The IM Haiti Development Advisory Team met with American Baptist Churches of New Jersey (ABCNJ) in Trenton to talk about economic development projects in Haiti. The IM representatives included area director José NoratMabudiga and IM missionaries Nzunga, Ray Schellinger, Bruce Borquist, and IM development staff Jim Wiegner. The participants from ABCNJ were Lee Spitzer, Sue Royle, Elmo Familiaran, Edgar Nicolas and Lemaire Alerte.

 The IM Haiti Development Advisory Team shared with ABCNJ the documents that they had prepared during their July 26-28, 2010 meetings in Valley Forge and the plan to visit Haiti. The IM team will be in Haiti during the next two months to identify needs, agencies and other matters important to their task in order to respond properly the Haitian Baptist Convention’s requests.

 On the other hand, Lee Spitzer shared with the IM Haiti Development Advisory Team on economic development the way that the region has helped Haiti. The amount of $65,000 has been sent to 300 families in Haiti. The amount of $9,400 has been sent for displaced students.  The  mission offering was raised at the Fanning the Flame National Pastors Renewal Conference, sponsored by the following regions: ABCNJ, ABCOPAD, Michigan, Great Rivers, Indiana/Kentucky, Dakotas, Cleveland, Northwest, and Ohio.

We agreed to keep each other informed about our strategies and implementation thereof in relation with the needs in Haiti.

At the beginning of the meeting and as a symbol of mutual collaboration, it was very significant that Lee Spitzer presented a check in the amount of $1,080 to IM for the earthquake relief efforts in Chile.