Blog

 This month is one of the busiest for the Hope for Kidz department here in the US.  Hope for Kidz Haiti staff spent the fall and winter traveling to every school to take pictures of the kids, get each of their profiles, and check on the schools.  Once that was done, they entered the data and sent the info to Hope for Kidz US where the pictures were printed and put into plastic sleeves.  The profiles were printed, matched with the pictures, and boxed up by churches.  These boxes of pictures and profiles were then mailed to each C3 partner’s Hope for Kidz coordinator.  Included in the boxes are additional resources for the coordinators such as advertising posters, bulletin inserts, videos, and other things to help promote the program.  It’s a labor-intensive process, especially when you consider that there are over 3,000 kids in the Hope for Kidz Program. Once

You may have heard (or read) us talk about MEBSH.  Mission Evangélique Baptiste du Sud d’Haïti (MEBSH) or The Evangelical Baptist Mission of South Haiti is RMI’s Haitian partner church association.  While they are not associated with a particular Baptist group in the US, they are baptistic in theology and practice.  They are the largest church association in Haiti with 450+ churches. We work under their umbrella.  All the churches that we minister to are MEBSH churches. They provide representation in the country for our missionaries and legal status for RMI.   Legally, all of our Haitian staff are employees of MEBSH and all of RMI’s physical assets (land, vehicles, etc.) are in MEBSH’s name.  This protects RMI and our ministries as well as if all foreign agencies were required to leave Haiti, none of our assets would be seized.  All of this is protected by contractual agreements with MEBSH.  By

Twelve years ago today, January 13, 2010, was a day that tens of thousands of people in Port-au-Prince, Haiti had to begin to pick up the pieces of their lives.  At 4:53 the afternoon before, the ground shook and life was never the same again.  Although the real toll will never be known, some estimates are that 300,000+ people died.  Many more were left jobless and homeless.  The Haitian White House and many other government buildings were destroyed.  Schools and businesses were also destroyed.  The devastation was beyond comprehension.  Yet one night following the earthquake, as reporters were making their nightly on-air updates, the sound of thousands of voices could be heard singing hymns.  God’s people thanked Him for sparing their lives.  With an unknown future in front of them, they praised God for His blessings.  What a testimony! We at RMI will not forget that day in history.  Many

RMI faces a challenging dilemma.  The August 14, 2021 earthquake damaged the RMI office in Cayes and destroyed the main building of the Zanglais Ministry Center.  The RMI office is the nerve center of all our ministries in Haiti.  The partnership facilitators, Hope for Kidz team, Field Leader, Director of Operations, and missionaries all work out of this office.  The many other programs (water filters, food aid, goats, SunTech, home building, and agriculture) are administered from there, as well.  Many cracks and signs of structural stress showed up because of the earthquake and the many aftershocks.  The staff was afraid to work inside the building until a structural engineer inspected the building.  As a result of his findings, 40 metal braces are now stationed throughout the building in strategic locations, giving the staff confidence that they are safe working there.  Quite a bit of repair is needed to restore it.

  Haiti is still feeling the effects of the 7.2 earthquake and aftershocks last August: Homes damaged or destroyed, animals gone, comfort and security lost.  RMI is offering five impactful essentials that are immediately available. TWO SOLAR LIGHT BULBS: These bulbs charge during the day to provide light at night.  BACKPACK WITH SCHOOL SUPPLIES: School backpack stuffed with notebooks, pencils, pens and more.  GOAT: A goat provides a family with means to help them nutritionally and financially.  METAL ROOFING SHEETS: The 6 sheets will repair earthquake damage in most homes. SOLAR POWER SYSTEM FOR HOME: This system can charge electronics, run lights and fans at night.  Ordering is simple – you can order online by visiting our website: www.RMlBridge.org and click on the Christmas Gift box. You can also place your order by mail or telephone. Toll-free 877-764-5439 or 239-368-8390. PRICE LIST  Solar Light Bulbs, pack of 2 -$50  Backpack

#GivingTuesday is an opportunity for you to stand up for the causes that matter most to you.RMI has a very specific need for you to consider as you make your GivingTuesday decisions. As you know, RMI has had to cancel teams for the 3rd year in a row. This has never happened in our entire history. The need for teams is urgent. It is urgent because Haitian C3 partners need the encouragement of the Ministry of Presence, seeing, hugging, spending time face to face, and ministering to one another. Life has gotten tougher due to the political instability and the August earthquake that severely impacted each and every region in southern Haiti. The need for teams is urgent because the earthquake damaged or destroyed many of the C3 partner church buildings and most of the schools. These brothers and sisters need the help of rebuilding teams. We would love to

Phase two in the recovery process is helping people start to rebuild / repair their homes.  We have purchased over 3,000 sheets of metal roofing and these are now available for sponsors.  The roofing material is $65 for 6 sheets.  This will provide a more permanent solution for people to care for their families’ safety and security.  It also will close up holes in the roof to protect their belongings from rain.  These things will help bring some normalcy to their lives; it will allow them to begin to focus on other things that might need repairing.   Equally important, it will be a visible reminder that God saw their need, heard their prayers, and provided those pieces of roofing material.  This church received enough roofing material for 6 families.  It was laid out in the church building and the 6 families stood in front of their gift.  There were big

We are happy to say that teams are returning!  At the first of the month LifeHouse Church from Delaware went to encourage their church in Aux Coteaux and in the middle of the month McGregor Baptist Church from Ft. Myers, FL will be coming to visit their church in Cote de Fer.  After the COVID quarantine and the earthquake, it’s been quite a while since teams have been able to come.  The Ministry of Presence is real – just being there, visiting their homes, standing with them in their circumstances, crying, and praying with them speaks louder at times than swinging a hammer.  Being there for someone can sometimes bring hope when all seems hopeless.  The time for work teams will come soon and those teams will be such an encouragement too.  Having someone working alongside you also brings hope when your world has been turned upside down. The church

HOW CAN YOU HELP RIGHT NOW? RMI’s most urgent need is funds…specifically because it provides us speed and flexibility on the ground to respond as necessary.  It sounds blunt but it is the reality we are living with right now. $35 feeds a family 1 hot meal a day for a month – a priceless gift at this time $75 provides a family with a water filter – clean water to ward off disease and illnesses $65 provides a family with a large tarp – temporary shelter to give them a place to sleep and protect their belongings from the elements The need for prayer cannot be understated!  Our staff has worked 24/7 for weeks and continues to serve selflessly. Go here to donate towards any of these needs. RMI continues to respond to urgent needs at a feverish pace.  Aid supplies arrive at our depot, via airlift or truck from

August 14 at 8:27 a.m., a massive 7.2 earthquake hit southern Haiti.  The epicenter was located in the middle of the mountain range near the town of L’Asile, very near to the Zanglais Ministry Center. It is the country’s strongest earthquake in 179 years since 1842 – stronger than the 2010 Port-au-Prince earthquake. The destruction is widespread across the entire southern peninsula. No community was spared clear out to the farthest tip of the island. There are many landslides across the road that leads into the mountains to go to the other coast as well as the main road that leads west to the tip of the island. Bridges are damaged and many are impassable. In Cayes and Jeremie most, if not all, stores and businesses have been heavily damaged or destroyed. In general, the infrastructure that southern Haiti had is badly damaged and severely crippled. Benjamin observed that “It

After 18 long months, RMI’s Staff Leadership Meetings were finally able to take place face-to-face.  COVID prevented face-to-face meetings, so Zoom meetings had to suffice.  As we all know, those kinds of meetings only provide a limited amount of communication, brainstorming, and in-depth discussion.  At the beginning of this month RMI Field Leader, Benjamin Altema, and RMI Field Director of Operations, Benson Joseph, were able to come to the RMI office in Ft. Myers, FL.  They met with RMI President, Dan Shoemaker, and RMI Vice President of Operations, Kim Rose, for one and a half days.  They discussed ongoing ministries and plans for the future.   We are incredibly grateful to God for providing such capable, talented, godly, and trustworthy men to lead RMI’s Haiti field and the ministries there.  They both lead with insight, integrity, commitment, and complete dedication to RMI.  Each one has come up through the ranks and

 This summer has already been full of activity for RMI! A New Missionary and a Wedding RMI welcomed a new missionary to the family in May.  Dawn Shoemaker’s fiance, Andrew Tlucek (pronounced Tuh-loo-check), joined RMI.  He and Dawn went through the full 1.5-day orientation.  Going to Haiti as a missionary had been in his life plan before God brought Dawn and him together.  His training has been with that purpose in mind.  He has a masters and is currently working on his doctoral thesis.  Being a Haiti missionary kid, he has a solid knowledge of the country, the culture, as well as the creole language.  His natural leadership abilities and training will be an asset to the Haiti field.  Welcome to the RMI family, Andrew! On June 26, Andrew and Dawn were married in Nampa, Idaho.  His grandparent’s backyard was turned into a beautiful wedding and reception venue.  Andrew’s parents,

GOOD NEWS!  RMI is opening up for teams starting in September of this year.  Here are several significant things that have changed to make this possible.   1.  Covid testing (required to get on a flight going to or leaving Haiti) is now available at the Bonne Fin Hospital in south Haiti.  There is also a “home” testing kit available that satisfies travel requirements.  That test kit is available in the US and can be purchased and carried to Haiti to use when you leave.  2.  There are flights available from Port-au-Prince to Les Cayes so we don’t have to drive through the capital.  We are doing this due to the insecurity and political tensions there.  Currently, the south is free and open.   3.  Haiti has opened and has resumed close to normal activity as a country.  4.  RMI staff feel comfortable in hosting teams in-country.  However, for these teams to