Hope to Haiti: An Update on Our Mission

Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Despite living in material poverty, the people of Haiti have an enormous amount of endurance, hope, and dignity, but they need help in this fight against extreme poverty.

Monthly news & updates Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Despite living in material poverty, the people of Haiti have an enormous amount of endurance, hope, and dignity, but they need help in this fight against extreme poverty. Visit our Website Ministry Update The Legacy of Rev. R. Scott Bonnell. On Sunday, April 11, 2021, Scott Bonnell checked himself into the Capital Regional Urgent Care facility on N. Monroe Street in Tallahassee, FL suffering from chest pains and was quickly diagnosed as having a heart attack. Scott made posts on his Facebook page over that weekend that he was not feeling well. Thursday, April 15, 2021, R. Scott Bonnell went to be with the Lord he spent many years serving. In April, upon hearing the news of Scott's tragic passing, efforts were led by George Avant (George was a board member, and Scott kept his office in a complimentary office in George’s office building) to assemble a working board of directors to continue the ministry.  Scott ran the ministry in a lean and efficient manner, and the existing board members were mostly symbolic.  Many of the supporters that had been a part of the ministry from early on joined the new board, and we are happy to report that the ministry will continue.  Currently, the board has committed to supporting in-country Director of Operations Yvesener Sylla to continue the core ministry.  H2H will continue to support the feeding program of approximately 1500 children per day.  H2H will continue to support 3 orphanages totaling 90 children. Scott began his ministry career with North Florida Baptist after starting his career with Sing Oil Company.  In 2006 Scott joined the board of Most High Ministries, and in 2007 Scott founded Hope to Haiti.  Many of our current board members remember early in the ministry, Scott describing how kids were making up and eating mud wafers because they were desperate to find something to eat.  The ministry began to grow in Haiti as Scott worked tirelessly to make people aware of the conditions and how they could help.  H2H began orphanages for abandoned children and began a feeding program that now feeds over 1500 children per day.  After the earthquake in 2010, Sylla (the in-country Director of Operations) put together a team to assist actor Sean Penn with relief efforts that Sean brought to the country.   Your support of H2H “may not change the whole world, but is changing the world” for each child the ministry touches.   Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, and your continued support honors the vision and legacy of Scott Bonnell as the ministry of H2H continues to provide “Hope” to the children and people of Haiti. Read Scott's Obituary Our Projects Sponsor Matress Campaign We currently have a need to replace beds in the orphanages. Sylla is asking for $5,000 to replace beds for the children in the orphanages. Would you consider making a special one time gift to H2H towards our beds. As of now, we have 10 beds and 20 mattresses but still need more. Please go to our website and check the “Dedicate this gift” box and write in “Beds”.   Water Crisis Through Biosand filter projects we are able to provide a simple, effective, and affordable solution to the lack of clean water sources for Haitian families and our schools. The slow sand Biosand filter is a simple design that uses basic readily available materials, allows for easy production, and they are easy to transport. There are no moving parts, they do not require electricity and can be used by even the youngest members of the family. With minimal maintenance a Biosand filter can work effectively for over 20 years and can be manufactured, delivered and installed for about $100 US. Trade School H2H has been in existence now for over 15 years. We have kids who have been with us this entire time and others who have joined us along the way as adolescents or even young teens. The board asked Sylla to develop a plan for these kids to gain skills and enter the workforce as they become young adults.  Sylla has reached out to the local trades, and for $6000 per year, we can enroll kids in “trade schools” to become electricians, tile layers, plumbers, or beauticians. The board is very excited about this as this gives the kids tools to lift themselves from poverty and ultimately change the course of Haiti. You can make a one-time gift to this by going to the website and checking “Dedicate this gift” – and writing in “Trades.” Donate Haiti's Political Climate Since the president was killed, the country has been in chaos and run over by gangs. They have blocked off entire roads. They are fighting amongst themselves - kidnapping, burning houses down, etc. There is no "president" with power. The prime minister has been served to appear in court for the assassination. There is no plan for what's next as far as the elections of a president, and there is no constitution that explains the process. Kids are in school, gas is in short supply, but some activities are returning to normal (out in the country, not in the capital Port Au Prince). The kidnapping is a real threat, so no internationals are coming to the country. There are basically no "safe" roads/zones anymore. The UN needs to be invited to come in to restore order, but they are typically invited by the president, and they do not have one. If either the UN or the United States does not step in, things are not going to change quickly. Seems like people of power want to hold onto their power, so the prime minister is in no rush to do elections. Additionally, the judge's contracts are up (only the president can reinstall them). The embassies are all closed. If you google the latest news, there are water shortages around Port Au Prince. Although the entire country is in lockdown over gas shortages, Sylla has managed our resources well, and all of our kids are safe and taken care of. As of September, things have become particularly dire in Haiti. The energy shortage has shut down many functions in the country. The price of water has gone from 25 GDS to 12 GDS in a very short period of time. The board of directors is in touch with Sylla (in-country weekly), and as of today, our kids are safe and getting by. We will keep you posted via email as things change. Meet Esperantha Esperantha Michael Age: 10 Birthday: September 20, 2011 Likes: Going to the Beach and eating in a restaurant. Dream Job: Nurse Favorite Food: Rice, beans, and chicken. Time with Hope to Haiti: Since 2013 Donate Today

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The day the Earth shook

View this email in your browser Happy 2021   Reflecting on this day... 11 years ago.   On this day, January 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake-ravaged Haiti. An estimated 230,000 - 300,000 people were killed. Another 300,000 - 400,000 were injured. More than 600,000 people left Port-au-Prince to stay with families outside the capital. The quake displaced 1.5 million people. Makeshift camps sprung up to shelter them. In total, the quake-affected 20% of the nation's 10.4 million population.    I remember sitting in my den and my wife told me to turn on the TV a 7.0 earthquake hit Port-au-Prince. I began to cry and said there are a million people dead… The only "saving" part was that it did not hit when the children were in school.  It took me 2 days to hear from my staff. By the grace of God, all of my children were safe. I work in Saint-Marc, Haiti, which is about 1.5 hours north of PaP. The next day I flew into Haiti with Sean Penn's J/P Haiti Relief Organization. H2H provided all of their logistical support. I will let some of my photos tell more of the story.   Friends, I can not share all the horrific things our medical team had to do to save lives. They performed, and I assisted, in hundreds of those. I really can't talk about it, it still shakes me to the core. I came home a changed man. It's funny how the news cycle paid attention to Haiti for a few months and moved on. Hope to Haiti is still there laboring to bring hope to the beautiful Haitian people. This is Jon Rose of Waves for Water. We have 5000 clean water filters in the back of my truck. Distributing these to as many as possible. Sean Penn and Maria Bello.   It is your encouragement, prayers, and financial gifts that allow us to press on. We are now in our 14th year bringing hope and promise of a better life for hundreds, thousands of people.   2020 was our toughest year funding our efforts. Covid 19 has affected us all. I pray that we will have a strong start to our 2021 funding.  If possible please send a gift, join our monthly support team, tell others about us.  Thank you - God bless you.   www.hopetohaiti.com Mailing address: Hope to Haiti PO BOX 180391 Tallahassee FL 32318 Before and after this is Hovetchen, Bilson, Parolo. Orphaned in the 2010 quake. This is what WE are doing together. Thank you for your support.     Copyright © 2021 Hope to Haiti, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you have asked to be informed of our efforts in Haiti. Our mailing address is: Hope to Haiti Po Box 180391 Tallahassee, Fl 32303 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Happy thanksgiving!

View this email in your browser Thankful for you! I want to wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving week. I am so grateful for your encouragement, prayers and donations are making a difference. I wanted to share with you this email from my Chief of Staff in Haiti. His name is Yvesner Sylla. He is 36 years old, married and has 3 children.  Here is his beautiful family...   IN HIS OWN WORDS…. "The last 2 years we have been hit by political unrest where violence broke out across Haiti that put the country in a lock down mode. Unemployment is high, no quality healthcare is available and famine makes things even harder for the nation. In the last 8 months the COVID-19 worsened everything where the country is in lockdown. In a locked mode, high unemployment, a lack of health care and food shortages are even harder for the country. Borders and airports have been closed. The Government asks everyone to stay home even though 5 million people face hunger. Haiti is a place where there is no savings. The Haitians rely on the imported products. Imagine the idea of not going to market for a long period of time if you do not have the money to buy what you need. An impact of COVID-19 is that thousands of migrants are losing their livelihoods in the DR. They can no longer afford to stay there so they are coming to Haiti, and they bring more trouble, more difficulty, higher food prices, higher water and fuel prices; up to 3x the usual price. The majority of Haitians are trying to flee the country because there seems to be no hope to be able to have a stable life to help their family. The majority of the Haitians depends on the diaspora (those relatives living outside of Haiti) that send money.  It is a dire situation. We are begging God to do a miracle because we don't see a way out. After the 2010 earthquake hope started to ride because the unity from around the world wanted to help.  It is really hard to talk about the life in Haiti. Life was already so hard but now we are choking. Haiti was never a country that was easy to live in. You have to struggle every day to stay alive. It is like you are in an ocean very far from land and you can't even see the shore but you have to keep swimming and hoping one day you will make it. If you don't, you will drown. Now it seems like Haitians have been swimming too long they are almost out of the energy to keep moving on.  We are begging God to do a miracle because we don't see a way out." Sylla FOLKS WE are making a difference. Please keep Haiti and H2H in your prayers. If you are able to make a contribution for our efforts, we would be extremely thankful. COVID 19 - has changed so much in our world, but we are committed to our efforts. Currently, our giving base is down about 15%... We press on! God Bless you, Scott Copyright © 2020 Hope to Haiti, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you have asked to be informed of our efforts in Haiti. Our mailing address is: Hope to Haiti Po Box 180391 Tallahassee, Fl 32303 Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.