Brethren Disaster Ministries has directed $125,000 in grants from the Church of the Brethren’s Emergency Disaster Fund (EDF) to relief efforts following the earthquake that hit southern Haiti on Aug. 14.
A grant of $75,000 has been allocated for emergency relief programing by L’Eglise des Freres d’Haiti (the Church of the Brethren in Haiti), with support from Brethren Disaster Ministries. A grant of $50,000 supports the response by Church World Service (CWS), a longterm ecumenical partner of Brethren Disaster Ministries.
A small team from Brethren Disaster Ministries and the Church of the Brethren’s Global Mission office will visit Haiti next week to see some of the earthquake-affected area and meet with the leadership of L’Eglise des Freres d’Haiti.
The earthquake’s epicenter was near Saint-Louis-du Sud, the same area where EDF grants funded relief, agricultural programs, and the rebuilding of homes after extensive damage from Hurricane Matthew in 2016. The joint Brethren Disaster Ministries and Haitian Church of the Brethren response to the hurricane rebuilt many homes and led to a new church plant in Saut Mathurine. In this most recent disaster, 90 percent of the homes in the area were destroyed, as well as the temporary church building of the new church plant, and there were reports of many injuries, deaths, and people still missing.
An initial $5,000 grant from the EDF on Aug. 16 has been used to distribute food, household items, and tarps for temporary shelters. The National Committee of L’Eglise des Freres d’Haiti traveled to Saut Mathurine on Aug. 19 to distribute emergency relief and offer support to church members, and have reported a continued “dire need” for food, drinking water, shelter, and trauma healing.
CWS has a program office in Haiti and has done decades of relief, recovery, and development work there. The focus of the CWS programing is in Pestel, a remote area north of the Church of the Brethren ministry area in Saut Mathurine. Both areas are underserved by larger international response groups. The EDF grant to CWS assists with emergency relief, home repairs and rebuilding, water systems, livelihoods, and trauma recovery programing.
To financially support this work, donate at www.brethren.org/give-haiti-earthquake. To find out more about Brethren Disaster Ministries to go www.brethren.org/bdm.
The full report from the National Committee of L’Eglise des Freres d’Haiti about its visit to the earthquake affected areas follows, first in Haitian Kréyol followed by an English translation:
Rapò sou vizit Grandou (Okay- depatman sid) aprè trableman de tè 14 dawou 2021 an.
Komite nasyonal te deplase nan dat kite 19 Dawou 2021 pou li te ale Grandou nan Okay depatman sid, pou rann frè yo nan grandou yon vizit de solidarite ki te frape nan tranbleman 14 dawou 2021 an.
Soti kanperen pou rive somatirinn, 90 % kay abitan yo kraze, anpil moun: mouri, blese,frappe, pedi byen yo elatriye. Nou konstate mounn yo genyen anpil nesesite Tankou: manje, dlo, kit sanitè, bezwen sikolojik, bezwen kote pou yo dòmi elatriye.
Nan vizit noute fè a nou te pote: diri, lwil, aran sò, pwa, bonbon, savon lave, savon twalèt, fab, chlorox, pat dantifris, prela, dlo, rad ak sachè poun te fè kit yo. Nou te remè yo ak lidè yo ki nan legliz la pou yo te ka fè distribisyon an. Lidè yo te distribye yo bay tout frè ak sè yo ak lòt moun nan katye a. Pou 30 daou pou rive 8 sptanb si Dye vle nap okay pou nou pote mange, dlo, kit sanitè ak sante epi pou nou ede yo fè abri provizwa. Nou déjà komanse fè maraton nan tout legliz frè yo an ayiti.
Komite Nasyonal remèsye tout frè ak sè nou yo nan entènasyonal la ki déjà kòmanse sipòte frè ak sè nou yo kite viktim nan katastwòf sa ki mete anpil dlo nan je yo. Mèsi pou sipò finansye nou ak èd priyè nou, nou trè rekonesan. Nou priye pou Bondye kontinye beni nou ak tout sòt de benediksyon.
Mèsi se te frè nou nan kris – Pastè Romy Telfort
Report of the National Committee’s visit in Gandou, Saut Mathurine Cayes, on August 19, 2021.
This visit was in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in the South. We witnessed that 90% of houses destroyed by the massive earthquake and were told of many deaths, many injured, and many are still missing.
They are in dire need of food, water, sanitary supplies, psychological help, and more. We brought with us: rice, cooking oil, dry fish, beans, soap both for washing clothes and showering, detergent, bleach, toothpaste, tarps, water, and clothes. We left everything with the local leader to do the distribution.
The National Committee will be going back from August 30 to September with kits of food, sanitary supplies, water, and more. We will help the people with temporary shelters with materials that they already have. We are collecting donations from the churches in Haiti to help with that project.
The National Committee is thanking our international brothers and sisters for supporting our Haitian brothers and sisters in this crisis that left so many in tears. Thank you for your continuing prayers and support, we are grateful. We pray that God continue to bless you.
Thank you, your brother in Christ – Pastor Romy Telfort
‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑‑
Find more Church of the Brethren news: