At first glance, Palm Beach millionaire Frank McKinney might be mistaken for the lead singer of a 90’s era heavy metal or rock band with his long blonde hair, and leather coat, but no, as the founder of Caring House Project Foundation, a non-profit nearly a decade in existence, he is not into show business, but in the charity business, or to hear him tell it, the human capital business, as he and his staff strives to make people in Haiti self-sufficient, shelter-wise.

McKinney straddles two worlds. A dichotomy he calls it. He has made millions as a real estate magnate, building the world’s most affluent homes for the world’s wealthiest in the most opulent and exclusive neighborhoods in South Florida, on one hand. On the other hand, the organization he created, builds shelter in the Third World for Haiti’s most impoverished. Caring House (named after a soup kitchen for the homeless where McKinney once volunteered) has built dozens of home communities in Haiti, from St. Michel to Gonaives to Cap Haitian to lesser known cities like Paroty and Makandal. When Hurricane Jeanne hit Gonaives, Haiti in 2004, McKinney and his organization’s staff were one of the first to land to provide emergency shelter, and build villages for the newly homeless.

McKinney believes immensely in what he calls RODD—Return of Donor Dollars, a type of Return of Investment (ROI) for the charity world, giving the most output for donor money.

Between his hectic schedule as the founder of Caring House, his home building business, and his work as an author (he is the author of several books, whose sale proceeds go directly to his non-profit), Mr. McKinney graciously agreed to talk to us.

Out of all the countries in the world, what made you settle on Haiti?
The way we fell on Haiti was really a funny story. But when I first moved to Florida when I was a teenager [from Indiana], I didn’t have the benefit of pursuing a formal education. I got a job, and I was a sand caster at a golf course. So I was filling those little holes with white sand. And I had to get up at 4 in the morning. I had to be at that golf course working early. And I was the only white person working maintenance on a golf course. I was really proud to have such a job.

Listen, I don’t believe in the entitlement mentality, that’s sweeping the nation. I believe in working hard for it. Because I worked alongside Haitians, I earned the nickname the White Haitian. I’m very proud of that nickname, because Haitians are known for their work ethic, really hard workers. That nickname really stuck with me. I was just a maintenance worker at the time. There was no Caring House on the horizon. So fast-forward to 8 years later when we were doing a fundraiser for a group that was raising money to build houses in Honduras.

We allowed them to use one of my houses that we were building at the time to raise the money. When we were done, the host said, “Thank you for allowing us . to use your house to build 10 houses in the 2nd poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.” That’d be Honduras. Remember, I’m a linear thinker. I’m a simpleton. Not wholly educated. My response was, “Well, what’s the first poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, and why aren’t we there?” The host was like, “Haiti”. So with that white Haitian mentality, toppled with the fact that Haiti was considered the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere was what got us started.

Since the earthquake, does your organization find itself being really overwhelmed? Do you find that your work has doubled.
We established a Program of Work, so we work from that Program of work, so obviously we’re not stretching outside of it. We don’t take on more than the program work mandates. The only time we felt a little overburdened was when we got into a search program of rescue. That obviously wasn’t part of our Program of Work. I don’t think that I’ve been more innovative or more responsive in the fact that we were on the grounds 40 hours after the earthquake hit. We’re not in the search and rescue business, but we’re in the build villages and security business. Yet we put together a search and rescue team within 40 hours of the earthquake stopping, we were on the ground pulling people from the rubble. And that was the only time we felt burdened beyond our Program of Work, but that didn’t stop us, believing that Haiti is a country full of beautiful suffering tremendously after this earthquake, and that we needed to get over there. We weren’t bringing food; we weren’t bringing water. We were pulling people from collapsed buildings. And that was important. We’re back on task now. We’ve build 5 villages since the earthquake. And our program for 2012 will have us building 2 more villages. So we’re dedicated. We love Haiti. I go there at least twice a year. Maybe not in my lifetime will we see a big difference, but it will make a difference to those people we provide shelter to.

What was the difference between when you first went to Haiti, compared to what you had been fed by the media.
You can imagine. Nothing can you for the assault on your senses when you get to Haiti, and that was before the earthquake. If you’re used to the things that the United States provides you, you the more shocked you’ll be. After you get over that initial assault on your senses, you’re prepared to do the little good that you can. My skin is pretty thick, so I wasn’t concerned or afraid. Believe me, I’ve been in other places where people tried to kill or kidnap me. But they’d never find me again. I never felt afraid for my life. The only thing that did really get to me early, was this feeling when I came back to the United States, was this overwhelming feeling of guilt when I took my family out to dinner. I struggled with that. I told someone who had been to Haiti, “You know I feel really guilty about spending my money on anything other than my basic needs. I don’t feel like going to the movies. I don’t feel like spending money on [luxurious ] things.” They [friends] helped me get over that. [They said,] “I want you to go out tonight. I want you to enjoy yourself. That’s the life that you’re living here. You keep doing what you’re doing in Haiti, but don’t allow that guilt to run or ruin your life,” and I’m glad I listened to them.

Those two villages that Caring House is going to be building, have you determined where they’re going to be?
I can tell you that one of them is going to be in the Jeremie area. I don’t know where the other one is going to be. It may be up in Cabaret. Those are two areas that we’ve worked in before and we’ve had good success.

How do you pick the location for the villages? Do you have a staff down there that scouts locations and see where there’s the most need?
We actually don’t. We don’t have a staff in Haiti at all, because of our Return on Donation that we gotta reference. We’re constantly getting requests for proposals, and requests for assistance. Some of our partners we’ve had for years, and they’ve been working there for years, so we’ll go to them, and we’ll be like, “We want to do another village”, so that’s how we decide where to do them. It’s hard to decide because there are so many places that need help.

If someone wants to help with the Caring House mission, obviously they can make donations, but what other ways can they help?
Right now we don’t take volunteers because Haiti has a really high unemployment rate. We can’t take a job away from somebody. We don’t even export materials, because I can buy all the stuff that we need down there from the locals, so that we’re kinda helping the local economy. Really, donations is what we need. I know how to stretch donation dollars really far. There are over different 65 donation options on our website ranging from a chicken to $8.50 all the way up to thousands of dollars. I had had one 26-year old guy just donate to build an entire village–$125,000. I’m not gonna send rice there. That’s not our thing. We’ll buy the rice when we get there. So it’s really the donations, that’s our lifeblood.

To make a donation to the Caring House Project go here.

You can see a video of McKinney in action below.

Former Miss Haiti International and engineer extraordinaire Hermanie Pierre owns not one, but two homes—and she’s barely 25. By applying some little-known strategies, the one-time beauty queen and Arkansas resident was able to get her little piece of the American Dream. She’s sharing all her secrets in her new book entitled How I Bought A $250,000 Home While Still In College.

Above: Former Miss Haiti International winner-engineer and real estate entrepreneur Hermanie Pierre.

Kreyolicious: Congratulations on being a homeowner. At which point did you decide to write a book about the process?

Thank you so very much. I bought my first home at 21-years-old. I was still in college. It started in college when my friends kept asking how I got a house while still in school and they were struggling there. I told them the few easy steps that they could take to do the same but they thought it was too easy. They could not believe it. As I meet new people, I’m asked the same questions and I ll tell them. Education is very important and my dream is to make sure every kid has a basic education. I bought my house while still in college I knew that money did not come from my little part-time job. I knew it had to do with education. I realized the best way I could motivate others to stay in school was to share my personal story. The strategy I share in the book with my readers is one I applied. It worked out great for me. Furthermore, I have shared it with several of my friends and they were all like, “Wow! Thanks Hermanie. Your idea really helped me. I can’t believe I am making money in college.” Now they know I was not playing.

Kreyolicious: If you were to rank all your accomplishments since you’ve been crowned Miss Haiti International, what would be on the Top 3 list of your accomplishments.

Being an engineer is by far the top—not only because it is my passion—but because it took three generations before we finally had an engineer [in my family], and I was the first woman to break the [ceiling]. Well—to be clear—I was an engineer before Miss Haiti. Second, is becoming the Director for Haiti International Pageant for all the categories: Mrs., Miss, Teen and Junior. This opportunity has given me a chance to not only meet beautiful Haitian women all over the world, but also the chance to continue raising awareness and continue to promote the best images of my beautiful country.

Third, I realized that I found my calling as a motivational speaker. I’m able to change people lives through words and actions. These are some things that I will forever be grateful for.

Above: Hermanie Pierre’s second home in Arkansas.

Kreyolicious: What’s the best money habit that you’ve developed that you feel have helped you tremendously?

Don’t spend what you don’t have. Your today is also your tomorrow—meaning what you spend today will become a habit for tomorrow. Debt today is also debt tomorrow. If you can save today you will save tomorrow.

Kreyolicious: When you were shopping for your home, how did you know “the one” from all the others?

[Laughter] Very funny story. When I bought my first home, I had no idea what it looked like neither inside nor outside. I just saw it on a flyer. I did not know what was on the inside until they gave me my key. Even though it turned out to be one of the best investments I’ve ever made I will still won’t advise anyone to do that. It is risky. It may not always work in your favor. Since I am an engineer, in my mind I knew if something went wrong I could fix it.

Kreyolicious: There may be people reading this, who’ll be inspired but will still be thinking to themselves, “That’s great and everything. But I can’t achieve something similar—I couldn’t buy my own home. She’s an engineer, a beauty pageant queen. How can I compare?” What would you say to those who may be thinking along those lines?

Most people will be afraid of several things. You have to fail to learn. I bought my first home before I was an engineer and a beauty pageant candidate. I was 21-years-old…that’s why I wrote the book—to help people that might be thinking just like that. The book is not just about buying a home. It is about secret ways you can find money to help you with your situation. The most essential element of any successful attempt is passion. Even if you are not the greatest or richest student living today, the desire to succeed will take you where you want to be. [Wealth] sometimes comes by fate, but it is an art that can be learned and honed by those who have the determination and willingness to do so.

I know today most people use social media. Actually, no story on successful college entrepreneurs would make sense without mentioning Facebook billionaire Mark Zuckerberg. Today, one of the richest men on earth, Zuckerberg founded Facebook while still a student at Harvard University in 2004. In fact, he invented it from his dorm room. Since then, Facebook has taken the world over, and it is valued at more than $100 billion. I know you may argue that one example is not enough—so look at many example choices of college billionaire I mention on the book. The book is available on Amazon Kindle or you can get CD or hardbook cover though email.

The engineer’s first home…purchased at 21.

Kreyolicious: Will you be writing other books?

Yes. After the success of my first, I am working on my second one as we speak. My advice to everyone is to at least read this book. It will change the way you think. If you have not read this amazing book, download it on your Kindle and read it.

[All photos provided by subject.]

TO PURCHASE HERMANIE PIERRE’S BOOK CLICK HERE.

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Native Bostonian Shella Saintcyr is the creative entrepreneur behind the crochet accessories line House of Saintcyr. Saintcyr’s colorful pieces are unique, and would make any fashionista’s shopping day. Her line offers everything from church hats, to crochet hoops, headbands to crochet spiral earrings and messenger bags. Saintcyr is never short on creativity.

Kreyolicious: Prior to starting House of Saintcyr, did you ever have any sort of inkling that you were meant to be a business woman?

No.  Not really. I watched my mother run a small business—buying clothing and accessories from New York and selling them out of the family van on various corners of Boston. She would take one of my seven sisters and I on the Greyhound bus with her to meet our extended family in New York. When we got there, she would barter with shop owners for the best prices for dozens of hair bows and dresses not easily found in Boston. My mother successfully learned to solve two problems—how to uniquely dress her 10 children and how to make extra income to supplement my dad’s earnings. Looking back now, some of my happiest memories of my childhood are attached to those business trips to New York with my mother—watching her haggle with other business owners. 

I know that in school and in various jobs, I rarely fit into any particular circles.  I’m somewhat of a misfit. I can see now how that “fitting out” helps me to be more comfortable in doing some unconventional things as a business woman. My life plan in college and in graduate school was to be a counselor—to help hurting people. Never had I imagined I’d be in the line of running an accessories business. It was two years ago when I originally visited a church in Chicago to learn how to sew but ended up learning how to crochet because the sewing lady wasn’t there. I found crochet therapeutic, especially since my father had passed away a few months before. I developed my skills watching YouTube videos and discovered that my sisters would pay me to make accessories for them. I thought that if I could get my sisters with particular taste to buy my products, perhaps other women would be interested in purchasing them as well.

Kreyolicious: You’re an entrepreneur and you craft your own products. Do you think that makes things doubly challenging?

Yes—it can be challenging in some ways. It means that if that specific product I’ve made for a client isn’t purchased for whatever reason, I have to find some way to sell it to another client who may have a different taste in colors or shapes. But crafting my own products also means that each client is purchasing a product that takes into consideration their unique style. One size does not always fit all. I personally like finding jewelry at a boutique that can’t be found anywhere else. I want the luxury of it being a rarity.

Kreyolicious: Do you find that the fact that you have a Master’s Degree has helped you in terms of budgeting, time management, and business management overall?

My Masters degree is in Social Work. It helped me become more aware of systems and family dynamics, but I can’t say that I lean on it for budgeting and business management. I wish I had completed a Masters in Business Administration but hindsight is 20/20 vision. I guess when I’m requested to serve as a vendor at a church event or at a school, my social work hat comes on. I know how those systems can run and how certain social norms govern their culture. I keep this in mind when interacting with potential customers.

Kreyolicious: How do you measure growth?

Beyond looking at sales, I measure growth by the networks formed. I connect with the saying, “Your network is your net worth.” I want to know at the end of the day that I’ve connected with—provided a service to people with various international, economic and social backgrounds. It says to me that in my efforts to work my craft in excellence, people from all over the world stop to admire it and purchase what I produce. I’m also concerned with personal growth, if when faced with setbacks or obstacles, do I run towards faith or fear. Do I continue to respond in an unhealthy way with similar challenges? I need to know that I’m graduating from self doubts or the need to always be understood.

Kreyolicious: If you had someone over for tea, and that someone wanted to become an entrepreneur in the same industry as you, what would you tell her?

I’d tell her that she will need to be patient with herself and with sales. Seeds spend a lot of time in the ground before one can see the harvest they bring. Keep getting up when you get knocked down. You never know what new opportunities can come with a new day or the next hour. There may be 50 other people who can crochet but no one makes that specific product like you. Customers are drawn to authenticity. Your story is what distinguishes you from the crowd. Teach others what you learn in the process of doing business, so you’ll have internal space to learn more. Women’s wants and needs fluctuate, come to every meeting prepared to present a few options in terms of product. A request for yellow accessories can quickly change to blue the next day, so be flexible. Collaborate rather than compete with other women. Competition confines you to another’s standards. Collaboration frees you to maintain your own standards.

Kreyolicious: It’s been said that now as more than any other time, entrepreneurs are being made every day. Do you think that this pattern will continue in the next 4-5 years?

I hope it does continue in the next 4-5 years since our world is ever changing and new problems are developing. We need more people in the world who approach problems in creative ways (e.g. standing on the corner of the water tower building in Chicago dressed in interview clothes holding a sign that reads, “Looking for work. Got a Masters Degree.). We need more people who aren’t afraid to take risks. I think a lot of people are sick of the mold but are afraid to make changes, to explore something outside of their comfort zone because of possible ridicule and failure. I often meet people who are more financially secure than I am who think that owning a business is somehow outside of their reach. Sometimes the one who succeeds is the one who had enough courage to try something different or didn’t give up.

Kreyolicious: Where do you hope to take House of Saintcyr?

I’d like to see House of Saintcyr accessories on the runways in Paris, New York and in Africa or adorning an actress on the set of a major movie production. I want a portion of the business to be dedicated to coaching and mentoring girls and women internationally to start and maintain their own businesses. I hope to establish a legacy that sends the message to women everywhere that out of the ashes of life there is beauty—whether the ashes come in the form of the death of a parent, the loss of a career—or the loss of a valued relationship.

HOUSE OF SAINTCYR ON ETSY| HOUSE OF SAINTCYR ON INSTAGRAM| HOUSE OF SAINTCYR ON FACEBOOK

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