Thank you so very much. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

June 3, 2016 Posted by Karen Huxter

Thank you Nicki and Mike for joining us at the mission HATS-Haiti for three months. You came, you gave of yourselves in many ways, you accepted all of us, you accepted the Haitian people, accepted the culture of Haiti and the fact that this country is not North America and one should not try to make it so. You gave of yourself, you worked diligently and you learned as you worked. You kept an open mind and always showed an heart that was filled with the love of the Lord. You loved on the children but held them to the standards we have for them so they can hopefully grow up in integrity and honesty.

Bye little princess Magdala

We worked, we laughed, we prayed, we taught at the main compound, at the school and at church, and very importantly we supported each other.

You are missed. Four times on Tuesday, after you had left, I found myself saying the following “mention it to Mike”, “Nicki will help with that”, “Mike can fix that for us”, and even “Have you seen Nicki?” Yikes, I sure had come to depend on you guys.

Bye sweet Dickieson

A big thank you for accepting me, just as I am, faults, quirks and all, and allowing me to see I could depend on you both.

It was very difficult to see you on the bus and heading back to your other country and other family. I am happy for them but sad for us. I am already awaiting your return. The children are awaiting your return. Luckner is awaiting your return. You are missed by us all.

Magdala holding onto Mike as long as possible

THANK YOU.

Another big thank you to the Springdale, Newfoundland team – Emma, Todd, Don, Jenny, Alycia and Lacee.

Springdale group ready to board the bus to head to their other home

It is always a huge pleasure to have you guys come and always difficult to see you leave. You are all ‘my family’ – family from Newfoundland that we depend on coming regularly.

Bye gang

All are leaving – even N and M

Each time you come to serve you do different types of jobs, whatever is needed upon arrival – this time was no exception. The Health Awareness help and teaching to our school students was invaluable and so very necessary. So many small health problems become big ones without knowledge and information. Kudos to all of you for jumping in and helping with this and also to our school director, Luckner, for seeing the need and asking if it could be done.

Devotions at school the morning group left giving huge thank yous for all their help

You come to help and that you certainly do – help our children, our students, but very importantly help me too. We laugh, we cry, we pray, and we look to the future of HATS together as a team.

THANK YOU.

You are indeed on the calendar for May 2017 and we are already looking forward to having you back.

Losing my ‘right hand man, Mike’ and my ‘left hand woman, Nicki’ at the same time that you left was very difficult but I was thankful they were traveling with such a great bunch of fun Newfoundlanders.

Two special men

This beautiful lady has an interesting idea of travel attire. Is this what Haiti has done for her

I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who supported Nicki and Mike for their three months with us and who supported the Springdale team to return and who gave help once more. Thank you so very much to all who donated clothes, shoes, various needed items, laptops, toys – frisbies and skipping ropes- for the students and children here, money to pay to bring extra suitcases, and, and, and…

Working with the blessed gifts of laptops

May God bless all of you who came and gave of yourself and all of you behind the scenes who supported and gave to make it all possible. You have blessed us and we are asking God to bless all of you.

Papa Luckner, saying goodbye to N & M and team and loving on our little Dickieson

It takes all of us working together to make this mission the place of help it is in this area of the Artibonite Valley. All of you behind the scenes are extremely important to the work being done here and we thank you. Without you the children would not receive the help they do. THANK YOU!!

I T I S A L L A B O U T T H E C H I L D R E N

~Karen

About Karen Huxter

Karen Huxter, the founder and Director of Hands Across the Sea, was born in Springdale, Newfoundland and is proud of her Newfie roots and heritage. She lived in various places across Canada such as Quebec, the Yukon, Ontario, Alberta and BC before moving to Haiti in 1995. In her professional career, Karen worked in teaching, banking and administration and did extensive volunteer work with community groups and charities. A mother of two grown daughters, one young adopted son and seven grandchildren, Karen is energetic and passionate about the work in Haiti. She loves each of the children and has a heart of compassion for children, women and families in the country of Haiti.

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Testimonials

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 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
I am so thankful to God for allowing me the opportunity to be here and experience his splendor. This day will forever be in my heart and mind. The scripture that resonates with me today is “…whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” Matt 25:40. I am so happy I decided to come to HATS, this experience will stay with me for my life time.

Crystal Young
HATS Visitor
Thank you Karen for everything you do, all the hard work and dedication that you put into this place, all of the work behind the scenes. Thank you for putting up with all the craziness that we bring when we come to your house for the week, just thank you times a million and one for everything Karen. I can write about my week until I am blue in the face (maybe not write that long but if you know me I can definitely talk for that long), and can sing about kit kat bars until my voice gives out, but I cannot even begin to try and articulate in song, dance, or other random art forms how thankful and blessed I am to have been given this experience not only once but twice! Thank you – thank you – thank you – thank you!!!!!!!

Kathleen
HATS Visitor
They call Karen “the helicopter ” and after spending three days by her side I know why. She propels through life!!! If you want to get on the ride you better start running. It is an amazing work that the Lord is doing here through so many many dedicated workers…literally hundreds of children impacted every day with the love of Christ…but the task to do so is enormous. The dedication of staff is invaluable…they NEED US ALL!!

Barbara & Louis
HATS Visitors
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
I am going to try to explain why a trip to Haiti is life-changing. No-one can be thrown into a group of people who have the common purpose of doing something for someone less fortunate and not be changed in many ways. As with those I joined in each of the first four trips I made to HATS, my respect and affection for each of the team members grows daily. To those who wonder if your donations and prayers are actually making a difference, I will answer you in this way…there are about 300 children in front of me right now and some or many of them God will use in a great way to change the future face of Haiti and its people. YOU have helped make that possible — AND THAT, FOLKS — is a fact!

Brian En
HATS Visitor
We’ve made a difference, I believe. Big stuff, little stuff; it all contributed to the greater good and that big picture: keeping HATS a surviving and thriving, safe haven for the children of Deschapelles, Haiti. And oh my, what children they are. As expected, it was tough to leave. There were tears, whispers, hugs and I’ll miss you’s. I learned that it gets easier (only a bit) for those who’ve done this a few times. As Bob says “I’m part of the furniture now. I don’t say ‘goodbye’, I say ‘see you later’.” Maybe that’s how you cope with leaving…you return. Once, five times, 10 times. However many. Guaranteed you’ll leave a different person than when you came in.

Aimee Feaver
HATS Visitor
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
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