Annual Report 2003

The Friends of St. Vincent's Center is a volunteer group formed in 1997 to help the children and staff at St. Vincent's Center for Handicapped Children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti obtain the resources needed to educate and care for the children. The Friends of St. Vincent's Center is an interfaith outreach ministry of St. James's Episcopal Church in West Hartford, Connecticut.

The Friends of St. Vincent's Center mission statement is to provide service, supplies and support to the children and staff at St. Vincent's Center, a residential school, day school, orphanage and hospital for approximately 400 handicapped children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

During the past year this group of devoted folks has been involved in the following areas:

Service

• In January Bill Harris from St. James's West Hartford flew to Port-au-Prince to meet with the engineer and staff at St. Vincent to review plans and progress on the renovation. Medical and Educational Missions 03 participants met for a pre-Mission briefing at the First Church of Christ in Newington.
• During February, members of the Friends of St. Vincent's Center participated in three missions: Medical, Educational and Youth. Medical and Youth Mission 2003 included 8 participants from St. James's in West Hartford, Trinity in Wethersfield, St. James in Glastonbury, Grace Episcopal Church in Vineyard Haven MA, and the First Church of Christ Congregational in Newington. This group, under the direction of Dr. Girard Rudmin from Maine, evaluated 127 students and staff at the center for eyeglasses. All received sun glasses, prescriptions were written for those needing glasses, frames were selected and the prescriptions were brought back to the US for refilling. Glasses were hand carried to Haiti in March and delivered to students and staff at St. Vincent's. Hope Lennartz, Rev. Joanne Neel-Richard and Barbara Massey met with Bishop Duracin to discuss renovation plans and presented him with baptismal gowns hand sewn by parishioners at Trinity in Wethersfield. Baptismal gowns were also presented to Sister Marie Margaret and the Rev. Fernande Pierre Louis. Medical Mission Team members met with St. Vincent's Director Nicole Magloire and Chaplain Father Charles to discuss needs for St. Vincent's and progress of renovation.
• Educational-Construction Mission 2003, led by Ellen and the Rev. Kenneth Brookes, included nine participants from First Church of Christ Congregational in Newington, St. James's in West Hartford and St. Patrick and St. Anthony Roman Catholic Church in Hartford. This group painted a room in the girls' dormitory which was greatly appreciated by the residents and staff. They also took children from the Center on the third annual Field Trip to local parks.
• During March, three missions were conducted: a Dental Mission, participation in the Haiti Connection Conference and an Evaluation mission by the Texas Chapter. Dr. Phil Caldwell and Dr. Peter Peterson conducted the dental mission, evaluated the facility, provided dental care to the students, and developed plans for the future. Hope Lennartz, Bill Harris, Ken Messier from Chariots of Hope, George Seaborne from St. Peter's Trinity Episcopal Church in Thomaston, and Patti O'Brien from St. John's in West Hartford participated in the Haiti Connection Conference. George Seaborne made contacts with the Port-au-Prince Rotary Club. Hope Lennartz presented a session at the conference on shipping supplies to Haiti and Bill Harris led a session on Construction in Haiti.
• The Dallas Chapter sent representatives for the dedication, led by Bishop Duracin, of the new construction at the boys' dormitory.
• In November, The Dallas Chapter held a fund raising for Giving Project at the Oak Hill Academy. This provided gift packages of humanitarian aid, food, school supplies and lots of love for 350 students at St. Vincent's Center.
• In December, 4 members of the Texas Chapter celebrated International Day for Handicapped Children at St. Vincent's and distributed bags from the Oak Hill Academy Giving Project.

Supplies

• In February, supplies were taken to Haiti for the eye clinic and blind program. During March tools, toiletries, vestments, medications, eyeglasses, cleaning materials, blind materials, baptismal gowns, sport sneakers were taken to St. Vincent's Center.
• In June 21,213 pounds of supplies valued at $88,863 were packed by 61 volunteers in a land-sea container and sent to St. Vincent's Center. This container arrived in Port-au-Prince in December.
• Monthly packages with medications have been sent to St. Vincent's Center.

Support to St. Vincent's Center

• Throughout the year, funds have been raised for food, five new prosthetics for 4 children, staff bonuses to supplement staff income due to the economic crises and inflation, student scholarships, medical and school supplies.
• In December, the Friends of St. Vincent's Center sent its first formal donation letter to over 75 supporters. This resulted in donations totaling $2425 which will feed 32 children for one year.
• A grant application was prepared for the "Miles of Pennies" program to purchase youth reading materials for the Center.

Outreach Education

• Members of the Friends of St. Vincent's Center developed and printed a New Chapter Handbook and a revised Mission Participant Handbook for Medical Mission 2004. The first email newsletter was sent to chapters and individuals and regular updates were made to the Friends website.
• A number of presentations were made by many members of the Friends to church groups including St. John's in Niantic, St. John's in Bristol, St Peter's Trinity in Thomaston, St James's in West Hartford, St. James in Glastonbury, Trinity in Wethersfield, St. Ann's in Old Lyme, St. John's in Salisbury, St. Stephen's in Bloomfield, St. Gabriel's in East Berlin, and to delegates at the Diocesan Convention. In addition, presentations were made to the Brownies in Glastonbury, and the Civitan Club in Bloomfield.
• Board members visited with Sister Joan, founder of St. Vincent's Center, who lives in a nursing home in Brookside, MA and updated her on the construction project at St. Vincent's for the summer.
• Marc Yves Regis I book "Two Good Feet &endash; A Photographic Documentary of Physically Challenged Children" was published in December and will soon be available from our website. Financial assistance was provided by the Episcopal Diocese of CT Church Publishing Company.

Training

• Ongoing training was held for missioners and mission leaders throughout the year.
• Training materials prepared by the Friends of St. Vincent's Center were shared with many church groups.

Support from Other Churches

• St. James's West Hartford continued with major financial support to purchase mattresses, funds for construction, adopt-a-box program, food for the children, and tuition for Montessori teacher training.
• The Dallas Chapter at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church coordinated the Oak Hill Academy Giving Project, held a Christmas offering project at the church and provides sustained support throughout the year for the children at St. Vincent's Center.
• Art and craft sales at many churches provided needed support to St. Vincent's Center.
• Trinity Wethersfield held an Epiphany Drive for the blind program, provided funding and supplies for an Adopt-A-Mop campaign, made valentines for the children of St. Vincent's, sewed 111 baptismal gowns, and held an Advent collection for the children at St. Vincent's Center.
• First Church of Christ Newington held a discussion group about the needs in Haiti using particular readings and regularly provides funds and supplies for St. Vincent's Center.
• Thomas Edison Middle School in Meriden raised $290.16 from a penny drive.

  Total volunteer time for Friends of St. Vincent's Center chapters during 2003 is 6749 hours which is equal to 3.2 full time positions.

Thank you again for your interest and support.

Hope C. Lennartz
RN MSN CS Volunteer Executive Director of the Friends of St. Vincent's Center

Updated on 8/28/06