Our Story

Melio was born in Gonaives, Haiti. With parents that were unable to care for him, Melio was sent to the Cookson Hills Christian Orphanage Home in Port-au-Prince. At 9-year-old, he found himself 80 miles from home.

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In Gonaives, he wasn't able to go to school. Since government provided education is limited in Haiti, most Haitian never get the opportunity to learn. 

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At Cookson Hills Christian Home in Port-au-Prince, he was able to attend their school and learn about Christian principles. He told everyone that once he received his degree he would come back to Haiti. 

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Upon graduating High School, Melio desired to receive his education from the United States. In 1993, W. Ray Kelley, president of Winston-Salem Bible College, came to Haiti to teach in a leadership seminar, and the director of Cookson Hills suggested that Melio as an ideal student to attend the college. The opportunity was presented for him to receive a full tuition scholarship 

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While attending college at Winston-Salem, he began developing a vision for Sonlight Christian Mission.

 

After graduating college in 1999, he did go back to Gonaives to establish a church, school and medical clinic. He just wasn't sure how he was going to financially do it.

 

At the same time, Dr. Jimmy Owens, a physician and member of Powell’s Point Christian Church, Harbinger, NC, dreamed of starting a medical clinic in Gonaives where he could provide medical clinics to the people on short-term mission trips. However, he needed a local Haitian to be a director of the operation in Haiti.

 

God brought Melio and Dr. Jimmy together. They began looking for land to build a mission in Gonaives that could care for and raise up the next generation in Haiti. 

 

In October 1999, Sonlight Christian Mission was incorporated.  In 2000, Shirley Kelley became his forwarding agent and began raising funds for his support.  Melio began evangelistic work in conjunction with Gonaives Christian Church (an established congregation) and started a strategic plan to determine the best area for a church plant.  After he chose the community, he began home Bible studies, a hospital ministry, youth ministry, and evangelistic crusades/revivals, all of which continue today. The first church was built and dedicated in 2005 and God has blessed the missions growth since.

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During the last eighteen years to twenty two years, God has blessed the Mission with many friends who have provided the resources to purchase land, build a church, school building for grades one through nine, a multi-purpose building for mission teams to stay in as well as other uses and building of a medical clinic facility in the near future.

 

We are blessed the church celebrated sixteen years of building the first church on November 14, 2021, with a meal for all to enjoy.