Category: News (Page 78 of 100)

Friends of Haiti,

First, we want to share a picture of Joe with you. A couple of months ago we shared about him and how he helps the ministry. At the time we really didn’t have a good picture of him and his wife, but now we do! This was taken during May and shows Joe and his wife Wislande.

His school in Port Au Prince, along with the others, will be out the 18th of the month. Both have several children who will take the government mandated test to pass into the seventh grade. All of our schools go from the first to the sixth; to know we have been blessed to provide this much education to them is a very good feeling. Those of you who help or send for them have made this possible.

To give you an idea of how things work in Haiti, this is a good example: The street running in front of the school in Port Au Prince is in terrible shape. In one area the potholes are a good two feet deep. However, they have decided to widen the sidewalks, tearing down people’s walls and fences. The home owners or renters have to pay to have the wall or fence replaced. They have already torn down the wall in front of the school, and we have to pay to have it replaced at a cost of $1000.00. But the pot holes remain.

We are constantly asked once if progress is being made. Really, there is some, but not for the average person and prices for everything have gone up, from bread to gas. The one thing that you can point to as progress is the electricity, which is on most of the day now. But there are still thousands living in tents going on four years since the earthquake.

Thank you to those who have sent for those pictured and for the kids. It was a blessing to them and we hope it was for you knowing what a help it has been. Thank you for all you do to help and for your prayers.

Serving HIM together,

 

Friends of Haiti,

This month we thought we would change direction some, and show you a picture of someone you may know, with some of her friends. For those who haven’t met Terry, here she is in one of our classrooms. It has been some time since we have mentioned the schools, and since things have changed some since the earthquake, we thought we would mention them this month.

A good figure to show you the importance of these schools is the fact that private schools run by Canada, France or the United States, along with church-run schools, educate 90% of students. The first Constitution of Haiti stated that “education shall be free. Primary education shall be compulsory…State education shall be free at every level.” Nevertheless, education costs remain high and access to school is difficult, especially in rural areas, where all of ours, except one, are located. Additionally, it’s estimated that over 500,000 children are not in school because parents can’t afford the cost of buying necessary things for them to attend.

Approximately 1.3 million children and youth under the age of 18 were directly or indirectly affected by the earthquake, and nearly 4,200 schools were destroyed. It has also been estimated that thousands of students and teachers were killed. Thankfully, none of ours were.

For those of you who give monthly to sponsor a school or child, or those who supply vitamins or school supplies and feeding programs, you are helping provide a gift that no one can ever take from them and giving them an opportunity to make a difference in the world around them. And for that, we and they are very grateful. Thank you for all you do to help.

Serving HIM together,