Who We Are

We are regular folks just like you. We are shop keepers, accountants, doctors, and students. We are believers in the redeeming power of the gospel of Jesus. We’re head over heels in love with Haiti, and in particular, the community of Leogane. Hope Rising is an organization based in the Fort Smith, Arkansas area with supporters near and far. Through the generosity of our supporters, we are enabling community missions, and we’re in the process of building the facilities that will lead to homes to care for the orphaned and abandoned children of Leogane.

How We Got Here

Hope Rising Children’s Home was born from a place of deep brokenness for the Haitian people following a mission trip in the wake of the catastrophic 2010 earthquake. While in Leogane, a team from First Baptist Church Lavaca, Arkansas was burdened for the people of Haiti and the children they encountered at an orphanage that could not meet their needs. Recognizing God’s command to care for orphans, the idea for Hope Rising was born.

This calling has grown from idea to action, and it continues to move forward. We firmly believe God has placed the community of Leogane, Haiti directly in our path. Local missions, including the Hope Rising Children’s Home, are a doorway through which the entire nation of Haiti can be reached with the redeeming gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our Mission

Our mission statement comes in three parts. It is designed to address the current physical and spiritual needs of the people of Leogane. It also focuses on the future and is committed to the rapid advancement of the gospel across Haiti. This is what what it looks like:

Develop

Develop a safe and loving environment where physical, spiritual, educational, and emotional needs are met.

Declare

Declare the gospel of Jesus Christ to both the children and the community.

Disciple

Disciple others to live like Jesus Christ and reproduce that life in others.

What We’ve Done

We’ve built relationships

We’ve worked hard — and will continue — to create relationships with leaders and existing organizations in and around Leogane, Haiti. Through these personal and organizational contacts, we have been able to plug into existing local missions, care for needy children, and pave the way for future Hope Rising involvement.

We’ve sent missionaries

We love getting our hands dirty. Hope Rising currently has American missionaries, the Smithson family, on the ground in Haiti. Overseeing Hope Teams and the construction of the facilities, this missionary family is leading the charge there in the community. We are continually sending mission groups to Haiti to help support Hope Rising and the Smithsons. If you want to join the team, inquire about booking a trip today.

We’ve started building

This process has included locating and securing 14 acres of farmland in Leogane, building a well (for both Hope Rising and general community use), and building the security wall/fence for the entire property. After the initial push, we began and completed the building of the first missionary home, the guest house (which includes a/c and hot water!), and 2 Orphan pods! We have 2 American families living on campus as well as 19 Haitian children.

We’ve served the community

The children’s home will be one piece of the puzzle to the greater vision of Hope Rising. Through the process of earning trust within the community, Hope Rising has been able to launch local mission projects including medical, dental, and vision clinics, basic needs support, kids clubs, and evangelistic outreach.

What We’re Doing

We’re meeting physical needs

We’re working to provide for the vast array of physical needs in Haiti. We’re doing this by providing medical, dental, vision, and therapy clinics. We’re supplying Haitians with clothing, toiletry needs, and access to clean drinking water. Because Haiti is a country with such intense need for basic care, we plan to increase these efforts tenfold as your support continues to grow.

We’re meeting financial needs

Work is difficult to find where job opportunities are few. We want to meet financial needs in the community by offering job opportunities for the Haitian people like translating, driving, laundry, and construction. Charity is important. Enabling financial independence is more so. Starting January 1, 2016 we have over 25 Haitian employees! This is a huge accomplishment and we cannot wait to expand our reach and offer more jobs to more families.

We’re meeting spiritual needs

The gospel is a message of hope: life-giving, eternally focused, disciple producing hope. Hope Rising will continue to work incredibly hard to serve the people of Haiti physically, but most importantly, we want to be a part of God’s redeeming story for this nation. The gospel is bigger than the poverty we are trying to reduce, bigger than the sickness we are trying to heal, and bigger than the despair blanketing this spiritually dark land. The Lord is moving in Haiti. By His grace, we want to be a part.

We’re ministering to the kids

Not only do we want to operate a world-class, safe, clean home for the orphaned and abandoned children of Leogane, we want to stay active in the community as well. We want to be part of ministering to the children through kids clubs, soccer camps, movie nights, english classes and additional community involvement.