"Faith in Action: Haiti" Captures Life in the Petionville Camp
Contact: Mary Dickey, Communications Director, 212-870-1046, Mdickey@odysseynetworks.org; Desiree Frieson, Communications Manager, 212-870-1053, DFrieson@odysseynetworks.org; both with Odyssey Networks
NEW YORK, Sept. 15 /Christian Newswire/ -- Over half a year has passed since Archbishop Timothy Dolan, Chairman of the Board of Catholic Relief Services, stood in the ruins of Port au Prince. Two million people were homeless and over 300,000 were dead. In the midst of that devastation, he made two promises to the Haitian people: he would be back and he would not let the world forget them. Recently he kept those promises, returning to the island to observe the progress of the recovery. Odyssey Networks' "Faith in Action: Haiti" a series of reports on his four-day visit and the hope he found in the rebuilding process. This report, the fourth in the series, can be viewed, along with the preceding episodes, at www.odysseynetworks.org.
Accompanied by Catholic Relief Services staff, the Archbishop inspected the Petionville Camp for Displaced Haitians, a city of tents and makeshift shelters sprawling across what was once the golf course of the exclusive Petionville Club in suburban Port au Prince. With an estimated population of over 40,000, Petionville is the largest of Haiti's camps. The goals of the operation are to provide shelter and sustenance and to return residents to their former neighborhoods as soon as possible. Given the chaotic conditions that persisted for decades in the poorest areas of Port au Prince and its environs and the devastation of the quake, restoration of these neighborhoods is a formidable task.
In the meanwhile, Catholic Relief Services has implemented Cash for Work at Petionville, a program that employs camp residents on various projects such as sanitation, water treatment, and the construction of canals to prevent flooding. The modest wages are intended to help the displaced to eventually transition back to their neighborhoods. Dolan applauded the program but acknowledged frustration at the pace of Haiti's restoration.
"Rebuilding is terribly slow," he said. "We need patience. Catholic Relief Services are experts in patience. We've got a God -- a God who keeps His promises but sometimes His clock and His calendar are not the same as ours."
"Faith in Action" is a new online news concept dedicated to telling the stories of people whose work is changing the world. The Haiti series will continue through September 24. Other episodes cover current conditions in the capital, the Archbishop's tour of hospitals and orphanages and his return to Haiti's historic national cathedral, now in ruins.
About Odyssey Networks
Odyssey Networks is the nation's largest multi-faith coalition dedicated to producing and distributing media that builds bridges of understanding, promotes peace and tolerance, and addresses issues of social justice. Established in 1987, Odyssey Networks is a service of the National Interfaith Cable Coalition, Inc. For more information visit www.odysseynetworks.org.
