INTERNATIONAL PROJECT PROPOSAL PROJECT 1400 Jesuit Migrant Service Compassion for Refugees Haiti The stranger has not lodged in the street; I have opened my doors to the traveler. Job 31:32
We are a Catholic ministry that mobilizes the global Catholic Church to transform the poor and their communities materially and spiritually for the glory of Jesus Christ. Rather than create new institutions to distribute aid, we support existing ministries and churches already serving the poor. In addition to being the most cost-effective way of helping the poor, empowering these ministries allows us to support the Church s spiritual mission and its important position of leadership in poor communities. We consider every gift we receive as a precious resource from God. We direct every donation to its intended project, provide honest and accurate reports to our donors, and keep overhead costs to an industry low. We handle funds with utmost integrity and hold our ministry partners in the field to the same high standards by asking them to document costs and the impact of their outreach. We invite you to join with us as we seek to transform the lives of the poor materially and spiritually ways that please the Father and glorify him in Heaven and on earth.
Description This project will assist and comfort 300 migrants at border crossings by providing temporary shelter, counseling, transportation and meals. Purpose To guide repatriated Dominicans as they enter Haiti, helping them to get their bearings and reconnect with relatives, if possible. Location Ouanaminthe, Anse-a-Pitres and other Haitian cities bordering the Dominican Republic. Cost $33,000 will provide incoming migrants with transportation money, clothing, a meal and a hygiene kit, easing their transition into a new country. Highlights Haiti and the Dominican Republic share the island of Hispaniola. The two nations have had a tense, complicated relationship since Haitian forces occupied the Dominican Republic in the 1800s. In 2013, the Dominican Republic passed a law that revoked citizenship from anyone born in the country after 1929 without at least one Dominican parent. This means a person of Haitian descent can be deported at any moment, even if they have spent their entire lives as Dominican citizens. Migrants suffer many abuses during the deportation process. They must leave their belongings behind, and some do not even have an opportunity to bid goodbye to their families. Jesuit Migrant Service Project 1400 Project Synopsis A person may be forced to leave their home at any time, even if they are injured or handicapped. Jesuit Migrant Service workers receive migrants at border-crossing points. They welcome them into the country with dignity and escort them to one of the four SJM offices. During this interaction, social workers explain that their mission is inspired by Christ s commands to serve as an expression of his love. Please give today and stand in solidarity with your brothers and sisters, showing them that God is their ultimate hope and refuge. 1
Jesuit Migrant Service Project 1400 Thousands of people are being deported from the Dominican Republic, simply because they look Haitian. Many of them have never lived in Haiti before. The Need The Dominican Republic s highest court recently revoked citizenship status for people born in the country after 1929 without at least one Dominican parent. This retroactive ruling, which was internationally condemned, left hundreds of thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent stateless and caused an immediate refugee crisis. Today, a person who looks Haitian may legally be deported at any given moment. He or she will be forced to leave behind home, belongings and family. For example, a man may leave for work in the morning and never return home. His Dominican relatives will have no idea what happened to him. Once the person has been apprehended, he or she may suffer abuse and harsh conditions in a primitive jail cell before being officially deported. By the time refugees arrive at the Haitian border, they are already traumatized. Now without money, without a home, without a plan they must struggle to rebuild their lives, starting from scratch in a nation they have not known. Fortunately, God has always had a heart for those who are lost and wandering, and in many biblical accounts, we see this care is usually provided by his faithful disciples and through the Church. Thanks to his servants at Jesuit Migrant Service (SJM), many displaced persons can find the strength they need to face uncertain days ahead if we will support them in this important mission. 2
Jesuit Migrant Service Project 1400 Ministry Description For more than 15 years, SJM has maintained a benevolent presence at the Haitian border. With the intention of providing relief for poor refugees, the Jesuits set up offices at the four main border-crossing points between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and the communities in those areas have been blessed as a result. Each day, SJM caseworkers keep watch at the border, ready to receive disheartened deportees with dignity and escort them to their nearest office. Each week, as many as 500 exiled individuals walk into SJM s facilities, struggling to accept the fact they must now live in a country they have never called home before. Many of these refugees arrive hopeless and despondent, having lost everything they fought to achieve in the Dominican Republic. To comfort them, SJM s staff provides them with counsel and practical assistance. They also offer emotional support, praying with frightened men, women and children and encouraging them with spiritual guidance. Their words comfort these hurting people reminding them that, even on their dark days, God has a plan for their lives. Only through your generosity can SJM continue this important outreach. Only through the support of likeminded Catholics can their organization guarantee overnight They come to us traumatized and in misery, financially unable to improve their situations. These are a people without a country. Jean Leonard, SJM staff shelter for these exhausted migrants. Donations provide deportees with a safe place to rest, eat and recover before their journey into the unknown. They also cover transportation fees, helping refugees to seek out and reconnect with any existing family members in Haiti. Please give now so that these lost souls can be guided into safe harbors! 3
Jesuit Migrant Service Project 1400 Despite Haiti s present poverty, we can give displaced men, women and children the start they need to begin rebuilding their lives. Help Now! In emphasizing compassion for displaced persons, Pope Francis once said, Every human being is a child of God. He or she bears the image of Christ. We ourselves need to see, and then to enable others to see, that migrants and refugees do not only represent a problem to be solved, but are brothers and sisters to be welcomed, respected and loved. He urges the Church to never forget the flesh of Christ which is in the flesh of the refugees. Every day, men, women and children are arriving at the Haitian border feeling rejected and frightened. We want them to be welcomed by servants of God who will treat them with dignity and love in the name of Jesus. After their harrowing ordeal, a nutritious meal, a safe place to sleep and a comforting word can make a world of difference. Join Cross Catholic Outreach in its partnership with SJM to assist refugees during their overwhelming transition. Help us encourage them with the love of Jesus. Help us provide food, shelter and guidance. Working together, we can meet these suffering souls at the border with the open arms of Christ! For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Galatians 5:14 Our Promise to You! Proceeds from this campaign will be used to cover any expenditures for this project incurred through June 30, 2018, the close of our ministry s new fiscal year. In the event that more funds are raised than needed to fully fund the project, the excess funds, if any, will be used to meet the most urgent needs of the ministry. 4 2700 N. Military Trail Suite 240 PO Box 273908 Boca Raton, Florida 33427-3908 800-914-2420 CrossCatholic.org Copyright Cross Catholic Outreach. Cost-effectively written, designed and printed in-house. [gb1801]