News Archives | Page 27 of 35 | HOPE International

On Tuesday, October 4, Hurricane Matthew slammed into the southwestern region of the country. According to the United Nations and CNN, the disaster has killed over 300 people and displaced some 350,000 people, leaving many Haitians to face the worst humanitarian crisis since the earthquake six years ago.

We praise God that our local staff are safe, but we know hundreds of thousands of Haitians will once again face the complete loss of their homes and livelihoods to a natural disaster. As Christ-followers, we want to be known for running to those who are hurting, vulnerable, and in need of help.

HOPE Haiti works with local church partners to serve over 6,000 active savings group members who benefit from training, fellowship, and discipleship that empowers them to provide for their families and communities. In this way, Haitian entrepreneurs not only access financial services like a safe place to save, they also build solidarity with one another and learn about God’s love.

We invite you to pray in the following ways:

Pray for southwest Haiti, including Miragoane, one of the areas where HOPE works. Pray for the relief efforts, particularly as the hurricane destroyed a bridge on the main road that goes West, cutting off access to aid for that area.
Pray for protection against outbreaks of diseases like cholera, which severely impacted the population after the 2010 earthquake.
Pray for the 200 savings group members who have been significantly affected. Pray for their safety and resilience in the face of any loss they may have experienced. Pray that the long-term development efforts of HOPE and other organizations would not be hampered.
Pray for the long-term recovery of the area. A major long-term concern is the complete loss of gardens in these areas, as food is already scarce.

We also invite you to consider how you can help bring immediate and much-needed assistance to Haitian families suffering in the wake of this hurricane. Two organizations with immediate disaster relief experience and a commitment to working with local churches are World Relief and Samaritan’s Purse.

Thank you for your prayers and support for the people of Haiti.

In the seven years since Peter Greer and Phil Smith released The Poor Will Be Glad, HOPE has learned a lot about working with families in underserved communities to help them flourish. Peter and Phil have updated their book, retitled Created to Flourish, and we’d like to share these valuable learnings with you. To celebrate, here’s a preview from the new edition.

Do you remember how you felt when you received your first paycheck? In middle school, I mowed elderly Mrs. Johnson’s lawn. She would inspect my work and acknowledge that I had cut close enough to her barn and not missed any sections under her apple trees. Then she would invite me into her house, offer me a cold Tang mixed with her special spices, and pay me for my work. I enjoyed a strong sense of satisfaction as she thanked me for a job well done.

Relying on charity might provide enough for a bare existence, but it will never be enough to help someone off their knees.

Charity will never allow an individual to flourish in the way God created humankind to be—productive in caring for the earth and using the strength and skills He gave. And besides, charity isn’t what those living in poverty want. Continue Reading…

It’s hard to believe that summer is practically over–at least for students. For the last three months, HOPE International has had 16 summer interns at our office in Lancaster, PA, and around the U.S. Working in departments like marketing, development, the president’s office, and operations, our interns and fellows have been busy! Before their time at HOPE finished, we asked them a few questions.

What is your favorite part about being at HOPE?

Julie Heisey: The responsibility is real. None of us make copies or get coffee all day, though HOPE does a great job of emphasizing that acts of service are important too. We work on real projects and are encouraged to manage our time, ask questions, and create goals that enable us to stay on track.

Kristiana Plumb: The way HOPE integrates Christ into every facet of work life is incredible. Being in a workplace where people encourage and pray for one another is so beautiful and unique. This culture challenges me in ways I didn’t know I could be challenged.

Jennie Hayes: Getting to meet and spend time with HOPE’s staff. They are incredible, God-fearing, and encouraging people who also know how to make you laugh.

Elena Cret: I like that the HOPE network is diverse, yet unified by love for Jesus.

How can we design products based on feedback we’re hearing from clients? This was the question the HOPE Ukraine team sought to answer at a three-day retreat in July, using a process based on IDEO’s human-centered design approach. After collecting client feedback, HOPE Ukraine wanted to step back and brainstorm ideas based on their potential impact on clients. According to Dan Williams, HOPE’s director of spiritual integration:

It can be really easy to go into an operational mindset, to start problem solving, and to think about ideas from the perspective of, “Will it work?” without letting ourselves live in that space of, “What are our clients saying is important to them, and can we find a way to make it work even if our immediate response is that it would be tough?”

The process

First, the team dived into client feedback and came up with a number of observations, which they grouped into themes.

The heart of HOPE’s new strategic plan

HOPE’s new strategic plan, Vision 20/20, describes our goals through the end of 2019, not only for HOPE as an organization but also for each of our four stakeholder groups: clients, field partners, donors, and staff. We pledge to listen and actively respond to the voices of our stakeholders while exploring HOPE’s role in catalyzing transformation across four domains of impact: spiritual, material, personal, and social. Read a summary of Vision 20/20 here.

Our vision for client impact

So what does impact look like in each of these domains? Continue Reading…

Each year, we celebrate clients who demonstrate HOPE’s values of perseverance, compassion, character, and creativity by announcing Thurman Award winners. Established in honor of HOPE’s first CEO and his wife, the Thurman Award celebrates clients who have not only experienced change in their own lives but have also extended that transformation to others in their community. We’re excited to share the story of this year’s honorable mention from Asia: Danilo Papalid.

When his ice cream business didn’t do well, Danilo saw an opportunity to capitalize on a new Filipino food trend selling siomai, a tasty Chinese dumpling. He says, “Unlike with ice cream, siomai sales are high in cold or hot weather because people eat it on its own, as a snack, or paired with rice for lunch and supper.”

Launching this new business with his personal savings and loans from HOPE’s local partner, CCT, Danilo developed his own dumpling recipe and dipping sauces, using local ingredients he can get year-round. With a delicious, convenient product, Danilo’s business has now expanded to 12 mobile vendors, each selling siomai around their city. Danilo is grateful for CCT’s Christ-centered trainings and meetings, saying, “Because we listen to God’s Word frequently, we have been drawn closer to Him.”

Knowing God’s provision in his life, Danilo has shared with others the same opportunities he received through CCT. He invited ice cream vendors he used to work with to join his business, providing them with much more stable incomes. Even as he’s prospered and become more financially stable, Danilo is also excited about his spiritual impact. He says, “The impact of CCT on our spiritual lives has been great! Because of the weekly Bible studies, we have been able to invite our workers to go to church with us, and their lives have been transformed.”

Archives For News

HOPE Intl

HOPE Intl

How to help in Haiti right now

Peter Greer

Peter Greer

Three reasons why employment beats charity

HOPE Intl

HOPE Intl

HOPE summer interns reflect on lessons learned

HOPE Intl

HOPE Intl

Listening to clients in Ukraine

The process

HOPE Intl

By HOPE Intl

The heart of HOPE’s new strategic plan

HOPE Intl

HOPE Intl

” … we have been drawn closer to Him.”

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