Happy Canada Day 2014

July 2, 2014 Posted by Beate Rufft

Edited: Due to migrating the blog in 2016, the original pictures are no longer available.

Beate here again with Vivienne. You have no idea (okay, some of you do 🙂 ) how wonderful it is to be greeted by so many loving children with hugs, hugs and more hugs. We shared a wonderful start to the glorious morning in devotions. We sang, clapped, and prayed, filling our hearts and souls with positive energy and love.

Karen made a lovely cake for the kids. It only took her 2 hours to mix it with all of her many, many, interruptions. I’m used to seeing her go like a whirlwind, but Vivienne has never experienced KAREN….momma, DG (boss), electrician, plumber, propane getter, accountant, nurse, water pump lady, security guard checker, teacher, translator, Indy 500 driver (in Haiti that’s what you need to have for the crazy driving) and that’s just within a few hours! Go Karen Go….You Rock! Actually, you are THE ROCK to this place. I cannot express to you how amazed I am each time I come. Vivienne has never seen a woman do so much and know so much. We wonder in awe how she does it and how she ever learned to do what she does in this country. The culture is so different to ours, and yet she manages like a pro. I would be so scared to do what she does. Vivienne and I have often asked ourselves, as I know many of you have, would we ever be able to leave everything we owned behind and come to help others as Karen did? No, I think that Karen is 1 in a million, and that is why we all need to help people like Karen who devote their lives to help others. It’s the very least we can do.

Canada Day is also a time to celebrate our wonderful country (yes, we have it good, real good). So, the kids decorated the compound with flags, and more flags.

We wore our Canada hats, sang O’Canada and played some crazy games.

We had a Canada tatoo parlour.

Children and employees loved playing the squeeze the sponge relay (over and over and over again).

Of course our national game: hockey. I have discovered that Vivienne is quite the athlete, and the kids love it. She shoots, she scores even from her net to my net….hhhmmmmpf. Good thing that I’m not competitive!

We also had a chance to drive into St. Marc with Karen and security man extraordinaire Richard. If I’m ever going to drive in Haiti, I will definitely have to learn how to back up a truck filled with 6 propane trucks with motorcycles and trucks flying everywhere, and people coming up from all sides. Karen is one heck of a driver. We did some grocery shopping in a store which had pretty much everything one needs except for rope to secure the propane tanks. So off we went to another store which did not have rope, and finally Richard found one in the market for us. Whew…the tanks were a bit too dangerous to drive around without having them safely tied up. Vivienne has already started a list of things we will need to bring down next year.

Our wonderful day ended with the hockey game, and the little ones ended up staying past their bedtime…but joy oh joy, we had enough water to have a quick shower. The baby wipes were just not cutting it anymore! Ahhh, the simple, yet valuable pleasures in life. Each year, I have my grade 8 science class experience what it is like to carry a big bucket of water around our school yard (which has an 800 meter circuit). I try to have them feel and think like millions of children who have to lug heavy jugs of water from a local well to their homes. Many have to walk several kilometers to access safe drinking water. As we drove back from St. Marc we saw exactly that…children walking to the wells with empty cans, and walking back to their homes with the heavy burden so necessary to survive. So to the kids who are reading this blog (and the adults), please be thankful for what you have, and please next time you take a drink of water, stop and think about someone your age who is right at that moment carrying a very heavy bucket back to their humble home.

Good night all…lots of love

~Beate and Vivienne

About Beate Rufft

Beate Rufft, was introduced to Hands Across the Sea and our founder, Karen Huxter in 2010, after seeing the devastation of the earthquake and wanting to volunteer in the country. An elementary school teacher in Ontario, Beate has previously worked with homeless children in Columbia and orphans in El Salvador. Beate is currently serving as Board Secretary and travels to Haiti each year. She is a proud to support the vital work that HATS does for the children and families in the community of Deschapelles.

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Testimonials

I have absolutely loved the Haitian people and Haiti the three times I have been there. I go to bless them, only to be blessed myself!

Yvette Calderwood
HATS Visitor
This is my first time traveling outside of Canada and I am proud to say it was for a mission trip. I have always wanted to go on one and see what it like in other parts of the world and do what I can to help out. Haiti is a terminus life change for me and how I look at things. Seeing these kids and how they have such a passion for each other and for us is truly inspiring. I look back to what I was like at that age and I don’t think I was half as kind or generous as they are. This morning we did devotions and as I was speaking about what an impact they had on me only in one day I started to tear up…it was very emotional to talk about.

Isaiah Henderson
HATS Visitor
Culture shock for this Canadian team at first, but a ride through busy, vibrant streets proved terrifically interesting; busy markets, vendors selling exotic fruits, clothing and shoes, used tires and rusty metal… and then the gorgeous countryside: banana plants, mangoes, cows and goats and pigs and dogs, the Golfe de La Gonave by our side. Rice patties indicated we were close to our home for the next week. We were greeted by Magalie, a house mother, with hugs for all and, of course, the children themselves, so gorgeous and endearing. A beautiful meal was followed by a sharing of impressions: there is a lot of poverty but so much potential and hope. We are already in love with Haiti.

Team Canada
HATS Visitors
After years of thinking about it and months of planning for it, it seems strange that our time in Haiti is over. We have been asked by a few if it was like we expected. Well, no. I’m not sure what we expected, but our minds could not have fathomed what we have experienced, and we can hardly believe that our 3 month stay has come to an end. HATS really became home away from home for us. We knew we would enjoy getting to know and spending time with the kids but we had no idea how difficult it would be to leave them. They sneak in and steal your heart without you even knowing it. We have left a piece of our hearts in Haiti and can’t wait for the day when we can return.

Mike & Nicki White
HATS Visitors
Personally, this is my first time here. I’ve never done a mission trip of any sort before and I’ve certainly never been anywhere this hot before. I keep seeing things that are different from what I’m used to, and hearing about things even more unfamiliar to me. One of the most surprising things to meis how quickly I’ve grown to love all the people here. Everyone here is great, and the team is wonderful too. Watching everyone support each other warms my heart almost as much as the sun warms my skin. I’ve learned a lot from this experience, and I know that this trip has already had a profound impact on my life.

Matthew Sketchley
HATS Visitor
It’s my hope that I manage to touch their hearts in some small way, the way that they have touched mine – in a major way.

Cherie MacDonald
HATS Visitor
I spent a week in Haiti at HATS in November 2017 and it was a wonderful experience. Karen is an amazing woman and is doing amazing work. She is dedicated to the children in her care and is changing lives. I would love the opportunity to visit again and help out where I can.

Sandy Eastly
HATS Visitor
We have so enjoyed our time here. The work we have done has been fulfilling, the fellowship has been memorable and our hearts are forever impacted by the sweet, sweet children. A piece of HATS will always stay with each of us and who knows, maybe a few will return!

Ashley Withrow, Nicki White & Deborah Gilbert
HATS Visitors
It’s going to be impossible to put my thoughts into words about this experience, so I’d say this – if you can get here – do. I think most people probably think they’re coming to help others. To some extent, that’s true (at least this temporary blogger thought so). To a larger extent, you’ll leave Haiti a better person than when you arrived. Nelson Mandela once said something like “Everywhere I go, I wear you”. It means that none of us is our own person entirely. Rather, we’re the culmination of the people and experiences we have had. I leave Haiti wearing 16 HATS children, 10(ish) Haitian staff members, a Calgarian, 2 Winnipegian’s, and a Newfie. And I couldn’t be happier about it. Until we meet again my friends.

Rick
HATS Visitor
This morning, we woke up as the sun came up and as we all began to trickle downstairs; we were met with warm welcomes from the precious children. As the children arrived, we were deeply touched and came to the realization of how important the HATS organization is to this country. Many children who would not have had any opportunities are now well nourished, educated and have a loving home and a mother who loves them more than we could ever comprehend, Karen Huxter.

Nicole Boudreau & Marcia Muise
HATS Visitors