Standing Together to Build the Future
By Kathy Gaito
The theme for the 2018 Annual Catholic Appeal is “Standing Together to Build the Future”. Each month we will feature a group who supports our Diocesan Ministries by following this motto through their good works.
My work with Outreach has been humbling and inspiring at the same time. The amount of commitment many of our board members, benefactors, volunteers and staff have shown, for years and decades, is truly inspiring.” – Dan O’Sullivan, Executive Director, Outreach to Haiti
Over 1,500 miles away, in Haiti, progress is happening! Our Diocesan Outreach to Haiti ministry, its Board of Directors, benefactors, volunteers, staff and the many people who donate to the Annual Catholic Appeal are standing together to help build the future of Haiti by sharing their time, talents and treasures!
Outreach to Haiti has been engaged in building the new Norwich Outreach Center, which is expected to open in the second half of 2019. Dan O’Sullivan, Executive Director shared,
“The Norwich Outreach Center will be the hub of operations for Diocese of Norwich Outreach to Haiti for the foreseeable future. It will be a three story building, constructed to withstand earthquakes to the extent practical. The first floor will be a clinic to serve the people of Christ Roi, Haiti - a neighborhood of 60,000 in Port-au-Prince. The second floor will be offices and a computer lab for students in our educational program. The offices will house the Haitian staff that operate our educational program, accounting, general administration, and Father Frank Rouleau, our Chaplain and Twinning Director from the Diocese of Norwich. The second floor also contains one room for international visitors. The third floor is a residence floor for international visitors and for Father Frank. The residence floor is a safe base for people who want to come down to Haiti to experience what Haiti is about…we show all aspects of Haiti on an immersion trip. It is also for twinned parishes that come down to visit with their Haitian twins.”
The multi-functional Norwich Outreach Center “will consolidate operations in Haiti for the first time, enabling us to use more of the money raised directly on Haitians, and creating a stronger presence for Outreach within the community served,” Dan O’Sullivan expressed.
In a country so far away, our Diocesan Outreach to Haiti ministry is standing with the people of Haiti...the impact of their work can be seen through the success of several of their programs/services including:
- An education program which provides scholarships to Haitian youth from kindergarten through University, along with books, tutoring and counseling when needed.
- An internship program to help prepare Haitians for employment.
- Medical and dental check-ups for children.
- A clinic which sees about 5,000 patients a year…including a pharmacy, lab, and a vaccination program, as well as a nutrition program for moderately and severely malnourished infants and children, and a nutrition program for pregnant mothers.
- An immersion trip program for visitors to Haiti.
- A twinning program which pairs parishes, schools or other organizations in the U.S. with parishes, orphanages or schools in Haiti.
Dan O’Sullivan in speaking about the programs in Haiti stated, “The Board is continually striving to raise more money so that we can expand the reach of these programs. We are also trying to get economic development programs going. These will provide people with the skills and opportunity for meaningful employment so they can take care of themselves.”
Thank you to all who serve our Diocesan Outreach To Haiti ministry! Your support and the support of others allow our ministries to continue their service to our community. Thank you for “Standing Together to Build the Future” of the Diocese of Norwich!
To learn more about the 2018 Annual Catholic Appeal and about how you can help support the ministries in the Diocese of Norwich please visit www.norwichdiocesedevelopment.org to view the ACA video and make your pledge. Or contact Kathy Gaito at the Office of Development at 860-886-1928.