Founder's Story

In response to the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Hope for Haiti set up a trauma center to support the Port-au-Prince General Hospital, distributed more than $45 million in emergency relief supplies and medical materials to internally displaced people (IDP) and hospitals, and established a clinic in the Don Bosco IDP Camp serving over 10,000 people. That same year, HFH also launched its Back to School program, providing partner schools with resources to start each school year, and initiated its Public Health program, hiring and training 24 Community Health Workers embedded in partner communities.

In 2011, Hope for Haiti formally registered as Fondasyon Kuehner (FK) with the Haitian government. From 2011 through 2019, FK/HFH continued to expand its Haitian staff to 50 employees, distributed nearly $92 million in gift-in-kind medications and medical supplies, and provided more than 80,000 medical and dental consultations. FK/HFH also expanded its work to include Economic Development activities.

Hope for Haiti/Fondasyon Kuehner’s impact has increase dramatically since 2020. The organization now procures and distributes more than $25 million of gift-in-kind medications and medical supplies to partners across Haiti each year. Our Healthcare Program now includes mobile clinics in rural communes throughout the Greater South, in addition to the Infirmary St. Etienne, collectively providing around 100,000 primary care and dental consultations each year. Our Nutrition Program continues to provide vital support to 5,000 children under five each year and we are the leading designated provider of vaccinations for infants in the region.

FK/HFH continues to assist communities rebuilding infrastructure following the magnitude 7.2 earthquake which struck southern Haiti on August 14, 2021. Our Education Program provides teacher salary subsidies, teacher and administrator training, back to school funding, public health education, school gardens, and infrastructure projects which support the education of more than 7,000 students annually. Additionally, FK/HFH provides post-secondary scholarships to 50 graduates from partner schools each year, covering tuition and textbook costs for up to five years and connecting them with mentors in their chosen fields.

In 2026, Hope for Haiti employs about 90 people in Haiti, nearly all of whom are Haitian nationals, supported by a team of eleven staff in the United States. Our Public Health team now includes Community Health Workers embedded in each of our 24 partner communities, who provide education on chronic disease management, WASH and cholera prevention.