Dear Reader,
This is the third in a series of updates from Lamp for Haiti.
The situation remains tense in Port-au-Prince. A partner in a major hospital in the capital wrote yesterday that each week is worse than the last. Schools and most institutions, including many banks, are closed. Everyone, including our staff, is hunkered down and hoping for relief. Lamp manager Benoit Florestal went to the office last week but said he was very nervous on the drive. Streets are empty, there are very few private vehicles on the roads, so that he felt exposed and vulnerable. Work must therefore continue from home for the time being, even though many areas have no electricity; phone and internet are very unreliable.
The theme of our upcoming Spring Appeal is, however, Don’t Give Up on Haiti! The country is in crisis but Lamp is poised to respond in a big way. We plan to open both of our service sites, for the first time ever, later this year. The severity of the health crisis demands this response. Predicting the exact events that could lead to this outcome is not currently possible. But Lamp has, by now, a lot of experience in responding to uncertain environments. We continue to prepare ourselves. A lot of people – our brothers and sisters — are pinning their hopes on us and we remain committed!
