How is Haiti coping with the COVID-19 pandemic?

I’ve been told to look through my Bible page by page, find a hair and boil it in water, then drink the water.  Everyone in Haiti is doing it. I would be protected from Covid-19.

I’ve also been told to make a drink with onion, garlic, and other concoctions and that would also protect me from the virus. 

These are a couple of things the Haitian people are grabbing onto for protection from the Coronavirus during these uncertain times.  But the one I really loved was at one of the newest hospitals in Mirabalais, in the mountains outside of Port au Prince.  They are treating patients for the virus and getting as ready as possible for the many more patients that they believe are coming.  They are also praying.  It is predicted by some experts that Haiti will be hit hard with Covid-19, especially once travel restrictions are lifted.  
Meanwhile, the pandemic is reaching Haiti through illegal travel. For years, a segment of the Haitian people have chosen to live and work in the more prosperous Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispanola with Haiti.  The borders have been closed for the pandemic since late March, but according to Dominican Immigration offices, 25,000 Haitians have returned to Haiti anyway for various reasons.  Just last week over 1,000 Haitians returned, illegally crossing back into their own country.  There have been 596 cases and 21 deaths in Haiti.  But what about all the unreported cases and deaths?  

Life in Haiti continues with daily markets open, crowded tap-taps (small pickup trucks outfitted with benches for riders in the back), and even churches meeting on Sundays.  But schools are closed.  Hope in Haiti has continued to pay our teachers showing our support for them and their families.  In addition, this week Pastor Louinet and friends hope to be making up meal kits to send home with each family.  These are difficult times for all but Hope in Haiti desires to continue to do what we can to help our friends in Haiti.  

I read this morning in Psalm 77:13-14, “Your ways, O God, are holy. What god is so great as our God? You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples.”
Please pray for Pastor Louinet and his family.  Pray that he would have godly wisdom as he leads his people through this pandemic.
Thank you for your continued support of the children, their families, and workers in Haiti. 
Blessings,
Dixie & Team

Dear Friends,
COVID-19 has reached Haiti as of late last week. 

It was brought in by a Belgium orphanage worker into the mountains and by a 31 year old Haitian woman flying in from Paris, France, both testing positive for the virus. President Jovinel Moise declared a state of emergency and immediately shut down both airports and all borders. Schools are closed and large groups forbidden, following the lead of other world leaders. Factories are also closed, leaving thousands without work or a paycheck. All foreigners who are still in the country and wish return to their home countries are finding it difficult to find flights out.

What does this mean for our Haitian friends in Dessalines and further out in the mountains? All the same rules that you and I now abide by have been put in place for our brothers and sisters, although our living conditions are drastically different.

Large families of ten or more share two small room houses with dirt floors. Running water is non existent in most of these homes so washing hands often is difficult.  Bathrooms are often just a shed out back with a hole in the ground.  Their lives revolve around community.

I spoke with Pastor Louinet yesterday and he says they are still able to buy food and fuel, but things are difficult and they proceed with much caution.  He continues to hold church and says many people have been coming.  They sit on long 12 foot benches usually squished in like sardines. But now he allows only three people on each bench to keep the six foot distance between them.
In the midst of all of this, they have not forgotten “Bondye” (God) who is the Healer of all, nor the family they have here in the U.S. Their prayers echo through the church walls before the sun rises in the east early in the morning.

Please pray for our friends in Haiti.  They need our continue prayers and support.  
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its water roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.” Ps 46:1-3

“Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted amoung the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Ps 46:10

I am humbled as they pray for us here in the United States to be healthy and safe. Let us do the same for them

With a humbled heart,
Dixie & Team

Hope in Haiti

Susie Marshall writes about the work in the desperately poor city of Savanne Brule.

This is an update on the work that is being done to provide education and support to the village of Savanne Brule, Haiti.  In spite of the gangs and violence that continues to plague Haiti, the Hope in Haiti schools in central Haiti are meeting and create a source of hope and strength for these struggling communities.

Because of your help with last September’s fundraiser for Savanne Brule, we are able to pay the teachers double what they received the year before and add $11,000 to the endowment for this school. These teachers are grateful for the money, because it allows them to focus on education rather than growing market crops. Money was also raised last year by Cathy Day and friends to dig a well for this community.  We hope to find a driller who can make this happen this year!

 In the past two years we have raised about $50,000 of our ultimate goal of $200,000 to permanently endow the school.  While building this endowment we have been paying the teachers each month.

 Moving ahead, we are continuing to work on both the endowment and the immediate needs of the Savanne Brule community.  We will take a breather and not host a fundraising event this year, preferring to plan for spring of 2021.

  Rather we will work to raise the $8,000 needed to pay teachers for the 2020 – 2021 school year and seek grants and donations to purchase curriculum for the school. 
If you would like to contribute to teacher’s salaries or curriculum, please send your donation to:

          Hope in Haiti

          PO Box 26

          Monroe, WA 98272

If you send in a check form, please write “Teachers 2020” on the memo to designate your gift for this cause.

If you have any thoughts, ideas or suggestions, please email or call me (Susie).  I would love to hear from you.

Thank you so much for your help with our fundraisers and caring about teachers and children in Haiti.

Appreciatively,

Susie Marshall

The 2019 Hope in Haiti benefit dinner and cultural event is kicking off Wednesday night, 09/25/19! Don’t forget to come with minds ready to learn, stomachs ready to eat, and hearts ready to love on some very special friends of ours.

If you need a reminder of what this is all about, see the video below for a fresh look at the needs and the plans for change

See you there!

Water could be the most important gift you give this year. And giving it could not be easier!

Hope in Haiti is excited to be part of this year’s Walk 4 Water event at Lake Tye Park in Monroe, Washington on Sunday, May 19.
Come and walk with us in support of the beautiful people of Savane Brule, Haiti, who have to walk long distances every day to get the water they need for daily living.
Come and see pictures what God is already doing through this ministry, and the wells Walk 4 Water has already put in other villages!
Come and meet some of Hope in Haiti’s board members and fellow supporters!
Come and be part of this great thing that God is doing! You won’t regret it!

Registration ends on Sunday May 12th, so REGISTER NOW! If you don’t register, you can still come and join us, but you won’t get to have one of our sweet T-shirts!

See you there!

Saving lives isn’t exactly a walk in the park. Except when it is.

We are excited to announce that Hope in Haiti is partnering with our friends at Crosswater Community Church of Sultan WA to raise money for a life-changing, life-saving well for the people of Savane Brule, Haiti. It’s called WALK 4 WATER, and it is as easy as it sounds. We are raising money via donations and sponsored walkers to be able to put in a well for the desperately poor people in this village who have become dear to our hearts.

Did you know that dirty water is one of the primary sources of fatal diseases in developing nations like Haiti? And that it is a HUGE problem for marlaria outbreaks, like the one that happened in Haiti in 2010? Did you know that a neighborhood with no well means that women and children spend hours of their day just finding, hauling, and boiling water, rather than studying, working a business, or tending their land.

That’s why clean water from deep wells make such an incredible difference in the community! Join us in bringing this amazing blessing to Savane Brule!

When: Sunday May 19th 2-4pm
Where: Lake Tye Park, Monroe WA
Why: To raise funds to build a well in Savane Brule
Who: Anyone can come!
How: Register now or donate at www.crosswaterchurch.org/walkforwater

Dear Friends,
I wanted to keep you updated on the things I hear from Haiti that you will never hear in the news.  Early Thursday morning I got a phone call from Pastor Louinet.  He said that all of Dessalines was in an uproar.  Many police were there and were trying to catch the gang or bandits that have been known to be in that area.  As we talked I could hear the popping of guns over the phone.  One man was killed, several police took bullets, but the ‘bandi yo’ got away and are somewhere on the trail between Post Piwo and Kawo.  This is the same trail that we and our teams take when hiking into the mountains of Kawo.  Folks are afraid to come down the mountains trails to market to sell their goods.  

Please pray for protection for our friends in Haiti. As of yesterday there was a road block near Dessalines and a Security Alert placed by the US embassy.  We still have not been able to take a team in and are unsure as to when this will be possible.  Also pray that the church will be strengthened as there is still much unrest in Haiti.

Your prayers mean so much.  Thank you and many blessings to each of you.

Dixie 

Dear friends,

A team of 9 is scheduled to leave Seattle at 9:10 PM February 17th, Sunday night. We are almost packed and ready to go.  Our plan is to climb the mountains into the remote Kawo hamlet where our school building stands, updating children’s information and do some construction work

However…

Last Sunday Pastor Louinet asked if we could change our tickets for another time, as the entire country is having many demonstrations, tire burning, rock throwing riots, and some have even been killed. It’s all due to the discontent with President Jovinel Moise, whom they want to step down. It has gotten so bad that the airport has been closed, all schools in the entire country are closed, public transportation is shut down, and the Haitian dollar has fallen 15% more to an all-time low making things extremely expensive in the country.  Everyone has been told to buy food and stay in their houses.

I then contacted several American friends in Haiti and have been told the same things.  One of our friends who picks us up at the airport can’t even drive out of the town of Dessalines because of the demonstrations.  The main highway north to south is blocked in numerous places and dangerous.  Another friend in Port says the danger is increasing and now looting has begun.  Another friend trying to return to Haiti could not be picked up at the airport as planned, so reboarded a plane back to the states. Another friend could not return to Haiti as the airport is now shut down.

I think you are getting the picture.  I haven’t canceled the tickets yet (and yes there will be probably be a huge fee for 9 of us, unless the airport is still closed), but it seems like right now we won’t be going.  Disappointing, but I feel an enormous responsibility to the team. 

Please pray for the country of Haiti.  If you want to know specific details as to the details of the uprising, go to the US Embassy Haiti website, or follow Haitian news on the internet.  Please pray for your sponsored child and their families.  This is a difficult time for everyone. 

Thank you, thank you for your love and support of the Haitian people.

Kè Bondye beni w.
-Dixie

Dear friends,

We’ve been home several days now and my head is beginning to know what day it is again.  We all thank you so much for your support and for your prayers throughout our most recent trip, and constantly as we do the work we are called to. 

I’m struck once again with the realization that each of us have a story, and each person we interact with in Haiti has theirs.  God’s love knows no bounds and is free for all.  It reaches beyond color, rich or poor, and all cultures.

I am honored to be a part of this ministry and watch God working in and through others.  Our team was fantastic working tirelessly and ‘roughing’ it in Haiti.  They made me so proud and thankful! Many blessings to them!  Special thanks to Joel from Global Training Network for his words of encouragement and wisdom. His years of investing in Haiti have produced a harvest of maturity and personal growth for so many.

And what an experience having a medical team put on a clinic for the people of Dessalines and Nan wo! We are forever grateful.

None of the impact Hope in Haiti has could ever be without our supporters and partners in prayer. So thank you, thank you, thank you! I pray you will be richly blessed because of your investment in Haiti

Dixie & Team

Saturday Noon:

Joel finished his teaching today with the men and women. There were over 100 people and he said that the teaching was well received.

He taught on spiritual growth and was greatly encouraged. These pastors and leaders in Haiti will forever be grateful for Joel Madson and his years of teaching here in Nan wo. He will not be forgotten.

Saturday Night:

We worked at the orphanage clinic all day seeing about 160 patients. Again, each patient was prayed for before seeing the doctor. We are all very tired tonight, but glad that so many people could be seen by the doctor. My head is ‘fatige’ (Creole for “tired”) after translating all day.
Tomorrow after church we will be doing a clinic here in Nan wo rather than at the Dessalines orphanage.

We are running out of medications and considered not continuing, but decided we can make it work. We continue to see many fungal problems as the most predominant issue, but there are also some very strange things.

It is amazing to see this team of people working tirelessly to serve these people. We go to bed early and rise the early morning sounds of Haiti.

Sunday Morning
Our day began with 4 baptisms. We walked down the dusty road a short distance and then down to the small river. Four women had chosen to be baptized near a tree designated for Voodoo. The power of light is so much stronger than the power of darkness.

Sunday Noon

This morning, Joel got to speak at church in Haiti, and it was so good, I had to take notes… Enjoy
This was Joel’s tenth time here. He is such an encourager. He spoke this morning on Hebrews 11 and 12. Chapter 11 – it is impossible to please God without faith. Chapter 12 – Therefore since se are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses – saints that have lived before us. They are cheering us on in our faith. We are in a race called ‘Life’. We need to finish strong in the race. Joel had Mike and Harley race in the church and had people cheer them on. Mike won! Then he gave Mike a large, heavy rock and had them race again. Harley won! The people loved it!
Three points:
1. Let us throw off everything that hinders and entagles us…… The rock represented sin entagling him.
2. Let us run with endurance…. It’s your race and no one else’s. Run your best.
3. Fix your eyes on Jesus….eyes on the finish line. Read His word every morning, pray. Jesus is waiting for you at the finish line.
Joel then shared about his dying father and how he thanked him for fighting the good fight and finishing the race well. He was holding his father’s hand and he quietly died.
Such an encouraging word!

As always, we got to be part of the amazing Haitian worship and singing too, followed by a terrific meal.

Monday morning:

Today is a travel day!
After cleanup and repacking this morning, we headed to the beach. It’s a first for us, but we are actually going to spend the night here at the beach and then head to the airport in the morning. We are one tired group and this is a well deserved Haitian vacation for the team. What a great team this has been!

Tuesday Morning:

Back in Miami safe and sound. All good things must come to an end. The team has split up and everyone heading our separate ways home. Such a fantastic team to work with.
Thank you for holding us up in prayer. Please continue to hold Pastor Louinet up. He has huge responsibilities.
-Dixie