A guest post from Maillard Magloire — Feed My Starving Children agent for Haiti.

Content warning: this letter mentions sexual exploitation.

The midnight call that changed everything

It was nearly midnight when my phone rang several times. Exhausted from a long day of work, I hesitated to answer. But something pushed me to pick up the call.

A weak, trembling voice came through the line: “Is this Mr. Maillard Magloire?”

Her name was Dina*, a young mother who had recently fled Port-au-Prince and arrived in Jérémie. She told me how armed men had taken over their farmland, raped her loved ones in front of her and forced her family into destitution.

She had escaped with nothing but her children and the clothes on her back. In Jérémie, with no support, no shelter and no income, she had turned to prostitution — not by choice, but to survive.

“Tonight, I have no strength left. I feel a fever coming on. … My children haven’t eaten. I gave them water with salt to stop their stomachs from hurting.”

Desperation in Haiti

In Haiti, eating every day has become a near-miracle — Dina’s story is not an isolated one.

• In Jérémie, prostitution has become widespread as people as food insecurity drives desperation. Haitian law prohibits sexual relations with minors, but poverty often silences justice.
• Over 6 million Haitians are currently facing acute food insecurity, a number that continues to rise due to ongoing political instability, economic collapse and relentless gang violence (World Food Programme).

These numbers speak volumes — but some stories reveal even more.

A simple box, a life transformed

Dina had received my contact from someone whose life had been changed by a Tipanou–MannaPack^® food box provided by Feed My Starving Children. The next day, we gave Dina a similar food box — because of you.

Weeks later, Dina told us that she had left prostitution behind. For the first time in months, she was living with dignity again.

Our mission: turning hunger into hope

Working with Feed My Starving Children is not just a job for me — it is a life mission. Dina dared to call. But how many other women suffer in silence? How many children still drink saltwater to survive the day?

To our donors, our partners and our staff: you are not simply distributing food. You are saving lives. You are restoring dignity. You are bringing hope to the hopeless.

Let’s continue to turn hunger into hope, with our two hands and one united heart.

— Maillard Magloire, FMSC agent for Haiti

*To protect her identity, “Dina” is a fictional name. She gave her permission for her story to be shared with people she could trust.