First Haitian Branch in Midwest America Enriches Communities

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By Sophie Jaglowski Runyan, Church News

The first Sunday after the Springfield Ohio 2nd Branch (Haitian-Creole) was organized September 22, 2024, newly sustained first counselor Oreus Dediles bore his testimony in his native language of Haitian Creole. Six years ago, Dediles came to the United States and attended the Springfield 1st Ward, despite not knowing any English and being the only Haitian in that ward when he first arrived.

Dediles started to cry as he acknowledged the 50 Haitian members who are part of the newest unit in the Dayton Ohio North Stake and the meetings they now had in their native language. His oldest son is the branch’s first missionary, serving in the Massachusetts Boston Mission as a Creole-speaking elder.

Dediles was not the only one crying, smiling or praying in gratitude that day. What started as a single man sitting in the back of the chapel has grown into the first Haitian branch in the Midwest, an influential English class and a missionary force.

All of this has been enhanced by the loving natures of the Haitian people and the reciprocating love of the Springfield wards gathered around them.

‘My Only Thing Was the U.S. Visa’

In December 1830, early members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints moved to Ohio after a revelation from the Lord. Now, some people from Haiti have walked similar paths to find safety and opportunity in Springfield. “The country became worse since everything, so it wasn’t safe to be there,” said Lukenson Odney, second counselor in the branch presidency, of moving to the U.S. in 2021.

Having found a tumor in his hip, Odney and his family spent all of their money for his treatment. “I was not able to pay for anything. So my only thing was the U.S. visa, to fly to the U.S. and to seek a better situation.” Odney had been in a bishopric in Haiti at that time but left that behind too in order to feed his family.

The growing population of Haitian people in Springfield included mostly men coming to work but also faithful members of the Church. Bishop Jordan Houseman of the Springfield 1st Ward said that former bishops, branch presidents and stake presidency members were among those who came to Springfield in search of job opportunities to be able to bring their families to them.

Caleb Leavitt, a former missionary of the Ohio Cincinnati Mission, said about the Haitian members, “The fact that they came to church for Jesus Christ and for their relationship with Him regardless of the language really strengthened my testimony.”

So eager to serve, the members who moved from Haiti served in callings in the English-speaking Springfield 1st Ward. Frantzso Yacinthe used his accounting degree to serve as an assistant ward clerk before being called as the branch president of the Springfield 2nd Branch.

“They did not want to separate because they love the interaction,” said Sister Nona Bailey, an ESL missionary serving in the Springfield 1st Ward, recalling some of the reactions of the Haitian members when the branch was created in 2024.

‘The Catalyst for the Biggest Impact’

Haitian members had been in Springfield as early as 2018 when the bishop at the time received a food-assistance request. The language barrier slowed missionary work with the Haitian community, but members of the Springfield 1st Ward continued to pray for help in serving these people.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, then-Elder Leavitt was reassigned to the Ohio Cincinnati Mission from the France Paris Mission, arriving in the Springfield area and being told he was an answer to their prayers. Haitian Creole is the national language of Haiti, but the schools there also teach French. Most Haitians speak French, and it was enough to get the missionary work going.

Leavitt and his companions talked to every Haitian they saw on the street and taught lessons together, with Leavitt translating for his companion. He recalled how the Haitian members participated in almost all the lessons despite their busy schedules.

Many Haitians were taught in Leavitt’s time there, as “the Haitian people in general are spiritual and humble and many were prepared to hear the gospel,” said Bishop Houseman. The stake presidency established a group in 2022, with Odney as the leader.

Missionary work had accelerated with the establishment of an English as a Second Language program, started in 2021 by a senior missionary couple, Elder David and Susan Fullmer from Fairview, Utah. “This was the catalyst for the biggest impact,” said Bishop Houseman.

What started as a ward effort turned into an interfaith collaboration with multiple levels of learning for the Haitian community. Volunteers of other faiths took notes on the program and taught their own classes at different times so that English lessons were more available. All the missionaries in the area would help as the initial class of eight turned into 90 regular participants.

These two events catapulted the missionary work in Springfield. Missionaries in the area either spoke French from MTC training or were assigned in the field to learn Creole. The stake called local service missionaries to run the ESL group full time. Attendance in the English ward swelled to the point where the Haitian group started hosting separate second-hour Sunday meetings in 2022.

‘God Will Provide Everything for You’

In 2024, when President Yacinthe got a call from the stake president to visit his office, he wondered what new calling he and his wife would receive. The stake president extended the calling of branch president — and Yacinthe initially refused. He knew it would not be easy to lead the branch, but then his father’s words came back to him.

President Yacinthe and his father were baptized on the same day in Haiti, and his father’s favorite phrase was “God will provide everything for you.”

“That has made me strong,” he said. This phrase has gotten Yacinthe through the tough times of being away from his wife for years while he worked in the U.S. It gave him strength again when he accepted the calling of branch president.

The English ward and Haitian branch are serving together after the split. The Haitian members help with the ongoing ESL program and join in lessons with the missionaries. The English members attend the city-wide Haitian Coalition Meeting with the stake leadership in an effort to improve the broader Haitian community. The two units gather to celebrate Haiti independence and flag days as well as the weekly Haitian baptismal services.

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