CONNECTED!

Over four million meals in one location!  I stood in awe as we wandered through the massive warehouse at Mission of Hope, a partner of Feed My Starving Children in Haiti!  I couldn’t believe in what I was seeing.  I marveled as I thought of the thousands of hours, people, and donations that had come together to make such a sight possible.  There were meals from all over. From sites, and MobilePacks.  It was incredible!

I watched with such joy as the Haitian boys came from the soccer field into the feeding center.  The bowls lined up, cooked and served by our team.  As each boy came forward to receive their meal, they were met with food, and true smiles of joy.  It was a priceless moment as I watched it all come together. We carried in boxes to an orphanage in Port au Prince. Ten simple boxes delivered in love and again with joy. Soccer games, songs, arts and crafts, laughing, bubbles, snacks, smiles, giggles, and kids.  All connected in love as our team loved with reckless abandon. It was a truly a sight of a kingdom to come.  

3:45 am as 15 people gathered at the Minneapolis airport.  A partnership with Healing Haiti and Feed My Starving Children came together with Incarnation Lutheran Church, a Mobile Pack Host Church and another MobilePack Host from New Jersey.  Fifteen people stepping out in faith and trust into a journey of love, compassion, exploration, and self discovery.  

Snapshots, from eight days in a far off place called Haiti.  Snapshots, that standing alone are simply moments.  And yet told together, they are connected.  Connected in a story united in the simple commandment to love God and to love others.  Connected in the gospel.  

In an incredible tapestry, God has woven all of these moments, people, and pieces together.  A wonderful church in Minnesota, Incarnation, that has made it part of their DNA to partner with Feed My Starving Children to pack meals for God’s children, hungry in body and spirit. An amazing organization, Mission of Hope, that partners with Feed My Starving Children, to feed 90,000 Haitian children a day.  And an orphanage that has taken in God’s children to love and care for them.  10 simple boxes of food to help feed and nuture them.  And a team, of 15 simple folks who have journeyed to Haiti, to serve, live, and love in obedience and faithfulness.

Simple moments all connected to tell a beautiful story of 15 people who will never be the same because they have tasted and seen that the Lord is good.  And He is faithful as He brings it all together in His mercy that light may shine in the darkness and His children will be loved.  Connected!

Orphanages Making a Difference - A Glimmer of Hope

Today we met more amazing adults who love and care for children. Orphanages exist in all shapes and sizes in Haiti—one of which we visited was established to care for children orphaned by the massive earthquake in 2010. 

We visited Sister’s Orphanage in Port au Prince and Isaiah’s Orphanage in Titanyen. Singing, crafts, games and soccer played. We delivered the Haitian equivalent of “lunchables” to eager children at this orphanage.

Our second stop was at Isaiah’s Orphanage. Isaiah, the man himself, is an amazing example of love and caring. He was trained as an accountant as a young man. But when God put it on his heart to bring abandoned children home, he ended up bringing home 16 orphans home from Cite Soleil after the earthquake. He has helped with the children now, but he is a single man who followed God’s call. 

With 16 kids under one roof, he knew he needed a bigger house but “bigger” is still tiny by our standards. Each of the kids greeted us individually with hugs as we came in like you would greet a family member coming to visit. The kids call him “Papa” and he was obviously proud of the children as they sang the songs they had prepared for us. The faith statement for his life is “if God is for us, who can be against us”. He teaches the scripture faithfully to the kids at least twice a week as well as worshiping twice a week with the local Church.We felt that we were welcomed with Biblical hospitality for the stranger, walked on holy ground and we carry a part of their family in our hearts.

Gerry, our team member, played the violin and she was quite an attraction to the kids.

One of the many games played, Elastablast.

The kids loved to sit with us and enjoyed the attention each of us would give them.

We had fun playing soccer with the boys while the rest were painting nails, making crafts and enjoying music & games.

Each child was able to make their own colorful crosses.

Long Day

Today was our earliest day in Haiti.  The day began with a 6 am weekday worship at a large Haitian church.  The service was unlike our traditional Lutheran worship service.  People came and left this three hour service as a start to their weekday routine.  While at worship the participants continuously walked the aisles and pew rows as they raised their hands to God and offered spontaneous expressions of praise.  Our team observed from the second row of pews and were inspired by the Haitians active worship style and faithful hearts.  As the service progressed more and more people came and by the time we left (about an hour into the service) the large warehouse-like worship center was buzzing with people that were “fueling” their day via an inspirational mix of music, gospel, prayer, and testimony.

We walked back to the Guest House - getting a glimpse of the waking neighborhood - for another hearty breakfast before our next activity of the day.  

Loading the “tap tap” truck with our orphanage donations and some boxes of FMSC food - we headed on an adventure to Mission of Hope.  Mission of Hope is an organization that currently distributes FMSC meal packs to over 400 Haitian schools and feeds over 90,000 children annually.  The Director at Mission of Hope gave us an overview of all the work their organization does to feed the children of Haiti; including a farmer’s program where they help around 200 farmer’s a year to seed their land, cultivate a crop, and harvest the crop to support the farmer’s family.  Each farmer in this program keeps 80% of their crop for sale or use, sets aside 10% of the crop to provide seed for next year, and donates 10% of the crop back to Mission of Hope to be used in the core feeding program.  Mission of Hope receives 80-90% of the food it distributes from FSMC.  We toured the warehouse and saw racks and racks of manna packs similar to the ones packaged at Incarnation.  At this time, there were around 5 million meals in their warehouse, and these meals will fulfill the program’s distribution through the end of 2014.  It was amazing for the group to see how what started out as bags of rice and soy powder in Minnesota were transformed into ready-to-cook meals that will feed some of the most needy children in the world.  Our group also gained additional perspective from Dave G our FMSC team leader, and Don and Martie Martin who serve on FMSC’s community advisory board as representatives of our congregation.

After a quick water and snack break on the "tap tap”, the group changed gears dramatically.  While our morning was spent in worship at a mega-church and touring a huge warehouse of manna packs, our afternoon was spent at a very small Haitian orphanage.  This orphanage was home to approximately 12 to 15 children, and 3 adult caregivers.  The orphanage had a very small gravel driveway/yard and a cinder block building with a classroom that was no more than 200 square feet.  The team spent the afternoon reading a bible story to the children, singing songs with them, doing arts and crafts, and ending with a snack.  The children of the orphanage were like many of the children in Haiti, excited to receive hugs, play games, and generally be loved by our team members.  It was amazing to see how these children who range from infant to teenager all wanted to participate, and how they took care of each other as brothers and sisters in their orphanage community.

Our night included a trip to a local pizzeria run by former missionaries.  After dinner we returned to the Guest House for devotions.  Our reading from Matthew asked: “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?”  Jesus answered: “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.”  This day (and our whole week) in Haiti brings these Gospel words to life, and makes our group excited to share our experience with family, friends, and the Incarnation community.

Scott & Amie Odahl

Cite Soleil

Today, we spent our entire day in Cite Soliel, the poorest slum in the western hemisphere.  The population is 800,000 in an area of 8.42 square miles.  The place is filled with unimaginable trash, goat and pig families, crumbling structures, canals of sewage, roads that look like dried riverbeds, and lots and lots of people.

Our first stop was Elder School (primary and secondary education) with enrollment of 500 children.  It was crowded, noisy, chaotic, but was essentially a happy place.  We wondered if we were catching the kids between classes as the pace never slowed down while we were there.  It was gratifying to see the children being fed FMSC food as a midday meal.  In the midst of this terrible part of town, the school appeared to be an oasis of safety and hope.  As we saw in other schools, each child was in a crisp, clean uniform and we had great interaction with them despite the language barrier.  The school director and founder, Elder, welcomed us and told us about the school.

From Elder School, we picked up a water truck, a big truck with a water tank carrying 3500 gallons with hoses attached.  We followed the truck in our tap tap (people cage on wheels) to our first water distribution location in the middle of a neighborhood. We were greeted by a crowds of children and adults who were there to get water.  Upon opening the tap tap door, children leaped into our arms, literally, while adults (mostly women) carried all manner of receptacles to the truck for water.  It was clear that many of us were providing childcare while women (mostly) or older siblings filled their water buckets.  Long lines, LOTS of children in various stages of dress (or not), impromptu “showers” taken, and general water play.  It was essentially an organized process.  We helped women lift these five gallon buckets onto their heads so they could carry them home.  We returned to the compound for more water and then onto delivery to a different part of Cite Soleil. The climate changed at our second stop and there was a heightened sense of urgency, longer lines, more people, arguments amongst those in line, and need for more of our help.  Many of us worked the truck while the rest of us held and loved children, often two or three at a time.  We paused for a moment to pray at the site of a new church and school.  Construction is planned as soon as funds are raised.

The final destination was a beacon of hope.  The Haitian Soccer Initiative is an after school program for 250 boys and girls.  Many of you know of the Haitian Soccer Initiative and the boys who participate in the World Cup Soccer Tournament in Blaine, MN.  We watched the drills and practice of the 10-13 year old athletes and while we didn’t think they’d be playing on turf, we were not prepared to see them practice of rocks and rubble, in extreme heat, with no water breaks.  Amie, Scott, and Dave K played assistant coaches and kept up with the kids admirably while the rest of us cheered them on.  Following practice, the kids were served a generous FMSC meal which we had prepared earlier in the afternoon from food packed in MN and IL.  What a gratifying experience to see it all come full circle and to be thanked by the kids eating the food.

As we reflect on the day, we come back to our group’s Words of the Day: Sensory-overload, shocking, trash, refreshing, kindness, perplexed, refuge, thank you, schools, gracious, “hey you” = lift a bucket, soccer, relieved, one, Lipson (the name of a child).  We continue to be reminded of a terrible, sad, and perplexing place where there are moments of hope.  We’re making a difference, one child at a time.

Becky & Gerry

EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED....  Heavy rains the previous evening prompted a change in itinerary for our day... water truck day was off the schedule since all the rain buckets were full.

Grace Village:  This compound, created by the founders of Healing Haiti, currently has 400 children enrolled in school (36 living on site), a clinic, an aquaponics facility and a facility for bread making.  Within mere moments from unloading from the TAP TAP, our arms and laps were filled with embraces from smiling children in their crisp and colorful uniforms. They clung tightly to each of us they adopted and flowed with us throughout our tour of the facility.

Elder Visits: We were blessed to have opportunity to spend time in community with 6 of the elders, ranging in age from 62-104, as we visited each of them in their humble dwellings tucked off the roadsides in the village of Titanyen.  This time of sacred interaction was enhanced by music leadership from Patrick on his guitar and Gerry on her violin.  We alternated roles of presenting food and hair oils, providing therapeutic massage with lotions and sharing in hymns and prayer. The images of joy and appreciation are imprinted in our memories.

Mass Grave Site:   After the January 2010 earthquake,  a mass grave  was created for the remains of tens of thousands who perished.  This area has been designated as a National Monument and construction has begun on a memorial.  Our guide, Brunet, shared his experience from the day of the earthquake.  Our prayerful visit concluded with the melody of "Amazing Grace" on Gerry's violin.

Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) food distribution:  As we exited the walled Grave Site, we encountered families from the neighboring hillside who were gathering in the vicinity of our vehicle with the hopes of receiving FMSC food.  Disorganization evolved into a method of two lines in order by height, beginning with the smallest child.   As we created an assembly line for placing three packets of food into the hands of each person, it was a joy to see the distribution process come full circle.  In our evening reflection time, we felt we had experienced an opportunity to "Turn Hunger into Hope" for God's Children we served today.

Don and Martie

"Whatsoever you do for the least of my brothers, that you do unto me."

Words are inadequate to describe all that our group of 15 saw, felt, heard and experienced today.   At day's end, our individual "word of the day" included hope, dehydration, eyes, blessed, impressive, kids, conflicted, acceptance, roller coaster, incremental, precious, progress, remember, improvement and Ronaldson (name of one of the children).

Being an earlier riser, Dave woke up this morning before sunrise to the sounds of chickens and sight of sparring goats in the open lot next to Guest House #2 where we are staying this week.

Our day started with a delicious and large breakfast of scrambled eggs, pancakes, as well as avocados, mangoes, oatmeal, fresh squeezed juice and coffee.

Our first stop was at a home for approximately 60 sick and dying children.   These babies and children are brought to this facility for physical care.   Parents come to visit, hold and play with their children throughout their stay.  We spent several hours just being with the kids in hopes of making life a little easier for them for at least a few hours.

The "tap tap", our mode of transportation, took us through the streets of Haiti to the "Apparent Project" where the results of one person's efforts are making a huge difference in the lives of 300 Haitian employees and their families.  Through a business that makes and sells handmade crafts, Shelley Clay's goal is to provide an income sufficient to allow employees to keep their families together.

Our third and final stop was at General Hospital where we distributed care packages to families with sick children in the pediatric section of this hospital.  Most of the children were being treated for severe dehydration.  By Minnesota's standards, this hospital would be closed down.  However, for the people in our group who have experienced Haiti previously, the pediatric section has made significant changes in the past year.  The children are housed in a new, enclosed structure with clean floors and air conditioning.  Evidently, last year the sick children were housed in a horse stable-like building, not enclosed and with hot, humid, small, dirty partitions.

Our devotional this morning seemed apropos as we felt the presence of God throughout the day.

"And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."  Matthew 28:20

Written by Joy and Dave

Perspective

Ever have people tell you they just want the 30,000 foot view? They just want to see the top-line view.

Today as we were flying in into Port-au-Prince, we had that 30,000 foot view coming in over the mountains. Flying in over the very green carpeted mountains, blanketed by fluffy white clouds with Caribbean blue background from the sea to the sky. Port-au-Prince off in the distance looked like a typical coastal town. As we descended, the little towns and villages turned into small buildings with rusty roofs. The fields were spotty brown and green. As we came in closer to the one short runway airport, we flew over many concrete structures, most only partially there. People and cars everywhere, in and amongst the concrete grid. Even the airport itself, repaired after the earthquake, is still in some disrepair. All of our senses were inundated the moment we stepped out of the terminal -- from the heat, humidity, orchestrated chaos, sounds and smells.

So, what is that perspective we're looking for? Certainly not what it seemed at 30,000 feet. Seeing as we've arrived in Haiti, our perspectives will be formed and reformed over this next week.

- Dave K. & Michelle