Have you heard?

Eske ou te wè l’? Eske ou te tande?  “Have you seen it? Have you heard?” All along the dusty road that snakes through the lush green farm land of the little hamlet of Nan Wo, Haiti, people are talking about it. It’s the biggest thing that’s happened in this valley for many months, and believe it or not, you are responsible for it.

Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, and the children who grow up in this area represent the lowest level of socioeconomic status, even for Haiti. So when Pastor Louinet Gilles teamed up with Hope in Haiti in 2007 to sponsor the children of this valley to attend school, it immediately made a change in the lives of people here in this neighborhood. For the last few years children have gathered at the Ecole mixte (elementary school for boys and girls) in a dirt-floor wood and tin building about the size and shape of a trailer sitting beside the local church. It has made a world of difference in their lives to have teachers, textbooks, school clothes, and much more. But having a good building to meet in has only been a dream for Pastor Louinet and his teachers… until now.

The school is finally being built

This month, construction has finally begun on the new classroom building! Only a few yards away from the old school building, mounds of earth are being moved, cement blocks are being laid, and rebar skeletons of future concrete pillars stretch into the sky. Men labor hard in the sun, children watch and giggle with anticipation, and passersby join in the growing spectacle. You can feel the excitement building almost as fast as the school itself!

Thank you for playing a part in making this possible

Pastor Louinet explains that this is the prime time to be building, considering the weather, the availability of workers and materials, and the school schedule. He hopes the classrooms will be ready to use when school resumes in the fall.

From Pastor Louinet and all of us at HOPE in Haiti, thank you for being a part of this joyful development in this valley. Without your gifts and involvement, this would never have been possible in such a poor and forgotten part of the world. Praise God for the work He is doing!

-Brandon