wfn.org | Newsline: Haiti hurricane response by Church of the Brethren is underway

[cobnews <cobnews@brethren.org>]

Newsline: Church of the Brethren News Service -- Feb. 12, 2009
Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford, News Director
800-323-8039 ext. 260 -- cobnews@brethren.org

HAITI HURRICANE RESPONSE BY CHURCH OF THE BRETHREN IS UNDERWAY

(Feb. 12, 2009) Elgin, IL -- A comprehensive Church of the Brethren respons e to the hurricanes that swept over Haiti last fall is underway. Through a  grant of $100,000 from the church's Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF), Brethren  Disaster Ministries is developing new initiatives that promise to help rel ieve suffering and improve the lives of many Haitians.

"Prior to the storms, Haiti already was the poorest nation in the Western H emisphere. Since the hurricanes, 10 percent of the population in the impact ed area has been forced to beg for a living," said Brethren Disaster Minist ries coordinator Jane Yount.

Aspects of the multi-faceted response include:

-- Micro-loans in the amount of $200 for purchasing livestock or starting a  small business. Disbursement of funds is targeted to begin in the next mon th.

-- Home repair and rebuilding beginning in the Mirebalais area north of Por t au Prince. Materials will be purchased starting in mid-February. Twenty h omes have been selected for repair in the village of Fon Cheval, in a model  plan that will serve as a guide for projects in other villages. Brethren D isaster Ministries hopes to create opportunities for volunteer groups from  the US to take part.

-- School-based feeding programs in the Gonaives area. The process of sendi ng meals to schools is underway. Klebert Exceus, a Haitian consultant, is w orking with Brethren Disaster Ministries on this effort. He has shared that  "Christians in these areas are praying that God will bless and support the se projects."

-- Medical material aid following assessments of a Haitian hospital and cli nic. A shipment of medical supplies from IMA World Health is anticipated in  late winter.

-- Capacity building and leadership support, with $3,000 being provided to  two Haitian Brethren church leaders who are assisting with the response.

-- Canned meat provided by Mid-Atlantic District and Southern Pennsylvania  District. The canning project will be completed in April.

Leaders of the project include Jeff Boshart, a former mission worker in Hai ti who has been named Haiti Disaster Response coordinator; Klebert Exceus,  who is serving as a Haitian consultant; and Roy Winter, executive director  of Brethren Disaster Ministries. Ludovic St. Fleur, pastor of Eglise des Fr eres Haitiens in Miami, is the Haiti Mission coordinator, working with the  Church of the Brethren's Haiti Advisory Committee. There are now five activ e Church of the Brethren congregations in Haiti, and 10 more preaching poin ts.

"Part of what we are doing in Haiti is to try and respond in a different wa y," Winter said. "Many organizations around the world have tried lots of ap proaches to help Haiti develop only to have progress nullified in a matter  of years. So we are trying very hard to facilitate local leadership and enc ourage local churches working together."

Gonaíves is the most heavily devastated area in Haiti, with many of the d amaged or destroyed homes in flood plains or mudslide areas, Winter reporte d. There is an active Brethren preaching point in the area. "We are partner ing with and bringing local Brethren into a pastors group called Service Et  De Liaison Des Eglises Evangeliques Gonaiviennes," Winter said. "The resul t is that in the short run working this way may slow some of the disaster r esponse, but in the long run we are building capacity for Haitians to respo nd to their own needs."

To support the Haiti Hurricane Response, donations may be sent to the Emerg ency Disaster Fund, 1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120.

The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination committed to continu ing the work of Jesus peacefully and simply, and to living out its faith in  community. The denomination is based in the Anabaptist and Pietist faith t raditions and is one of the three Historic Peace Churches. It celebrated it s 300th anniversary in 2008. It counts more than 125,000 members across the  United States and Puerto Rico, and has missions and sister churches in Nig eria, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and India.

># # #

>For more information contact:

>Cheryl Brumbaugh-Cayford
>Director of News Services
>Church of the Brethren
>1451 Dundee Ave., Elgin, IL 60120
>800-323-8039 ext. 260
>cobnews@brethren.org