Hands Together was founded by Fr. Tom Hagan after he led a group of Lafayette College students to Haiti and was compelled to repsond to the needs of the poor there. He Moved to Port-au-Prince in 1997, and hands Together has since emerged as a key educational and development organization working in Haiti's largest and poorest slum, Cite Soleil. We have built free schools where there were none and give every student a daily hot meal. We have 8 campuses, including high school, as well as a free clinic and an elderly outreach and housing program. We are one of Cite Soleil's largest employers, giving decent, service-oriented jobs to hundreds of residents.

Our programs outside of Port-au-Prince promote human development among the rural poor through water well digging, promoting agricultural and production, and assisting the poorest schools and clinics around the northern city of Gonaives.

Hands Together provides hope to the poor living in Haiti. Our work is founded upon the Catholic teaching that recognizes the dignity of every human life and a fundamental responsibility to the poor and vulnerable.

Mission

Hands Together is a nonprofit organization devoted to educating, inspiring and encouraging people to understand the importance of responding to the needs of the poor and disadvantaged. Our Mission, as we strive to build a more compassionate and human world, proceeds from the spiritual belief that we are all members of one, equal, interconnected family under a loving God.

Focus

Hands Together carries out its mission through programs designed to bring dignity to the poor--primarily in Haiti. Our projects rest upon a foundation of Catholic social teaching that recognizes the dignity of every person and the fundamental option for the poor and vulnerable. We embrace, with a special love, people who are completely marginalized and are living in squalor.

Service

By establishing schools, orphanages, nutrition and feeding programs, medical clinics, sustainable-development projects, and by establishing partnerships with local leaders and communities, Hands Together is building a better world for thousands of suffering people in Haiti. Hands Together volunteers bring needed skills to many of our educational, health and sustainable-development projects.