Working in conjunction with Catholic Relief Services and Caritas, the Jesuits sent 700 tons of supplies by truck and air from the Dominican Republic Jesuit centres to the devastated region. Lo and Suski were responsible for helping to distribute the supplies, including water, non-perishable food, hygiene products and medicine.
“We have also brought in three out of four Jesuits from northern Haiti to help at the four locations where we are distributing supplies,” said Fr. Pierre Belanger, S.J., in french, from his office in the Jesuits’ French-Canada province. “The Jesuit Refugee Services in the Dominican Republic has taken a certain position of leadership and is organizing themselves as a sort of centre for buying and moving what is necessary.”
Lo said the Jesuits were coping well and fortunately didn’t have any casualties. He said three of their neighbours’ houses completely collapsed during the quake and all they could hear were screams of agony and panic.
“We then helped to care for the wounded as much as we could, and there were lots of them,” he said. “Apart from the first 10 minutes, I felt quite at peace actually, not traumatized at all, by the Grace of God. I wanted to go out and help more than anything.”
Both novices plan to stay for the entire five months.
Donations to support the Jesuit efforts can be made online at www.canadianjesuitsinternational.ca or by calling 1-800-448-2148. Cheques can be made out to Canadian Jesuits International, and marked as “Haiti Earthquake Relief” to Canadian Jesuits International, 70 Saint Mary Street, Toronto, ON, M5S 1J3.
Frontlines attract Jesuits to Haiti
By Carolyn Girard, The Catholic Register
{mosimage}Jesuit novices Edmund Lo and Artur Suski of Toronto arrived in Haiti early in the new year to further their formation with a five-month teaching assignment. But after narrowly escaping injury in the Jan. 12 Haiti earthquake they have instead found themselves in the midst of a huge humanitarian relief operation.
“The Jesuits here, in collaboration with the Jesuits from the Dominican Republic, had been spearheading a relief effort, and this is what Artur and I will be doing for the near future,” Lo said through e-mail.
“The Jesuits here, in collaboration with the Jesuits from the Dominican Republic, had been spearheading a relief effort, and this is what Artur and I will be doing for the near future,” Lo said through e-mail.
Please support The Catholic Register
Unlike many media companies, The Catholic Register has never charged readers for access to the news and information on our website. We want to keep our award-winning journalism as widely available as possible. But we need your help.
For more than 125 years, The Register has been a trusted source of faith-based journalism. By making even a small donation you help ensure our future as an important voice in the Catholic Church. If you support the mission of Catholic journalism, please donate today. Thank you.
DONATE