At Cross Catholic Outreach, we are incredibly blessed to work with compassionate Catholic donors who want to make a lasting difference in the lives of Haiti’s poor. With their help, it is possible to transform the lives of families struggling against unimaginable odds: hunger, destitution and unsafe living conditions.
Last year, support from generous Catholics around the world enabled our ministry to bring safe housing, nutritious food and clean water systems to needy families in Haiti. In addition, that support helped provide scholarships for children who might not otherwise be able to attend school; monthly supplies of food, soap and other necessities for the elderly; and agricultural programs to help communities and families flourish.
In the U.S. and other parts of the world, education is often taken for granted, but for many families in Haiti, it is a luxury. School fees, uniforms and supplies are far beyond the reach of parents whose primary goal must be finding sufficient food to protect their children from malnourishment.
Sadly, without access to education, those precious children risk never learning to read, write or develop marketable job skills. For them, going to school could be the difference between breaking the cycle of poverty and continuing it for another generation.
Thankfully, schools like the Kobonal Mission School in the Diocese of Hinche are making significant strides in improving access to education. With financial support from compassionate donors, these schools can provide scholarships that allow even the poorest families to enroll their children. Uniforms, books and even daily meals are all provided.
Saphira, a ninth grader at the Kobonal Mission School, plans to become a nurse when she grows up.
“The message I would like to send to donors is one of deep gratitude for everything they have done for me,” she said. “I will always pray for them, that God will protect them and give them much more, because without them I would not be where I am today.”
Founded to help lift the burden of poverty in one of Haiti’s poorest areas, the Kobonal Haiti Mission is a beacon of hope to families in the Diocese of Hinche. The mission’s initiatives include schools and scholarships for poor students, home construction for families without a safe place to live, microloans for aspiring business owners, and many more community-transforming projects.
Anise, a shopkeeper, has personally benefited from a microloan, which enabled her to expand her small grocery store. Selling everyday food items brings Anise income and prevents her neighbors from having to make a tedious journey to stores farther away. “When people need something, they find it at my store,” she said proudly. “They don’t need to go to the city.”
Anise is deeply grateful to those who made the microloan program possible. “I thank God for giving them strength and courage with wonderful ideas to help people borrow money to do business,” she shared. “I ask God to protect them and their families wherever they go.”
Hunger is at a crisis point in Haiti, with over half the population facing acute food insecurity (World Food Programme). That’s why Vitafood is such an important part of our mission at Cross Catholic Outreach. Fortified with essential nutrients, protein and carbohydrates, these shelf-stable food packages are life-changing for families living in extreme poverty.
Most of Guerda’s children have grown up and moved out, but the youngest still live at home. A small-business owner, Guerda makes a modest income by selling cleaning items and cosmetics at the local market. However, with Haiti’s economy in a difficult state, customers are few and her business does not bring in as much money as it used to.
Before joining Kobonal’s food program for destitute families, Guerda’s life was intensely difficult. Her children were underweight and affected by malnutrition, which was heartbreaking for her and dangerous for them.
Praise God — with the support Guerda now receives, she says her family’s life has been transformed. Food insecurity is no longer a worry, and her children can count on having enough to eat each day. Guerda is deeply grateful for the nutritious food supplied by friends and supporters she has never met. She prays the mission will continue to grow so that more families like hers can be free from the burden of hunger.
One of the most important ways that Haitian families can lift themselves out of poverty is to become more self-sufficient by producing their own food and starting their own businesses. Agricultural programs, like those Cross Catholic Outreach supports in Kobonal and other communities in Haiti, provide the means and education for both!
Under the direction of mission teams, children, parents and neighbors gather to learn efficient techniques for growing cabbage, corn, eggplant, beans, papaya, oranges, bananas and more. What a blessing to hungry families and the greater community!
With homegrown food available, families rely less on costly produce brought in from other regions and countries. They can also sell their extra produce and use the income to buy more seeds, tools and necessities like clothes and school supplies.
Cross Catholic Outreach is deeply grateful to the compassionate supporters who are investing in Haiti’s future by investing in Haiti’s families.
Donations from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2027, the close of our ministry’s fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry.
