"Even In Darkness, You Can Find Stars." Project Isaiah 62 Story: Mary
Mary (name changed) was one of the first children in the Lespwa Lavi advocacy program when she was 9 years old. She was immediately recognized as a joyful, intelligent child full of promise and advanced in school. She was identified as high risk because her father is an alcoholic and known to physically abuse her mother. Her family was affected by gang violence and when she was 13, her adult sister was kidnapped and held for ransom for several weeks. The experience traumatized Mary and seriously affected her health. When her sister was finally released, she left school to go and stay with her sister in another town, against her advocate’s advice.
Over a year later, Project Isaiah 62 director, Hiram, found Mary sitting in the street. She was very ill and he took her to the hospital for emergency care. She was severely anemic, malnourished and found to be about 4 months pregnant. Mary did not know how pregnancy happened - no one had ever explained that to her. She was just 15 years old. Hiram set her up with emergency mental health services. As she processed her trauma, it was discovered that she had been raped, possibly by multiple individuals. When her sister found out she was pregnant, she had kicked her out and Mary wandered back to Verrettes. Mary returned to her mother’s house, however her adult brother was angry about the pregnancy and beat her, threatening to kill her.
Project Isaiah 62 staff sought help from law enforcement and a lawyer, but there is no precedent in the area for dealing with domestic violence and police declined to intervene. Project Isaiah 62 special advocate, Marie-Ange, met with Mary and her mother many times, purchasing vitamins and extra food and encouraging Mary and her mother to leave their highly abusive situation.
Mary’s mother agreed to accompany her to a safe house, paid for by Project Isaiah 62. They arrived to a safe house the same day Mary went into labor a month early and gave birth safely at the hospital. A beautiful health baby girl returned with Mary to her safe home. With Marie-Ange’s help, Mary was able to return to school when she recovered from the birth and is excelling!
Here’s what Mary wants you to know:
My name is Mary.
Today, I write to you with a heart overflowing with gratitude and hope. The support you have offered me is not simply material assistance, but a powerful symbol of dignity, pride, and rebirth. Thanks to you, I rediscover myself, I live again, and I believe in a better tomorrow.
I come from a poor family, where every day was a struggle. Resources were lacking, and worse, I suffered abuse from those who should have protected me. My premature pregnancy was not a choice, but a cry for help, a consequence of this shattered life. In Haiti, a young girl in my situation is often rejected, humiliated, deprived of education and a future. But you have changed this fate.
You reached out to me when everyone else turned their backs on me.
You saw in me a light where society saw only a shadow.
Thanks to the Project Isaiah 62 program, I am no longer a victim, but a survivor, a courageous young mother, a woman determined to build her life. You gave me the chance to study, to dream, and above all, to get back on my feet.
Special thanks to Nika (Advocacy coordinator) for your attentiveness, your kindness, and the strength you share so tirelessly. Your actions have been a balm for my wounds. To Marie-Ange (child advocate) and Hiram (Project Isaiah 62 director), thank you for your commitment on the ground, for those sleepless nights so that the program can thrive in our community. You are silent heroes, and your work saves lives and transforms destinies.
I think of all those girls, like me, abused, exploited, abandoned. They too deserve a second chance. A chance to learn, to grow, to flourish. Their lives must not end with their wounds. Help us break these chains, change mentalities, and offer hope where despair reigns.
Today, I stand proud, and I promise you: I, in turn, will be a beacon of light for others. Because you taught me that even in the darkness, you can light stars.
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
