About The Hope for Haiti Foundation

The Hope for Haiti Foundation was registered in 1999 by Peter and Shay Fontana as a charitable organization. The main focus of the Foundation is to give orphans in Haiti a better life through care and education. In addition the Foundation plans to initiate family preservation and job creation programs. In order to have legal status in Haiti the Fondation Fontana d’Haiti was created. Land was purchased the same year at Kaliko Beach located half-way between the towns of Arcahaie and Montrouis. The Fontanas used their many years of experience working in Haiti to build an orphanage as well as the necessary infrastructure. It now consists of eleven buildings, a large school that doubles as a Church on Sundays together with independent power and water supplies.

Over the years there have been many changes and improvements. The Hope for Haiti Foundation has received a number of grants from Rotary International as well as from private sources and with their help a number of new initiatives have been started. Recently a new sponsorship program helps to support the children at the orphanage. The sponsorship fee pays for housing, clothing, food, schooling, medical care and staff.

Temporary foster care has become an important part of the Fontana Children’s Village. These children are perceived to be at risk due to the parent’s extreme poverty or inadequate parenting skills.

During 2012 Haiti ratified The Hague Convention for International Adoption. As a result the Haitian Social Services Department (I.B.E.S.R.)  reduced the number of agencies that are registered to do adoptions to only a few. In addition the new rules separated the orphanages from the adoption agencies resulting in many hardships for the orphanages.

Some new initiatives include family re-unifications and foster care as options to institutionalized child care. Other initiatives are vocational training for young single mothers in the field of nursing and sewing programs as well as small business start ups such as bridal wear rental, sewing and jewelry making.