Our newsletters and visit reports

In addition to the latest quarterly letter, you will also find on this page the archives of past letters, downloadable in pdf format (Acrobat), the latest visit reports from our director and the external evaluation reports. 

LETTER TO FRIENDS OF SISTER EMMANUELLE

« The supreme joy is that of giving. It is the core of happiness. » (Sister Emmanuelle)

Dear Friends,

We wish to expand our network and, therefore, we invite those who are not yet members of our association to become one.
This status does not require any additional particular commitment, neither in terms of contribution, nor in terms of concrete commitment.
However, it allows you to attend our general meetings and gives you the right to vote.
As stipulated in article 6 of our statutes, your request must be made in writing to the committee of our association (by mail or by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).
We hope to have the pleasure of welcoming new members at our next AGM which will be held on Thursday, May 30!

Jean Claude François, the manager of the projects that we support in Haiti, returned to Geneva on February 22, after spending two and a half months in Hinche, where the programs are located.

The state of the country is unfortunately not improving. 
On March 3, the government declared a state of emergency (as well as a curfew) in the Ouest department, including Port-au-Prince, following the escape of nearly 4,000 inmates of a penitentiary center in the capital, attacked by armed gangs. At least ten deaths have been reported.
Jean Claude testifies: “From January 15 to February 15, the country (even in Hinche) was completely blocked by demonstrators who demanded the departure of the Prime Minister.
Roads were blocked, there were no public transport, schools were closed, and public buildings (town halls, courts) burned…
People stayed at home, but still, I could work. I told the young people: “I can give you the lessons that I have prepared; but it has to be now, because afterwards, I am leaving. » They accepted, came to pick me up from my house by car to go to university. We locked ourselves away and worked.
The association's assets are intact, which shows that the population is behind us and protecting us.

A container sent in December 2022 from Miami with $60,000 worth of equipment for the hotel and university (solar energy system, furniture, bedding, dishes, etc.) has definitely disappeared.
The intermediary in charge of managing logistics declared last year that he had cleared the container and stored the items in a depot in Cap Haitien. He was supposed to supervise the transportation to Hinche, but he returned to Miami... and since then, we have had no news of him. He disappeared. He doesn't answer the phone and his company in Florida is closed. Even his driving license was revoked. During my last visit, on both the outward and return journeys, I passed through the United States. My nieces, my cousins and I (who had financed the equipment) have been searching for this container and the intermediary. We even hired a private detective. In vain. There is nothing to it but to file a complaint; however, the lawyer fees ($3,000) and court fees ($1,000) would be incurred without any guarantee.

In January, to replace those missing with the container, we purchased in Haiti 44 (Chinese) 560w solar panels, 6 lithium batteries and 4 inverters, for the university and the hotel ($45,000 in total). Now the two buildings have electricity 24 hours a day and online courses can be given normally.
We have hired an armed security guard who patrols at night. During the day, there is less risk of theft of solar panels.

A well will be drilled to a depth of 100 m during this dry season (cost: $12,000). We don't plan to install the pump right away.
One of the two facets of the solar panels embedded in iron frames and sealed in the concrete of the university roof.

When the situation in the country improves, we will need to provide a 24-hour security guard, and we will also need to buy bedding and crockery for the hotel.
The target clientele will be foreigners passing through, particularly for religious retreats or American academics for French learning seminars.

Our programs are working, but with a notable drop in activity at university and school (half as many registered): young people are fleeing the country for the United States or Canada, that are in need of labor force. Other countries, such as Chile, Guatemala, and Mexico, now accept migrants without a visa.
Due to the lack of students and professors, many universities have closed in the country.

We have 200 street children enrolled in 6 primary classes at Bethesda School.
Spotted by the teaching staff and myself, these children were begging in the streets.
We went to see their parents and we hired six teachers who had left Port-au-Prince to escape the gangs.
School is free for these children (there are not enough places in public schools, and they also demand some registration fees). For now, we just asked parents to provide their children with a uniform and at least a cube of sugar in the morning.
Every morning, the beneficiaries come very diligently to school.”

Help us finance the distribution of a daily meal at school for these street children: the total annual cost would be 120 CHF per child.
To improve the security of the site of the university and the hotel, the hiring of a second security guard would also be welcome: 150 CHF/month (1800 CHF/year).

In South Sudan, our development programs are continuing satisfactorily.
Two former members of the Be In Hope program for street children decided to follow a training in the Lologo Vocational Training Center run by our local partner, the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul Society: one in IT, the other in Automobile Repair. This training opportunity has always been offered to those who must leave the program at 18-19 years old, but this is the first time that it has been taken up by some of them, and we are very happy about it!

The graduation ceremony of the 15th training session took place on February 20, in the presence of our Austrian partners.
Toolkits were distributed to 274 of the 371 graduates.

I wish you a happy Easter and I thank you in advance for your donation,

Patrick Bittar
Director