NPH Launches Program to Aid Vulnerable Children in Haiti
Posted February 24, 2010 The NPH/NPFS Response Program for Vulnerable and Displaced Children
As Haiti fades from the headlines, thousands of children are still living in dire conditions, vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Immediately after the earthquake on January 12, 2010, the NPH/NPFS team began to develop a program to serve the children left orphaned, vulnerable and displaced as a result of the tragedy. By utilizing the existing network of NPH/NPFS outreach programs and the many willing NPH/NPFS graduates or “
Hermanos Mayores” (Spanish for “Older Brothers/Sisters”), the organization has been able to mobilize resources to rapidly address this crisis and create the
Fr. Wasson Angels of Light program. As of the end of February, there are currently around 1,500 children being served by this program, which is being coordinated by 100 adults.
Please click here to watch a video of the Angels of Light program.
The Angels of Light program has 4 main objectives:
- Provide permanent care for children orphaned by the earthquake of January 12 by integrating them into the NPH home and providing extra care for those with mental and physical problems as a result of the earthquake.
- Identify children left homeless or otherwise unable to care for themselves, but who still have families and therefore are not being integrated into the NPH/NPFS Family. Our goal is to provide temporary care for these children until they are reunited with their families.
- Invite severely disabled children who are victims of the earthquake to join our family either permanently or provisionally until they are able to function on their own and rejoin their family through our assistance in providing prosthesis or other aids to continue with their lives.
- To refer to other more suitable organizations those children for whom we are unable to provide appropriate care, such as previous street children or inmates of the juvenile prison. Provide assistance to those older children with families who are in need, but are better situated to remain in their neighborhoods.
The program relies on the assistance of the NPH/NPFS
Hermanos Mayores, or NPH graduates, many of whom have been left without homes due to the earthquake. These older members of the NPH/NPFS family have been an integral part of the organization’s ability to respond in the aftermath of the earthquake. Since the earthquake, many
Hermanos Mayores have returned to the NPH/NPFS homes to help their younger brothers and sisters, even in the face of their own losses. Their strength and determination has been inspiring.
Through the
Angels of Light program, NPH/NPFS is prepared to address the immediate, mid-term and long-term needs of children in Haiti. To provide immediate relief to the children in need, NPH/NPFS is focusing on community engagement and establishing a rapport with the children in the tent cities. NPH/NPFS has established a presence in parks, on street corners and in the tent cities where unattended children are gathering. Children are provided with food, water and clothing to allow the staff to get to know each child. A day camp has been created on the grounds of St. Damien Hospital where these children are brought each day. The children are served two meals, participate in activities and spend the day in a safe environment. NPH/NPFS staff works with the children at the day camp to determine each child’s situation. NPH/NPFS is also working with the Red Cross as well as other orphanage programs to help children become reunited with their lost family members. Each child will go through a thorough intake process that will include interviews with the child, photos of their prior home, if possible, and a search for the extended family. Once the staff are sure that a child is truly orphaned, he/she will be integrated into the NPH/NPFS family at its main home, St. Hélène in Kenscoff.
The long-term goals of the program recognize that NPH/NPFS will be caring for an increased number of children in the future at the St. Hélène. We anticipate a need for expanded rehabilitation programs for physically disabled children. A prosthesis workshop will be developed to provide juvenile prostheses to the many children who have been left without arms and/or legs as a result of amputations.
We expect that identifying and integrating the many children affected by this disaster is going to be a slow process. Through the
Angels of Light program, NPH/NPFSis committed to addressing both the short and long-term needs of the children of Haiti. For more information on supporting one of these children,
please click here for information on child sponsorship in Haiti.
Related Information: •
What does Friends of the Orphans Do in Haiti? •
How Can I Help? •
Earthquake Relief Fact Sheet •
NPH Homes Offer Help for Haiti