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What is ESPERE?
Espere is one of Haiti's only mental health centers. We're dedicated to improving the mental health and wellbeing of people throughout the country.We are based in Thomassin, Haiti - a tranquil mountain community above Port-au-Prince, where people can come to find healing surrounded by beauty and serenity.
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"Espere" (es-per-RAY) is the Creole word for "Hope". Each of our services aims to increase hope and strength as our members work to manage individual and community challenges.
What Do We Do?
We work to increase access to mental health services through community psychosocial interventions and training while raising awareness and break the stigma. Espere has a number of different services and projects, and all have the same overall goal of improving mental health and social care, whether that is in community-based settings, our office, or our Crisis Recovery Home.
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Each individual service or project contributes to this overall objective by focusing on different areas of community mental health and by offering different but complementing services. These services and projects include individual counseling, group counseling, short-term inpatient crisis support, outreach programs for children with special needs, and mental health training and education.
Who Do We Serve?
At Espere, we welcome all. We believe that all races, ethnicities, ages, religions, genders, sexual orientations, or abilities deserve the opportunity to find hope and peace of mind.
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Our team consisting primarily of Haitian psychologists and university students, serving in communities throughout the greater Port-au-Prince area. You may find us in orphanages, nursing homes, hospitals, schools, or homes offering counseling support. You may find us assisting families raising children with special needs by accompanying them to physical therapy appointments or visiting the markets to select the healthiest food they can find. Our team members can also be found sitting next to the bed of someone staying for a few days at our Crisis Recovery Home to gain strength and learn coping skills following a mental health crisis such as a suicide attempt.
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In addition to these direct psychosocial services, our team travels throughout Haiti giving seminars and workshops on mental health to churches, organizations, and other community groups so that people throughout Haiti will have a better understanding of how to take care of their own mental health and how to support their own family and friends who may be suffering from trauma, depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues commonly found here
People from all over the world working, touring, and serving in Haiti also seek mental health support from our Espere team as they learn to navigate the complexities of living in a culture different from their own.
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How Can You Help?
Are you interested in working alongside our team? We offer internship and volunteer opportunities for people with passion and skills in a variety of areas including Counseling and Training, Communications and Marketing, Business Development, and International Development. Visit our Get Involved page to learn more.
Help us raise awareness of the need for mental health services in Haiti. Bring your team to visit our Espere Center and Crisis Recovery Home where you can learn more about what we do and the difference it is making in so many lives in Haiti. Invite us to come and speak at your church, school, or other community event. We know when people around the world help us share our story, the stigma of mental health is weakened, and more hope can be found in Haiti and abroad.
As a nonprofit organization, we rely on people like you to help
us do what we do. Our biggest need right now are financial partners whose monthly donation ensures that the people we serve receive consistent, quality care. All one-time and ongoing donations large and small make a huge difference, and are U.S. tax-deductible.
