Updated Case Statement

SALT, Chapel of the Resurrection

Valparaiso University, Valparaiso, IN

 

OPERATION HAITI- 2006 WORLD RELIEF CAMPAIGN

A CASE FOR SUPPORT

 

If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?

~James 2:15

 

Children are one third of our population and all of our future.[1]

~The Select Panel for the Promotion of Child Health

 

Introduction and Executive Summary

The Social Action Leadership Team (SALT) is the spirit-led social justice ministry of the Chapel of the Resurrection. SALT works to help its members develop and practice a Christian theology of social action, works to raise campus awareness of social justice issues and seeks to develop in its membership the skills of community organizing and fund development.

 

As an essential part of this mission, SALT seeks to partner with communities whether on the international or domestic level in order to address critical needs with those areas. Every year for the past two decades, SALT has selected a specific project in need of funding. These projects vary greatly in location and type but consistently seek to offer a sustainable asset to the selected community. Once the project and target monetary goal are established, SALT works to educate and organize the campus and the city in order to both increase awareness of the need within that region and raise funds. Begun and completed during each spring semester, this progress is a fast-paced and large-scale fundraising drive called the World Relief Campaign (WRC). SALT is excited that the 2006 WRC, titled “Operation Haiti” will benefit the people of Jolitrou, Haiti. This project seeks to fund the construction of a permanent clinic that will be a site of health care service to the children and families in the Jolitrou community.

 

A Brief History of Haiti

The Republic of Haiti is a country situated on the western third of the island of Hispaniola and the smaller islands of La Gonâve, La Tortue (Tortuga), Les Cayemites, and Ile a Vache located in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba. A former French colony, in 1804 it was the first country in the Americas after the United States to declare its independence and became known as the “world’s first black republic.”. While only 10,700 square miles, slightly smaller than Maryland, it contains a population of 8.1 million people and is a country rich in cultural heritage.

Sadly, Haiti’s long history has been marked with instability and continual poverty, rendering Haiti the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Over 80% of the population lives in abject poverty and the average income is approximately $1 per day. While 66% of the population works in agriculture, only 28% of Haiti’s land is arable. In 1925, Haiti was a lush island paradise with 60% of its original forest covering the lands and mountainous regions. Over the years, Haiti cut down 95% of its trees and in the process destroyed fertile farmland soils. Now the mountains are bare down to the bedrock. Pictures from space glaringly show this stark contrast compared to Haiti's neighbour the Dominican Republic. The reason Haiti cut down all their trees is because the poor people make money from burning the wood and selling charcoal. Thus lack of fertile land and resources have led to further poverty in Haiti.

This poverty has led to insufficient health care of Haitians and vis-versa that lack of proper health care has caused Haitian families sink further and further into poverty. Thousands of boys and girls, living on the island of Hispaniola, suffer from diseases that could easily be prevented. One out of every eight children will not live to see their fifth birthday because a preventable disease will claim their precious, young lives. Without proper vaccination, Haitian children often die from diseases that are almost nonexistent in the U.S. such as diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, polio, and measles. In Haiti, the leading cause of childhood death is not what one normally consider lethal, but rather diarrhea, followed by malnutrition and acute respiratory diseases like tuberculosis. People living in undeveloped countries, like Haiti, who are malnourished and live in close quarters, also stand the greatest chance of contracting highly contagious diseases. The conditions that accompany poverty, although not the cause of disease, certainly contribute to their ability to spread. In addition, Haiti has one of the highest infant and maternal mortality rates in the world due to lack of prenatal and postnatal care. With adequate clinics and health care in place, children may receive the necessary vaccines, mothers may receive care to help give their infants a chance at life and diseases such as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis may be more quickly identified.

 

International Child Care

International Child Care (ICC) is a Christian health development organization working in Haiti since 1967 and the Dominican Republic since 1988. ICC began more than thirty years ago, when James and Virginia Snavley made their first trip to Haiti. What began as a vacation became a mission of love, as they committed themselves to answer God's call to serve the least of all, the suffering and needy children whose eyes seemed to plea "Why me?" 

 

Compelled by their faith and what they had seen, the Snavleys decided to open a small clinic for boys and girls with tuberculosis. Writing to their friends in North America, they shared a vision to restore health and wholeness to hurting children - one precious life at a time. This busy clinic became the forerunner of International Child Care's health ministry. Rooted in that simple, bold vision, ICC has grown into a leading health development agency that reaches thousands of suffering children each year.

 

The mission of ICC is to respond to a loving God by promoting health and well-being for the children and their families of Haiti and the Dominican Republic through caring service and the education of others. Because Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, ICC’s programs seek to address issues like access to health care, sanitation, education and nutrition that make life difficult for most Haitians. SALT is honored to partner with this organization to help meet the needs of the children and families in Haiti.

 

Operation Haiti

The village of Jolitrou is located in the northern part of Haiti, near the city of Grande Riviere du Nord, and is currently part of ICC’s Integrated Community Health Program, which empowers the residents of the village by providing technical and financial assistance for their endeavors to improve the health and quality of life in Jolitrou. Currently, a mobile clinic is held twice a month in an open-air structure. Four years ago, the residents of Jolitrou raised enough money to purchase a small plot of land on which they planned to build a permanent clinic. However, they have not yet been able to come up with the $10,000 needed to construct the physical building and supply the clinic with furniture and basic needs.

Therefore, this year’s World Relief Campaign, Operation Haiti, will allow this long-awaited dream to come true and build a healthier future for thousands of Haitian children and families living in Jolitrou and the surrounding areas.

 

Goals

The intended outcome of Operation Haiti is threefold:

1) First and foremost, SALT has set a monetary goal of $10,000 to be raised by May 2006. One hundred percent of the total will be used to build and supply a permanent medical clinic in Jolitrou, Haiti.

2) Second, SALT is seeking to education the University and City of Valparaiso communities about Haiti, its culture and people, and the cycle of health care and poverty.

3) Finally, SALT hopes to equip and inspire student leaders to become lifelong activists, partnering them with successful community leaders and businesses to accomplish great things.

 

In order to mark the progress of this fundraising campaign, SALT has constructed…GIMMICK

 

Partners and Supports

Thus far, the following individuals have joined with SALT to make this project possible:

 

Michelle Janssen, Director of Major Gifts, Valparaiso University

Pastor Joseph Cunningham, Dean of the Chapel of the Resurrection, Valparaiso University

Pastor James Wetzstein, Assistant Dean of the Chapel of the Resurrection, Valparaiso University

 

Events and Fundraisers

January 27-29: WRC Kick-off Weekend

 

Opportunities for Offering Support

SALT gratefully accepts any personal and corporate monetary donations. Furthermore, campus and community social organizations are encouraged to plan fundraising events. Anyone interested in working directly with the project may attend upcoming on-campus fundraisers organized by SALT, as well as join our meetings on Tuesdays at 9:30pm in the Gloria Christi Chapel. SALT welcomes opportunities to speak to campus groups, congregations, and community organizations. Finally, SALT invites you to pray for this worthy cause and seek opportunities to serve those in need in your community and around the world.

 

Donations may be directed to:                                             

 Barbara Hoover                                                                               

 Chapel of the Resurrection                                     

 Valparaiso, IN 46383                                                   

219.464.5093

 

Questions may be directed to:

Linda Davis, WRC Chair

Linda.Davis@valpo.edu

214.783.2921

*Checks payable to the Chapel of the Resurrection

 

Other Contact Information

International Child Care Contact, Alison Kern, akern@intlchildcare.org

Website: www.intlchildcare.org

Operation Haiti Website: http://www.valpo.edu/chapel/wrc2006/

 

Research: Steven.Wilco@valpo.edu, Libbi.Bartelt@valpo.edu, Kristine.Nelson@valpo.edu,

Activities: Tezra.Jennings@valpo.edu, Greg.Stock@valpo.edu,

Prospect Identification: Kim.Hover@valpo.edu, Paula.Maust@valpo.edu

Records: Ty.Doering@valpo.edu, Sean.Kerr@valpo.edu

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[1] The Select Panel for the Promotion of Child Health. Better health for our children: A national strategy. Washington, DC: Public Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services, 1981.

 

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