University Presbyterian Church - Chapel Hill, NC

While these two sites were separate community based projects, there were some similarities in their work and objectives. We spent only a half day at each location but we were so impressed that we would encourage future support of these very worthwhile organizations.

We left Port-au-Prince very early Monday morning. We were up with the roosters but it was still well before dawn as we made our way out of the city. We were told that an early start would assure us a better chance of escaping the horrendous traffic jams just beyond the downtown area of Port-au-Prince. Once we were on our way, however, we began to wonder if our pre-dawn departure was early enough. It wasn’t long before vehicles were bumper-to-bumper and fender-to-fender, Pedestrians flooded into the tight spaces between cars and trucks. Where had everyone come from at such an early hour? But our driver seemed to personify patience and we marveled at his calm and tolerant nature. We were in good hands and somehow we knew we were going to reach our destination.

It took us almost three hours to reach Lacul. Getting exact directions to the compound where Rodney and Sharyn Babe lived was a bit of a challenge because signposts and landmarks were not easily recognizable from descriptions from locals. The Babes, Presbyterian missionaries, have lived in Lacul for about ten years (14 years in Haiti). They administer the Haiti Fund which is supported mostly by a number of churches in North Carolina and Virginia. Lacul is a very poor mountain community plagued by serious problems resulting from deforestation and isolation. Food shortages, poor educational opportunities and seriously inadequate medical care are only a few of the problems of this community. Haiti Fund was set up to look into ways to help the people who live in this area find ways to help themselves. Fifteen years ago Haiti Fund began with a massive re-forestation effort. Today we could see the fruits of that labor — millions of eucalyptus trees now grow where there was once only mountain desert. The Caribbean sun in this part of Haiti is so strong that only areas where the sun is filtered by these trees can produce crops. Food is being grown now in areas that had once been robbed of all its nutrients by the run-off caused by deforestation. In more recent years, Haiti Fund began building fish ponds. Today there is enough tilapia fish harvested to take to market. Some of the profits of the sale of fish helps to pay the salary of the teachers in the community school. The work of Haiti Fund is designed to give the community the tools to continue to help themselves. It is development work that is so badly needed in all of Haiti.

Further south on the mountain road we came upon Fundwa, another mountain community suffering from food shortages and poor health conditions. There is a guest house in Fundwa and a team of volunteers working on agricultural projects, organizing a community market and bakery and establishing a banking program for small entrepreneurial farming projects. Fundwa also has an orphanage and school that are in serious need of assistance. Dr. David Walmer, founder of Family Health Ministries, set up a clinic there a number of years ago. FHM had also been involved in community agriculture projects, not unlike the work of Haiti Fund in Lacul and is trying to find ways t help the orphanage and school. Forty six orphans now live in a very small facility with only a dozen beds. The two Haitian nuns who now run the orphanage are amazing but the work that faces them on a daily basis seemed overwhelming. We were touched by the work of the volunteers and people of Fundwa and greatly admired their dedication. While we where in Haiti we talked with David Walmer and were impressed with his work and future plans to assist the community of Fundwa. Dr. Walmer, a member of Triangle Presbyterian Church, teaches at the Duke Medical School and Divinity School and, for a number of years, has brought students to Fundwa to volunteer and support the work there. He and his current group of student volunteers were staying at St. Joseph’s while we were there. Our own Sarah Musser, who is interning with UPC’s campus ministry, was among David’s group of students.