Since 1999, parishioners from the Catholic Churches of St. Benedict (Duluth, GA) and St. Monica (Suwanee, GA) have been traveling to Hinche, Haiti to provide medical, dental and financial assistance to the poor and underserved of this area. In concert with Monsignor Faublas Louis, the pastor of Sacre Coeur Church in Hinche, the parish families of St. Benedict and St. Monica support a medical clinic staffed by our own Haitian physician, devoted nurses and other support staff to provide for the healthcare needs of this community. In addition we send down several dental mission trips a year, As Medical Director, I have been very fortunate to witness the tremendous help this trip has been to our Haitian friends.

Allow me to give you a brief history of this mission.
When we first started our mission we would send down 20-25 individuals for a week at a time once a year. There may be 1-2 smaller missions during the year. We were providing needed care but only a small percentage of the year. We were finally able to hire our own permanent doctor, Dr. Hudson, and staff. Today we have a clinic open Monday through Friday all year long. We average 10,000 clinic visits a year. Our medical staff treats a wide range of maladies ranging from malnutrition and parasite infections to high blood pressure and diabetes.

Our dental staff relieves a lot of misery by performing hundreds of extractions and restorations. We have partnered with the Dental school in Augusta and now have dental students providing additional needed care every year. We hope to someday employ a Haitian dentist as well to man the dental suite within the Whitney Clinic.

- Dr. Scott Pugel

Our Haiti clinic has established a support group for patients with high blood pressure and/or diabetes. This group (CEDIMAC) meets every other week with our Dr. Hudson and our program manager, Jodel. Below are just a few examples of your donations at work.