In the Midst of It All, Life Continues

17 hours ago
6 min read

Sunday, August 30, 2026 - [click here to support the continuing work at MOHI]

Today's update is from Alexis and Jonathan

Some weeks are filled with teams, activities, and stories that are easy to share. Other weeks remind us that much of life and ministry happens in the quieter, ordinary moments—and sometimes against the backdrop of circumstances that are anything but ordinary.

This week, we want to share a little of both.

In Haiti, families are grieving after another heartbreaking act of violence, reminding us of the uncertainty so many continue to face. At the same time, parents are registering their children for another year of school, staff members are preparing for the months ahead, and hundreds of children's names are being carefully added to enrollment records.

And in the Dominican Republic, while the Mission House may be quieter without teams coming and going, everyday life and preparation continue—including a few new four-legged residents who have been keeping everyone entertained.

These stories are very different, but together they offer a glimpse into life here right now: moments of heartbreak, preparation, hope, and even a little joy.

Please Pray for Haiti

You may have seen on our Facebook that last weekend, a devastating attack took place in Kenscoff, a community in the mountains outside of Port-au-Prince.

Armed gangs attacked communities in the area, killing dozens of people, kidnapping others, burning homes, and forcing families to flee. Children are among those who have been affected.

For many of our friends and supporters outside of Haiti, this may be the first time you are hearing about what happened.

At MOHI, our work in Haiti continues every day. We see children going to school. We see patients receiving care. We see families working, communities growing, and people continuing to build their lives.

There is so much good happening in Haiti.

And at the same time, we cannot pretend that this isn't part of Haiti's reality too.

What happened in Kenscoff is heartbreaking. Behind every number is a person, a family, a community. These are mothers, fathers, children, neighbors and friends whose lives have been forever changed.

So today, we're asking our MOHI family to pray.

Pray for the families grieving loved ones. Pray for those who have been kidnapped and for their safe return. Pray for those who were injured. Pray for families who have been forced from their homes. Pray for protection over communities throughout Haiti.

And please continue to pray for Haiti, for peace, for stability, and for a future where Haitian families can live, work, raise their children, and build their communities without fear.

We remain here. We remain committed. And we remain hopeful. 🇭🇹

Quiet at the Mission House, Busy Behind the Scenes

The past few weeks have been quiet in terms of the number of people we have in the house. We don’t currently have any teams here in the Dominican Republic, but that doesn’t mean things have slowed down at Mission of Hope International.

In fact, this quieter season is the perfect opportunity to tend to some of the things that can get pushed to the back burner during the busier seasons of HOPE Encounters.

One of the biggest things we’ve been working on diligently is streamlining our school enrollment process in Haiti so that the information we collect in the field can sync more effectively with our record-keeping systems here in the United States.

With every student enrollment, a whole series of tasks begins.

There are the things that need to happen on the school side in Haiti, of course. But there are also important things that need to happen for our record-keeping and sponsorship systems. We create a profile for each child, add them to our list of students in need of sponsorship, collect their biographical information, and make sure we have the necessary documentation they will need to navigate Haiti’s educational system as successfully and easily as possible.

Sometimes, Even a Name Matters

One thing that always boggled my mind when I first moved to Haiti was the inconsistency with which people sometimes spelled their own names.

It might seem like a small thing.

It isn't.

Many people living in rural Haiti are born at home, and a formal birth certificate doesn’t always accompany a birth. It may be years before a family seeks to obtain the documentation necessary for their child — sometimes only when the child is ready to attend school.

And in some of the poorer and more rural areas, literacy remains a significant challenge. Many parents and even grandparents may not read or write.

So a child's name might be recorded as Daphca one day and Daffka another.

To someone looking from the outside, that may seem harmless. But we've seen firsthand how something as simple as an inconsistent spelling can create very real problems later.

When students reach the point in their education where they must register for Haiti’s national examinations, inconsistencies in their records can make that process much more difficult.

That's why we've developed a more consistent system for capturing the officially recorded spelling of each student's first and last name during enrollment. It’s a small improvement that can prevent a much bigger problem years down the road.

And that's really what good systems are about: anticipating challenges before they become problems.

400+ Students and Counting

Our team in Haiti has enrolled more than 400 students in just the past couple of weeks.

That is no small task.

We're incredibly proud of the work they are doing.

We are constantly looking for ways to improve these systems so that we can stay ahead of potential challenges and make sure the information collected in Haiti is accurate, accessible, and useful to the people managing these programs on both sides of the Caribbean.

Of course, working in Haiti comes with its own set of challenges.

Electricity is often unreliable — and in many places, electricity is only available if you have your own source of power, whether that's a generator, solar panels, or another system. Thankfully, we have those resources available to us in Haiti.

Internet connectivity can also be inconsistent.

That means we sometimes have to rely on simpler, more practical ways of collecting and organizing information on the ground in Haiti and then getting that information to our team in the United States, where it can be entered into the appropriate spreadsheets, databases, student profiles, and other record-keeping systems.

It isn't always glamorous work.

But it matters.

Preparing for a New School Year

So while we may not be busy with people "in the house" at the moment, we are very busy getting ready for the next academic year.

We're also taking advantage of this quieter time to work on projects and improvements around the Mission House — from staff training to building more formal systems for the many processes and tasks we manage every day.

It’s rewarding to watch our staff absorb the training and welcome the additional structure.

These are the kinds of improvements that often happen quietly, behind the scenes, but they make a tremendous difference in how effectively we can serve children and families.

And then, of course, there are the things that have absolutely nothing to do with spreadsheets, databases, enrollment forms, or organizational systems.

Meet Kallah's Seven!

We're currently watching our not-so-stray Mission House dog, Kallah, learn what it means to be a mother to SEVEN puppies.

A few weeks ago, Kallah delivered a healthy litter in a shady, cool spot underneath the pool at the Mission House.

They're tucked back quite a ways, but they're beginning to make themselves known from time to time — occasionally taking a few adventurous steps toward the back courtyard when Mom isn't around.

And we're fairly certain they're already being spoiled with scraps from the kitchen as the ladies prepare meals for the children in the villages.

So, yes… even during a "quiet" season, there's always something happening around here.

A New School Year, New Opportunities

As we prepare to begin another academic year, we're reminded of why all of this work matters.

Behind every student profile is a child.

Behind every enrollment form is a child who wants the opportunity to learn.

Behind every carefully recorded name is a young person whose education we hope will open doors that might otherwise remain closed.

And behind so many of those children is a sponsor who has made the decision to invest in their education and their future.

We are incredibly grateful for every person and family who has made that commitment.

Your sponsorship helps provide a child with the opportunity to attend school, learn, grow, and begin building a different future. And your commitment reminds these children and their families that there are people—sometimes thousands of miles away—who believe their education and their future are worth investing in.

The work doesn't stop when the teams go home.

Sometimes, the most important work is happening quietly behind the scenes—preparing, organizing, improving, and making sure that when the next school year begins, we are ready.

And most importantly, making sure the children are ready, too.

To every sponsor who has chosen to walk alongside one of these children: thank you.

Thank you for believing in them. Thank you for investing in their education. And thank you for helping make another school year possible.