Growing up in South Florida, Michele King Soffer enjoyed the shock factor that came with telling friends that despite her blond hair and green eyes, she was Haitian.

Michele King Soffer, right, gives the thumbs-up during a workshop at the Little Haiti Cultural Center with members of the Haitian community.

Growing up in South Florida, Michele King Soffer enjoyed the shock factor that came with telling friends that despite her blond hair and green eyes, she was Haitian. “I grew up ...