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Murals of St. Bart's

Beautiful murals grace the walls of St. Barthélémy. One mural includes the following (in French) from Psalm 24 “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it”.

This mural was painted on a mission trip a number of years ago and vibrantly depicts this proclamation.

Another mural references Matthew 19:14: “Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.’”

Students work, learn and play in the midst of these beautiful reminders of God’s love for them.

Feeling inspired? If you could design a mural for a classroom at St. Bart's, what would it look like? What bible verse, words or images would you pick to encourage and show love for these children? Email us at info@bethlehemministry.org - we would love your ideas!






A Special Haitian Meal

Family, friendship and amazing food . . .

I was lucky enough to be with members of the Bruno family recently, which culminated in a special home cooked Haitian meal. In Bethlehem Ministry’s effort to bring Haiti to you, we are happy to provide cooking videos from that day just in time for the month of May, which is Haitian Heritage Month. A huge thank you to the Bruno Family, especially Rachel Bruno, for making this possible. Haitian cuisine is a Creole cuisine that is a blend of several culinary styles, namely African, French, indigenous Taino and Spanish. 


I arrived hours before the big meal was served, but they had already been prepping and cooking. Rachel Bruno was the head chef for the day and my primary instructor - she has been cooking since she was a very little girl and in fact learned to pluck a chicken when she was ten! Yikes! First, Rachel showed me how to make Epis, which is a sauce essential to Haitian cuisine.



The dish that was already cooking when I arrived was Legume, which is similar to a stew. Despite its name, it usually includes a protein, but does also have a lot of vegetables in it and of course uses Epis for flavoring! I learned that Legume cannot be rushed - cooking it is an all day affair.



The most fun thing to make was the Fried Plantains, especially the step that involves smashing the pieces of plantain (hint, one trick to the Fried Plantains is double frying them).



Rachel then took some of the pork meat from the Legume pot and fried it, which is called Griot. Delicious! Both the Fried Plantains and Griot are best eaten when they have cooled just below the “impossibly hot to eat” point so there was a lot of snacking before the food made it to the table. A meal like this is as much about the preparation and sense of community as the finale of eating the meal itself. That entire day the kitchen was filled with family coming and going through the kitchen, stories and jokes, as well as the aroma of food cooking. You will probably not be surprised to learn that one thing that was not present were any written recipes - all of these dishes are prepared from memory and based on tradition, and are varied to accommodate the tastes of the household and available ingredients. In addition to Legume, Fried Plantains and Griot, the meal included white rice and Sòs Pwa (a black bean dish). It was all delicious and I was thankful to be welcomed into their kitchen for the day. We hope you feel transported to the Bruno kitchen for the day when you watch these!    


With Gratitude,

Rennae Henry

Executive Director

Flag Day Parade!



Flag Day in Haiti is celebrated annually on May 18th. It is similar to Independence Day in the United States, with parades and celebrations. I was fortunate enough to be in Terrier Rouge for Flag Day in 2023, along with Board President Leigh Jones. The visit was made possible by Sarah Bruno, Jean Robert Bouloute, Dominique Bruno, all of whom are with our NGO partner, Espérance et Vie, as well as the efforts of many others. Thanks to the video editing capabilities of our own Courtney Di Stefano, I’m thrilled that we can bring you a video compilation of the Flag Day parade so that you can enjoy both the sights and sounds of an extraordinarily joyful day. I hope for a few minutes you can feel transported there because I think you may be surprised at what you experience - I know I was! In advance of Flag Day, the band and drill teams of St. Barthélémy practiced tirelessly, and exacting preparations for logistics and attire for everyone were made by teachers, staff and students. On the day of the parade, kids and their parents began showing up at the school well in advance of the parade start time. As you can imagine, the air was absolutely buzzing with excitement! Finally, it was time to start, with the parade lining up on the sidewalk on the school grounds to head out the main gate. At the front of the parade was of course the Haitian flag carried proudly by two students beautifully dressed in the national colors, and accompanied by a student portraying Jean Jacques Dessalines, a Haitian national hero. Behind them was a drill team dressed in white and plaid, led by the indefatigable Mr. Rossenky Djorguinhio Joseph, wearing the white baseball cap. They were followed by a second drill team attired in red and blue led by student Rodayka Joseph (no relation to Mr. Joseph). Next was the school’s celebrated marching band, led by the band instructor and lead saxophone, Mr. Phillippe Etienne. After the marching band came groups of students, waving Haitian flags. The youngest students were in white t-shirts and gently kept in a “lane” with rope borders carried by staff and teachers on each side. The entire town of Terrier Rouge was out in full force to watch and cheer on the parade, with onlookers dressed in Haitian national colors and waving flags. The parade went down the main paved roads through the middle of town as well as dusty side streets, stopping periodically so that the drill teams could perform, which was a big hit with the crowd. The band alternated between playing a Christian Anthem for Haiti, Mon Joli Petit Drapeau (My Pretty Little Flag) and a catchy drum cadence! One of the high points of the parade was a stop at the Terrier Rouge police station where the Haitian national anthem was played by the band. It was a long route and pretty hot, so teachers and staff made sure students were hydrated along the route. Finally, the parade made its way back to the school. I was tired and very hot, but the kids seemed to have caught a second wind and many ran around playing a pick-up game of soccer. People took pictures and everyone was in a celebratory mood. It was my first trip to Haiti and I cannot imagine a better introduction than Flag Day - it was truly extraordinary to experience the joy, dignity and community that exists in Terrier Rouge, despite the many challenges. I wish you all could have been there. I see why so many before me have visited and fallen in love with Haiti and its people and especially with St. Barthélémy. I will be thinking of Haiti this Flag Day of 2024, where the celebrations will be muted, and I’m praying that next year the country of Haiti, and its Flag Day celebration, will have rebounded.           


With Gratitude,

Rennae Henry

Executive Director

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