Religious communities offer help in Haiti

Image: The Daughters of Charity minister in Cité Soleil, a desperately poor neighborhood in a large slum near Port-au-Prince. Here the sisters who work there regularly stand with five sisters of the Daughters of Charity, who came from other regions to help after the earthquake.

ON JANUARY 12, 2010 a massive earthquake struck the Caribbean nation of Haiti—already the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. About 220,000 people died and hundreds of thousands more were injured. The disaster also created a humanitarian crisis: More than 180,000 homes were ruined or destroyed, leaving 1.5 million people homeless and 100,000 at critical risk from storms and flooding. Nearly 5,000 schools suffered damage or destruction.

The earthquake affected religious communities as well, with many sisters, brothers, and priests suffering injury or death and community facilities damaged. Yet, many religious men and women were also in the forefront of relief efforts. On the following pages are a few of the many stories of the ways religious communities are helping Haitians to recover.

Sister Lorraine Malo, C.S.J. has worked as a physical therapist in Haiti for many years. She rode out the earthquake and its aftermath and today continues to provide service. Above she works with Mylove and her mother in a therapy session.