House of Compassion
House of Compassion officially started in 2001 with our first child, Micah Dieuseul, who was about 2 years old at the time. We now care for 36 children—18 girls and 18 boys. All are destined to stay at House of Compassion until they have finished school and are ready to be on their own. In the summer of 2007 we moved into our newly built facilities with six bedrooms and two bathrooms.
This 6,180-square foot home has two separate wings, one for the boys and one for the girls. Each wing has 3 bedrooms and 1 dormitory-style bathroom, containing 4 showers, 3 toilets, and 3 sinks. In the middle connecting the two wings is the kitchen and a large dining area. The second story houses our family quarters, as well as guest housing.
Life at our house is just like life at any other home with 40+ residents . . . busy! Fortunately, we have help: four Haitian ladies help throughout the day and week with laundry, cooking, and discipline.
The children at House of Compassion are fed three good meals each day. Breakfast normally consists of cornflakes or bread and peanut butter, and sometimes eggs or oatmeal. Lunch is usually a large plate of rice and beans, and for dinner Haitian food, or sandwiches, or whatever is leftover from lunch.
All the children are in school—29 of them attend Bon Espoir located behind our house. The others attend an A.C.E English school located next to the Bon Espoir Church. We get up at 6:00 to begin the day; the children bathe, put on their school uniforms and leave the house at 7:30 to arrive at school by the time it starts at 7:45.
The children return home at 2:30 and then the dining room is turned into a study hall as they busy themselves with homework for most of the afternoon. School rules require the girls to have their hair freshly fixed each day, so this means the nannies are also busy fixing hair through out the afternoon.
Supper is eaten at 5:00, then the children take baths and are in bed at 8:00.
On Sundays, the children are up at 6:00 to be ready for Sunday School at 8:00; church starts at 9:00. After lunch we have some quiet time, then back to church at 5:00 for the evening service.