ABCCONN

Update From Lisa Rothenberger, ABCUSA

FINANCIAL RESPONSE

Through March 31, 2010, a total of $2,336,311 in One Great Hour of Sharing (OGHS) funds designated Haiti Earthquake Relief has been contributed by churches and individuals. To date, a total of $273,577 has been provided to various partners providing relief activities.

CONTEXT

The devastation brought about by the earthquake in Haiti reveals unprecedented challenges and opportunities.

• Challenge: Loss of life and property on the scale of this disaster in such a concentrated area is unprecedented. The capital of Port-au-Prince was the economic and political capital of the country. This being the epicenter of a disaster of this magnitude presents extraordinary challenges in meeting the immediate and long-term needs of the affected communities.
• Challenge: While the earthquake devastated Port-au-Price (PAP) and the surrounding areas, the effects of the disaster have also spread throughout Haiti, as internally displaced people (IDPs) have fled PAP for other cities and towns. The population of many towns has doubled and the increased population is stretching infrastructure; medical, educational, public sanitation, food supplies and water.
• Challenge: The short term obstacle in this relief effort was not financial resources, but rather finding reliable distribution channels within Haiti to deliver immediate aid. That situation improved, as the UN, World Food Programme, and the Red Cross began to establish distribution channels. The financial resources provided by the Church will be most critical in the medium and long-term phases as other large NGO’s wrap up their work long before the actual holistic rebuilding of peoples’ lives is complete.
• Opportunity: The extensive media coverage of the situation in Haiti–both pre and post earthquake—has resulted in an international outpouring of financial support seeking to “build back better” the country that is the poorest in the Western hemisphere. This presents a tremendous opportunity to rebuild Haiti in ways that will serve the people—but to do so will require changes in Haiti’s cultural norms and political systems.

AREA OF ACTIVITIES

Three primary areas will be served by American Baptist relief and recovery activities:

• Port-au-Prince (immediately affected area)
• The Western Peninsula/Grand Goave (immediately affected area)
• Northern Haiti (services to IDPs)

Efforts will be designed to fill in the gaps between the services provided by the governmental and the large NGO agencies already active within the country.

PARTNERS IN THIS MINISTRY

In addition to IM missionaries, the following are the primary partners with whom we will be working in this ongoing ministry:

1. Convention Baptiste d’Haiti (CBH)
2. Université Chrétienne du Nord d’Haiti (Christian University of North Haiti - UCNH)
3. Baptist World Aid (BWAid)
4. IMA World Health
5. Church World Service (CWS)

SCOPE OF ACTIVITIES

Together with the partners we have been developing a comprehensive 3-year plan for the ministry to be funded through the donations received. The funds are being used for three phases of activities.

1. PHASE 1 “RELIEF”: Includes the basics of food, water, medicines, medical supplies, medical care, and shelter. This phase is now nearing completion.
2. PHASE 2 “RECOVERY”: This phase is now beginning and is expected to extend through year 2.
3. PHASE 3 “REBUILDING”: This phase has begun in small ways and will continue throughout the plan. The Haitian government’s ability to function will be critical to all rebuilding, as issues of land ownership and earthquake-resistant building requirements become a new norm.

Together with the above-named partners, the following 7 areas have been identified as areas of ministry for our support and collaboration:

1. HEALTH — a range of medical activities from basic provision of medicines to the reestablishment of health care systems.

   To date $106,750 has been provided to our missionaries and partners to provide for the immediate medical needs of the Haitian people—this support has ranged from weekly medical clinics organized by IM missionary, Kristy Engel, to the provision of funds for basic medicines and supplies to a clinic in Northern Haiti which has been inundated with IDPs.

   It is anticipated that over the course of 3 years, $750,000 will be spent on healthcare related activities.

2. SPIRITUAL/PASTORAL/PSYCHOSOCIAL CARE — providing for the emotional support needs of pastors, their congregations, and the surrounding communities. To date $25,600 has been provided to support a care retreat attended by 250 people including pastors, their spouses and their children. These church leaders who have been ministering to their community continuously since January 12 were in need of restorative spiritual care and were equipped to continue in their ministry during this extraordinarily challenging time.

   It is anticipated that over the course of 3 years, at least $100,000 will be spent on activities related to spiritual/pastoral/psychosocial care.

3. FOOD/NUTRITION — provision of food and nutritional supplements that are ready to be consumed.

   To date $45,100 has been provided to support basic food distribution by the CBH and its Women’s department. Feeding programs range from one-time distributions to daily distribution over the course of three months. It is anticipated that at least $100,000 will be provided over the course of the first year in basic food and nutritional supplement provisions. Longer-term activities related to food production will be categorized under “Economic and Agricultural Production”.

4. EDUCATION — addressing the needs of students to continue their education and return to some sort of normalcy in the face of continuing chaos and despair.

   To date, $70,500 has been provided to UCNH and another $70,500 committed for 94 students to relocate to Northern Haiti to continue their university studies at UNCH. Each student received $750 in tuition assistance for the semester to continue their studies in theology, agronomy or business and administration.

   It is anticipated that $400,000 will be provided over the course of 3 years to provide tuition assistance to UCHN and other educational institutions.

5. ECONOMIC AND AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT — addressing the medium and long-term needs of individuals and families to achieve economic self-sufficiency to provide for the basics of everyday life.

   This will probably be the broadest and most long-term of all the assistance provided. While all partners anticipate work in this segment, to date things have been too chaotic on the ground for this to take root just yet. The effort will focus on training affected individuals in new livelihoods so that they are able to provide for their families. For some who relocate to the rural areas this will mean a return to agricultural development—a skill set lost in the younger generation who left their rural communities for job opportunities in Port-au-Prince.

   It is anticipated that over the course of 3 years, $400,000 will be provided to various programs tailored to the livelihood needs of specific communities.

6. SHELTER — from the provision of tents to the building of semi-permanent and permanent houses for those in the affected areas and those who have relocated to other areas within Haiti.

   This is one of the most difficult needs to meet, both in the short and medium term. We are currently working with the CBH to identify areas where tents are needed. The timing of the building of any permanent homes will be determined primarily by the Haitian government’s ability to function in a way that determines land ownership. This will be a long-term and ongoing issue.

   It is anticipated that at least $100,000 will be provided for shelter.

7. REBUILDING INSTITUTIONS — the rebuilding of schools, clinics, churches, and other infrastructure that provides for the welfare of the Haitian people.

   To date $25,627 has been provided to begin the work to rebuild a school in Haiti. Herb Rogers has been working with the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship in Grand Goave to establish a base at which volunteers will be received to assist with building on the church grounds and within the surrounding community.

   The majority of this work will be done in years 2 and 3 and will require significant funding. It is expected that $550,000 will be used for rebuilding activities.

PERSONNEL

International Ministries has reassigned Deliris Carrion-Rosa, former IM missionary in El Salvador, to serve in Haiti. Deliris has been invited by the Haitian Baptist Convention in Cap Haitien to work as an Occupational Therapist. She will help in the recovery process of persons who have suffered arm or leg injuries during the earthquake, and will help with the psychological trauma of dealing with the losses resulting from this tragedy.

Deliris, an ordained American Baptist pastor, worked as a Pediatric Occupational Therapist before becoming a missionary. Deliris will assist pediatric medical teams working with children and be a support for volunteers coming to help in health care clinics during this critical time and beyond.

International Ministries will also provide additional personnel support for health and medical work as well as for economic development.

Pictures of Devastation in Haiti

The Rev. Jowell Papin of the Haitian Baptist Church in Norwalk provided the following pictures from Haiti:

American Baptist Delegation Goes to Haiti

In response to an invitation by the Haitian Baptist Convention (HBC), an American Baptist delegation is traveling to Haiti on March 17, 2010. The delegation includes Roy Medley, general secretary, American Baptist Churches, USA (ABCUSA), Reid Trulson, executive director, International Ministries (IM), José Norat-Rodríguez, IM area director for Iberoamerica/Caribbean and Ruth Clark, IM board of directors’ president.

The primary purpose of this trip is to begin developing an in-depth plan for Haiti recovery and rebuilding within the HBC. The delegation will meet and pray with Haitian pastors and people affected by this disaster in Port-au-Prince. Finally, they will travel to Grand Goâve to visit three Baptist staging areas for relief efforts.

Also traveling with the delegation is Ketly and Vital Pierre, IM missionaries to Nicaragua. The Pierres have been assisting with U.S. volunteer medical teams as they arrive in the Dominican Republic and travel to various locations in Haiti to provide medical care to the survivors. Deliris Carrión-Rosa, IM missionary who is starting a new ministry in occupational therapy in Cap Haitien is joining the group, along with Catherine Nold, from IM’s communications and mission education team.

IM missionaries engaged in the relief and response efforts include Madeline Flores-López who is coordinating the volunteers arriving in the Dominican Republic on their way across the border into Haiti, and pediatric nurse Kristy Engel who is transporting the medical teams and working with them on site. Both Madeline and Kristy are based in the Dominican Republic. Medical missionaries Nancy (nurse) and Steve (doctor) James are based in northern Haiti, in Limbe. Former missionary in Haiti, Herb Rogers arrived in February. He will be assisting with reconstruction efforts during his two-month stay.

Since the Haiti earthquake over 60 days ago, total giving through American Baptist channels has been over $1.9 million. Relief aid of $236,850 was sent in the aftermath of the earthquake that struck Port-au-Prince on January 12, 2010. As our Haitian partners identify specific needs and projects, additional funds are being released.

Donations to One Great Hour of Sharing continue to be needed for further projects.

Update on Ministry in Haiti

Donations to Relief Efforts

$303,000 has been given to International Ministries in response to the January 12th Haiti earthquake with one of the latest contributions coming from half a world away. At its 125th anniversary celebration, the Angami Baptist Church Council, part of the Nagaland Baptist Church Council, collected $8,744 to fund Haiti relief efforts through International Ministries (IM). The council, an IM partner for more than a century, also collected $5,920 in support of IM’s mission that reaches people in more than 70 countries. The Angami is one of many tribes in Nagaland, a state in the northeastern portion of India. In 1885, four Angamis became Christians; today 27,245 members are part of 104 Angami Baptist churches.

Kristy Engel's Medical Missions

Kristy Engel, a pediatric nurse practitioner and IM missionary in the Dominican Republic (DR), and Vital and Ketly Pierre, IM missionaries in Nicaragua, have been overseeing medical care for Haiti earthquake victims not served by any other groups.

Rotating teams composed of volunteer professional medical personnel from the U.S. and elsewhere, travel from the DR each week to Port-au-Prince. Temporary clinics are set up in schools and church buildings. Word-of-mouth advertising is initiated by school principals or church leaders 24-hours before each team arrives. Once a treatment place is established, different teams go to the same location until Haitians are equipped to provide care. When that occurs, teams under Engel’s supervision are sent to other critical neighborhoods. Volunteer doctors and physician assistants are asked to email a message to BIMvolunteers@abc-usa.org to become part of a team.

Adalia Schellinger-Gutiérrez, M.D., an IM missionary in Mexico, devoted a week in early February as one of a 30-member rotating team. She says, “On just the first day we were able to see 527 patients who were so grateful for the care they received. As American Baptists, we have a long mission history in Haiti and have avenues for providing food, water and medical supplies as we team up with our Haitian sisters and brothers.”

Looking Toward Rebuilding

IM missionary Stephen James, M.D. and his wife Nancy, a registered nurse, requested prayer support as they left their home in the north of Haiti to return to Port-au-Prince. Their plans included helping to prepare a place belonging to IM’s mission partner, the Convention of Baptists in Haiti (CBH). When teams soon arrive during the rebuilding phase, they will be assured of a safe place to stay. The rebuilding phase will also be the focus next week in Haiti when José Norat-Rodriguez, IM area director for Iberoamerica and the Caribbean, and other American Baptist and CBH leaders meet to refine plans for the immediate future.