Quarterly Newsletter – 2018 Q2

Thank you so much for your continued prayers and support for the children of Haiti. We know without your support our mission would not be possible. Every day we are making a difference in the lives of the children of Haiti through the Word of God, education and nutrition. We just completed our 12th year of school and this is only possible through your prayers and faithful giving. Our second quarter in 2018 has been extremely busy and fruitful. Schools for Haiti hosted four mission teams including 30 Bible college students. We are also proud to say that we officially broke ground on the Educational Vision Center. We would like to thank all our school sponsors, donors, short-term missionaries and prayer partners.

Groundbreaking Ceremony at The Educational Vision Center

Monday April 30th was a special day for Schools for Haiti. We had our official groundbreaking for the Phillip Elementary School, which is sponsored by Elizabeth Elmeer and Bob Schmidt in honor of Elizabeth’s deceased husband Phillip Elmeer. Along with Elizabeth and Bob, others in attendance were the Elders of the Nazarene Church who donated the property, local officials, Schools for Haiti’s management team, and Gil and Bonnie Bailie. This is the first of six buildings in the self-sustaining complex.

Updates from Mission Teams

What a blessing it was to host 4 mission teams from April through June. God has truly blessed Schools for Haiti with so many gifted and dedicated mission teams.

From May 6th through May 11th we had the privilege to host 28 Bible College students from Southeastern University in Tampa Florida. To say this team made a lasting impact in Haiti would be an understatement. Collectively, they visited seven different schools and performed nine VBS programs. The team walked through three different communities in Montrouis where some of the poorest families live. Their ministry focused on food distribution, prayer and evangelism. They also performed worship services in three communities with about 1,000 attendees total. Many of our staff members, students and their families attended these services. We would like to thank Grace Family Church and Pastor Doug Otto for putting together such an amazing team.

From May 19th through May 26th we hosted another team from Grace Family Church. This was the second of four mission teams Grace Family Church set up with Schools for Haiti this year. This team blessed our students with an exciting, fun and inspirational VBS program. They also presented backpacks to the top student in each grade for four of our schools. Another highlight from this team was Dr. Sanjie Jackson and her Dental Assistant Michelle Burgin. We were able to bus in over 50 of our students to a dental clinic. Dr. Jackson and Michelle were able to perform cleanings and many much-needed extractions.

From June 11th through June 16th we put together a one of a kind family trip. We hosted a 15-person team consisting of five families, including seven kids under the age of 13. The young kids came prepared to work and did a great job interacting with our students. This team prepared several fun games and activities to play with the kids. They handed out over 500 back packs to our students to help prepare them for the new school year. They also presented the gospel to our older students using the Wordless Book Bracelets. One highlight from this trip is through the evangelism of the Wordless Book Bracelets there were over 50 professed salvations.

From June 23rd through June 30th we hosted a team of 16 people from Chesapeake Christian Fellowship in Davidsonville, Maryland. This church sponsors our Hope School and funds the Hope Home Orphanage. This team spent three days teaching a VBS at Hope School on John 14:6. They divided each day into a teaching on The Way, The Truth and The Life. They also packed 450 bags of dry rice, beans and pasta and distributed to several communities in St. Marc and Montrouis. The team also created a unique and fruitful ministry on this trip. The CCF team brought 150 pairs of kids and adult adjustable shoes. We were able to minister in several communities and hand these shoes out to very needy people including 23 kids at an orphanage. It breaks our heart to see so many kids and adults walk around barefoot. It was great to see this team meet this need in our communities.

Update on Turmoil in Haiti

I am sure you all have seen the news reports regarding some of the turmoil in Haiti which forced the resignation of Prime Minister Jack Guy Lafontant. Many of you have reached out to share your concern and offer prayer. We are grateful that these protests only lasted a few days, and everything is back to normal. We are also thankful that most of the activity was confined to a few locations and far away from where we work in Montrouis. We would like to give you some perspective from our view on the ground in Haiti. The recent news reports showed footage of a response from an increase in government regulated gas prices. The price of regular gasoline went from around $3.40/gallon to $4.70/gallon. That is close to a 40% increase. Many people in Haiti live on less than $3/day. Most of the population does not have electricity so they are also forced to use kerosene to fuel lamps and gasoline to power generators. An increase in gas would also cause an increase in food prices. Most people struggle to afford one meal a day and for some one meal a week. While we don’t agree with the methods of the protesters we can certainly empathize with their extreme poverty. We see that it impacts all aspects of Haitian life, including their children. Our team has seen this poverty and our mission is to provide the means to empower students to be the future leaders and elevate their country out of a state of poverty.

PRAY FOR SCHOOLS FOR HAITI
✦ Please pray for the people we are reaching through local community outreach and the local churches. Pray they would hear the gospel and respond in such a way that would transform their lives.
✦ Please pray for our students, their families, our teachers, staff and principals.
✦ Please pray for our upcoming school year and for the new schools to have increased student enrollment.
✦ Please pray for God to raise Christian leaders within our schools.
✦ Please pray for the ongoing development of the Educational Vision Complex.
✦ Please pray for wisdom for our Directors in all things.

SUPPORT NEEDS
✦ We need a pickup truck for food transportation and a 15-passenger van for local transportation of our mission teams.