HAITI :: FOOD UPDATE :: Everyone deserves to eat

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: 

EVERYONE deserves to eat. 
Today and every day.
No exceptions.

Thanks to your generous support, we have raised over $6,000 to provide food for students at St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti! That means YOU have provided 8,000 meals to these sweet kids! What an accomplishment, thanks to your big hearts.

When we contacted St. Vincent’s Director Fr. Sadoni to tell him the good news he said:

WONDERFUL! The only thing we have now in our store is some bags of rice and beans. If we find this money, we can buy more rice and beans and other things like vegetables and meat to complete the meals for the children.

While our mission is to serve these children with medical care, we can not ignore their plight and need for nutritious food. They need—no, DESERVE—to be eat healthy food on a regular basis so they can get the best possible outcomes from surgeries and other medical care that we provide.

Until a permanent food source is set in place, The Red Thread will continue to raise funds for food to sustain the children. The cost for three meals is just $2.25 per child per day! Kindly allocate your donations with “SV food”.

THANK YOU for your generosity. 

~ Sonya Yencer, VP

HAITI :: Love, not pity; St. Vincent's food update

 

It is Thanksgiving eve. 

Our team of 11 has just returned from eight days in Haiti at St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children in Port-au-Prince. In the USA, tomorrow we’ll sit down to a table groaning with more food than we can possibly eat, a rich bounty of flavors shared among family.

Yet my heartstrings continue to be tugged by the children we saw last week at St. Vincent’s.

We had arrived to welcoming greetings in sign language, Kreyol, English and a multitude of hugs. Our team is well known to these children and the staff who care for them. We’ve made countless trips here to help these special kids who are blind, deaf, missing limbs, unable to walk, some unable to even hold up their own head. With these smallest of gestures, these gentle little ones healed our hearts that had been broken for them time and time again.

The purpose of our visit last week was to conduct both a medical and dental clinic, which we completed during the course of our stay. However, as always, our favorite moments were spent talking, playing, singing, dancing, and creating art with the kids. We love them like our own—they are extensions of our family.

But when mealtime came, our healed hearts broke all over again. While the food situation has improved slightly, it is still abysmal compared to what it should be. Some mornings, they receive a bit of bread and butter or some gruel. Thankfully, every day around 3:00 p.m. everyone receives a bowl of beans and rice. These photos were taken on Sunday, the day where they get a tomato-based sauce to go over the meal and even a morsel of meat.

Sunday's meat sauce

At first the kitchen staff was apprehensive about us taking photos. Their frowns turned to welcoming smiles when they realized that we were there to HELP bring awareness to their plight, their need, their hunger – and that our desire for that awareness is based on love, not pity.

Genie in the kitchen

We are thankful but the need is great.

Like many others, The Red Thread Promise emphasizes thankfulness this week. We are so thankful for all of the support we have received via your gifts. You have given $3,961 to date. This provides 5,281 meals to the children!

What we need now is to ensure that the children of St. Vincent’s get 3 meals a day. The beans and rice they are currently receiving will keep them from starving; but nothing more. 

The cost for three meals is just $2.25 per child per day. For less than the cost of an average latte, a child can eat for an entire day! As we approach this season of overabundance and joy in giving, we know that we can do this, that you can do this.

Donations to feed the children can be made to The Red Thread Promise via PayPal (button on sidebar) or check (address in upper right). Please write "SV food" in the subject line when possible. If there is no subject line, please email Kathy and let us know how you want your donation specified.

Taking steps toward self-sufficiency.

For food for the future, The Red Thread Promise has become part of a project to bring both aeroponic and aquaponic gardening to St. Vincent’s. We estimate that this project will begin in 2015 and are excited to help set the groundwork for St. Vincent’s to become self-sufficient. In the meantime, we need to continue to feed the children. Your gifts make this possible. Thank you for everything you are able to share with these children.

~ Sonya Yencer & Glenna Fisher

HAITI :: Hunger - the single gravest threat for St. Vincent's

In 2014, no one should go hungry. Especially kids.

One of our best friends grew up in a poor family in the Appalachian Mountains. He is able to laugh now as he recalls his mom cooking white beans on Monday, pinto beans on Tuesday, and on Wednesday combining the two for their evening meal. Cereal at breakfast and bologna sandwiches for lunch rounded out their days.

The majority of Americans haven’t known that level of poverty. But for the children at St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children in Haiti, three meals a day of any kind is a luxury that is out of reach.

Beans are a staple at St. Vincent’s just as it was for our friend’s family. Rice stretches the protein to fill the children’s stomachs. Yet today, this simple meal is served “infrequently,” and when it is available, Father Sadoni tells us there just isn’t enough. In desperation, he has resorted to sending every child who has a family back home because he is unable to feed them regularly. Only the orphans remain.

Living with hunger.

It’s difficult to fall asleep when hunger haunts your mind and gnaws at your stomach. Until, of course, your body is weakened from lack of food over a long period of time. Hunger is painful; malnutrition causes our eyes to fail, our skin to develop lesions, our muscles to weaken and shrink, our bones to stop growing, our immune system to fail.

Lack of adequate food destroys the cognitive processes, resulting in reduced intelligence and learning, stunting not only the body but the mind of a child.*

Meeting their needs TOGETHER. 

Love and care: Fr. Sadoni and the staff at St. Vincent’s provide this in abundance on a daily basis. Their very presence in these children’s lives provides emotional nourishment and assuages the thirst for meaningful human contact.

We can show this same love and care to St. Vincent’s children by providing the basics—food and water—during this vulnerable time in their lives. Most of us reading this post have an adequate supply of both. Even our Appalachian friend’s mother was able to fill these needs for her sons. Our poverty is richness when compared to the plight of these children.

Join us in giving the life-sustaining gift of food. With your help, The Red Thread Promise is committing to supplying three months of food for the kids at St. Vincent’s. $2.25 feeds each child for a full day. That’s $6,090 per month, $18,270 total. This is a real, attainable goal. The need is urgent. Children are going hungry every day. These kids’ deprivation compels us to have funds available for the first month’s food in the next ten days -- by September 16.   

We can do it with your help.

Genesis 12:2 tells us: 

“I will bless you . . . 

and you will be a blessing to others.” 

YOU are that blessing for these children, and so are your family, friends, civic groups and churches. It takes a village.... Please share the story of St. Vincent’s kids and their current dire need in your circles. Let’s reach our goal quickly. 

Donations can be made via PayPal through our website or via check. 

Checks may be sent to:
The Red Thread Promise
249 N Belfield Ave
Havertown, PA 19083
Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

*http://40hrfamine.wordpress.com/how-hunger-hurts

HAITI :: Help put an end to hunger pains

Deaf students sharing their one substantial meal per day, THANKS TO YOU
(all photos courtesy of West Tennessee Haiti Partnership)

Our hearts break a little more with each new conversation with Father Sadoni only to hear that the food crisis for the children at St. Vincent’s is not improving as we had hoped. While a partnership of teams researches both aquaponic and aeroponic garden solutions for St. Vincent’s long-term sustainability and to minimize future food shortages, there is still a real need to fill the children’s bellies now. 

This, friends, is where your support continues to be critical. 

St. Vincent's serves as a dormitory, school and community for the deaf and blind as well as those missing limbs and children who have impaired cognitive abilities. Due to unforeseen circumstances, St. Vincent's lost it’s main food donor in 2013. Ever since, Fr. Sadoni has been working fervently to establish a new food source for the children so they can grow and thrive while in his care.

Currently, the residential students and the live-in caregivers receive two meals per day. The breakfast is light, usually bread and butter. Lunch consists of a single plate of beans and rice. All meal service for non-residential students (close to 200 children) has been put on hold with no reinstatement date in sight.

In an attempt to ward off hunger pains at bedtime, older residents—mainly teens and young adults—set aside a portion of their lunch to eat in the evening. The younger kids often don’t fare as well. No doubt it is difficult for the smallest ones to set aside part of their meal when their stomachs are still growling.

To add to their plight, the filter on the St. Vincent’s water purification system needed to be changed and the system shut down, temporarily cutting off their water supply. Thankfully, this should be rectified quickly, hopefully by the end of this week.

The situation is bleak now, but there is always hope! Our friends from West Tennessee Haiti Partnership were at St. Vincent’s last week to provide well-child checkups and reported that the kids are still relatively healthy. They were kind enough to snap a few pics of the kids at lunch time (pictured here). The children's spirits were high and, as usual, they thoroughly enjoyed having the US team in their midst for the week. They are doing remarkably well under the circumstances. 

With your WONDERFUL HELP, we met and exceeded our $12,000 food goal in March 2014. For this we extend our gratitude as do the children! However, in lieu of the circumstances, our team has decided to continue the food drive until the situation changes for the better. 

With your gifts, we will continue to feed the kids in the short-term, ending their hunger pains NOW, while long-term solutions are set in motion. THANK YOU for both your gifts and sharing this need with others who may be in a position to help. 

Every gift counts.

HAITI :: $12,000 goal reached!

$12,000 will provide 14,400 meals!

Your generous spirits have shone vibrantly since we told you about the food crisis at St. Vincent's Center for Handicapped Children in Port-au-Prince. Today we are ecstatic to share that we reached our goal of $12,000 to help feed the children! This will provide 14,400 meals and keep their stomachs full for quite some time. 

We are humbled by your amazing response and thrilled that so many of you shared the need with others to broaden our reach. In short, we couldn't have done this without you and we are so grateful.

HAITI :: Food goal almost reached!

Monday mornings are the best when they begin with good news! 

In just 7 weeks, YOU have helped us raise $11,122 to feed the kids at St. Vincent's. That's 13,346 meals, friends! 

Only $878 to reach our goal which provides 2 solid months of food for the kids. In case you missed the story about St. Vincent's, here's the blog post about it. Please share with anyone willing to help. With your continued support, we can reach our goal this week.

If you'd like to help, please send your tax-deductible donation (memo line: food) via PayPal or check to:

The Red Thread Promise
249 N Belfield Ave
Havertown, PA 19083
Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

HAITI :: FOOD UPDATE :: A big hearted teenager

Jaden celebrating his birthday with French silk pie

Teenagers are amazing… 
Words we don't hear strung together often enough! This may be contrary to many opinions, but The Red Thread team stands by it. Here's why.

Jaden is one of those kids whose birthday lands right after the Christmas and New Years hustle and bustle. Family and friends are partied out, the festivities have come to an end, and people are trying to get back into the swing of work and school. Post-holiday blues prevail and the idea of pulling together a celebration seems more like work than fun.

It was no surprise that only three people gathered around Jaden at the table to sing Happy Birthday and enjoy French silk pie on his 13th birthday. But what happened after the subdued celebration surprised everyone.

As the family was preparing to send a donation to The Red Thread for the food drive, Jaden placed his combined birthday and Christmas gift—a $100 bill—in the donation cup. His mom and dad asked him if he was sure this is what he wanted to do. 

His response was simple: "I'm not poor. I don't need this." 

With Jaden's donation, we have received $10,659.93 toward St. Vincent's food allowing us to provide 12,792 meals! 

What an example this young man has set for us all.

Birthday money provides 120 meals

HAITI :: Seeing Stars buys 600 meals!

3-Dimensional stars by Cris Letourneau, CZT

Time and time again we share stories of our team's interactions with disabled children in China, Haiti and the USA. We post photos of mission trips showcasing volunteers working on behalf of these extraordinary kids. We continually tell how your donations make a difference in the lives of children. And we love, love, love sharing the creative ways that people support The Red Thread Promise and inspire others to do the same.

Here is a follow up on our post from Christmas Eve, 2013 where one of our long-time supporters had a great idea and ran with it. 

Cris, a Certified Zentangle Teacher in central Ohio, heard about the food crisis at St. Vincent's. She saw a need and wanted to make a difference. In December 2013, she published Seeing Stars, an ebook of instructions and templates for creating 3-dimensional star ornaments. Inside the book she wrote about St. Vincent's and promised to help feed the children with every book sale. The rest, as they say, is history! 

The Red Thread team recently did a mini-interview with Cris. We asked why she felt compelled to help and how she arrived at the idea of writing a book. 

* * * * *

When I thought about the kids at St. Vincent's sitting in the dark, hungry at Christmas time, it just about broke my heart. Hearing the news on my dad's birthday was even more upsetting. My father was a physician whose motto was, "All God's children get sick. And when they are sick, I will help them get well, whether they can pay or not."  

At first, I thought, "What can I do to help?" I am not a physician; I am an artist. Normally, I am a "write a check and be done" person. But since my husband is between jobs right now, we aren't able to donate as much as I would have liked.

I took a quick skills inventory:

• I have writing experience, having written Made in the Shade last year
• I get a lot of compliments about my art
• I had just taught a very popular class on making 3-Dimensional star ornaments

So, I decided to combine the three and write an instructional book on how to make star ornaments. I did all of the art on the stars so you don't have to know how to do Zentangle to enjoy the book. When the book went up for sale, I asked all of my fellow Zentangle teachers to let their students know about it and they did!

I donated 100% of the profits from the book to TRTP up until Christmas. After that, I'm sharing with them so that each book sold will feed a child for a day. That will go on for as long as people continue to buy the book. My goal was to earn $500 for the kids and I just sent that check to them today!

* * * * *

Sending a hearty THANK YOU to Cris and all who ordered her book. 

Together, you have provided 600 meals for St. Vincent's kids!

HAITI :: 11,000+ meals and counting

Each day we open TRTP's mail, we discover more and more generous hearts that have opened up to help us feed the kids at St. Vincent's in Haiti. We have almost made our goal to provide meals for 2 months. Only $2,625 to go!!! Please keep spreading the word and thank you so much for everything you are doing for these awesome kids.

The Red Thread is so blessed to have people like YOU following our progress on our blog, Facebook, Twitter and giving as you are able. If you'd like to help, please send your tax-deductible donation (memo line: food) via PayPal or check to:

The Red Thread Promise

249 N Belfield Ave

Havertown, PA 19083

Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

HAITI :: Seeing Stars buys food!

Original Zentangle Inspired Art (ZIA) by Cris

Posting so many thanks today is making Christmas Eve feel more like Thanksgiving. 

In that spirit, thanks to Cris Letourneau for her creative idea to support the food drive! She recently published an e-book and is giving a portion of the sales to TRTP. 

"My goal is to raise $500 and we are almost there! To date, I have $396 to send to the kids. That includes book sales to people in 27 different states, 5 countries, and 3 continents!" ~ Cris

If you are interested in seeing (or ordering!) Cris's book, click here and help feed the kids!

HAITI :: 9,063 thank you's!

We are so so thankful to share how wonderful our supporters are. Your generous spirits are glowing as we report that over the course of 8 days, together we have raised $7,552 to buy food for St. Vincent's Center for Handicapped Children in Haiti. 

That, friends, is absolutely amazing.

With these funds we can purchase food for over one month to feed the residential kids and staff at St. Vincent's. Because of your support, we are able to provide THREE meals a day for that time and then some!

Our goal is two full months of food and we are well on our way to achieving that goal. 

We'd like to extend our sincere gratitude to everyone who has participated in the food drive thus far. Donors stretch across the United States to Canada and all the way to the Netherlands. The word is spreading and we thank you for your continued support.

• Tina T.
• Debra P.
• John L.
• Teresa C.
• Robin L.
• Eric M.
• Alison S.
• Stephen F.
• Randa F.
• Marc P.
• Dina P.
• Allyson P.
• Cinda C.
• Sherl O.
• Alicia F.
• Julie M.
• Bruce J.
• Michael S.
• Lenni M.
• Kathy A.
• Patricia M.
• Bradley H.
• Jane M.
• Jennifer T.
• Kelley K.
• Adela H.
• Robert S.
• Richard + Karen Y.
• Morna S.
• Ann R.
• Barb R.
• Robert S.
• Jordan
• Hana Y.
• Doug Y.
• Eric B.
• Greg + Annie K.
• Ellen G.
• Ann B.
• Lauri F.

The Red Thread is so blessed to have people like YOU following our progress on our blog, Facebook, Twitter and giving as you are able. If you'd like to help, please send your tax-deductible donation (memo line: food) via PayPal or check to:

The Red Thread Promise

249 N Belfield Ave

Havertown, PA 19083

Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

HAITI :: Wonky math

Yes, friends, our 800 number from yesterday was wrong. But wrong in a GOOD way. We've actually sent enough $$$ to date to purchase 2,400 meals for the kids at St. Vincent's! 

Sometimes, it's good to be wrong!

HAITI :: 800 meals and counting!

and counting!!!

Your response to the food crisis at St. Vincent's has been amazing! We are thrilled to share that in only a few days, we have already raised and sent $2,000 to St. Vincent's. That translates into 800 meals, friends.

What's more? Tina, a supporter from Texas, travelled with us to St. Vincent's this past summer and was able to spend a week with the kids these funds will feed. She has offered to match donations up to $2,375 (total). These kids are near and dear to her heart and we are thankful for her generous offer.

Tina and Elisme, a residential student at St. Vincent's

Let's take Tina up on her offer. Let's max out her matching donations and keep going! If we combine the funds already raised + another $2,375 + the matching funds, we will feed ALL residential students and staff for one month, thus meeting The Red Thread's short-term goal. 

Our long-term goal is to feed the kids for two months. The math is simple: $.83 per meal...less than what most Americans spend on a cup of coffee. 

We are thankful for private donors as well as our partners at West Tennessee Haiti Partnership and Friends of St. Vincent's who are working toward the same goal - feeding those precious kids! It is wonderful to see everyone coming. 

The Red Thread is so blessed to have people like YOU following our progress on our blog, Facebook, Twitter and giving as you are able. If you'd like to help, please send your tax-deductible donation (memo line: food) via PayPal or check to:

The Red Thread Promise

249 N Belfield Ave

Havertown, PA 19083

Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

HAITI :: Food crisis at St. Vincent's escalates

Have you ever tried to write something but the message is so upsetting that you can't get the words out adequately? That's the way we feel now as we share the severity of the food shortage at St Vincent's Center for Handicapped Children, our partner in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

Ever since a large international agency stopped supplying food to the Center without explanation, St. Vincent's administration has been working diligently to find a sustainable solution. Expenses have been drastically reduced and all available funds used toward food. 

This critical shortage has even forced them to restructure who they feed and when. (Author’s note: I can NOT even fathom having to make these kind of decisions.) The current situation only provides food for 76 residential students and 10 residential staff on a rotating schedule. Loosely translated, that means they don’t get 3 simple meals of beans and rice every day – some days they do, but many times they do not.

Tragically, the Center's electricity was recently cutoff as they are unable to pay the growing debt. Instead, they have diverted those funds to buy beans and rice to feed the students.

In a recent correspondence, Father Sadoni, Director of St. Vincent's, stated:

Occasionally an agency gives us some rice and beans, but it is not enough to operate the Center. We have re-approached other agencies but without success. We are now truly breathless. All St. Vincent's input is spending in the food program. At the time I wrote this report to you, there is no electricity at St. Vincent's. We don't have enough money to pay the current debt. This is the first time since my ascent to the management of the Center that I find myself in such a situation. Despite these problems, I keep hoping that one day St. Vincent's will meet its needs and that there will be no debt to pay. And we could easily feed our children.

Our hearts are broken to hear this. Our compassion brings us to action. So we are going to DO SOMETHING. 

We are asking 2 things of each and every Red Thread supporter:

1. SHARE this message. Tell others of the need. Show them the pictures of St. Vincent’s kids from our blog / website / Facebook / Instagram. If each of us shared this message with 10 friends / co-workers, what a difference we could make!!!
2. GIVE something. Donations of any size help! It costs approximately $6000 to feed all residential staff and students for 1 full month, 3 meals per day. That breaks down as such: $2.50 feeds 1 person 3 meals per day. (Author’s note: you can’t even go to McDonald’s for ONE meal for $2.50!) 

NO ONE should go without sufficient food – ever. Let’s do our part to feed the kids and start 2014 on a positive note for our brothers and sisters at St. Vincent’s.

Donations can be made via PayPal through our website or via check. Checks may be sent to:
The Red Thread Promise
249 N Belfield Ave
Havertown, PA 19083
Attn: Kathy Korge Albergate

Thank you!

HAITI :: Beans, rice & everything nice

Blanda, Bousiquat, Sonya, Danika and a snippet of Sandee!

Coordinating a meal for 77 people is challenging in the states, but even more so in Haiti. Our team met that challenge last week, bringing another nutritious meal for the permanent residents and staff of St. Vincent’s: all 70 of them, plus our 7 person team.

What a feast the talented cooks from our guesthouse prepared! Riz national (Haiti’s national dish of savory beans and rice), crispy chicken, sos ti malice (a delicious tomato and onion sauce), banan peze (fried plantains) and a medley of root vegetables graced the menu. We were ready to break bread with the kids!

The usual bumps in the road slowed the process to a crawl: our driver got caught up in the airport chaos, a new driver and vehicle had to be secured, and the Port-au-Prince traffic was typical – slow and rough! But our desire to introduce this new team of folks to St. Vincent’s kids prevailed and we were soon knocking on the gate.

What fun it was to be mobbed by dozens of beautiful smiling faces. Like much anticipated family members after a long absence, hugs abounded for Sonya and Hana as they introduced the new group to St. Vincent’s. The food was brought in and everyone assembled in one of the classrooms. Our team was both humbled and honored to serve the meal. 

As the food supply diminished, the concern on our faces grew. Would there be enough for everyone? A quick head count determined that there were at least 10 more people than expected. When every morsel was served, we found that we had just enough—every child and staff member had eaten—but not a scrap remained for our team. We had skipped lunch in anticipation of the feast with the children, but instead, were left with growling stomachs.

So we went without. 

We pushed our hunger and disappointment aside and enjoyed every minute with the kids, getting to know them, sharing stories, painting nails, playing games, doing artwork, and taking 100s of photos!

Camera? Did you say camera?

Silmithe, Rose, Dieumene, Samantha

Going home hungry

As dusk quickly set in, our driver anxiously asked us to wrap up so we could return to the guesthouse before dark as it is not always safe going through the city at night. 

It was a humbling experience, going back to the guesthouse with growling stomachs, parched lips and growing headaches. We felt for a short time what many Haitians feel on a regular basis – gnawing hunger and exhaustion. We passed countless soaking wet street vendors selling mangos, avacados and other food as well as small bodegas on every corner. We even passed two substantial grocery stores and multiple glitzy restaurants that cater to the Haitian and NGO elite. 

But we didn't stop. 

We imagined what it was like knowing that food was right in front of us yet there was insufficient money to purchase it and quench the rumblings in our stomachs. We lived it, even if only for a short time.

The driving rain and dark streets made the drive worse than expected. Waves of muddy water pushed trash swiftly down the steep streets. People walking on top of garbage heaps to stay out of the rushing water. Women wore plastic bags on their heads to keep their hair dry. Compact fluorescent flashlights replaced many of the oil lamps traditionally used in the evening.

Drenched people stared in at us, sitting comfortably in our van with ample space, covered from the rain, on our way to a safe, dry environment where food would be waiting the next morning. Through the open window, someone tried to grab a team member’s phone right out of his hand, a brush with the crime we hear about on the news. 

Understanding, empathy and compassion

That evening the group talked about our hunger pains, the people on the street in the rain, and the man trying to steal the phone. These circumstances brought us greater understanding, empathy and compassion for those who live this life daily. 

We went to bed asking ourselves 

“what would we do if we lived in their shoes?” 

TEN YEARS AND COUNTING!

On behalf of The Red Thread Promise, we want to thank you for your continued support of our organization. Without people like you, we wouldn't be where we are today, beginning our 10th anniversary celebration! 

We have served countless children in China, Haiti, Uganda and the USA over the past decade. We look forward to continuing our mission—providing hope and healing to needy and orphaned children—with you at our side! 

As 2014 approaches, we wanted to share some exciting opportunities to serve and be in mission with us.

DOMESTIC TRAVEL
In the US, we will continue offering bi-annual trips in the spring and fall to McKenna Farms, our partner providing hippotherapy and therapeutic riding in the south (Dallas, GA). We are excited to announce that we will begin hosting mission trips to our new partner farm in the north, HillTop Equestrian Center (West Alexandria, OH) as well! During these missions, each team performs a variety of stable, grounds and facility work, learns about the therapy offered and the impact it has on young lives, and—most importantly—meets some of the kids we sponsor in our own backyards.

McKenna Farms, Georgia

HillTop Equestrian Center, Ohio

INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
With more than 15 trips to St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children over the past three years, The Red Thread will continue offering medical and non-medical mission trips to St. Vincent’s in Port-au-Prince and other areas in Haiti. We have an exciting opportunity to visit a Haitian hippotherapy farm during our upcoming trip (Nov. 2013) and are hopeful to begin a relationship there. This would allow us to offer both hippotherapy and therapeutic riding to kids at St. Vincent's. As we focus on these major medical issues, we will no longer offer Camp Jake. The Red Thread celebrates the three successful sessions we completed over the past two years and we look forward to offering new opportunities that will enrich the children’s lives and improve their health.

St. Vincent's Center for Handicapped Children, Haiti

LOOKING FORWARD
As The Red Thread team reflects on our years of service and looks to the future, we feel our organization is poised to delve deeper into life-changing medical care for disadvantaged children. We will continue to provide services that the child would not receive without intervention, including surgeries, long-term medical treatment, therapy and nutrition. By improving the state of these kids’ health, together, we make a lasting irreversible positive impact on a child’s life, increase their self-confidence, and open doors to a better future. 
  
Who knows where 2014 will lead? It may be the perfect time for our first trips to China and Uganda. Wouldn’t that be a grand way to celebrate our anniversary?!

We look forward to sharing details of upcoming travel and gifting opportunities as we work together to care for needy and orphaned children, TEN YEARS and counting!

HAITI :: The Case for Nutrition

Providing a constant source of nutrition is critical for a child’s development. 

This comes as no big surprise in 2013.


Article after article and study after study confirms that nutrition is directly linked to all aspects of a child’s growth and development, factors that have direct ties to their level of health as adults. We all know that vitamin rich food helps children fight off colds and other illnesses, keeping them healthier longer. It is common knowledge that establishing nutritious eating habits as a child sets the foundation for healthy choices as an adult.


These are such widely accepted concepts in developed countries, but so challenging to implement in Haiti. Dire poverty, lack of environmental resources for farming and high food prices are just a few of the numerous obstacles contributing to childhood malnutrition in developing countries.


According to Dr. Charlotte G. Neumann (UCLA School of Public Health):

“The combination of malnutrition and infection is the leading cause of death among young children in developing countries. Malnutrition alone is estimated to account for over half of children’s deaths annually. Other leading causes of deaths are malaria, acute respiratory infections, diarrheal disease [cholera], tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, frequently complicated by varying degrees of malnutrition.” 

What are we doing about it? 

Everything we can thanks to your continued support.

Oxilus, a St. Vincent's student, enjoying a meal

During each trip, we hand-carry food and snacks to St. Vincent’s Center for Handicapped Children. We prepare meals with the children and staff in their kitchen that often exceeds 110 degrees. When we take St. Vincent’s students to Camp Jake—our annual summer camp for children with disabilities in Haiti—we provide 3 nutritious meals every day for every camper. We teach nutrition classes at camp and work with campers to make healthy choices whenever possible. We teach trades so the children can better support themselves as adults and they are able to purchase healthy food for their families.

That’s what we’re doing about it. We hope you will continue helping us bring food to these precious kids. Donations can be made through our website. Thank you!


Sources: Children’s Heart Center, UCLA School of Public Health / Charlotte G. Neumann, MD, MPH

CAMP JAKE: Gumbo galore!

Head chef, Tom, manning the gumbo

Maxing out St. Vincent's stove

Marie Carmel lending a hand in the steaming hot kitchen

A mountain of okra

HAITI :: MAY 15-20, 2013 :: During the most recent trip, Tom gave St. Vincent's residents a sneak peek at one of the activities that will be introduced at Camp Jake 2013 - cooking! After a long day of scouting potential sites for a farming initiative that The Red Thread Promise plans to launch (stay tuned for details), Tom and Doug—our aeroponics expert and Tom's traveling companion—brought the ingredients for a traditional New Orleans gumbo!


Campers and residents of all ages joined the pair in St. Vincent's kitchen prepping chicken, sausage and okra for a dish completely foreign to the kids—one they had never tasted or even heard of. (40 lbs of rice and 35 lbs of meat make for some serious gumbo!) As the gumbo's boil roared, campers looked on inquisitively wondering if the rice would be mixed in with the gumbo and, in true Haitian form, speculating if there were enough spices in it!  

Some of the evening's sous-chefs

Grinding spices

Following over 4 hours in the kitchen where temperatures soared to well over 100 degrees F, the gumbo was ready. Thinking their work was complete and they could escape to the cooler air outdoors, Tom and Doug realized they had to serve 70+ hungry residents, far more than originally anticipated.

The final product, seasoned to perfection

Plenty of rice

Again, the campers came to his aide and an assembly line quickly formed without Tom or Doug's direction. First, the bowls were filled with a heap of rice. Second, each was smothered in piping hot gumbo and sprinkled with filé. Lastly, sliced baguette and butter dollops were added to complete the dish. The finishing touch: ice-cold Tang® and a bit of candy for everyone.

Outside the kitchen, a long line of hungry residents had already formed. Within minutes of being served, the bowls were emptied and the residents returned for more until every bit was devoured.

Campers and residents filing in for a bowl of gumbo

Tom and Doug resisted returning to their hotel until well after 10pm, long after our usual Haiti curfew. Doug even inquired about sharing space in the dorms as he had made numerous friends and learned more sign language then he ever thought possible.

The old saying, "too many cooks in the kitchen" was given a new meaning during the gumbo cookout. We welcomed each and every helper and were grateful for their assistance in preparing the meal. Every chef was instrumental in the meal's success! 


One of our many goals is to help St. Vincent's become self-sustainable so there is sufficient food for everyone all the time. Currently, staff and students receive beans and rice twice a day; on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays they receive a third portion. This reinforces our efforts to explore sustainable farming initiatives so no student is hungry again.

Yes, that is indeed ice-cold Tang® 

Dieumenne distributing candy to everyone