Moving people towards life

Hungry For Life International (HFL) facilitates direct engagement between churches and groups in Canada and communities around the world to address needless suffering. HFL has worked in Ukraine since 2004, helping groups engage in compassionate projects such as widow and orphan care, food programs, social assistance, and building projects. Hungry For Life's projects are primarily located in the central-east of the country, in the areas of Nikopol, Poltava, and Mariupol. Additionally, prior to the war, two HFL staff members, Chad and Mary Martz, were living in Zakarpattia, strategically close to the bordering countries of Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.

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Plan of action

Phase 1: Initial Response (Completed)

Through our vast network of local partners, Hungry For Life built and expanded a team in western Ukraine which received and cared for thousands of refugees coming from the east and the capital city of Kyiv. The initial response phase was to provide basic necessities for more than 2,000 people by purchasing food, mattresses, bedding and hygiene products, among other basic necessities. Ten churches in the Zakarpattia region volunteered to become refugee centres, each able to host 100 people. Additionally, a church in central Ukraine hosted roughly 200 refugees per day.

In this initial phase, food and supplies were urgently needed before stores ran out, so the majority were sourced from local supermarkets/stores.

Phase 2: One Month Response (Completed)

Our next phase included securing local warehousing in western Ukraine as a distribution for both refugees that fled to the west and for affected people in the conflict areas in the east. Additionally, a warehouse was secured in central Ukraine and an efficient distribution network established to transport food and basic necessities to over 25 distribution points within the country. HFL staff members, Chad and Mary Martz, continued to source and purchase food locally while it was still available, as well as work with various partners in neighbouring EU countries to begin receiving material aid shipments into the country.

Over 200 tonnes of food and basic essentials were purchased directly from wholesalers and distributed to areas further east with access to communities that were rapidly running out of food and supplies. This accounted for over 120 trips to 30 different communities!

At an average cost of $7.50/person for 3 meals a day, an estimated total of 80,000 people were provided a days supply of food.

Phase 3: Ongoing Response (Completed)

As we continued to increase our response to the crisis in Ukraine, we also planned to increase the number of distribution points for food and basic necessities, as well as ramp up the amount of food purchased directly from local factories.

Sourcing 200 tonnes of potatoes,and 227,000 jars of canned meat, among other food and supplies, HFL provided 3 full meals to over 575,000 people!

Refugees in both the central and western region continued to be provided shelter, food and basic necessities as the conflict continued. We looked for more suitable, longer-term options for housing refugees.

This phase also included purchasing a large supply of fuel to support the transportation network of trucks distributing food and supplies each day.

Phase 4: Food and Support (GOAL)

Food Supplies

Ukrainian farmers are expected to produce at least 70% of what they did last year, despite the war. This is enough to feed the entire country and still have some left over to export. Potatoes from the 2022 crop will be available until late May, after which time we will supplement with grains, pasta and wheat flour until the new crop is harvested in August. Some produce is grown year-round in greenhouses, including many staples of the healthy Ukrainian diet: cabbage, beets, carrots, onions and garlic. HFL has been able to go directly to producers and factories to purchase food at very low prices. HFL has the capacity to receive a great deal of food and supplies from outside Ukraine and distribute it throughout the country.

Distribution

We will continue to supply food for conflict and liberated zones across the east and south parts of Ukraine.

‍Refugee Support

HFL will continue to provide food, hygiene supplies, clothing and basic necessities to people who have been displaced by the war. There is no vacancy in the safe, western regions of Ukraine, so we are helping to increase the supply of longer-term housing by funding some very basic renovations.

‍Identifying Local Needs

Thanks to our extensive network throughout the country, we hear directly from pastors and local leaders who are identifying the needs specific to their region or community. HFL is able to customize our support accordingly: baby food and diapers, supplies specific to the elderly, certain types of food that aren’t otherwise available, gardening supplies, and clothing to people whose homes were looted by invading forces. As the weather warms up, HFL works with our partners in assessing a needs package that will help Ukrainians plant their gardens and prepare for next winter.

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Pro Infancia is a ministry that contributes to the physical, biopsychosocial and spiritual development of children and adolescents, through opportunities and initiatives for the promotion and protection of their rights, integrating the family, community, and the state in the Dominican Republic. Pro Infancia focusses on comprehensive health in rural communities, education and communication, income generation, community actions, and social participation.

Pro Infancia, in partnership with impoverished rural batey villages, focusses on providing health care to children and pregnant women in these communities. Together with medical teams from Canada, primary care is provided to patients who otherwise would not have access to health care. The Pro Infancia team and the Canadian team work alongside each other to promote the overall well-being of many patients in the communities.

The Institute for Christian Holistic Training (ITCI) and Empowering Action aims to train pastors and community leaders in communities in the Dominican Republic. Through their programs, ITCI seeks to strengthen the godly character of servant leaders in the communities and to provide tools and abilities to increase the competences of local leaders.

These ministries, led by Carlos Pimental, developed a variety of curricula to provide training in small groups and communities to equip the local leaders and pastors, with a focus on the basics of Christianity, so that they can apply biblical principles in all aspects of life. ITCI also provides other resources to multiply mentors in the communities.

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Together with our international partner, Carlos Pimentel, HFL comes alongside local leaders in rural communities in the Dominican Republic. We mainly work in the community New Jerusalem and the batey villages Vasca and Paraiso.

New Jerusalem is a community close to the outside of Santo Domingo. Carlos works together with the local community leader and pastor, Eddyson Duclair, and his wife, Nancy. Their dream is to develop the community and serve the people that comprise it. There is currently a preschool with 81 children and the same school is used as a Haitian and Dominican Church.

Batey Vasca and Batey Paraiso are close to the town Consuelo. Both communities are part of the same sugar cane field where one company owns the factory. Carlos Pimentel is motivated to support the local leader and pastor, David, and his wife Ana, and together work on developing the communities. There are numerous opportunities to focus on in the batey villages and New Jerusalem.

Carlos and the three organizations that he works for, provide all kinds of development programs in the communities where the need is multi-dimensional, and the problems are complex. Hungry For Life is looking forward to supporting the projects our partner is carrying out.

United Christians International (UCI) believes that a solid, Christian education is key to addressing both spiritual and physical poverty within communities. UCI now operates 2 elementary schools and a high school, providing education to over 1300 children, as well as a Christian university and tech school for over 900 students!

Elementary School

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6​

UCI is committed to providing a biblically-based education and utilizes certified teachers. There is a scholarship program that allows students the opportunity to go to school. At UCI, the parents are encouraged to work once a month at the school to help pay back and invest in their child’s education. Justin Mompremier ensures that the teachers adhere to the national standards of education as well as UCI's standards for spiritual formation.

Just $15 USD per month provides a child with a quality Christian education and a meal each day.

UCI University

“A Biblically-transformed life that will transform the lives of the Haitian people and the world”

UCI opened the university in 2012 with 80 students and has now grown to over 900 students. The university has a science lab, computer lab, dissection lab, clinic, and Internet in the classrooms, all for use in building up well-rounded, well-trained students. On all levels of schooling, a scholarship program allows students the opportunity to go to school. All university scholarship recipients have work-study, behavioral, and academic requirements. Lamour Mompremier is the board member that oversees the dorm life at the university, helps with disciplinary issues, and verifies that accreditation requirements will be met. The following programs are currently offered at the accredited university:​

• Theology (4 years)
• Agriculture Science (5 years)
• Nursing (4 years)
• Medical Doctor (6 years)
• Elementary Education (3 years)

In partnership with our Dominican partner, Carlos Pimentel, and his ministry Proinfancia, we support the Days for Girls (DFG) program in the Dominican Republic. Proinfancia focuses on menstrual health education and the production and distribution of menstrual kits containing supplies that allow girls to manage their menstruation.

Since almost 100% of vulnerable girls between 10 and 18 years old, living in poverty in the rural batey villages, have no access to feminine hygiene, it soon became clear that these girls are in great need of Days For Girls education and kits. These girls are at risk of sexual abuse, in danger of child trafficking, exposed to a "teen pregnancy epidemic," and isolated due to cultural taboos related to menstruation.

Proinfancia's goal is to provide menstrual health education and DFG kits to girls in the Dominican Republic through schools and female groups. One Days For Girls kit can be used for 3 years, enabling the girls to attend school and live their lives during their menstruation period.

Proinfancia produces the feminine hygiene kits in-country in their sewing centers, facilitating jobs for women who help produce the kits. With the support of many Canadian partners and the incredible work of Dominican Days For Girls ambassadors, Proinfancia produced and distributed over 13,000 feminine hygiene kits to women in the Dominican Republic in 2022.

Come alongside Proinfancia and support their goal to provide every girl in the Dominican Republic with a Days For Girls feminine hygiene kit.

Two-thirds of all Haitians depend on the agricultural sector, mainly through small-scale subsistence farming. They are vulnerable to damage from frequent natural disasters exacerbated by the country’s widespread deforestation. In Caiman, the largest obstacles to success for farmers are a lack of access to water during the dry season and a lack of education in farming methods. United Christians International (UCI) is addressing these issues by providing irrigation pumps and agricultural education in the community. Sol Louie is an agronomist who teaches at the university and is on the UCI board. Sol, along with some of the agricultural students from the university, provide most of the agricultural training for local farmers, including training on how to use and maintain a mechanical irrigation system. These systems are made up of a portable water pump and plenty of flexible piping that allow the farmers to fill basins on higher ground with water from the river. The water is then gravity-fed from the basins to the gardens and fields. Usually between three and five families share each pump. Each family pays a small amount to cover the fuel and maintenance costs of the systems and meets with the rest of the families regularly to share ideas and talk about how things are going with their crops.

Sol also oversees an animal husbandry program at UCI. Pigs, goats, and cows are given to a local family under the condition that the first litter be given back to UCI. UCI then gives the animals to other families in the area. The program is growing at such a rate that an enclosure needs to be built for litters of animals that have come back and are waiting until being given to families.

With the success of these programs, UCI envisions future projects of benefit to the community and the university. A 10,000 bird chicken barn, an aquaponics system, and many more agricultural trainings are on the table for the future.

Haiti Bible Mission is dedicated to helping the people of Haiti through discipling emerging leaders, local churches, and educating future leaders of this country. They enjoy seeing their staff catch fire for God and use their gifts for outreach, whether assisting the sick or teaching sports clinics with a focus on prayer and excellence. This relational, grassroots ministry is supported by both individuals and churches throughout the United States who freely provide prayers, financial support, and mission teams of all ages. Haiti Bible Mission has been involved in various community development projects in and around Jeremie to not only address the needs of the most desperate, but also to assist in breaking the cycle of poverty.

A large part of ATEK's ministry involves training church leaders. Many times the pastor of a local church has very little Biblical education. ATEK offers regular training at its headquarters in Cusco. The objectives are to provide practical training in leadership of the Quechua church, train leaders in an integral way, and build sustainable churches with trained pastors and leaders. Pastors and leaders of 36 churches have received training.