Haitian Village Unites Rockford Residents

The nine-year involvement and steadfast support from northern Illinois residents ensured The Hope for Haitians Committee and Food For The Poor’s fundraising event, An Evening in the Tropics, was the most well-attended event ever with more than 340 guests. Masters of ceremonies for the event were the dedicated co-chairmen Tom Lorden, Pat Bachrodt and Peter Roche.

“The growth of this event over the last 10 years has been truly inspiring for us,” said Lorden. “We are most grateful to everyone who has participated in helping the truly poor people of Haiti.”

Residents from the Rockford/Chicago communities showed their commitment to assist Haiti’s rebuilding effort by attending the event at Giovanni’s restaurant. Proceeds will be used to help fund the construction of a self-sustaining village in Chastenoye, Cap-Haitien, Haiti.

Rockford’s Bishop, Most Reverend Thomas Doran, spoke at the event and endorsed the work of The Hope for Haitians Committee, through the international relief and development organization Food For The Poor. He fervently asked attendees to not forget the extreme needs of our brothers and sisters in Haiti.

Delane Bailey-Herd, Food For The Poor’s project manager for Haiti, shared experiences from her recent journeys to that country. Since the earthquake, she has witnessed the dire situation become increasingly desperate.

Fern Shore, a faithful event attendee for years, was so emotionally inspired by Bailey-Herd’s passionate plea on behalf of the poor that she wrote a letter. Shore inquired how she and others can donate to the charity’s mission, whether buying goats or building critically needed permanent shelter.

“What this group [The Hope for Haitians Committee and Food For The Poor] has accomplished is utterly amazing, and I could not be prouder to be a small part of the organization,” Shore wrote.

Members of the Rockford-based Hope for Haitians Committee have traveled to Haiti multiple times. They have met children and their families who live in thatched homes built on rotting trash in low-lying coastal areas. Illnesses spread quickly in these garbage-ridden areas. In these unimaginable living conditions, people suffer from malnutrition and lack adequate homes and access to safe, clean drinking water.

“The dramatic transformation the annual galas have made in the lives of so many Haitians is night and day,” said Bachrodt. “Together we are bringing hope, and making a difference in the lives of so many.”

Progress and growth, in Haiti:

2009 -2011: Fundraised for the “Hope Friendship Village” in Chastenoye, to house those displaced by the earthquake, as well as those who are living in the Prolongé swamp. Proceeds will complete the three-year project that includes the construction of 100 housing units, 50 sanitation units, an artesian well, a community center, animal-rearing and agricultural projects, and two solar panel lights.

2007 – 2008: Established the “Rockford Friendship Village” in Prolongé, which includes 100 housing units, 50 sanitation units, three artesian wells, a community center, three tilapia ponds, start in life projects, a solar panel light, and the implementation of a feeding program.

2006: Installed 30 water wells in Cap-Haitien, providing more than 50,000 people the gift of lifesaving water.

2005: Provided 18 water wells and 125 hand pumps, enabled 70,000 people in Gonaives to access clean, safe drinking water.

2004: Completed 17 wells, providing clean water for 120,000 people in Cap-Haitien, Limonade and Plaine du Nord.

2003: Drilled water wells in Duval, Petionville, and Barbancourt to provide approximately 27,000 people access to clean, safe drinking water.

2002: Completed the Dubois Water Project in Port-de-Paix, which directly affected 3,000 people.

2001: Built 50 Food For The Poor housing units, in Cotes-de-Fer.

To make a donation to fund Phase III of the “Hope Friendship Village,” in Chastenoye, please call, 1-888-404-4248 or visit the Food For The Poor's Web site.

Committee members included: Pat Bachrodt, Rev. David Beauvais, William Clancy, Mike Delany, Brian and Missy Hand, Frank Haney, Msgr. Robert Hoffman, Danny Lorden, Tom and Nancy Lorden, Bob McLaughlin, Philip Nicolosi, Al and Terry Provenzano, Patti Rangel, Pete Roche, Jody Schumacher, and Jerry Weber.

An Evening in the Tropics sponsors included: AAA Quality Limousines, LTD; Lou Bachrodt Automotive Group; Lou Bachrodt Foundation; Bachrodt Motors on State; Barrick Switzer Long Balsley & Van Evera; William & Catherine Clancy; Crowe Horwath LLP; Mike & Colleen Delany; Tony & Jean Domino; Focus Financial Advisors; Giovanni’s Restaurant; Joseph Geraghty; Brian & Missy Hand; Joe Hansberry; Holy Cross Church; Holy Family Church; Kelley Williamson Company; Thomas & Leslie Killoren; Jeff & Sally Krogh; Lindgren, Callihan, Van Osdol & Co., Ltd; Lorden Charitable Foundation; Robert & Mary Lou McLaughlin; Rebecca Newton; Nicolosi & Associates, Inc.; Our Lady of Good Counsel; Papa John's Pizza; R.C. & Rhonda Pottinger; Resource Dealer Group, Inc.; Risch Family Foundation; Riverside Community Bank; Peter & Sandy Roche Family; Savant Capital Management, Inc.; SMITH-GRAMLEY Ltd.; St. Edward Church; St. James Church; St. Katherine Drexel; St. Thomas the Apostle Church; SupplyCore Inc.; Warner Specialized Petroleum Services; Gerald & Patti Weber, Jr.; Williams-Manny Insurance.

Food For The Poor, the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian agency provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor.For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.