The young women living at Harbor House are all in need of a support system due to loss and trauma in their lives. Culturally they face many uphill battles just to be supported to raise their own children. Most of the young women have no contact or support from the father of their baby. The house is currently at capacity with eight moms and eight babies. We hope to one day accommodate ten women but we will need to do some renovations in order to accommodate ten well.

We occasionally meet with young women to discuss the possibility of them moving into Harbor House. We listen to their story, ask for some time and then meet with them again in a week or two. These difficult and complicated decisions are bathed in prayer. Sometimes we don't know the right thing to do. Sometimes we just make our best guess. We continue to ask that you pray for discernment, wisdom, and direction in all of these decisions.

 

 

The girls are, from left to right:

Leoni and her son Judler, Joanne and her son Ricardo, Enisse and her daughter Sophia, Fedline and her

daughter Michlanda, Sergeline and her son Jobens, Mirlene and her daughter Bianca, LourdesMilla and her

daughter Fiola and Alloune and her daughter Ashlyne.

As we are now in the position to begin to ask for long-term funding for this program, one thing stands out to us. The success of Harbor House will be hard to quantify. It is not as flashy and easy to sell as a lot of programs in Haiti. The things we are attempting to impart are hard to measure.

Teaching a young woman to be a gentle and involved mother takes time, especially when that young woman did not have an involved and gentle mother herself. Modeling behaviors and attitudes takes time. Living an example of healthy conflict-resolution and non-violence is a day-to-day task. The long-term investment (years - not weeks or months) into the lives of these young mothers and their children may eventually sow tangible results, but patience will be required in order to see those. In six weeks or six months we won't write a post telling you that one of the teen moms is ready to launch into the real world again. This is going to be a long process.

This program is not a sprint, it is a marathon.

Tara providing guidance and comfort to teen mom Enisse.

People often ask us what we need. For those that have asked, first and foremost - more than anything else - we desperately need prayer coverage as we attempt to address the systems that poverty creates as well as habits that need revision and reform.