On Thursday, March 26, Haiti became one of the last Caribbean countries to report its first cases of COVID-19.  Covid-19 was officially detected in Haiti but the impact is only just beginning to be felt NOW.   

The President of Haiti, Jovenel Moise, called for the immediate shut down of all schools, factories, airports and borders. A daily curfew was put in place for all Haitian residents. ​​As of the posting of this blog (5/5/20), the nation of 11 million has so far only tested less than a thousand people for the deadly coronavirus and has 865 confirmed positive cases and 26 deaths. But most Haitians can't afford testing- let alone medical treatment.
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​While the economic implications are tough enough in Australia, the impact in Haiti for those already in such vulnerable situations can be devastating.The majority of Haitians do not have access to any preventative training or medical and health supplies needed to combat the disease if it grows rapidly.

We are also very aware that not being able to work in the future, may have disastrous implications for our Haitian families - and therefore - our sponsored children. 

As Directors of Frontier Projects Haiti, John and I went into immediate meetings with the CEO of our Partner-NGO in Haiti: Reginald Celestin, from Light for Living International Ministries. Pastor Reggie works with our teachers from Bouvier School, our Love Community Home Parents, our Love Family Homes parents, our trainers at Libellule Training Academy and our Haitian Social Worker. We also began meeting regularly online with Johanne Celestin - our Programs' Administrative and Finance Co-ordinator and also our Social Worker, Yndjy Belvel, who works directly with our Love Community children, orphans and families. 

Meet our three core Haitian leaders below, who are working tirelessly in Haiti to care for our families and children.

Our families will largely be managing as best as they can with our help throughout this crisis and we know we will be able to help any time they are in need!

​We are committing to the following priorities and will continue to respond to the situation as it may change:
1. CLOSING BOUVIER SCHOOL and TRAINING OUR TEACHERS
We have now closed Bouvier School in line with the Presidential order.  Our staff will use this time for meeting (with safe-distancing practices) for further training as groups of 10 or under are allowed in Haiti.
2. TRAINING OUR LEADERS, CHILDREN and FAMILIES  in SANITATION PRACTICES 
See photos below.
3. PROVIDING VITAL MEDICAL, HEALTH and SANITATION SUPPLIES along with their usual MONTHLY FOOD SUPPLIES.
See photos below.
4. CONTINUING our FROMZION- SPONSORED VOCATIONAL TRAINING COURSE for our Love Community mums, teaching them the trade of Pattern-making and Sewing! 
5. WORKING WITH OUR PARTNERS and SPONSORS to continue to provide HEALTH CHECKS and SANITATION & MEDICAL/VITAMIN packages for our families.
If you would like to join us with funding the cost of a Family Sanitation and Medical/Vitamin Pack, you can Simply Give below: 

Much love and thanks, Cheryl and John and all the children, families, orphans, students, teachers and leaders in Haiti. Blessings and stay safe. xxxx

We spent day doing early morning renovations and traveled back to the mission to have lunch and prepare for the monthly Love Family Homes meeting and food bucket distribution. At these monthly meetings, it is our goal for our families to come together into community to learn about different life skills and to find ways to support each other. It was a pleasure to be present this month to witness how Johanne and Yndjy put together each session and prepare every food bucket with their own team.  Alyssa, who is living in Haiti for the next few months, is also a big part of Love Family Homes programming, and with love and wisdom, she was not afraid to discuss the good, the bad, and the ugly. It's such a blessing to have a strong team!

The thing is, as a team, our hearts and minds are so focused on all that we are undertaking for the children and families -and amidst all the constant political unrest - that posting takes a back seat...(not to mention the sketchy wifi connectivity). But apologies and here I go catching up from Day 4: HUGE day as we helped Johanne and Yndjy and Alyssa get ready for Love Family Homes Program bucket collection day! Once a month all the families come in to gather as a community, share stories and care and receive their monthly staples food bucket! It was such a privilege to spend time with them all. We have now returned over 30 children out of the orphanage and back into their homes with family! Supporting the families holistically is what we are all about and we passed on love and care from all their wonderful sponsors. Xoxo❤️❤️❤️

Talk to you soon,
​The Frontier Projects Team

(click below for our photo journal)

Haiti Journey 2019 underway! So excited to be heading off with these amazing souls! All bags packed! Alyssa already in Haiti, meeting Laurie in Paris on the way... Ben, Robin, Jim leaving in a couple of days! Blessings and thanks to all who have given and sponsored, who are praying and are with us in spirit...! Can’t wait to see our Haiti family and kids! Blessed!