Corbett List Post and Response

This is a post from John Bick on the Corbett List. My response follows:

A small item that could be a sign of improvement and community effort, mostly unnoticed on the Corbett list, were the birth of stop lights; the first baby step in nation building and sign that anarchy may be on the wane.
Just a few short years ago, before the earthquake, stop lights appeared. At first they didn't work and when they did most people viewed them as more of a nuisance, or a suggestion, than a law. But today they are working. People stop and go pretty much as they do every where else in the world. A civil accomplishment.

In Haiti, where there is very little power, water, sanitation, health, security or any other vestige of community effort, the lights are more than just a means to improve the flow of traffic: they are beacons of hope.
Earthquakes, hurricanes and disease have cut through all socio-economic levels and tens of thousands of people live on the street, but the lights blink on and people's lives are just a little better. Can sewer and water be long delayed now for people who have mastered traffic lights?

My Repsonse:
I have never responded to any of the emails that come through this list, but I feel compelled to respond to a statement in this posting by John.

The statement that caught my eye was this: " Haiti, where there is very little power, water, sanitation, health,

security<span> or any other vestige of community effort</span>, the lights are more than

just a means to improve the flow of traffic: they are beacons of hope."

Let me assure you that there are many other "beacons of hope" and "vestige of community effort".

If one would like to see real community effort, one only has to visit the camps of Canaan - Canaan 3 in particular. Here you will see community effort in high definition!

Unfortunately the "outside world" does not get to see these types of efforts because these communities do not have a Sean Penn or Wycliffe Jean in the spotlight for them. These community groups have made the same types of strides in organizing and running these camps/new communities - but with one huge difference: they have NO FUNDING.

Just because the high profile people get all the attention does not mean that there are not other "little people" doing things just as large in the lives of those all around them!

Some of the Canaan 3 Committee Members and Some Members of the Recent Mission Lazarus Medical Team

The Canaan Community wants to turn this buidling into a Children's Home



Front View of Possible Canaan Children's Home



Foret des Pins

Church of Christ building at Foret des Pins

Today we visited Foret des Pins. We went to pick up an older woman who fell off her mule about 7 months ago and broke her leg. She never went to a doctor or got medical treatment. So now it is giving her problems. Dr. Bonnell has a team coming this week with orthopedic surgeons along. We'll take gran to see them and see if she needs surgery.

It was so cold up in the mountains where Foret de Pins is located. There are so many big pines in the area (thus the name) and it reminded me of south Georgia where I was born, not so long ago in the grand scheme of things. It was market day and it looked like a scene from some place other than Haiti - everyone had on heavy winter coats or layered winter clothing, and some even with snow boots! You could see your breath when you spoke. I know where to send the winter clothing donations now!

Children (5-7 yrs old) spent the better part of the morning digging potatoes and carrots from the garden with sticks

Christmas 2010

Christmas was really different for me (Debbie) this year. Tim was scheduled to go to the States on the 23rd, but with all the political turmoil that had gone on a week or so prior, and new announcements of election results due, he changed his ticket and left on 19th.

So he went and spent the holidays with the kids and grandkids. I'm here holding down the fort. It's been quiet, a little lonely, but a good time for some reflection and catching up on some things.

On Christmas day I was invited by a Haitian-run foundation called ORDSODEH (Organization Dedicated to Helping Unfortunate People / http://www.ordsodeh.org/) to help with a meal being served to some of the children they seek to help. They help these children go to school and get some supplies. I had been blessed with tons of macaroni noodles from Global Outreach and was able to share a good bit with ORDSODEH for this Christmas meal. All the members of ORDSODEH are Haitians, several live in the US, whose goal and desire is change their country in positive ways

I have been to many events such as this in Haiti and typically chaos rules. This day was very different. I was so impressed with how the members of this group organized this event and kept things so orderly.
A very nice meal consisting of rice & beans, creole chicken, piklis, macaroni salad, juice and cookies was served. All the children, including their parents ate heartily.

The children also received bookbags stuffed with school supplies. I had to leave before the event was over, but I think the parents even received a gift of some sort! All in all this was a very pleasant time  - a good way to pass a Christmas day!

Meal Preparation



Some of the members of ORDSODEH



ORDSODEH Members

Giving out the book bags and supplies

Bon Apetite!

Please pray for this group and their efforts. Visit their web site to see their plans for the future.


Later I went and purchased food for the orphanage at Karade and delivered the food and some Christmas gifts from Healing Hands to the kids there. The gifts for the Faith in Action Orphanage next door to us were delivered on Christmas Eve and very much appreciated.

Christmas 2010 at Le Phare Orphanage and School

Today was the long awaited annual December 23rd Christmas party for the orphanage school. There are currently 76 students attending the school and another 60 - 70 from the neighborhood also attended.

There were skits, lots of loud music and dancing, and a movie. Everyone ate their fill of rice &beans, piklese, and chicken, with soda to wash it all down. Grade cards and gifts were given out and then everyone had cake. The cake was my favorite part -not eating it - but watching all the kids eat it (-:
The party started around 1:00 and went until after 5:00. All in all it was a day full of chaos and noise, but it was a good, fun day!

He enjoyed his chicken all the way
through the bone

Dieuna

Nalio with his report card

Djelice with grade card and kindergaten folder

Dieuna with kindergarten folder

The meal being enjoyed

One of the skits

Gulna with report card and folder

Dieugrand handing out gifts

Gifts being received

Fredy with his gift from Healing Hands

Rachelle enjoyed a lot of cake

Djelice was in the wrong place at the wrong time
As a piece of cake was being sliced and handed to someone
it fell on his head

Elie is one of the smallest of our kids, but he can out eat all of them!

Djelice and Dieuna

We love our gifts!

Angena's bunny sings Jesus Loves Me



Dieugrand, wife, Policienne and their youngest child, Rachelle



Dieuna and Rachelle in hiding

Cholera

Last weekend Tim, Mezo and his son, David, son-in-law, Noupien, and I set off for mountains above Thomazeau. Mezo has a lot of family in this area. The preacher (Pitit Brese) from the church we attended in Thomazeau also has family and another congregation he oversees in this mountain area. So we had gotten word that there is a good bit of cholera in these remote villages and people are dying of it. It is so far off the beaten path that they cannot get to medical help in time. Many will not touch a person with Cholera out of fear of getting the disease themselves, so too many people are dying needlessly of this easily treated illness.
Dave Gibb (Mission Lazarus board member) recently had visited us and left with us a large amount of Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) packets to distribute.

So off we went Saturday morning to deliver the ORS, the little bit of Aqua-tabs we had on hand, several Sawyer water filters and buckets, some Crocs from Healing Hands and some rice and beans. We also were able to distribute quite a few of the "For Your Joy" booklets in Creole (Pou Ke Ou Kontan) that we picked up at the Desiring God National Conference.




For Your Joy Booklets
(Pou Ke Ou Kontan)



After our trek up the mountain we understood why Mezo had told us one time we couldn't make a planned trip after a fairly light rainfall. This is not really a road - it is literally in most spots a goat path! But as I do quite frequently, I thanked God for the Land Cruiser and realized all over again what a blessing it is! It is one powerful machine!

At  the church up on the mountain we visited with Petit Brese and Wibur from te church in Thomazeau. Tim was able demonstrate and distribute several of the Sawyer water filters to the church. Clean water is key in preventing the spread of Cholera.These filters are provided by Mission Lazarus partner, Healing Hands International. We left ORS packets, rice & beans, Crocs, filters, and aquatabs with the church in this village.

All the way up the mountain as we came across people we stopped to give out ORS packets and For Your Joy booklets. When we stopped at each spot a small crowd would gather and we distributed and shared information on preventing and treating Cholera.

The Haitian people for the most part are a generous people - they really give out of their poverty, like the widow who gave her last two mites. But is this really poverty? I think we have this backwards - this is what it reaaly means to be rich in God's economy. We came home with fresh congo beans, grapefruit, mirlitons, yams, and oranges.



View halfway up the mountain



Church at Troudeaux



Inside the Church




Talking with Pitit Brese




Exterior of the church



Water Cistern for the community

Tim demonstrating water filters

Water Cistern

Filter Demo

Distributing ORS packets

 

Tim liked this boy's shirt