.png)
School has finished for the year and summer vacation has officially begun. Our kids love the summer holidays and with around eighty of them at the HOH, there is always something going on or something to get involved in. It is one benefit of having a rather large family! We would like show you the activities that have started our summer and a look ahead at what’s around corner.
With the end of the school year came the Graduation Ceremony for our seven Kindergarten students. These precious little ones worked hard to finish their start in the Haitian school system and have now all moved on to start Grade 1 in the fall. Three of our little ones had special roles in the ceremony. One of the boys gave the student body prayer and two kids had recitations to give. They did an excellent job, considering these had to be done in French. Their class also performed dances and songs. The whole ceremony ended with a bang when lightning struck nearby and cut out the entire sound system! We are so thankful for these little ones and the chance God has given us to get them started on their hope for a future through education.
No sooner did Linda finish pulling off the grad party for our little ones than she was informed by 2 of our staff members that it was time to prepare for a wedding! Duckmane has been part of the HOH for many years. As a member of the deaf community in our area, there are not a lot of employment opportunities for him. This has brought him back to the HOH off and on to help out as one of our staff members. He helps Linda with whatever she needs and certainly is not afraid of hard work! Many of you who have come down and worked with us over the years will remember him.
Not long ago, his girlfriend, Virginie, also part of the deaf community, started working for us covering days when our regular staff members are absent. She has also become a tremendous help to Linda.
They decided that it was time to get married and they gave Linda less than a week’s notice. Thankfully, we had received the gift of wedding party dresses and supplies a couple of months back. This enabled the entire HOH family to pull off a spectacular wedding last Saturday. HOH kids, alumni and friends did it all. They were the Bridesmaids and Groomsmen, they made the food, helped with the ceremony and decorating – all under the very capable eye of Linda!
One thing we have always wanted to see happen at the HOH is for our kids to grow up with a healthy knowledge of and respect for their culture. Part of that is knowing how to be part of a Haitian wedding. You can see some of these parts in the pictures and video – one is the “mini bride & groom”. Another one is that the bridesmaids and groomsmen do a little dance down the aisle during the ceremony, and so our kids practiced and performed their own dance as well.
And so, our summer is off to a roaring start! One thing about life in Haiti is you never know what is just around the corner. Being flexible and ready for anything are important traits to have to make the most of each and every moment. And at a time when so much heavy news comes from Haiti, it is nice to be able to share some special life moments that happen despite the chaos happening around them.
And that brings us to looking ahead. We still have students preparing for there end of the year government exams. We have one student in 9th grade (but it is a do-over year for him) who will write his exams at the end of July. And we have 2 students writing their finals for the last grade of High School the first week of August. This is a very difficult exam and they will need to pass it in order to move on in their studies. They would love your prayers as they prepare to write these exams.
We have had some news on the boat and supplies we have been waiting for since September 2023. The news on the street is that they will be heading to Haiti soon. Many of you have been praying with us for the arrival of these supplies. Among the supplies are the first few mattresses that we sent. They are now the last of the mattresses that we are waiting for. And more importantly are the Bibles we’ve been working on getting to them since last year. Please keep praying for these things to get to the HOH. And keep watching our regular Facebook updates and weekly email updates for news that they’ve arrived! If you don’t get these emails or updates and would like to, just let us know (houseofhopehaiti1@gmail.com).
Due to the many things on our schedule and also the difficulties we’ve been having with getting items to the HOH, we are already looking ahead towards the new school year. We have numerous needs for supplies, shoes and tuition fees. No one attends school in Haiti for free, we have to pay tuition for each of our students. The increase in cost of everything because of the insecurity in Haiti has brought our needs per student up to $450 for the school year. We will have 57 kids in school this coming year, so you can see that is a pretty significant need. There are a couple of ways you can help us with these needs:
Send in support here to help cover the costs of tuition, books and uniforms.
Help us purchase school items from our wish list on Amazon. You can access that list here. We’d ask you to start with the items marked “Most Wanted”. And you will want to check back regularly, as we are always adding things to the list.
Jenny has had a busy travel schedule so far this summer. She was able to visit many of our partners in the North and Central US and Southern Manitoba. Coming up in August, & September, she will be traveling across the pond to the UK, and Europe! If you are over there and have not heard from her about visiting in your area, but you would like to try and connect, please get in touch ASAP (houseofhopehaiti1@gmail.com) to see if we can work it in.
Please be in prayer for Jenny as she travels to share the work of the HOH. Pray for Linda as she oversees the summer activities while at the same time prepares for the new school year. She would like to get away for a bit of R&R this summer (if anyone would like to help her be able to that with a special gift, get in touch with Jenny and she’ll make sure you can do that). Continue to pray for our university boys in PAP trying to finish up their final projects and classes in the midst of the chaos there. And continue to thank our Heavenly Father for His faithful provision over these months and ask Him to continue to do so through our partners.
We are so very grateful for each and every one of you who partners with us in some way. We are blessed to have such a great, and growing team of partners. This ministry would not be able to function without our great team of financial, prayer and supportive partners. Thank you for your part!
Comments