GIVE
UKRAINE
MIDDLE EAST
Week of Compassion
  • Home
  • About
    • Mission
    • Staff
    • History
    • Board of Stewards
    • From The Executive Director
  • Action
    • Domestic Disaster Response & Preparedness >
      • How To Prepare For A Disaster
    • International Disaster Response
    • Immigrant and Refugee Response
    • Sustainable Development
  • Stories
  • Resources
    • Special Offering >
      • Special Offering 2025
    • Worship Material
    • Media & Print
    • Logos
    • Special Offering Archive
  • Get Involved
    • Ways to Give >
      • Circle of Compassion
      • Endowments
    • Invite Us to Your Church
    • Volunteer >
      • Virtual Volunteers
      • Trainings
  • Give
  • Contact Us

STORIES

Photo: Paul Jeffrey/ACT Alliance

+ GET WEEK OF COMPASSION EMAILS +

Safe Places to Learn in Haiti

1/21/2020

Picture
Photo, CWS
Following a disaster, immediate needs are clear: food, water, shelter, emergency care. But many other needs emerge in the longer term, and one of the most critical is the need for children to return to school.
Every new school year brings with it expenses for tuition, uniforms, bags, and books. The school year had just begun when Hurricane Matthew struck Haiti in October of 2016. With newly purchased uniforms and books destroyed, and with schools severely damaged, many students dropped out of school. Some were sent to live with friends or relatives in less affected areas. When this happens, it increases the risk of child domestic servitude. When children live with families other than their own, they may be exploited and used for household chores. In many cases, they are denied the right to education, get little rest, and may suffer from physical, verbal, or sexual abuse.  

Working closely with our partner Church World Service, Week of Compassion approaches the reconstruction of schools not only as a response to disaster, but also as a way to prevent exploitation of children and to protect students and teachers against the impact of future disasters. Following Hurricane Matthew, CWS contacted the Ministry of Education to identify schools that needed repairs or reconstruction. One of the schools identified as a priority was the public school of Mentor, Grand Anse. 
                                       
Initial rebuilding work began shortly after the storm in 2016. The school consisted of three classrooms, which CWS repaired early on. Then the mayor requested the construction of three additional classrooms as, according to Ministry of Education regulations, each school should have at least six classrooms. Thanks to additional funds --including support from Week of Compassion-- CWS was able to honor this request, and construction on three new classrooms began in 2018. 

The community and CWS leadership faced significant hardship in the process of rebuilding, including the discovery of hard rock on the building site that nearly brought the whole project to a halt. But they persisted in completing the project, finding ways to overcome barriers and ultimately providing a safe space for students to learn, grow, and flourish.

With this newly upgraded facility, many things are possible. Because of the additional classroom space, more students are now enrolled and classes are not overcrowded. The school also serves as a community center where other gatherings and programs take place, and the improved facility serves as a hurricane shelter for the entire community. 
          
Students and teachers alike express that with the new classrooms, they are no longer afraid of natural disasters. And improved construction practices acquired during the build will mean better, safer facilities throughout the whole community for years to come. With your support, and through the work of our partners, Disciples are ‘investing in futures’ in places like Haiti--where a safe place to learn, gather, and grow means a better future for all.

Download PDF
Invest In Futures: 2020 Special Offering Materials
 


Comments are closed.

    region / focus :

    All
    Advocacy
    Afghanistan
    Africa
    Agriculture
    Bangladesh
    Border Ministry
    California Wildfires
    Caribbean
    Central America
    COVID 19 Relief
    Cyclone
    Development
    Disaster Response
    Drought
    Earthquakes
    East Asia & Pacific
    Education
    En Espanol
    Europe
    Executive Director
    Extreme Heat
    Floods
    Food Security
    General Assembly
    General Minister & President
    Haiti
    Hawaii Fires
    Health & Wellness
    Hurricane
    Hurricane Fiona
    Hurricane Helene
    Hurricane Ian
    Hurricane Milton
    Immigration
    Incarceration
    International
    Libya
    Long Term Recovery
    Long-term Recovery
    Maui
    Middle East
    Migration
    Morocco
    Myanmar
    Pakistan
    Philippines
    Prayer & Worship
    Preparedness
    Puerto Rico
    Refugees
    Severe Weather
    Southern Asia
    Special Offering
    Sustainable Development
    Syria
    Tornado
    Turkey
    Typhoon
    Ukraine
    US Storms
    VOAD
    Volunteering
    Wildfires
    Willing To Respond
    Women & Girls
    Women's Empowerment

Picture
Week of Compassion 
P.O. Box 1986 
Indianapolis, IN 46206
Week of Compassion is the relief, refugee and development mission fund of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada.
Contact Us

Follow Us

  • Home
  • About
    • Mission
    • Staff
    • History
    • Board of Stewards
    • From The Executive Director
  • Action
    • Domestic Disaster Response & Preparedness >
      • How To Prepare For A Disaster
    • International Disaster Response
    • Immigrant and Refugee Response
    • Sustainable Development
  • Stories
  • Resources
    • Special Offering >
      • Special Offering 2025
    • Worship Material
    • Media & Print
    • Logos
    • Special Offering Archive
  • Get Involved
    • Ways to Give >
      • Circle of Compassion
      • Endowments
    • Invite Us to Your Church
    • Volunteer >
      • Virtual Volunteers
      • Trainings
  • Give
  • Contact Us