Father Reginald Jean Mary

The Reverend Father Reginald Jean Mary, lovingly known as Father Reggie, was born in Jean-Rabel, Haiti where he spent his early years. In his teens, he moved to Port-au-Prince and returned to his hometown after earning a degree in accounting. It was in Jean-Rabel, that Father Reginald, volunteering in a literacy campaign was inspired to join the priesthood.

In 1991 Father Reginald migrated to the United States and joined the Archdiocese of Miami. He earned a degree in psychology and a double master’s degree in divinity. In 2001, he was ordained to the priesthood and assigned as parochial vicar at Notre-Dame D’Haiti. In 2004, South Florida’s Haitian community jubilantly welcomed Father Jean-Mary as Notre Dame D ’Haiti’s young and dynamic new pastor. In 2004, Father Reginald launched a capital campaign to rebuild the church and in February 2, 2014 the resplendent Notre Dame D’Haiti was inaugurated with the unveiling of the Shrine of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Located in the heart of Little Haiti, the church has become a source of pride to Haitian Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Notre Dame also sits at critical crossroads where faith, power and community intersect. Under Father Reginald’s leadership, the church has become the obligatory stop ground for local and national leaders, including President Biden who visited in 2011.

In the midst of the border crisis, Secretary of State Mayorkas, met with community leaders at Notre Dame D’Haiti, community center. Father Reginald’s, honoring his vision of a strong and united Haitian community, has created through the church, a space where Haitian American leaders, elected officials, community stakeholders from Haiti and the US Diaspora come to seek counsel and guidance. Father Reginald is credited for innovative strategies, which have increased membership. He introduced “Jericho” a weeklong, yearly revival where over 7000 worshipers from Haiti and the global diaspora gather in prayer and fellowship.

Father Reginald is excited to join the Haitian Foundation for Democracy’s Board of Directors. He cares deeply about Haiti and about the right of the Haitian people to live in peace and dignity. He believes that the faith community has a pivotal role to play in educating and strengthening the Diaspora’s capacity to be an impactful and transformational agent of change both domestically and in Haiti.