In the aftermath of the devastating 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck western Haiti on Saturday, August 14, more than 1,200 lives have been lost and over 13,000 homes have been destroyed. For many, this feels similar to the 2010 earthquake that left the country in a constant state of recovery for 11 years.
Thankfully, our team in Port-au-Prince was spared. Within 24 hours, David, our OTB Haiti kitchen director, along with OTB staff and volunteers worked with World Central Kitchen (WCK) to prepare and distribute hot meals to the affected areas. Last Monday and Tuesday, the team was able to provide more than 5000 hot meals for children, families and relief workers.
Still, it hasn’t been easy. Our kitchen is located over 100 miles away. The trek from Port-au-Prince to Les Cayes takes 4-5 hours now due to traffic jams, mudslides and torrential rain from Tropical Storm Grace. Transportation has been arranged by motorcycle and helicopter, but it’s a short-term solution at best.
A long-term solution is needed.
Our team is now working with strategic partners, including WCK, to develop a field kitchen in Les Cayes, where they can prepare and provide up to 2500 hot meals a day for the relief effort. WCK will provide equipment and personnel for the effort, while our local team will take the lead in mass production of food and providing ingredients.
The challenge (and cost!) is finding and transporting ingredients to the kitchen, and providing safe transportation and accommodations for our team.
Food being prepared to be sent to those in need.
We now have an opportunity to come alongside these on-the-ground efforts in real-time to provide for the immediate needs of children and families, while also showing the love of Jesus through action.
To help establish the field kitchen in Les Cayes and support our team, we’ve received a special funding request for $10,000 from our partners. These are short-term funds, which will lead to the preparation and distribution of about 7000-8000 meals (about 4-5 days of food relief).
If you feel God is calling you to support this effort, we ask you to prayerfully respond. You can give using the secure donate button below to help provide relief to children, families and relief workers in the midst of crisis.