We will be leaving for our first month of ministry a few days after Launch begins on September 6th! I received my first ministry assignment from my team leader earlier today: Team Hope Awakening will be at Mission of Hope (MOH) in Titanyen, Haiti! I’m not sure exactly what ministry will look like there, as they have multiple projects we could be taking part in. You can check out their website and take a look at what their mission is as well as some examples of their specific projects.
Here’s some general information about Haiti (sources: The World Factbook, Operation World):
- Official languages: French and Haitian Creole. Also spoken: English, Spanish
- Shares the island of Hispaniola with the Dominican Republic (in the Caribbean)
- Religions: 80% Roman Catholic, 16% Protestant, 1% none, 3% other; about half practice voodoo
- 137,000 people are still living in camps or camp-like situations as displaced from the 2010 earthquake. (doesn’t count people who have left camps but still aren’t living in permanent homes)
- Christians are reaching out through radio, children’s education, and pastoral/lay training
- Those who practice voodoo are becoming more outspoken against Christianity
Specific to Titanyen (source: Mission of Hope’s website):
- Village of 10,000 north of Port-au-Prince
- Became home to many who lost their homes in the 2010 earthquake
- In addition to MOH, there is another church led by a man named Pastor Kelly
- Most people know the name of Jesus but understand salvation as works-based
- 6 voodoo priests in Titanyen
- An estimated 650 children in Titanyen can’t go to school
- Access to healthcare better than most villages, have clean water supply, need trash pickup service and latrines/toilets
- MOH runs 3 projects in Titanyen: a sports complex, a technical school, and a Hospital of Hope
If you’re interested, please read more about Haiti, Titanyen, and MOH at the websites I’ve linked to and other sources. I’ve compiled only a few facts here; this by no means is meant to present a complete picture of the community we’ll be working in.
