Kidnapped American nurse and daughter freed in Haiti, Christian ministry says

By Leonardo Blair, Senior Reporter Wednesday, August 09, 2023

Alix Dorsainvil, a New Hampshire nurse and her daughter, who were kidnapped from the campus of Christian education ministry, El Roi Haiti, on July 27 near Port-au-Prince, Haiti, have been released, officials from the organization announced Wednesday.

“It is with a heart of gratitude and immense joy that we at El Roi Haiti confirm the safe release of our staff member and friend, Alix Dorsainvil and her child who were held hostage in Port au Prince, Haiti. Today we are praising God for answered prayer!” El Roi Haiti officials said in a statement posted on their website.

The American nurse married El Roi Haiti founder and Liberty University graduate, Sandro Dorsainvil, in 2021 after she began her role as a school nurse with the organization in 2020. She is also a committed Christian who began traveling to Haiti in 2010. During her captivity, the ministry described her as someone who “lives a life following in the footsteps of Jesus.”

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On the day she was abducted, witnesses told The Associated Press that Alix Dorsainvil was busy caring for patients in a small brick clinic when armed men ambushed the site where she was working and took her captive.

Lormina Louima, a patient who was waiting for a check-up, told the news service that one man brandished a gun and ordered her to relax.

“When I saw the gun, I was so scared,” Louima told the AP. “I said, ‘I don’t want to see this, let me go.’”

Members of the community said the gunmen demanded a $1 million ransom.

The U.S. Department of State, which had been working with Haitian counterparts to secure the release of Alix Dorsainvil and her daughter, did not state if a ransom was paid. 

"We have no greater priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas," the agency said. "As you can imagine, these individuals have been through a very difficult ordeal, both physically and mentally."

El Roi Haiti said the release of their founder’s wife and his daughter was also a testament to God’s faithfulness and the power of prayer.

“We are so thankful for everyone who joined us in prayer and supported us during this crisis. ‘El Roi’ is a Hebrew name of the God of the Bible that means ‘the God who sees.’ It is with that vision that we now rest upon God’s truth that, ‘In his kindness God called you to share in His eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, He will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation’ (1 Peter 5:10),” the ministry said.

“We praise God that He has proven Himself faithful as He restores, supports, and strengthens Alix and her family, the ministry of El Roi Haiti, and the community that Alix has impacted — and continues to impact — with her ministry in Haiti.”