I last blogged from the fabulous island of Newfoundland. In the two weeks that I have been back home in Haiti there has been no possibility of my finding a few minutes to blog or even to respond to emails. I told people awhile back that I was going to blog more often and they would be shorter. Good intentions. I am still planning on that, but life gets in the way here of following any plan. I will try to explain a little about how crazy it has been since my return but without being here and seeing first hand the insane busyness of my life you may not understand. I ask, however, that you have patience when you write me or when I am behind in communication with you. I am literally on the run all the time until I fall unto my bed late at night.
My time with family and friends in NS and NL was wonderful and needed. As friend Aimee predicted, the moment my feet hit the tarmac in Port au Prince, I was once more back in the saddle big time. I have since then been the red headed helicopter again flying high and low trying to handle things.
It was fantastic to be back with my children and to be so warmly welcomed. They truly did seem to be happy to have me back. Luckner, Jessie, and Seth did a good job of keeping things going nicely while I was away, for which I thank them again. Ti Luc enjoyed staying with Jessie and Seth but was one happy boy to have his mama back again.
The day I returned Seth and Jessie had family visitors arrive, four very nice Christian young people, who stayed with Jessie and Seth. We met up at the airport in PAP and travelled to the mission site together. I will let Seth and Jessie blog about that.
The day after my return home, Tuesday, the generator broke down once again. The batteries that provide back up electricity for my place had run out of charge while I was away. Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday we were without electricity. No electricity, no lights, no fan, no fridge or freezer running, and no computer. Total blackout everywhere on the compound. Florence Nightingale I am not, but I thought of the stories about her as I wandered around my house in the evenings and nights from 7:00 p.m. on with a small flashlight.
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| Generator repairs again |
To top it all off Ti Luc was quite ill during this time. He had to sleep quite close to me for several nights.
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| Jordan with Ti Luc as he takes treatment |
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| Papa with his sick boy and other kids trying to pay workers |
There were many things awaiting my return and I was busy running from one to another. These things coupled with the huge problems caused by the broken down generator, made saying I was busy all the time an understatement. At the same time I was trying to spend valuable time with my children who had missed their mama.
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| Karena loves her gift of a mirror from Mama |
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| Mirlande, Leica, Karma, Djeumima |
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| A surprised Anne |
During this busy time we managed to have a birthday party for Vladimy who turned 16 and Judel 4.
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| August birthday boys – Judel 4, Vladimy 16 |
The family of Jessie and Seth left on Wednesday of last week. That meant a day off the compound for Luckner and I to go to Port au Prince. We did manage to take care of a few necessary things on our list that day. Jessie started to feel ill before going to the airport with her family and she continued to get worse over the next few days. She was a very sick girl and I must admit I was more than concerned. I wanted to try to take care of her on-site to shield her from having to go to the hospital. Luckner and I were able to find a nurse and medical supplies, i.e. IV fluid, etc and have her taken care of here at their house. We thank God that now Jessie is much better – not yet back to complete health – but she is up and around and smiling again.
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| Jessie getting nursing care |
Early Saturday morning saw us back in Port au Prince once more. This time to pick up my precious granddaughter, Mariah, who has come to help me for three months, along with her other grandmother, Liz, who is with us for a short visit. It is good to have them both with us. During the next three months Mariah is going to be very useful in many areas and already today that is very apparent. On the ride to the compound after picking them up we had a flat tire. Change it quickly in the heat right? Not! No spare under the truck where it should have been. Oops. I had dropped the spare tire off for repairs a couple of days before heading to Canada. Obviously in the excitement of packing to leave I forgot to get it picked back up and also forgot to let Luckner know it was not back on the truck.
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| Sleeping Mariah, Liz and Daniel in packed full truck |
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| Enroute to home with Mariah and Liz – flat tire no spare |
The latest word on schools in Haiti is that we will be opening on October 3rd. This will actually give Luckner and I a chance to do a little more work on the construction project underway at the school. The cement roof on the office/library building was poured a couple of days after my return. There will still be more work to be done on the school compound, which will be undertaken later when funds arrive for same. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks I will be able to get in touch with you, the sponsors, who have a change in your sponsored students.
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| Just finished pouring cement roof |
Over the past few months a very important project – a Trade School – has been constructed, by Luckner, on land that he was able to purchase next door to his house. He had it built as a community project and I might add a necessary project for this area. People here, visitors from Canada and the US, as well as myself, saw this need and are thankful for it. I, however, also saw the need of it being separate from the HATS mission. I, however, am, and always will be, a part of it. Involvement and support for this project is needed and there is a possibility of this coming from a group of people in NS. Hopefully help for courses to be taught and for people in our area to be able to attend the Trade School will come.
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| Radio Station on top. Trade school below |
Luckner has built not only a community trade school but also a Radio Station which sits on top of the school building. Radio Creole FM has quickly become well known and has become a very important part of this community. Radio Creole plays a lot of Christian music, has prayer time three times a day, and very important Christian messages are going out to the people. Lives are being changed, people are seeing the need to leave a life of darkness to walk in the light. Of all the projects and work Luckner has been, and is, involved in I see this as the most important of all. This is something else I am happily involved in and plan to always be a part of. Today Mariah and I spent 1 1/2 hours down at the Radio Station when Luckner had a person in the station explaining Voodooism. Luckner, knowing the word of God as he does, asked the right questions and gave the right responses. It is fantastic to see people coming to the Lord through the word and music of the radio station.
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| Radio station at Luckner’s. Announcer with Ti Luc |
Luckner and I are working together to help meet needs of the people in this area physically, emotionally and spiritually. We do this through education – elementary and high school, daily meals at the school, mercy ministry into the community, further education through the Trade School, and Christian teaching and prayer support through the radio station.
Thank you. Thank you. THANK YOU for all the support. We will continue to do what we can at this end but without you at the other end nothing will be accomplished.
May God richly bless each and every one of you – our extended HATS family.
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| Mariah and Ti Luc happy to be together again after 9 months |
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| Nana Liz with Karena Mariah |
~Karen
