School Initiative Team - Jan 18, 2014

Today the principals from all the schools gathered at MPCA for a time to share their thoughts. We were able to discuss where they felt their schools excelled and concerns. The schools in Haiti have so many different issues, maintaining clean water, teaching hygiene, yet some are exactly the same as home. Discipline is universal :).

Our afternoon we filled with conversation with the Director of the Mission Possible teaching school and Madame Marc, who is the superintendent over all our schools. Their hearts were full of ideas and a vision for the students and schools. With their hope for the future and passion to lead, it is a joy to share in their journey.

 Our evening has been a time to share our hearts and stories among each other while enjoying evening devotions, listening to the tide roll in, time to rest and gear up for a full day tomorrow.

Big Team - Jan 30, 2014

Hello from Haiti! We arrived safely; some of our luggage…let’s just say that’s a different story. However, we have hopes that it will show up eventually. The team had a productive first day! Anne and Sheri went to the nursing school to teach the students basic nursing skills such as taking vitals, prenatal care, and delivery. The students were very receptive and asked great questions.

Most of the men began the renovations on Rachel’s Inn. The plan is to add a metal roof in the next few days.

Heather, Lauren, Megan, and Steve A. went to Chardene (one of the Mission Possible schools) and held two sessions with students educating them on abstinence, STDs, and God’s design for marriage. They were greeted with a refreshing beverage…check out the photo below!

Finally, some team members stayed at the mission center cleaning and organizing. Katie organized “team shelves” stocked with items like sunscreen, soap, etc. for team members to use while serving. Jeff H. and Krystal tackled the organization of the tool shed making it much easier to locate appropriate tools for the construction group. Jean is officially our housing and accommodations hostess/specialist/guru. Liane organized our kitchen and whipped up fabulous meals. All this to say: we’re safe and excited to see God moving in Haiti. Keep praying for the team. We wish you could all be here to see what we’re seeing and
experiencing. God is good.

 

January 31, 2014 - We have overcome some frustrations the last couple of days that can only be credited to our Lord and Savior. Today was another great day in beautiful Haiti. Sunny and 88. :) Two different groups were able to go and teach today. One group went this morning to Dupin and the other group went to St. Marc this afternoon. Another group went to the nursing school this afternoon as well. All three visits were a huge success. Some of the things that were taught were; CPR, checking vitals, abstinence, hygiene, and ultimately, glorifying God.

The construction crew had another successful day at the mission center. We removed the drop ceiling from several rooms, patched many holes and began to paint the ceiling black. Steve A. thought it might be cool to paint the floor tile black too so he dropped a gallon of paint. You would think that going to Haiti on a mission trip would cause one to lose weight. Well, Chef Liane has other plans. The food has been amazing. Thank you for all of your prayers. We can definitely feel them. God is working in Haiti! On them and especially us! Blessings to you all.

Fearless Leaders

Big Team - Feb 10, 2014

Today we were reminded of one of the many reasons our team comes to Haiti. A group went to Degeance, a mountain school, to hold an OB clinic and take photos for the Mission Possible sponsorship program. The photo team took photos of around 250 students. The photo team also took 350 photos at MPCA. The OB clinic reached 47 women who heard about the clinic through word of mouth. 19 of these women were pregnant and got to listen to their baby’s heartbeat. The medical team treated women, babies, and children with a variety of illnesses. One of the little boys the medical team treated had broken his leg in October. He still had the sutures in his leg from over three months ago. The team was able to remove the sutures, clean his wound, and give him an antibiotic. These are the kind of circumstances that bring our medical team to Haiti year after year. We continue to see God’s provision in the people He brings to the clinics for us to treat.

The construction team was back at it this morning working on the roof at Chardene. They built and painted trusses and continued putting on the new metal roof over one of the school buildings.

Mark continued installing the electrical wiring in Rachel’s Inn today. The building will be up and running for our new team coming on Wednesday.

It’s hard to believe tomorrow is our second team’s last day. We are ready to finish strong and welcome a new team in the coming days. We’re thankful for the Lord’s provision and faithfulness.

“I am not ashamed because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.” 2 Timothy 1:12

Big Team - Feb 19, 2014

We said good-bye to a wonderful group of 27 workers today.  They were such a blessing!  Everyone worked well together and accomplished so much! There were group pictures, a few songs, and a lot of hugs! Today we are also wishing a very happy birthday to our team member, Heather!

So much was accomplished during this week.





The new roof in Chardene looks awesome and the children moved into the classrooms immediately! Cabinets were made, walls were built, doors were painted and hung, soccer balls were distributed to the schools, and more improvements were made to Rachel’s Inn.  The medical team administered to close to one thousand people. There were many infections, wounds that needed attention, a few pregnancies, and other concerns. They had plenty of help, caring interpreters, and prayers for everyone!  What a blessing!  God is so Good!

Today ends week three and week four begins.  Six new volunteers with servant hearts arrived safely today. They got acquainted to their new environment and had a delicious meal.  They will rest from their journey tonight and be put to work tomorrow!
 

Along with our blessings to the Haitian people, we were also very blessed by the things God showed us through them. We pray that we each grow in our faith during this experience and take part of Haiti back to America with us!  Thank you for your thoughts and prayers!  May God bless you richly!   

Big Team - Feb 25, 2014

Hello from Haiti!

A group of team members had a great time at the LaHatte school. Bev, Jean, Ruth, Brittany, Dave, and Dan made the hour and a half trip to the school so Bev could teach the final feminine hygiene class. At the end of class, Bev presented the gospel to the girls. She asked if the girls knew Jesus and attended church. We were pleased to see that most of the girls said yes! The group had plenty of time to visit with the children. We enjoyed the hugs, handshakes, and high fives followed by games, skipping and dancing with them. It was great to see the joy radiating from the smiles of the young children.

Carrie finished her final class at the nursing school. Throughout the week, Carrie was able to work with 35 students at the MPCA vocational school. The students were given a test over all of the information to see what they learned in her four classes. Katie went along to help out today and enjoyed seeing Carrie work with the students.

Pam spent most of the day organizing (and pitching) at the clinic. She is all prepared to go home now.

Jake, Jeff, Heather, Steve, and Liane traveled back to Chardene to make some final classroom repairs. They were able to repair some broken desks and hang a new chalkboard. Jake enjoyed a soccer game with some of the students. Jake was impressed by their soccer skills. Steve was glad that he was able to see his good friend, the principal one last time before traveling home. The trip to Chardene ended with a time of prayer for the students and the school.

Mark and Reuben spent the morning working at the vocational at MPCA. They were able to finish up all of the projects for the week.

The entire team spent the afternoon and evening taking inventory and packing. We are ready to go home but a little piece of our hearts will still be here. We hope this trip will have a great impact on our worship back in the states. I know that many Haitian – and American – hearts were changed during the past month spent in this beautiful country.

Thank you all for praying for us and we will be seeing you soon!