Feeding Dreams

Imagine the happy smiles of Haitian children. The peace felt by their parents. Knowing that for one more year, God has provided enough meals to keep each child growing stronger.

Now imagine getting to be a part of it...

In March, World Missions partnered with Brace for IMPACT 46 to package 150,000 meals bound for children at the IDADEE School in Cap-Haitien, Haiti.

Volunteers of all ages came together to fill, seal, and box up the meal packs, grateful for the opportunity to help Haitian students and their families. Leading the way was former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kyle McClellan, the president of Brace for IMPACT 46 and a force for good in both the United States and Haiti.

“We serve people in Haiti and also in North City, St. Louis,” McClellan said. “We’re here today on the Haiti side of the program. Every Friday, the kids get to take home two of these bags. And there are six meals per bag, so there’s plenty for not only that child but also their family.”

Each meal pack contains soy, dehydrated vegetables, rice, and mineral powder, a mix of ingredients that fills the stomach, fosters brain development in growing children, and tastes good too.

“We’re serving a community that’s stricken by poverty unlike a lot of people have seen before,” McClellan explained. “For many families, it’s a losing battle. And so, we’re committed to doing what we can for the long haul. This isn’t a one-year fix. This is, ‘We’re going to invest in your kid from preschool all the way through high school, and then we look forward to seeing what they can do.’”

Brace for IMPACT 46’s program manager Estevenson Coleman was also there helping out. For him, it’s more than a job, it’s a personal calling. Coleman and his sister, Widelande, lost their parents at an early age and grew up in Haitian orphanages until they were formally adopted and moved to the United States.

“I grew up eating this food…the same exact food that we’re packing,” Coleman relayed. “When my [adoptive] mom would go to Haiti on missions trips, this is what they used to bring down for us. We used to be so excited to get to eat nutritious meals because there were times we didn’t have food, but these would always fill us up.”

Coleman later earned a bachelor’s degree in nonprofit administration from Lindenwood University in St. Louis and has been involved with Brace for IMPACT 46 for 10 years.

“I never knew the work that went behind it, people giving up their Saturday or their weekends to come out here and pack food,” Coleman said. “But now I get to be part of it from a different position, and it’s lovely to know that kids will get to take these meals home during the weekends to eat with their family.”

Among the volunteers was Deb Leaman, a retired administration manager for a local St. Louis company, who has traveled to Haiti to serve on several mission trips.

“I love doing this, so I’m packing food four or five times a month whenever it’s available,” Leaman said. “A lot of kids…the only time they get a meal is when they go to school. There’s such a need. You can’t even begin to estimate what this is doing for people.”

Friends and partners, YOU were there too, making the whole event possible! Thanks to your generous support, Hand of Hope was able to pay for all 150,000 meals plus the shipping cost to bring them to the IDADEE School.

Since 2017, we’ve partnered with Brace for IMPACT 46 to help feed, educate, and share the love of Jesus with children in Haiti. Your support has made it possible to help supply over 1 million meals to date!

Thank you for helping kids grow stronger in every way, feeding their physical, academic, and spiritual growth, along with their hopes and dreams for a better future.

Your love and support also extend to families in North St. Louis. For instance, in 2023, Hand of Hope sponsored a Brace for IMPACT 46 home renovation project that will help provide safe, affordable housing for struggling families for generations to come.

Friends and partners, thank you for making all of this possible. Together, we are strengthening hearts, feeding dreams, and sharing the unquenchable hope of the Gospel, one child, one family at a time.