Haiti-10/17/15

Today we left Haiti...

To be honest I feel as if we're leaving with work still to be done. 

I guess in a sense we still have more to do. What we started at EBO is far from finished and we need to continue meeting and working on what to do next. We will do this and we will figure it out. I can only imagine if we really can pull of providing them with leadership training and support. The good news is Murph goes back every month and can help continue the work. 

This trip was so different from last year. It was more raw and we really saw first hand just how hard life can be. 

Despite all this Haiti still amazes me. The people are survivors, determined to keep going despite all odds. 

Haiti has a weird and magical pull for us.  Its definitely a place we will try to continue to work in some capacity. 

Despite the struggle there is so much beauty to be found. All I can think of is the phrase you hear so much of down there: "this is Haiti."

Haiti-10/16/15

Today is a new day!

This morning we had a little 'culture day'. Drove into Port au Prince to buy suveniours and have lunch. We went to lunch at a local resort that included a pool! This was welcomed by the entire group. We also had pizza for lunch...it was pretty good!

After a little reprieve we went back to EBO.

The plan for today was simply to see if they are even interested in doing anything at all with us.

We get there and immediately get out team together.  We sit down with them separately of everyone else.  Long story short, they were still thinking about what we said to them! After our conversation Joseph led us in prayer where he asked for this to take hold of him so they all could change for the better. Also, after talking to Mama A. we learned that the behavior did change a bit last night...for the better.

We need this news...we were finally getting somewhere! And we leave tomorrow.....

This is the most hopeful I've felt about EBO. They were finally receptive of us and what we had to give them. This was no easy task...now the real work starts. We have to figure out a way to support them from Indiana.

 

Haiti-a magical place

Haiti-RBBL suitcase

Thanks to the students at Jefferson Middle school we were able to bring down 50 French/English books, school supplies, and comfort items to Haiti.  Thank you kids! Your hard work effected so many people!

Here's where they all went:

WCH clinic waiting room
EBO
CHE Training
Siblings of our Translators

Haiti- Our new friends

We met so many amazing people this year. Every single villager we talked to and the kids at EBO will remain in my heart and on my mind.  I won't soon forget their words, laughs, and smiles. Haitians to me represent true survivors.  They show what people can really endure.

The staff at WCH are great. I've never eaten more amazing food and they cooked breakfast and dinner for us each day.  You will never go hungry in that house.

Our translators: Ducky, Ande, Tito, Charly, and Johnson are priceless.  This group of guys fully understand our mission and are willing to step in at anytime we need them.

Rachel is the american who runs the new clinic. She is new to living in Haiti but has the capacity to really change lives.  She is carried by her faith but is fearless to get her hands dirty and step up for what she needs.  No doubt she will be successful.

Reginold is the 3 year old son of our security guard.  He is the friendliest kid you will meet and amazingly cute! He's wearing the shades in the pic below.

Haiti-The Team

We could not have asked for a better group to travel with. Everyone has been hard working, easy going, and committed to being of service to Haiti.

Haiti-10/15/15

Today was our EBO work day. Did not go as planned......

We get to EBO and James and Murph start talking to the Mama's to explain what we had planned for today. This little intro turned into a 2 hour discussion in a hot little room where we learned that our leadership team was the bulk of the problem at this orphanage. They basically are not being good role models for all the younger children and the Mama's feel that if they would change their behavior then the younger children would follow suit.

Imagine our defeat..... great, so the kids we were going to train and empower to lead this place are the problem! What! of course.... nothing can ever be easy. So we threw our plan out the window (well, just left it on the bus) and had to start over right then and there.

But let me back up just a bit.... while James and Murph were having their discussion I got to have a little fun. For some reason today, several of the younger children were home from school early. We got them all gathered around the table to make salvation bracelets. These are the bracelets with the colored beds that represent how Jesus died to save us from our sins. We started off by discussing what each bead meant and why it is important and then helped them all make their own bracelet. They actually seemed to understand and enjoyed making the bracelets. After that we colored and played soccer.



Ok back to the leadership training...

After the discussion with the Mama's I came in for a little of what we call Good Cop, Bad Cop. The four 'leaders' came in and sat with us and Murph was bad cop and James was good cop. They were a pretty amazing team. We spent another hour having a true 'come to Jesus' moment if you will. We just wanted to hear their side of what is going on and maybe find out why they feel the need to have poor behavior. At first we had just blank stares but eventually they opened up and discussed how they feel. We ended up having a conversation about respecting those put in leadership over you and how they can step up and be role models for the younger kids.

Outside, the younger children were starting to melt down. At this point it was about 5pm and our presence prevented afternoon nap time from taking place. All members of the team were being pushed emotionally and physically. We wrapped up on conversation and headed home, perplexed and unsure of what to do next.

 We need to think and sleep. One thing is for sure.... we need to come back tomorrow. 

Haiti-Mes

We met Mes last year in Haiti. We learned his story and all he has gone through with traveling to the US to have his backed worked on.  He has the personality where he can make friends in any crowd.

We were so excited to learn that we were going to get to hang out with him this week.

Mes is 15, which is the same age as the kids James works with at home. They became fast friends.

Mes is going to be working with a tutor starting in the next couple of weeks and is going to live at the WCH compound. Keep our friend in your prayers, God has big plans for him.

Haiti-10/14/15

Today was all about the work.... to be honest it was welcomed! We have had such an emotional roller coaster the past few days it was a breath of fresh air to just do something that didn't require much thought.

We went  back to the Lighthouse today to complete some projects they needed done. It was all painting! This has never been a strong suit of mine, just ask James. But I was able to actually be helpful, despite my lack of skill.

The Lighthouse has a pretty amazing second story patio, with an amazing view. Underneath that patio is a covered patio that leads to the house's front door. Due to age, tropical weather, and dozens of young soccer players the covered patio needed to be re-painted. So that's what we did. I have to admit it looks pretty good now.

 After that was painted I somehow ended up on a small team who was tasked with painting the back storage room off the outdoor kitchen. The staff at the house wanted it painted white so they could see better in there. The lights did not work in that room and we could not figure out how to get them to work. So in we went, into a dark room full of spiders! Oh.... and it was so hot! But thanks to the moral support of others and James sarcasm we finished and it honestly looks really good now... not scary at all!

At the end of this day we were covered in paint.... like completely covered, head to toe! So, shower, dinner, bed was the agenda for the evening.

James did make friends with the guard dog today! Anyone surprised?

Haiti-10/13/15

We had a full day today. Started out with a stop at Grace Emmanuel School. This is the school that is supported by Jesus in Haiti Ministries. This school continues to amaze me. In just the span of a couple of years they have built several structures for classrooms and grown to over 300 students. Truly amazing.

These kids are welcoming and full of life. We got there around the same time as their break so we got to hang out in the playground with them. 


After we left the school, the plan was to head out into some villages to do ministry. Murph works with an organization called CHE (Community Health Evangilism) as part of what he does in Haiti. This program is designed to offer tools and trainings for individuals to be more self-sufficient. The cool part about CHE is it offers trainings to the residents of a community to then be able to go out and teach others. This takes the American's out of the picture and creates the opportunity for Haitians to rely on themselves and each other. CHE is all over the world but in Haiti they have started successful businesses, improved sanitation, and have provided scripture and education.

The village that we went into today is a brand new CHE village. So we drive up and park outside of the school. We split into small teams; a few Americans, 1 community member, and a translator and headed out to see who we could find to talk to. The group James and I were with stopped at 3 homes. To be completely honest, the conversations we had left me feeling defeated.

The first house we stopped at was the home of a young mother, holding her baby. The baby was a little fussy and turned out he was hungry. Immediatly we all handed over whatever granola bars we had on us. The second house we stopped at was the home of a single mother, I believe she had 5 or 6 kids. She had no job and her children had no job. When asked about why no one was working the response was there are simply no jobs. The third home we went to was an elderly woman's whose grandsons lived with her. One of the boys spoke English (when I'm over seas and I hear English it's like I don't recognize it sometimes it's so rare out in public). He was reading a DW book, said he was trying to learn more English. James asked if he was in school but he is not, I'm sure due to the lack of money to pay for school. We talked and prayed with each of these families and explained what CHE is and that they are going to be doing more work in the village. I can only hope that things will turn around for them.

My initial thoughts are why? Why does this have to be so hard? Why do these people have to live this way? Why isn't more being done? Why were we sent here and what can we do?

What struck me about today was the sense of hopelessness. This was the first time I got to really speak to adults in Haiti. The reality of life and the harshness of it hit us all like a ton of bricks today. Emotionally, were defeated. We're beat. I can only pray that we were able to offer some hope and support to our friends in that village.

Haiti-EBO facility pics

Haiti-10/12/15

So last night we discussed with Murph that we need more time at EBO. Our original plan was to go yesterday and tell them that we wanted to come back on Thursday and do our training. Well.... we need more time. So today, James and I and one other team member were able to go back to interview Mama L.

The rest of the team spent the day working in the women and children's clinic.

We go to EBO with our translator Duckinson (Ducky). He is one of those people that just 'Get It'. He understands what we are wanting to do and then tells us how to do it in Haiti. The whole drive over he talked about how his culture works and basically what not to do to offend anyone.

We get to EBO, unannounced. (This seems to be a theme with James and I in other countries!). Most of the kids were at school. Moises, Cassandra, and the really young kids were all that were home. We went in and asked if we could talk with Mama L. She of course said yes and immediately started asking others to bring us chairs to sit in.

James and I created a list of questions we wanted to ask Mama L. They ranged from how and why did you start EBO to how do you get food and funding. We basically just want to learn more about them. We spent the next 2 hours sitting in Mama L's room listening to her story. She is a remarkable human being and no question was off limits with her. She told us how she started the orphanage in 1998 with her husband and a few other couples. All of which have left and her husband passed away in 2007. She spoke of how she had to move several times, which I could not imagine moving all those kids the number of times she did. She talked about the earthquake and how they all lived in tents afterwards. Then she spoke about how she saved money and was able to buy the land that the orphanage currently sits on. A huge accomplishment in Haiti. Hearing this story shows she is invested in her own property. This is good news as we want to work more as a team with her to make improvements as opposed to simply just giving her things.

One of the main questions I wanted to ask was how they get their food. She is on a distribution of a couple organizations, one of which is WCH. They pass out boxes of rice and beans. She said this is not enough, however. Which means they are still hungry. She also longs for some variety, specifically tomatoes and onions.

We learned the stories of the kids and how several became orphans in the earthquake or were dropped off due to their families dire circumstances. She spoke about Moises, he is the boy who uses the walker, and how he was found in the trash (literally) at the age of 3. At that time, his arms and legs were in worse shape then they are now. She loves this boy and calls him a "phenomenon." Her recounting of Cassandra is equally as heart renching (she is the adorable girl in the wheelchair from yesterday's post) came to them with her mother. The mother works off a bit of their room and board but with Cassandra's disability she feels she cannot provide for her the way she deserves.They seem to be at a loss. Mama L's goal is to one day get both of these kids in school and to offer them a chance to do something good with their lives.  She's a determined women and has gotten them this far and literally saved their lives. 

As I sit listening to the stories of these kids and this women the word 'survivors' comes to mind several times. That is what each and every single one of them are and I am in awe of all of them.

After our interview with Mama L. the kids start to come home from school. We spent the next hour or so doing crafts and activities with the kids. They were all pretty cute in their school uniforms. James also talked with Joseph, one of the EBO leaders about what our vision for the program is and that we will be coming back on Thursday.

We also got to meet Mama Agadzia who is Mama L's daughter. She helps out at the orphanage in the afternoon and teaches at the school during the day.


 This was a day like none I've ever had before. I really learned the importance of listening today. Just being a sounding board and truly caring can do amazing things.

On a side note, Mama L. is full of one liners. She hit us with several today that left us thinking long after we left. Our favorite was "You cannot eat a cucumber with one finger."  Think about it....... :)




After this day and learning so much about the history at EBO, James and I took some time to watch the Haitian sunset. Some of prettiest sunsets I have ever seen. There is so much unexpected beauty in this country. (The picture below also shows our pretty amazing bus, we are riding in style this week!)

 

 

Haiti-10/11/15

It's Sunday in Haiti so we started our day at church. Haitian church is so amazing to be a part of. Their passion shows greatly through their worship and in their preaching. I feel truly renewed after leaving service (and I didn't even understand it!) but being able to witness true faith, love, and dedication in the midst of some of the most extreme struggle I have ever seen is inspiring.

After Church, we ate at Mama Yolti's. James and I have been hearing about this restaurant for 2 years now. Everyone talked it up last year but we never got to go. Well.... it did not disappoint. Chicken, rice, beans, and plantains. Can't really go wrong! OH! and coke in the glass bottle.


After lunch we spent the afternoon visiting orphanages.

Our first stop was The Lighthouse. This is a home with the ministry Jesus in Haiti. We stayed with them last year so it was fun seeing all the kids again. Plus this ended up being a scouting mission for projects later in the week.

After that we went to Harvest Care. This is a very nice orphanage. They are supported by Back to Back ministries. The goal of Back to Back is to take one place and really work to transform it physically and spiritually. The kids are happy, the place is clean, and the house parents are so nice.

After visiting Harvest Care we all loaded into our bus and headed to EBO. This place is one of the sole missions of our trip. EBO is an orphanage that Murph (our mission pastor) found a few months back. This place is extremely poor and houses about 40 children. Several needs were identified, one of which being more leadership on the part of the teenagers that lived there. This orphanage is run by Mama Louisanne, she is elderly and has some health concerns and the need for help on their part is great. So, while we were home; James, Murph and I (Marie, I'm the writer this week) created a survey to find the strengths of the older kids and try to assign them roles to help make everything run smoother. We then want to teach on a couple of skills such as honesty, respect, and stewardship.


Prior to traveling to Haiti, Murph prepared us for EBO. We saw pictures and learned a few of the stories of the kids. After all that prep, my heart still broke the instant we arrived.

We pull into the compound, and the first thing I notice is the dust. You can't get away from it. The yard is not paved so when the wind kicks up it's like your surrounded in little white dust tornadoes. And yes, it is white... which gets everywhere and doesn't come off too easily. They have dorms off to the left side which houses the majority of the kids. Off to the right is where Mama L. lives and one more room of bunks. Next to that is their eating area and kitchen. Along the back wall of the compound is a bathroom and showers. The showers do not have running water hooked up to them so I'm sure they are not used to often. The bathroom was actually pretty nice, but we quickly found out that there is a plumbing issue and so when you use the toilet it doesn't really stay in the toilet.


They have a large area out front where they can play soccer (all Haitians love soccer, I have yet to meet one that doesn't) and jump rope. Murph has been working here before and was able to build a swing set on a previous trip, so that is off to the right for them to use.

This group of kids are not like some of the others. Earlier in the day we walked into the other orphanages only to be greeted with smiling faces and hugs. At EBO, they were more reserved. Kids are kids and they warmed up but there is a different feel there. They are a rougher and tougher crowd.

We also met two amazing souls. Cassandra and Moises are two of the children there and are both special needs. I don't think they have ever been diagnosed with a specific condition. The thing that struck me about them though, is their smile! 

James and I are really excited and eager to get to work at this place. We're not sure exactly what this week and training is going to look like but we are ready to give this project a shot.