2024 Snapshot
- 43 families received goats (130 in 2023, 80 in 2022)
- 86 families given seed (80 in 2023, 85 in 2022)
- 150 families given emergency food (235 in 2023, 140 in 2022)
- 125 students fed and teachers paid at St. Rose Elementary School in rural Ferye, Pestel
- 15 elderly were given a small monthly stipend (about $20 U.S.)
Clearly, the raw numbers are down from last year. The miracle is that there are any numbers at all to report, at a time when many nonprofits are defunded or pulling out of Haiti for safety reasons. Because we work with Haitians who live in rural Pestel, we can continue to give essentials of nourishment and education.
Highlights from 2024
- Continued our support for the elementary school at St. Rose: enrollment is now 125 students!
- Fed the children at St. Rose – sometimes it was a student’s only meal.
- Additionally, our heroic Haitian partners, KPA (Christians Progress Together, or Kretyan Pwogrese Ansanm in Creole), maintained a flow of goats, seed, and emergency food to the region’s most at-risk people during a time of appalling unrest and gang violence. Our friend and colleague Phenicq writes, “Despite the problem, we did some important work. In the third quarter, we had training activities for KPA delegates and some new beneficiaries. An agronomist was invited to talk about the importance of the goat breeding and how to improve it. Too, we did some activities for promoting peace and fighting violence in the communities. The second day was a practice work day. We prepared a new place for the monthly KPA meeting. Other thing, school is open in Pestel but the unsafe situation is not yet improved in the country. Gang activities continue to cause a lot of harm to the population, which increases the cost of living day by day. KPA is doing well. We continue to work in order to help the people.”
The Impact of the Numbers
- 43 families received goats. Goats are vital to a family. A goat is part bank account and part food source. Families receive a goat and agree to give a young goat to another family and perpetuate the gift.
- 15 elderly people were given a small monthly stipend (about $20 U.S.). The elderly are some of the most vulnerable, having no way to earn a living.
- 86 families were given seed. At a time when the roads to markets in Port-au-Prince are gang-ridden, growing and selling crops locally becomes life-saving and sometimes an income-source.
- 150 families were given emergency food, representing about 750 people. Last year saw an ever-increasing rise in food insecurity and starvation in Pestel.
