A Dream Come True!

Today we started pouring the foundation for our much needed warehouse! What a wonderful day! We have prayed for this project to be fulfilled because  we needed the space to house the food that supplies the 3,500 children each week-day with  their cooked meals. When the food comes in it is necessary to place the food in a dry secure place before it  is cooked for the children  and then distributed to the many  more people from Port Au Prince to Gonaives and out to the Island of La Gonave and to many of the mountain people in Haiti. It is such a blessing to have such special people to share the finances that are needed for such a project!  I Praise God for those individuals, and I pray that God will reward them  abundantly. As the work continues on this project we will keep you updated on the many phases until it's completion.

The week of a Lifetime

  After only one week working with LifeLine, which is a Christian nonprofit organization located north of Port-Au-Prince in Haiti, I have rediscovered the beauty that any Christian Missionary would experience from the Haitian people. I have spent time ,prior to this missionary trip, around several communities in Haiti through other organizations to give my love and kindness because of my belief in God. However, on this particular Missionary trip, I have finally understood the reason for my desire to continue visiting Haiti. The reason being just the opposite. My reason for traveling back to this wonderful country is to experience and receive the unique Loving and Faithful Spirit of a Haitian person and communities as a whole. This exceptional example of Love and Faith that the Haitians display through my interaction with them, and observing and participating in their Christian worship increases my mind, body and soul with a even richer understanding of the Love and Kindness of our only salvation, Christ Jesus.

   I have only one suggestion to a person on a journey to discover the meaning of true Human Love and Kindness. This would be to take time from all your daily routines, and come to one of few places that God's Love and Kindness is extremely visible and alive. Come to Haiti.

God Bless,
Charles Erwin

A day in Haiti

  Greetings from Haiti Sunday evening!  Today was a day of rest. This morning we had the privilege of worshiping the Lord with our Haitian brothers and sisters in the church at Lifeline Mission.  The Haitians really do know how to praise the Lord!  Brother Allen from our team delivered a powerful word and several people accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  Sweet!   Everyone was very friendly and made us feel right at home. 

  We then took a stroll through the village outside Lifeline's compound to see the dam; many children accompanied us, holding our hands and asking what our names were, laughing and simply enjoying our companionship.  A 4 year-old boy came out and prayed for each team member individually - what a great experience!  The sun was hot and when we reached the canal/dam, many children jumped into the canal and enjoyed the cool water as though it were their swimming pool!  It was fun to watch them having fun. 

  Next we took a ride to Wahoo Bay, where we enjoyed resting on the beach and bargaining with the local vendors for their wares.  A relaxing dinner followed, and we saw yet another aspect of Haiti with its beautiful shoreline and sunset.  Today was a day of refreshing ourselves for the coming week.  Tomorrow we will work with the Haitian doctor at the clinic here at Mission Lifeline.  We thank God for His faithfulness to us and look forward to seeing what He will do through us tomorrow.

Standing in the Gap

Today our team went to "Wal-Mart" (which is actually the open air market) and we walked through hundreds of vendors selling everything you could imagine. We purchased coffee beans, some soda, and bag of peanuts...big spenders! We walked over to the shoreline and saw the island, blue waters, and gorgeous sky. Stopping at a homeless shelter to bring rice and beans to a few folks was truly humbling and made me appreciate all that God has blessed us with. On the way back to Lifeline we stopped alongside the road and bought baskets from a lady who is friends with Ms. Pat.

The best part of the day was visiting another orphanage (Cabaret Baptist Children's Home) and getting to spend some "down time" with the 50 children for whom Lifeline helps purchase food. We sang to them and they sang back to us..."Father Abraham.". As I sat on the floor with a little girl, she put her head against my chest and just sat there as though she were listening to me talk...and just breathe in and out. And, my mind went back to my own childhood when I would sit on my mother's lap and feel comforted by the sound of her voice and the ebb and flow of her breathing. I always felt so safe in her arms. It brought tears to my eyes to think that this little girl didn't have any parents to bring her that comfort.

But, I praise God for the work of missionaries who daily "stand in the gap" and represent the love of Christ to the children of Haiti. I count it a privilege to stand with them.

Annette, R.N.

Clinic at Bois-Neuf

Today, our team went to the Institution Mixte dr L’Estpoir, at Bois-Neuf to set up a medical clinic. It is a primary school, with 4 open classrooms. It was made of thatch, side and top, no doors. The roof had fallen in and hung down in the middle of the building. The floor was a muddy because of the down pour last night. The desks were made of single planks of wood. Some classrooms only had benches. As I walked around the school, setting up for the medical clinic, I collected mud on the bottom of my shoes. This wore off as the sun dried the ground. My job, this day, was to provide some boundaries for the children and provide mental health counseling to those identified as experiencing anxiety or depression from the earthquake or life situations.

I was able to encourage, provide guidance, relaxation techniques and prayer to a few young people seen by our team. One, 12 year old girl, had lost her Father to the earthquake and her Mother was killed shortly after that. She was now living with family members and other people, not her family. She said that her Mother was a hard worker and they needed for little. Now, it is a struggle for her family to meet basic needs. She misses her parents. I did grief counseling and prayed for her. I found out that she didn’t have a Lifeline sponsor. This would relieve some of the pressure from her family and give this young girl hope for the future.

A beautiful, 20 year old female, came to me. She lacked self-esteem and confidence in her future. She lived with her brother and said that this was not a good situation. She said that she had no close friends. She was having some somatic symptoms and trouble sleeping. I reminded her that Jesus has a great love for her. He has a purpose for her life. I gave her relaxation exercises to do to help her sleep and prayed that God will reveal His purpose for her life.

It was a busy day, our doctors and nurses saw many children and adults. It was sad to turn many people away. As we prepared to pack up our supplies, I watched chickens come into the school to eat what they can find. Goats came up to the building and ate vegetation and pulled thatch from the walls of the school.

The school head master was very proud of his school and has a great vision for its future. He does the best he can. At lunch time, Lifeline Ministry delivered 2 large pails of nutritious rice and beans for the children. The Haitian people do the best they can, under the circumstances that they live under. Many have hope for the future. With the help of ministries like, Lifeline and short term teams to bring supplies, energy, love and God’s word, many more will have hope. Death is common. The basic needs of shelter, food and clean water, can make death not so common. Please pray for the Haitian people.

Paulette Myers

Arms of Love

Today started out with a beautiful morning of devotions. We all went to the rock and had a time of sharing. As we were talking about going to the rock I was reminded of the bracelet I wore. A couple of weeks before, a young man that I worked with had given me this bracelet that says “He set my feet on a rock.” He told me that I could leave it in Haiti with someone. As we spent time with our devotions one of the missionaries at Lifeline shared her testimony, the Lord impressed that she was the one I was to leave the bracelet with. Carrie has been here since June and will be leaving to go home to go to school to be a nurse practitioner so she can come back and better help the people of Haiti.

Later in the day we went to Barbancourt to do a clinic. I was blessed to see the love and the joy of the people with the little that they have and how we take for granted all that we are blessed with. There were many that I fell in love with and I would love to bring them all home with me. As I was taking pictures with the kids some of them used my camera. I would show them the pictures and they really enjoyed seeing the pictures of themselves. One of them in particular, Fritzline, when I sat down beside her told me, “I love you. I need you.”

After we were done with the clinic we went to the Louissaint Orphanage. Seeing the work that the pastor is doing with these children and the love that he has, I stand in awe of his sacrifice. The conditions that they have are unimaginable compared to our American standards, but the children still smile and sing and seem to be happy with where they’re at. We handed out stuffed animals and Connor juggled. I loved when the children came around me and hugged on me and loved me. I praise the Lord that I’m able to reach out to these people by being His arms of love!

-Linda

First Mission Trip: Day One Experiences

Waking up this morning in Haiti was an experience like no other. The roosters outside served as an excellent alarm clock, but the noisy goats I could have done without. After breakfast and morning devotions our team of 14—plus our hosts and some Haitians—set out on the trip to Carffoure. Our mission today was to set up a medical clinic at Claude’s (our Haitian contact in Carffoure) school. Now remember this was the team’s first day on the job so things started a little slowly, but the day’s results—in my opinion—were excellent! Being 17 on my first mission’s trip I was able to learn so much from my team mates! I praise God for assembling all of us together! There is a great spirit, not only among the team, but also among the people. I have learned that the Haitians are simply looking for help and are thrilled to welcome anyone willing to aid them. These people have so little, yet they still give so much! Seeing them smile and laugh is worth every drop of sweat and makes up for every discomfort!

My favorite part, however, was spending time with the kids! We brought decorated Christmas cards to pass out to the children at the school and I was blessed with the job to distribute them! It was so refreshing to see the joy on their faces as I handed them just a simple craft!

It just goes to show that even a simple gift or thought can make a huge difference! We are truly blessed as Americans but we have lost our joy. These people in Haiti are needy souls, but they have no shortage of joy. You can have all the tangible objects in the universe, but if you don’t have Jesus, you will never be satisfied. The Lord is doing a great work here in Haiti, and I am so thankful to be a part of it!

-Connor

Arrival of Pittsburg Medical Team & New Warehouse

We are so excited to yet again have a medical team arrive tonight. These compassionate servants have come down to work for a week in Haiti, a country that is in such dire need of medical attention. According to USAID there is 1 doctor for every 4,000 people in Haiti. We know this team will make a huge impact!

We are also grateful today because we have been able to begin construction on our warehouse! Lifeline has been in dire need of a new warehouse for quite some time now and we've built the foundation but needed help to complete it. God laid this project on the heart of a kind donor and we cannot thank this special person enough! Because of this new warehouse we will be able to help so many more people. Praise the Lord for generous donors who pave the way for Lifeline to be the hands and feet of Jesus!

A Hope for Life!

Last week, one of our 7th grade boys that is 19 years old, Bertho Louis came to Lifeline with his very illl, 15 year old sister that had been living in the mountain with her father. Now first of all I want you to know that Bertho lives by himself after his mother recently died this past year. Bertho makes his living by going and getting small bags of water and selling them in the open market and then taking the money back to the owner and what little surplus he makes extra is his to keep. But Bertho knows how sick his sister is and he is trying to be the responsible one to take care of her. When she came to Lifeline, we immediately had her tested and found that she was diagnosed with Tuberculosis. That is exactly what his mother died from. This girl's name is Madege Louis and is 15 years old and only weighs 64 pounds. I know we can't imagine anything like this for our children, but in Haiti, life is so much more severe. And I am sorry to report to you that this wasn't the worst of the problem. After trying to treat this young lady, she tells us that her brother that is 17 is still in the mountain and that he is much worse than her. My mind went crazy! Now, I am standing here looking at this young lady that in my mind, by the looks of her, may not be alive tomorrow and then she tells me of her brother. So I tell Bertho, go and get him right away and bring him down from the mountain so we can help him before he dies. The next day, Bertho comes with his brother, Rolando Louis and his father. Sure enough Rolando is much more severe than Madege. Being 17, he only weighs 62 pounds and is so weak that he cannot walk.
Bertho is carrying him into lifeline. We immediately seek Dr. Yves help and ask what do we do? The Doctor gave them some medicine and we helped them with food and they went back to the small one room house at Barbancourt where Bertho resides.
Bertho said he would sleep outside while his brother and sister could stay inside the room. However, the father had responsiblities in the mountain of animals and garden, and he did not even pass one night with the children. After the week-end we recieved the news that the boy was not getting any better and there was no time to waste. When we went to get him, he was laying lifeless and I asked where is Bertho and they replied that he had got up very early to go work in someones garden so he could help them. We called for him to come so we could take the two children to the hospital and when he came then I ask him how much he made for working in the garden and he told me fifty gourdes and that is a little over one dollar so I just gave him the money for the day that he would have made because he needed to go with us to take care of his brother and sister. In Haiti every hospital does not accept all patients. So because the two youths had TB we drove to four hospitals and that truly meant a day of driving to finally find one that would accept them in. When we got there the time was after two and they didn't accept patients. BUT, I AM FOR SURE THAT GOD HAD A HAND IN THE PLAN!! because, the gateman allowed us to come in. Bertho carried his brother into the facility and we recieved immediate help for our two patients. Without money to take care of them, I knew that this was truly a LIFE OR DEATH sitauation that had to be taken care of, and I know that God will provide the funds that we need to care for these dear, precious children. Please pray for them and I will keep you posted on their status. ONLY GOD, can move the mountains that the people of Haiti have to endure just to survive each day! WHO could not have compassion on a situation such as this?!

A new table and two chairs for a precious man

One of Lifeline’s elderly men of our La Digue village, after receiving a new house, had one last wish that he could have a small table just to put his plate on and be able to eat. When this request was made, two teachers of Clay City Elementary in Clay City Kentucky stepped up to the plate and eagerly gave the donation for this wish to be granted. We didn’t go out just to purchase any old table but we had one specially made at a wood workshop down our road. This table and two chairs were carefully constructed with loving hands. As you can well see it would be beautiful in anyone’s house. He was so grateful and very happy to receive this much needed gift. Praise God for precious donors who once again have brought undeniable joy to these wonderful people of Haiti!

A New Stove at Lifeline to feed 3,500 kids Monday through Friday!

Anyone that cooks knows how difficult it is when equipment that you use is not working properly. The Lifeline cooks struggled to produce 3,500 meals Monday through Friday with the proper equipment malfunctioning from time to time. Due to the occasional problems it also made it difficult for the cooks to have the food prepared on a timely basis. Although the stoves had been repeatedly repaired and had maintenance done on them, it was time for a new one to be purchased. We were so very grateful for the donor who so compassionately gave the money for a new, updated, version. This new stove now has four rings of burners with each burner having an individual knob to control the heat. This will help prevent scorching of the food because the old burners had to be turned up completely on high in order to heat the huge pans that are necessary to cook the large amount of food. Praise God for the special ones that came forth with the funds so this stove could be purchased for the cooks and the hard jobs they do.

Lifeline won the soccer game 7-4 in their new uniforms!

Last night Lifeline’s football (soccer) team had the night of their life! Lifeline’s team played an exciting game against Barbancourt and won 7-4. Last time Lifeline played Barbancourt they lost, but last night they made sure to win. The game was especially fun because Lifeline had on their brand new uniforms. We are so grateful for the kind donor who gave Lifeline the uniforms that say Lifeline on the front and Haiti on the back along with their number. The also had matching shorts, socks, and white headbands. The team was so proud to wear their uniforms and win the game. Last night was just the beginning of a week-long tournament. We’re looking forward to spending time with people from the community as they come for a great event that enables the people to have some fun. In the midst of the election chaos, inevitable riots, the lingering cholera epidemic, and the normal day to day uncertainty that Haiti brings, it’s nice to come together and have an evening of fun. What a blessing it was to see the team rally together in their uniforms to play and see the crowd of people scream and cheer as their favorite team scored goals. We’re so grateful to have our soccer field for occasions just like this!

Imperial Valley Hope for Haiti teams with Lifeline

This is my second time staying at the Lifeline. If you’ve ever traveled to a developing country and back, you’ll know that when you go home, certain things imprint on your mind, often it’s a face maybe a face of a hungry child or a sick woman. I was here last month and while I was back in the US, the face of a little malnourished girl named Jaline stayed with me and her pictures impacted and inspired new donations and compassionate prayer partners.

When I returned this time I was able to visit the orphanage of Pastor Louissaint where the little girl had stayed and her sister still lives. Lifeline is providing food for the children now so that they receive two meals a day. They have also helped to transfer Jaline to an orphanage in Port au Prince where she can receive special attention and care and she is soon to be adopted to a couple that visits Lifeline. There is nothing more encouraging than to be a part of a place that is making a difference, especially in the lives of those faces you remember. When Lifeline sees a need, they seek to meet that need whether it’s a starving child, discouraged mother or jobless father. They can’t do everything, but for this community, they are a true Lifeline.

I am a part of Imperial Valley Hope for Haiti. We are a small community organization that started shortly after Ryan Rothfleisch, our director, came to Haiti after the earthquake.

He and others have been going back and forth, trying to help and making our community aware of Haiti’s needs. We did not have a place for our ministry to call home or friends to call partners until December when we stayed at the Lifeline. We are now partnering with Lifeline and are building an orphanage in Barbancourt on land adjoined to the Lifeline Barbancourt school. This week a team of four—three farmers and a pastor—are overseeing the rest of the foundations for the support buildings on the sight where they laid our main orphanage building in December.

It is my fourth day today and so much has already been accomplished. The men and their Haitian team of workers have poured four foundations and hope to set more.

I went into town to get prices on all of the items we’ll need to raise funds for from potty-training potties to refrigerators as well as gained invaluable knowledge and experience by spending time with Pat and Carrie at the mission. In just one day here, I saw burns treated, wounds cleaned with Carrie and went with Donald to take a girl to a nearby clinic for a TB test. Things that would take months to learn about in a class happen all in one day here. It had been such a blessing to know that my one week here is not just me seeing something and leaving but I know that while I am gone, Lifeline continues to make a long-term difference in the lives of those in their community and beyond.

Once the orphanage is finished I will be coming down to be the US administrator and I am so thankful that I will have Pat and Donald just down the road and that I will be working in the wonderful community I have begun to build a relationship with. I’m looking forward to being a part of assisting the community in finding solutions and helping volunteers that come be a part of a long-term effort.

-Candice DeGeus

**To follow Jaline's story of adoption, follow their blog at http://www.sixhendos.blogspot.com/.

Water can truly mean LIFE or it can also be DEATH!

After Haiti suffered one of the greatest tragedies in history of its last January 12th earthquake, they also experienced yet another deadly catastrophe, the cholera. Many people died through this terrible epidemic as well. But today at Mission Lifeline the Lord sent a gentleman by the name of Mike Phillips and his team with Hays Pure Water Foundation to share with us a system that is so easily used to purify contaminated water through the use of a small generator and actually make this water safe for us to drink. After being trained to use the system we now can take 2CC of this chlorinated water solution and pour it into a gallon jug of contaminated water and truly make it safe to drink. How amazing!!! God always sends "the right people with the right things" right on time. Now no one else in our village has to die of the cholera due to this very special gift. Our thanks go out to Mike and all of the people that make this Pure Water Foundation possible. We can truly make a difference one drop at a time! To God be the Glory!
That was not the only gift, as if that wasn't enough, that this team brought to us today. We also received a gift of some much needed baby formula from Formula One Life. This is a non-profit organization of flight attendants and volunteers delivering infant formula to third world countries such as Haiti. The mission is accomplished primarily by the flight attendants using their benefits to provide these vital donations to a growing number of orphanages around the world. Many times the mothers of Haiti are malnourished and cannot produce the proper natural milk necessary to nurse a baby. So today this mother of twins was able to receive a portion of this blessing of baby formula for her babies. God continues to place people with us to provide the needs for this country, one step at a time. Praise God!