LDS Church sending temporary housing kits to Haiti

SALT LAKE CITY — As Haiti's rainy season rapidly approaches in April, many are scrambling to help the already hard-hit population survive the rough weather.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is assembling 600 temporary housing kits for Haitians left without protective shelter one month after the Jan. 12 earthquake. Each kit will contain lumber, corrugated tin, cement and hurricane straps to stabilize the roof and structures.

These kits will be an addition to the nearly 1,500 tents already provided by the LDS Church to the community.

Currently, thousands, two-thirds of whom are not members of the LDS faith, have taken shelter around nine LDS meetinghouses in and around Port-au-Prince.

"A neighbor told me about this place and invited me to come," Cazy Lenlingy said. "I am very happy to be here. Everyone has been kind and has received me well."

Church welfare has also created a storehouse of basic food supplies, including beans, rice and milk, for refugees. Food deliveries have been made to all LDS meetinghouses already.

"The principle of welfare should take place where we help the people help themselves," said Berthony Theodore, a senior church leader in Haiti.

— Erica Teichert