sending money. One family member in Florida shipped a package of dry goods to Duverger's father.
"Compared to the general population, I feel that we were lucky, even though we did lose two people. My family, we have resources, we are definitely in a better position, but that's only because we were in a better position to begin with," Duverger said.
While Duverger's father and other family members intend to stay in Haiti for the time being, his aunt and cousin on his mother's side are now moving to the United States.
"Those who were already struggling, though, what are they going to do now? Even if they didn't lose anyone, but lost their house, their business … that's their lifeline. What are the options, what are the choices?" Duverger said.
This week, Duverger will begin assisting with crisis mapping for Ushahidi.com for the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, where Tufts students involved with the program search through online information and text messages to relay the location of trapped persons, insufficient and available supplies to those working for the relief effort in Haiti now.
This spring break, Duverger plans on visiting his family in Haiti, but likely won't be making the trip alone.
"I've been getting lots of requests from people all over campus wanting to go help. People are interested in organizing a group," Duverger said. "I'm happy to go and see my family. I know that it's going to be horrible, but it happened, and I guess we have to start looking forward."
