2022 IMPACT Report

“…We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself,” writes Paul to the church in Corinth in 2 Corinthians 1:8. Paul tells his brothers and sisters it is not that he and his travel companions want them to be uninformed about their troubles, but informed of their sufferings so that they could all share in them together.

The end of 2022 brought about no end to the free fall of chaos that Haiti finds itself in. The events of 2022 will remain in the minds of many as “unprecedented times”, “the worst Haiti has ever seen”, “the year of the largest exodus from Haiti in history”, and so many worse descriptions of the conditions that are following into 2023.

The assassination of the last president still has yet to be assigned appropriate responsibility and the highly unpopular Prime Minister remains at the helm of the government. Protesting and rioting in rebellion over his rule, horrific acts of violence by gangs on all ages of civilians in the name of protest, and destruction of the country and vital resources have plagued the country throughout the last year. All this increasing in severity as the year went on due to the widespread insecurity and inability for the outnumbered, outgunned, Haitian police to provide control over the ever-growing violence. 

Left behind in the wake of such a destructive year, the entire country has been divided in two with the entire southern portion of the island cut off from the rest. Kidnappings were reported to have increased drastically and entire villages were being terrorized, destroyed, and left deserted after gang invasions. Over 500,000 children lost access to education due to over 1700 schools being forced to close due to the violence. The sea ports taken over by gangs and closed for the latter half of the year; inflation skyrocketing to over 38%; the main fuel terminal closed to distribution of fuel across the country for over 50 days; the price of food rose by 300% and the importing of goods halted; trade and work in the neighboring country of the Dominican Republic stopped and thousands lost jobs due to sudden closure of foreign owned factories. 

For the first time in the history of the Western Hemisphere, a country is facing famine-like circumstances and 4.7 million of the 11.2 million people are in urgent and emergent need of food. Close to 30,000 facing starvation and on top of this, cholera entered the scene. This outbreak, as many healthcare specialists predicted, would put over 1.2 million at risk for infection and death. 

Numerous times this year, conversations were had among ourselves in which we were “…under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure…” as described in 2 Corinthians 1:8. It is our responsibility, just as Paul describes, not to hide the reality of suffering our brothers and sisters are facing, but to share this information with you that you might share in their suffering; their true life experiences. Paul continues to express to the church in Corinth, there are struggles that the Kingdom workers, our partners, MUST be made aware of. He explains how we are meant to share the discomfort of the struggle in order to be able to share in the COMFORT OF OUR LORD! Our God is a communal God and He has made us to be communal, sharing in life, all of it, the good, the bad, and the ugly. 

Paul expresses the greatness and the compassion of our Father, the God of all comfort, who comforts us IN all our troubles. Not that He takes us from our troubles, but that HE provides us comfort while in them. Paul goes on to say, “Our hope for you is firm, for we know just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. 2 Corinthians 9 states, “Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on GOD, who raises the dead! He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and He WILL deliver us again!” 

This is the HOPE we cling to! We know that Hope, Hope that comes from knowing Jesus Christ, does not always mean happiness, but it does mean that pain and despair is not the end of the story! “…On Him we have set our hope that He will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers,” 2 Corinthians 1:10-11. Your prayers, encouragement, and support continue to bring us joy and peace in the times of the hardest struggle. Yet even in the struggle, we praise our great Comforter for each of you! Yes, this world is full of struggle, but because of you, we do not endure alone! We hope it brings you comfort to read the impact your faithful partnership is making in the communities being served and the HOPE that is provided in the midst of struggle. THIS, FRIENDS, IS DOING SOMETHING IN HAITI THAT LASTS!

As we look back at 2022, it is evident that we have seen God’s blessings despite the country’s situation. Here are just some of the many blessings: 

• RoRo held a Pastor Retreat in Peredo for all the Pastors of the Emmanuel Christian Churches 
• Completed Left Wing of PCH Recovery Floor 
• Connected with and mentored over 50 children through Sports Evangelism Program 
• Partnered with CardioStart to implemented first Heart Institute in Haiti at the PCH and a satellite location additionally in the south PCH has become a host for residents from medical school in Port au Prince 
• Celebrated 10 year anniversary of PCH 
• Brought back Summer Internships (For US Travel Only) 
• Celebrated Ro and Eline’s 40th Wedding Anniversary 

Thank you for joining us in praising God for all He is doing in Haiti! As we look to the new year we will continue to commit our plans to the Lord and wait with anticipation to see what He has in store for Haitian Christian Outreach.

Click HERE to download a printable copy of our 2022 Annual Impact Report.