Community Supports Our Sister Parish in Haiti: Building a Bridge of Faith and Compassion

The Catholic Church is a universal church, and here at St. Peter, we live that identity in a special way. You may have noticed the Haitian flag in the narthex of the church — just one reminder of our sister parish in Haiti. Our Lady of the Assumption is a Catholic parish in PasseReine, Haiti, with two mission churches, St. John the Baptist and St. Leo the Great. All three churches are led by Fr. Delix Michel. Marilena Frier serves as one of the co-chairs of the Haiti Sister Parish Committee and she has witnessed this relationship grow since it began in 2015.

“We see our job as being a bridge between St. Peter and Our Lady of the Assumption parishes,” Marilena says. “But this isn’t just a one-way bridge. Both are committed to one another through prayer and mutual respect.”

Marilena visited Our Lady of the Assumption herself in 2016 and was struck by the faith of the people there, in spite of the poverty so common in the area.

“Their devotion to God is truly amazing,” she says. “They have so little but the importance of going to church is a high priority for them. It was really eye-opening for all of us.”

Fr. Michel served in the Diocese of Springfield for over 20 years before returning to Haiti. Each year, Fr. Leo and Fr. Michel discuss goals for the sister parish. Then, the committee looks at ways it can assist in achieving those goals.

For the last three years, Fr. Michel’s primary goal has been to feed his people, followed by education of his youth and supply of basic needs for his parishioners. This past Christmas, with our help, he provided food to 256 families. Through our Education Program, individual parishioners and ministries sponsored the education of 28 students. Our Twinning Program has sent much-needed items to our sister parish. Some of those included stretchers, water filtration systems, personal care products, church linens, socks, and underwear.

“People have been very supportive of what we do,” Marilena says. “We have a lot of ministries at our church so people have a lot of opportunities to show their love for God. So many choose to be part of the Haiti Sister Parish Committee and support it.”

In 2019, Fr. Michel brought three of his parishioners to visit us at St. Peter. Families hosted them in their homes and gave them the opportunity to experience things here — including the St. Louis Zoo. This visit made the relationship between the parishes all the more real.

“It was something that we’ll never forget,” Marilena says.

Although travel has been on hold throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we plan to continue these visits in the future. In the meantime, Fr. Michel sends us videos to keep us connected and show us how our support ensures that the people are able to have access to the sacraments that are so vital to our faith.

If you are interested in learning more about our sister parish, contact Marilena Frier at friermarilena@gmail.com or Stephanie and Derek Fimmen at stephmuratori@yahoo.com.