The Haitian Student Gift Fund provides educational support to promising Haitian students who might otherwise lack the resources to continue their education.
Grounded in our interconnectedness with Haiti, the Fund is an opportunity to turn our shared history into generosity, possibility, and positive change.
The Diamond Sutra teaches that to truly understand our own suffering, our own hearts, and the way of the universe, we can give a gift without attachment. Thanks to this practice, embraced each year by members of the Zen Fields sangha, we're able to provide Haitian students with gifts toward school fees and living expenses for higher education — a connection rooted in Reverend Jisho Sara Siebert's own work in Haiti.
Brother Gracet Colbert, who runs a school near Port-au-Prince, wrote to share his gratitude for the support:"Every help a person gives in Haiti for a child is a life saved. A child that goes to school can change the neighborhood or even the country where they live... I say again, thank you so much for the continued support that can help us save more children. "Students supported in past years continue to build on that foundation. Ricardo is now supporting himself through work study, and Sherline is completing her final project while supporting herself through a business she created. Each year, as the new school term approaches, requests for support come in from students and families. These are reviewed by a committee — Sofu, Tozan (Navvab), and Jisho — with support from the Board.
