A columnist with a connection to Hillsdale College was rescued from Haiti March 12 amid the country’s recent political tumult.

Mitch Albom of the Detroit Free Press is director of the Have Faith Haiti Mission, a nonprofit that runs an orphanage in the capital of Haiti, Port-au-Prince. Two Hillsdale freshmen — Widley Montrevil and Jean Veillard — lived in the orphanage as children before coming to America. Albom helped them make the move to America and begin their studies at Hillsdale.

“He is one of the most inspiring people I have ever met, and I continue to see that every time I see him in Detroit,” Montrevil said. “In many ways, I would consider him and his wife to be my parents, but they are my guardians while I am here in America.”

Albom had traveled to Port-au-Prince in early March for his monthly visit to the orphanage which he has run since a massive earthquake in 2010.

“Our place is an oasis for children who have been orphaned, abandoned, lost or given over by relatives due to sickness, homelessness or extreme poverty,” Albom wrote in a March 17 article. “We have clean dormitories, a three-story school, a playing field, medical care, and a large, working kitchen. I visit every month to oversee the operations.”

Not long after his arrival, the Haitian government declared a state of emergency because of a gang-orchestrated mass prison break in Port-au-Prince and another in nearby Croix de Bouquets. Widespread violence followed, including a gang takeover of Toussaint Louverture Airport, the main international airport in Port-Au-Prince.

“Our children do their nightly devotions in a small gazebo. This month, they sang their prayers with gunfire in the background,” Albom wrote.

The U.S. embassy in Haiti was unable to help Albom and his group flee. Through a connection of one of the eight guests Albom and his wife had brought to the orphanage for that month’s visit, U.S. Rep. Cory Mills privately arranged a helicopter evacuation for Albom, his wife, and their guests. After departing from a secret location in the middle of the night, the group made it safely to Michigan on March 13.

“For the 10 of us, there was an uplifting conclusion, a brave and fortunate escape,” Albom wrote. “For the children and staff at our orphanage — and for the millions of innocent Haitians throughout the country — there is no happy finish. They are without safe shelter, starving, without water, without fuel, without medicine, praying for someone to save them.”

Montrevil is from Port-Au-Prince and lived in the Have Faith Haiti Mission orphanage beginning at age 5 after his family lost everything in the 2010 earthquake. He said the current situation back home is proof that Haiti needs better government.

“If gang members are able to take control of the country like that, then it is obvious that our leaders have failed to deliver their promises,” he said. 

Veillard is from Aux Cayes, Haiti, but lived in the orphanage in Port-au-Prince for most of his childhood.

“I think that it is awful what Haitians must go through,” he said. “People losing their jobs, leaving their homes — it’s terrible. But people still have hope that everything will cool down again.”

Montrevil said he has hope for Haiti.

“Haiti needs someone, or group of people, to rise up and make changes,” he said. “I think of it like Dr. Franklin, my great books professor, talked about in one of his lectures: we need a version of Odysseus to come back home and drive the suitors out of the house.”

He said Americans should know that other Haitians have hope, too.

“Yes, many are fearful, and that can’t be denied. But there is a good portion of people that continue to fight for their lives,” Montrevil said. “I’ve seen it myself in the past, and I believe that it is one of the hallmarks that describes Haitians — resilience.”