Pou yon tab byen kanpe fòk li gen kat pye menm longè. 
To work well together, people should be equal.

A graduate of the Masonry Program helps in organizing a project that recycles concrete rubble into reusable aggregate in Christ Roi.

Helping to rebuild our neighborhood has both supported our friends in the Christ Roi district and re-invigorated the mission of Outreach to Haiti.

Starting in mid-2010, Outreach partnered with Catholic Relief Services in a pilot project to build 500 TI SHELTERS (Small Shelters). These temporary but sturdy dwellings provide safe and clean places for property owners in Christ Roi, who must clear their land of rubble in order to get the houses for free. By design and material, these structures should last at least three years while the owners find the wherewithal to build permanent structures.

Each home measures 12 feet-by-16 feet and has a concrete foundation, treated lumber for the sides, and metal for the roof. Every house has two rooms and cut-outs for windows. Heavy-duty plastic is available for window coverings. The program provides exterior paint, and homeowners are asked to apply the color of their choosing. The cost for one house runs from $1,500 to $2,000. For the construction, a team of about five people—including carpenters and masons—do the work.  The teams and other CRS employees working with Ti-Shelters use the Outreach campus as their base.

The project has been a boon to the neighborhood at large, creating jobs associated with rubble removal, other site preparation, the recycling of rubble into usable aggregate, and, of course, construction.  CRS has already brought in other groups for their assistance in removing the rubble of large buildings that fell in the earthquake. Clearing property is a basic requirement for redevelopment, but in many cases the task is difficult for reasons of money, logistics and disposal of the ruins.

In part, because of the success in Christ Roi, CRS envisions putting up 8,000 Ti Shelters throughout the city.

Even before the earthquake, Outreach was involved in VOCATIONAL TRAINING. Our MASONRY PROGRAM incorporates classroom sessions, along with hands-on instruction in building and repairing all things concrete and stone. Several students have been employed in the Ti Shelter project.

PROVIDING CLEAN WATER AND SANITATION SYSTEMS in Christ Roi in the months and years to come is in the long-range plan. Today, a solar-powered SUNSPRING WATER PURIFICATION SYSTEM, which is capable of dispensing 5,000 gallons of clean water daily, is available to neighbors.

Outreach’s PUBLIC HEALTH INITIATIVE sends trained health agents into the community to assist families by identifying medical needs, clean water and safety issues and evaluating  sanitary conditions. The health agents provide in-home training in personal hygiene, food preparation and the set-up of safe environments for children.

Outreach SUPPORTS HAITIAN ARTISANS by selling art, crafts, jewelry and other hand-made goods both in Haiti and through the operation of Haiti’s Back Porch, our non-profit shop in Middletown, CT.