Leading Religious and Education Figure in Haiti Lends Support

Haiti Trip; Day Three: In Haiti’s 2010 Earthquake, over 300,000 human beings (people just like you and me) died in less time than it will take you to read this post. I was reminded of this brutal fact as I made my way through the “still” shattered remnants of Haiti’s capital, Port au Prince, on my way to a meeting with Rev. Jeune Jean-Chavannes.



Rev. Jean-Chavannes is a leading religious figure in Haiti and the dean of one of the country’s largest University’s, (Lumiere University),. On a more personal note, on the 12th of January, he lost 154 students, 17 faculty members and thousands of parishioners. He was, and continues to be, deeply wounded by the events of 2010.

The purpose of our meeting was twofold:

1) To discuss the methodology whereby “every church,” and “every parishioner” in Haiti could become intimately aware of the mass grave/memorial initiative, and

2) To discuss how his university could play a role in the rebirth of Haiti through HR&DC’s 5 Cities initiative.

By the end of our session, here is what we agreed upon:

Rev. Jean-Chavannes would introduce me to a council of religious leaders who represent every denomination registered and active in Haiti. This amounts to thousands of churches and millions of Haitians.

As for the university, Rev. Jean-Chavannes agreed to allow me complete and unfettered access to every student and facility member under his charge. This amounts to 2,500 students and a couple of hundred faculty members. 

…

I am honored and humbled by his gestures…