20612: (Hermantin)Miami-Herald-Helped found Haiti mission (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Posted on Sat, Mar. 20, 2004


ANDREE ST. GERMAIN


Helped found Haiti mission

BY ERIKA PESANTES

epesantes@herald.com


Andree St. Germain, co-founder of a religious mission that focused on the
Caribbean and the local Haitian community, died Tuesday of esophageal
cancer. She was 74.

St. Germain was involved in the El Shaddai Presbyterian Church in North
Miami, where she was active in the women's ministry, said her husband,
Bresile St. Germain, a minister at the church.

She preached to, taught and counseled the women who belonged to the church,
her husband said.

St. Germain was born Andree Jean Caidor on Jan. 23, 1930, in Dammarie,
Haiti.

She and her husband met there at their local church in 1957.

At the time, he was the minister and she was a member of the congregation.

She became a Sunday school teacher and a day school teacher at that same
church.

The couple married in 1964.

''We functioned like a team. Wherever I went, she went with me,'' Bresile
St. Germain said.

Together, they formed Christ for All, the French-speaking branch of
Ministries in Action, a mission agency focused in the Caribbean and abroad.

''In Haiti, I used to be the president of the mission [agency] and she was
like the first lady,'' St. Germain said.

Often, the husband and wife team would preach simultaneously. Andree St.
Germain would direct her sermon to the women.

She was frequently invited to be a guest speaker at Haitian churches and
would hold seminars for church leaders.

Together, they visited churches of several denominations -- Baptist,
Pentecostal, Methodist and Presbyterian -- throughout Florida and in New
York, Canada, the Bahamas and France.

During these visits, the St. Germains' focus was on teaching leaders how to
make their congregations grow -- not only in number -- but, more
importantly, spiritually, said St. Germain.

Andree St. Germain also helped the needy, particularly widows.

''God made her a leader,'' her husband said. ``She had the charisma of a
leader. She was an exemplary woman.''

St. Germain also enjoyed taking care of her home and singing solos and hymns
at her local church.

''We have five children and she was a good mother to them,'' said St.
Germain. ``She took care of us, she loved us dearly.''

In addition to her husband, she is survived by her sons, Claudel St.
Germain, Jean Dony St. Germain, Lois St. Germain, Frantz St. Germain and
Guedy St. Germain, daughter Rose-Angalie Charles and 12 grandchildren.

A viewing will be held from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday at Woodlawn Funeral Home,
11655 SW 117th Ave.

The funeral will take place at Glendale Missionary Baptist Church, 14580 SW
117th Ave., at 1 p.m. March 27.

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