Wings of Refuge, Seeds of Hope

Alexa DeMiglio is so proud of her children—all 21 of them. These are Haitian children, some who were orphaned by the 2010 earthquake and some whose parents cannot take care of them. Many of them arrived undernourished, all of them were disadvantaged. 

Wings of Refuge opened in May 2011 and is now home to these 21 children. It's not an orphange, but a home, DeMiglio explains, "because we consider all of our children part of our home and family." 

When DeMiglio travelled to Haiti on her first mission with in Wyckoff in May 2010, little did she know that she had landed with a purpose. 

"I met Sarah, who's now nine years old," DeMiglio said as she held a picture of Sarah in her hand. "The day of the earthquake her mother was killed while on her way to buy her shoes."

"Sarah's father, a security guard, was shot and killed three months later."

It's Sarah's story, and others like hers, that inspired DeMiglio to become a driving force in establishing Wings of Refuge.

On her first trip, Haiti was still coming out of the devastation caused by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that had occurred on Jan. 12, 2010. It is estimated that somewhere between 90,000 and 250,000 people were killed, leaving many children without parents.

"When I stepped off the plane, it wasn't just the destruction of the airport, but the destitution of the people begging as we walked through that touched me," DeMiglio said.

DeMiglio, along with other members from Powerhouse Church, traveled to Haiti as part of a medical team and to assist Pastor Roger Wilson Charles, the minister who oversees the operation of five schools responsible for the education of 800 children. He also devotes a great deal of his time and energy aiding the gated tent city that houses many of his parishoners including 200 to 250 children. 

"The sense of community that I encountered while I was there was so inspiring," DeMiglio said.

"Pastor Wilson and his church community help everyone—they watch each other's children, lend money to those in need and take care of each other."

According to DeMiglio, Pastor Wilson and his church makes sure that the children are fed, he buses them in from other tent cities to play games and at Christmas they get gifts. 

It was Pastor Wilson's commitment to give these children a permanent place to live that inspired DeMiglio to join him in this cause. She came up with the name "Wings of Refuge" and is currently incorporating it as a non-profit while organizing fundraisers to raise funds for construction.

DeMiglio is hosting a fundraiser "Wings of Refuge: A Benefit Concert for Haiti" featuring The Nerds and Shaved Ham. The fundraiser is being sponsored by the New Milford Boosters on April 20 at Conlon Hall in Bergenfield from 7 p.m.-11 p.m. Tickets are $50 per person and advanced purchase is required.

To purchase tickets, contact Alexa DeMiglio via phone, 201-280-2807 or email ademiglio@gmail.com. 

All proceeds go to Wings of Refuge Children's Home in Haiti.