An Homage To My Pops and Preface to Stars Over Haiti

My pops, Anthony Hattenbach, died in 2006 due to complications from esophageal cancer.  He was a bon vivant, a gifted percussionist and a dreamer who spoke five languages fluently and signed all his emails with his original quote, "The greatest talent is yet to be discovered."

In 1994, he self-published a memoir about his life and experiences in Haiti from 1958 through 2001 titled, Stars Over Haiti.  As only a limited number of books were published, I plan to preserve the memories by transcribing the chapters here into this blog.

 

Here is the preface he wrote for the book:

In June of 1958, I moved to Haiti. I joined my mother, Muriel, my step-father, Ben Shindler, my young sister Jody, and the family pets, a sheep dog named Rags, and my baby sister's kitten, Susie. I had dropped out of hotel management school at Michigan State University to join my family, who had escaped the banalities of a conventional upper middle-class lifestyle in Northern Westchester, NY. My parents had totally committed themselves to the challenge of running a first class deluxe hotel in Haiti. They had leased the El Rancho Hotel in the hills of Petion-Ville.

 El Rancho Hotel - Grandma is second from the left. Aunt Jody is on far right.

My story highlights the fun times, the madness, the absurdities, the decadence, the constant rumors, and all the unusual characters constantly surrounded by political intrigue that has lasted over a period of thirty years. All the stories are true, as unbelievable as they may seem.