November 23, 2011

Our last two weeks in Haiti were jam packed with teams and work. Ben Tobias the associate director of missions for the CGGC and his team arrived on Saturday November 12^th. It is always amazing to see how God puts people in the right place to accomplish his will. Right off the bat one member of this team, Scott, was able to make some connections for the doctors at Pierre Payen, and doctors in Africa and at the CDC to hopefully get some answers about the medical issue with the young lady from La Gonave. This team was the first to spend a day helping with our house and we were very thankful for all they did. We also had the opportunity to go over to La Gonave to visit the COG to see the earthquake damage. We were blessed on the return trip to travel on an old lobster boat, owned by the Wesleyan’s, again a connection made by Scott. It was interesting to watch this team, which was an eclectic group from various denominations and locations, come together and accomplish what God had for them to do. On Thursday of that same week another team arrived with several seasoned Haitian visitors and three new ones. Upon arrival they asked what we needed done on our house. It was a lot, but they said they were there to bless us by getting it done before we all left on Thanksgiving Day. They spent the next few days building cabinets, a buffet, sanding, tiling, painting, putting up fans, and finding time to build relationships with Haitian friends. We did take time off on Wednesday to have a delicious turkey dinner with all the fixings. There were more than 30 people who enjoyed the turkey, which was a special treat from the store in PAP for the low, low price of $73 US, yes US dollars!

On Thursday morning we and the team headed to the airport to fly home with slim crowds on Thanksgiving Day. We flew straight to St. Francisco to visit our son, Nick and his wife Jaysa, and our grandchildren, Adilyne and Liam. I was thrilled to see all the fall colors here. I thought I had missed fall all together. We will head home to Missouri on December 1^st to spend Christmas with family and friends. Then we will be back in Haiti on January 3^rd for the Haitian Conference. We thank you for all of your prayers. Our prayer cards should be available soon. We look forward to seeing you in Haiti. Our thanksgiving and prayers go out to all those who are serving on mission fields around the world.

Ephesians 1:15-17

Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for Christians everywhere, I have never stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

November 9, 2011

Off to the island of La Ganove.  I went with the medical team from Columbia City, IN.  We caught the ferry just north of Akaye.  There was a lively crowd at the pier.  We were supposed to leave at 11:00, but didn't get underway until 12:20 pm.  It took 1 1/2 hours to reach the village of Anse A Galets where we were loaded into two pickup trucks.  We drove about 30 minutes by the ocean through the town of Nouvelle City and then an hour inland.  The roads became extremely rough but the drivers made it through.  We came to the village of Nan Cafe where approximately 200 people were already waiting.  Back to the house where we are going to sleep and another house where we ate.  They had Haitian spaghetti awaiting us.  We went back to where the clinic is to be held, hurried to set up and see some patients.  Dr. Kenel has a small building where he runs his clinic.  Our clinic is set up outside (more room and light, less heat).  Diesmy has done the preliminary work well.  The first patient I notice is a 24 year old woman (Alexia) who appears to have a large abdominal tumor, maybe 9 or 10 feet in circumference.  We are going to take her to the hospital at Pierre Payen where there happens to be a surgical team from the USA.  The team works until after dark.  They are a good team that works well together.  We sleep on the concrete floor, six of us in a 10 ft x 10 ft room.  Not real comfy, lots of snoring.  The night is actually chilly, maybe around 70.  Top of a mountain with a great view of the countryside.  They are feeding us at 7:00 am this morning.  This medical team was the first one to visit Nan Cafe.  Electricity for a few hours from a generator.  Water from a bucket to wash with and to flush the toilet with.  The team got started about 8:00 am.  The walk to the clinic is about a 10 minute hard walk up hill.  My job turned out to be the one who directed the patients to the correct station and watched for line jumpers.  It was a pretty orderly crowd until about 3:00 pm.  Everyone moved from inside to outside because the building was so hot.  There were many more people there than we were able to see and naturally, they were upset.  We had to quit and the people left without incident.  The team served about 300 people with medical help and vision help.  It was a very tiring day for everyone.  We made it back to our house.  The we live in was vacated by the owners so we could stay here.  The food was bought and cooked by the locals as their way of thanking the team for their service.  They had prepared a big meal for us, rice and beans, beef and goat.  A "white" family stopped by to see us.  They are the only white missionaries on the island except on the coast.  Their parents and grandparents had been missionaries for years.  The team is headed back to Borel.  We leave at 6:00 am tomorrow morning.  The team took Alexia to the hospital in Pierre Payen.  The doctors sent her to Port-au-Prince for a CAT scan.  Her condition was not caused by a tumor, but an extremely rare parasitic problem.  They are consulting doctors around the world at this time for direction on her treatment.  Pray for Alexia.  The team came back to Borel, where Betty and I live, and had a two day clinic serving almost 400 people.  The team had a great week because they let God direct them.  Philippians 2:13 - God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey Him and the power to do what pleases him.

November 2, 2011

Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; He will teach us His ways and we shall walk in His paths.  Isaiah 2:3.  This scripture was descriptive of this weeks experiences.  As lifelong educators we are especially drawn to the schools in Haiti. This school year, a group of people, spearheaded by Terry Bailey in Pennsylvania, have started a school sponsorship program called haitilovinghearts@comcast.net .  For just $200 a year you can pay for a child's tuition, books, backpack, and uniform.  The program started small but has blossomed into sponsorship of over 115 children in a dozen different schools.  This week I had the privilege of visiting those schools with Terry and an eye witness team from Pennslyvania.  As a teacher I was amazed by the small crowded 14 ft by 14 ft rooms with sometimes as many as 40 students who were quiet and well mannered.  Many of them want to practice their English and you'd often hear "Good morning" and "I am fine, thank you" even before they were asked.  Many of the school buildings are in need of repairs and would be great projects for work teams.

The eye witness team blessed us and the people of Haiti in many ways this week.  They hosted a women's meeting, where Pastor Cheryl Dorman shared scripture and discussed topics with the widows who came to the early meeting and younger women who came later in the morning and prayed with for ladies with individual needs.  Later in the week we traveled up a treacherous mountain road (actually a donkey path), following the pastor of the Gregoire Church on his motorcycle with a young man running beside us pointing out rocks and ledges to avoid, to deliver some clothes and supplies to this remote church.  The pastor wanted us to come back on Sunday when he passed out the gifts to his congregation.  We are thankful for the teams that come and share the joy of knowing Jesus Christ as our Savior.  Every day we learn from other Christians and from God's word.  Every day God has lessons for us if we are willing to learn.