Our Story
Second Mile Haiti co-founders, Jenn and Amy, began their journey in 2010, with a combined 29 months as long-term volunteers at an orphanage in Northern Haiti. They encountered parents who, due to extreme poverty, had no option but to place their malnourished and sick children in orphanages to access healthcare and nutrition.
Recognizing the need for sustainable solutions, Jenn and Amy founded Second Mile Haiti, a live-in recovery center where malnourished children receive care from their parents, supported by health educators and nurses. This approach prevents family separation, empowering parents with the knowledge and resources to keep their families together and break the cycle of malnutrition.
Almost all of Second Mile Haiti’s early donations came from friends and family of its founders.
But one donation proved especially meaningful. It was a $3,000 check from a 24-year-old teacher working her first job out of college.
The donation proved that the money needed to build Second Mile Haiti would come and gave Jenn and Amy, then 23 and 24, the courage to return to Haiti to buy land and start creating.
Today, Second Mile Haiti operates two Family Centers in Northern Haiti, employs eighty Haitian team members, and is now replicating its caregiver-centered model for a third time.
A Journey From Vision to Action
Why Haiti? Why Now?
Today, the lives of too many mothers and children are being cut short.
1 in 25 newborns in Haiti don’t make it past the first six weeks of life and 1 in 10 children don’t reach five years of age. 50% of women are at risk of dying in childbirth, and less than 40% of Haiti’s young people have completed secondary school.
Nearly 5 million people—43% of the Haitian population, including pregnant mothers—are facing a food crisis.
Second Mile Haiti’s Model
Our impact proves that child mortality can be avoided, children can complete their education, and mothers can survive pregnancy.
Our model invests in the people who care for Haiti’s children: their parents. Our Maternity Centers, staffed by Haitian Midwives, ensure that women receive appropriate care during pregnancy to reduce complications at birth and give their infants a strong start. When children face illness or malnutrition, we ensure their long-term needs are met by helping their caregivers grow nutritious foods and start businesses.
Our support for families doesn’t end there. We operate a Scholarship Program that allows sponsors outside of Haiti to fund the education of a child who recovered from Severe Acute Malnutrition at one of our centers, thus ensuring these incredible children have an equitable chance to transform their future.
The Approach
Second Mile Haiti uses proven methods to create sustainable change.
We go beyond quick fixes and temporary aid. With every new initiative, we seek long-term solutions that feed entire communities—literally and figuratively. We believe that when women hold the bread, everyone eats.
Our programs are led by Haitian professionals who have been doing this work in their communities for decades.
We’re sun-powered, earth-fed, and committed to the long-term health of our organization and the communities where we work.
Our monthly donor community is Fierce!
