Marie Layne, who lives in Brooklyn, is of Haitian descent and is also a member of the Flatbush Development Corporation (FDC).
Besides being a member of the FDC, she writes and enjoys poetry. “My writing has not been the same as before work and family life but I was recently inspired to write again and it just made my heart smile,” she said.
For Layne, her greatest influence on the path that she has chosen today are her children.
“They have inspired me as a parent and a woman to put my best step forward to lead them into what the world has to offer. They have inspired me to smile more, to want more, to see more than I have already experienced through their fresh and exciting eyes,” she added.
Her trip to Haiti happened once when her grandmother died, which was an absolute culture shock. “While my dad and male family members carried my grandma’s coffin on their shoulders to the burial site, everyone sang and danced the entire route. I am sure there was more but at this point it is all that stuck in my memory,” she stated.
Layne added that the kindness and love that was shown to her family by neighbors, other family members, and friends were something she never witnessed as an Haitian American growing up in New York.
She has given of her time participating within her community by helping in food giveaways organized by CAMBA. She started as a volunteer, doing registration for the food pantry, sorting and bagging fresh food and canned goods on a weekly basis to people of the Flatbush community who were in need of food.
For the back to school giveaway, she worked with the New York City Councilwoman Farah Louis (District 45) in Flatbush, Brooklyn to provide school supplies to families with children going back to school.
“I participate in PS 139 clothing donations with my children’s school, to provide gently worn clothing to families in need. I also currently work with youths interning from a variety of high schools and colleges at FDC work are prepped with working in an office settling, speaking and aiding clients with questions and referrals for services,” she added.
According to Layne, the impact these contributions have had on the communities is not measurable, and she is proud to be a part of these communities, watching them flourish despite all obstacles.
Other than poetry, she did not have many hobbies. Because her mom died when she turned 16, she had to be a mom figure to her three younger sisters, while working and going to school.
“My hobbies now are basically trying everything at least once with my kids such as museums, food, traveling, dancing (my absolute favorite pastime), and reading,” she said.
The legacy she would want to have in life would be to love and help her neighbors. According to Layne, the younger generation is more technologically inspired, which in many ways advances the community to bigger and better things.
However, for her, this cannot compare to seeing the sincere smile and gratitude on my face when she is given three backpacks for her children to attend school. It cannot compare to the smiles that light up my children’s faces when they see the NewKirk Santa with smiles giving gifts.
“I want the younger generation to experience more of that inner love for their neighbors,” she added.
