2010
Haiti was devastated by a 7.0M earthquake killing 230,000 people and displacing over 1 million. Prior to 2010, Haiti was the poorest country in the Americas; the earthquake made a bad situation much worse. People were without food and clean drinking water and were living in tents.
At the time, Haiti felt like a natural fit as a place we could be most effective in developing a sustainable and lasting impact. Haiti's close geographic proximity to the U.S. also made it easy and affordable to take trips, ship supplies, and successfully pursue other efforts.
$1 poverty video (include) - We went to learn what it means to live in poverty, seeking to understand before jumping in to serve.
Poverty Resolutions was established as a response to what we learned and experienced.
2010-2013
Partnering with locals and other organizations north of Port-Au-Prince, we listened and learned.
Our work included:
- Orphan care
- Sustainable farming initiatives
- Small business ventures - business training, accounting classes, microfinance loans
- Working with local school on different educational initiatives
- Construction
2014
Poverty Resolutions purchased 3 acres of land in Bois Neuf, Archaie - an hour north of the capital Port-Au-Prince. The vision was to use this land for the community.
Began hiring staff members to oversee all programs and initiatives.
The child sponsorship program began. With a desire to keep families together and support the local community, our Child Development Program (CDP) was born. The program is based on a child sponsorship model which provides financial sustainability to the program. Since its inception, our CDP has seen remarkable growth thanks to our ever-increasing network of child sponsors.
Mission house constructed in a week with the help of a team and field cleared for soccer space.
Button: Learn more about child sponsorship in Haiti
2015-2017
Our site continued to grow.
2015 - Agricultural initiatives/church began, dug 2 wells for the community to have access to water
2016 - Clinic built and used to house preschool children
2017 - School built & opened for preschool-kindergarten
Button: Learn more about our site in Haiti
2018
Clinic opened to the public with full-time nurse and part-time doctor on staff, basketball court constructed, new kitchen built thanks to a generous donor, church building constructed (still awaiting permanent roof due to travel restrictions)
Staff of around 50 Haitians to oversee and run all programs.
Growing political tensions in Haiti due to gas price increases and government corruption sent the country into lockdown. Our teams were unable to visit and our staff worked hard to keep our programs up and running.
International expansion had always been a long-term hope and dream. An inability to host teams in Haiti opened a door to begin further developing relationships with our connections around the world. Haiti has always held a very special place in our hearts, but we feel very strongly about fulfilling the great commission which states,
"Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew. 28:19-20)
2019
International expansion & name change : Bold Hope
We want to see the gospel reach everyone. Astonishingly, 42% of the world's population has not heard the good news of salvation.
As tensions continued in Haiti and travel was restricted, we had groups of people who still wanted to serve. Our new partners around the world hosted our teams and relationships continued to deepen.
Expanded to Belize, Mexico, Jamaica.
In all of the change, our mission has remained the same. We wanted a name that was more focused on the HOPE of the gospel. We changed our name from Poverty Resolutions to Bold Hope.
2020
COVID-19 changed our plans once again. Our teams planned to return to Belize, Mexico and Jamaica and we were adding trips to the Bahamas, Costa Rica, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, India, and Jordan. When international travel was restricted, we switched gears from sending teams to sending more support with a $38.5K matching campaign.
Our international partners are committed to their communities long-term and we are committed to supporting them.