Unforgettable People- Larry Bergeron and Bishop Octamoliere Liberius

Larry Bergeron
We met Larry and five other members of a Cincinnati based church group that included Pastor Doss on the 11th day of our trip. Larry, 62, is a former pastor, and is presently Executive Director of A Child’s Hope International, Inc. (www.achildshopeintl.org), which sponsors a unique program, Kids Against Hunger (KAH).

Operating out of a closed Kroger grocery store in the Cincinnati area, Larry enlists volunteers to work two 2 hour shifts every other weekend producing enough sealed packets of vitamin and protein enriched food to feed a hungry child for a year at a cost of $125.00, or 34¢ per day. Disturbing statistic: around the world, A CHILD DIES EVERY SIX SECONDS from hunger and malnutrition. To postpone the agony of hunger, Haitian adults and children often eat mud cookies, which frequently contain deadly parasites and toxins. (See http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/01/080130-AP-haiti-eatin_2.html). Note: The end of that link should read “eatin_2.html” without the quotes – it just doesn’t show up with the underline.

Kroger provides the facility and necessary utilities, and the labor is free; the only cost is the ingredients and the shipping. Containers of finished product are donated to feeding programs throughout the world. The volunteers register on line, sometimes weeks in advance, often contributing financially to offset the ingredient and shipping costs, for the opportunity to help stamp out starvation while working along side their children, grandchildren, friends, neighbors and just other caring individuals. Larry has promised us a tour this summer when we return from our next trip to PAP. Please click onto the web link and visit this unique site.

Bishop Octamoliere Liberius
Bishop Moliere calls me his twin, as we both turn 68 and celebrate our 45th wedding anniversary this year. I met the Bishop on day 12 when I accompanied Larry, Doss, and the rest of the Cincinnati group on a mission to get food and supplies to several of his orphanages and schools in the Calabresse region (4,000+ ft. altitude) that had sustained substantial damage and were having difficulty receiving supplies.

I introduced them to the MFI supply area at the airport where we picked up some water (undesignated donated supplies from MFI have largely dried up); we made another nearby stop which they had a referral for and picked up four pallets of food and supplies. It was here I ran into a guy wearing a Hokie tee shirt. When I asked him if that was the only shirt left at the flea market, he admitted to being a graduate (Nathan Blessing of Charlottesville.)

By noon we headed to the mountains to deliver our bounty. The Bishop carries three cell phones on his dashboard which are constantly ringing. He also knows about every passerby, whether pedestrian or motorist. The honking (acknowledgement this case) or waving, shouting, running across the street to tap on the car and greet was almost annoying. I could only imagine what it must be like to travel with Bishop Tutu in South Africa. I definitely think the Bishop could become a political force in Haiti – not that he already isn’t - if he so desired. It is from his parishioners in the Calabresse region that the now infamous child kidnapping case involving the group of ten Baptist missionaries trying to take 33 Haitian children to the Dominican Republic occurred.

That afternoon we did visit one of the schools and unloaded some of the supplies; the kids played Frisbee and sang for us. A rant: One of the boxes we unpacked was full of paint roller covers. Sometimes you wonder…"what the hell are people thinking?"... they need paint roller covers like I need ballet slippers. Most people are good hearted and trust me, the Haitians are thankful for almost every little thing. But I have seen used basketballs with quarter sized holes in them, along with just plain junk. Maybe it’s easier and cheaper for some to send their junk to Haiti rather than the dump; after all, it is free for them (although the shipper ends up paying) and sometimes you have to pay at the dump.