The day that the earthquake destroyed Port-au-Prince, Haiti in January our Haitian Capuchin brother, Armand Blanc, happened to be staying at our friary of Our Lady of Sorrows in Manhattan while visiting family in Brooklyn. Although he did not ask for anything in the aftermath of the earthquake, his presence motivated our parishioners to take a collection for the work of our Capuchin friars in Haiti. At the weekend Masses the parishioners raised $5,000. We sent the money to Haiti with Armand. As a result, he has kept in touch with us, sometimes sending photos of the work being done by the friars.

As a result of our continued contact we decided that we would use the money we usually collect during Lent on the quarter-a-day Lenten prayer card to further assist the work of the friars. When I communicated with Armand about the money we raised he invited me to come to Haiti to see firsthand the situation of Haiti and the friars. Through the not-quite-miracle of frequent flier miles I then made arrangements to fly to Haiti at the end of June. The following narrative highlights some of the experience of the trip.