"We are the world united by love so strong...we are the world connected by a common bond-love"

Before hand I knew that good things were going to come out of this trip and afterwards I can easily say that amazing, incredible, beautiful things came out of this trip. Our group of 17 was more than a perfect fit for the weeks tasks.

Throughout the week we accomplished the following:

Gary (or as the team referred to him "Dad"), Lou, John, Rob,
Clay and Ben prepare to walk the buckets of sand
 and water to the school for the men working on the floor.

• worshiping and sharing Gods gospel
• basketball clinic and games
• soccer games after school (soccer and basketball supplies were collected by Rob, Ben, Lou, Clay and Luke before the trip from donations from various organizations and community members)
• visits to surrounding villages each day to help nurse Shelly with house visits/followups on patients, blood pressure screenings and vitamin distribution
• bracelet making (now being sold in the US)
• scarf making (also being sold in the US)
• English class with the Bright Morning Star English Club
• working in child sponsorship updating files
• food distribution to over 600 families in desperate need
• trip to Paco to update student files for medical purposes and vitamin distribution
• trip to Paul to survey for the new school
• organization of scarf making supply closet
• organization and addition to the library I helped start on my January 2012 trip
• assembly, hanging and ringing of a new school bell
• moving of sand and water to aid the Haitians in the laying of tile in the school
• carpentry and assembly of lab benches and cabinets in a school room
• distribution of braided bracelets donated by another Pittsburgh group to every school student in La Croix
• clinic visits with nurse Shelly
• walks up the mountain (partially motivated to work off the amazing food we ate all week)
• organization of medical supplies
• spur of the moment small group English lessons with eager students

...and for me, the most beautiful event this week was the delivery of a baby. Nurse Shelly knows I'm on the edge of pursuing a career in the medical field and took it upon herself to make sure I was involved in every medical aspect of the trip that came up. Late afternoon on Friday she eagerly approached me and exclaimed that a baby was being born at the clinic 1/2 mile down the road and wanted to know if I was interested in assisting. I mean, how could I say no? We quickly changed into scrubs and walked as fast as possible to the clinic (with RoRo (Roland the translator) walking as slow as a turtle behind us as if nothing was up). Since the Haitians don't receive any pain meds during labor we could hear the mother screaming before we were even on the property of the maternity ward. Before I knew it we were in the room and the child was being delivered. Yardly (the Haitian midwife) delivered the baby as Shelly and I held the mothers hands. The first  Kreyol phrase I learned that week was "please remain clam." I was contemplating testing my Kreyol and telling the mother "tempri rete tranquil" but figured she probably wouldn't be too pleased with a tiny white 17 year old telling her to remain calm while she was busy giving birth to her child. When the baby was born I had the privilege of cutting the umbilical cord, showing the mother her baby for the first time and then showing the baby to the rest of the family and letting the great grandmother cradle her.  I cried when the baby was born. I cried when I saw the dads face when he saw his healthy daughter for the first time. I cried as told my dad I helped deliver a baby.

As I look back on this experience I realize that I watched this child take its first breath. The first breath of a life that most likely wont be too easy. But a breath that would last a life time. This girl has the potential to grow up in Pastor Pierre's community and that in itself is a blessing more and more people are involved in each year. When I realized this, my worries and fears for a hard life ahead of this child vanished. As our team worked with Pierre and his staff this week it was evident that something was going right in the mission of La Croix. The kids come to school and receive and outstanding education. The families have a place to come and worship. There is a clinic that is self supporting for the community access. The students have (or will in the very near future) a vocational school to attend. The families have God's hand and Pastor Pierre's generosity to be thankful for.

the view from the top of the mountain across the street from the mission

As our team became aware of the good things about the mission we were appreciative of Pierre's efforts and intelligence and wish there were more people like him in Haiti. God's hand is at work in La Croix and this past week, our group was able to be part of that and work alongside the Haitians to complete projects that in some way or another were able to better their lives.

we made a quick stop to admire the Caribbean
on the way back to the airport

However the projects weren't everything. Having talked to some of the team since we got home the most valued thing we were able to take away (although the trip most certainly isn't about what we get out of it but what the Haitians do, there are evidently some very emotional experiences that we can say we got out of the trip) from this were the friendships we made and expanded upon. These friendships are some that we can't even say we have with those here in the states. We were openly able to worship the Lord and break out into song randomly, joke around with as if we had know each other for years. "We are the world united by love so strong...we are the world connected by a common bond-love" have to be my some of my favorite lyrics and I think they fit this trip perfectly. Yeah, we did a handful of projects but these projects were done with immense love. Our friendships were built through the love of Christ. The love (and thankfulness) the Haitians have for not only one another but for us. And it's this love that draws me to Haiti again and again, and it's this love that will pull me back in January 2013 for three weeks. Until then-orevwa ak mesi (goodbye and thank you).

Friday written by Jenny Gallo

We are busy packing to come home with very mixed emotions therefore there is not a long blog post tonight. It has been an amazing week. This team has worked, played and prayed was great gusto! We are anxious to see the family members that have supported us for this trip yet it is so hard to leave our brothers and sisters in Christ here in Haiti. Until Darby writes a concluding blog post I will leave you this picture of some of the girls we worked to painting silk scarves...it evokes the joy of the people and their love for the Lord that we experience while we are in Haiti.

Thursday- Written by Lisa Smith

       Happy Thanksgiving!! We have so much to be thankful for. Or as the Haitians would say, "Nou gen telman yo dwe rekonesan pou".  This morning, at 6:15, Pastor Pierre took a few of us up the mountain that sits next to the mission. The view was breathtaking. We sat on the top for a while to take pictures and meditate.

       After breakfast, we broke off to do different jobs. A few of us worked on rice distribution. Then the guys worked on putting up the post for the school bell to wake the children in the villages up for school. They also carried buckets of sand and water around the courtyard to use for laying down tile. Keith and Sam worked on building cabinets and computer desks. Darby and Allison worked in the clinic with Shelly. Some worked on scarves and some on bracelet beading. A couple Haitians got Allison Cho and Clay to teach them some English. It was an exhausting day!
     When school was over, Luke, John, and I got the opportunity to ride the bus home with the kids that live too far to walk. The bus was crazy. There were about four kids in each seat and kids standing in the aisle. The girls began belting out songs that Edvans said they made up themselves. It was cool driving past all the villages.
     After school at beading, Allison Evans and I talked again with a boy named Belgelo. Yesterday he asked us to teach him a song in English, so we taught him "Here I Am to Worship" and he taught us a song in Kreyol. We practiced again with him today. He said that he loves talking when we're here because he loves to practice his English. He told us that it takes him about an hour and a half to bike to and from school everyday. Can you imagine!
     After we were finished with the projects for today, some of us climbed the mountain again with a bunch of Haitian kids. We talked and joked with them and took a ton of pictures.
     For dinner we had a delicious chicken casserole, stuffed tomatoes and mozzarella, steamed carrots, and white rice. Mama Gallo brought four amazing pies for Thanksgiving. They were so good!!
    I can't believe it's already Thursday. This week has gone by so fast!! We've met so many fantastic people and had so many great experiences. It's amazing how these Haitians have so little, but they still find so much to be thankful for. As we finish out this week, we could really use prayers to help us finish laying down the tile, and also prayers for the continued success of Pastor Pierre's mission.

Wednesday written by Caitlin Pyles

Wow, I can't believe it's Wednesday!. We have been here for four amazing days, making new friends, doing a bunch of jobs, taking pictures, distributing food, just having an amazing week. Today we got so much done. Darby, Regina, and I all finished the scarves some girls made on Monday. Deb, Shelly, Luke G. Lisa, and a friend that we like to call "Ro Ro" all went to a village and did things like taking blood pressures, seeing babies, and just interacting with all the people. John, Keith, Clay, Luke, Mr.Gallo, Mr. Doane all worked on the high school: cutting wood, carrying wood for the tables in the computer lab in the high school "The whole day was constantly moving for me" says Lou W. "Carrying wood and rice." Mrs. Gallo organized the scarf supply closet and taught a scarf painting class. Allison and Allison worked with child sponsorship and worked on the bracelet class.

This week has been great. I was really nervous about this trip and was not sure if I wanted to go. But I'm so glad I did. I get to hang out with kids and bond with the youth group. Its just an amazing experience that everyone deserves to experience!

Tuesday-Written By Luke Gaetano

As the tradition has become,  most of us gathered on the roof at roughly 7am for morning devotionals. We sang "you make everything glorious" by David Crowder and went around the circle, each of us saying a little something in prayer for the day and rest of the week. After the devotionals, we enjoyed breakfast, which, today was scrambled eggs, toast and bananas......a nice switch up from the lucky charms.

After breakfast, we all picked a morning task to work on for the day. Mr Wagner, Allison 2, Clay and Lou distributed 50lb bags of rice to the villagers. Each bag was to be shared by two families who were neighbors. Whenever a man and woman would come to receive the rice, the man would pick it up, and we thought, how chivalrous, as the man then plopped the bag onto the woman's head hahaha..... The families were extremely grateful though and a total of almost two hundred families received rice.

Luke, Darby, Eddy and John were on the child sponsorship program today. They traveled to each classroom in the school, Eddy took attendance, and then they distributed braclets to the children. Two per child. It was humbling to see how these kids were so ecstatic to receive these bracelets, and touching as the all shouted "Mesi!! Thank you!!"

Keith, Deb, Caitlin, Lisa, Regina, Sam, Pastor Pierre, Roland, and Shelly traveled to Paco. The main purpose of the trip was to create a database of the children so that their health could be monitored by future physicians. They also distributed vitamins and took group class photos. They saw that the kids were given a nice meal at the school, but it seemed that this was the only meal they received possibly in a day. The malnutrition seemed a little more prevalent in Paco then La Croix, but the kids were just as happy which is so inspiring.  The children also sang to everyone. The children here were more of the "high five" crowd as Keith discovered when he tried to fist pound the children and they looked at him as if he were a white American....I mean, crazy. 

Deb taught English class today as well. They sang the "hokie pokie" and "Every where I look" and the kids knew all the words in English, which was pretty cool.  They also received a little science lesson where the concept of sound was explored with tuning forks and rubber bands.

Scarf and bracelet making happened later in the day with most of our kids participating in one way or another with these activities.

Soccer has pretty much become a ritual down here as the Haitians are always asking "time to play soccer today?" It's crazy to see these kids play soccer on the rocky, torn up fields with no shoes. Basketball is also a hit among some of the kids while the rest of the kids will watch and play around.

A bell was donated to the La Croix school and Gary, Rob, and Lou helped with digging a hole to fill with concrete to support the pole that will hold the bell. This bell was a nice surprise for the school as they will now be able to alert the students when school is going to begin and end.

Keith, Sam and Gary will cut wood on Wednesday for the desks in the new computer lab. Measuring the room was done today and hopefully by Thursday we will be able to install the desks.

It's about 4:30 right now so the rest if the day will include dinner at 5ish or so and then shower time. Followed by night time devotionals on the roof where everyone talks about the best, or favorite part of the day, sings, and prays.

Time is flying down here.

Monday-written by Darby Gallo

I still am not able to comprehend how we had so many different projects going on today with our group of 17. God not only blessed us with many different talents but with the ability to be flexible and able to jump around from one thing to the next with such ease. 

Shelly, Allison, Allison and I went off this morning walking to a village about 1.5 miles away in the mountains to do blood pressure screening and for Shelly to check up on some of the clinics patients. Shelly gave us a crash course on how to take blood pressure so when we got there we would be able to jump in right away. Since we were in a village we went around house to house and saw many different people. We saw three babies, one of which who had six fingers on each hand. The extra finger was tied off and would eventually fall off. Another lady we saw wasn't so young-in fact she was about 95. Luckily Shelly came with a cane and we were able to give it to her to replace the stick she had used for years. Each person we saw we gave a months worth of vitamins. 

Caitlin organized all of the birthing  kits and all the medical equipment and also got the vitamins organized in the bags of thirty vitamins each which is where Shelly gets her vitamin supply from that she distributes in the communities. 

A group of 8 or so ventured to Paul which is one of Pierre's satellite campuses. The group surveyed for the new school in Paul and were exposed to how pastor Pierre's mission extends to great lengths. In Paul there is a clinic already built and functioning. The vision is to have the school moved to a new and larger site and to have a place for missionaries to stay. Paul is another great example of a place where we can sit and imagine what will be there 5 years from now and then have a group come down when it is completed and have them sit in Paul visioning yet another place where Pierre can extend the mission. 

Lisa and Deb worked with Edvens in child sponsorship and recorded and updated Westminster's sponsorship files for about 20 kids. We have a list of 150 to get through during the week so hopefully we will be able to power through and get this list completed. 

After school let out Deb taught an English lesson to BMSEC which is an English club that meets twice a week. We sang head shoulders knees and toes and bingo. At the end though the kids said thank you to Deb, which wasn't only amazing because of their gratefulness but because of their ability to say their extensive thank yous in English. 

And finally while the boys were playing a pickup game of soccer, a group of girls got together to dye scarves to be taken to the US to be sold. We didn't necessarily know what we were doing but they did. Jenny (Haitian Jenny, not to be confused with my mother) took leadership. 

We look forward to the food distribution tomorrow and are grateful for the prayers you send our way.

Sunday written by Darby Gallo

After traveling for 18 hours yesterday, we arrived safely at la Croix. I wasn't surprised however when I greeted Pierre with "I'm home" after we landed in Port-au-Prince. I was constantly asked if I was excited before we left but to be honest it just felt like a normal trip. I truly feel as if I came home yesterday. 

Haiti has yet to fail to be welcoming to our large group. Church was a delightful service as always, Luke prayed for us and the congregation and Ben led our group in the singing of "Morning Has Broken." On the ride up to La Croix, Edvens who works in the sponsorship office kept telling me that my sponsored boy was asking when he would see me again. As I walked out of church Edvens came around the corner holding the hand of my very tiny four year old boy who I sponsor. I quickly scooped him up and nuzzled his face in my chest as I cried thinking how I can make such a difference in his life by sending him to school even though he may be too young to understand this.

Schanider and I after church

Later in the day we had the opportunity to do a basketball clinic and soccer games with the kids. A small group of us went off to the Community of Hope a half mile down the road that I had been to before but I never had the opportunity to see the well. In the back of the property of the village was a conglomeration of women and a few men huddled around a tiny pump filling bucket after bucket of water to take back to their houses. I always forget how much more effort the Haitians have to put in to some of the simplest things for us to do just on a daily basis. 

After the team showered tonight a small group of the youth, Edvens and I gathered on the roof and began singing some songs and then went around our circle and prayed. One by one the rest of our group joined us and we found ourselves sharing a touching experience to end the day. I was touched when Edvens said that I had indirectly taught him a lesson that they are no less than us simply because I treat my return to Haiti as a time to be back with my brothers and sisters in Christ. Pastor Pierre then joined us and was able to share his life story with the group. He said that "The lord put me here To make a difference" and I feel as if the Lord has also placed our team here this week to make a difference. Having not known if the trip was going to happen or not just a couple months ago to having one of the most energetic groups I've traveled with I can not wait to get the work week started to truly carry out the change we can make not only physically but emotionally- by forming new friendships and sharing the Good News with our brothers and sisters in Christ. 

Packing Party

Saturday our team of 17 met to pack suitcases with supplies as we prepare for another trip to work in LaCroix, Haiti! This trip we will focus on food distribution, construction of lab desks in the high school in LaCroix, vitamin distribution and health education. Each afternoon extra curricular activities for the youth will take place. This will include soccer, basketball, painting silk scarves, and learning English.

Working hard to pack the bag to the airline limit of 50 lbs.!

I'm so excited about this team! With six adults and eleven teens the energy and dynamics will be out of this world! In this group, only my parents and I have been to Haiti and we will be the leaders. Some in our group have never traveled internationally and some have not done this type of mission work before but I can easily say that all of us feel called to take this trip and are eagerly awaiting our departure on Saturday. We worked well together as we packed sports equipment, construction supplies, art supplies, musical instruments, items for the nurse that we will work with, and the food items that we contribute to the mission for our meals. This type of unity is a good sign for how we'll be as a team in Haiti!

It takes skill and determination to pack a trombone!

Because this trip is over the American Thanksgiving holiday I am especially excited that we will be doing a major food distribution. There are many people in Haiti that are hungry a good amount of the time but this summer's drought in combination with the hurricanes this fall have made food resources and costs even more challenging. The food distribution has been generously funded by Westminster Presbyterian Church and a few friends of the church.

We are very grateful for Pastor Pierre's help with the planning and determination to see this trip through. Pastor Pierre leads the mission in Haiti and is easily one of the funniest, most hospitable, God loving men that I've ever met. I'm sure I'll be writing more about him in the days ahead. 

Today's prayer requests:

• safe travel,
• good health throughout the week,
• continued team unity,
• that we do the work that God would want us to,
• that the suitcases with all of those supplies arrive in Haiti when we do!

Thoughts From Back Home

Never have I thought of the term "brothers and sisters in Christ" as I had this week. Arriving in Port Au Prince and being greeted by Edvens felt as if I went to visit my brother in college and gave him a hug. The people we worked along side with this week, "blancs" and Haitians, continually reminded me that I was there to help my brothers and sisters, not someone who was lesser than me. Not only did I think that, but had examples put right before me of how amazing my "brothers and sisters" truly are. 

Leaving a whole bunch of teenage friends and going and getting to know some new friends only reminded me of the friends that I left at home. They still have that sense of humor that makes you laugh so hard you want to cry, the kindness to share their knowledge with you, and the eagerness to have fun every minute possible.

Multiple times during the week I was reminded that we were all worshiping the same God. Although church might be the most obvious example of this, two other instances proved to be more heart warming. One morning I walked past one of the preschool rooms and heard Chris Hestwood singing "Amazing Grace". I poked my head in just in time to see the teacher turn from the students and sing "Amazing Grace" back to Chris in Kreyol. During a later day in the week I was in the school painting when I was approached by one of my friends. I thought he would stick around but I was thoroughly surprised when he said "I will be back in a couple of minutes, I want to go pray." When he said that I just about fell over with astonishment. Never have I ever been told to wait because someone has to go pray. Him saying this only reminded me once more that he was my brother in Christ and needed God in his life just as much as I need God in mine.

My family's sponsored child, Virgenette (in the white),
her sister,  Carlmaria,  and her mother.
So I guess you can call this more of a "Family in Christ"

I was blessed to be able to go to Haiti this past week and have experiences such as these. I look forward to returning in the future to have my eyes opened even wider to God's vast greatness.  

You might also enjoy reading my traveling companion Sarah's thoughts. Here she writes prior to our trip. And these are her thoughts upon returning home.

Day Seven

Today was as good as a last day in Haiti can get. We spent most of our time today in Paul following whatnurses Susan, Ellen, and Shelly did yesterday. They spent time organizing the pharmacy, giving out medicine, patient visits, and Ellen got help a young boy who had broken his arm. Today we visited the school and dewormed 600 school students. In addition to the deworming, we weighed and measured them so we can reference their growth in future medical visits and target those that need nutritional support. When we got back to the mission it was time for our final English class which the kids were very enthusiastic about, especially when they were singing "happy birthday" to Dave. We wrapped up our time with the youth with one final game of chubba chubba can can (or in this case chubba chubba suitcase suitcase) to whom which the winner was awarded Jason's prized hat. Then came what most would see as the saddest part of the week, but for me it was a time of hope, promises, and love. As I said goodbye to new friends and old, I promised I would return in at least one year. My time here, this trip and last, has been such a blessing and there is no reason for me not to return to this extraordinarily hospitable and hopeful country. Although I may cry the whole way home tomorrow, I will know that my brothers and sisters in Christ will always be in my heart.

Prayer Requests Today's requests are for.... For Pastor Pierre as he continues to lead this mission and be a model of Christian character to all that he encounters. For Paul Conley and Bobbie and Tom Hartman ... thankfulness for their leadership of the group this week and for their work while they remain in Haiti for one more week. Gratitude for prayers answered....we realized in our last meeting after dinner tonight that the leaders of our trip had been praying about the large numbers of travelers (this is the largest group thus far) and the logistics that would be involved. They also prayed for the many travelers that didn't know what "task" they would perform upon arrival. The prayer was answered in wondrous ways as the travel was smooth, the group acclimated well to their surroundings and everyone was busy and productive the entire week!

Day Six

From Reeny Davison: Every morning bright and early a small group of us (first time for me this morning because I am not a morning person but woke up early with lesson plans in my head); we grab coffee and sit on the rooftop to watch the sun come up over the mountains. That nicely describes the peaceful serenity and smooth teamwork we are all experiencing. For example, the electricity team got it to work in the new school this morning because they worked together so well. Another example is how we help each other in teaching. Dave, Jason, Bobbie, Sarah,and Jenny (with the electricity and painting guys peeking in) are all helping the children pronounce English words and serving as teaching assistants. We have been teaching an English lesson every day at 4 o'clock. And a couple of people on the team tell me that the students see them working and  they use the English phrases they have learned. Nothing could be more gratifying to me as a teacher. I keep thinking that the team fulfills the words in Matthew 25: "Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand. Come, ye blessed of the father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  For I was hungry and you gave me meat:  I was thirsty and you gave me drink: I was a stranger and you took me in: naked, and you clothed me: I was sick, and you invited me: I was in prison, and you came to me.  Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when did we see you hungry and fed you?  Or thirsty, and gave you drink?  When did we see you a stranger and took you in?  Or naked, and clothed you?  Or when did we see you sick, or in prison and came to you? And the King shall answer and say to them, verily I say unto you, in as much as you have done it unto the least of these my brothers (and sisters), you have done it to me." We have never felt so welcomed as we do by these loving adults and children.  We are grateful to be here.

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for.... gratitude for the gift of song. We hear adults and children singing while they work and play all through the day. It is joyful and uplifting. We have joined this rhythm and ritual by singing our evening grace before we eat. for safety for the children we heard about today that need to water their fields at night after they've carried the water  in buckets from the well that is several miles away.

Day Five

From Chris Hestwood: Today was exhausting but productive I was up on the roof at 6 am, as has been my custom down here, to see the sun rise.  Jason is often the first up, followed by me and then Susan or Bobbie.  What a great way to greet the day!  We left around 8:30 to go to two rural schools.  While there, we gave the students anti-parasitic medicine , which was followed by a piece of candy to ease their palate.  Apparently it tastes awful-you'll have to ask Margaret, who gave it a try.  The little ones were so cute, but a bit apprehensive about the whole process.  The older students accepted the whole process with resignation.  At the end, each student was given a composition book that included a handwritten letter and a picture from my students at Baker Elementary School.  The letters had been translated into Creole, so there was no language barrier.  This afternoon I attended a music class.  Music is, truly, a universal language!  The students were using solfage (do, re, mi...) quite unsuccessfully.  The teacher asked me to do the exercise.  I don't think they know I have advanced degrees in music.  They were quite surprised that I, "la Blanc (the white)," could successfully complete the exercise! I am stunned by how closely Haiti resembles Malawi.....extreme poverty...similar landscapes...the same faces and images...But Haiti is a mere two hour flight from Miami.  And Malawi is halfway around the world, far from "civilization." It leaves me scratching my head that the Dominican Republic, the land of posh resorts, is on the other side. I am in awe of Pastor Pierre.  His vision and commitment to the people of La Croix and surrounding communities is something to see firsthand.  His and his wife are not only excellent hosts, but magnificent stewards of our many gifts.   From Lois Franks: Dan Paul and I decided to sponsor a child in LaCroix. Denny, the translator, was able to introduce me to Binda and she is eleven. With Denny's help I conversed with her and wondered what I could buy her or get for her. Tears ran down my cheeks when her answer was that all she wanted was a goat. I was surprised first that she didn't want a toy or a dress but secondly that the goat would be only $30 and could be delivered on Tuesday! This trip has been a blessing in so many different ways.

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for.... blessings upon the many Haitians that help and support us...from the kitchen staff to the translators to the guard at the mission gate to the man that insists on helping to paint the school walls and so many more! that tomorrow can be productive to wrap the projects in LaCroix as the entire team heads to the region of Paul on Friday to work with the school children there.

Day Four

From Rev. David Fetterman: A group of us are helping Reeny Davison this week as she teaches English to a group of Haitian children. Every afternoon we're gathering in a classroom as Reeny leads the group through learning basics of English. What a joy and what fun it was for us to sit among the children and learn basic words and concepts like sit, stand, dance, and sing. To learn those words we don't just say the words. Instead as we said them we sat and stood and danced and sang! And we laughed and learned each others names and just had fun being together. What a neat experience to share God's love among God's children! I can't wait for our next class!   From Gary Gallo: As I approach the midway point of my second visit to this oasis amidst the chaos, I'm more convinced than ever that the model of the La Croix Mission is a shining example of outreach worth supporting. I can see with first hand clearly that the modest investment my family makes in sponsoring a child's education is used effectively and efficiently to achieve tremendous results. Most of my time here has been spent doing construction in the middle school that Westminster's New Cornfield Campaign helped to build. The place is teeming with children excited at the opportunity to learn. When school is over, kids eagerly watch the work we're doing and want to learn about electricity and power tools - two concepts completely foreign to most!

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for.... for the children that we worked with in the clinic today. The little that was done today was effective but there is so much these children need to be able to stay healthy. gratitude for the team's safety, good health and the sense of community that has brought us together for a common cause.

Day Three

Today was the official start of the majority of our projects. I started the morning off by going a chemistry lesson with Bobbie and Lois. Although we asked for 24 students we were pleasantly surprised when 30 arrived. The students continue to amaze me with their eagerness to learn and attentiveness and respect towards their teacher, Bobbie, Lois, and I. Tomorrow we start a more complex series of lessons and we look forward to seeing how the students tie in what they have been learning in the classroom so far this year to the lesson. A group of people from our team also painted 20 pieces of plywood with chalkboard paint and as Tom says we "will have a grand hanging tomorrow in the school...but not mine, of the chalkboards." Susan, Ellen and Shelly went to the clinic today and the Haitians presented a wide range of sicknesses. The ladies handled them with great care along side the help of the doctors who already work at the clinic full time. After the school for the older kids lets out, a group of girls started the scarf dying project which is now in its fourth year. I have never seen the process before and was delighted to watch them intelligently combine colors to make gorgeous scarfs. Many other things happened today such as the teaching of how to use Excel to the men who work in the child sponsorship office. Additional electricity was added to the school building, and the documentation of this trip has continued and is coming about tremendously. Although the group is hard at work, the moment to crack a joke never ceases to pass. We were all sitting down for dinner and there is a cat who lives in the compound with us and when Margaret, a red head, approached the cat, who is red and white, and said "Aw look at us... we have the same colors, red and white!" Pastor Pierre waited a few moments to say that "the cat doesn't speak English" just in case Margret wasn't aware.

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for.... gratitude for the Haitian doctors and nurses in the LaCroix clinic for they are dispensing great medical care enrobed with preventative education, for patience and understanding while working with the children in  after school classes because so many want to participate and they are so eager, for safe travel for the medical team when they go to Paul tomorrow.

Day Two

Chris and I started the morning off with children's chapel which consisted of 75 children singing their hearts out. An hour later we joined the rest of the group for normal worship. Well, normal for them at least. The music was accompanied only by percussion, trombone and a saxaphon. This may seem like they were lacking musically however the congregation made up with their enthusiasm and praise while dancing and sing like no other. After Paul gave the sermon, which Pierre translated, we sang "Here I Am Lord". Later in the day Chris was able to teach it to some of the teens and thye reciprocated by teaching her the Kreyol words.Worship was followed by the the enthusiastic greeting of 150 of our newest friends and the renewing of friendships from past visits.  After church we proceeded to begin scoping out our projects and begin the process of filming a tour of the school. Reeny, who is an educator, also gathered a group of Haitians from the ages of 4 to 16 to teach an English lesson which a couple of us sat in on to help the pronunciation of some of the words.  Today my family and I also had the joy of meeting our newly sponsored child. It turns out that I know her younger sister form my previous trip in June so it was good to make the family connection. In addition to that we also got to meet her mother!  Tomorrow the projects will swing in to full gear with chemistry classes, trips to the medical clinic, craft projects, computer lab set up, and construction in numerous areas.  Also here our some words from a fellow group member Dave Fetterman: "We Are One." Thoughts from Haiti I went to church today. Nothing astonishing about that -- except that the service was in Haiti, not Upper St. Clair. More interesting still -- at least to me was that I understood very few words and when I prayed and read scripture I had to have an interpreter. Yet, over and over again from start to finish a scripture passage recurred in my thoughts during that service: "There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus." (Galatians 3:28) Despite the miles between us, we are truly one because of God's love.

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for.... good health so we can continue to work unity as we work side by side with the Haitians clean water for this country as that is essential for so many reasons

Day One

Words can't even begin to describe how happy I am to be back in La Croix, Haiti. We started off the day in the bleak and snowy JFK airport and I am now sitting on the roof top of our building admiring the clear sky filled with hundreds of stars. Since our group split up to travel to Haiti today, my family was the last to arrive. We were greeted by Paul Conley, Edvens, who is a translator and works in the child sponsorship program, and the big man himself, Pastor Pierre. Our ride to La Croix was filled with discussion as to how the new president of Haiti is improving the country step by step. His goal is to have 500,000 new jobs for Haitians in the next years as he builds a college and international airport in the north. Pastor Pierre also told us how the parliament has a budget of money to give to Haitians however for years, none of this money would actually be placed in the Haitians hands. This all changed this new year as the President handed money out to the Haitians himself. Good things could be ahead for the Haitian! As far as the logistics of our trip go, we are thankful to say that all of the members, and all 36 suitcases full of supplies, arrived. As I write this the group is busy trying to figure out where the contents of each suitcase should go and when and how they will eventually be put to use this week.                             Although this may be a third world country that most would never feel called to travel to, I entered the mission and it felt like home. From the roof top I can hear all the same noises I can hear back in USC. Off in the distance there is the neighbors pestering dog barking, on the road there are the crazy teens out driving and you can hear their laughter from miles around and as far as nature goes, the bugs are eating away at me as if the bugs in USC gave them a heads up that I would be here.                            Tomorrow morning we will join the Haitians in their regular Sunday morning service, however little did I know that the group would be singing a song for the rest of the congregation. With that being said I should probably do myself some good and go practice!

Prayer Requests  Today's requests are for....  gratitude for safe travels, that all the supplies made it and for the hospitality that has already been extended to us

Preparing for Haiti Trip January 2012

Most of the team traveling to Haiti (19 travelers) stood in a church classroom on Saturday shaking their heads at the mountain of 36 suitcases and tables overflowing with medical provisions, school supplies, computer equipment, children's books, painting equipment and more! It must have been a God moment that when the packing was complete all the supplies fit in all of the suitcases and there were six extra allotted pounds to spare!     The projects planned for this trip include: painting the school  installing classroom chalkboards placing power/data in computer labs computer installation running medical clinics teaching English and chemistry library organization furthering existing craft micro-businesses Among missionaries the motto seems to be that you "make a plan and then need to be prepared to readjust" because conditions and priorities can change once you're in the field. So stay tuned as we hope to be able to send news of our progress as the trip evolves with several different writers sharing as the week unfolds.

Prayer Requests The bags are packed, the plane tickets are in hand, now we ask you to join us in prayer. Today's requests are for.... safe travel expedient arrival of the suitcases with all supplies intact, that God will be honored by our actions and work, and for good health so we can work diligently. Thank you for the many ways you have helped us prepare for this journey and for your continued prayer support.