"Stuff" for Haiti

Here is an idea of the amount of stuff we brought with us, many many thanks to each and everyone of you for the items, they are already being put to use.
Thursday brought us a day of travel to Saint Marcs.
Friday was a new day with an eye clinic with eye doctor, Issiah, who examined several of the childrens eyes and taught them how to take care of and clean their eyes.  We had a soaking rain today after a thunderstorm last night a welcome sight here.  The team went to the dam accompanied by several of the children from the village, at the dam the children were begging for their 'fotos' to be taken as well as begging us for water bottles, which really makes you think about the water that they drink comes from a canal that serves as the water for several villages to consume, as well as wash clothes and dishes, baths, and a play ground.  When we arrived we saw a low slow moving creek and within minutes of arriving witnessed a flash flood.  Well we
are all tired and heading to bed looking forward to morning to see what is in store for us.

Well here it is our last day in Haiti, boy did the time fly!!!!!!!!!!!
We have been kept very busy with the eye clinic, repairing benches for the school, working on the chicken house, painting one of the classrooms, sorting and organizing the clothes and shoes, [passing out Love bundles, went to Barbancourt and passed out school uniforms and shoes.  We have also had some special time of reflection at he prayer rock and the cross overlooking the compound.  Sunday was a day full with the church service, and then we went to Port Au Prince to tour the city and see the devastion from the earthquake that is still so evident.  So as we prepare to come back to the states thank you again for all your prayers and the supplies. A piece  of Haiti will travel back in each one of our hearts. God Bless and good night!
Wylie, Jud, Carol, Linda, Holly, and Candella

Ramblings from Haiti Team

Here is an idea of the amount of stuff we brought with us, many many thanks to each and everyone of you for the items, they are already being put to use.
Thursday brought us a day of travel to Saint Marcs. Friday was a new day with an eye clinic with eye doctor, Issiah, who
examined several of the childrens eyes and taught them how to take care of and clean their eyes. We had a soaking rain today after a thunderstorm last night a welcome sight here. The team went to the dam accompanied by several of the children from the village, at the dam the children were begging for their 'fotos' to be taken as well as begging us for water bottles, which really makes you think about the water that they drink comes from a canal that serves as the water for
several villages to consume, as well as wash clothes and dishes, baths, and a play ground. When we arrived we saw a low slow moving creek and within minutes of arriving witnessed a flash flood. Well we are all tired and heading to bed looking forward to morning to see.

Pennsylvania group arrives in Haiti!

After months of preparation we have finally arrived in Haiti. Left behind rain in New York to arrive to 90 degree heat and humidity. We were picked up by Donald and Patricia for an interesting ride to the Lifeline Compound in LaDigue. We drove through Port AuPrince and saw alot of the devastation from the eartquake still evident, people still in tent cities, rubble in the streets, and buildings still being cleaned up after falling. The trip to the compound was quite bumpy as the road is still not fixed, travelable but still damaged. This is the rainy season and there hadnt been rain in 3 weeks, we had clouds roll in and thunder and lightning but no raindrops. Once at the mission we unloaded all of our luggage, much of which had all the donations we received from home, about a thousand pounds of supplies for the school and clinic. We would like to thank everyone at home who made this possible with your donations of supplies, money and prayers. Our week will be full as we will be traveling to St Marcs and Barbancourt, helping with two eye clinics, and going to the market. Looking forward to the rest of our time here and the adventures we will have before heading back to the states. Good night and God Bless!!!! Wylie, Jud, Carol, Holly, Linda, and Candella

A First Time Gift

OH I HAD A BIG DAY IN PORT AU PRINCE TODAY. WE FIRST STARTED THE DAY BY TAKING A LADY WITH TWO VERY SICK LITTLE MALNUTRITIONED CHILDREN TO THE HOSPITAL. ONE WAS A MONTH OLD AND ONE WAS ELEVEN MONTHS OLD BUT ONLY 11 POUNDS. THE CHILD ALSO HAD RESPITORY DIFFICULTY AS WELL.

THEN I WENT TO MEET WITH A MAN ABOUT A SPECIAL CONTAINER, AFTER FINISHING THE BUSINESS, I WENT TO BUY SOME CHICKEN WIRE SO WE CAN BUILD A CHICKEN COOP FOR OUR MICROENTERPRISE PROJECT- USING THE EGGS AND THE CHICKENS FOR THE KIDS. THEN I WENT TO BUY SOME GROCERIES FOR THE TEAM THAT WILL BE COMING TOMORROW. AFTER SPENDING A VERY BUSY DAY GETTING BUSINESS DONE I WAS SITTING ON LIFELINE'S PORCH PREPARING ENVELOPES FOR THE PAYROLL WHEN THE GATEMAN, MILO CAME TO ME TO INFORM ME THAT I HAD A BIG SURPRISE! I HAD NO IDEA WHAT HE WAS TALKING ABOUT AND HE SAID IT WAS AT THE GATE SO I RUSHED DOWN TO THE GATE AND WHEN I ARRIVED THERE IT STOOD, YES, I SAID THERE IT STOOD!!! IT WAS MY VERY FIRST GOAT!!! WOWEE!! THE PASTOR FROM THE MOUNTAIN DOCO 2 HAD BROUGHT ME A REAL LIVE GOAT!!! IT IS BLACK AND WHITE AND I NAMED IT "AMOS".
I AM GOING TO TIE A RED, WHITE, AND BLUE RIBBON AROUND ITS NECK AND PASTOR ODMY IS GOING TO KEEP IT WITH HIS GOATS BUT EVERY EVENING IT WILL COME OUTSIDE OUR GATE AND I CAN KEEP A CLOSE CHECK ON HIM. WHAT A WONDERFUL WAY TO END THE DAY WITH SUCH A SPECIAL GIFT!!! YES, I WAS VERY MUCH SURPRISED! BUT I AM VERY HAPPY BECAUSE THIS WAS AN EXCEPTIONALLY BIG GIFT FROM MY FRIEND. THE BIBLE TELLS US IT IS MORE BLESSED TO GIVE THAN TO RECEIVE AND I PRAY THAT GOD WILL POUR OUT HIS BIGGEST BLESSING FOR THIS DEAR MAN FOR HIS GENEROSITY OF THIS GIFT!

New Clothes

Today we were able to bless an unsuspecting six year old with a new outfit! Thanks to some of the recent teams and a few other donors, we now have a nice selection of clothing to distribute to the village. We've been handing out the clothes as fast as we can find some to fit the people so our stock is rapidly depleting. It makes us so happy to see the joy on their faces when they receive something new. It's not often that they're able to purchase new clothing so they're very appreciative. They're always so grateful for the simple gift of clothing that we so often take for granted.

Flip Flops for the Children

We have a kids club that meets every Sunday afternoon. They sing songs and have Bible lessons and enjoy learning about God. Today we surprised them with gifts. Thanks to a generous donor we were able to hand out over 150 flip flops to the kids!
They were so surprised and appreciateive of this gift. Do to the rough terrain here in Haiti, shoes wear out very quickly and so our village is always in need of good shoes. We were excited to be able to bless them today but they'll need more when these wear out. If you are interested in holding a shoe drive and sending shoes to Haiti to help those who really deserve it, please email missionlifeline@bellsouth.net.

Accidents

Today on the way home from Port-au-Prince we came across three really bad vehicle accidents. Driving can be a very dangerous thing here in Haiti. The road conditions are not always up to par and due to there being no real traffic laws, some people drive very dangerously. We praised God for our safe travels today but our hearts went out to those affected by these accidents. We have no idea how many were injured. We could only pray that everyone wasn't severely hurt.

Thank you!

Who could have imagined that a big circus tent could be so very useful here in Haiti?! I just want to praise the donors of the big tent. We have used it for so many reasons. We used it for over 3,000 displaced refugees form the earthquake in Port-Au-Prince, we have used it for revivals, and we have now used it for our first graduation ceremony at Lifeline. God knows what we need way ahead of time and he is always faithful to provide that need, and he uses special people like you to be used as instruments for his work! May God richly bless you and we at Lifeline want to especially thank you for your donation.

Church Soccer Game

Yesterday we had over one hundred people here for a church soccer game. We had people come from all over the place including Sou Basin, Nan Ròch, Ka Laba and Ka Makay.

The teams playing were our church here at La Digue verses the church from Nan Ròch. The people were laughing and cheering for their team. We all had a wonderful time. We’re so grateful for our soccer field that can provide an outlet of joy amid a country full of trails and tribulations. Praise God for soccer!

Homeless women and children come to Lifeline for food

We’ve all seen the pictures of what a tin shack or a mud hut looks like here in Haiti. It’s an awful living situation that breaks out hearts. In Arcahaie there’s a group of people living in much worse conditions. Today four women and their children came to Lifeline pleading with us to bring them food.

We had been to this location before to give them food but today they came to us with a sense of urgency. They live in an abandoned building. There are over a hundred people who live all together there on the dirt floor. They don’t even have their own tent or their own space. I guess you could call it their homeless shelter.

It’s full of women, children and a few men. As we handed out the rice and beans, many people didn’t even have a plate or a container to store the food in. We saw many women holding out their skirts for the food. One precious little boy even scooped up the rice he could get off the floor.
It was distressing to see people in such a desperate condition. Praise God we found them. By God’s grace we will continue to feed these people who are in such a great need. Keep them in your prayers!

Lifeline Graduation

It was a wonderful time in Haiti today! We had our first Graduation Ceremony at Lifeline with 42 Kindergartners and 22 Sixth graders.
Parents and Godparents came to share in this extremely important time. The students performed with National Anthem, poetry, songs and dance.
It was a beautiful sight knowing that the students have successful completed another year of their education. Congratulations was certainly in order for the day for all of the hard earned efforts of the students!

7 months since the quake

Seven months ago today the catastrophic earthquake shook the nation of Haiti. Driving through the streets of Port-au-Prince you would think it just happened a few weeks ago. There is still devastation everywhere you turn your eye.
Millions are living in tent cities waiting for help. They need us. Let's not forget how our hearts broke for this amazing country as we watched it on the news and read about it in the newspaper. Continue to pray for hope. Pray for people to move out of the tent cities. Pray for an end to this ongoing crisis. Just like the graffiti on a wall in Port-au-Prince says, Haiti still needs help!

Sewing Class

Mission Lifeline educates sewing students through the process of a Trade School. Each student has the opportunity to learn how to sew and in accomplishing this goal the students make various items in which the mission sells at a very reasonable price so the students are able to hold an account to save money to purchase a sewing machine. On July 30th 2010, nine students graduated from this program.

Marie Bibianne Marcellus did just that, and on graduating she found a sewing machine that she was able to purchase for $100 U.S. I went with her and we looked at the machine and found it to be in excellent condition and finalized the sale.
It was a wonderful day for this young lady that will now be able to support her family. Just one more way, with the Lord's divine help that Lifeline is able to make a difference.

End of a Trip, Beginning of a Journey

When we began this journey none of us knew what we were getting into; we were scared of the language barriers and being outsiders in an unfamiliar place. However, we did know that we would be helping so many people...and we have. This week has been a life changing experience. We have clothed, fed, and cared for many Haitians in La Digue and surrounding villages. None of us will ever forget how appreciative they have been. Many of us have made lifelong connections with the children and plan to support them to ensure that they are fed and all their basic needs are met. It was amazing to be able to meet the children and select one to sponsor. We all hope to be able to come back and see how our help has made a difference in their lives.

If anyone is interested in making a difference in a child's life, it only takes twenty dollars a month...or five trips to Starbucks, a trip to Walmart, or seeing a movie. For more information go to http://www.childrenslifeline.com

Brittany Johnson and Megan Neal

Things we take for Granted

Along with this trip came many unexpected donations and blessings from those around us. Much to our surprise, those blessings didn't stop- even at the Bluegrass Airport. While there, a fellow traveler noticed our group and donated $100 with the stipulation "Do good in Haiti". Both shocked and overwhelmed by the generosity of this complete stranger, the money was stored safely away until the right opportunity presented itself. It didn't take long to discover where it was needed. In the village we all met a 15 year old young man who had been kicked out of his home at a young age after his mother passed away. His father, wishing to start a new life with another woman, told him he needed to get out of the house because they wanted to go on with their lives without him. Having no where else to go, this young man fashioned for himself a small shelter built from mud, stone and sugarcane. The dwelling was so small that many of us have doghouses of larger size and he had to squat while sleeping because it wasn't big enough for him to stretch out. Children's International Lifeline learned of his plight and decided to lend a helping hand by building him a cinder block house with a metal roof. He was incredibly gracious, but told them that he was praying for a mattress. After we heard this story, we decided that we could be the answer to his prayer. We purchased for him a foam mattress in Port au Prince with the donation from the traveler and delivered it to his house along with some other gifts. He was overjoyed and so thankful for this gesture. It was so rewarding to see not only our good deeds in action, but the end result. Also, it was brought to our attention as we were purchasing this mattress, that the oldest man in the village, who is 91 years old, has been sleeping on a bed made of cardboard and concrete. Our group decided to purchase a second mattress for this man and it was delivered to him last night. As soon as the mattress was placed in his home, he laid down on the mattress, which was still wrapped in plastic, and began laughing. He was overflowing with joy for his new bed. Our group returned a little later to provide bedding to the man, and he was still lying on his mattress. The only time he arose from the bed was to allow us to put the blankets onto the bed, and then he immediately lay back down, laughing the whole time. It really puts things into perspective, how things we take for granted are luxuries for the kind people of this village.

Joseph Caldwell and Destiny Fife

Port-au-Prince

Prior to our trip we all had an image of what we thought Port Au Prince would be like since the January earthquake. Images of complete devastation and chaos with no ability to function adequately were portrayed in the media and also were a part of some of our imaginations until we arrived. Upon arrival the devastation became so much more real. Despite a seven month span that has passed, it looks like the earthquake had just happened recently due to the lack of progress of made in cleaning up the tremendous amount of rubble and debris that are scattered and piled throughout the city. The President's mansion even still remained a heap of rubble with no signs of attempts at cleaning up. Buildings remain collapsed, stories upon stories piled together, with the possibility of victims buried beneath. Regardless of the destruction and devastation in Port Au Prince, the people have not given up living or hope. Throughout the streets many people are seen selling goods, trying to make a living, and trying to make the best out of what they have experienced. The media has left, however much more assistance and help are needed in order to rebuild Haiti.

Brittany Kellum, Kristin Burchett, and Chris French

Saturday at Lifeline

Today was another exciting adventurous day here in Haiti. This morning a man came to us and said his wife was having a baby and we needed help. We brought her to the clinic and examined her. We ran an ultrasound and the baby had a steady heartbeat. She said her water had broken the day before but she wasn’t even dilated so we knew it wasn’t time for the baby. We told her to go back home but let us know if something changes. We then went to hand out love bundles at an orphanage in Barbancourt. We had so much fun singing the song Father Abraham with the kids.
While we were there, we found a woman who was lying on the ground with immense abdominal pain. We weren’t sure what was wrong with her so we took her the hospital in Saint Marc. It was at the hospital that we discovered she had gotten an abortion and her pain was a result of that.
They were able to help her out and she is now doing fine. Later on this evening someone sent word to us that the pregnant woman was in need of medical attention once again. She was examined and the baby was slowly moving into the birth canal. We drove her to the hospital were the doctor told us she was now dilated four centimeters and she would probably deliver tomorrow morning. We left praying she had a safe delivery.
We also had a great time with the team at the cross. God was really moving and we were all blessed by his presence. We were all struck with God’s faithfulness and his grace. Praise the Lord for his abounding love and mercy!!

Six hours on the road to help 200 orphans

Another early 4:30 wake up call lead to yet another blessing in Haiti. By 5:30 we were loaded on the trucks and headed north to provide nursing care to two orphanages in villages 3 to 4 hours away. The roads were quite different then those in America. Some were made of concrete, some were made of rocks the size of boulders. It felt more like we were off roading in quads rather than riding in the back of trucks. The 3 hour trip to the first orphanage was an eye opening experience. We passed at least five villages all of which were completely different in the way they lived and the houses they lived in.

We were greeted at the first orphanage by bright smiles and chants that repeated "We are glad to see you." The orphanage consisted of two buildings, one was their house of worship and the other was the living quarters for the boys and girls. The workers of the orphanage provided us with a shelter for our traveling medical clinic, which was made from tree branches and tarps. One by one, the children were assessed and triaged. From there they received necessary medical care that we were able to supply. The most common medical problems that we assessed were skin conditions such as scabies and rashes, various wounds, nutritional deficits, and fever. Before the children left the shelter they were given worm medicine, vitamins, and a stuffed turtle that contained a spiritual message.

The conditions that we observed in the second orphanage were much worse than the conditions of the first. Because of it's distance from any kind of true civilization, it was apparent that the resources were limited. At this orphanage there were also two buildings, one of which was the living quarters for the boys and the other for the girls. The living quarters were quite different from the first, these were constructed primarily from twigs and tarps, similar to the shelter provided for our medical clinic at the previous orphanage. Once again the children greeted us with chants showing their appreciation for our visit. We rearranged the boys living quarters to make our medical clinic which was organized into numerous stations, which included triage, wound care, and medication administration. The children here had similar medical problems to the children at the first orphanage but their symptoms seemed to be worse. As a group we came to the conclusion that this was occurring due to the boys using the same razor to cut their hair without cleansing the razor in between cuts. Education was provided to the boys, as well as the caregivers at the orphanage to decrease this occurrence in the future. Other medical issues that were noted in the girls as well as the boys were fever, headache, stomach pain, muscle aches, wounds, malnourishment, and scabie-type infections. Just as before, as the children left they were given bottles of both vitamins and worm medication. In addition they were also given a pack of peanut butter crackers, along with additional food for future use, to aid their malnourishment.

The hours that we spent on the road were well worth the nursing care provided to the children of the orphanages. We pray that the care provided will positively influence the future of these children.

Jessica Wells and Charla Burchett

First Day

With the roosters crowing, our team was up and atem at 4 am. With a day full of traveling under our belts complete with delightful delays and airplane peanuts we were ready to get our hands dirty. The truck was loaded down with medical supplies as we made our trip up the 2,100 foot mountain, however, we were on foot. On our trip to the top, physical exhaustion was a reality and it took all we had to reach our destination. The Haitian culture was showcased beautifully as our interpreters encouraged and physically supported us. They sacrificed their own strength in order to help us recognize our own.

Upon reaching our destination, we were met by hundreds of beautiful natives eagerly awaiting our arrival. When we made our way to the church, it was obvious that the village knew we were able to offer them medical services they would never receive otherwise. We hit the ground running and saw over 200 people by the end of the day. The moment we opened, there was a line stretching around the building to be treated for anything from fungal infections to hypertension. It was such a blessing for our team to be able to simply dress a wound or give a common US medication that would change someone's life. Our team was so greatly humbled by the amount of gratitude expressed by the village and it made climbing the mountain worth every moment.

We are looking forward to the rest of the week and the unique experiences it will bring.

Jade Campbell and Sarah Whisman

Blessing of clothes for the community!

I had just been talking to my sister about needing to start a clothing
bank and today a special blessing came our way. We were preparing for
a new team and looked out and saw a group of people looking at our sun
oven. Well not knowing who they might be I went down to speak with
them and found out that they were Haitian people that were born right
here in LaDigue and had came back to visit. They live in Miami,
Florida now. After visiting with them a while they talked about how
much we had changed the looks of the mission and all the work that has
been accomplished here. Then they so kindly began to get some boxes
out of their vehicle offering them to us, and in them were clothes,
toys, shoes, and some hygene items. God is so good always placing people in the right path together. I just want to thank those blessed people for sharing these items with
us. To God be the Glory!!!

Last Day

During our week in Haiti, we have had several first experiences, both medical and personal.
One of the experiences consisted of a few students visiting a patient in a Voodoo House,
whom we have been treating for three days. During this visit we gave IM injections, three
suppositories for fever, and started an IV for fluids and antibiotics. All skills were new
experiences for the students. One of the professors cared for a local pregnant woman who
was suffering from an abruption. It was the professor’s first time performing an ultrasound.
Some students got to go with the patient to St. Mark’s Hospital for an emergency C-section.
Today, we started the day with a hike up Matheux Mountain, over 2,100 feet.
We visited a village full of enthusiastic children, who sang many songs for us, after we gave anti-parasitic medicine to them. We then gave out love bundles to the Lifeline Orphanage, which consisted of over 30 children.
To finish the day, we went snorkeling at Wahoo Bay Resort, in the Caribbean Sea. This was several people’s first time snorkeling. We were rowed out to a coral reef, where
we saw a lot of marine life. Following this, we purchased items from Haitian merchants on the
beach. Overall, our trip has been full of happy memories and experiences that we will never
forget.

Madam Maxwell

Today we experienced another tragedy with the Lifeline family. This morning Madam Maxwell (the mother of one of our translators) was brought into the clinic. She was 37 weeks pregnant and was experiencing heavy bleeding. After she was examined here she was rushed to the hospital in Saint Marc. While at the hospital she had a c-section and this afternoon she delivered a baby boy weighing four pounds. We were overjoyed that everything was ok with the mother and the child. Unfortunately we just received a phone call that this precious baby boy passed away. Please keep Madam Maxwell and her family in your prayers as they go through this tough time.

Filo

The other day we found a very sick woman named Filo at a voodoo house. She was lying on the floor and was completely unresponsive. She was a young woman, only 31. She had a high fever and was laying there lifeless. We immediately brought her back to Lifeline so the nurses could examine her. The right side of her body wasn’t able to move. She was dehydrated. It appeared if she possibly had a stroke and also had pneumonia or something as such, but the nurses weren’t sure. They started an IV on her and gave her antibiotics. By the time she was taken home she seemed to be doing a little bit better. Yesterday we went back to her at the voodoo house and gave her another IV and medicine.

Her fever was gone and she seemed to be doing better. We told her we would come back again today. We went back again today expecting to find her the way we found her the day before but we were in for something different.

As we pulled up to the house we saw candles surrounding her and heard chanting. Donald and one of our interpreters went in first to see if they would stop the ritual so the nurses could help her. As soon as Filo saw Donald she reached for him indicating that she was happy we were there and wanted help. The voodoo priest was resistant at first and had to know that we weren’t trying to be disrespectful but that we were worried about Filo and wanted to help her. They said that an evil spirit was making her sick and they were trying to rid her of it.

Donald asked her husband if we could help and he said yes; so we all walked in. We found her lying flat on a bunch of tobacco leaves and there were candles surrounding her. There was a baby chicken tied to one of the tobacco leaves as part of the ritual. Donald immediately got her on a mattress so she was more comfortable. Filo had another high fever so the nurses gave her a shot of antibiotics called Rocephin and they also crushed up a few ibuprofens and added it to a can of ensure to help strengthen her and give her vitamins and minerals. We were then able to pray with her. We prayed for healing. Please pray with us also. We want to see her well! We believe in the power of a God who heals and we’re not only believing for her healing but for the salvation of the voodoo priest!