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By Erika Anderson
Staff Writer
ATLANTA--Immacula Pierre believes that God has called her to missionary work
in her native country of Haiti. Each year she returns to the town she left
nearly 30 years ago, and aids her fellow Haitians with their material and
spiritual needs.
"This is very important for me because I think God will ask me what I
did for them, so I do as much as I can," she said. "If you are the
light, you cannot stay under the bed."
Pierre, a parishioner of Corpus Christi Church in Stone Mountain, goes each
year to Sudre, a town just south of Haiti's capital of Port Au Prince. It is
the town where she was born and raised, and also the town she left to gain a
better life in America.
A nursing assistant, Pierre attends to the medical needs of the people she
sees in Haiti.
"Every year I go, I visit sick people and I give to them spiritually
and materially," she said. "I bathe them and I talk to them and I
give them the Good News. I don't care how sick they are or if they are dirty, I
just put my hands in and help them out. This is what I am called to do."
Pierre usually spends several months in Haiti, where the shortage of priests
is so severe that a priest is only able to come to her town once a year for
Mass and confessions. Pierre said that this is her main concern.
"There are people who are drinking and doing voodoo and they don't even
have a priest for confession," she said. "This hurt me a lot when I
heard about this, so I am killing myself trying to get priests there."
Pierre is close to the archbishop of Haiti, who often gives her Communion to
take to the people of Sudre.
Pierre recently decided to move back to Haiti permanently. She bought a
truck and filled it with most of her belongings, as well as supplies and
materials for the people of Haiti. Her children drove the truck to Miami to a
woman whom Pierre paid to ship the truck by boat to Haiti. Several days later,
Pierre learned that the truck and supplies, valued at over $20,000, were
allegedly stolen by the woman.
Pierre turned the claim over to the Haitian police in November and is
hopeful that her belongings will be recovered.
"In the 30 years I've been here, it's everything I've
accumulated," she said. "Everything is on this truck."
Pierre still plans to move to Haiti sometime next year.
"I leave everything in God's hands," she said. "He will take
care of me."
Throughout the years, Pierre has also worked with her children to raise
$21,000 to build a soup kitchen for the people of Sudre. When she returns to
Haiti permanently, she plans on running the soup kitchen, as well as a retreat
center that the archbishop of Haiti wants to build.
"I believe when you have something, you have to give it to
others," she said. "God has been good to me and now I must give him
to others."
Pierre said that the soup kitchen will be a way to feed the people
physically, but they still need to be aware of God's grace and mercy.
"The Bible says that we cannot live on food alone," she said.
"We need spiritual food too."
Though many obstacles remain in the way of her move to Haiti, Pierre knows
that she is called to go back to her homeland to serve.
"I want to go and be with the people and to do missionary work,"
she said. "I want to be there with them spiritually and I want to be there
with them when they are sick and talk to them and help them."
Pierre said that her friends and family are surprised by the way she has
handled the unfortunate things that have happened, such as the stolen truck.
"No one can believe how calm and cool I am," she said. "But I
know God does everything for a reason and it is in God's hands. God will take
care of me."
As Pierre remains firm in her belief in God, she is even more sure of her
desire and need to serve Him.
"This is where I get my joy. This is where I get my happiness,"
she said. "This is my place now and what the Lord has been doing in my
life, I am called to share with others."
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