New Haiti Crisis Project 10-17-22

The civil prison in Pitit Goave, Haiti holds at least 400 hundred prisoners packed like animals into two cells. The conditions are deplorable and inhumane in good times but in recent months as the country has spiraled out of control these prisoners have been suffering unimaginably. Their food supply is so low that the prisoners are slowly starving to death! In this last month, 7 have died simply from lack of food. It is a desperate and heartbreaking situation.

These prisoners are not just some random number or statistic to shake our heads about, these are real people created in the image of God. To turn away from them in their depraved and wretched state is to turn away from Jesus. In Matthew 25, Jesus says, “ I was an hungered, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungered, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me.”

We at Bethesda House of Mercy would like to serve Jesus by serving the least of these in prison here in Pitit Goave. We would like to be able to provide a hot nutritious meal once a week for the 400 prisoners. There are a couple of other places that are trying to help too but no one has the resources to provide all the food these prisoners need. We at Bethesda want to do what we can and hopefully, together we can make a difference not only to relieve their physical hunger but also that their hearts could be touched by the love of Jesus.

This is a short-term crisis response project. We calculate the cost of feeding the 400 to be $1,000. USD. per week. That will provide a meal of rice or corn and beans, a small amount of meat, vegetables, and clean drinking water for all. That will also cover the cost of transportation to and from a market where we need to go to get large quantities of food and then transport the food to the prison.