Through the wisdom and guidance provided by our gracious Heavenly Father, certain of His chosen people were led to construct a Christian hospital at Bonne Fin, Haiti, under the auspices of the joint leadership of Mission Evangélique Baptiste du Sud d’Haiti (MEBSH) and West Indies Mission (WIM). It was the conviction of those involved that a hospital would provide an essential and tangible expression of the love of the Lord Jesus Christ, who throughout His ministry demonstrated His deep compassion and interest in ministering to the whole man-body as well as soul and spirit.
The medical needs of Haiti were staggering and far greater than any other country in the Western Hemisphere. In addition, Haiti's birthrate was nearly three times that of North America, further compounding the challenges of living on an island seemingly forgotten by the rest of the world. With more than one million of the nation's five million people concentrated on the southern peninsula, the needs of the people were magnified.
In 1946 Dispensaire Lumière opened in Les Cayes. Medical services grew to include rural clinics serving thousands of patients each year. However, until the opening of the hospital in March, 1977, there was no provision for in-patient care.
In 1973, Dr. Donald Nelson, a California physician and former medical missionary to Zaire, visited his son in the southern peninsula of Haiti. He was deeply impressed with the needs that existed for a greater medical outreach. He volunteered to return and briefly relieve Dr. Dudley Nelson, a medical missionary serving at the Dispensaire Lumière. When Dr. Donald Nelson came back to visit the field he was again impressed with the vast medical needs of the Haitian people.
Dr. Nelson returned a few months later to make a survey to determine the feasibility of constructing a hospital and to select a hospital site. Bonne Fin (French for "good end") was selected as the logical and appropriate site.
.
It was learned from one of the land owners that his grandfather had told him that God had spoken to him many years ago that some day men would come to build a hospital on this very site. During 1976 and 1977, God used volunteer workers from the U.S. and many Haitians to bring his vision to reality. Completed were a surgery building, a surgery ward, an administration building, eleven staff houses and a hydro-electric plant. All of the buildings are cement block construction with cement roofs.
The cornerstone for the hospital was laid on March 17, 1976. A year later, on March 31, 1977, the hospital was formally dedicated. The Hospital of Light was in operation, sharing the love of Jesus Christ.
With the overwhelming success of the hospital came international attention and a reputation for world-class healthcare. The numbers of patients began to grow at a steady rate as did the need for financial and materiel resources. In response to this need, in August 1987, the decision was made to establish a stateside development office. That was the beginning of Lumière Medical Ministries (LMM). Since that time God has blessed our efforts by providing millions of dollars in cash and medical supplies and equipment and thousands of medical and work teams that have proven vital to our continuing operation.
Our History
