HAITI: Elizabeth Daphne's story
Wednesday 12th May 2010
In a year when money has been tight and many have been struggling to make ends meet, Presbyterians responded magnificently by donating a total of £788,000 (€898,000) to the Moderator's Appeal to assist the victims of the Haiti earthquake.
The sum raised has been distributed equally between our World Development Partners, Christian Aid and Tearfund, who in turn have been ensuring that the money is being used in effective ways, both to meet immediate needs and, longer-term, in the rebuilding of peoples’ lives, communities and overall welfare.
Supplied by Tearfund, here is the story of one women and her family who were affected by the earthquake that struck HAITI on 12 January 2010, and of the struggles they still face:
Elizabeth Daphne’s Story
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Elizabeth (pictured) is 35 years old and married to Mechelet Stervil. They now have three children, having sadly lost a son in the earthquake.
In the afternoon of the earthquake Elizabeth was at home watching TV with her children and suddenly the earth started to move. They went outside and struggled to see through all the dust. Her son, 12, was outside the house, he went to take a bath and get ready for church and a four-storey building collapsed on him. Elizabeth was unable to find him on her own so she sent for some help.
A couple of hours later they returned with a man to try and find her son. When they did half his body was buried under the rubble – but he was alive.
They rushed him to the hospital, but the hospital staff turned him away as they deemed his injuries as not serious in relation to the hundreds of other casualties they were dealing with.
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When they returned home they tried some natural local remedies to heal him, but he was still really sick. The next morning they took him to another hospital, on the way he started spitting blood, and sadly died.
Before the earthquake, Elizabeth didn’t work much, just selling goods from time to time. Now she is benefitting from he ACLAM’s 'Cash for Work' programme which is helping to provide food for her family.
The family are now attending a Protestant church. She has fully committed herself to Christ following the January 12 disaster. Prior to this she had little interest in church, but her children liked it and she allowed them to go on their own. Now she attends church three times a week.
Elizabeth’s remaining children are aged, 10, 13 and 18 - two girls and a boy. They cry constantly at the loss of their brother.
She says that she is feeling well now that she has the will to serve God. “When I am working I think less about my son, the pain decreases.”
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Her husband (38) of ten years is still with them. Where they are living is bad and they are scared of robbers. Her only purpose for the future is: “to be completely devoted to God, because he rescued me.”
She still worries, that she will not be able to provide the school fees so that her children can return to school.
Tim Magown, Northern Ireland Director of Tearfund, says: "Thank you for your generous support which has enabled Tearfund and its partners to meet the urgent needs of the people affected by the earthquake."
PHOTOS by Richard Hanson/Tearfund, showing:
1. Elizabeth in her uniform, working to clear rubble
2. In her normal clothes
3. In her tent-home just off the street
Background
Before the crisis in January 2010, Tearfund was already working through six partner organisations in Haiti. Most of these are local churches and they are involved in a range of projects including programmes to enable communities to cope in the event of a natural disaster.
ACLAM/World Concern Haiti
ACLAM/World Concern Haiti [1] is one of Tearfund’s partners working in Haiti and their activities are based in the North-West of Haiti. ACLAM has worked in Haiti for over 15 years, and has partnered with Tearfund over the last three. Their work is focused on HIV and AIDS, but they also work with orphans and vulnerable children.
Tearfund’s partner ACLAM had carried out a lot of work which aimed at enabling the local communities to cope in the event of a natural disaster before the earthquake. This is because ACLAM aims to reduce extreme poverty by establishing a permanent and sustainable structure for managing risks and disasters. ACLAM also places high importance in strengthening the local church to engage in Integral Mission
Since the crisis, ACLAM has been working in earthquake affected communities to distribute food, provide warehouse supplies and run a ‘cash for work’ programme which helps people for much needed cash to help them get back on their feet by removing rubble in order to help start rebuilding.
With support from Tearfund, ACLAM provides items such as medical supplies, water, tarpaulins and other non-food items. This has so far enabled ACLAM to supply emergency relief to 75,000 people (15,000 families). One of the other roles ACLAM has played since the crisis has been to assist in distributing World Bank donated boxes containing fortified rice, a tarpaulin, cooking oil, and a solar lamp to the affected individuals within the camps.
Disaster Management Team
Following the earthquake, Tearfund immediately sent some members of its Disaster Management Teams (DMT) to provide support to ACLAM and other Tearfund partners in Haiti in dealing with the disaster. In a disaster situation the DMT are extremely key in equipping the partners who in many cases have been affected by the disaster in areas such as the distribution of food, assessing community or peoples needs, communication and expert advice.
Cash-for-Work Programme
ACLAM‘s cash for work programme enables affected people to do work for £3 per hour to clear rubble. This programme enables those people who in many cases have also lost their own home to play an active role in their recovery process. Those involved help to clear the rubble in other people’s homes and they get cash to help them get back on their feet. The story below shows how Elizabeth Daphne’s family was affected by the earthquake.
Prayer points
- Pray for all Christian organisations that are working here in difficult situations.
- Pray for the victims of the earthquake.
Footnote: [1] ACLAM and World Concern Haiti are the same organization. ACLAM is the French language interpretation of World Concern and the local Haitian branch of World Concern.
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