Miguelson Charles College Fund
March 29th, 2010Pauline Bassett, chair of the Board of Deacons and David Entin, chair of the Peace and Justice Committee visited Haiti for a week in November, 2009 — six weeks before the devastating earthquake struck — with a church group providing educational and health care assistance to CONASPEH, an alliance of six thousand Protestant ministers. Here is an open letter to the congregation from Pauline and Dave to support their effort to help a friend they met while in Haiti.
Dear Friends,
We spent a week in Haiti in n November with a church group providing educational and health care assistance to CONASPEH, an alliance of six thousand Protestant ministers. While we were there we met a very impressive young man, Miguelson Charles, a recent high school graduate who served as our interpreter when we taught several classes. We found him to be a very attractive, talented and religious young man with a promising future. He was to start his college career in January at a university in Port au Prince with the financial aid of a church in Kansas City. However, the January earthquake devastated his city and family and totally destroyed his university only a few days after he had begun his studies there.
We want to bring him here to begin his college career at Holyoke Community College, which can accept him as an international student. However, he does not have money for the international student tuition or for room and board. The purpose of this communication is to seek your support for this worthwhile effort. We need both funds for his college education and to help support him while he is here on a student visa. In addition, we are seeking free or reduced price housing (a quiet room) where he may stay. It would be great if a family could “adopt” him for a year or two. You would find him very congenial and helpful. If you know of a possible housing situation for him or would like to contribute to his educational and support costs, please contact either:
Pauline Bassett, 413-586-4232, pnbassett@gmail.com or
David Entin, 413- 341-3042, davidentin@comcast.net
Checks can be made out to: Miguelson Charles College Fund (Florence Savings Bank).
The quotations below are from emails to Pauline and David and help shed some light on this man, what he has been through, and his aspirations. We hope you can help!
JANUARY 29, 2010
Hello, David; it’s Miguelson. I’m still alive after the earthquake. Thanks to God I am alive although everything has been destroyed: CONASPEH [high school], the UNIVERSITY where I have started to go has been destroyed, a part of my house has been destroyed. Me and my family we are now sleeping in the streets. We can’t find food and water. The situation is very hard in my area, although we have a small organization it’s hard to find help. I hope you heard about every thing in Haiti these days.
FEBRUARY 8, 2010
At first I am to thank you for your great help, which has caused me to be a blessing to my family and to the congregation as well. The situation is so tragic here. As I told you, I met with some very needy people in the congregation, which have no tents, and got their kids and other members badly damaged. These people are in very difficult situation. I had to buy some food for my own (my family), and had to take care of those I could. I had to move around trying to find some tents, but no result. So I bought few rugs [tarpaulins], including food and water (just what I could) in order to help.
It is true that some international organizations have been helping, but they only go to few places in the capital. Every day and night, Kids and Others die of starvation: that used to be happening; now it is more than ever.
Right after the event [earthquake], some people went to their hometown, [but] they all have come back since nothing has been brought from the City to them, neither from them to the City. No rain, water is a little rare in some rural areas, no river, no sea nearby. So though the situation is getting harder and harder, Port au Prince is just the place to be.
My father has been with us because he has found no water, neither to drink nor for the crops in his farm. Water is just life. Right now, we are all trying to live hand to mouth and pray to see when God will draw us to a better place. Almost no hope here.
Some people are looking forward to their death, that is so weird, so sad, so…
all I can do now is to talk to them; some have their feet cut off, hands cut off… can’t tell!!!!!!!! Wish you could be here with me and help in person! Continue to pray for me and for all the people in Haiti. I have asked the people in the congregation to pray for you so that God may provide to you and to them.
FEBRUARY 18, 2010
I am always thrilled to be able to communicate with you and know about the news from you and from your family as well. The situation is getting a little improved but the rainfall season that seems to be started is getting it more complicated since most people do not have a shelter to get out of the rain. And those whose houses have not collapsed are still very afraid to enter their homes. Yes, most the NGO’S got their supports stuck somewhere here or in the D.R [Dominican Republic] so the help that they could have provided has been very slow. Last night was a very terrible time for most of us, since the rain fell all night, and the way the weather looks, it may be heavier tonight. And different kinds of diseases are in the air so the situation is really awkward due to the rainy time.
FEBRUARY 24, 2010
I’m writing to you today with all joys I have collected from my family and the congregation as well. I have talked to the pastor of [our] congregation to see in what way we can spend it [monetary contribution] well because you know we are all in need. We will be buying tarps, food, water and medications. We haven’t been receiving anything from the NGOS. I’m very sorry to know that it’s snowing there. We will keep on praying for you. How are you doing? is everybody okay?
MARCH 3, 2010
I’m always thrilled to communicate with you. To tell the truth, I have been thinking about things more seriously since that unexpected event has striken Haiti, especially Port-au-Prince. My family has eight persons: my Mother, my Dad, my three sisters, my two brothers and me. I’m the second [oldest child] person of my family. I was attending QUISQUEYA UNIVERSITY; for the time being no schools are now open, all of them are collapsed. The test that I had to take to get admitted to the university is the entrance test. It’s a very easy test. I have already taken it; in fact I haven’t got the result yet, but I had started to go to school. Those papers might be lost by now. As you would really love to help me with my studies, I realize that it’s a blessing from God. What I would like you to share with your congregation about me is what you and David have already planned to do for me and for the Haitian people. If you could find some other persons to contribute with you, it would be very nice.
Dear, I don’t really know when school is going to restart. By the way, I talked to one of the [persons] responsible for the university. I have been told that the university might be starting in October, or later, or in February because they do not start to clear the rubble from their collapsed building yet. What you have heard about the re-opening of the state schools is not true; they do not even start to clear the rubble from the broken schools in Port-au Prince yet.
CONASPEH is clearing the rubble from their collapsed building to set tents.
In my congregation we have just got almost everything that we were in need of. Once again we put our voices together to say thank you to you because the money that you sent was extremely important to us. I really appreciate the way you are thinking about me. Please keep on praying for me; I believe that God will continue to open doors and roll rocks.
MARCH 9, 2010
Dear, I have been eyewitness [to] a lot of crime in Haiti for my age. The other day I saw two men that got beheaded because of food distribution. Yesterday a car ran over a man because of food again. When I see all those things in Haiti right after the unexpected event [earthquake], I’m wondering whether I’m living in a country or not. Can you imagine how am I living in a such country where a lot of people are starving and
do not know when the situation is going to get improved.
The only thing I do is taking my Bible and read the good news, for the time being. This is my favorite verse.
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet water, He restores my soul
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.”
I believe that God will provide to you in order to help me to be in the US to continue with my studies because the Bible says “do not let my hope be dashed; uphold me and I will be delivered.”
When I share the idea with my family, my Dad, my mother they were overjoyed to hear that you might be able to get me in the US to continue with my studies, my sisters and brothers as well, they say what a blessing for you Miguelson to find a such opportunity to leave Haiti where life has been becoming more and more complicated.
MARCH 11, 2010
I’m tremendously happy to receive your message and it sounds promising that you will be able to help me with my collegiate studies in the US. My understanding inspires me to reply: praise the Lord, who counsels me, even at night my heart instructs me; I have set the Lord always before me because He is at my right hand.
Well, in fact I will be away from my family and may not see them for several months or even longer. To tell the truth, when I share this with my family, they were happy as the day is long to say “what a blessing for you Miguelson to find a such opportunity to go to the US to continue with your studies; we can’t wait to see that happen.” I love school and I have the will to study; being away for ages from my family can’t prevent me from my studying. I like my friends, I like my home environment and my home church as well. One thing I ask of the Lord, this is the courage and the wisdom though I am away from all these things to grant me a good state of mind, good skills in order to study well. I am still confident of this I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Surely I will be in a strange country, with every one speaking
only English, and a very different environment including a much colder climate but we wait in hope for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. With His help I will get used to the climate in a short time, get used to the strange country in a very short time, get used to every one speaking only English in a very very short time and I will be speaking only English as well. “Observe the upright; there is a future for the man of peace.” Truthfully I am very laborious, I am ready to work hard academically and in a part time job
as well to support my education and living in the United States.
The mighty one God the Lord will provide for you and others to find a way to get me in the US to continue with my collegiate studies. Be safe.
MARCH 21, 2010
We are [still] afraid of the after shocks. There was a big one last night. My neighbors talked to me the other day to see if I can find some help for them but I can’t.
I had to stop going to school after I started to go because my father couldn’t pay. I spent two years without going to school.