Born in Haiti, Ms. Jarvelle was raised in Brooklyn, N.Y., and attended the best schools and colleges. Her mother, Yanissa Elie, nicknamed, "Lola," was a beautiful black woman, whose glamorous voice attracted tourists and VIP's visiting Haiti in the late fifties. She used to sing when tourism in Haiti was booming. Ms. Jarvelle shares a very similar soul with her mom. However, she is not committed to singing, but rather to serving. As she often says, "You waste your life when [you're] not serving others. Changing the attitudes of Haitians in New York, motivating others to help their community and helping people to be themselves, such are her dreams and challenges.
Mayor Bloomberg issued a proclaimed Sunday May 29th, 2005 HAITIAN PARADE DAY which took place along Nostrand Avenue in Brooklyn, New York, where earlier this year a section of that same street had been renamed in honor of Toussaint Louverture.