We are gearing up for another great summer for Konbit Haiti! Summer is full of so much: children coming and going from our center, meals being prepared, games being played, new skills being taught, community members being empowered, and the list goes on. Camp, or Vacation Bible School, have a huge toll on everyone involved. Anyone who has worked at or volunteered for such ventures can tell you that. How much more does this work in Haiti add!

For instance, we also have to use water from another person’s well to do everything from washing dishes to cooking in a day. This water is picked up by some of our staff, pumped into the container in our truck, and is then transported to our facility. We go through so much water daily, and we are really fortunate that we have someone in the community who allows us the use of his well with little cost to us.

While we love working with these children, there are many challenges like the one I wrote about above. It’s so fascinating to me that Haiti is a mere 90 minutes in an airplane from Miami and presents its own set of unique challenges. Reaching out to families is what we are about, no matter the season, but the summertime allows for some really neat and really deep relationships to be formed. We are so thankful for this time spent with the children of our communities, but also for the young adults that work with us over the summer. We get an inside look at their lives, befriending them and sharing life with them. It is such a special time.

Despite all of this, Haiti herself has been dealing with a variety of different and upsetting issues. We try not to paint Haiti in a light that shows it as corrupt or dangerous, as there is usually quite widely spread information about this place in that light. However, it would be also irresponsible of us to not share that Haiti is going through a challenging time. People are protesting corruption, holding their government accountable for the actions they’ve made. However, many others are suffering. Prices have spiked, and as my friend told me the other day, “I can go to find food with a certain amount of money and pay a certain price one day. The next day, I will go again and it will be double. Nothing is stable right now.” Because of this, it has been challenging to plan some of the aspects of summer camp. If you are interested in giving a one-time donation toward camp, please click this link. 

We are excited to be back in Haiti soon, to be working on our fall line for products with Konbit, and to simply be present in a different way during this time. Please pray for us, for our staff, and for Haiti herself. We need change and mercy.