Help Mothers in Haiti and the Dominican Republic this Mother's Day

This year, Mother's Day will hit the century mark--one hundred years of celebrating the challenges mothers overcome, whether it be working while raising a family, dealing with rowdy teenagers, or remembering to cut the crusts off of one child's peanut butter jelly sandwich while not forgetting that the other one will only eat grape jelly and the sandwich has to be cut diagonally instead of straight down the middle.
Any mother faces many obstacles, but mothers in Haiti and the Dominican Republic face many challenges many of us would never want to imagine. In Haiti, for example, many mothers must cope with the fact that one in eight Haitian children never live to see their fifth birthday due to infectious disease, pregnancy-related complications, and delivery-related complications. In the Dominican Republic, parents face the heart-breaking reality that there is relatively little they can do if there child is born with a disability. In the Dominican Republic geographic and economic barriers make it difficult for most Dominicans to access rehabilitation services, which tend to be institution-based and only available to the wealthy.
In Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, many parents cannot afford to send their children to school, give them proper medical care, or even guarantee that their children will have safe drinking water. Fortunately, however, International Child Care recognized these needs and is working to assist mothers in Haiti and the Dominican Republic to raise healthy children and provide hope and happiness for the lives.
International Child Care's Healthy Births program works to reduce unnecessary suffering and death associated with childbearing by training midwives in the techniques of delivery, proper hygiene, and utmost care for pregnant women and infants in Haiti.
In the Dominican Republic, ICC works to train rehabilitation workers, called promotoras, who come into the homes of children with disabilities and teach parents how to help their children do simple exercises that will help the child grow and develop, empowering the parents to help their children and giving children a chance to be fully included in their communities.
In Haiti, ICC has many programs to improve literacy, help families out of poverty, and provide medical care to sick children. ICC's Adult Literacy program provides literacy training in order to provide a skill for adults to use to gain a job and support their family. Grace Children's Hospital, founded by International Child Care in 1967, gives constant care to children suffering from tuberculosis, HIV and other diseases. ICC also works to provide safe drinking water for families in Haiti.
This Mother's Day, it is our hope that you will not only take time to reflect on all the challenges your own mother has faced, but also take time out to pray for the mothers in Haiti and the Dominican Republic who face many challenges as well. You may also donate to International Child Care and help us to continue empowering and assisting mothers and families in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.