The devastating Haitian earthquake of 2010 swelled the number of orphan children there to about 700,000. Approximately 7 out of every 100 Haitians are orphaned!
Burdened by the need, St. Louis area businessman and Providence Reformed Presbyterian (PCA) elder John Keane was among those who took positive action. In May of 2010 he established the “Haiti Orphan Project” (www.haitiorphanproject.org), established a 501 © (3) in its behalf, and asked Les Prouty, a minister of the Gospel of Jesus to be the director.
However, not every Haitian child classified as an orphan is actually orphaned. Perhaps half of them have at least one living parent or adult relative.
So the Haiti Orphan Project began from “scratch,” helping one pastor – north of Port-A-Prince the capitol – begin an orphanage. And more recently a medical complex, overseen by a Haitian physician, has been added to the ministry.
In this radio conversation, Director Les Prouty noted a concept utilized in their ministry not common to all orphanages. It resulted from the reality that one Haitian adult may be caring for several of his/her children … plus, perhaps, several nieces and nephews. So the adult is forced to place some or all of the children in the nearby orphanage — sometimes just across the street — because of the economics, the inability to feed all the children in the family, and send the children to school.
So the Haiti Orphan Project makes efforts to provide some financial support to families so that more children can stay together with a parent or other loved one rather than be forced to live in an orphanage.
An opportunity to donate to Haitian children so they can remain with their families is available at their website: www.haitiorphanproject.org