Haiti Partnership News

Announcing the Haiti Resettlement Program

March 16, 2023


Dear friends,
 
You will be aware of our long-standing mission to support education and health in Jeannette, Haiti. Last year the evolution of this ministry culminated in the formalization of the Haiti Partnership with our Haitian non-profit institutional partner, Action Pour Sauver Haïtï (APSHA).
 
We continue to send funds monthly to APSHA for support of the school and medical clinic in Jeannette. We are working with APSHA as well as the clergy and staff of St Marc’s Episcopal Church and School to agree on changes needed to extend our ability to continue to send financial support. In addition, we are finalizing a half-year planning study which has determined the best way forward for a new program that will create jobs and equity for the Haitian participants. We will be able to share more news about these initiatives when further refinement of the business model has been achieved.
 
But there is a lot more complexity to this story now.
 
As many of you know by now, Haiti is undergoing a severe humanitarian crisis. As a result, Haiti is one of four countries designated for a new U.S. refugee resettlement program that began in January. 
 
The Diocese of Milwaukee wishes to assist by administering a new fund to be managed by a separate committee. This fund would amalgamate donor funds from individuals and parishes and be applied to support Haitian refugees with start-up expenses such as:
 

• Airfare
• Initial food, lodging, and transportation costs
• Costs of required medical vaccinations, such as TB, MMR, Polio, etc.

 
The committee, comprised of clergy and laity, will recommend the disbursement of funds.

If you are able to contribute, please make a check payable to the “Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee” with “Haitian Resettlement Program” in the memo line. Please note that this fund is distinct from the Haiti Partnership program where funds are remitted to APSHA in Haiti for support of the school and clinic.
 
Please pray for our Haitian friends and colleagues during this time of great need, and, if you are interested in helping by becoming a sponsor, you may contact our consultant, Cathy Parrill at  .

 
In Christ,


The Rt. Rev. Jeff Lee
Bishop Provisional of Milwaukee

Haiti Partnership News: October 2022

On October 14, the UN reported that, for the first time ever, Haiti is in a “catastrophic food crisis.”  To learn more about what is happening, and why, you check out some of the following recent articles:

• Explainer: What's driving Haiti's humanitarian crisis?
• Haiti is on the verge of collapse
• Haiti is experiencing an outbreak of deadly cholera
• Many hospitals in Haiti are closed because of fuel shortages imposed by gang blockades.
• At the request of Haiti’s acting Prime Minister, the US and Mexico have proposed UN security assistance for Haiti. 
• Because top-down aid has been unsuccessful in the past, Haitian-American groups are proposing ways to do it better this time.

The Diocese of Milwaukee Haiti Partnership is in a unique position to help in ways that meet current needs while preparing to build a stronger economic base for the future. Our longstanding support of St. Marc Clinic and Schools in Jeannette, and our partnership with the local nonprofit APSHA (Action Pour Sauver Haïti), which implements and manages programs we support, means dollars contributed go directly to those who need it most. And it means that the local community drives funding decisions, ensuring that our help is targeted to what the people of Jeannette most need at this time.

While most schools in Haiti remain closed, St. Marc Elementary School opened its doors on October 18. 

Many hospitals and clinics are closed, but the St. Marc Clinic is still seeing patients.

Though the current situation in Haiti has placed limitations on the community’s current phase of planning for their future, focus groups are meeting. Work is being done. Progress is happening. 

Please help today. Give online (select “Haiti Partnership” from the drop-down menu) or send a check to the Episcopal Diocese of Milwaukee (804 E. Juneau Ave.; Milwaukee WI 53202; write "Haiti Partnership" on the check memo line).

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