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In 2002, CHPF took its first international initiative to Leon, Nicaragua the 2nd poorest country in the Western hemisphere where CHPF built a village for 156 homeless people and realized we could invest $625 and touch a life with new shelter.
In 2003, CHPF built a village for 200 homeless in Cite Soleil, outside Port au Prince, Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere.
In February of 2004, CHPF finished a small village for 115 poor & homeless in Choloma, Honduras.
In December 2004, CHPF completed "Village De La Foi (Village of Hope) for over 1000 homeless in Blue Hills, Cap Haitien, Haiti.
In 2005 we built two large villages, one in the Aceh Besar district of Indonesia, an area ravaged by the tsunami and the other in Gonaives, Haiti, a city that was destroyed by recent hurricanes.
Later in 2005 we built a tunnel for safe passage for school children in Brazil. The reason the children needed safe passage in unthinkable and not appropriate for reprinting (email if you are interesting hearing why we were moved to build the tunnel).
In 2006 we completed Ange Village, our first large scale, wholly self-sufficient village combining shelter and care for orphaned children (a "family home" orphanage), education of all village and neighboring children (a school), shelter for village adults (dwelling units), clean water (water wells, pumps & storage tanks), renewable food source (an animal husbandry), a building for fellowship and worship (a community center) and a central location for medical aid to be distributed (a clinic).
In 2007 we completed construction of our Los Cacaos village impacting over 700 lives (see CHPF page for full village description).
In 2007 we completed a new 1,900 sq. ft., school in the El Japon community of Choloma, Honduras. The new school now accommodates over 300 children who would have had to cease their education after the 6th grade. Why Choloma, Honduras? As you see from above, in 2004, CHPF created a small village for 20 previously homeless families a few blocks from the proposed school. Now this village is thriving and, with this new found stability, it was time to focus on educating the villagers. In terms of ROD (return on donation), the reward seems incalculable.
See the CHPF page where there are donation options for your consideration.
Also in 2007, CHPF completed "Children's Village," a project to protect the street children of Uganda, Africa. The project included constructing 20 rooms in 2 buildings to house and care for 100+ street children in one of the poorest countries in Africa. The small "Children's Village" is located in the the Bugiri district, Bukooli Central, Bulesa sub-county, Nangalama Village.
In 2008 we completed on our self-sufficient village in Testasse, Haiti.
Testasse is located on the southeastern peninsular tip of Haiti, 140 miles east of Port-au-Prince and 7 miles from Jeremie. It rarely sees any kind of life-sustaining relief and is one of the poorest cities in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, where poverty is extreme and housing deplorable.
Testasse (along with most of Haiti) has an infant mortality rate of 22% (22% of the children won't see their 5th birthday), highest death rate from AIDS in the Western Hemisphere (life expectancy of 47 years), a per person/per day income of less than $1 and an 80% unemployment rate.
Besides the obvious reasons for choosing Testasse to benefit from the self-sustaining village we are building, due to its proximity to the sea, we felt that the new village would prosper if its core activity and commerce were centered around a fishing cooperative.
Our Caring House Project Foundation is not in the charity business, we (and you as a donor) are in the self-sufficiency business.
When we were able to identify where a small sprinkling of free enterprise might provide for ongoing, life-sustaining capital, we immediately went to work to provide the following opportunity in Testasse:
1) A fishing cooperative building so that the new villagers will have a place to receive, clean, process, display, store and sell their fish.
The fishing cooperative will be the primary mode of commerce that will support the village. With the many new fiberglass boats and motors CHPF will provide, the fisherman will be able to venture into deeper waters, bring back larger fish then be able to use the building to prepare, freeze and keep the fish fresh via generators. With this new found ability to conduct commerce, the village will have a steady stream of income. The fishing cooperative is comprised of a 1,200+/- sq. ft. concrete building to include a grinder room, prep room, freezer room, two storage rooms, an office for the co-op, 6 15-foot fiberglass boats with 15hp motors (including fuel), 2 freezers and 1 generator.
2) A 4,800 sq. ft., 10-room School w/ 2 administrative offices, furnishings, school supplies, 4 latrines and 1 water well to serve 500 kindergarten - 9th graders.
3) A 1,000 sq. ft., Health Clinic and Pharmacy/Dispensary, including water well to treat the many ill children and adults of the village.
4) 61 Concrete Homes, each accommodating up to 8 family members. Each home will have two bedrooms, living area, front porch and latrine for bathing and toilet facilities.
5) A 1,100 sq. ft., Community Center for communal meals, fellowship, worship and sharing the good word of God.
For 2009 we will build projects in Gonaives and Cabaret, Haiti.
I know this is getting long, but please read about what we are doing in 2009.
Gonaives is located approximately 106 miles north of Port-au-Prince on Haiti’s west-central coast, and is the country’s third largest city. It is an extremely arid, dusty city with saltpans and brackish lowlands on the east side and deforested mountains overlooking the city to the west. The majority of its estimated 70,000 inhabitants live below the poverty level. The majority of the adults are subsistence farmers who provide for their families by means of small crops.
Many residents of Gonaives still remain homeless due to the devastating hurricane in 2003. The city’s water system is still in ruin, due to damaged/missing water well pumps, mud-clogged drains, and contaminated water.
The Caring House Project in Gonaives will promote community development by providing safe housing, nutritious food resources, education facilities, potable and accessible water, and a multi-purpose facility for community engagement for the residents of Ponte Quenepe in Gonaives.
Highlights of the self-sustaining elements of the new village in Gonaives are:
1) Construction of 35 concrete double-unit homes. Each home will also include an individual sanitation unit, inclusive of pit latrine and shower stall.
2) Distribution of 35 sets (3 each) of fruit trees for every home built.
3) Construction of a 9-classroom schoolhouse, which also includes an office for school administration and a separate office for teachers. The campus will also feature a playground area for outdoor activities. Sanitation facilities will consists of 2-indoor units, and one-sanitation block housing 8 pit latrines.
4) Construction of a multi-purpose community center building for skills and vocational training.
5) Implementation of an animal husbandry initiative, which will provide a goat to each housing recipient. Also 24 milking cows will be purchased and deposited on a 300-acre farm where they will be raised for the production of dairy products. Food products from the farm will be donated to the school, and made available to the community.
6) Establishment of a vegetable and fruit tree farm, complete with irrigation system, which will be situated on the aforementioned 300-acre farm. The horticulture project will provide for the cultivation of mango trees, avocados, breadfruits, and cassava sticks, and assorted vegetables and fruits. All produce will be accessible to villagers, distributed to local feeding programs, and sold at market. Revenue from sales will be reinvested back into the farm. Local residents will maintain the farm.
7) The construction of a concrete cistern, installation of a submersible pump, and plumbing connections and pipe fixtures.
The Caring House Project in Gonaives will improve the lives of 20,000 people living in the impoverished community of Ponte Quenepe and provide needy families with basic resources that will radically change their lives, resulting in a healthier and promising future.
Also for 2009 are our innovative plans for the new village to be built in Cabaret, Haiti.
Cabaret, formally known as Boucassin, is a city north of Port-au-Prince. The region was renamed Cabaret, because it was the common name of the Central Point. In 1957, when Papa Doc rose to power, he wanted to thank the population of Cabaret for voting him into power, and so he renovated the central point. He then renamed the entire community “Duvalier-Ville.” In 1986, after overthrow of the Duvalier regime, the population returned to the old name, Cabaret. Currently, Cabaret has a population of 77,000.
Within a few weeks of each other, hurricanes Fay, Gustav, Hannah and Ike hit Haiti in 2008 bringing destructive winds and heavy rains. The whole country suffered from the devastation, but Cabaret was most affected.
In Cabaret the heavy rain unleashed floods and mudslides, gushing down unrestrained through the deforested hills. The local river could not contain the ensuing water and the banks overflowed.
In less than 20 minutes, water barreled through Cabaret, washing away vulnerable homes and what little possessions the residents had. Sadly, people were also swept away as they slept in their beds, many of them children. The 2008 hurricanes caused 800 deaths.
The brutal storms of 2008 literally wiped out the infrastructure in Cabaret. Homes and personal belongings have been washed away. Agricultural patches and farms have been inundated with floodwaters. Community buildings and structures have suffered serious damage. Roads and bridges have been washed away, making it difficult for people to move about and for agencies to deliver supplies and resources to the needy populace.
The number of homeless families is in the hundreds. Their previous homes were unable to withstand the brutal effects of a hostile natural environment. They lived in tents or dilapidated shacks made of cardboard, plastic, tin, or whatever materials they could scavenge from the garbage heaps. These rudimentary dwellings had dirt floors and offered no protection against the brutal weather conditions.
Food supply is severely limited.
Between llate 2007 and early 2009, the price of basic food commodities in Haiti increased by up to 65 percent. This increase has led to food shortages and widespread civil unrest throughout the country.
The onslaught of the hurricanes only intensifies an already perilous situation. The people of Cabaret need help to rebuild their communities.
Our Caring House Project Foundation will promote community development by providing safe housing, sanitation, renewable food resources, a multi-purpose community center, clinic and potable water for the residents of Cabaret.
The Caring House Project Foundation will establish a village consisting of 50 double-unit homes for families left homeless by the recent floods.
These 50 homes will provide shelter for 400 men, woman and children. The homes will include a small kitchenette, and the homeowners will also have an individual sanitation unit and shower closet.
A community center with a built-in clinic will be constructed. The building will be used for providing health care, skills and vocational training, community meetings and prayer.
50 individual cisterns will be constructed, each with a capacity to hold 450 gallons of water, and a catchment system will be constructed as well.
Eight hundred fruit trees such as mangos, avocados, breadfruit and citrus will be planted. Coconut and plantain/banana trees will also be planted for mass production. The implementation of this food initiative will serve as both a readily available food source and viable products for sale.
Caring House Project will benefit the entire community of Cabaret.
Since its inception in 1998, here in the United States, CHPF has honored hundreds of donation requests from individuals, causes and organizations such as Kids in Distress, Operation Rescue The Children, Child In Need, Food For The Poor, Christians Reaching Out to Society, The Cooperative Feeding Program, affordable housing initiatives, hurricane recovery and the many other miscellaneous requests that came in.
We enjoy a certain level of flexibility that allows us to act upon yet unknown, but worthy requests, many right here in America.
At the start of the 3rd quarter of 2009, the Caring House Project Foundation has provided shelter to approximately 4,200 homeless men, women and children from around the world! And we couldn't have done it without your help.
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