Felician Sisters of North America Mission: Haiti

Praise the Lord! The Felician Haiti Mission welcomes a third Felician Sister to our community–Sister Mary Izajasza Rojek from Przemyśl, Poland. Yes, the Lord has answered our prayers. God has given Sisters….

Here, Sister gets ready to take the small plane over the mountains to Jacmel. Her courage is evident as she anxiously awaits arrival at the mission.

She was warmly welcomed by the small community who lives with us–Annette and Jean Philippe.

As soon as Sr. Izajasza arrived, she entered and embraced the mission life from her very first day. The kids were so excited to have another Felician Sister.

Even though Sister does not know Creole, that did not stop her from communicating the love of the Lord, who is her strength and courage. The children were immediately drawn to her passion for Christ.

Sister Izajasza will be with us for a few weeks, and then she will return to New Jersey to continue learning the English language more intensely.   Sister will begin her ministry in Haiti in January. Please keep her, our Mission, and the country of Haiti in your prayers.

The children and young people will be preparing for the sacraments of Holy Communion and Confirmation. Please keep them in your prayers.

Thank you to JDM Associates for the coolest t-shirts in Jacmel!

Meet Gaelle, one of our teens who works one-on-one with our kids. Here she is teaching French.

At the request of our Bishop, the Mother Angela Clinic now goes to LaSaline. This area is not far from our home. It is a very poor area near the sea. Many of our children come from that area. The site used to be a clinic owned by a group from Canada, but they could not continue to support it. This is where the spirit of Mother Angela is able to respond and serve where needed. It is because of you and your generous support that we can extend our healing mission.

You may remember last year we had some guests with us from Boston, MA. They are with the Father Jean Parisol Foundation and were building a vocational school in his memory. This week, two members from that organization stayed with us as they dedicated the new school. It is known as St Clare School and has classes for pre-school and grades 1-6. Soon, in the evenings, they will start the vocational school for older teens. The Foundation is a dedicated group of people with a passion for empowering Haitians to help themselves. We met the group six years ago when they first started planning, so it is a joy to see how the seed of hope has grown.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, as in all wisdom you teach and admonish one another, singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:16-17

One of our greatest joys is sharing the Word of God with our sisters and brothers in Christ. We are blest to meet to prepare God’s Word with our Neocatechumenal community, to sing psalms and inspired songs and to meet with our youth to make the Word of God alive and active in our lives.

What does a pair of shoes mean to me? Every year, during this time before the new school year begins, we ponder this question. Our kids who come to the Felician Mission don’t have shoes. Maybe they have a pair of flip flops that we gave them, but they don’t have a new pair of good shoes. They do’t even have a space to put their shoes. If they do have a pair of shoes, they have to hide it so someone else won’t steal it.

It is at this time of year, before they go to school, that they need a pair of black shoes and a pair of socks.

Here are the new shoes, and the kids received them yesterday. Because of you and your generosity, we were able to go to the market and buy different sizes for our boys and girls. We are also helping the economy here because we purchased the shoes in the market.

We are so grateful for your support and always being there to accompany our poor children. May God bless you! 🙏🏽

Each Christian man and woman, every member of the human family, can act as a thin yet unique and indispensable thread in weaving a network of life that embraces everyone.

May we feel challenged to assume, with prayer and commitment, our responsibility for the care of creation. May God, “the lover of life” (Wis 11:26), grant us the courage to do good without waiting for someone else to begin, or until it is too late.

From the Vatican, 1 September 2019

FRANCIS

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