PLH Youth Soccer League Kicks Off

By Sara Dessieux

Organized sports for kids is not a thing in Haiti.  Yet here we are trying to launch a youth soccer program on a massive expanse of dirt up in the hills beyond the village of Camp Marie, Haiti.  Guesly has been participating in youth soccer programs in the states as an athlete and then as coach for more than thirty years. I’ve been a soccer mom for five years.  We know how youth soccer programs are run. And we know Haiti. Could we make the first happen in the second? I’ve referred to it as “the big experiment”.

Now Guesly apparently does not believe in starting small.  He said we’d run a program for 600 kids. We arrived back in Haiti on April 4 and we learned that only a few teams had been formed.  That sounded alright to me. Start small with a manageable number. But I guess coaches were just wanting to know that the league was actually going to happen.  One week later I was given a small stack of team rosters. The next day I received more as we photographed more than 200 kids. Then the next day I was given a few more and I took pictures of more kids.  This week I worked like crazy to organize team lists, pictures, and uniforms. Guesly worked on creating a game schedule for the 40 teams we now had registered and assembling goals and lining out five fields for different ages.  We met with the coaches and went to bed not knowing how the day would end up going.

On Saturday, April 20th our family was at the field at 7:00 AM.  Two of our employees were already there. Five games were set to start at 8:00 AM.  Well, games did not start on time but it seemed that in no time people were pouring in.  Coaches, players, referees and a bunch of kids and some adults just coming to see the excitement.  And then, yes, it felt chaotic on every level. But, games were played! Players looked awesome in their made-in-Haiti uniforms and coaches and referees took their roles seriously.  

I spent most of the time in a shipping container we use for storage giving out soccer cleats for players to borrow so I did not get much chance to watch games or walk around.  But every time I looked around it was pretty incredible. So many people had walked the almost one mile up our road. Coaches had loaded up their entire teams into tap-taps to bring them from neighboring towns.  All for some organized soccer.

One man that we’ve known for many years came from his town a couple hours away to take part in the event.  I asked what he thought of it and made my comment about how I did not know why my husband needed to start so huge.  This man gushed about how no, no this is just as it should be. He said that it’s a movement. I’ve heard a number of people refer to it in this way.  And as he pointed to the hills around us he said, you’re going to see houses springing up all around here. People are going to want to be a part of this.  

Well, I personally hope we don’t lose the out-in-the-country feel we currently have, but I know they are probably right that this is going to be big and it’s impact is only going to keep growing.   It’s helpful to keep that in mind when we’re struggling through daily things like mounting bills, national fuel shortages, endless requests for jobs, roadblocks, lack of rainfall, dry wells, insufficient facilities and equipment, and car troubles.  Troubles such as these and way more are just a part of life for everyone here in Haiti. Life in Haiti is not going to get easier anytime soon but we do what we do because we to spark more hope despite the situation. We want to empower Haitian people to make their country stronger.  To use this new soccer league as an example, they benefited from our ability to fundraise among people who have money to give and our ability to purchase and transport equipment and supplies. They benefited from skilled volunteers who created level playing fields and others who trained people in their community to be skilled soccer coaches.  They benefited from our understanding of how sports leagues are organized and our computer skills. But then they were empowered. The Dessieux family were the only non-locals there. And in a couple weeks, they could probably do this without us. But we’re not leaving because this is only the beginning! There is more to come.

Construction: Mass Grading

In the fall of 2017, Project Living Hope purchased 19.5 acres of property for the construction of the King Center. Located just 900 yards from the center of Camp Marie, the King Center will be an extension of the community.

With the road to our property completed, we moved to the next stage in construction - mass grading of the property. Operators and project managers in Oregon came together and created a 7-week plan based on the civil engineer’s grading map. Four of these men traveled to Haiti in February to carry out the project with the assistance of Haitian drivers and laborers. On February 2, 2019 PLH broke ground on the King Center campus! It was a huge milestone but only just the beginning. We are so thankful for all of your prayers and support that made this day possible.

“Immediately it felt like we were working as a team. We all started from a deep faith in God, and a sense that what we were doing was important. I think that foundation made it easy to respect each other and to truly enjoy the gifts that each person brought to the trip. ”

— Jay Lyman

After overcoming challenges with the equipment breaking down and diesel being in short supply, they had a very productive first week. Unfortunately, due to continued national fuel shortages and widespread protests, the work had to be halted.

Three and a half weeks later though we were able to send a team to resume the digging.  The mass grading project spanned five weeks during the months of February and March. Fifteen American and ten Haitian team members worked on the project and an estimated 80,000 yards of dirt was moved by eight machines and seven dump trucks.

“The people of Haiti are just oppressed by where they live, they have plenty of talent, operating equipment, constructing, negotiating, and the individual Haitian’s are smart. I didn’t run into anyone in Haiti who wouldn’t be as successful as myself, given the same opportunities that I have had.”

— Jim Swenson

The building pads for the King Center facilities, three soccer fields and the pond and ditch were completed. The board approved $150,000 for this phase of construction.  Because of delays, it looks like we will end up being a little over budget. We are so grateful for all of our excavation volunteers and for how much was accomplished.

We are excited for the next phase of construction! Two shipping containers have been donated and are being delivered to Haiti. They will be used to form the sides of the shop and we plan to start construction of that as soon as they are delivered. We are thankful for the support, the momentum, and the progress. We need your support financially to move to the next phase of construction. Would you like to partner with us on this project?  If so, please donate here.

Our excavation teams worked hard to get the three soccer fields completed because this month we will be starting our youth soccer league! Follow us on Facebook or Instagram to receive frequent updates.  The kids and coaches are excited!  We wish all the men who worked hard to prepare the land could see the fruit of their labor firsthand.

PRAY FOR HAITI AND AN END TO PROTESTS

Thank you for your support of Project Living Hope and the Haitian people.  We wanted to give you a brief update about the PLH construction work in Haiti and some of the events that have been happening in the country over the last few weeks.

We started the first phase of construction on our property at the beginning of February. Even though there were some setbacks, we had an incredibly successful first week.  We will be posting a second blog post with updates about the construction in a few days. We will have some great stories to share with you! Unfortunately, we were not able to proceed with the second week of work due to the continued national fuel shortage and protests that broke out throughout the country.  This cut off our supply of fuel to power our equipment and made it difficult for the organization housing our team to power their generators or replenish food and water supplies. We made the difficult call to halt the construction project until things return to normal and brought our excavation team members home to the US.  We are so thankful for the work that was completed, the commitment of the volunteers, and the safe journeys home.

Haiti has been experiencing inflated prices, fuel shortages, a drop in the value of the Haitian currency, and a lack of confidence in the government. This, along with opposing political parties trying to get back into power, led to 10 days of nationwide protests and roadblocks, beginning February 7th. The people are tired -- tired of living with a bad economy, government corruption, and roadblocks and protests. But it is not the general population that protests in the streets and causes roadblocks. These are mainly young, unemployed men who have been hired to shut down Haitian life to push an agenda. Workers sit at home losing their much needed pay, students miss days of school, hospitals run out of oxygen and other supplies, businesses and stores remain closed, and families run out of fuel, food, and drinking water.  

Though protests are a common occurrence in Haiti, this last round was more widespread and lasted longer than normal. Things have been a lot calmer this week (though many roads are still blocked), but we are waiting to see if it is just a respite or if this round of protests has died down. We will be assessing the situation over the next week and establishing a plan for the construction project and our upcoming visiting team trips. If widespread protests continue, we will not send visiting teams to Haiti as the roadblocks prohibit travel between Port-au-Prince and our community of Camp Marie. The safety of our visitors and Haitian staff is always our number one concern, and we also do not wish for those giving of their time to come down and not be able to experience Haiti fully. We are optimistic that the situation will continue to quiet down and we can resume with the project and planned trips.

Our community of Camp Marie and the surrounding areas remained fairly calm. Our staff helped care for our visitors, stepped up as the leaders they are within their community, and continued to move to advance the mission of Project Living Hope.  The Haitian people are hopeful and resilient. This is not the first time that they have had to deal with protests, nor will it be the last. In times like these, we see them come alongside and help support one another in amazing ways.

We ask you to continue to pray for Haiti. Even when these protests die down and life returns to normal, the issues will remain. There is much to be done in Haiti. When facing these situations, we are reminded that Haiti needs jobs. If these young men had employment, they would not be protesting. Haiti is facing many challenges, but we have faith that God can overcome these and we must faithfully continue the work that He is calling us to do -- to empower the Haitian people to build a stronger Haiti. Thank you for praying with us for positive change and forward movement.

Would you like to hear more about Guesly and Sara’s recent trip to Haiti, the construction project, the situation in Haiti, and how you can be praying? We have two opportunities for you to hear from Guesly and Sara firsthand and join us in prayer for the Haitian people:

• Monday, February 25th at Foothills Church in Stayton at 6pm. Dessert will be served.

• Monday, March 11th at Garden Way Church in Eugene at 7pm. Pie will be served

PLH Mass Grading Project: Groundbreaking News

GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY

February 2, 2019 was a monumental day, we broke ground on the Project Living Hope property and began the mass grading work that is needed for construction of the King Center! It’s a huge milestone and it’s only just the beginning!

Project Living Hope Founder and President Guesly Dessieux, the Dessieux Family, Camp Marie Mayor, Mary Lourdes, the construction team, our Haitian Staff, and dozens of community members came out early Saturday morning to mark the occasion. This is an exciting new chapter and we are so thankful for all of your prayers and support that made this monumental day possible!

PLH President and Founder Guesly Dessieux standing on the first location to be at finish grade elevation.

TIMELINE

We are tackling this project in phases as it is a large under-taking. Below is a rough idea of the project phases:  

• 2017

  • Property acquisition of 20 acres

• 2018

  • Site survey 

  • Campus master plan 

  • Geotechnical investigation 

  • Road construction to the site

  • Grading of temporary soccer field 

• 2019 

  • Mass grading of building pads, pond, on-site roads, and soccer fields

  • Water well

  • Perimeter fencing

  • Shop construction 

  • Retrofit road with drainage crossings

• 2020-2021

  • Utility systems (water, sewer, power)

  • Building construction 

  • Soccer field turf installation

MASS GRADING WORK

We are thankful for the volunteers and champions for giving their time, talent, and treasure. Progress has proceeded well so far. We have a committed and focused team with a great vision, and a welcoming community in Haiti. We have consulted with project managers, engineers and construction professionals. There is approximately 88,000 cubic yards of material that needs to be moved.  It has been estimated that it will take two-months to complete the grading and excavation of the site. We have skilled operators from the US working alongside Haitians to complete this project. We have had more than a dozen volunteers commit to the project and it’s been amazing to see God assemble the teams and work out all the many details. We are still recruiting for teams that will be traveling at the end of February and early March. We are specifically looking for people experienced in operating D7 bulldozer, 336 excavator, 966 front loader, roller, and haul truck.  We will also need the leadership of a project manager / site superintendent to manage the work, and a surveyor or grade checker to help make sure the grading work is completed according to plan. The trip costs approximately $1500 per person, which includes airfare, accommodations, food and transportation. All travel arrangements will be taken care of by Project Living Hope. If you cannot afford the cost, but are willing to donate your time, we have some scholarships available. If you are interested in being on a team or supporting a team member, please contact us.  A ton of planning, preparing, organizing and prayer has gone into this project and we are so thankful for everyone that has helped make this possible!

Would you like to give a one-time or monthly gift designated to the building fund?

2018 PLH National Soccer League Championship Game

By Laura Nott

Congratulations to our first-ever league champions, Fonds-Parisien! The team pulled out a win against Ti Goave in the championship match of the PLH National Christian Soccer League. After a 1-1 score, the game ended in a penalty shootout. A nice save and a missed shot clinched the win for Fonds-Parisien and the crowd rushed the field.

Watching the game, I was reminded once again how beloved soccer is in this country and how great an opportunity sports are for reaching youth and training up leaders!

As I listened to the committee members’ speeches during the award ceremony, they referred multiple times to the "movement". This league is not just about the game of soccer. It is about creating a movement. In this movement, we see communities coming together to support their youth. We see positive environments for play and growth. We see youth being trained up as servant leaders. And we see the gospel being shared.

Before the event, the league coaches, committee, and PLH staff enjoyed a meal together to celebrate the close of a great season. Pictured above are the head coaches of Fonds-Parisien and Ti Goave.

Next month, we will hold our third annual soccer coaches clinic. This clinic includes training in Coerver coaching techniques and servant leadership. In April, we will launch our youth soccer league. We are so excited to see more and more people come together to join this movement and empower the Haitian youth to bring about a stronger Haiti.

We want to say thank you to Destiny Village and Steve and Lynn Petrosino for providing the league with practice socks for all 608 players! We have recruited coaches and the teams are starting to form. We can’t wait for the first games in April!

THANK YOU!

by Amy Bentz

Our Eugene, Oregon fundraiser on

December 1st, 2018 raised almost $14,000!

THANK YOU to everyone who attended our fundraiser on Saturday! You are such an important part of Project Living Hope.  Your generosity is helping to expand the ministry and further the mission to Empower Haitians to Build a Stronger Haiti.

This fundraiser would not be possible without the work of our dedicated table sponsors and volunteers. Because of their invaluable contribution, we're eager to say a big "Thank you!" 

Table Sponsors:

Nick & Anita Nott

Don Kimball                      

Ron & Fawn Randall            

Tonya Johnson

Jonathan & Brooke Nott        

Andy & Debbie Vobora         

Sam & Rachel Busskohl     

Highland Tree Service - Ben Macauley 

Sylvia Stock & Bill Kisselburgh given in loving memory of Dorothy Kimball

Volunteers:

Julie Dedman

Dessieux family of 7

Karen Duncan

Tammy Henderson

Jake Henderson

Tonya Johnson

Heather Kimball

Robyn Kimball

Annika Kimball

Jenna Kimball

Ben Macauley

Jacob Macauley

Anita Nott

Nick Nott

Rachel Busskohl

Bonnie Taylor

Shawn Taylor

Annabelle Taylor

Desserts:

Edith Bowlby

Julie Dedman

Kyda Dodson

Tonya Johnson

Jan Jones

Rachel Busskohl

Anita Nott

Sue Renic

PLH National Christian Soccer League Season Comes to a Close

By Thonny Fabien

PLH Haiti Operations Manager

As planned, The Project Living Hope National Christian Soccer League has come to the end of its first season. One final championship match will take place in December. We thank God for providing the opportunity and seeing it through to completion. We want to thank also PLH for their belief and trust they have put on me to do the work of God. Sports are an effective way to make disciples who, in turn, make disciples for Christ. Sports can be used to transform lives of the athletes; change the mindset of people; help children learn fast; and help people turn their back on alcohol, drugs, smoking, violence, etc. The PLH National Christian Soccer League seeks to draw people to Christ and bring peace to the communities. The league is structured to create opportunities for the athletes and facilitate long-term development in the country.

“I coach soccer because I never want children to participate in bad things. Like Thonny says, Coach De Vie “Coach of Life”. When I first heard that term, I felt good because when you are a coach of life you always talk to someone to help them make good decisions for their life. I’m not an expert in playing soccer, but I was a player and I love soccer. I am not an expert player, but in talking to them, I am an expert. I’m the moral coach.”

— Coach Benedic

As a leader, I always take note of the fans reaction; players, coaches, and referees actions; and the team organization. What critical and positive things do they do? How are they responding or reacting to each other? And what do I need to change or teach in the future? I see that the winning team is always celebrating, enjoying the game, and happy; but the losing team leaves the field sad, unhappy, and tired, and they complain that referees contribute to their failure. During a loss, the fans sometimes support their teams but sometimes they are mad and ready to fight. That’s the struggle with sports. We can’t have an environment like that!

What can be done differently? And how we can use sports not to follow culture but to create our own culture?  We need passion for community development. We need to be courageous leaders who step up. We need to see how the community does things and we need listen to them as well. We need to continue to train coaches and referees training to be servant leaders. If we make a positive influence on the coaches, the coaches will influence players and the players will soon influence their families and community. The whole community can change step by step. We need a movement where we share one vision and step up to difficulties and bring results.

“I was born to play soccer. I’ve always loved to play. My dream was to become a big soccer player. But there was no opportunity for that. Then I wanted to be a big coach. Even though I never had training to be a coach, when there was a team in this area, I always went to practice with them like a coach. I always had in mind to be a great coach, but I didn’t have the opportunity. But thanks to God, PLH came, and now I will try to be like I imagined before.”

— Coach Guy

Therefore, through sports we will create our culture by investing our time into the life of the people. Our goal is to see a nation transformed through sports. Here are some positive steps we have made through the work Project Living Hope is doing so far:

1. For the first time, we have a national Christian league in Haiti.

2. Players and fans watch the games and hear the gospel.

3. We prohibit use of alcohol at our soccer games.

4. We create opportunity for the players to perform and live strong values, such as: serving one another, working as a team, protecting the environment, and living a life of integrity.

5. We create opportunity for the players and coaches to maximize their talent.

6. We equip leaders to do their work and we engage them into the work of God.

7. We create opportunity for players to visit other parts of Haiti.

8. We have created a leadership team with servant leadership training and high expectations.

9. We create an opportunity for vendors to come and sell food and drinks at the games.

10. We create a movement of sports where disciples can be made through sports and play.

Our goal is to extend the league to every area of Haiti. We want to see the whole country using sports as a tool to transform lives through Christ. We want to see our Christian athletes be a model for their teammates, proclaim the gospel, and make disciples for Christ. We want to create a movement of Christ-like servant leaders throughout Haiti.

The First Soccer Game on the NEW PLH Pitch: Camp Marie vs. Port-au-Prince

By Sara Dessieux

The Camp Marie team has been playing in our Christian men's league since August, but they've had to use the field in the nearby town of Montrouis as their home turf.  This past Sunday they got to play their first game on the soccer pitch on the Project Living Hope land right in Camp Marie and the Dessieux family and Laura were there to experience it. 

The Project Living Hope Soccer Pitch - Camp Marie, Haiti

Some local boys digging out roots and smoothing out lumps in preparation for the first game.

Coaches Benedic and Willio gave the team a pep talk after the final practice.

It's a mile-long walk (or ride for the lucky ones) and admission was charged, but oh my goodness, the fans came!  It's so hard to capture just how many people were there in pictures, but fun was had by A LOT of people. An estimated 450 tickets were sold. Camp Marie held a 1-0 lead until the last two minutes when the opposing team from Port-au-Prince scored on a penalty kick.  Tie game.  Oh how I wish you could all see firsthand how gorgeous that piece of Haiti is!

This coming Sunday, Camp Marie will host their second game on the new home turf, facing Play It Forward from Fonds-Parisien in the league semi-finals.

August Mission Experience: Building Relationships

By Amy Bentz

On August 1, 2018 our team departed PDX and began our journey to Haiti. Our team consisted of twelve members coming from all over Oregon. The main purpose of our trip was vision casting and building relationships within the community of Camp Marie, Haiti, the community where Project Living Hope is based. Because we believe Christ intended relationships to be the building blocks for change, we want to be known as an organization rooted in relationships.

The first stop on our trip was to The National Museum of Haiti, where we learned about the history and the people of Haiti.

Our next stop was Extollo, an organization we are partnering with. We currently have four men from the community of Camp Marie enrolled in their masonry program. We toured the facility and were able to see first-hand the ways they are teaching and empowering Haitians to learn masonry and carpentry skills.

We arrived at our guest house that evening. The Ortlip guest house is located 10 minutes from Camp Marie in the neighboring town of Montrouis. It’s a beautiful location and we enjoyed our first Haiti sunset.

Day two, Julia began giving violin lessons. The students were eager and learned so much!

Then we hiked the PLH property and picked some watermelon to have with lunch!

We ended our day with a cooking class. We first shopped for the ingredients in a Haitian market. Then we worked side-by-side with Haitians and learned how to prepare plantains, bread fruit, and pikliz. It was a great experience, we all enjoyed working together to prepare the food and then eating together. It was definitely one of the highlights of the trip!

On day three, we attended church in Camp Marie. Pastor Marcel delivered a beautiful sermon on the importance of a strong church - one with spirit-filled leadership, doctrinally sound messages, uncompromising convictions, a strong emphasis on faith and prayer, faithful and generous giving, people who serve in the strength of their spiritual gifts and who value relationships, and a vision for the lost world. The worship was beautiful and our own team member, Julia, played violin with the worship team.

After church, we walked into town, visited a few of the PLH staff members’ homes and met their families. We also were able to introduce the team to the magistrate of Camp Marie, Marielourdes. She welcomed our team and expressed how excited she is to be working with PLH.

After lunch, we set out for the Olympic Center to watch a soccer game. After we arrived, a tropical storm blew in and the game had to be canceled. It was quite a storm! It even hailed, which is a very rare occurrence in Haiti. The children were running outside and catching it in their hands and eating it. While we didn’t get to see a soccer game, there was no shortage of entertainment. A group of young men entertained us with some street dancing.

Day four, our team split up. One group stayed in Camp Marie and the other traveled into Port-au-Prince. Mike and Julia had their second day of violin lessons. The church’s music director was there helping the kids learn and his son took lessons that day.

Brad, Walky and Ian took video and measurements of the road. They got to speak with Marielourdes, the magistrate, about our equipment needs and plans for the road. They also got to meet a number of community members who live near where the road will be built.

The rest of the team visited GOEX and LIFE SA, two apparel production facilities. We met our operations manager, Thonny Fabien there, so he could see the two companies that make t-shirts and sports uniforms.

In the afternoon, we went to a village near Croix-de-Bouquets where a number of artisans make and sell metal pieces made from old oil drums.

Day five, half the team went to Port-au-Prince while the other half of the team stayed to work on the road and for day three of violin lessons.

The team that stayed in Camp Marie visited Clean Water for Haiti and the PLH property. They were promised that the equipment for the road would be available on the weekend, so the Camp Marie team offered to go talk to the director of ODVA (the department in charge of road building in Haiti) to discuss our needs. While they were there, they worked out an agreement to send a bulldozer down to widen and extend the road to our property the very next day! Praise the Lord!

The Port-au-Prince group went to two companies, Haiti Design Co. and Deux Mains. We took an artisan workshop where we got to learn how to make Haitian jewelry.

Day six was our last full day in Camp Marie. Before we left for Camp Marie, one of our Haitian team members, Obenson, led our team in a prayer for the road.

I think we were all nervous that it wouldn’t actually happen. But, when we got to Camp Marie, the bulldozer was there! He cleared the road while the community members watched and cheered!! Praise the Lord for His plans that happen in His time.

All the violin students came together for one last lesson. Two were able to play “Twinkle,  Twinkle Little Star” for us. And Julia gave the students a mini recital to show them what they are striving for.

In all, the PLH vision trip was a tremendous success.  We were welcomed into the community and the relationships that were established further unified PLH and the community of Camp Marie. It was exciting to be a part of this trip and to see God work through our team.

We gathered together yesterday, with our families, one month after returning home, to reflect on our trip and celebrate the relationships we established as a team and with the beautiful people of Haiti.

We praise God for opened doors that allowed for the road to be built out to our property.  Having access to the property is huge and will now allow for soil testing to be done, getting us one step closer to construction! Our soccer teams have been doing well and we just launched our young men’s league on August 12. Our English classes will resume in September and we look forward to expanding into new job skills and sports in the upcoming months. Thank you for your faithful support of Project Living Hope!

Project Living Hope Partners with Corban University to Lead a Medical Team to Haiti

By Sarah Comstock

In 2012, our founder, Guesly Dessieux, started a trip for pre-medical students from Corban University to work with a team of physicians and nurses to provide medical care to underserved people in Haiti.  The following year, I was asked to join the leadership team for the Corban trip. In case you were not aware, Guesly is a physician in Stayton, OR and I am a professor in the Science department at Corban University.  The purpose of this trip is to serve the medical needs of the Haitian people while also providing pre-med students a glimpse of the unique nature of healthcare in the developing world.  This trip makes a significant impact on Corban University students; they come back with a renewed drive to serve others through medicine.  In fact, because of this trip, Corban University now offers a scholarship in Guesly’s name – the Dessieux Scholarship – for students seeking to use a career in healthcare to serve others through missions.

This May, Guesly and I helped lead a team of 15 students and 15 medical professionals to serve on the 7th annual Corban University medical mission trip.  We partnered with a new organization, Nehemiah Vision Ministries, to provide outreach in three villages in rural Haiti as well as with our Oregonian friend Aslan Noakes and her organization, Empower Haiti Together, to help develop a hypertension management program in two other communities. We saw over 400 patients and developed relationships with many other like-minded people working to empower the Haitian people.  While Project Living Hope does not focus on medical ministry, we are committed to using our talents to empower the Haitian people and we seek to partner with other organizations that are working to do the same.  We are excited about the partnerships with these two organizations and look forward to collaborating more with them in the future.

While we were in country, we also got to work with our Project Living Hope in-country employees and take care of important logistics.  We met with our architect, Andrew Ripp from MSAADA Architects, to sign contracts and to discuss our vision for our project as well as our ministry.  Then, later in the week, Andy came out and toured the property. We are excited to be working with Andy and MSAADA. Their mission is to “provide professional architectural and engineering services in the planning, design and implementation of building projects for organizations dedicated to serving others.” Specifically, they seek to partner with organizations in developing countries who serve the Worldwide Church.  In addition, we met with another nearby organization, Extollo International, that works to educate Haitians in the construction industry, “equipping them to build/rebuild their communities, reduce unemployment, stimulate the local economy and improve their quality of life.” We will be partnering with Extollo to train construction workers from Camp Marie and contracting with them to help begin building on Phase One.  The contracts are signed, so be on the lookout for updates about building in the next few months!

Another important meeting to note was that we also got to see the mayor, Marie Lourdes.  We are so impressed with the way she is advocating for Project Living Hope and the community of Camp Marie.  As we met, she showed us a letter she had written to the local government officials asking for their support as we develop in this new community.  She wrote about the opportunities that our partnership with Camp Marie will develop and how their support will help further this relationship and create jobs for the community.  We ask you to be in prayer that this letter will be well received and that God will continue to guide us to future partnerships that will help us continue His Kingdom Work.