For survivors of Haiti’s triple disasters — the 2010 earthquake that cause 223,000 deaths, followed by a tsunami and an outbreak of cholera that claimed 7,000 lives and continues its rampage with an average of 150 new cases each day – there seems to be no end to the suffering.
Of course, the country’s poor majority have never lived in a tropical paradise. Most families made their homes in tiny shacks. Parents worked at whatever odd jobs they could find to earn a bit of money. They had no clean drinking water or sanitation facilities or public health system.
During the Second World War, anxious for the survival of our missionaries in China and hoping to provide them with Mass stipends from the U.S., Father Ernest Dieltiens was sent to the United States to help seek financial support for the China missions and to find areas of ministry.
Eventually it was decided to establish a permanent CICM mission in the U.S. In April 1946, Father Dieltiens was able to buy an eleven-acre property called “Lyonhurst,” after its former owner, Mr. Lyons. The name was then changed to “Missionhurst.”
Missionhurst was able to provide support to Socio-Economic development projects in the amount of $50,026. Some typical examples appear below.
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: A few years ago, our benefactors saved the communities of Tsilomba and Munkamba from hunger and starvation. Their support enabled missionary Fr. Joseph Bataona, to start a training program promoting the importance of farming. The three hundred unemployed young people who completed the program they applied their skills in their local villages to grow vegetables and roots crops for their own.
During FY 2010/2011 Missionhurst directed $808,080 toward Pastoral projects.
Democratic Republic of Congo: For many years lack of electricity made it difficult for Fr. Kornelis LaTabo, a missionary serving the Kabinda, Tsikapa, and Munkamba parishes, to celebrate the sacraments and organize other pastoral activities. Meetings and training sessions had to be held mostly during the day, making it impossible for many people to attend because of their day jobs or other conflicts.