History of the Mission
In
response to the appeal of then Archbishop of
Cap-Haitien, Monsignor Francois Gayot, two
members of the Missionaries of the Poor set
foot in this impoverished nation of 8.9
million people along the Caribbean’s Greater
Antilles on February 6, 1994. Brother Eugene
Damasusraj, an Indian national, and Brother
Louima Israel, a native of Haiti, were the
ones chosen for the task of taking over the
administration of the Asile Communal, a home
for the homeless and abandoned elderly
located close to the heart of the city of
Cap-Haitien which, up until then, was under
the administration of Sister Madeleine
Alarie of the Missionaries of the Immaculate
Conception (MIC), headquartered in Quebec,
Canada. Helped with a staff of 40 lay
workers, Sister Madeleine was the lone
Sister left from her Congregation to have
run the Home. Having aged, and due to a lack
of vocations to MIC, she felt she could no
longer continue caring for some 150 elderly
men and women whom she (and her Sisters
earlier) cared for so lovingly for almost 50
years. Turning to the Bishop, Sister
Madeleine recommended the Missionaries of
the Poor, two of whose members she had met
in Haiti—providentially it must be—on
vocation promotions.
For almost four years, the first pair of MOP
men sent on this Mission stayed at Domus
Marie, a house lent to them by Monsignor
Gayot. Each day, they drove over to the
Asile to minister to its residents alongside
with Sister Madeleine who stayed on for
another 4 years to facilitate its smooth
transition. In the meantime, the Brothers
had begun laying the foundation for what
would become their first monastery in Haiti.
This soon-to-be born, and subsequently
named, Monastère Bon Berger, was erected at
a 3-acre land adjacent to the Asile that the
Haitian Government had donated. By January
1998, the new monastery was completed and
blessed, thus making it possible for the
Brothers to move in. Around the same time,
the move from MIC to MOP-administered Asile
had also become definitive.
Renovations and Expansions
Since the Missionaries of the Poor took over
the administration of the Asile, the
Institute began to implement a number of
renovation projects, which would have
enhanced the quality of life of its
residents. Among other things, it took care
of repainting the building, fixing its roof
(which had begun to leak by then), and
changing of old beds and mattresses.
Additional bathrooms and toilets were also
installed, as well as ceiling fans for the
residents. The garden on the Asile grounds
was also developed.
With the help of Sister Madeleine, they also
put up the Myriam Dispensary at the back of
the Asile for the purpose of looking after
the medical needs, not only of our homeless
residents, but also of the poor at St
Philomene neighborhood. To-date, this
Dispensary caters to several patients from
the same neighborhood and even across the
city itself. A most recent feature to the
Dispensary has been the presence of a local
doctor who works in it at least once a week.
Through the kindness of friends from
Moorestown, New Jersey, a pre-fabricated
chapel was shipped to the Mission. This took
place in early 2000. Shortly thereafter,
they had the beautiful chapel standing
majestically in front of the Asile building.
Monsignor Gayot came and blessed it with the
participation of a Delegate from our Mother
House in Jamaica and also parishioners from
Our Lady of Good Counsel in Moorestown who
donated the building. What a blessing this
chapel has been! Up until then, Asile
residents were wont to gather along the
Asile corridors for their Sunday Masses and
prayer services. They now come together in
this chapel with their own MOP priest to
lead them in worship and are joined by
hundreds others from all over the city
Sunday after Sunday. In fact, Good Shepherd
Chapel congregants have grown so large that
Sunday Masses are standing room only, with
many others having to sit on benches outside
the chapel!
With the construction of the chapel also
came baptisms, preparations for First
Communions, and also funerals. Just over the
past three years alone, more than three-
dozen infants and children were baptized,
while some 200 or so children received their
First Communion. Around the same time, we
also began to hold Food Lines in this chapel
every other Wednesday. This outreach
ministry has for its aim helping with food
the many hungry people of Cap-Haitien.
Initially, this program had about 100
regular beneficiaries. Today, it serves more
than 500 individuals who would otherwise
subsist only on one meal a day—if at all
there is any! Thanks to the food packages
they receive, which consist mainly in rice
and beans, and sometimes flour, they can now
eat at least more than once a day and also a
few more days a week.
As the ministry expanded, and the needs in
the country continued to increase, it was
decided to put up a home for children with
special needs as well as orphans. Bethlehem
Home was thus begun in 2001 and was
completed in 2002. From the initial intake
of 20, it is now home to 53 children, many
of whom are physically and/or mentally
challenged, while the rest are normal kids
but are either orphaned or abandoned. Of
these normal ones, schooling is also
offered. Sent to schools run by other
religious, we hope to give them a solid
educational foundation, which would assist
them in the future.
Additional Missionaries & Local Entrants
With the expansion of the works, additional
Brothers from our Mother House in Jamaica
also came in. At the same time, local
vocations also began to arrive. Within a
period of almost 15 years, the Mission in
Haiti has sent more than a dozen novices to
Jamaica who subsequently made it to
temporary and perpetual profession. Of
these, some are now missionaries themselves,
serving in countries as far away as the
Philippines and Uganda!
Special Activities, Outreach & Future Plans
In 2007, the Mission held its first-ever
religious profession of vows locally. Up
until then, the Brothers who were to take
vows were sent back to Jamaica for that
purpose. In September of that year, 4
Brothers—2 Filipinos and 2 Indians—vowed
their lives to God before a crowd of more
than 800, local as well as overseas, in a
Solemn High Mass led by Monsignor Hubert
Constant, successor to Monsignor Francois
Gayot who had retired from his office as
Metropolitan Archbishop of Cap-Haitien three
years earlier. A year later, 2 other
Brothers did the same at the Cathedral of
Our Lady of Assumption, with Monsignor Louis
Kebreau, newly installed Archbishop of the
same See, leading the Solemn Liturgy.
From Brother Eugene Damasusraj, who was the
first Superior of the young and fledgling
Mission, Brother Murray Goodman of St Lucia
took over the torch of leadership. Brother
Louima Israel of Haiti later succeeded him
who was himself replaced by the Indian
Brother James Kullu once his term of office
had ended. Since 2007 to the present, Fr
Henry Lozano, a Filipino national, leads the
Mission. He is helped by 15 other Brothers
who are either temporarily or perpetually
professed. Of these, 6 are Indians, 5 are
Kenyans, 2 Ugandans, and 2 Filipinos. There
also 5 local candidates who are presently
undergoing their early religious training.
In recent times, the Mission has also seen a
steady increase in overseas volunteers
wanting to come and work alongside with the
Brothers. Ranging from 5 days to a week—and
sometimes longer—men and women from places
like Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, New
Jersey, New York, Vermont, Ohio, Tennessee,
Idaho, Colorado and California, as well as
Montreal in Canada, have come and served our
poor and homeless. A number of American
parishes have also been involved in
supplying us with food and other essential
items we need through the containers they
send year after year.
Of the other outreach programs that the
Mission has taken on, mention may be made of
its School Sponsorship Program which sends
to school 70-100 poor children annually,
occasional Clothes Line, House Visitations,
and its ever-expanding Medical Assistance
Program for the very poor of Cap-Haitien. In
the near future, the Mission hopes to take
on a ministry for HIV/AIDS patients given
the growing need for such a home where they
can be taken care of physically and
spiritually, and eventually die with dignity
and respect. Although the construction of
the building is not due to begin until
January 2010, it is our sincere hope that
this new Home will be in operation before
the end of the same year.
Photos from Cap-Haitien