We were talking with friends recently and sharing information about our calling to Haiti and asked that they prayerfully consider supporting us and our ministry. The information we shared included some short videos that Hands & Feet Project made to show the impact of your support. These videos show clips of what God is doing through us specifically caring for children in the daycare program, the teachers spending time with daycare children, and in preparing healthy meals for children in the daycare program. We also wanted to take the time to share them with you. Your support helps with all this and more.
We want to take a moment to report that things in Haiti related to Hands and Feet Project are going well. Randy had the privilege of joining a small team on a trip to Haiti in early February. Overall, the visit went smooth, with very few hiccups along the way. This was the first time we used a small, regional airline for our trip from Florida and within Haiti. There were some delays with flights due to weather, but God worked it all out so we were able to stay close to our initial schedule. We were able to see with many of our Haitian staff, the kids we care for, and all 6 of the daycares. We also visited some families in the community that we help in various ways.
Can you believe it’s Christmas time already? We pray that you have a Merry Christmas and a blessed holiday season as we celebrate the birth of Jesus. It’s an exciting time for the children and families in our assistance programs in Haiti.
We are so thankful to each of you who helped fund our Christmas shopping this year through the Project Essentials promotions. There are many more families that Hands & Feet Project (H&FP) is supporting this year than in previous years, and we can’t do that without the support of you and the rest of our amazing donors! One of the gifts we gave families in the communities that we support is a goat! Goats are gifts that can be used in a variety of ways. It has been an adventure for our staff in Jacmel and Grand Goave to find, purchase and deliver goats to families in need.
Families will also be receiving children’s Bibles in Haitian Creole so they can learn together and grow in their faith. This is a great time of year for families to sit together and read Bible stories. Children in our daycares hear Bible stories regularly and often share them with their families. Providing Bibles is just another way to share the love of Jesus and encourage others along their faith journey. We pray that these gifts will help these families have a Merry Christmas!
Leadership Change at H&FP
We have a new executive director for our organization! You can meet Letty Vendrell through a video interview on the latest version of the Project Red podcast. (The first link goes to the interview on YouTube; you can find different podcast formats and other Project Red podcasts on the 2nd link.) Our former executive director, Andrea McGinniss, announced early this year that she was stepping down in the fall of this year. After a long search and much prayer, Letty joined the team and is already having an impact on our organization. Andrea worked closely with us for many years, and she will certainly be missed.
In addition to receiving our newsletter (sign up here if you are not already on the list), you can also follow the activities of our ministry organization. The H&FP newsletter archive and a link to sign up to get those via e-mail can be found here.
Family Update
Please keep Denise and her family in your prayers as we all cope with the loss of her mom, Ruth Ann Vlasak, early this month. Denise went to Louisiana several times over the last few months to be with her mom as her health was failing. We are thankful for her faith in Jesus, and that she has taken up residence in heaven.
Our community in Florida held an event on the Longest Night of the year as many of us grieve the loss of someone we love. That grief often hits us just a little harder around the holidays. The Longest Night is a service of comfort and spiritual support for those who are walking through grief, loneliness, loss, hopelessness, or who are just feeling a little down during the Christmas Season, or desire a quiet & contemplative experience.
Year-End Activities
The end of the year is always a busy time in Haiti. Not only do we have the holidays to plan for, but also work contracts for the following year, year-end bonuses (some are mandatory in Haiti!), updating job descriptions and work contracts, payroll changes for the new year, and getting budgets approved. That is quite a list! It keeps us busy the last few months of the year. Even though we started early, our to-do lists are still pretty long!
Our team is planning a trip to Haiti in the early part of 2026. Please keep us all in your prayers as we make plans and travel arrangements.
In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps. — Proverbs 16:9
We pray that you have a blessed Christmas and and a God-filled New Year.
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Hello from hot and humid Florida! Our area of Florida has felt almost as hot as Haiti all summer long! The heat and humidity have not taken a break this summer. We are looking forward to the Fall season and a drop in the temperatures.
The hot weather has not slowed down all the work we are doing in Haiti! There is a new daycare in Ti Goave that is undergoing renovations with plans to open this Fall. We have celebrated children and staff at our annual Village Values weekend, and the summer Vacation Bible School was held on both of our residential campuses. And more great news…we have 5 children and 1 member of our Haitian staff that were recently baptized! It’s encouraging to see them step out and confess their faith in public.
As we add support for more children and families, and also add new daycares, the challenges of managing people and finances grows. We are standardizing our processes and streamlining procedures in order to handle the increased work load due to the growth in our programs. We are working together to manage the rigors of the financial reporting rhythm as we expand the regions where we work and increase the number of families we are helping. Please keep us all in your prayers.
Rochester Visit
We are sorry to say that Denise and Randy have been separated in their travels this fall. Randy will be in Rochester, New York for a week and a half at the end of October, and Denise will be in Shreveport, Louisiana to spend time with her mom and family during that same time frame.
We wanted to be sure you hear the latest news about what Hands and Feet Project is doing in Haiti. We are expanding our operations to reach more families in need. We are expanding our support of families and children in the Grand Goave area as more families are fleeing the gang-infested Port-au-Prince region. We are also adding more daycares to assist families with children, and to start more children along a path of general education and faith in Christ. For more current news, check out the video below for an interview with the H&FP Executive Director, Andrea McGinniss.
The close of an era, but not the end of a story. After nearly twenty years of carrying the weight of brokenness and the hope of possibility, Andrea McGinniss has pressed pause on her role as Executive Director. In our newest episode of Project Red, Andrea reflects on what it means to lead with faithfulness over flash, to press when everything resists, and to step away with integrity and trust.
We are looking forward to meeting the new Executive Director and pushing ahead with the vision of reaching more children and families with the hope that only comes from Jesus Christ. Please join us in prayer for God to provide a great fit for the organization and a smooth transition in the executive director role.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. -- Romans 15:13
It’s time for back-to-school planning in Haiti! We appreciate all the support we’ve received for our school supply drive. It’s always amazing to see such a generous outpouring of support each school season. There are always new school uniforms needed, along with many books and supplies for our growing community that we support. The outstanding needs on our Project Essentials fundraiser page continue to drop as more people donate towards this cause. There’s a story about Marvens and his experience with school in a recent post from Hands & Feet Project that fills in some details of the impact that you can have on school children in Haiti.
It’s great to see people when we’re in town, and the open house has been a great way to talk with a variety of people in one place. We hope you can make it out and say hello! We look forward to hearing updates from you and to share news about Haiti happenings.
Denise and I will also be at LifeTree Fellowship church on Sunday. The morning service is at 10AM at 321 East Avenue in Rochester, NY. We meet in the historic sanctuary in the Bethel Christian Fellowship building. If you’re able to join us on Sunday, parking and the entrance is on Anson Place.
If neither of those times work to come out and say hello, please let us know and we will get something else on the calendar.
Here are details regarding how to get more information about Hands and Feet Project, and about Randy and Denise’s visit to Rochester, New York.
Hands and Feet Project Information
Do you ever wish you knew more information about Hands and Feet Project (H&FP), the amazing organization that we work with as missionaries to Haiti? We have shared the H&FP web site and posts from their Facebook page fairly frequently. There’s also their Instagram feed and YouTube videos page, and now…there’s a podcast! It’s called, “Project Red”. Project Red is more than a podcast—it’s a message, a vision, and a call to action. The first episode is already available, where Mark Stuart, Will McGinniss and Patrick Austin sit down and talk about the past, present and future of Hands and Feet Project. They also talk about the meaning of the Project Red name. These guys are all fun, entertaining and informative. Check it out and subscribe to get notifications about upcoming episodes. You can find the podcast episodes on Apple Podcast, YouTube, Amazon Music, and Spotify.
Working with the Haitian and American staff to help children and families in Haiti continues to be challenging, yet rewarding. Haiti life is not easy, but it’s the only life most Haitians know. Sometimes it is challenging to find certain supplies or food. And because the usual trade route through Port au Prince is closed, many things are more expensive month to month. And at times certain items are not available in some areas. It’s quite impressive that the local markets and stores are able to offer such a large variety of products and food, but prices are constantly increasing. The Haitian community has such resilience in the face of opposition!
Inflation in the USA is currently around 2.8%. Can you imagine an inflation rate of 28.4%? That’s what Haiti has been facing for the last several years. Despite the rising costs, Hands and Feet Project is still committed to purchasing items in Haiti as much as possible. We make this commitment because it helps the local businesses survive and thrive, and provides market vendors with money so they can feed their families.
Do you ever wonder what keeps us working in Haiti? Many people have expressed concerns about traveling to Haiti, and some have suggested that we pursue ministry in “safer” countries. For us, God continues to draw us to Haiti and the amazing people that we have come to know and love there.
It’s also exciting to see the transformed lives of the children that we work with. As with many kids growing up, especially those that have experienced trauma, they go through hard times. They sometimes push away those that are there to help them. And sometimes they just withdraw. At times, they have breakthroughs and turn their attitudes and their lives around. And there are times where God coordinates an amazing sequence of events to turn lives around.
Here are 2 stories that Hands and Feet Project recently shared on their social media that we don’t want you to miss.
