Local Haitian community, medical team mark the anniversary of devastating earthquake

WDAY-6 reporter Kevin Wallevand is with a medical mission team in Haiti right now. He has seen the devastation first hand and how local people are trying to make a difference.

People in our area are also paying their respects to the almost quarter of a million people who lost their lives in the earthquake. About 50 people came to a candlelight vigil to mark the tragedy in Haiti, many looking toward the future.

The somber moments of last January 12th are still fresh in the minds of most of us. Tonight there was a memorial marking the tragedy.

Through song and prayer, members of the local Haitian community came together to reflect. This candlelight vigil was at Golden Ridge Lutheran Church in North Fargo.

People lined the pews, listening to inspirational hymns. While this is a way to look back, it's also a chance to talk about the lack of action or progress in Haiti. Many here are discouraged aid is tied up, victims live in camps, and recovery is very slow.

PAUL ALADINUnited Hearts for Haiti: “And tonight is one occasion that we have to sit with to honor the people who passed and make sure that the people who passed in that earthquake did not pass in vain. We continue their work and we believe if we did have better leadership up there, we wouldn't have that many people killed in that earthquake.”

More than one million people, about one third children, still live in camps in Haiti. About 100 Haitians live in Fargo-Moorhead.

Tags: reporter stories, kevin wallevand, travis skonseng, fargo, moorhead, haiti, earthquake, news, religion