KKH Friends and Family,

On Tuesday morning, around 2:30am, I got a call from our Haiti Country Director, Robinson, saying House of Hope, our Christian School and Community Center that we opened in September 2021, was under attack by a large gang.

On Monday, October 2nd, the United Nations announced they would be sending 1,000 Kenyan Police Officers into Haiti to help the Haitian Police fight off the gangs that now control the majority of Haiti. (CLICK HERE to see the news article with the announcement). This is good news Haiti is finally getting help, but the announcement set the gangs off and they started going on an attacking and killing rampage after hearing this announcement on Monday afternoon.

At 2:30am, one of our three HOH security guards called Robinson to let him know our property was under attack. He said there were too many gang members to count (we're guessing there were around 20 of them) and they also had automatic weapons. After about a 20 minute gun fight between our guards and the gang, the gang broke through the front gate and they were inside HOH. Our security guards said there were too many guards to count and they all fled for their lives.

At about 4am, we got a call from one of the three security guards saying he fled out the back emergency gate at HOH and he was hiding out in a ditch on the streets, trying to make it home in the midsts of the gun shots and the battle between the police and the gangs that was going on in the streets of Canaan/ Onaville (the region where HOH is). He told Robinson he did not know what happened to the other two guards and he was not sure if they made it out alive. Robinson had been calling the police all throughout the night to go over to HOH, but they were overwhelmed and too busy fighting with all the gangs on the streets, there was no way they could even make it over to HOH.

After a long night of praying for safety for HOH, the Haitian Police, Haiti, and for our two security guards lives, we got word around 6:30am that our other two security guards made it out alive! Praise God for that! At that point, we knew no one had lost their lives, and all three of our security guards were alive and made it home safely.

At about 10am in the morning, the gangs began to burn down the main police station in Onaville to weaken to police force in the area even more. (CLICK HERE to see a video of the police station burning). We had no idea what state HOH was in. The police were still battling and at the time, the gangs had complete control of the road and the area where HOH is located, so no one could get back there.

At about 3pm, we got word the police finally had control of the Onaville area and they had secured the road HOH is on. At about 3:30pm, police officers were able to finally get to the HOH property to give us a report of the damage and the shape the property was in.

I am happy to report there were no structural damages to House of Hope and the building itself had not been damaged. I am also extremely grateful no one at HOH lost their lives through this attack. We are thanking God this happened at night while no students or staff were on the property. The only people on site were our three security guards and it is truly a miracle they made it out alive.

Unfortunately, the gang ransacked our place, destroyed a lot of furniture and school items, and they stole everything that was of any value. We do not know the exact amount yet because no staff member has been able to get over to the property since it is still not safe to be on the streets, but it looks like they took around $50,000 - $55,000 worth of items.

Below are photos the police officer sent to Robinson of House of Hope.

As you can see, the gangs took most of the furniture, appliances, and items we had inside House of Hope. Again, we are very grateful no one lost their lives and House of Hope is still standing, but this has also been a very sad and stressful time for all of our staff in Haiti and here in the US. To be honest, this has been the toughest and most emotional 24 hours I have ever had since creating Kingdom Kids Homes 9 years ago. It is hard to see something God has used to bless so many innocent children, families, and people in Haiti be torn apart in one night.

Through it all, we know God is still on the throne. He still has His hand on House of Hope and all of Haiti. He is still leading us. He is still in control. Our hope is still in Him and He will make the way and provide for us.

HOW YOU CAN HELP HOUSE OF HOPE & HAITI:

During this tough time, there are a few specific, immediate ways you can support us:

1. PRAY
Sadly, the fight is not over in Haiti. Gangs are still attacking and there are still a lot of gun shots in the streets right now.
- Pray for safety for our Children's Home, Kingdom Kids Home.
- Pray for strength, peace, and protection for our staff at HOH and KKH in Haiti.
- Pray for strength, protection, and peace for all our students and their families.
- Pray the backup from the 1,000 Kenyan soldiers comes quickly and that the gangs do not do too much more damage in the meantime.
- Pray we raise all the funds we need in a timely manner to repair HOH.

2. GIVE TO AN IMMEDIATE, SPECIFIC NEED
Here's a list of specific items that were stolen or damaged during the attack on HOH. These are items we need to raise money for to either fix or replace. We need to raise just over $50,000 to fix or replace everything on the list.

ELECTRICITY:
- Inverter System - $2,500
- 8 New Batteries for Inverter System - $6,000
- New solar panels - $5,550

KITCHEN SUPPLIES/ APPLIANCES:
- Gas Stove - $3,500
- Refrigerator - $1,000
- Oven - $1,000
- Pots, pans, large mixing bowls - $450
- Plates and bowls - $100
- Cups - $100
- Silverware - $100
- Tables for children to eat lunch at with benches - $6,500
- Two Propane tanks for stove - $1,000

OFFICE:
- Small printer - $750
- Large Office Printer - $3,000
- Laptops for Staff - $1,000
- Office Desks & Chairs - $2,000
- File Cabinets - $900

KINDERGARTEN CLASSROOM:
- Large cubbies for kids belongings - $600
- Large Storage Cabinet for Teacher Supplies - $580
- Students Desks - $1,850
- Teacher Desk & Chair - $630

FIRST GRADE CLASSROOM:
- Students Desks - $2,800
- Large storage cabinet for Teacher Supplies - $580
- Teacher desk and chair - $630

SECOND GRADE CLASSROOM:
- Students Desks - $2,800
- Large storage cabinet for Teacher Supplies - $580
- Teacher desk and chair - $630

MISC. ITEMS:
- Misc. Classroom Supplies - $2,000
- Three water coolers - $900
- Trash Cans for entire facility- $250
- Six Floor Fans for offices and classes - $900
- Misc. Repairs for doors and locks - $2,000

To give to one of these specific needs, you can click the button below that says, "Give A One Time Gift" and write what you are giving towards in the Gift Type box. You can also write "Repair House of Hope" in the Gift Type box if you do not want to give to a specific item on the list, but would like to contribute towards helping us with items on the list.

OUR ACTION PLAN & NEXT STEPS

School and all activities at House of Hope are cancelled for the time being. We will not re-open HOH until the gang situation is more controlled and completely cleared up in the Onaville area. We want to keep our children, staff, and HOH families safe above all else.
We need to raise money to repair HOH immediately, but we will not be sending the funds to Haiti to start repairing the damage at HOH until the gang situation in Haiti is more under control. We do not want to fundraise and replace / repair all the items on the list above just to have the gangs come and ransack our property again. Our plan is to have the $45,000 we need to repair HOH raised, so as soon as Haiti starts to get a handle on the gang situation, we can repair HOH and start school back up there as soon as it's safe to do so.
The only damage we will replace immediately is the lock on our front gate at HOH. We have not been able to replace it yet because it is not safe enough for any locksmith to be on the road working on it. Funds have already been sent to Haiti to repair the lock and as soon as it is safe enough, we will secure a new lock on the front gate of HOH.
It breaks our heart that our students will not be getting their Christian education and all that HOH provides for them and their families for the short time being. With that said, our staff is working on a plan to at least get some kind of food support to our families and students as soon as it is safe enough to do so. We will continue paying our HOH staff their regular salaries while they cannot work. We went to make sure our HOH staff family is taken care of to the best of our ability.
Since the three night shift HOH security guards will no longer be at HOH for the time being, we have moved them to be additional night shift security guards at our children's home, Kingdom Kids Home. We will now have 6 security guards working the night shift there.

In the midst of all the craziness, chaos, and uncertainty, we are believing in and standing on Philippians 4:19 - "And my God will supply EVERY NEED OF OURS according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus!"
Thank you in advance for supporting us through prayer and through giving during this difficult time. Times are not easy, but we press on and we know God is going to continue to go before us, just as He always does. We are standing in faith and believing Genesis 50:20 will happen with Kingdom Kids Homes - "You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." What the enemy intended to use to harm us, we are going to use for the glory of God -- to continue impacting and reaching many lives for the Kingdom of God more than we ever have before.

Thank you for your support and prayers,

Kristie Roukounakis
Founder & Executive Director
Kingdom Kids Homes

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