Lutherans in Canada rallied behind Haitians in 2010

By Keven Drews

A young survivor of the devastating January 12 earthquake carries water to his family's makeshift shelter in a camp for the homeless in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Photo by Paul Jeffrey/ACT Alliance.

ST. CATHARINES, Ont. – It would be an understatement to say 2010 was a bad year for Haiti.

An earthquake in January, an outbreak of typhoid fever in April and a cholera epidemic in October and November devastated the small Caribbean nation, killing more than 200,000 people in just 11 months.

As bad as 2010 was, though, Haitians did not have to stand alone.

A small St. Catharines-based service organization, affiliated with Lutheran Church–Canada (LCC), rallied with each crisis, lending a hand to the Lutheran Church Haiti (LCH).

Other organizations helped out, too.

“We had a banner year,” said Howard Bogusat, head of the shipping committee for the HLMS, who summed up the society’s achievements in a recent newsletter.

In November, the HLMS sent its tenth container—the third in 2010—to Haiti. Costing some $28,000—$11,000 of which was spent on shipping—the container held 1,327 pieces, included a bulldozer worth $12,000, a compressor worth $5,000, and 478 boxes or bags of used clothing. Each box or bag held 45 to 70 pieces of clothing.

The container also included used lumber, plywood, tents and tarps, and even four used sewing machines and four ladders.

Bogusat said the bulldozer and compressor will help the LCH run its own rock quarry, a business that pays the wages of at least half of the church’s 196 pastors. The equipment will also help clear areas left devastated by the January earthquake.

Bogusat said the society has already assembled one-third of the goods required for its 11th container, which could be on its way by April 2011.

“We’re the only ones who do containers on a regular basis,” he said.

Other organizations and individuals have stepped up, too, filling other gaps.

Back in January, FaithLife Financial, a not-for-profit, member-based, financial-services organization focused on helping Christians build a better world, announced it had contributed $10,000 to World Vision’s emergency appeal and would match donations up to $25,000.

CLWR executive director Robert Granke discusses school rebuilding with relief workers.

During a post-earthquake appeal, Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR) raised more than $1.1 million, according to the organization’s annual report for 2009-2010. The organization spent the funds on programs runs by ACT Alliance, an international organization composed of more than 100 churches and church-related organizations, including the Lutheran World Federation (LWF). Specifically, the money purchased tools to clear land, hygiene and kitchen kits, temporary shelters and sanitation facilities.

CLWR also reported giving the HLMS funds to purchase tents. In fact, the HLMS and CLWR wired $15,000 and $30,000, respectively, to the LCH. The LCH used the money to purchase about 160 tents, worth about $270 each. Made in the Dominican Republic, the tents were large enough to house families of eight.

CLWR reports it and its partners are now working on plans to construct earthquake-resistant housing. In addition, the relief and development organization received requests for more than 3000 We Care school supply kits from Lutheran congregations across Canada. Once filled with school supplies, they are destined for Haiti in the new year.

Bogusat said one Tennessee-based church, affiliated with his organization, is now providing about 13,600 meals to school children per day. Started in 1998, the food program initially helped one school. But volunteers learned children could not study if they were hungry. The program now serves some 17 schools in the Gonaives area. The HLMS society reports it has sent about $9,000 for the church’s food program in 2010.

Thanks to disaster relief efforts by the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS), the LCH has cleared rubble from about 3,000 homes and churches in Leogane, a city near Port-au-Prince.

Churches and schools receive ongoing shipments of Lutheran Church–Canada’s French hymnal Liturgies et cantiques luthériens arrive in Haiti as various congregations and mission societies support the relief and outreach efforts.

The HLMS’ missionary and relief efforts continue in other areas, too.

The HLMS also raised more than $60,000 to rebuild churches devastated by the earthquake. According to the recent newsletter, the LCH has already rebuilt 20 churches. The society reports more funds are pending.

In memory of her daughter, Erin, Erna McBride, a member of the HLMS board, also set up a special fund to support a school. About $800 a month is now going to the school.

More recently, the HLMS society bought about 1,000 Creole Bibles for mission work in Haiti, and this fall it wired $5,000 to the LCH for serum, following the outbreak of cholera. Thanks to contributions from its U.S. partners, the LCH ended up receiving about $14,000 for medication

Meantime, the society continues to send US $2,500 per month to the LCH, which uses the money where needed.

Finally, the HLMS reported it is planning to launch a new website in 2011. The site, registered under the domain name www.haitilutheranmissionsociety.ca, will provide up-to-date information and allow individuals to make online donations.

Print this article