Outreach International, a charity affiliated with the Community of Christ, is advertising a long-term volunteer position in Haiti. For information, click here.
Category Archives: Outreach International
Help Needed in Haiti
Outreach International is looking for a long-term volunteer with good research and writing skills to work in Haiti for 6-12 months. If you are interested in helping Outreach International’s school system in Haiti, which serves over 9000 students, recover from the January earthquake, click here to read the vacancy announcement.
The Globalization of Zion
‘Zion’ has been a central theological concept and practical imperative of the Community of Christ, since its very beginnings. Particularly in the first half of the 20th century, Zion (not to be confused with Zionism) represented a vision of ‘the kingdom of heaven on earth’ – not to be realized in some far off future, but to be built in the here and now. But the political and economic forces of globalization have significantly impacted the way the Community of Christ now thinks of Zion. Continue reading
Help Out in Haiti: Outreach International Needs Long-Term Volunteers
Outreach International, a humanitarian and development charity affiliated with the Community of Christ, is seeking help with post-earthquake reconstruction efforts in Haiti. Outreach International supports a network of 90 schools in Haiti. Some 30 of these schools were destroyed or sustained major damage from the earthquake. The reconstruction process goes far beyond the normal scope of work of our local partner, Organisation pour le Développement Social des Masses (ODSM), which administers the network of schools. It will take time, strength, and expertise to assess the situation, evaluate needs, negotiate with potential funders, and handle the details of rebuilding facilities and lives.
Outreach International has three broad objectives in post-earthquake Haiti:
- Get kids back into school
- Help rebuild families and community
- Rebuild the schools program Continue reading
Reflections from Haiti
As of the last week in January, I have been working as the Haiti Emergency Coordinator for Outreach International, a charity affiliated with the Community of Christ. Since the 1980s, Outreach International has supported a network of about 90 schools catering to 9,000 students in Haiti. About 30 of these schools were in the earthquake-affected area, most of which are damaged or destroyed, affecting over 1,200 children. The following are links to reflections on my first visit to Haiti in early February, as serialized in The Examiner (Independence, MO):
Responding Responsibly to Disasters like the Haiti Earthquake
In response to the terrible earthquake in Haiti, both Outreach International (click here for their appeal) and the church (click here for their appeal) are calling on church members to give generously to those in need.
In times like this there is often a rush of people wanting to jet to the disaster zone and volunteer, or collect clothing, medicines and food to send to the people suffering. This altruistic impulse is praiseworthy and displays the great generosity and charity human beings show in times of trouble. However, not every well-meaning response to a disaster is a good one. In this briefing paper I wrote in light of the Asian Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, I explain how, when responding to a humanitarian disaster, potential donors should keep in mind the following key principles to guide their gift:
Devastation in Haiti! Please Help!
Much of Port-au-Prince has been destroyed, including even the Presidential Palace (above) and the United Nations mission.
Outreach International has issued the following concerning the catastrophe in Haiti:
Thousands of people, possibly 100,000, have been killed by the earthquake that hit Haiti at 5pm Tuesday evening.
Outreach International has been working in Haiti since the 1980s and currently supports a network of 90 schools serving over 9,000 children. Some of these schools have been severely damaged or destroyed. Worse yet, schools were in session at the time of the quake. Students and faculty undoubtedly suffered serious injury or death.
Let’s work together to help Haitians in their time of tremendous suffering! Please do what you can to help! Donate HERE at the Outreach International website.
Outreach International helps people overcome the effects of poverty and develop the capacity to create a new future for themselves and their community. We do not believe in short-term fixes, but in long-term solutions. We call this Sustainable Good.
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