Dear PTPA Friends,

This is a time of dramatic and unfortunate circumstances both at home and abroad, impacting the ability of many organizations to render assistance to those in need.

These changes make PTPA even more important as our essential work continues and we devote ourselves to our vital mission: To live the Gospel by seeking, promoting, and supporting the formation, growth and development of twinning relationships between Catholic parishes in the U.S. and Catholic parishes in Haiti and Latin America. In this environment, our top priorities are to support the important work you do and to find more U.S. parishes to twin with impoverished Catholic parishes in poverty-stricken countries.

More than 200 parishes in impoverished communities in Haiti and Latin America have reached out to PTPA to express their need and desire to be twinned with a U.S. parish. Given that only about 6% of U.S. parishes are involved in twinnings, we believe the potential to form new relationships is enormous and more important than ever in these challenging times.

We move forward with great faith, hope and confidence. With your continued support, PTPA will continue to serve as an essential resource to help the poorest of the poor in Haiti and Latin America by helping to sustain the work that you do, and finding more U.S. parishes to twin with parishes in Haiti and Latin America.

Although there are tremendous challenges not just in Haiti and Latin America but also facing charities in the U.S., many great things continue to happen within PTPA itself and among our twin parish communities. Below you will see articles on PTPA activities and to best practices from our PTPA member parishes in Haiti and Latin America.

We hope that you will be encouraged, inspired and energized for your twinning journey!

Click here to read recent news: 
          •  National Catholic Reporter: an article about Catholic Relief Services
          •  Quixote Center Article: an article reflecting on USAID

God bless you!

Because of ongoing turmoil and unrest in Haiti and Latin America, we all face challenges in fulfilling our mission to serve our twin parishes.  These are tumultuous times, but WE MUST NEVER GIVE UP HOPE!  Our poor brothers and sisters need our faithful support now more than ever!

Right now, many of us are asking the same questions: 

Answers to these questions and others will be the primary focus of the 2025 PTPA National Conference - Hearts on Fire: Fanning the Flame.

Be inspired by new approaches and learn from missioners who share your passion to serve your twin parish.

JOIN US FOR THIS MOMENTOUS EVENT! 
    •   Click here to learn more about the conference and to register now at an Early Bird rate.

    •  Would you, your parish or your organization like to be a Conference Sponsor?
              •  Parishes, please click here for more information. 
              •  Others, please click here for more information
   •  If you would like to be an Exhibitor at the Conference, please click below for more information.

If you need more information about the event, sponsorships and exhibitor tables, please click here to contact us. 

In addition to articles related to PTPA itself, consistent communication within your parish is vital to keep your parish twinning relationship in front of your supporters. One effective way to keep the passion alive for your parish twinning mission is to publish a regular newsletter. To see excellent examples, click here to read "A Valentine of Thanks, Twinning Parish News," and click here to read "Thank You for Improving Lives," discussing the twinning relationship between Helping Hugs for Haiti, a part of St. William Church located in St. Simons Island, GA, and St. Joseph Parish, Côtes-de-Fer, Haiti.

Susan Keefe, past chairperson of the twinning relationship between two US Parishes, reported the following success story:
For 25 years Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Cincinnati has had a variety of fundraising activities for its two twinning partners, Our Lady of the Mountains, Stanton, Kentucky and the Cultural Center of Batahola Norte, Managua, Nicaragua.  We have had breakfasts, wine tastings, dances, and now luncheons.  Our two partners speak at the luncheons, and we also show videos of their work.  It is a good connecting link among the three of us. 

Dick Neves, a parishioner at St. Mary’s Church in Blacksburg, VA, recently returned from a trip he took alone to Haiti and the Dominican Republic, the latter to help Haitians in need of support. St. Mary’s Church is twinned with 3 parishes in Haiti. In 2021, his US bishop stated that the parish should not visit their twin parishes because of social unrest and insecurity. Therefore, Dick’s mission work this past December and January in Cap-Haitien and with Haitians in the Dominican Republic became his personal ministry.

After he returned, Dick reported, “Every trip into Haiti provides a new experience, with opportunity to meet new people and learn of their lives.” He shared with PTPA about how he traveled safely by himself and found numerous ways to provide support as an individual and as the Chairman of the Haiti Committee at St. Mary’s:
     •  Delivered Christmas gifts
     •  Purchased goats for needy families to help provide adequate nutrition to children
     •  Worked on a water treatment facility
     •  Provided support for EAMAH, which is a newly established 2-year school to train Haitian high school graduates interested in becoming stewardesses or stewards on airlines or cruise ships accessing Haiti and the Dominican Republic or serving as staff in the tourism industry of the Caribbean. This is the only school of its kind in the Caribbean, which began in 2023 and currently has 102 students enrolled.
     •  Provided personal support for individual acquaintances in Haiti

Click here to read Dick’s stories in full.

Although not currently twinned with a parish in Haiti, we at HERO have finished the building of a medical clinic in Mare Briole in the Sud-Est Department east of Jacmel.  During the past three years, we raised $125,000 for the construction, put a doctor through medical school in Haiti who will be the medical director, hired a nurse to assist the doctor, an administrator, and a security person.  Most of the donors are from our church, Transfiguration Catholic Church in Marietta, Georgia.  We were formerly twinned with the parish In Belle Anse.

Being in the Sud-Est Department has created obstacles in not being able to travel to the area because of the airport closings and the gangs in Port au Prince. With the help of Haitian people onsite who we have known for more than 26 years and trust with our lives, we are able to provide support that will provide medical services to 25,000 to 30,000 people, most of whom have never had medical support.

This has been a labor of love for the Haitian people.  Jesus blessed us in being able to provide this much needed clinic.

Click here to read more about HERO 

You can help! You, our current twin parish communities, are the very best ambassadors of parish twinning. We would like to challenge all of you to meet with at least one parish in your area that does not currently have a twin and invite them to take this leap of faith. Feel free to reach out to Karen or PTPA Board members if you would like some promotional materials and ideas for how to introduce parish twinning.

Meet our full team here.

Click here to read in the Portal about Twinning Fundamentals.

FAMILY MISSIONS COMPANY is an apostolate of lay Catholic missionaries, families and singles, working in concert with the pastors of the Church to build God’s Kingdom! Family Missions Company sends out lay Catholic families and singles to proclaim Jesus Christ and His Gospel to the poor! Since the ministry’s founding as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 1997, they have trained and sent out hundreds of families and individuals to serve as evangelists and servants to the poor around the world.

Click here to read more about them. 

PTPA is a Catholic, non-profit organization. Our mission is to live the Gospel by seeking, promoting, and supporting the formation, growth and development of twinning relationships between Catholic parishes in the U.S. and Catholic parishes in Haiti and Latin America.

“I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me.” Matthew 25:40