Serving Haiti’s Rural Poor in Jesus’ Name
2020 Snapshot
Area we serve: Pestel, Haiti, a rural region with about 36,000 people.
Level of poverty: Average daily income is $1. One in eight children are not expected to live past age 5.
TVI’s Haitian Partners: “Christians Progress Together” (Kretyen Pwogrè Ansanm in Creole, or KPA), a community development network of 35-40 people.
2020 Summary
- 405 families received emergency food (representing about 2,020 people at 5 per family)
- 99 families were given bags of crop seed (about 495 people)
- 300 students at Pestel High School now have access to clean water and textbooks
- 58 families received goats (about 290 people)
- 83 children were educated at St. Rose de Lima Elementary School
- 14 indigent elderly received a small monthly stipend for food
2020 Detailed Summary
In late 2019 into early 2020, before COVID-19 was in our awareness, Haiti was experiencing an economic and political crisis the likes of which had not been seen in decades. TVI founder Dr. Ben Fredrick was planning to travel to Haiti in February, but the trip was canceled because of the violent protests. Many non-profits, including those who run orphanages, fled Haiti, and these are battle-worn veterans of Haiti’s conflicts. Despite the turmoil, TVI has been able to fully support the ongoing work in Pestel without missing a beat, which is truly a God-send!
Thriving Villages has been partnering with and promoting the local Haitian community development group, “Christians Progress Together” (Kretyen Pwogrè Ansanm in Creole, or KPA), a group begun by TVI board member Sister Fidelis Rubbo. KPA has a network of 35 – 40 people who care for the needs of their villages. Our partnership has been a gift from God, especially in 2020, since it allowed us to supply emergency food, goats and seeds without missing a beat!
Focus: Food Insecurity
1 in 8 That’s the number of children in Pestel, Haiti, not expected to live past the age of 5.
- Malnutrition is the major underlying contributor to child mortality.
Emergency Food
In 2020, due to a severe economic downturn, combined with the pandemic, the area of Pestel began experiencing increased starvation. In July, TVI spent a week in prayer and then requested financial support from our friends and colleagues, raising over $13,000 to support emergency food, along with medium-term solutions like crop seeds and goats! This is even more amazing when we recall that 2020 was a year of tremendous upheaval worldwide. What an incredible answer to prayer and encouragement, to see many people giving even in times of great uncertainty in their own lives.
In May 2020, the five leaders of KPA, the amazing Haitian group we partner with, distributed emergency food to 155 families – about 775 people! Because they saw such a need, all five leaders from KPA cut their own salary of $75 per month in half for April, May and June so they could buy more emergency food for their hungry neighbors! After hearing that, when they asked Thriving Villages for further emergency help, we took them very seriously. The large rural region KPA serves in southwest Haiti has a population of more than 36,000 people. All combined, in 2020, 405 families received emergency food, representing (conservatively) more than 2,000 people! Additionally, 99 families received bags of seeds to plant crops.
Elderly Assistance
Each year, our Haitian partners also request funding to support the most destitute of the elderly who have no resources and no family to help them. The food provided to them is often the only thing they have to eat for the day. Like Meals-on-Wheels in the US, TVI is glad to be able to provide a small and essential service to some of the elderly in Pestel.
→ 2021 Budget for Elderly Assistance: $4000, which supports 14 indigent elderly
Focus: Economic Development
$70: that’s the cost of a goat. In Haiti, goats serve as part bank account, milk source, and eventually, food source.
Much of the goat population in the area we focus on in southwest Haiti was wiped out during Hurricane Matthew in 2016, and they’re still struggling to recover. We send money to Haiti, and the KPA leaders buy goats locally, doubly blessing the community. They educate recipient families on best animal husbandry practices, then distribute the goats to the families. Each family agrees to give one young goat to another family, perpetuating the blessing! In 2020, 58 families received goats.
→ 2021 budget for goats: $6,000, which will provide goats to 85 families.
Focus: Education
$100: that’s the amount needed to provide elementary-school education for one child per year.
The average daily income in Pestel is $1 per day, so education can be unaffordable without assistance.
In 2020, we were asked to provide supplemental funding for the only public high school in Pestel in order to keep the school open and provide necessities we would consider unthinkable to do without: water filters for clean water and textbooks. This high school serves 300 students!
Now, the students have continued education and free water. The principal of the school (Phenicq) wrote to us, “We permit the students to get free drinking water with the help of TVI. Before, they needed to go outside for buying if they had money.” Many went thirsty.
An area of particular delight is St. Rose Elementary School. When we first began supporting this small school, they provided Grades 1 and 2. Their total enrollment was about 20 students. Our contribution was around $2,000.
Over the past couple of years the school now provides education through 4th Grade, and enrollment grew to 83 children! We partnered with an organization called buildOn to construct two new classrooms and seating. TVI also financially supports students who move on from Grade 4 to attend 5th and 6th grades, and we hope to build a financial pathway to support them through high school.
→ 2021 Budget for Education: $13,500, supports 300 High School students, and covers all expenses for 85 elementary students.
Two men in Pestel receive goats during May goat distribution. St. Rose School in Pestel, 2nd Grade, pre-COVID19.
Because of such a positive response from the community, this school swelled from just 20 students in two grades to 83 students in four grades in just a few years!