Fish Fry for Haiti: Annual event helps support school in remote mountain valley

Published 9:51 pm Wednesday, February 18, 2026

By Mary Richardson

Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.” — John 21:17

There is a school high in the southern mountains of Haiti that exists and thrives — even as the country falls apart in violence. The school is Saint Mathieu Ecole Episcopale in Bégin, and it has been fully supported by Good Shepherd Episcopal Church for 34 years.

The annual fundraiser for the school, Fish Fry for Haiti, will take place on Friday, Feb. 27. Take-out dinners will be available from 5:15 to 7 p.m. at the church’s Outreach House, located at the corner of Kirkman and S. Division Streets. Tickets are $20 each, and are available from several congregation members or at the church’s office, 715 Kirkman St., 337-433-5244. Every penny goes to support the school.

The church is fully committed to the school. “Haiti is one of the areas in the world that is the most desperate,” Dr. Ben Williams says, “yet we have seen with our eyes the ability of the Haitian people to create light through education and faith.” He says it is humbling. “We give what we can – our time, our money, our commitment – but they give the most.”

The menu will be catfish fillets with all the trimmings, plus homemade desserts.

Members of the church will prepare the meal, and some members have developed specialties. The catfish will be fried by the “Quackers,” a group of men who regularly cook together. Members are Richard “Doodle” Walker, Fred Bennerscheidt, George Paret, Paul George, Fred Rau, Guy Richards, and Matt Hughes, plus “guest cooks” Earl Daigle, Jeff Schweitzer and Frank Wood. Glenda Williams, a charter member of Tend My Lambs, Good Shepherd’s committee that oversees the school, is in charge of green beans. Mother Mitzi will supervise the making of the coleslaw (and inspire volunteers to chop more than 20 pounds of onions for the coleslaw and green beans). Church members will provide homemade desserts.

The fish fry is organized by the church’s committee, entitled appropriately “Feed My Lambs.” Williams, head of the committee, says that the church has been blessed to be able to continue its mission. “We have been able to educate and care for and provide comfort in Haiti’s hostile environment,” he says. “Thankfully, our school remains safe and protected.”

The country itself is not safe. Haiti is in political limbo. No democratically elected officials are in power, and gangs control up to 90 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince. This began in 2021 when President Jovenel Moïse was assassinated, creating a power vacuum.

Violent gangs rushed in to fill that vacuum. Then Prime Minister Ariel Henry was forced to resign in 2023 after being unable to return to the country from an international trip due to gang violence, and all semblance of government was demolished. The situation has largely fallen out of view. The news media largely ignores Haiti, and no solution seems to be in sight.

“We have escaped the violence,” Williams said, “probably because we are so remote, and also because people are poor – there’s no money to steal.” The church’s finances are also safe.

The school is under the auspices of the Haiti Education Foundation, which has “boots on the ground” away from Port-au-Prince.

All donations are dispersed by HEF employees.

Even in this dangerous environment, Saint Mathieu Ecole Episcopale has grown. In contrast to the first school that had only five classrooms back in 1992, today 500 students attend. Some of the students have graduated, gone on to higher education, and have now come back to Bégin as teachers and community leaders.

The school has become the center of the Bégin community, providing sustenance for body and soul. The Jackson Kemper Foundation provides meals on campus for the students every day, which the students often share with their extended families. A mobile health clinic visits the school at least once a month to provide medical care. Pregnant women come to the school to receive this medical care, Williams says.

And now there are big plans afoot. Pere Jacob Michelet, the priest who serves the school, would like Good Shepherd to support a rectory on campus that would be used for his housing, plus provide guest housing for visitors. Also, as a direct result of the school’s success, the Episcopal Church of Haiti is considering establishing a new parish located in Bégin. The village would have its own priest, and that priest would oversee several other rural schools and churches.

Williams and other members of Tend My Lamb have not been able to travel to Haiti since the political violence began. “But we can’t wait to get back, and we will go just as soon as our government says it’s safe,” Williams says. When they go, he says they will go to listen. “We want to listen to what they need,” he says. “We are partners and a good partner always listens, then helps without assuming or judging or imposing.”

The church will remain dedicated to its school, and is grateful for the help it receives from the community. “Once you see the Haitian people and their faith, it is impossible to turn your back,” Williams says.