News From Bouzy

In response to the devastating earthquake that hit our sister parish St Catherines in Bouzy, we are launching a Haiti Relief Campaign, to support emergency needs and rebuilding.  Many homes, including the rectory, are destroyed.  Many people are homeless.  They desperately need our help.  Please pray.  You can donate on the parish website, using text to give, or by check payable to St Joseph the Worker, noting "Haiti" in the memo line.  Thank you.

Make a Donation to Haiti

 
 
 
A Reason to Celebrate in Bouzy!
A young man who grew up in Bouzy, Haiti was recently ordained to the priesthood. His Ordination ceremony took place at St. John the Baptist church in Miragoane, along with 3 other new priests. His name is Fr. Emmanuel Jean Baptiste, and he attended school at St Catherine’s. Vicar Duprey, who was a leader in the community and a big part of our early mission there, was Fr. Emmanuel’s sponsor and recommended him to be accepted into seminary training for the priesthood. Vicar was a Deacon and head of the Dispensary clinic until he died about 3 years ago, and has been a visitor to us here at SJTW several years ago.

Fr. Emmanuel presided over his 1st Mass at St. Catherine’s parish on April 24th. The parish came out in great numbers to rejoice, and many priests attended including Fr. Hubert, who was the pastor at St Catherine’s before Fr. Claude. It was a proud day of celebration for his family and the entire community. He has not been assigned to a parish yet, (the Bishop will decide), so for now is in his hometown of Bouzy.
Our Haiti Core Committee, Fr. Claude and St. Catherine's Parish want to thank you for your generous response to our Haiti 2nd Collection. Your donations allow us to sustain our programs supporting education, clean water, medical treatment, and rebuilding in the community. You are making a difference!
 

Persistence and Flexibility
It has been almost 3 years since we last traveled to Bouzy due to safety concerns.  It breaks my heart that we are unable to meet with our brothers and sisters in person. We don't know when we will be able to travel safely, sadly I fear it could be several years.
The core team has had to change our direction on how to connect and support the community.  Bouzy has had a difficult 7 months with 2 earthquakes, a pandemic and civil unrest.  At times in speaking with Fr Claude he sounded hopeless, and it broke my heart.
Through persistence, change in direct and flexibility the two communities have worked together to bring back hope.
•    The water program is back running with great local leadership; many people in the community are requesting to join.
•    The Dispensary has not 1 but 2 doctors and a great supporting staff.  We have been able to find local pharmacy to provide basic medicine necessities including over the counter medicine 
•    The materials to fix the church (cracks from the earthquake) and put on the roof have arrived in Bouzy.
What I have learned over the past 12 years when we work and pray together everything is possible. 
The Haiti biannual collection begins the first weekend in April.  Please continue to support the best way you can and pray for our sisters and brothers in Bouzy and throughout Haiti.
Suzanne Koenigs – Haiti Core Committee

Kids getting water at the well.


On the way to get water.


We want to share the latest news from our brothers and sisters in Bouzy, Haiti.

They recently experienced a small earthquake and several aftershocks. Fr Claude said that school had stopped for 2 weeks due to the earthquakes and aftershocks. Parents were afraid to send their kids to school. Damage has not been severe, but people were anxious. He plans to resume school this week.

Church repairs/rebuilding- The Engineer has not returned to Bouzy and they have not resumed work due to the aftershocks. They do not want to put people in danger on ladders/scaffolding, etc. They are hoping to start rebuilding soon.

New Post-Secondary Vocational Training for students- Fr Claude has begun registering students for this new program. He said he has 2 teachers lined up. After he gets students registered and knows how many teachers he will have, he will let us know, and  we can then talk about how we might be able to help.

Medical concerns- They have had an outbreak of illness (cough and fever) in Bouzy (and Haiti). He told us they had a lot of people sick and some had gone to the hospital. He even drove some people there himself. He thanked us for our help in getting people cared for and treated, saying that our support helped those who could not afford care. He said the community is doing a little better now. Our interpreter is getting some additional medicines for the Dispensary that the nurse Tatiana had asked for. He has ordered them, picked them up and is sending to Bouzy this week. 

Water Program- We are very thankful for finding a way to get the supplies to them. They have not begun distributing the 100 new systems due to the illness in the community, but they hope to in a couple weeks. Fr Claude said he and Madelene (lead technician) will find a  way to start distribution soon.

Fr Claude wanted to thank all of us for our prayers and support. He said he was very happy to get our messages of love and support over the past several weeks, and they helped uplift him spiritually as well. He asked us to greet Fr Mike, Fr Ron, and the entire parish of St Joseph the Worker. 

After many months of delay, the people of Bouzy now have the buckets, filters, and tablets to be able to expand the water program to include 100 more families. Clean water is especially important for the development of young children in the community. The delivery was challenging because of the danger from gangs on the roads out of Port au Prince. With the help of our interpreter and Gift of Water, they were able to fly the supplies from Port au Prince to an airport in Jacmel and transport them to Bouzy. The 4 new Water Technicians will now have expanded duties to distribute and teach the new families how to use them properly.

 

Despite the difficulties, the faithful of the parish like to sing and praise the name of God. As you can see, every evening we have a (different) celebrant priest. And we of the parish are also present.

We invite you to watch these recently sent videos from Fr. Claude.

Little by little they start to rebuild in Bouzy

It is hard to believe it has been 12 weeks since the tragic earthquake.

We recently had two calls with Fr. Claude to continue discussing his plans for the relief and rebuilding. When we asked how it was going in Bouzy; he said piti piti (step by step, little by little) we start to rebuild. 

We have had in-depth conversations about additional community support, repairing the damage to the church and rebuilding part of the rectory. We shared our concerns about not having enough funds to complete the rectory, the Church and meet the needs of the community. He replied, the community has received food, assistance for the teachers, sheet metal to repair roofs, $3,000 safety funds for urgent community needs and now cement to repair walls and floors. Fr. feels their initial needs have been addressed and they appreciate the support. It is time to start the repairs for the Church and the Rectory.

We have received cost information from the engineer of $52,000 to repair and reinforce the church, which is more extensive than we thought and more than we have available. We are working with Fr. Claude and the engineer as they develop a plan to repair the damage and build the roof. We know we cannot help with all their needs and there are challenges ahead, but as Fr. Claude said, ”we pray, God hears us, and we trust him”.

St. Catherine’s parish thanks you for all the prayers and support.
 

Our Brothers and Sisters in Bouzy recover and rebuild.
The earthquake recovery in Bouzy has begun, now that the aftershocks have finally stopped. Where possible they can return indoors to sleep and begin to rebuild. Thanks to your gifts we have been able to provide emergency food, support to teachers, repairs at the schools, and building materials to put roofs on homes giving them shelter from the frequent rain. While we cannot rebuild the entire community and surrounding villages, your help will allow them to replace some of what was lost. They can start repairing structures at St Catherine’s so they have a safe place to worship and gather as a community. Their recovery will take time and we will continue to send the remaining funds as Fr. Claude and community leaders develop their plans.

· School has started at St Catherine’s with 98% of the kids in attendance, surrounding schools have not been able to begin

· The community is planning for the celebration of their parish feast of St Catherine de Alexandre in November.

· Haiti continues to be unsafe, please pray for the kidnapped missionaries and Haitians and for their safe return.
 

Haiti Earthquake Relief 
Thank You for your generosity! There has been amazing support from our parish with hundreds of families contributing. We have raised over $70K since the earthquake devastated Bouzy. We have sent them $15,000 so far. They used $10,000 in emergency funds to feed 400 people and gave some money to the teachers to rebuild their lives and help prepare for the school year. Buying sheet metal for home repairs is the latest need. They are working to purchase metal sheets for 350-400 families.
Future Haiti donations will go to sustain our ongoing programs of education, water and pastor support, unless you designate them for earthquake relief or church rebuild. Thanks so much for your consistent support of our Haitian sisters and brothers.


  



 

Rebuilding in Bouzy begins
It has been over a month now, and Fr. Claude has told us that the Haitian government has done nothing thus far to help the people in their recovery after the earthquake. He said that as the pastor of St. Catherine’s church he feels the responsibility to lead the rebuilding in the community. “I see that we
have to do what is necessary for them; for they are like sheep without a shepherd. God only knows if there was not the presence of the church.” At Fr. Claude’s request we have sent a portion of your donations toward earthquake relief to them to purchase sheet metal for repairing homes of up to 400 families. Fr. Claude and the community leaders will decide how best to use the remaining funds as they move forward. He has expressed to us repeatedly how thankful they are for your generosity. We also want to extend our heartfelt Mesi’ anpil! You are bringing light and hope to their community.

Update from Fr. Claude 9-8-2021

Our phone call started with us sharing that we are worshiping at the outdoor mass this weekend and we will miss having him here with us again this year. He said he is sorry he cannot be with us but is hoping and praying he can be back again to celebrate with us next year. 

He told us the community is still struggling and having aftershocks, but they are planning to start the school year on October 4^th. This is a sign the community is healing and working to get their lives back together. Fr. said they used the emergency funds we sent to feed 400 people and gave some money to the teachers to rebuild their lives and help prepare for the school year.

We told him that the Fund-raising campaign has been going well and the parish has been very generous with their donations. We are prepared to start sending funds soon so he can start to plan how to use them. He responded, “Praise God”. He will discuss how best to use the funds with Fr. Dennia (the other priest in the community) and he will let us know during our next phone call how they plan to use the funds.

Fr. Claude asked us to keep praying for them and he said many times during the conversation to thank the people of St Joseph the Worker for their love and prayers.

Packing meals for community

Fr Claude texted us last week that he will use our gifts to provide emergency food kits to people in Bouzy, and emergency assistance to St Catherine's teachers who lost homes and possessions in Les Cayes. In Fr Claude's own words:

"Hello! I want to thank you for our phone conversation. I was really moved to see the enthusiasm & speed with which you placed a gift in the account of St. Catherine's Parish for the victims of the August 14 disaster. Thank you also for your solidarity.

After meeting with the parish charity committee, we decided together to prepare food kits for the victims. In the kits, they will find: 2 pots of rice, 1 pot of beans, 1 pot of corn, 1 jar of oil, 2 of spaghetti, 2 of salmon. So we plan to give the victims this kit.

For the teachers, especially the one who came from Les Cayes, they lost everything. To relieve them, I thought it best to give them something so they could get some of what was lost from them."

Food distribution line 

We are pleased to hear from Fr Claude that it is no longer difficult to travel to nearby towns of Fond Des Negres and Miragoane to buy food and supplies with the money you generously give for Haiti. He will get security to manage distribution of the food at St Catherine's.

We have been in contact with Food For the Poor, an NGO on the ground in Haiti that is providing early crisis response to the earthquake. We asked if they could provide any assistance to our sister parish in Bouzy. They said that they already had! Fr. Claude confirmed that he has picked up 15 bags or rice, 3 bags of beans and tarps for some of the people sleeping outside. Food For the Poor called again today to say that they had more food available, which must be used at St Catherine's school.

Fr Claude and the people of Bouzy are still sleeping outside. They rightly fear aftershocks. There have been 27 aftershocks so far, 11 of which had a magnitude between 4.5 & 5.8. Aftershocks have slowed, but it’s still not safe to sleep inside. Fr. Claude says that when it is safe, the new part of the rectory is solid and will be a safe home for him. The old part of the rectory was destroyed in the earthquake and will be taken down soon. He met with someone today to begin discussions on how to do that.

After Fr. Claude is sleeping safely inside, we will discuss the state of the new church construction. Fr. Claude says that much of it appears to be in good shape. The engineer will come out to assess it after the aftershocks cease.

Meals bags to give families

School opens in most of Haiti on September 6. But opening is delayed for areas affected by the earthquake like Bouzy. They are waiting for the Education Ministry to set a school start date for them.

It is good news that they have been able to get some initial food in Bouzy, but we know much more will be needed in the days ahead, and as they work to rebuild homes, rectory, churches, schools and other damaged structures. Please continue to pray for their recovery.

Mesi’ anpil! (Thank you very much!)
Dave & Lori Henke and Deacon Kevin

Gathering for food distribution 

Disaster Relief Campaign For Our Haiti Sister Parish

A 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit Haiti’s Southern Peninsula on Saturday, August 14, followed by a tropical storm days later. Our sister parish of Sainte Catherine in Bouzy, Haiti is located just 12 miles east of the earthquake epicenter. Fr. Claude said thanks to God no one died or was seriously injured. He said the people are “panicked,” in shock, afraid and suffering. Many sheltered outdoors during the massive storm and are still sleeping outside in fear of their homes collapsing. Fr. Claude and his staff are also sleeping outside because of the damage to the rectory. The roads are impassable into the community, so they have not received any emergency help at this time. Those that have food in the community currently are sharing with each other. The rectory, school, community structures, and many homes were damaged or destroyed. The new church under construction also has some cracks and damage.

Fr. Claude says he feels our prayers and knows he is not alone. He believes that God is with him; otherwise, he would have died. He asked us to “pray more” for all the people who have been touched by the disaster. We get a sense from our phone conversations that he feels a great burden to be strong for the people who rely on him and desperately need help. It seems that recovery efforts have not begun yet in Bouzy. The Tropical storm, mudslides, lack of access and equipment, and remote location will make the work ahead to rebuild overwhelming. Since our relationship with Bouzy began 12 years ago, we have repeatedly seen their strong faith, dependence on God, and resiliency carry them through many disasters and tragedies. We trust God will be with them again during this difficult time of rebuilding. We want to be there for them as well.

Our efforts to bring relief, and to help restore Bouzy has begun, and our sisters and brothers need your help. We have sent the first of emergency funds to help them get started, but much more will be needed. We are holding a fund-raising campaign to help them to rebuild and recover in the community. For the next few weeks, we will be taking donations towards this effort. 

You can donate on the parish website: sjtw.net, click Donate and chose the Haiti dropdown, or text: SJTW GIVE to 77977, or by check payable to St Joseph the Worker, noting "Haiti" in the memo line. You may drop donations in the regular collection basket at masses. Please consider donating to this campaign, and keep them in your prayers.

PLEASE DONATE

Does your faucet look like this?





Early into our relationship, there was a realization that our Haitian sisters and brothers, young and old, were lacking the gift of water that is clean and free from parasites and bacteria. 
Our Medical Team recognized that the children of St Catherine's showed signs of malnutrition. Tests confirmed that the water was contaminated, and they were suffering from intestinal worms. In 2013 we partnered with the non-profit organization, Gift of Water, that provides a water purification system using two 5-gallon buckets with filters and chlorine tablets to produce clean and safe drinking water. Funds were raised to provide 100 families with filter systems, chlorine tablets, and technician's salaries. Along with the initial 100 systems, GOW sent a representative to Bouzy to explain how the program works. They also met with community leaders to develop a Water Committee and select a water technician responsible for regular visits to families with filtration systems, educating on proper use and providing the supplies necessary to keep the filters functioning correctly. Soon after the program was initiated, donations came in from parishioners, allowing the medical team to introduce a deworming program. The medical team distributed deworming medicine to families to rid them of parasites. Eliminating the parasites would allow their bodies to absorb the nutrition from their food, and the clean water will then prevent the worms from returning!
In 2018, the program grew to 500 families, expanding to a second technician. Shortly after this, the community went through various changes and several difficulties, including a devastating hurricane and the collapse of their church. Unfortunately, the water program began to suffer. Families lost support from the technicians. Again, we arranged with Fr. Claude and the Water Committee to add a supervisor to help the techs get the program back on track. Since the program was regressing, our fear was the families were suffering from parasitic-related health issues.
The water program reflects how difficult it is to live in a community that regularly deals with poverty's challenges and the life-threatening issues which accompany it. We take clean water for granted. Earlier this year, we started discussions with Fr. Claude to find new and innovative ways to restore the program. The decision was made to replace 2 of the Technicians. Madilyn, the remaining technician, was sent to advance her training and enhance skills and gain confidence to help train new technicians. 
We begin again as we work together to restore the program, and the recent steps forward are promising. Earthquakes happen, hurricanes come, churches collapse, priests get reassigned and sadly, political upheaval and civil unrest continue, yet our relationship of love and perseverance for our Haitian Brothers and Sisters lives on just like God’s Love.
For more information, contact us at dnlhenke@gmail.com

Here are a few before, after and present pictures from St. Catherine’s parish in Bouzy. As always, we appreciate your support!


St. Catherine’s – Fall 2017


The collapse in January 2019


Present – adding beginning stages of the roof to the building.
 

Thank You Very Much From The People Of Bouzy, Haiti

During these times when pandemic has reduced our church activities, we are thrilled that our people have such love for our struggling Haitian sisters and brothers that you donated over $18,000 in response to our April fundraising appeal.  Thank you! Your gifts give our Haitian friends hope.  They allow us to sustain all our current programs to help them, including education, water, & medical, and even a little to continue roofing the church.    An amazing gift!  We are grateful.  The people of St Catherine's are deeply appreciative.  Fr Claude, who sends his profound thanks in every call and letter to us, is grateful. Mesi Anpil/ Thank You Very Much.

- The Haiti Core Committee







Progress in the rebuilding of St. Catherine’s is a sign of God’s love and also hope for the people of Bouzy and surrounding townships. It brought joy to our hearts when we see such a visual change in landscape, and we wanted to share our happiness with you. Thanks again for the continuation of support for our Haitian family.

Father Claude’s message; St. Joseph the Worker Day, May 1st:  I would like in the name of all the faithful of the parish of Saint Catherine of Bouzy and in my personal name, I would like to wish the clergy of Saint Joseph and the deacons, the fervent faithful happy feast of Saint Joseph. To celebrate a saint is to celebrate the wonders of God. We cannot pass in silence on this great day. Your feast is our feast. On this great day blessed by God, may God bless you abundantly.

Pope Francis said Mission is one of the greatest challenges for our Church and it must remain foremost in our hearts. St Joseph the Worker has given us many opportunities to take on the challenge of Mission, both here in our own community and through our relationship with St. Catherine’s in Haiti.

12 years ago, our parish leaders guided by the Holy spirit led us to Haiti. How many of you thought that you would have an opportunity to share your blessings with people that live on a small island, the poorest country in the western hemisphere? Many of our parishioners have already responded to the call and have gone to worship, pray and share the gospel with our brothers and sisters in Haiti.

They have shared God’s love in homes with no running water, no electricity and rely on growing their own crops for food. They have seen families collect water from the river or wells and pour it into bucket filters in their homes, so their children have clean water to drink. They have traveled miles into the countryside to give medical care to people that have no way to get to a doctor or a hospital. We have also visited the schools, where some of the children have advanced their education to go on and become teachers. So, they can give back to their parish.

Many have called it life changing after seeing the faith, hope and resilience in Bouzy.

If you have been following along with our relationship, you would know of their recent hardships including hurricanes, the total collapse of their church, the pandemic, and government turmoil. Even with those difficulties and without their church building they still come together as a community and worship with great joy.

Over the past year, we were able to support their schools, medical needs, and clean water. We know that education is a way out of poverty, and supporting teacher’s salaries helps to ensure many have access to a good education. We were able to secure some much-needed prescription medications for the clinic in Bouzy. Work on their new church continues, and thanks to many of you, the walls are almost completed, and they are working on the cement floor. We are excited to see these developments and hope that soon they can begin work on the roof. The progress and their passion for the new church building has been amazing to watch.

We are inviting you to be part of the St Joseph Haiti mission team. We are not traveling to visit them at this time because of the pandemic and political unrest, but we hope to in the future. In the meantime, there are still a lot of ways you can be a part of our mission…One way to contribute is thru prayer, which is the foundation of all we do.

We have several committees that meet throughout the year. These opportunities include groups that focus on clean water, medical needs, communications, education, and a leadership committee. If you could spare a couple hours a month, we welcome anyone with interest to talk with us and find out more.

We are having a second collection this month to help fund our activities. We thank you for your past support and hope you will continue to be generous. You can use the Haiti envelopes or donate on-line thru the SJTW website.

Jesus is calling us to mission and St Joseph the Worker has given us the opportunity to serve.

It is up to all of us to respond.

David and Lori Henke
dnlhenke@gmail.com
763-221-1785
 

We have much to share with our brothers and sisters in Haiti.
Please donate online or text SJTW give to 77977.

PLEASE DONATE TO HAITI

(Select "Haiti Donations" in the "Fund" window.)