WHAT WE DO
ACTIONS
MINISTRY
SCHOOL
DISASTER
FOOD
MEDICAL
FARMING
Actions
“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. But someone will say, ‘You have faith; I have deeds.’ Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.” - James 2:14-18
Mission Of Hope is all about faith in action. The majority of our preaching is in our deeds, and our words back up what is witnessed by others. That's what we consider mission work.
Ministry
Mission of Hope started with a church in Pastor Gabriel’s front yard. Today, we have established churches in Thozin, St. Etienne, La Gonave, Chita Bounda and Telkote--each with a personality of its own.
Our churches include many smaller groups that minister to women, children, youth and new believers. There are midweek worship services, Sunday morning and evening services, youth groups, Sunday school, prayer services and Bible Study classes. Because music is a great medium for reaching people, especially youth, we invest in the tools necessary to teach our young people how to play instruments.
Pastors and elders often visit people in their homes when they are called upon by community members to pray for people who are sick or facing difficulties. Widows are helped in each of the churches. Church members enjoy going on mission trips to different areas of the country from time to time.
At other times they conduct outdoor crusades which thousands of people are drawn to by the music and have the opportunity to hear God’s Word preached.
Leadership training is a critical aspect of what we do in the churches. The people are taught about leading through example, both physically and spiritually.
The main principle we endeavor to get across? If you want to be great in the Kingdom of God, you have to be the servant of all. At least twice a year Mission of Hope International hosts Christian leaders from cities and villages throughout Haiti. The first week of January we hold the Christian Leadership Academy. The first week of July we have our annual conference. These meetings encourage unity among the Haitian church and is an opportunity for spiritual growth and fellowship for those in attendance.
School
Much of the population of Haiti is illiterate due to poverty and the resulting lack of schooling law enforcement. But the rate of illiteracy is dropping because of mission schools like ours, which enable children to go to school for just pennies on the dollar.
We started our first school in September, 2000 with 365 students, ranging from preschool to third grade. Each year, we added a class until we encompassed all classes through “Philo,” the final year of high school. Mission of Hope has been recognized by the regional school director as "the best" school in the district every year since, with every single one of our high school seniors passing the national exams.
Quality of education for all children, no matter their socioeconomic status, is of utmost importance to us. We make sure all our schools have a great staff, strong discipline, and active participation by parents or caretakers in an effort to reduce dropout rates. Education can help individuals gain a higher-paying job, reduce the risk of teen pregnancy, and even reduce incidences of child slavery, referred to as "restavek." It occurs when achild is sent to live with a relative or wealthier family to work in exchange for an education, meals, and clothing. Unfortunately, it often ends in abuse.
You can help to educate the children of Haiti by sponsoring a class.
Disaster Relief
On January 12, 2010, Haïti was hit by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake. Over 250,000 people were killed, and over 1.5 million were left homeless.
After that day, MOHI volunteers took on yet another role in our community, as relief workers. Supporters, and even total strangers, came to the aid of the Haitian people. Working together with them and other nonprofit organizations we were on the ground helping in many ways, including: distributing tents, tarps, blankets, clothing, shoes, hygiene and kitchen supplies; searching for the loved ones of those living in other countries, providing free internet service to stranded international workers, and setting up showers for the US Navy camping in our yard and neighborhood. We were also able to provide clean water to several neighborhoods and distribute food to every household within the city limits of Grand-Goâve.
One week after the quake, we began hosting Forward in Health medical teams, who provided emergency medical care to hundreds of injured people. Many lives were saved. A while later, we partnered with Samaritan’s Purse to construct over 600 transitional shelters for the homeless living in tent cities.
We coordinated with missions and non-governmental organizations to work together and avoid overlap and gaps in the humanitarian aid being distributed. MOHI has a signed contract with the World Food Program, to immediately distribute food to the residents of our area in case of any natural disaster.
We stand ready to serve our community daily. Whether it’s a major or minor problem, we are there to help.
Feeding the Hungry
When we first started Mission of Hope, we opened a school, but didn’t have food to give the children. The students had difficulty paying attention, and often fell asleep during class. We began feeding them, and were amazed by the change in their attentiveness and energy.
MOHI partners with organizations like Kids Against Hunger to bring better health to the children of Haiti through nutrition. We have seen children with obvious signs of malnourishment (dry skin, red hair, distended belly) spring back to life after being fed Kids Against Hunger’s special rice and soy casserole regularly.
Each day our students receive a hot, nutritious meal while they are at school. For many of them, this is the only time they will eat for the day.
After the devastating earthquake on January 12th, 2010, MOHI partnered with the World Food Program (WFP) to distribute almost 500 metric tons of rice, beans, fish and oil to all the families of Grand-Goave. In the first 3 months of 2011, MOHI was granted a road repair project by the WFP in which 3,000 jobs were given. The workers were paid with both cash and food. Feeding hungry people puts them in a place where they can hear and learn. This is critical to encouraging positive change in this society.
Medical Care
There is a chronic shortage of healthcare personel and resources in Haiti. In fact, statistics show there are only 2.5 doctors per 10,000 inhabitants. But when you consider that 54% of the country is living on less than $1 a day, it’s no wonder hardly anyone visits a doctor until the pain or illness becomes unbearable. All too often, this is too late.
Mission of Hope helps connect generous medical personnel from Haiti, the UN, North America and Europe with Haitian people in need of medical care at little or no cost. We host medical teams at our schools and travel to provide access to other areas, mostly on the southern peninsula of Haiti.
Our clinics utilize a wide range of medical personnel, from nurses who treat minor sicknesses and identify those in sanger, to specialists, to eye doctors and dentists. If you are a medical professional and would like to serve the people of Haiti, reach out.
Farming
With almost half the population of Haïti being illiterate and a 75% unemployment rate, finding a job without an eduction is difficult. We work to provide education to hundreds of children, with over 800 children in school right now.
MOHI also employs farmers who grow crops and care for livestock. The crops–corn, beans, yucca root–help to feed children at the mission. The farmers often bring the orphaned children with them when they go to care for the cows and goats.