Promise For Haiti News

new logo

"A Promise Made-A Promise Kept"

Promise for Haiti is a 501(c)3 philanthropic organization dedicated to Health Care, Education, Clean Water, Agriculture and Economic Development.

"Promise for Haiti exists to initiate and nurture the spiritual growth of the people of the Pignon area and to practically demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ to them by providing the region with primary and acute health care, essential sanitation facilities, agricultural training and functional literacy, basic educational opportunity, and economic growth and development."

New Well Provides Good Water!!

A new well has been drilled and is producing good water to Hospital de Bienfaisance. If you travel to Pignon, one will always see new projects and improvements being made to the community. The work of God is ominous!

A special thanks to Dr. Guy Theodore for providing financial support for this much needed asset for the hospital.

Hope Reformed Church Team
Visits Pignon for 7th Year!

Hope Reformed Team Members 2012

Spencer, Iowa returns for seventh year.

Hope Reformed Church in Spencer, IA first sent a team to Pignon, Haiti, in conjunction with a team from Sunnybrook Church in Sioux City, IA. That was 2006. We have had a team in Pignon in conjunction with Promise For Haiti every year since and twice a couple years. Wow! Noticeable positive changes grace the area via street paving, more electricity, cell phones, motorcycle taxis, school additions, and a new beautiful town central park. With all of that said, much of Pignon is the same as seven years ago. Beautiful sunrises and sunsets, the wondrous beauty of the stars in the night's sky, water pumped from city wells or carried from the river, open garbage heaps and scattered everywhere, animals wandering and scavenging, children's huge smiles and laughs, dogs and chickens that do not understand my sleep schedule, the daily morning odor of burning refuse, and the constant daily reality of the struggle for life.

The hospital continues to reach out to the hurting. A new cholera clinic last year saved many lives but was unplanned causing budget stress. Two years ago Many Hands for Haiti began and continues to support a lunch program for the patients. That is huge! Supporting and helping serve meals was another positive new experience for us. We spent many evenings visiting patients and singing to them. Many young Haitian men joined us and even sang a special song for us. A surgeon in scrubs and mask joined us as well as almost everyone did when singing Ala'm Kontan!

With the direction of Dean VanRoekel (Sioux City Sunnybrook interim volunteer coordinator for Many Hands for Haiti) our team built, varnished and assembled new desks for Guimby School. We loaded them on TapTaps and made the mountainous trip for the delivery and also held a VBS for the older students while there. Hope Church started and has supported a hot lunch program for Guimby since 2007. Watching kids eat a nourishing meal reinforced the need to continue our support. The kids looked healthier due partly to the lunch program and partly due to the health and hygiene being taught to the Haitians. Smiles, songs, and the love of Jesus was everywhere. guimby desks=meredith drive

The love of Jesus was also present at a Family Life Conference presented to 100 women and their husbands. With the support of Pastor Francios and the use of his church, Philadelphia Baptist, our team witnessed to the women during a morning session. Their husbands were invited to join them for a lunch and the afternoon session. We gave each couple a Creole Bible, sewing bags with notions and Bible verse inscribed folding fans to the women and crank flashlight/radios to the men; we taught Bible stories, sang and sang and sang, learned Bible verses, and challenged them to be strong and loving couples and families. Some surprises, laughs, hugs, and commitments were the day!

Visiting the poorest of the poor, we shared a bit of the gospel as well as a bag of rice to help get them by. We realize again how blessed we are and how our small gestures are so welcomed. We are the hands and feet of God's love and the supporters back home. We wish they could all experience this!

We had the privilege to visit Bill and Jennifer Campbell and the kids at Haiti Home of Hope orphanage. These people and this orphanage are awesome! Painting nails seemed to thrill the girls as the guys played guy games. Everyone loved the chalk drawings. This visit is always a blessing and reacquainting is always fun.

We worshipped on Sunday at the UCI Worship Center, toured irrigated fields due to new pumps, checked out the new Bible college and dormitory construction site, visited the elementary school, and had lunch with JeanJean and Kristi Mompremier. We have observed God's blessings at UCI over the years and are proud to be a small part.

Our theme has been "Hope Touching Haiti Touching Hope". The more we visit Haiti, the more we are blessed. This trip was just that!

Mike Schmillen

Hope Church, Spencer,IA

Help send a Volunteer to Haiti!

------------------------------------------

Four TeamsWill Visit in March

Meredith Drive Reformed Church
Youth Group

Dorothy Dykstra Group

Pella Christian Team

Project Haiti
Urethal Reconstuction Course

The Haiti Education Alliance

Partner Projects Benefit Everyone!

Several times throughout the year, work teams come to Haiti, access the needs of the community, and welcome helping hands with projects. Many Hands for Haiti, a group from Pella, IA, provided the funding and materials necessary to upgrade some existing clinics. Haitian workers earned an income by repairing and painting this clinic at Ranquitte. Here is look at their finished product!

Many thanks to Tim Van Maanen, Adele Romelus, team members, and partners for making this happen!!