Diaconal Candidates Experience Christ’s Love

By DEACON LORIS R. SINANIAN, Special To The Bulletin

Published: November 20, 2003

ATLANTA—Twelve diaconal candidates preparing for final formation in the archdiocese traveled to Haiti in October to observe firsthand the conditions of the poorest of the poor and how the Food For The Poor organization helps those in need there. Haiti has approximately 65 percent unemployment, and its people live in unimaginably harsh conditions.

We landed at the airport in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and were greeted by throngs of people hoping to carry our luggage to earn a few cents, which is all they earn in a day. Most of those who do work make just a dollar on any given day.

Our first stop was Nativity Village in Port-au-Prince, where FFP has replaced a makeshift stick-and-mud shantytown with 77 concrete block homes for residents.

Nativity Village had no water before—now they have a small pump house that provides clean drinking water. Unclean drinking water is the leading cause of death in Haiti. The residents made sure that we viewed the shower house for bathing and toilets provided by FFP, luxuries not seen in many places.

We traveled to the main Food For The Poor complex in Haiti, which has warehouses, a clinic and the field office. From this location, food and goods are sent to all locations in the small nation.

Over 3,000 families are fed five days a week at this complex, and the group had the opportunity to feed the people while there. Young and old came to the food windows to receive their hot food. We ladled the rice and cornmeal mixed with vegetables and some meat bones into containers the people brought with them.

Here the real meaning of how blessed we are in the U.S. with all that God has given us became a reality. We saw none of the diverse foods found in America —only basics like beans and rice that the people take back to their homes.

Most people fed from this facility are referred by healthcare professionals, priests and pastors who work closely with FFP. Although 3,000 are fed at this center, many of the 2.5 million people in Port-au-Prince still go hungry every day.

The streets of Haiti are full of people. The street, even with mounds of garbage, mud and dirty water, is better than their tiny shacks constructed of scrap corrugated metal, cardboard, mud and sticks, with no place to cook and no water, baths or toilets.

As we drove through some of the most dismal places, one man said, “It was hard being like Christ and reaching out and touching the poor.”

Haiti’s health statistics are just as dismal as the streets. Average life expectancy is approximately 51-52 years, and nearly 15 percent of Haiti’s children die by the age of 5. The negative effects of poverty, malnutrition and disease contribute to Haiti having one of the highest infant mortality rates in the Western Hemisphere: 97 deaths per 1,000 live births.

The FFP Arcacochon Hospital, directed by Dr. Ulrick Kersaint and located on the fringe of Port-au-Prince, works diligently to alleviate this situation. Kersaint, a native of Haiti, received his medical education in France and subsequently returned to Haiti where doctors are so greatly needed.

The hospital, ranked as one of the finest in Haiti, provides full-service pediatric and neonatal care, general medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedics, general surgery and dental care. Over 200 outpatients are seen daily, at virtually no cost to them.

The infants’ ward treats children ranging from newborn to 7 years old, and a private adult wing, with a few private rooms, is also available.

One of the men in our group commented that he could feel the pain of the poor and thanked God for having this facility to bring medical care to the poor with love and compassion.

On the next day of the trip, the group visited the girls’ and boys’ orphanages, a home for handicapped and another home for the elderly.

In these areas of filth and disarray, the orphanages are places of beauty. Children smile, sing songs of greeting and share what they are learning. These children would be easy to identify anywhere—all in uniforms, well-behaved, well cared for and loved. The sisters who provide basic care and guidance are remarkable people, consecrated and pledged to service and love.

The girls’ residence houses about 120 girls, ranging up to 18 years. The boys’ facility has grown in number to over 200. These children live in a safe, loving environment that prepares them to be self-sufficient, productive members of society. Many of them are preparing to enter local colleges, while others will attend planned vocational schools.

The Brothers of Charity, in conjunction with FFP, operate a 60-bed hospital, which is mainly a hospice for HIV, AIDS and tuberculosis patients. This hospital is one of the most touching places to visit—men without hope, struggling to have their last days made more tolerable.

The brothers minister to these men 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Outpatients are also seen twice a week. Doctors are available on a regular basis to update medication and perform surgery as needed, free of charge. The beatitudes are alive in this hospice, where it is abundantly clear that proper stewardship by all of God’s children can help the problems of the poor.

In Haiti, the elderly are generally a big problem; where food and housing are inadequate, no one, especially the government, really cares about them. The same is true of the severely handicapped children. Both groups are unable to care for themselves, and again, FFP steps in and provides housing, food and pastoral care.

Our Lady of Victory Orphanage serves those physically and mentally handicapped, deaf and blind. Here these people are nurtured and loved, some for the first time in their lives. They become a family and have the opportunity to live with dignity and grace.

We celebrated Mass at the orphanage, holding the children in our laps while singing the hymns, truly sharing in the fellowship of Christ’s family. Leaving these children behind was hard because in their faces, we could see the love and appreciation of our presence. One of the group said, “In all of their poverty and distress, they still had smiles that would penetrate your soul.”

We then visited the elderly village and saw how seniors can truly enjoy their golden years living in a dignity that isn’t available in most places. Over 300 seniors live in individual units with a fully furnished room and a porch. This village is vibrant with its medical care, fresh potable water, regular meals three times a day and small vegetable gardens.

The people who live here work together to make sure neighbors’ needs are met. They also provide daily entertainment for themselves with music and dance—and they can dance nonstop for hours.

But the role of the elderly living here doesn’t just end with caring for themselves. Their facility is next door to the boys’ orphanage. What a combination! Boys needing grandparents and grandparents needing grandchildren, keeping each other young and happy.

Each evening on this trip, our group gathered for a time of sharing…what we had experienced…what impact it had on us. It wasn’t about pity or sorrow for the poor but seeing ourselves enriched by meeting those in need. We went to help and ended up taking away so much more than we gave.

Driving to the airport for our departure, again we saw the garbage heaped high in the streets, mudslides from the rain the day before, and people, so many people, in the streets. We kept asking ourselves, “Where do they go? What do they do?”

Haiti was the same the day we left as the day we arrived. What changed? We did. The world got a bit smaller. The plight of the poor became a reality. We held their hands and received their embraces. We saw our brothers and sisters and their real needs.

For the diaconal candidates on this trip, Gary Atkinson, Mike Byrne, Ron Carr, Pat Fagan, Levi Jelks, Nicholas Johnson, John Mason, Terry Millinger, Denny Moore, Joe Reynolds, Bob Riddett and George Smith, the words of Jesus became an unforgettable reality, “Whatever you did for one of the least brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25: 40b).

Deacon Loris Sinanian is the director of formation for the diaconate program in the archdiocese. For information about the program or more information about Haiti, please contact him at (706) 781-3671 or (404) 402-4022.