Medicines For Humanities Honors The Daughters of Charity -- Haiti

Medicines for Humanity (MFH), headquartered in Rockland, MA, recently honored The Daughters of Charity -- Haiti with its 2014 Humanitarian of the Year Award. Ceremonies were held at the The Harvard Club in Boston. Medicines for Humanity, a non-profit and non-governmental organization dedicated to reducing child mortality in impoverished communities worldwide, has been partnering with The Daughters of Charity in Port-Au-Prince since 2009 to address the high child mortality rates in Haiti.

Shown at the The Harvard Club event are (rear, left to right): MFH Founder & Executive Director Timothy W. Bilodeau with MFH Director of Development Dick Weisberg, (front, left to right), Sr. Monica De Juan Sanchez, Director Rosalie Rendu Health Center, Haiti; Sr. Gloria Del Carmen Herrera Sixco, Director, Lucelia Bontemps Health Center, Haiti.

According to best estimates, the earthquake that devastated Haiti in January 2010 killed 230,000 people, injured over 300,000 and left over 1 million Haitians homeless. The aftermath of that disaster is impacting the children of Haiti to this day.

In her acceptance speech, Sr. Gloria said, “We try to prevent children from dying each day… and as we try to deal with the overwhelming demands we face… we are grateful for the expertise and experience of the MFH staff and all the resources MFH provides. You have supported our work since before the earthquake… helped us respond to the emergency, and stood by us as we recover and rebuild our capacity. We thank you because we feel your love and your prayers supporting us as we work together to bring better health to the precious children of Haiti.”

In Haiti, one out of 8 children dies before their 5th birthday. Statistics reveal nearly three quarters of the Haitian population are considered poor (living on less that $2 per day per person) and 54 percent of Haiti’s 8.5 million people are extremely poor (less than $1 per day per person). HIV prevalence is 5.6 percent. Forty-six percent of Haitians do not have sustainable access to potable water, while thirty-four percent live without adequate sanitation.

Yet to the 33 Daughters of Charity serving in 11 diverse mission works, the Haitian people demonstrate character, courage and intrinsic beauty. The Daughters of Charity Provincial House is located in the country’s capital of Port-au-Prince. Here and in other communities in Haiti, the Sisters support all ages of people, from infants to the elderly, through basic health care including clinics and outreach programs, with social services such as soup kitchens and nutrition programs, and via schools and informal education and training.

Chaired by Mr. O’Neill, the evening included a welcome reception, seated dinner, entertainment by vocalist Claudia Eliaza plus a video presentation detailing the organization’s remarkable work in Haiti. Attended by 180 guests, the evening raised more than $300,000 for MFH’s continuing work providing 750,000 essential health services to children in need around the world. (Credit: Jack Foley Photography)