Our Story
Ismail Succes Jean Baptiste started Dream Haiti in November 17, 2012, however his desire to pour into his community and see growth began as a young teen. Ismail, born and raised in Haiti, knows first-hand both the greatest needs and strengths of Haiti. Dream Haiti combines his passion for leadership development, belief that all people are gifted, and his calling to help individuals develop their gifts. Ismail started meeting with young men and women in the village of Source- Matelas, Haiti to teach them the word of God as he believes everyone has been created with a unique, God-given gift. He also believes that if the gifts we have within us are used for the betterment of the world, we will surely make an impact.
As of May 2017, close to 30 volunteers have joined Dream Haiti to maintain our activities in the communities of Source-Matelas and La Chapelle, Haiti. From 2012 to 2017, Dream Haiti developed and maintained:
- A leadership development class in Source Matelas, Haiti, where we teach young men and women valuable leadership skills and help individuals see their own value with an emphasis on Biblical principles. Our leadership class invests into the lives of 15-20 adults on a weekly basis.
- A children’s program that helps youth and their families connect with others in the community. Within our children’s program there is also a soccer tournament and a feeding program. As an organization founded on Christian faith and principles, we also teach scripture and the history of the Bible within our children’s program. Each week we serve 75-100 kids in our children’s program.
- A school sponsorship program starting in 2015, which enables students in our children’s program to attend school.
From 2017- 2024, we built and maintained a primary school in La Chapelle Haiti. We started with a preschool and each subsequent year added a grade. We grew to employ 18 staff members and educate 200 children. Unfortunately, in 2024 we had to make the difficult decision to pause our operations in Haiti due to the civil unrest.
Currently we are working to give scholarships to Haitian college students in the U.S. to honor our mission of empowering Haitian communities through education.