Haiti
Info
Our monthly door
collection will take place this weekend in support of Sacre-Coeur de
Meyer, our sister parish. We ask for your continued support to that
parish and Father Simon Francois. This month, we were able to transfer
$1200 to Sacre-Coeur, as our quarterly support, and also offered a
special gift of $1000 for the May 30 feast. In a message on June 4,
Father Francois commented on Meyer’s celebration of the patron -- one
of the links which we share with the Haitian parish.
Yes, celebration of the
Feast of the Sacred Heart on May 30 definitely went well. As usual, we
had nine days of prayer -- a novena in preparation for the feast.
Parishioners and we priests were strengthened spiritually from this
solemn devotion. The Meyer faithful participated, along with others from
different parishes who have a special love for the Sacred Heart of
Jesus. This celebration of the parish patron provided an opportunity for
other priests to visit Sacre-Coeur. As a result, every afternoon of the
novena, a different priest led the prayers and provided his own insight
into a love of the Sacred Heart.
Please thank everyone at
Sacred Heart Parish for their continuing support. Your donation is going
to help me pay off certain debts. Food shortages in the country have
placed a special burden on the people in Meyer. As a result, they have
been unable to offer any money to the parish as they had in the past.
With regard to the
long-range project of rebuilding the church, it is a major and serious
concern. A parish group will meet next week to take stock of the
situation.
Please convey my
greetings to all parishioners. Father Simon Francois.
In a recent e-mail exchange, Father Francois
commented on his project to rebuild the church -- a stucco structure
with a corrugated metal roof which is almost a hundred years old and in
very poor condition. Rebuilding is a daunting task for any Haitian
community.
Regarding our plan for Sacre-Coeur de Meyer, a
12-member committee was formed for the purpose of organizing activities
related to rebuilding. Approximately US$1,000 has been raised in our
parish. Sacre-Coeur has an additional sum of US$14,000 for this project.
We would like to have $50,000 to start work in June after the Feast of
the Sacred Heart. There is a pressing need since the roof of the church
is in such poor condition that it constitutes a true danger. Thank you
for your concern and may God bless you
.
In a recent
message, Father Simon Francois of Sacre-Coeur de Meyer provided a
personal glimpse of the most recent problems -- some which have made
headlines in our newspapers:
On April 10, I had to
stay at the rectory throughout the day because there were demonstrations
in our area. The road to Meyer was blocked, but now -- late in the day
-- it has been cleared.... Thank you for your concern about conditions
here in Haiti. I depend on prayers of your parish to help us through
these difficulties.
Disturbances took place
primarily in Port-au-Prince and Les Cayes. There were victims and
considerable damage. Many stores were looted and some public buildings
vandalized.... These demonstrations result from frustration over the
inability of the government to take action about high prices. The
increased cost of food has resulted in greater hardship for people who
already struggle to survive. However, there is some good news! The
region has had good rainfall and farmers are hopeful about their crops.
If the crops are good, then the price of food will decrease and
conditions will improve.
Our door collection at Masses provide an opportunity to support our sister parish in
Haiti. We do a door collection once a month in order to provide
financial support to Sacre-Coeur de Meyer and its cleric, Pastor
Simon Francois.
For over ten years, our parish has maintained an association
with communities on the Caribbean island -- first with a parish in
Jeremie and now with Sacre-Coeur de Meyer. We are one of 353 Catholic
churches in the US and Canada who offer support under the Parish
Twinning Program of the Americas. The Nashville-based Program has now
been in operation for 28 years. It has expanded in health assistance,
arranging for 100 children and adults to receive surgery in the US and
for some 65 medical teams to undertake 300 medical mission trips to
treat some 400,000 Haitians. In the capital of Port-au-Prince, the
Program will now be directed by Sister Mary Finnick, a member of the
Grey Nuns of the Sacred Heart who will oversee a guest house,
facilitate the arrival of American groups and help with in-country
travel. Between 600 and 700 persons associated with the Program travel
to Haiti each year.
To learn more about the Parish Twinning
Program, visit: www.parishprogram.org
More information on the hospital
initiative of the Visitation Hospital Foundation, which was founded by
Theresa Patterson of the Parish Twinning Program, is available at www.visitationhospital.org.
The Foundation is developing a clinic and hospital in southwest Haiti in
the city of Petite Riviere de Nippes.
