Haitian sisters say quake victims need long-term help

The effects of the massive earthquake Jan. 12 in Haiti have been felt well beyond the borders of the island nation.

On Sunday, the University of Saint Mary conducted a prayer service for victims of the quake and its aftershocks, with two special guests — Sisters Melicia Singelus and Myrland Moise, both of whom had been personally affected by the disaster.

They are members of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Anthony of Fondwa, Haiti, and first learned of the destruction in their homeland the evening of Jan. 12 during the television news.
“What are we going to do?” Singelus said she asked herself that day.

About two hours from the capital of Port-au-Prince in rural Haiti, the sisters said Fondwa has been ravaged by the quake, which had a magnitude of 7.0, according to the United States Geological Survey.

In their religious community, there are 13 sisters and more than 60 orphans — all now sleeping and living outside, as the earthquake destroyed all of the buildings in the community.

“If they’re not knocked down, they’re severely damaged,” said Sister Katherine Franchett, community treasurer for the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.

During the quake, one of the community’s novices and an orphan she was caring for died when the building they were in collapsed.

“For me, it’s very terrible,” Singelus said of the quake’s effects. “Very sad.”

Even two weeks after the catastrophe, they said it has been difficult to find out exactly what’s going on because of collapsed communication infrastructure.

The two sisters came to Leavenworth five months ago to live with the SCL while studying English at Donnelly College in Kansas City, Kan.

They are not the first to do so — one other sister from St. Anthony of Fondwa had stayed two years ago. Franchett said the SCL have visited Fondwa before as well and the two orders have a close relationship.

“They are our friends,” Moise said.

At the prayer service on Sunday in Annunciation Chapel on the Saint Mary campus, donations were taken for Catholic Relief Services in Haiti. Singelus said a lot of help is needed right now to get essential supplies like water and food to the country. Franchett said some of the rural areas in Haiti, like Fondwa, which lies in a valley and has suffered from what she called some “ferocious aftershocks,” have not been as quick to receive aid as major cities like Port-au-Prince.

“Many emergency supplies have gone in,” Franchett said. “But they have to get it to them.”

As the rainy season approaches, Singelus said those made homeless by the quake will also need shelter.

The government has also stopped searching for survivors in the rubble — but Singelus said it is important to stay hopeful.

“At first I thought about the people that died, but now I am focused on the people who have life — they didn’t die — but they are in the ground,” she said.

Singelus encouraged the government of Haiti to continue to search for those who might be trapped.

Franchett said even after the searches conclude completely, there will be a lot of work to do.

Some efforts have already started, but she said building from the ground up will take time.

“There are going to be ongoing needs,” Franchett said. “We need to continue to pay attention to Haiti.”