History
Some staggering facts about the
situation in Haiti:
27% of children under five years of age suffer from stunting of growth. (USAID)
Literacy rates in Haiti for the general population were 61.69% in 2016. (World Bank
There are over 35,000 children outside of parental care in Haiti and 30,000 children living in orphanages. (UNICEF & CNN)
61 out of 1,000 children will die before the age of 5. (UNICEF)
Haiti has the highest maternal death ratio in the western hemisphere, leaving many children orphaned within their first week of life. (Midwives for Haiti)
Only 57.7% of the population have access to an improved water source. (USAID)
Haiti was ranked the 3rd worst country in the world out of 137 countries in terms of access to electricity. (2019, Haiti Libre)
Haiti ranks 156th out of 162 countries in progress toward meeting the Sustainable Development Goals. (USAID)
3.6 million people are food insecure and 1.5 million are severely food insecure. (World Food Program)
3/4 of the population lives on less than $2 per day and 1/2 of the population earns less than $1 per day. (World Food Program)
Haiti ranks among the 5 worst countries in the world in daily caloric intake per person. (theworld.org)
Haiti's History
The Small Island Country
Haiti is a small country, which shares an island with the Dominican Republic, and has a surface area of just 27,750 square kilometers (10,714 square miles). Haiti is second only to Barbados as the most densely populated country (399 per square kilometer or 1,032 people per square mile) in the Americas. Currently, there are 11.5 million people living in Haiti.
Haiti has a long history of under development and political instability. The struggling country is beset by widespread poverty, economic decline, violence, food scarcity, poor education, unemployment, poor governance, and lack of resources. Natural disasters, such as the earthquakes of 2010 and 2021 along with Hurricane Matthew of 2016, has left the unstable country even more vulnerable. The 2021 assassination of the Haitian President has resulted in political turmoil, gang activity and increased kidnappings. Haiti is in desperate need of economic improvement.
How Chances for Children began
The children of Haiti captured the hearts of
Craig and Kathi Juntunen before the couple ever set foot on this island country in the Caribbean Sea.
Everything Started with Craig and Kathi Juntunen
They had seen the pictures of starving and abandoned children in the streets of Haiti. They researched the country and how natural disasters and economic, political and social instability had ravaged Haiti. And they had friends who adopted two girls from Haiti giving them a chance to thrive. The Juntunens’ hearts were stirred. They knew they had to do something.
In 2005, they made their first trips to Haiti, where they met the children they would adopt.
Helping in Many Ways
This desire to “do something” spread to even more children when the Juntunens founded Chances for Children in 2006. Today the organization transforms the lives of thousands of Haitians by empowering church leaders to bring restoration to their communities.
The non-profit organization’s original mission was to provide funding and management for Crèche Enfant Jesus, an existing adoption orphanage run by the Duncan family. Located in the small village of Lamerdelle, east of Port au Prince. C4C helped fund the community’s local school along with electricity and the addition of a water purification system. The community project was transitioned to the Duncan family at the end of 2009.
Another natural disaster, this time an earthquake, struck Haiti in 2010, and Chances for Children quickly responded, delivering more than 46,000 pounds of food, medicine and supplies to Haitian villages.
A Growing Relationship
Since that time Chances for Children partnered with Pastor Renelus Maxime of the Arche de L’Alliance Church in Kenscoff, Haiti.
C4C’s main campus in Kenscoff, a mountainous area 15 miles east of Port Au Prince, is home to a crèche, a pediatric medical clinic, a guest house, agricultural programs, clean water systems, a women’s empowerment program and a dental clinic.
Through the relationship with Bishop Renelus Maxime and the 15 churches under his association, C4C operates agriculture, animal husbandry, clean water systems, feeding programs, mobile medical clinics, and women’s programs in a dozen other locations. Currently, the ministry employs 170 individuals in Haiti including pastors who are trained, mentored and supported to lead their communities from the stages of survival and stability to sustainability.
