Stop Hunger Now has reported that 44,600 meals packed by volunteers at the 2014 Western PA Annual Conference have been shipped in a container filled with a total of 285,120 meals from the organization's Philadelphia warehouse to Haiti.
"These meals will be distributed through our partners, The YouthBuild Haiti Rebuilding Academy (YHRA). The YouthBuild Haiti Rebuilding Academy (YHRA) is a five-year initiative designed to improve the livelihood prospects of Haitian youth and mobilize young people in Haiti to play a significant leadership role in rebuilding the earthquake devastated country," Andrew Moser, an assistant program manager for Stop Hunger, wrote in an email to the Rev. Barbara Moore, who organized the annual conference effort as chair of the Conference Sessions Team.
The program works alongside the Initiative for the Development of Young People Outside of School (IDEJEN), Haiti's largest youth-serving non-governmental organization.
Over the five-year period of implementation, the YHRA will reach at least 9,000 young people and engage them in post-earthquake rebuilding projects focused on the rebuilding and building of homes, schools, health clinics, sanitation blocks, and green infrastructure. The program includes six months of intensive on site skills training, leadership development and basic education, followed by six months of follow up support as young people seek viable opportunities for employment and self employment. Project activities are delivered out of centers built by YouthBuild and IDEJEN students, Moser said.
For eight years, IDEJEN has been successfully reaching out-of-school, disconnected and needy young people across Haiti and providing them with hope through basic education, skills training, and a range of job and self employment preparation to position them for productive livelihoods.
The addition of Stop Hunger Now meals enables Youthbuild and IDEJEN to provide for the nutritional needs of the students enrolled in their development program. In addition, the meals increase enrollment, ensure that students attend school regularly and boost students' ability to learn.
Visit stophungernow.org for information on how your church or group can get involved in the fight against hunger.