Meet the Founder

Dr. Asnel Valcin is passionate about restoring people to wholeness. He spent the last two decades preparing himself to become an agent of personal change. He graduated from Graduate Theological Foundation with a Doctorate in Psychology concentration: Clinical Pastoral Psychotherapy. 

His passion for helping children was born in the crucible of pain and adversity. He grew up with asthma as a child and remembered how he almost died because of a lack of medical care. Later, in pursuit of better life and safety for him and his brother, their mother gave them up to be adopted by a family 200 kilometers away from their birth town.

Dr. Valcin is no stranger to feelings of abandonment and rejection. After migrating to the United States, he got married to his current wife Dorcas Sumawang, and his first child was diagnosed with William syndrome, a rare heart condition that impacts development and cognition in a child. While learning to advocate for his daughter’s needs Dr. Valcin became an advocate for all other children struggling to climb out of conditions they had no control over such as poverty and insecurity.  In 2010, while pastoring his first church district, Dr. Valcin started the “Learning to Succeed” initiative which provided after-school activities for disadvantaged children in the North Bronx. This program was a success but short-lived. It was during the same time that Dr. Valcin lost his niece in the first major earthquake in Haiti. His surviving nieces and nephews are all traumatized by this catastrophic event. He felt powerless then; thus, he decided that he will prepare for the next time such a catastrophe eventually occur to be able to make a real difference. 

When in August 2021 the south of Haiti was devastated by another earthquake, Dr. Valcin was ready. He quickly assembled a team of Chaplains to offer psychosocial help to those who experienced PTSD. Now he is passionate about finding ways to help restore children and youth to wholeness. Dr. Valcin’s passion for education and mental/physical health increasingly propelled him to redefine his life’s mission. Today, Dr. Valcin dedicates his life to making a real difference in people’s lives.

Dr. Valcin is a Diplomate Supervisor in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). He is a Board Certified Clinical Chaplain and Pastoral Counselor. Dr. Asnel Valcin is presently the Director of the Pastoral Care and Education Department for one of New York’s healthcare systems. He was the Executive Chair of the Certification Committee with the College of Pastoral Supervision and Psychotherapy (CPSP). Dr. Valcin is an international speaker and seminar presenter. Dr. Valcin is the Executive Director of AMI Haiti, an organization dedicated to providing disadvantaged children the opportunity to fulfill their life’s purpose.