Samaritan’s Purse staff shared God’s love as we built a water, sanitation, and hygiene facility for children in Haiti.
In the steep hills of Grand-Goâve, Haiti, Mount Carmel primary school is now teeming with activity, which is a welcome change.
Before Samaritan’s Purse built a water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facility there, its 100 students didn’t have access to bathrooms or clean water to wash their hands. As a result, a number of children were getting sick and missing school.
After members of our project team in Haiti constructed latrines and a purified water kiosk, they taught the children about proper hygiene and handwashing techniques. Since then, the number of students absent from school because of illness has decreased.
“I learned it is important to wash my hands to get rid of the germs so I do not get sick,” said Gabriel, a sixth-grader at Mount Carmel, who thanked Samaritan’s Purse for helping her school.
Health of Body and Soul
During the WASH training sessions, our project staff taught the students about the importance of having a personal relationship with God. Gabriel and her family had not been attending church but started going to a local congregation’s services.
“Samaritan’s Purse staff encouraged us to learn more about Jesus as our Lord and Savior,” Gabriel said. “I now have a personal relationship with Jesus, and I attend church with my family. I am eager to tell my friends about Jesus and how He has changed my life.”
“Samaritan’s Purse staff encouraged us to learn about Jesus.”
Our project team also had the opportunity to teach evangelistic and discipleship lessons to the children’s parents.
“People that never went to church have started going to church and have accepted Jesus as their Savior,” said Cliford Toussaint, manager of the Samaritan’s Purse WASH project in Haiti. “Our main goal for 2019 is to provide more people with water facilities in Jesus’ Name.”
Samaritan’s Purse works not only in Haiti but around the world to provide clean water and promote safe hygiene practices through our water, sanitation, and hygiene projects.
