Coastal Haiti Mission
April 2026
-FOOD AND FELLOWSHIP-
There is just something about food and fellowship – something good for the spirit and soul.
Back in the early 80s my husband, Clint, and I had the privilege of tagging along when Rev. George and Jeanne DeTellis went to the island nation of Haiti to extend the ministry of New England and World Missions (now called New Missions). We stayed in tents, as did the five young missionaries (including two registered nurses) who would stay behind after we all left. At the end of each day, tired from the day’s activities, we would gather around a large oil drum for dinner prepared by Jeanne who without stove or table managed to bless us with a decent meal. As the daylight receded and darkness fell we were entertained by the many bats swooping down among us, attracted by our now-lit lamps. It was a good time, sharing and simply appreciating the company of one another; brothers and sisters in Christ.
(Under the leadership of Rev. George and Jeanne, New Missions is now one of the premier missions in Haiti, and has expanded the ministry to the Dominican Republic as well.)
Years ago my husband and I owned a large home together with a dear friend. It was located at the end of the road on our multi-acre land, providing plenty of parking room for those who came to visit. When Erskine Holt, who ran a Christian retreat center in Florida, let us know he was willing to come to our home and speak (he was an accomplished Bible teacher) we jumped at the chance.
We invited our Bible Study group and anyone else who was interested, to join us for the evening when Brother Holt would speak. We would meet in our barn. It was a great night. A night of sharing, singing, praising our Lord, and good, solid Bible exegesis. One dear friend was prayed for and actually healed! She was an organist at a local church and due to a problem in her hand had lost her ability to play the organ.
After the meeting we left the barn and headed for our house for coffee, tea, and other prepared refreshments. And there it was, food and fellowship. A time to connect and share. Topping off the evening. We had many visitors while we lived in that house in Sterling, Massachusetts. Most came for dinner. It was just good to break bread with family and friends in an unhurried atmosphere
Jesus had special friends in the two women called Martha and Mary. The friendship was enhanced when Jesus raised their beloved brother, Lazarus, from the dead! Their home was in Bethany, located about two miles southeast of Jerusalem at the eastern slope of Mt. Olivet on the road to Jericho. The Bible indicates that Jesus went there often. This well may be the closest thing to a home that Jesus had during His three-year ministry (Matthew 8:20). While at the home of these ladies and their brother, Jesus found in their hospitality, acceptance, love, enthusiasm, and a home-cooked meal. A time and place to unwind and relax. No wonder He went there often! But, all too soon, He would leave their home never to return.
Well, as we all know, Time Flies. The day of Unleavened Bread (Passover) was at hand. The Lamb of God must die. And Jesus knew Who He was. He’d always known, even as a 12-year-old boy:
“…Wist ye not know that I must be about My Father’s business?
(Jesus to His parents Joseph and Mary)
And now, His Father’s Business would demand His all. But first He needed to satisfy an earnest and intense desire: He wanted to eat the Passover meal with His disciples – food and fellowship with the faithful ones who had followed Him for three years.
And then? Blood, sweat, and tears.
“This is My Body…“This is My Blood…Broken and Shed for you.”
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Two of the greatest assets we have for ministry are our home and our dining room (or kitchen) table. When you invite someone to dinner, success is built into the evening before your guests even arrive simply because your invitation had singled them out obviously for the pleasure of their company.
The meal you offer does not have to be elaborate or expensive, just something healthy and delicious. And how about a special touch, like an encouraging Bible verse beside each place at the table? Or maybe a small gift for each person? Flowers? Even dandelions present a beautiful display when put together with a decorative flair. Be creative! You got more than you think you have. Lastly, no entertainment necessary – the evening will take care of itself.
Like I said, “there is just something about food and fellowship…
Walking this Way with you,
Connie
The School Lunch Program
News from the Countryside and the Food lunch Program
In Haiti, especially in rural areas, there is a very popular way of greeting people. Ask anyone: “How are you?” and 95 percent of the time, the answer will be: “I’m not worse.” Some add “thanks to God,” while others leave that part out, but almost always you will hear the phrase “I’m not worse.” It is very rare for someone to answer, “I’m very well.” It almost feels as if Haitians are never truly “well.” But that is not the reason.
The real reason is the way life is lived here—it often feels like things are going downhill, like we are heading toward “worse.” So, every time someone looks around and realizes they are not worse off, they repeat it: “I’m not worse.” It becomes the natural response.
Yet, if someone asks me about the school, I have the courage to answer: “The school is very good, thanks to God.” This might surprise many people, because given the state of the country, it takes boldness to say something like that. But I repeat it because I know what matters most in my community, for both children and adults. It is called Food.
As long as a child can receive a plate of food, they feel very good—even if they don’t have a uniform to wear, proper shoes, or even books to study. A sign in the kitchen showing that food is cooking, or the sound of a bell announcing that the meal is ready, is the most beautiful sign and the happiest moment for students at school.
Thank you very much to everyone who keeps this movement alive in the school to feed the children. It brings great relief to the teachers, the parents, and the entire community.
Thank you,
Pastor Coty Joseph
Food for the Needy Program
Pastor Coty Writes:
The misery in Haiti is not something you can measure or fully understand. Even if we say Haiti has a lot of misery, there will always be people who suffer more than others, families who are hit harder than others. Some people can make a small effort to survive, while others can only manage thanks to the help of others.
This is the case of the Saintilmon family. They are not originally from this area, but they have lived here for several years. They have no close relatives; the church and myself, as a representative of CHM, are their family.
They came down from the mountains looking for work and eventually settled here permanently. Both the husband and wife do the same work: planting and weeding in people’s gardens.
But for several months now, the husband has fallen ill, and the wife has a small baby. The man is bedridden and cannot get up at all. To be honest, even when he was working, he was never truly healthy, as he always had a catheter. But now, for months, he has been unable to rise.
They have five children in school. These children are among those who will benefit from free uniforms for the coming school year. Yet, they cannot pay, even the small fees requested at school, for any of their children. We have come to understand their situation, so we accept them, realizing their great need.
The other day, while I was in my garden, I saw the wife coming toward me. She knows the garden well because she and her husband used to work for me. I didn’t expect her to come to me, because my mother, who is responsible for distributing aid to those in need, knows how to serve them.
But she came to thank me, and to ask for additional help. Things are so hard for them she explained, that what she received from the garden to cook with the rice was helpful, but it was not enough. She asked if I could help her more.
I didn’t need much time to understand her need, because I live among them and know their reality very well.
It is families like this that we support not only with food but with everything we can, because they truly need help. Every dollar given to this program helps families like this continue to survive.
May God bless all of you who contribute to help those who are suffering the most.
Thank you very much.
Pastor Coty Joseph
The Saintilmon Family
Food to be distributed to needy families
The Solidarity Gardener Program
Solidarity Gardeners Update
Kathy Kangas, Project Leader
Matthew 11:28-30 NIV
28 “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
The Solidarity Gardeners are once again active under new leadership. Nana, Pastor Coty’s wife and a woman named Miss Anouse are now officially heading up the group. Hiring women for this role has been a complete game changer. They are in frequent communication with me which had been a continued difficulty with the former men leaders. They are meeting with the gardeners weekly so that we can establish communication with the gardeners as well, and more importantly they do not have their own agenda. They and the gardeners are eager to learn something new, to at least try something new.
I want to talk to you about what that new something is. I will need to tell you how I learned of it first. About ten years ago or so I was in Alabama visiting a church. That evening, a family from Massachusetts was there to sing. After the service we were talking and realized we were both very avid gardeners. I was telling them about some of my struggles and that is when they introduced me to Back to Eden. As soon as I was able, I looked up the video and watched it.
I was feeling, at the time, very discouraged with my garden. It was endless weeding and watering which left little time for plant care, and honestly, I was getting very little for my efforts.
The Eden Garden starts with Matthew 11. It was a verse that I had been mulling over. What does it mean when applied to my garden?
The Eden Garden is a method of gardening that observes how Father (God) gardens and then applies those same things to the home garden. Let me give you some examples: When you walk through the woods what do you notice? First, you notice that the ground is covered. It is covered in leaves and sticks and pine needles. You notice the plants and trees are lush and green even though they are completely dependent on rain. You notice that insects aren’t devouring the plants. Everything is healthy.
Now let’s look at a field. What do you notice? You notice it is full of growing vegetation and if you disturb that growth it will immediately start growing again. It seems that Father’s way is to keep the soil covered.
So, this is the very start of what I want to teach our gardeners. The covering. It sounds so simple, and yet it is going to take trusting me and trying what I have to offer. We have spent several weeks discussing it. I have been answering their questions, and they have given me feedback. In essence, what I am asking the gardeners to do is to put aside everything they have ever been taught about gardening and to embrace something that goes completely against a lifetime of effort. Instead, I am asking them to embrace a garden that requires no tilling, no or very little watering and no weeding.
I am asking them not only to embrace this concept of “My yoke is easy, my burden is light”, in their garden, but in everything in their life moving forward.
We have already asked for a stipend for the seed. We also asked for money to repair the fence around the community garden. The ladies, along with a few men, are ready to go.
Thank you for your prayers, support and encouragement. I know that many of you have asked about our progress. I am so glad to hear of your interest in what CHM is doing.
Kathy Kangas, Project Leader
The Saturday Sunday School
Pastor Coty Writes:
There are some activities you (the reader) begin, and it’s only later that you will understand their importance. Some of these activities you yourself will both understand and enjoy, and perhaps others in the community will as well. When you start something, as time goes on and you begin to see the results it produces, you ask yourself questions like: “What if I hadn’t done it—how would things be?”
All of this is happening with the children’s ministry in Cahess, which is called the Saturday Sunday School. It is similar to the work churches do with children on Sunday mornings, but we do it on Saturdays. We go further, because we don’t only teach the Bible—we also talk to them about principles of society, under the theme of good manners and social values.
One of the most important and interesting things is when we realize that everyone in the village who has children is watching closely for when their children begin to talk, so they can bring them to this class. Even when the weather threatens rain, you shouldn’t be surprised to see 40 to 50 children present. In normal times, it is always more than 80 children in the class.
Today, when we look at all the young boys and girls in the neighborhood and ask which of them hasn’t been in this class, we can’t find any. We rejoice greatly for this beautiful ministry, and thank you for keeping it alive through your contributions.
Whoever is generous to the poor, lends to the Lord
and he will repay him for his deed.
Proverbs 19:17
A prayer for you from the scripture:
Numbers 6: 24 to 26 NLT
24. ‘May the Lord bless you
and keep you
25. May the Lord smile on you
And be gracious unto you
26. May the Lord show you his favor
And give you peace’
Thank you, Family and Friends of Coastal Haiti Mission, for all that you do to help the people in Cahess, Haiti. You are making a huge difference for these people.
Please remember, that CHM must continue to send our monthly commitment of $2000 to carry-on with the ongoing CHM ministry in Cahess. This is in addition to the cost of the School Lunch Program which is about $2000 for each month that school is in session.
If you desire to help, please send your tax-deductible check to our new address, which is listed below, and tell us how you want us to use your donation:
Coastal Haiti Mission
C/O Daniel Johansson
P.O. Box 8005
Lynn, MA 01904
Or For tax deductible “online donations”, please use our PayPal service. Also please designate how you want us to use your donation.
May the Lord our God, who knows your heart and sees your actions, grant you great joy as you serve Him. Connie, Esther, Pastor Coty, Carl, Dan, and Ken are very grateful for your sacrifice. Ken Johansson CHM Newsletter Editor