Haiti Update
March 1, 2010
We welcome back our travelers who recently visited Haiti. They have this report to file on our efforts:
Travelers Sister Rosemary Finnegan, Ken Firling, Lorianne Rotz, Father Richard Walsh and Celeste Wojtalewicz returned Monday from a successful yet sobering trip to our sister parish. The ride through Port-au-Prince and the villages outside of the city was disturbing. Viewing the destruction up front brought home the severity of the earthquake. As we walked through “tent cities” we discovered that they were actually bed sheets, plastic trash bags and pieces of cardboard tied to rough cut wooden polls. Several days during our stay rain pounded the rectory roof in Saint Isidore Parish. We laid awake at night thinking of those thousands of folks under bed sheets.
Our work at our sister parish is proceeding very well. Below is an overview of some of the accomplishments. This is only a very brief summary of what is being accomplished due to your generosity.
Economic Development:
- Initiated two new women’s village banks.
- Noteworthy is that the training and development will be provided by members of the already established banks rather than from folks outside the parish.
- Village banks are doing very well . Businesses include selling coffee, livestock, and honey. The banks continue to enjoy a 100% loan repayment rate!
- Began a peanut project to help supplement the school lunch programs at all of the schools.
- Peanuts produced will be ground and made into peanut butter. If there is a surplus of peanut butter, it will be sold on the market. The profit will benefit the school lunch program.
- Participants of the livestock program continue to grow as the animals have offspring. All recipients of animals receive training in the care of the animal.
Education:
- Businesses established to eventually provide lunches for all of the kids are doing well. As of now most of the businesses take the form of commercial banks. Loans are typically given to begin businesses in the community. These banks enjoy a 100% payback rate.
- The interest rate charged on the loans is between 4% and 7%. Money earned is already going to supplement your gifts to purchase food.
- All students in Saint Isidore Church as well as in the two Chapel schools receive a free lunch.
- Sewing classes continue at Saint Isidore Church and Saint Joan of Arc Chapel.
- Samples of their work confirm our belief that a sewing factory envisioned through a grant being written for our sister parish is appropriate.
- Many families have moved to our sister parish from Port-au-Prince increasing the school population. Due to your generosity, fifty school uniforms will be sewn by the sewing classes for the students from the capital with nothing.
Evangelization:
- Supported the purchase of Bibles at Saint Isidore and all three Chapels.
- Presented the sewing classes with funds to sew ten altar servers cassocks.
- Present funds to continue music lessons; one musician at Saint Isidore and three at Immaculate Conception.
- Discussed future renovation of church building at Saint Isidore.
- Church building at Immaculate Conception Chapel completely finished – inside and out.
- Gave money for the purchase of fifty pews.
- The church at Saint Joan of Arc is in bad shape. Discussed future renovations.
- At Saint Benoit the church is completely finished – inside and out.
Health:
- We viewed a number of the sixty water filters that were delivered to residents, schools and the clinic. We looked on as kids in the school drank the pure water.
- Everybody is excited about the opportunity to drink pure water.
- Clinic personnel as well as parents reported a decrease in water borne illnesses.
- Interviewed three candidates for the position of technician.
- The factory producing the filters was damaged. Delivery of two hundred additional filters is anticipated in about three months.
- We learned that since the earthquake all medical supplies are difficult to get.
- Continued the discussion of outfitting the clinic’s lab. A centrifuge donated by a parishioner was enthusiastically received by clinic staff.
- Peace program at Satin Isidore are initiating community services projects to improve the environment as well as visiting the sick and other outreach activities.
- Several of you donated Frisbees. We attended the first ever Frisbee contest. The game, developed by the kids, is based on Soccer.
For more information on Saint Margaret Mary Church’s Haiti Outreach email Ken Firling at firlings@earthlink.net or Pam Schlatter at schlatterp@smmknight.org.
As we begin to consider the long term recovery of Haiti, we contemplate the manner in which we can help sustain long term improvement for the people of Haiti. After the first responders leave, we anticipate the needs of our sister parish to increase. Click here for more information:
http://www.stmargaretmar.org/haitiafter.html