COHEF’s mission is to PROMOTE EDUCATION IN RURAL HAITI, ESPECIALLY IN KENSCOFF, AND TO IMPROVE THE BASIC NEEDS OF A TARGETED POPULATION.

COHEF is a non-profit 501©3 organization, established in 1994, independent and apolitical in partnership with Wynne Farm Ecological Reserve located in Kenscoff, Haiti. For the past nine years we have partnered with Peace Flags in the Wind, founded by Joseph Vasile, and in 2017 JJ’s Hoops for Haiti, founded by Jonathan Lamothe, has joined us.

At the present time, we service 3 small schools and one orphanage in the beautiful mountainside of Kenscoff and its surroundings. We help about 600 school children, between the age of 5 and 16. For the past 25 years, we have provided them with school supplies, clothing (new and used), toys and gifts for the holidays, and we help pay the teachers (monthly salaries which vary between $80.00 and $200.00). One hundred elementary school children and three college student are recipients of our scholarships. Ten of our college scholarship recipients have already graduated and twelve more adult students have been awarded a scholarship to study in a technical school.

For the past 14 summers, we conducted a FREE summer camp for an average of 800 children with the assistance of 45 volunteers from Haiti and 35 from the States. It was such a rewarding experience! Words cannot explain what happened at the camp! You have to live it to understand.

Our strengths:
1) Dedicated volunteers in the US and in Haiti committed to help these needy children. The volunteers pay their own expenses to travel to Haiti.
2) Educating children, who, without our help would not receive an education. Children and young adults in Haiti are eager to learn. Over the last 25 years, we have partnered with the schools in educating approximately 2000 children.

To fulfill our mission and ultimately make life better for as many Haitian children we can serve, our immediate needs are:

The commitment of individuals and organizations to sponsor one or more children. We are campaigning for individuals and organizations to “adopt” some of our children by contributing $150.00 annually.
We have an urgent need for scholarships for young adults to attend technical schools or colleges. Funds for one staff member in Haiti in order to effectively oversee and supervise our program. Providing one meal a day which increases attendance. When our meal program is in place, the schools have 100% attendance! Why? For some of students, it is the only meal they will receive for the day! An Agriculture/Technical Academy in Kenscoff.
Our dream would be to open a bakery in Kenscoff which will be a source of income for the organization and a way to create employment for the young adults in the community.
We have an ongoing membership drive for dedicated volunteers to join us. Its a collective effort, one person can’t do it alone.
Funds to establish our greatest need: “Agriculture/Technical Academy” in Kenscoff. We want to recognize Victor Wynne who was a pioneer in environmental consciousness in the Kenscoff area. The name of the school will be: “Victor Wynne/COHEF Agriculture/Technical Academy” “Victor Wynne/COHEF Academie Agricole and Technique de Kenscoff”. We are in the process of organizing numerous fundraising activities to accomplish this goal.