“All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.” — John 1:3
This past year, we have experienced great success in our Sustainability Programs as they are improving the lives of so many Haitians in our area. One of the best ways to “Help Haitians Help Themselves,” is through our sustainability outreaches. We saw the Gwo Maché Mirak (Grand Miracle Market) expand and bring more jobs to the area. Our Agricultural Training Center (ATC) and the Poul Mirak Co-operatif have expanded class offerings for the Haitian people. As “Food For Life” projects for the Haitian people, our programs are offering better life solutions to not only those involved in the programs but for the whole community.
Working Together for a Brighter Future
Helping Haitians learn to help themselves is what our sustainable development projects are all about. All the Love A Child development projects were designed to work together to support one another. Sustainability projects build up a critical mass of enterprise at the marketplace, provide employment, and a brighter, more secure future for families. Sustainable enterprises will strengthen Haiti for a better tomorrow. Thank you to all those donors who help by supporting our sustainability projects.
Agricultural Training Center
Our ATC is a “LIVING CLASSROOM” designed to help teach Haitians how to help themselves. It teaches and demonstrates the best sustainable agricultural practices to enhance food security, boost nutrition, and promote agricultural-based jobs in Haiti. The students that attend the ATC learn firsthand how to make healthy soil, plant seeds, and care for the crops as they grow.
These are our graduating students from the Agricultural Training Center. We really want to thank Rad Hazelip, who is the “Papa” of this ATC Project! And God has blessed us with Wilner, a dedicated young man who has a passion for teaching agronomy. Just look how happy these students are. As they graduate from the course, they are given drip irrigation kits, garden seeds, and tools to take back home and teach others. We love visiting and seeing the composts they make and their beautiful gardens and crops!!! Thank you, Rad and Wilner, and those who have sponsored students to attend this training school!
A sustainable way of serving
Our sustainable agriculture outreaches are benefiting countless Haitian children and their families by helping them to learn gardening skills to provide fresh, nutritious food themselves. Wilner and his staff of agricultural workers harvested the bounty pictured below from the gardens near the Children’s Home.
They provide fresh spinach, beets, eggplants, and peppers to three kitchens in the Love A Child Village. Next, it will be carrots, onions, sweet potatoes and tomatoes! The orphans and other staff are always happy when Wilner’s crew brings fresh garden vegetables to their kitchen. At the ATC, we teach the same skills and principles to other Haitians so they too can provide vegetables for their families. These sustainability programs help Haitians learn to help themselves and provide food for life.
Helping Haitians Help Themselves
Our ATC in Fond Parisien has developed and conducts classes for a two-year program and a three-week program in sustainable agriculture. The valuable three-week residential courses have brought students from various cities and villages all around Haiti. The students are sponsored by either Love A Child donors or other organizations.
Here are a group of new students (blue t-shirts) and our two-year students (grey t-shirts). The students stay together in our bunkhouse — studying, living, working and fellowshipping together. Through sustainable gardening, they are learning to have a better life for their families.
The Director of the ATC, Wilner also held an ATC-extension training session in the mountain village of Peyi Pouri. Wilner taught them how to make gardens from re-purposed tires, using compost for the soil. It was a wonderful day in Peyi Pouri. And, because of donor support of these programs, hundreds of lives are being improved for generations. God Bless you for helping our neighbors.
Our sponsors understand how new gardening skills will benefit entire communities. Students return home to demonstrate and share the life-saving gardening methods they have learned. God bless those who make these important programs possible by their support of our “Food For Life” sustainability outreaches.
Miracle Chicken Co-op in Haiti
The Poul Mirak Co-operatif (Miracle Chicken Co-op) is a unique enterprise also designed to help Haitians help themselves. This project is located at the Grand Miracle Market and is a one-of-a-kind model for long-term sustainability. The goal is to equip, train and mentor Haitians to raise chickens, broilers and laying hens for a small business.
The co-op receives 400 baby chicks each week to begin the 6-7 week grow-out period. After this time, the birds have reached market weight, and they are ready for sale to wholesale or retail buyers. This sustainable enterprise provides an opportunity for Haitians to become independent businessmen. It is also an avenue for breaking their cycle of poverty. Love A Child partners provide financial support, as the Love A Child kitchens are also a “customer,” buying some of the fresh chickens.
Lekòl Poul Mirak
We were so blessed this last year to start our first Lekòl Poul Mirak (Chicken School)! One of the objectives of the Poul Mirak Chicken Co-op is to provide a place for training for more jobs in business and food production in Haiti.
Here are the students in their classroom work. Every morning, they started in the classroom before hands-on activities on the farm. One interesting thing they learned is what kind of weeds you can plant that the chickens can eat and save money on chicken feed, since many Haitians don’t have a lot of money.
During this residential program, students live, learn and work together at our ATC bunkhouse and the Poul Mirak Chicken Co-op farm. The cost of registration and tuition is $155 per student. The costs include room and board, instruction, books, a t-shirt, and Certificate of Completion. Upon completion, students have knowledge and skills to raise chickens for meat and eggs, for consumption or a small business.
Providing Food and Jobs for the Poor
We thank all donors for sponsoring dozens of Haitian men and women who have graduated from our sustainability programs.
As students learn, they are passing on this knowledge to those in their community. Plus, sustainability projects give families “Food For Life,” a big step forward on creating a more hopeful future for Haiti.
Please prayerfully consider donating a gift of any amount to help other eager students improve their lives.
You may give securely online, or if you would like to speak directly to one of our staff members, please call 239-210-6107 or email us at [email protected]. 