Another Haiti Appeal Bulletin Insert

The Rev. Erl G. “Puck” Purnell, Old St. Andrew’s, Bloomfield

My relationship with Haiti began in 1993 through an association with the Rev. Jean-Elie Millien, a Haitian priest serving as vicar of l’Eglise de l’Epiphanie, Stamford. In 1996 Jean-Elie retired and moved to Carrefour, Haiti with his wife Mona. Together they started a small school there, which they named Ecole le Bon Samaritain.

Over the years Old St. Andrew’s has been steadfastly committed to offering support through scholarships, a lunch program, teacher salaries, a water purification system, electrical generator and storage batteries, even helping to build a second story on the original building.

I am passionate about helping in Haiti, and it is the children that keep me caring and involved. Consider this: Three years ago on a trip to Ecole Bon Samaritain (EBS) I first met Weislene. She was in 3rd grade. She slipped up beside me and took my hand, grinning. Each trip back to visit EBS after that I would seek her out. She was always smiling and amazingly patient with my broken French and non-existent Kreyol.

Immediately following the earthquake in 2010, Old St. Andrew’s, with dozens of partners, provided critical medical care, food, clothing, and temporary shelter to over 8,000 people. In March I went with a group to the clinic that had been set up next to the school. I asked about Weislene but no one knew what had happened to her.

Late one afternoon near the end of my week-long visit, I went to the clinic to greet the last few patients and there was Weislene, sitting patiently with a sick 2-year old on her lap. I said hello but she hardly responded, only pulling the child closer. After the nurse saw them, we gave them a bag filled with pedialyte, food, and other supplies. She smiled tentatively and walked away, weighted down by the bag of provisions and the toddler. Later I learned that the mother of this child, a neighbor, had been killed and his father was gone, so Weislene and her father were caring for him. Weislene’s own mother had also died in the quake.

The next day I saw Weislene again. This time she threw her arms around my neck, stepped back and said, “Merci. Merci, Père Puck.”

Like Connecticut, Haiti is a Diocese of the Episcopal Church. It is our most populous diocese, with about 80,000 people, and it is our poorest.

Its Cathedral in Port-au-Prince was a cultural center for the nation, a place of pride and beauty for all Haitians.

In 35 seconds on Jan. 12, 2010, it fell.

People still flocked to its grounds and its ruins for food and shelter. Absent a working government, the church has always been a place to find schools, clinics, and other social services we take for granted. And thanks to Episcopal Relief and Development, as well as many other agencies and churches, the Bishop, school staff , and sisters of St. Margaret, were able to off er short-term employment, provisional homes, and sanitation systems in addition to other community-focus recovery programs.

Even in the midst of the deep human need and suffering in Haiti, the people seek to worship God together. And while there are agencies who will rebuild schools and clinics, only the church will rebuild a church. Please join in supporting the rebuilding of the Cathedral complex in Port-au-Prince by making a donation this Lent. This appeal in the Diocese of Connecticut is part of an Episcopal Church-wide appeal this Lent coordinated by the Episcopal Church Foundation. In Connecticut organizers are asking that donations be made to the local parish, which will then forward them. For more information see the “Rebuild our Church in Haiti” page on the diocesan website, www.ctepiscopal.org. The Rev. Rachel Thomas is the coordinator of the appeal for the Diocese of Connecticut. Contact her at rwthomas55@att.net.

“The presence of the Episcopal Church in Haiti and its mission cannot be overstated. At the very center is Cathédrale Sainte Trinité. Filled to the brim with the faithful Sunday by Sunday, worship in the Cathedral demonstrates the passion of Haitians for their Church. Moreover, the Cathédrale is the hub of ministry—education, outreach, medical care, and music—for hundreds of people daily.” -- The Rev. Erl G. Purnell

Nou ave’ou! - We’re with you!

This Week's Haiti Appeal Bulletin Insert

The Rev. Judith Alexis, Vicar, L'Eglise de L'Epiphanie, Stamford

I am an Island girl in two ways. I was born on the Islandof Manhattan and grew up, went to school on the Island of Hispaniola, in Haiti.

The Haiti of my childhood is one filled with laughter, storytelling at night and a number of “no batteries required” games. I listened to “L’Orchestre Sainte Trinité,” Episcopal Church Orchestra. I went to the Art Museum sponsored by “College St. Pierre” before I went to the Brooklyn Museum.

The Episcopal Church was and continues to instruct the majority of classically trained Haitian artists and musicians. I enjoyed going to the concerts, the park and the museum. Out of all those, the best was February 22nd Baden Powell’s Birthday, founder of the modern scout movements, on the grounds of the Cathedral Complex.

Boys and girls dressed in uniform khaki with short pants for boys, long pants for young men, dresses for the older girls and jean-wash-colored dresses trimmed with yellow, red and green, with dark blue socks and black shoes for the girls. And bows and barrettes in the younger girl’s hair. It was like a field of colors a sea of chatter and laughter.

We sang as loud as we could. Among other songs, one of them reminded the community to assure that the kids are happy “Pa kite timoun yo tris” (Strive for no sadness among kids).

St. Trinity cathedral complex is not only the spiritual seat of the diocese of Haiti. It is a place where kids come for classical academic formation. It is where all social classes meet and have fellowship, where the vendors come give thanks to God before
continuing to peddle their merchandise to earn enough for food and school. Where all are welcome regardless of their religious or socio-economic status.

In my Haiti, the scouts are where I first learned to respect the dignity of every human being. On the grounds of the Cathédrale Sainte Trinité, I saw it in practice.

Like Connecticut, Haiti is a Diocese of the Episcopal Church. It is our most populous diocese, with about 80,000 people, and it is our poorest.

Its Cathedral in Port-au-Prince was a cultural center for the nation, a place of pride and beauty for all Haitians.

In 35 seconds on Jan. 12, 2010, it fell.

People still flocked to its grounds and its ruins for food and shelter. Absent a working government, the church has always been a place to find schools, clinics, and other social services we take for granted. And thanks to Episcopal Relief and Development, as well as many other agencies and churches, the Bishop, school staff , and sisters of St. Margaret, were able to offer short-term employment, provisional homes, and sanitation systems in addition to other community-focus recovery programs.

Even in the midst of the deep human need and suffering in Haiti, the people seek to worship God together. And while there are agencies who will rebuild schools and clinics, only the church will rebuild a church. Please join in supporting the rebuilding of the Cathedral complex in Port-au-Prince by making a donation this Lent.

“In 1983 and 1984 I was blessed to work as a Volunteer for Mission in L’Eglise Episcopale d’Haiti (Th e Episcopal Church of Haiti) where I helped develop a partnership program between Episcopal schools in Haiti and parishes, dioceses and schools in the United States. Whenever I entered Holy Trinity Cathedral, I was moved by the palpable presence of God in that place. With its incredible frescoes by the Haitian masters and joyous music by the choirs and orchestra of Holy Trinity Music School, the Cathedral manifested Haiti’s artistic beauty and the deep faith of the Haitian people.” -- The Rt. Rev. Ian T. Douglas, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut

Nou ave'ou! - We're with you!

This appeal in the Diocese of Connecticut is part of an Episcopal Church-wide appeal this Lent coordinated by the Episcopal Church Foundation. In Connecticut organizers are asking that donations be made to the local parish, which will then forward them. For more information see the “Rebuild our Church in Haiti” page on the diocesan website, www.ctepiscopal.org. The Rev. Rachel Thomas is the coordinator of the appeal for the Diocese of Connecticut. Contact her at rwthomas55@att.net.

A Pastoral Letter from Our Bishops

Pastoral Letter from the Bishops of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut
To be read Sunday, March 13, 2011

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

We, your bishops, are writing to invite your parish to participate in a special Lenten appeal to support the rebuilding of the Episcopal Church of Haiti. Specifically we are asking every worshipping congregation of the Diocese of Connecticut to give to a special appeal, coordinated by The Executive Council of The Episcopal Church, for the rebuilding of Holy Trinity Cathedral in Port-au-Prince.

In the year since the earthquake in Haiti, the Rt. Rev Jean Zaché Duracin, Bishop of Haiti, and the staff of the cathedral schools and other ministries have carried on heroically amidst the ruins, while at times living in tents. The music school and grade school are in operation again even though there are no walls and only temporary shelters. Students practice under trees, surrounded by rubble. During this time, the Diocese of Haiti has identified the rebuilding of the Cathedral complex in the heart of Port-au-Prince as its top priority.

Last November, Bishop Duracin wrote:

Rebuilding Holy Trinity Cathedral will do more than raise up bricks and cement. It will raise the hopes of a people who have lost so much of their earthly habitation. It will raise the Spirit of a community made weary… As we rebuild Trinity Cathedral, brick by brick and stone by stone, it will serve as a beacon and shelter for literally thousands who are rebuilding their lives with little more than hope and prayers.

The Diocese of Connecticut has a long association with the Diocese of Haiti. For over 150 years, from the founding of the Episcopal Church of Haiti under the leadership of the Rt. Rev. James Theodore Holly, one-time rector of St. Luke’s in New Haven, to the current partnerships many of you share with different schools, churches, clinics, and ministries in Haiti, we have built relationships rooted in the love of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are now being called upon to help rebuild Holy Trinity Cathedral, a tangible sign of our deep commitment to each other as one people of God and as a sign of hope, reconciliation and renewal for the rebuilding of Haitian society.

God is at work in the ministry of the Episcopal Church of Haiti. Thousands of people who have lost so very much are being fed by the proclamation of the Gospel, the celebration of the sacraments, and the ministries of the communities of the diocese. A rebuilt cathedral will be the hub of God’s continuing mission and a center of prayer and renewal. Our brothers and sisters in Haiti have asked for our help. Let us respond, “Nou ave’ou!” "We are with you!"

God bless you in your generous response and God bless the ministry of the Episcopal Church in Haiti.

Faithfully,
The Rt. Rev. Ian T. Douglas
The Rt. Rev. James E. Curry
The Rt. Rev. Laura J. Ahrens

Nou ave’ou! – We’re with you

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For more information see the diocese's Rebuild Our Church in Haiti web page.