Published on: 29 March 2024
DOHI News
After criminal gangs overran the country of Haiti in late February, many U.S. citizens, including missionaries, were left stranded for weeks.
U.S. missionary Jill Dolan
Jill Dolan and her husband Ryan, who run the orphanage ‘Mission of Grace’ in Plaisance du Sud, have worked in the island country since 2013. As the violence escalated recently, the couple found themselves trapped in a motel in Port-au-Prince with several of their children as they waited to hear news of a possible rescue.
That phone call, telling them that they would be evacuated by helicopter, finally came after a little more than three weeks. Sadly, the couple had to leave behind their orphanage and several children that they were in the process of adopting.
In a Facebook post, Jill shared:
“The crisis in Haiti reaches way beyond just where the gangs are present. The stronghold on the country and the ability for goods and gasoline to travel freely throughout the country have been greatly impacted. Skyrocketing prices, businesses shutdown, banks closed … the list goes on. Just when we think it can’t get worse in Haiti, it does.
“The five in our family who were stuck in Port-au-Prince for 24 days are out of harm’s way. However, we leave behind our three children that we are in the process of adopting as well as over 200 kids in our care at the orphanage.”
According to the UN, the recent violence has “heightened human rights abuses, including killings, kidnappings, and rapes, especially against women and young girls.”
Aside from the bloodshed and brutality perpetrated against these innocent souls by roving armed gangs, basic services, including the healthcare system, are on the verge of a full-scale collapse.
Soon, hunger will be yet another threat to the survival of roughly 1.4 million Haitians. The prolonged and outspread violence is preventing humanitarian aid from reaching the most vulnerable.
Out of the 500 US citizens stranded in Haiti after the crisis began, 185 have been rescued.
Let us keep the innocent people of Haiti in our prayers, as well as those who remain in need of being rescued. Please, let us pray that the Lord change the heart of those who are committing so much evil and causing pain. Pray that this situation soon be turned around!
