Pictures of the Team

Here are some more pictures of the week with the team! The first picture shows all the guys, so from left to right is Mike, Todd, Pastor Rigaud, Alan, Mickenson, and Paul. This was taken after Pastor Rigaud (hospital administrator and friend) came to give us thank-you gifts for coming and working. It was neat, each guy got a really cool drawing of Haiti. He gave Chris and I gifts too, which we weren't expecting! He came to tell the team how much the people here appreciate the work they've done. They have made life easier for the hospital staff in many ways, and simply their presence here is an encouragement.Underneath here you can see a before and after picture of the counter top in the medical house. Before the guys built the nice wooden one you see below, Chris thought there was a piece of ceiling tile placed over the cabinets that they couldn't set their dishes on. What a joy for them to have a brand new, stable counter. They also put one in their bathroom too. This morning we were planning to go to the Citadel...but learned that it would cost a very large amount of money. We changed plans and decided to go to the beach which is somewhat nearby, but it's been raining this morning so I'm not sure we will do anything touristy today! We shall see. Mike (the guy on the ladder) has been busy doing electrical work all week (even in the rain, that is!), while Mickenson (the guy painting) has been so great to have around to translate for us and to help with jobs. Bill and Elaine have been awesome hosts too. Cooking, cleaning, and working with and for the team. We are all getting ready to head to Port au Prince on Monday. We'll drop the team off at the airport, and wait for a few hours until our own plane comes in, then we'll be off.

Yesterday we showed a movie for our English club...the Ultimate Gift. It's a good movie! There were about 5 guys there to watch, and they enjoyed it. We turned on the English subtitles so they could hear and read, hopefully getting a fuller understanding that way. Every so often, we'd pause it and talk about what was happening. It was something fun and different than talking about politics, the earthquake, or history like we usually do in the club. Those are all important topics of course, but who doesn't like to kick back and relax now and then. (Although I'm not sure how relaxing that was for them...if we tried to watch a movie in Creole I think I'd be exhausted afterward).
After that, we went with Pastor Emmanuel to his house because his daughter-in-law, Madam Onyx, was there visiting for a few days. She had a baby back in September but immediately had serious complications and has been going through depression and other mental difficulties since. Last time Dr. Kris saw here, she said she was shuffling through the house, and wasn't very responsive. But yesterday, she seemed MUCH better! We were thrilled to see her so much improved. We talked with her and her parents for about 10 minutes probably, and she asked a few questions, and seemed very with-it. She has been living in Cap Haitian, away from her baby, for many months now, getting care. Her family has been taking care of Ted, the baby (whose dad lives here with

them) and we have all been praying and asking
about her for a long time it seems. So it was great to see her here and doing better. Praise God!
I like this pic of Chris with a shovel in one hand and pulling a little red wagon with the other. :) The team has been using it to haul stuff up and down the hill.
Have a good weekend!

A Week of Repairs

This has been a really good week with the team. They work quickly and have gotten a lot done: Re-wiring the electricity in the church (there are actually light switches now, and the wires aren't exposed) new counter tops made for the medical house, screens repaired for the clinic and medical house, a toilet (almost finished) put in at the clinic, tiling on counters, repairing of water tank, and more that I'm forgetting. Each night we eat dinner all together, and have devotions afterward.It's been cool to hear stories and listen to people share about how God has been faithful in their lives. In the picture you see Paul and Alan working hard, and one of the screens that needed repaired. Above that is Jennifler and Sephora, two of the cutest little Haitian girls you could imagine! Everyday the team has a group of kids (sometimes adults too) standing around watching them work. They are very gracious to them, and like to hand out candy too. Yesterday one guy came out of the guest house with a hand full of suckers, followed by another guy carrying an arm load of toothbrushes! Both were received with excitement. Two of Cory's gardeners have also been working with the guys. They've really appreciated the help and as you can see they aren't afraid to do the dirty work. (they are digging to find some clogged toilet pipes in the picture, no thanks!)
English classes have been going really well this week. After three weeks of no class, most of our students have come back this week and been really great. After we found out we need to leave again for two weeks, but both classes have been gracious. We assured them they will still get their certificates if they come to class, and we are extending the class time to 2 hours instead of one and a half. Our first class is my favorite right now, mainly because it is small. This week we've only had 6 or seven students in this class, and 4 of them are women! It's fun teaching a class that size, and knowing their names this time around, in both classes, has totally changed the experience. I'm starting to not be able to think too hard about when we leave! Though we're excited to come home and see our families and be in our own culture, the thought of leaving is becoming much harder to think about.
Oh! We also heard from the Thede's again, as Chris has been talking with Cory now and then about projects going on and getting instruction. They are still doing well, and the clinic has been able to limit their patients-per-day to about 200 instead of 600. The kids are doing fine, and Kris is still doing triage while Cory helps in the pharmacy. We will get to "host" them in Port au Prince next Friday when they come to the guest house before coming back north.
So, the saga with Darlene will continue. I imagine it will be a bit different because Carl, the owner of the house and her boss!-will be there and from what we understood she and Hareld would act differently when he was around. (maybe she won't go outside and sleep in the afternoon anymore! :) We shall see!
Thanks for reading and keeping up to date with us and praying. We're not very good at posting prayer requests but here's a few:
-For the Thede's in Petit Goave, that this would be a bonding time for their family, and a healing time for Kris, as she went through a lot the first time she was there.
-For the team up here, that they could return home having learned some things and knowing they really blessed the people here
-That the commitments made to God and the spiritual awakening wouldn't fizzle out, but would grow stronger as the country and each family enters this this time of rebuilding and moving on.
-That we'd be safe in that tiny plane once again!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Eeek!
Have a great day!

A Little Bit of Everything and Some News from the Thedes

Its Tuesday morning and Kath and I feel settled back into Fauche. We started our English classes again last night that went well. We talked about the difference of fancy and casual, family, step-family, we read the beginning of James 2, and worked on the pronunciation of oo in food, pool, etc. It was a good class that went pretty quickly. Kath and I have found teaching together very encouraging and helpful. Whenever I am feeling sluggish my wife is there to take up the slack and keep the class moving and visa versa when she's not feeling it. It is great to teach together and we have become a pretty awesome team! Last night was our first class in three weeks. We had Pastor Emmanuel (our English speaking neighbor) come to class and translate for us as we told our class that we will be missing another two weeks starting Monday. Why? Yesterday morning we got a call from Joy Irvine and she asked us to come and work in the guest house in Port-au-Prince again! Kathleen and I didn't really want to go, but we just prayed that if we were supposed to go then things would go smoothly and everything would be arranged. We were just feeling settled and we were worried about our classes and the relationships that we have with people here. We just got started again! But someone needs to be in PAP to receive teams and feed them. So we will be going on the first of March. We have a team here that is working on the clinic and campus so we need to be here until Monday and we will be leaving at the same time as them. Bill and Elaine will be coming with us to help out. It should be a good time of meeting new people and being a good host/hostess. We are sad to be separated from our classes again but last night they took the news very well, and understood that the earthquake disrupted everything, including our little English class 100 miles away.

The team here for this week is from north of Grand Rapids, MI and have been working away. Todd, Alan, Mike, Paul, and Mickenson (a Haitian guy from LaGonave that knows Todd and met them up here to help translate-very helpful! and work) have been a pleasure to have and very easy to take care of. Right now they are working on tiling countertops in the clinic (below), rewiring messy areas, putting in light sockets/light switches (Below: Bill and Mike looking at a fuse that needs replaced) repairing broken sewage pipes, hooking up water to the clinic, tiling countertops in the Thede's house, making fun of each other, laughing, and sharing stories with us. It has been a great time and they have done a great job. We are excited to see what they can get done this week.
Sunday afternoon Kathleen and I spent some time apart (it was agonizing!!!!). I went to the children's program at the church and she stayed and made Haitian food with a Madh-Jenny (sounds like Myjenny). They made a white rice and then a chicken sauce to go over it. Kath kept just a little and we gave the rest to Madh-Jenny's family. It was very good...Good job honey! When we get back we will have to make Haitian food when we have guests.
I talked to Cory today. He had some crazy news. Yesterday the clinic set a record of seeing 600 patients in this little outdoor clinic! He told me that they were working until 7 o'clock handing out medications and seeing patients. Kris has been very helpful in doing triage (picking importance of who gets seen) and keeping order in the masses of people wanting to be seen. Her knowledge of Kreole and Haitians is very useful in this type of situation. She and the rest of the medical workers are all working outdoors under these tarps. Not having rain is very important. Cory has been working in the pharmacy (below) stocking drugs in the morning and handing drugs to patients after they have been seen explaining to them how often and how much they should be taken. With 600 patients it is a real blessing to have 2 knowledgeable missionaries there! Anna is even keeping busy playing as usual and even translating some. The whole family is staying in a tent together at night 100 feet below the clinic. 200 feet below them is the ocean. Cory told me that everything seemed well organized and going very well in spite of being so busy. The medical team doesn't seem to have any hotheads and the Haitians are willing to wait for their free medical care. It is amazing how it has been working. We just learned the other day that this clinic should be closing down in the next 30 days because the Red Cross is going to rebuild the hospital there. That would be phenomenal, but until then the Wesleyan Clinic is THE health care provider for Petit Guave.
Well that is a lot of typing, but I had a lot to say ;) Thanks for all your prayers and thoughts.

Bon Voyage Thedes, Welcome another team!

This morning the Thede's took off for their two week trip to Petit Goave as a family. When Kris left the day after the earthquake to offer her medical skills, that is where she ended up, and where she eventually met Chris's dad too! Now they are returning as a family to offer another two weeks of service and experience a taste of what Kris did together. We will be praying for them and ask that you do too! Cory will be traveling around with an agricultural team for the first week, seeing what crops should be planted post-earthquake that could provide food quickly. We'll be praying that they have a really amazing experience as a family and individually! That Anna and Eli will adjust to the new temporary living situation easily and that they will each be used in special ways. The picture to the left shows the large military tents they'll be staying in, as well as the ocean view they will hopefully enjoy when they need a breather. On the right you see the pharmacy that has been accumulated at the clinic in Petit Goave. The Thedes are bringing more boxes of medical supplies to add to the stash you see here. The palm tree pic shows part of the clinic area; patients are laid on those tables for exams and wait their turn on the surrounding benches.
It will be strange being here in Fauche without the Thede's for the next few weeks! We and the Bailey's will be hosting a team of 4 men coming to do more work on the clinic and things around the compound. We will try to keep them busy, fed, challenged, comfortable, and happy! We don't know anything much about the guys, but will have met them all by (hopefully) about noon today. Chris went along to pick them up from the airport this morning and drop the Thede's off at the same time.
Next week we start our English classes once again. So far I am finding out that my worry was unnecessary (I suppose worry is ALWAYS unnecessary, but that's hard to realize at the time) about whether our students would be upset over our leaving without letting them know. So far, each one we have talked to has been gracious. God shows us again that we only need to trust him.
This past week Chris and I honestly didn't do much when it comes to actual work. We got home and realized how tired we were! The first night we were back I think we slept about 10 hours, it was so nice. We spent the first few days unpacking, accumulating a large pile of laundry to go along with the large pile we had left 2 weeks ago, getting acquainted with the team that was here, hanging out with Eli and Anna, relaxing, talking to neighborhood kids, sweeping flies out of our house, and spending some time together. It was interesting hearing the teams from the US talk about their experience here. They LOVE the kids, first of all. They find them charming and fun, which was good for us to hear. We have become a bit jaded when it comes to the kids, since they rarely come without asking and asking now a days. When we first came, we spent hours playing with them and really enjoyed that! But as our months have gone by it's become less enjoyable and more a source of frustration and confusion--we aren't sure how much to give, both in time and material things, and they seem to just want to take. So it was good for us to hear them rave about the kids, and to reevaluate our attitudes toward them. It's still hard but we don't want to become too cynical!
Today I am getting ready to go talk to the cooks and tell them to spice up the beans and rice (Kris, Eli and Anna don't like spicy food so while they are gone we will try for something different!) and then help Bill and Elaine get ready for the teams' arrival. Thanks for your prayers. We have 2 more months here and want to finish strong, whatever that will mean! We appreciate your prayers and encouragement more than ever. God bless and have a great weekend!

A Parade of Praise...with a video!

Watch this video of what took place in Fauche on Tuesday!

On Tuesday afternoon, we had been back in Fauche for only about a day, and were still excited by the response to the three day, nation-wide time of fasting and prayer that Haiti had declared. How exciting it was to see crowds of people singing and walking from church services on Sunday night in Port au Prince, when it was the first night of Carnival! (usually this would be a time for Vodou stuff to take the streets) As we drove back to our guest house from Petit Goave that night, we saw church after church packed out, with people having services under tarps, and even on the streets. It was a decision about a week and a half ago that Haiti would have a day of mourning (Feb. 12, one month after the earthquake) and a weekend of prayer and fasting for the country. The spontaneous response was greater than we could anticipate. It was kind of unreal to be in Port au Prince and see all the people near the broken palace where they held a huge service. When we returned to the North, there were similar exciting stories to being told! Hundreds of people had accepted Jesus at the church in Port Margot, and services had been held all weekend up here as well. This week there is a service in the Fauche church every night.
On Tuesday afternoon, we heard that there was going to be a parade of people coming through Fauche. We didn't really know what that meant, but heard that people were walking the roads from town to town, and we could hear their singing off in the distance. Along with the team here from Warsaw, Indiana, we went down by the road to wait for them to come by. When they finally came around the curve, it was quite a sight!! There were so many people! Singing and dancing, and with big smiles, arms raised. They came into the campus to gather for a few minutes, then turned back toward Port Margot to continue with their parade. It was amazing! To see all these people whose country and families had just been devastated by an earthquake only a month ago, praising God and enjoying themselves, it can't be explained. The healing and hope that was taking place was too much to take in at once!
I love this picture because the woman on the far right is Lilianne, the lady from our English class that I mentioned a few weeks back who told me she had lost her husband. We know that seriously only God can give her the smile that's on her face and the dance in her step. God is moving here! And it's so exciting! Even though there is great sadness and serious wounds, God is good and our hope is in Him!

There and Back Again

16 days later we are back in our country estate, greeted by a rainy day and our lovely indoor bed! It has been an adventure that we won't soon forget and that we are glad we set out on. We have been encouraged and renewed by a change of setting and people but we are so thankful to be home.
Our last couple days in PAP were full of activity and people as one can imagine running a guest house. I was trying to keep all the electric and water going the whole time I was there and of course had some things go wrong... ie this picture. When I repaired the shut off valve in the back of the toilet that was causing all the water in the cistern to leak out each night I had the water supply line cross threaded. I was waiting to turn on the water supply valve until I had filled the cistern, but I once I filled the cistern I forgot to go turn it on and check it. So what happened was that someone (Dan) turned it on thinking that I was a good plumber (bad assumption) and left. Since it was cross threaded and I didn't know it water started spraying onto the floor. We were all down stairs when we heard water splashing. At first we thought it was the cistern overflowing but with a little more listening we investigated upstairs. We walked into the bathroom to find inches of water on the floor! That is why Joy and I are standing in the picture with towels. We would sop up a towel full of water and wring it out in the shower. It took about 7 bath towels and 20 minutes and we had it all cleaned up. I rethreaded the supply line and had it working in no time! This story is much like the rest of our time in the PAP guest house. There was always something to keep us busy including this picture of Kathleen cutting a piece of wood to repair a drawer in the kitchen. At some point in the last few days (they all blend together) we set up all these mosquito nets for the Canadain team that was staying with us for another night on their way out. The teams were always coming and going and it was great to get to meet so many new people. It was really neat to see the variety of people that have come to Haiti to help in their time of need.
On Sunday we went to Petit Guave to visit the clinic. On the way Kathleen and Joy saw the extent of the damage on the 2 1/2 hour drive there. We walked down to the water and took this pic. Again it was strange to be in a place where my dad had sat and typed emails a few weeks earlier. God works in mysterious ways. It was a different Valentine's Day than I would have planned for my first year of marriage had I not been in Haiti just over a month but Kath and I were able to get a moment on a rocky beach in the Caribbean watching the waves break over old cement foundations. Maybe it was better than what I could have planned in snowy and cold Indiana.
We came back and met the team that has been working hard here to fix up our medical clinic. They are a great group of people. We kinda took this morning to catch our breath. We are still deciding when we will start our English classes but it will probably be this week. Saturday the Thedes leave to go to Petit Guave and the Baileys and us will take over working with the next team. We feel much more prepared after our last couple weeks in PAP. Thanks for all the prayers!
Kathleen and the Scotsmen (Dan, Jarvie, Kath, and Kain) - great group of guys!
The view from the plane window as we took off from PAP.

Learning

This morning I'm sitting in a pretty quiet house with only myself, Darlene, and Herold here. A team from Canada and another team from San Diego just left this morning to try to get back home, and Chris and Joy went to the airport to see about flights. Right now getting into and out of Haiti is nothing simple. You can't just go online and book a flight...you have to drive to the airport, talk to someone, who will write your name on a list, and then maybe you will be able to fly. So you have to go back the day of your scheduled flight and see if you make it on the plane. As you can imagine this is stressful for team leaders and workers in Haiti who are trying to keep clinics running and people coming and going. But someone people are still coming and going everyday! This picture is the back view of the guest house.
These last two teams were full of interesting people and different responses to what they had just experienced. I have learned these past few weeks the blessing and difficulty of hospitality. Yes, it's great meeting new people and hearing about their lives. It's fun talking to them over dinner and having sweet moments of fellowship and shared faith! So encouraging. Being the ones who know what's going on and making them comfortable is fun. But those same people also eat all the food that took a long time to prepare (well, duh...but the hoard-er in me just wants to save it all for some crazy reason!) they make things messy (not that I clean the bathroom...Herold does) they eat the food that's supposed to be for breakfast, and inevitably, at a very early hour in the morning, at least one person is talking very loudly! haha. It's been such a good challenge, though revealing about how far I have to come. I'm so thankful that Chris is here with me, he is so cool in general and natural with people, and we have become a team.
Yesterday we were sent out to the grocery store to try to find some meat and other stuff for cooking. I hadn't been down into Port au Prince yet...just to the airport and back which is about a 30 minute drive. Wow, it was strange. Some of the way it looks is just Haiti, last time we were here there was concrete rubble and trash and all that too, before the earthquake. But seeing random buildings totally in pieces, that was different. And hard to describe.
Back at the house, we cooked, along with Joy, a yummy casserole, some bread, coffee cake for the morning, and baked beans for the people coming back from a long, tiring week at Ti Goave. This picture is of the first bread I made...don't be fooled by it's appearance, it was rock hard!! But a new recipe helped with that issue.
We are now trying to figure out how we can help Darlene, who works for Carl and Maya Gilles, the missionaries whose house this is but who are in Canada right now because they have two small girls, have a better report to Maya when we go. Right now, none of us are feeling very ready to give her 5 stars! She's a nice lady, but as far as working goes...she just doesn't like to do it so much! We all have stories about funny encounters with her and her attitude, but yesterday it occurred to us, wait! We can't be nice to her and try to be chummy and Christ-like to her face but then give her a terrible report so she gets fired without even seeing it coming! So now we are in a dilemma! Do we tell her she needs to step it up a notch? Do we not say anything to Maya? (even though I found her outside fast asleep the other day, and she is really hard to work with?) Ahh! Since we are younger, the talking-to would need to come from Dan or Joy, so we will see. Oh the complications of running a guest house :)
The picture below is of Wilber. He drives for the mission and goes on various errands and trips everyday. He sleeps here everynight and eats all his meals with us. He also has gotten showered with gifts from team members who are looking to give things away. He has, in the last week, gotten a new watch, new shoes, new sunglasses, cash, and more! He has a family, but in the Haitian culture, people often are away from their families. So while we may think it's strange that he sleeps here every night, it isn't to them. He's a nice guy, and is good about speaking so we can understand him. I often wonder what he, Darlene, and Herold think of all of us Americans.
We still appreciate your prayers. We are hoping to return to Fauche early next week. We'd love prayer for our transition back there. And continued prayer for the complex and really difficult situations that each Haitian family is facing these days. Everyone has a story. Pray that they'll somehow have peace in the midst of this storm!