07/13/2026
Here we are in midsummer, and I still owe you an update. The Pen ak Pwason Program carries on despite the challenges in Borgne and the political attacks upon Haitians here in the US. We are so grateful for your support, so that we can keep going. Persistence is resistance!
In October, we are coming up on our 18th anniversary of providing hospitality to the disabled, the elderly, and the poor, and occasionally also to the traveler, the displaced, the refugee, and the prisoner recently set free. One thing our director Somane tells me every time I talk to her is how grateful the community is for Pen ak Pwason and especially for its consistency. So many projects have come and gone, but Somane, Marivierge and Marceline, have kept the pots boiling. The name, Pen ak Pwason, or “loaves and fishes,” has also proven prophetic. There is always enough to serve the extra ones that come to the door in desperation, directed there by someone in town, to see if they can get a little bite to eat. Somane tells me how they start to sweat when they start eating for the first time in days…
We’ve been in our new building for more than a year now and held another festive holiday party in December, complete with decorations, fried chicken, popcorn, and soda pop as a special treat. Each year, Somane gets questioned by the Pen ak Pwason guests as early as October, wondering if they will be able to have a holiday party. Haitians (like all of us!) value being part of groups and a party invite is a sign of belonging.
The challenges that Haitians currently face include fuel shortages, gangs blocking the roads from the capital, insecurity, violence, and inadequate government support for roads and infrastructure. All of that has led to double digit inflation each year and major increases in the price of food, as well as anything else that travels by road. The Borgne hospital has also been significantly impacted by both political violence and cuts to USAID, but has continued to operate as best it can. Insecurity and funding loss have significantly impacted maternity care and vaccinations, as well as care for the indigent. This spring brought major flooding with three-foot-high water in some neighborhoods. Many people were displaced from their homes and lost all their furniture and belongings. The weather patterns are continuing to change, bringing more water in the spring which is overwhelming flood control work that was done a decade ago to divert part of the river.
Still, midsummer is a bit of a reprieve after the “hungry season” when food is scarce and the “rainy season” when the floods come. The summer heat starts to rise, and the gardens have been planted in anticipation for the fall harvest. Then, the trees begin to shower their blessings on the people. Mangos, almonds, and breadfruit are abundant, and children spend their days practicing their aim trying to dislodge ripe mangoes and almonds from the trees. Vendors fry up breadfruit slices and salt them for a roadside treat while rural women pound the breadfruit with a mortar and pestle to make foufou, a traditional dish with the consistency of bread dough that is dipped into a savory red sauce and swallowed–not chewed, as they will be sure to instruct any visitor. In August the avocados will come – so many avocados that I used to buy them for 3 cents each. Less abundant but still common are passionfruit, papaya, and grapefruit, perfect for making summer juice and punch. Small towns hold their saint’s day festivals with bands and dancing. Borgne’s saint’s day is in November (St. Charles Borromeo), but a few years ago they moved the celebration to summer vacation to make it more festive, so it is now held July 18th.
As you enjoy your summer, we hope you will send your prayers, vibes, and/or good thoughts to the folks of Pen ak Pwason. If you are able to donate, please help us fund the food- we buy most of it from local farmers, rent, fuel, and payroll for our cooks. We also hope to increase the amount we send each month to adjust for inflation. Kiki, Somane’s son, sent along a video of one of the guests at the Christmas Party. She had a message for you: “Please keep thinking of us and don’t get discouraged. May God give you force and courage and help you find the means to continue seeking help for us. May God accompany you and keep you in all you do. Thank you so very much.”
Address:
Pen ak Pwason Program of St. Joseph’s House of Hospitality
PO Box 16760
Rochester, NY 14612-9998
Paypal: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=725GE347HMHKY
