| Missionaries in Haiti |
Hope Lutheran supports the vibrant Lutheran mission in Haiti. There follows the latest letter from Rev. Joseph Livenson Lauvanus and the latest update from Haiti.
6/17/2011
Dear Congregations of the Florida-Bahamas Synod,
Thank you again for all your effort to help Eglise Lutherienne d'Haiti.
I just want you to know what is going on here so that you can let other people know both the progress of our reconstruction efforts and the problems that the church is facing in Haiti. The forty students at the Vocational Center built in Gressier with ELCA Disaster Response funds are doing very well. We have an agreement with Caterpillar represented here in Haiti by Haytrac (Haitian tractor) to train some of the young people at the vocational center to work with heavy machinery.
Through the poultry project we recently started in March, we currently have sold over 150,000 eggs to all the major super markets here. The women in some of our congregations are participating in a micro finance loan program and are getting training through Fonkoze in business management. Soon they will be able to receive loans to begin their own small businesses that they can develop with the goal of becoming self sufficient small business owners. The dairy in Petit-Goave is almost done. It is expected that the dairy will be running in October. ELCA Disaster Response in partnership with the church (ELH) has also just bought a piece of land in Les Cayes for the construction of another dairy.
Right now, we are in the rainy season. As a result, the cholera is spreading all over. The Emergency health response is restless, because every second they receive a new case of cholera in both Carrefour and Gressier.
So far so good, we are doing quite well. We just request the prayers of everyone, especially for this hurricane season.
Peace and blessings, Rev. Joseph Livenson Lauvanus
Previous Letters
Dear friends and family:
Eglise Lutherienne D'Haiti (ELH) hopes you had a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year. We do see hope in the New Year in spite of all that is going on here. Regardless of all the heartaches we are going through, God has been so good to us. Your prayers and donations have made a great difference in the life of the church. The Holy spirit is very much present in the different steps we are taking and the church is growing.
The Church in Carrefour, for instance, is doing very well in terms of membership. The entire neighborhood is joining the church every Sunday. Redemption Lutheran in Carrefour has an active youth group who is helping us to organize the community. To further help the church, the women's group is working on organizing themselves and will be eligible to begin a microcredit project as week as other projects yet to be determined.
Thanks be to God we now have a shelter for worship services in Carrefour. To continue with this growth we will all need your full assistance to respond to our "vocatio" which calls us to make a difference anywhere we are as we reflect the divine essence within us. With the help that is being provided through our brothers and sisters from the Florida-Bahamas Synod of the ELCA we are responding as much as we can to the daily trials we are facing.
Sadly Cholera is still a problem that requires assistance here. It has infected close to 100,000 people
and caused about 2,000 deaths since the breakout less than four months ago. Cholera is not a problem of a particular area but is affecting the country as a whole. Many people have silently died on a daily basis. Mass graves have been dug everywhere in some places to bury the victims of this horrible disease. It has become out of control. People are afraid to get close to other people in order not to get infected with the disease. In some areas people don't even go to church or the market in order to avoid contact with people who might already be infected. There is a stigma that is attached to the disease within every society and as a result some of those who catch it are afraid to go to the hospital because they don't want people to know they have it. This finally contributes to the death of the individual. To help with these misconceptions, we have a rubic by the name "Knowledge 101" to teach people about the disease and prevention control.
On the other hand, in the countryside, people accuse Voodoo priests of being the ones to cast the disease on individuals. We have many instances where people have been killed because they have been accused of casting the cholera spell on others. Our focus as pastors is to find ways to help with the psychosocial and all the existential questions that have been raised by our members. ELH is working on a campaign to educate people and at the same time evangelize them.
Please remember that we cannot pursue anything successfully without your prayers and full support.
Rev. Joseph Livenson Lauvanus
Haiti Update (01/27/11)
The trauma in Haiti continues as the political dissension escalates and international organizations begin to make threats to withdraw earthquake recovery support if the process for the election of the president isn't resolved quickly. The Haitian government wants outsiders to stay out of the political arena, and with Jean Claude Duvalier (Baby Doc) returning the scenario just becomes more complicated.
The problem with the election is that there is a dispute over who should be on the ballot for the second round of elections, when that election should be held, and if President Preval should remain in office beyond February 7. The Organization of American States (OAS) has officially requested that Jude Celestin, the candidate being backed by the current Haitian President, be taken from the ballot for reasons of voter fraud. That will leave Mme. Mirlande Manigat (who won the first election) and Michel Martelly as the two candidates in the second election. The Un and the US have concurred with the OAS recommendation. (Youtube has video on this issue).
A report from the United Nations indicates that the cholera epidemic is not totally contained but that the problem is less severe now and efforts to educate and cure are being successful. Efforts are now being concentrated in the rural areas.
In the midst of this chaotic situation Eglise Lutherienne D'Haiti (ELH), Lutheran World Federation and ELCA continue to be on the front lines with their disaster recovery efforts and are continuing to assist the Haitians with food, water, shelter, and education about cholera. This work is made more effective through the partnership with ACT Alliance -- a group of 12 church bodies who prioritize assistance and work hand-in-hand to support the Haitian communities. Every dollar sent to the Florida-Bahamas Synod and ELCA Disaster for Haiti is being used for assistance in Haiti.
Pastor Livenson Lauvanus and the other Haitian pastors are working with the growing 12 congregations to educate, train and worship. Their next project will be to train deacons. Progress is being made on the construction and development of the community and training center in Gressier.
It seems important to understand that Haiti has actually suffered seven life threatening traumas in a 2 year period. There were 4 hurricanes in 2009 and just as they were beginning to make a little progress again, the earthquake hit in January 2010 and then cholera in October and hurricane Tomas in November. Millions are still living in tent cities.
We will be arranging visits to Haiti in the future when we are able to be assured that the political and health situation has improved. Bishop Hanson (ELCA) is planning to visit Haiti in February and it is expected that Bishop Benoway (Florida-Bahamas Synod will accompany him). A member of the Haiti Task Force of the Synod will also be traveling to Haiti during February. Future trips will be Sojourner/working trips.
Please see the following for more information about ELH and Haiti:
www.elca.org/disaster
www.fbsynod.com
facebook: ELH
www.bbccaribbean.com
