CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Brother Prisca Jean is the leader of the Missionaries of the Poor (MOP) in Cap-Haitien, Haiti.

What You Need To Know

  • St. Matthew Catholic Church raised $375,000 to send food to Cap-Haitien, Haiti

  • Food is scarce since gangs have taken over parts of the country

  • This summer volunteers packed 311,000-plus meals, enough to feed Missionaries of the Poor for the next three months

MOP houses 250 residents — ranging from children and adults with disabilities to elderly people and individuals with AIDS. Along with a team, Jean provides 24/7 care to individuals who in many ways can’t care for themselves.

“We bring dignity and love and hope to them,” he said. “To see that smile on their face. You see that they feel that they have someone that is there for them.”

The work Jean does is made possible by volunteers all around the world, such as Steve Favory of St. Matthew Catholic Church in Charlotte.

He leads the Monsignor McSweeney World Hunger Drive. This year his team was able to raise $375,000. This month, volunteers packed 311,000 meals, a service Favory has provided for the last 16 years. However, the urgency has ramped up since Haiti President Jovenel Moise was assassinated and gangs took over parts of the country.

“The food prices are sky high. So, finding food is difficult," Favory said. "When you find it, it’s very, very expensive.”

It's taking a toll on Haiti’s most vulnerable.

“Most of these individuals would be on the streets and abandoned," Favory said. “We actually had to increase what it costs to feed a child for a year. It used to be $100, but because of inflation it’s $120.”

Jean will take any glimmer of hope in a country torn by turmoil.

“Thirty years back they used to call Haiti, 'The Pearl of the Caribbean.' That’s the beautiful country in the Caribbean," Jean said. "We hope that the Lord will do something in the heart of men to change them for the country to come as it was before.”

During St. Matthew’s meal packing event, the church packed 311,000 meals — enough to last the residents at MOP for the next three months.

Emilio Gomez of St. Matthew Catholic Church contributed to this story