Hi Everyone!

We are a group of 12 students and 1 chaperone from St. Matthew's Parish in Southborough, MA, who will be traveling to the Be Like Brit Orphanage in Grand Goave, Haiti in June 2018. 

Brit's Home in Haiti was built to honor the memory of Britney Gengel, who died tragically in the 2010 earthquake in Haiti along with approximately of 300,000 others. To honor her life and to honor her commitment to those less fortunate among us, her parents built this home and are now working towards fulfilling their Vision to raise the next generation of leaders in Haiti. To find more information about this incredible organization and the amazing Gengel family, check out belikebrit.org! :)

During our stay there we will be building a house for a family in the community in addition to spending time with the best 66 kids of all time who now live at Brit's Home. We are SO excited, and are counting down the days until our trip! As you can imagine, the cost of the trip is expensive, because in addition to our travel, food, accommodations, and transportation costs, we also supply the materials needed to build the house along with a bed, mattress, sheets, a stove, charcoal, and food for the family. If you can consider donating to our trip in any way, we would so greatly appreciate it! Any financial contribution is tax deductible, and can be completed directly on this fundraising page. Thank you all in advance for your support--we are so grateful for you! :)

Sincerely,

St. Matthew's Britsionarys 2018

Donations support one of the following:

Britsionarys in need of financial support:

Britsionarys who cannot afford the cost of the trip alone, can use our pages to ask family and friends for financial support. Donations help to cover the cost of the Britsionary's trip (lodging/food/transportation/insurance/etc.) until they have reached their total amount due for their trip. Once they have reached this amount, any additional donations will go directly to a Be Like Brit general fund to support the children at Brit's Home.

Fundraising for the children at BLB:

Britsionarys who are paying for the entire trip themselves, can choose to fundraise for the children at Brit's Home and support our mission. All donations will go directly to a Be Like Brit general fund to support the children at Brit's Home.

Any donations/payments raised over the total amount due for the Britsionary's trip, will go to Brit's Home to support the children who live there.

Britsionarys

What does it mean to be a “Britsionary”? Being a Britsionary means different things to everyone, but in essence it means you are continuing the compassion of Britney Gengel. Britsionarys travel to Haiti and work side-by-side with Haitian workers and interact with the children at BLB - to achieve a common goal - to fulfill Britney's last wish to help the children of Haiti.

Our Britsionarys have diverse backgrounds, experiences, and skills yet they are able to work together to help bring hope to the children of  Brit's Home. In our past trips, we have had students, nurses, social workers, teachers, mothers and sons, fathers and daughters - and everyone has played an essential role in building Brit's Home and making our children feel deserving of love. We have also been blessed to have skilled tradespeople such as carpenters, plumbers, and electricians donate their time and teach their Haitian counterparts their skills and techniques. 

Our Britsionary Program was created to provide an opportunity for volunteers to gain a better understanding of global partnerships and cultures. Short-term Britsionary groups take a 1 week service trip to Brit's Home in Haiti, to help with youth and community outreach projects and immerse themselves in the beautiful Haitian culture. This program gives young adults an opportunity to enhance their understanding of poverty and development while also broadening their global perspective. For non-medical Britsionarys, the mornings are spent building a home for a family in need in our community, and the afternoons are spent doing programatic activities with the children (field trips, coloring, games, learning activities, etc.). For medical Britsionarys, the mornings and some afternoons are spent working in the BLB or local public clinic, and the remaining time is spent with the children and the Britsionary group.

About Be Like Brit

In many ways, Britney Gengel of Rutland Massachusetts was a typical 19-year-old young woman, but her humor, passion and deep sense of caring for those less fortunate made her memorable to all who met her. It was her compassion for others that brought Britney to Haiti on January 11, 2010, just a day before a catastrophic earthquake claimed an estimated 230,000 lives and rocked the small, poverty-stricken country. Britney had spent the day visiting a Haitian orphanage where she and fellow students of Lynn University, met the Haitian orphans they had traveled so far to help. Just a few hours later, Britney, three of her fellow students, and two Lynn University professors lost their lives in the rubble of the Hotel Montana in Port-Au-Prince. Britney was missing for 33 days before her remains were recovered.

Fortunately, Britney’s dream did not die with her. Only hours before the earthquake, Britney sent a text message to her family that read:

“They love us so much and everyone is so happy. 
They love what they have and they work so hard to get nowhere, yet they are all so appreciative. I want to move here and start an orphanage myself.”
- Britney Gengel, 3 hours before the earthquake

These forty words would sustain Britney’s family through the tragedy and, ultimately, serve as the driving force behind the establishment of Be Like Brit and the decision to build an orphanage in Grand Goâve for the children of Haiti. 

Our Mission: Our commitment is to continue the compassion of Britney Gengel by serving the children of Haiti and sustaining a safe, nurturing home, rooted in the virtues of Faith, Hope, and Love, while developing a sense of social responsiblity, community involvement, and unconditional love.
Our Vision: To raise the next generation of leaders in Haiti.



Be Like Brit Foundation, Inc. is an official U.S. 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, tax ID #27-1857525.