Haiti (MNN) — A second school building collapsed in Haiti this week injuring at least seven students. This comes on the heels of another school cave in that killed over 90.
Although the collapses may be a result of hurricane damage, had the structures been built to engineering standards, neither catastrophe should ever have occurred.
Eva DeHart of For Haiti with Love says the building collapses reflect a lack of engineering knowledge. She speculates that the schools were probably U.S.-funded programs that no one bothered to inspect. According to Eva, builders had admitted adding third and fourth floors to schools which were only built for two stories.
Eva's husband, who is now at home with the Lord, founded For Haiti with Love and had an engineering background. Don DeHart adhered strictly to U.S. building standards in the organization's structures. "Shoddy construction would exemplify a shoddy life in my husband's eyes," says Eva. "[That would] have been something he could not have tolerated from For Haiti with Love."
This serious attention to engineering and construction has continued to be a core value of For Haiti with Love and has put them in a unique position. "Everything we do, we do for the glory of God, and therefore we owe it our best," says Eva. "The only way you can do things to the glory of God is to follow all of the rules and do things in a very upright and durable manner to put forth the best presentation you can put forth."
As Haitians take notice of the organization's structures, built with care and precision, the values that For Haiti with Love maintains are exemplified. Attention to external safety reflects the same kind of care and concern in every other detail. Eva notes, "Whether it's in our faith or in our structures, we need a good, solid foundation."
Eva asks for continued prayers for Haiti in general. "Everybody is suffering," she says, if not from hurricane damage, now from destroyed school buildings. Pray that God would provide food and other necessities and that He would use His people to bring the one thing that all of the lost truly need: the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
If you would like to help For Haiti with Love to serve Haiti "in actions and in truth," click here.
