Highlights September 2007
The Holy Spirit Leads Portland – Again!
In her own words, Sally Kirchoff, THP Board member and Madeleine parishioner in Portland, Oregon, describes her parish’s once again very successful annual garage sale to benefit THP: “Through the Holy Spirit’s gifts sent us both in personnel time and efforts of many people and in donated items, The Madeleine Parish was able to raise $20,074.59 this year for The Haitian Project. It was a project of love for us all. We thank the entire THP family for their prayers, which allowed this miracle to happen. Our local THP members were so amazing in responding to needs that came up this year and make it such a joy to be a part of the Madeleine community and its THP outreach.” This was the sixth annual Madeleine Parish garage sale held to benefit THP.
LCS Students “Give as Gift”
Beginning September 17th, the St. Francis Xavier Ti Ekol (Little School), LCS’s afterschool literacy program serving our neighborhood community, will also start a new year with over 300 students. This is the largest group of elementary school-aged children and adults, all with no access to any other education, to be enrolled in the program since its inception ten years ago. Initially a program to teach staff and other adults to read and write, it has been supported in the past by Rotary International’s Literacy program, and more recently enhanced to serve more neighborhood children and adults by the efforts of Christina Moynihan, Elizabeth O’Connell and Jack Joussaint. Thirty-five LCS Philo students will be teaching the Ti Ekol students each afternoon this school year, living their commitment to Louverture Cleary’s focus on Christian service and commitment to others: “What we receive as gift, we must give as gift.”
Reverse Harvest
In celebration of Thanksgiving and in the spirit of solidarity with those who go without, The Haitian Project invites all in its community to spend a day in prayer, fasting and service to our local communities. Through this act of solidarity, we hope that our minds and hearts will grow more attuned to the needs of others and that we will be inspired to do God’s will. The Reverse Harvest 2007: A Day of Prayer and Fasting for Haiti, will begin at 6 p.m. Friday, November 16th , and will conclude at 6 p.m. Saturday, November 17th. For more information, please contact THP Director of Community Development, Mary Jo Dunne, in our Rockford, Illinois office at (815) 484-8623 or by email at community@haitianproject.org.
