Our family and group 3 has been home for almost 24 hours now. We have begun processing our experiences as I am sure Groups 1 & 2 continue to do. We do plan on meeting again as a large group to swap stories, thoughts, ideas, memories, and encouragement. We will also be reporting back to Unity CRC on July 10th, Willmar CRC on July 17th, and likely Emden CRC as well (date TBD).
My prayer is that God will be glorified more and more and his kingdom served in greater and greater ways as we allow these experiences that God has provided to move in us deeply living out more and more our gratitude to him.
I ask for your continued prayers for COTP--the children, staff, and volunteers, for the people and the country of Haiti, and also for those who traveled to COTP to be able to process well, digest, and then act on the amazing learning experience God gave each of us.
Thanks again for all of your support! To God be the Glory!
Kirk
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Home Again, Home Again
So we had a smooth re-entry into the states, arrived home around midnight, and dropped, exhausted, into our VERY comfy beds!
This morning I stand in my kitchen feeling bewildered. I am nearly immobilized, having little sense of what I am supposed to be doing. Laundry? Weeds? Visiting? Bills? Sleeping? Groceries?
Let me say that I am glad to be home again. The house is clean and quiet. I slept with blankets on last night for the first time in a month, and am enjoying feeling cool and dry (actually a little too cool!). An unplanned visit from my father-in-law was a welcomed sight and I've already had some time to visit with my mom as well. The kids ran across the back lawn for some breakfast as soon as they thought Grandma would be awake, so the reunion has been lovely, but I'm feeling strange and unsettled inside. Tears feel near, without clear explaination, and my thoughts are a messy jumble in my head.
What am I SUPPOSED to make of this experience in Haiti and how now shall I live? What purpose did God have in bringing my family and others from this community to fellowship with, serve, and learn from our Haitian brothers and sisters? Why do I stand in the middle of my kitchen this morning feeling dissatisfied instead of simply relieved?
I am feeling some of the same sense of disorientation I felt the first couple of days in Haiti, trying to find my place in a strange, new world, only now the strange, new world is my own. I'm "supposed" to feel at home in my home, in my community, with "my own kind", but I am feeling a little lost and homesick today. I'm missing babies, and Nannies, and staff. I'm missing the cool air under the mango tree, laughter in the volunteer house, the singsong language on tongues and the music of worship across the compound. I'm missing the mountains on the horizen and the gentle rustle of palm fronds, and even the children at the gate.
I am NOT missing mosquitoes, roaches, being peed on, or sweat! : )
I am praying that God will speak his truth into my life today, breathe into my thoughts the way he would like me to think, and above all, lead me in the way of righteousness. Perhaps "unsettled" is exactly what He wants me to be feeling today. Maybe my normal is not okay and His Spirit wants me to feel disatisfied with the status quo I've lived in. Or maybe this is a passing state of "adjustment", which would be far easier to stomach.
I am looking forward to talking with some other Haiti-connected folks in the coming days and weeks to see how they are experiencing readjustment. May we be open to the God's use of this experience in any way He sees fit.
A shout out to our Haiti friends who may be reading this - love and miss you guys. And huge thanks to all of those who made this trip possible - we're grateful. I hope many others will have the opportunity to experience this in the coming months and years - should we all be so blessed!
Christina
This morning I stand in my kitchen feeling bewildered. I am nearly immobilized, having little sense of what I am supposed to be doing. Laundry? Weeds? Visiting? Bills? Sleeping? Groceries?
Let me say that I am glad to be home again. The house is clean and quiet. I slept with blankets on last night for the first time in a month, and am enjoying feeling cool and dry (actually a little too cool!). An unplanned visit from my father-in-law was a welcomed sight and I've already had some time to visit with my mom as well. The kids ran across the back lawn for some breakfast as soon as they thought Grandma would be awake, so the reunion has been lovely, but I'm feeling strange and unsettled inside. Tears feel near, without clear explaination, and my thoughts are a messy jumble in my head.
What am I SUPPOSED to make of this experience in Haiti and how now shall I live? What purpose did God have in bringing my family and others from this community to fellowship with, serve, and learn from our Haitian brothers and sisters? Why do I stand in the middle of my kitchen this morning feeling dissatisfied instead of simply relieved?
I am feeling some of the same sense of disorientation I felt the first couple of days in Haiti, trying to find my place in a strange, new world, only now the strange, new world is my own. I'm "supposed" to feel at home in my home, in my community, with "my own kind", but I am feeling a little lost and homesick today. I'm missing babies, and Nannies, and staff. I'm missing the cool air under the mango tree, laughter in the volunteer house, the singsong language on tongues and the music of worship across the compound. I'm missing the mountains on the horizen and the gentle rustle of palm fronds, and even the children at the gate.
I am NOT missing mosquitoes, roaches, being peed on, or sweat! : )
I am praying that God will speak his truth into my life today, breathe into my thoughts the way he would like me to think, and above all, lead me in the way of righteousness. Perhaps "unsettled" is exactly what He wants me to be feeling today. Maybe my normal is not okay and His Spirit wants me to feel disatisfied with the status quo I've lived in. Or maybe this is a passing state of "adjustment", which would be far easier to stomach.
I am looking forward to talking with some other Haiti-connected folks in the coming days and weeks to see how they are experiencing readjustment. May we be open to the God's use of this experience in any way He sees fit.
A shout out to our Haiti friends who may be reading this - love and miss you guys. And huge thanks to all of those who made this trip possible - we're grateful. I hope many others will have the opportunity to experience this in the coming months and years - should we all be so blessed!
Christina
Monday, June 27, 2011
waiting in Miami
We have had an uneventful trip thus far. We have been waiting for our 6:20 pm flight now for an hour or so. Things went smoothly in CAP this morning as well as US customs and checking in to our Delta flight. So far everything is on time. Some are roaming the airport, some playing cards or listening to music, and obviously I'm blogging. Hope to be home by 11:30 tonight.
Going Home!
Bonjou! It's 7:30 a.m. on Monday. Everyone has dressed, changed their bedding and now waiting to head for the airport. Sunday was a quiet day - much needed after our trip to the Citadelle on Saturday. There was a little cleaning left in the Depot storage room, but other than that it was a day of rest. In the morning some of us went to church next door with a few kids and nannies. For lunch we had a "going away dinner" - Nick grilled burgers while Christine made garlic potatoes in the oven. There was angel food cake for dessert. YUM! We had lots of time with the kids yesterday afternoon and some did one-on-one time and some went for a walk. Wilson brought a few horses over and Kirk, Abby and some long-term staff went for a ride. They only had woven sugar cane "blankets" and saddles. No bridle or stirrups! After singing, we said our goodbyes and gave a few hugs to the nannies and headed up to the roof for a movie.
Our flight out of Cap is at 10:00 a.m. We are scheduled to arrive in Miami at 1:30 p.m. and our flight out of Miami is not until 6:20 p.m. so we will have a bit of a layover. Please say a prayer for safe travel and that everyone will be healthy today. Please say a prayer for the people of Haiti as well. This is an amazing place and I think it is safe to say that we all have been blessed by being here and seeing the faith of these people.
Brenda
Our flight out of Cap is at 10:00 a.m. We are scheduled to arrive in Miami at 1:30 p.m. and our flight out of Miami is not until 6:20 p.m. so we will have a bit of a layover. Please say a prayer for safe travel and that everyone will be healthy today. Please say a prayer for the people of Haiti as well. This is an amazing place and I think it is safe to say that we all have been blessed by being here and seeing the faith of these people.
Brenda
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Citadelle and Pool Day
Reikerns drove us to the Citadelle this morning and we had a new tour guide who spoke clearer English. This is my third time to the Citadelle, and each tour has been slightly different. The first two times I hiked it, and this time Elijah and I each took a horse (Noah and Christina did not come along). I must say, horse is definitely the way to get up this trail!! Well worth supporting the local economy. In fact, there were about six of us who took a horse this time.
We returned from the Citadelle by noon in time to help feed the babies. We rested during nap time and then after snacks we had another pool day. We seemed to finally be getting into the swing of things well and after the pool time helped the nannies and had the kids fed, bathed, lotioned, and teeth brushed by about 5:30.
This time around as we look ahead to our last full day in Haiti tomorrow me, Christina, and the boys are joining the rest of the group in emotionally preparing to leave. We've watched the first two groups go through this, and now we too gear up for our departure. Ruth, who has been in our care for just over a week has gained a pound and is very happy. She's "talking away" in the background as I type right now entertaining those of us still up. The boys will have just as hard a time leaving Ruth even though both of them are getting a bit homesick at this point. They really do adore her.
Tomorrow many of us will be going to church next door at the Manna compound and taking babies with us, and then again in the afternoon many of us will go to the missionary fellowship as well.
Monday morning we will have a little extra time to say goodbye as we are flying through Miami and our plane does not depart until 10am. Personally, I wish our plane would leave earlier as I'd rather not stretch out our goodbyes into the traditional sense of "Minnesota goodbyes".
Thanks again for your support! To God be the glory for all he is doing here at COTP and here in Haiti!
We returned from the Citadelle by noon in time to help feed the babies. We rested during nap time and then after snacks we had another pool day. We seemed to finally be getting into the swing of things well and after the pool time helped the nannies and had the kids fed, bathed, lotioned, and teeth brushed by about 5:30.
This time around as we look ahead to our last full day in Haiti tomorrow me, Christina, and the boys are joining the rest of the group in emotionally preparing to leave. We've watched the first two groups go through this, and now we too gear up for our departure. Ruth, who has been in our care for just over a week has gained a pound and is very happy. She's "talking away" in the background as I type right now entertaining those of us still up. The boys will have just as hard a time leaving Ruth even though both of them are getting a bit homesick at this point. They really do adore her.
Tomorrow many of us will be going to church next door at the Manna compound and taking babies with us, and then again in the afternoon many of us will go to the missionary fellowship as well.
Monday morning we will have a little extra time to say goodbye as we are flying through Miami and our plane does not depart until 10am. Personally, I wish our plane would leave earlier as I'd rather not stretch out our goodbyes into the traditional sense of "Minnesota goodbyes".
Thanks again for your support! To God be the glory for all he is doing here at COTP and here in Haiti!
Friday, June 24, 2011
Friday, Day 7.
Hello all, Kari again. Just wanted to give you a quick over view of what we did today. Most of us slept in this morning..and when I say sleep in I mean about 7:45/8:00. We did our usual routines during the day, while the four from Indiana went to the Citadelle. After nap time, we had a fun party celebrating one of the baby's first birthday. All the kids were dressed up and sat under the mango tree ready to devour the cake. They were all very excited and looked so cute! After the party some of the older kids played with a parachute..or maybe I should say they all stood underneath it while the volunteers lifted it up and down. They were all laughing and having a great time! Somewhere during the day Abby and I got our hair done by one of the nannies. I think the only ones that don't have it done are Ellen, Shara, Megan, and Marilyn (and Ang :). Well, thats about all for today. Tomorrow we plan on going to the Citadelle; I'm pretty excited!
Hello from Brenda. A few more jobs got done today: picking rock by the sidewalk that leads to the classroom and organizing and putting more supplies in the Depot. A lot of cute clothes came in and were sorted into rubbermaids of various sizes. Think the only job left at this point is to finish up giving the nannies their new scrub tops & flip flops. The best part of my day was helping feed the kids supper, then drying, lotioning & diapering them to get them ready for bed. They really seem to like getting lotioned. Praise time was amazing. Jen and one nanny got a BUNCH of us dancing. The nannies thanked us over and over and we thanked them in return. Great way to end the day!
Hello from Brenda. A few more jobs got done today: picking rock by the sidewalk that leads to the classroom and organizing and putting more supplies in the Depot. A lot of cute clothes came in and were sorted into rubbermaids of various sizes. Think the only job left at this point is to finish up giving the nannies their new scrub tops & flip flops. The best part of my day was helping feed the kids supper, then drying, lotioning & diapering them to get them ready for bed. They really seem to like getting lotioned. Praise time was amazing. Jen and one nanny got a BUNCH of us dancing. The nannies thanked us over and over and we thanked them in return. Great way to end the day!
More good experiences
Kirk here again, thought I'd squeek in a short post while I had a minute. I'll let others post their activities today though.
First a few notes--as you can tell from the posts my wife waxes a bit more eloquently than I--good to have a "better half" for that. I've been forgetting to let the TeBrake's know that their car charger fans that they were so dismayed to open when they got here as they couldn't use them to sleep have not gone to waste! Last week Nick repurposed them and wired them up in the electrical control room to keep the components cooler--they reduce the temp in that room by over 10 degrees. So TeBrake's, thanks for the thoughtful donation! Also, Jamie, if you are reading this, your chairs are almost home! We have them packed and will deliver them in a few days.
On a more personal note, I had yet another "one of a kind" experience today. I had the priveledge of digging two holes for concrete posts that will frame a new gate being installed. The gate is being made by a man from Port who lost all his material wealth in the earthquake. (He's showed me many of the scars where a building fell on his right side.) He and his family now live near COTP. Later when we began installing concrete and rebar there was a crew of us--Me, Wilson, Reikerns, Samson, Blan, Camielle, the gate maker, and his son. So here is this "green behind the ears" Minnesotan who doesn't know but a few phrases in Creole being told a joke about a Haitian traveling to America by a very animated man from Port. The joke was lost in translation, but it had something to do with New York, corn, and Kentucky Fried Chicken--even so, the smiles and laughter made the moment enjoyable. Our loud antics even brought Nick over to the scene--any good boss would come if all his workmen were making that much noise and clearly not working to our full potential. (Sorry Nick, but not sorry as well.)
I planned the trip here for our group, oversaw its implementation, but here in Haiti I am the student. Today I was the student learning best building practices from a group of Haitien men. Learning some of the culture of tag team working when digging with a pick-ax, trenching spade, and gravel shovel in a thick dirt/clay soil. And, learning some of the internal joy for life from a man who still smiles often after loosing much in an earthquake and having few to none worldly possessions--not to mention the jokes and joy of the rest of the crew who each go home to a home/room about the size of my bathroom each night. I don't know the name of the class I'm taking or exactly all of what I am learning, but I do hope to take time to process and make the most of my education here in Haiti.
I'm thankful for the priveledge of having the resources to take this wonderful continuing ed class--I have some wonderful instructors.
First a few notes--as you can tell from the posts my wife waxes a bit more eloquently than I--good to have a "better half" for that. I've been forgetting to let the TeBrake's know that their car charger fans that they were so dismayed to open when they got here as they couldn't use them to sleep have not gone to waste! Last week Nick repurposed them and wired them up in the electrical control room to keep the components cooler--they reduce the temp in that room by over 10 degrees. So TeBrake's, thanks for the thoughtful donation! Also, Jamie, if you are reading this, your chairs are almost home! We have them packed and will deliver them in a few days.
On a more personal note, I had yet another "one of a kind" experience today. I had the priveledge of digging two holes for concrete posts that will frame a new gate being installed. The gate is being made by a man from Port who lost all his material wealth in the earthquake. (He's showed me many of the scars where a building fell on his right side.) He and his family now live near COTP. Later when we began installing concrete and rebar there was a crew of us--Me, Wilson, Reikerns, Samson, Blan, Camielle, the gate maker, and his son. So here is this "green behind the ears" Minnesotan who doesn't know but a few phrases in Creole being told a joke about a Haitian traveling to America by a very animated man from Port. The joke was lost in translation, but it had something to do with New York, corn, and Kentucky Fried Chicken--even so, the smiles and laughter made the moment enjoyable. Our loud antics even brought Nick over to the scene--any good boss would come if all his workmen were making that much noise and clearly not working to our full potential. (Sorry Nick, but not sorry as well.)
I planned the trip here for our group, oversaw its implementation, but here in Haiti I am the student. Today I was the student learning best building practices from a group of Haitien men. Learning some of the culture of tag team working when digging with a pick-ax, trenching spade, and gravel shovel in a thick dirt/clay soil. And, learning some of the internal joy for life from a man who still smiles often after loosing much in an earthquake and having few to none worldly possessions--not to mention the jokes and joy of the rest of the crew who each go home to a home/room about the size of my bathroom each night. I don't know the name of the class I'm taking or exactly all of what I am learning, but I do hope to take time to process and make the most of my education here in Haiti.
I'm thankful for the priveledge of having the resources to take this wonderful continuing ed class--I have some wonderful instructors.
I awoke this morning to the sounds of Haiti I've come to love. Even before I opened my eyes I could hear the familiar cadence of the Nannies laughing and jesting back and forth in low, strong voices, mixed with the tones of the timouns (children) eager for breakfast and attention. Then I opened my eyes to see the bright morning sun filtering through the palm fronds just outside our window.
There is a gentle bustle that fills this place most of the day and evening. Only late after dark is it really quiet, but even then there is the occasional bawl of a distant cow or eager rooster, and the never ending chorus of crickets and tree frogs.
How do I best describe the beauty and delight of this place, a home to both complete poverty and unmatched richness? How can I express the pleasure of a slight movement of breeze over sweat-stained skin, the little leap of joy to watch a giant hummingbird flit through giant blossoms or the quick dart of an impossibly green lizzard, the generous laughter of workers in greeting across the yard, and the spark of laughter in the eyes of children? I take pleasure in the shade of the sprawling mango tree, the worshipful singing of the Nannies both scheduled and spontaneous, the passion that springs from the heart of the staff, the booms of thunder that somehow seem louder than any I've heard at home...
Of course my feelings are bent toward the sentimental, and it may seem like I am glossing over the grinding poverty that grips most of the people who live in and around the compound. We are insulated by the gates that surround this priviledged community, but a walk in the countryside doesn't lessen the experience of joy. The local people greet us with the singsong bonswahhh (good afternoon) of the afternoon and smile at the children we lead. Those with shreds of clothing and emaciated limbs cast no observable eye of judgement as we approach well dressed and over-fed. The lack of material and physical well-being is pervasive, but no less the joy and determination to live well. So often we see people with nothing but God, praising, loving, and serving him in thier day to day walk.
It seems a paradox to have beauty and pain so closely intertwined, but perhaps this is what the Bible means when James says, "Has God not chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?" and " the brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position."
We have so much to learn from our brothers and sister who are truly poor, but rich.
Christina
There is a gentle bustle that fills this place most of the day and evening. Only late after dark is it really quiet, but even then there is the occasional bawl of a distant cow or eager rooster, and the never ending chorus of crickets and tree frogs.
How do I best describe the beauty and delight of this place, a home to both complete poverty and unmatched richness? How can I express the pleasure of a slight movement of breeze over sweat-stained skin, the little leap of joy to watch a giant hummingbird flit through giant blossoms or the quick dart of an impossibly green lizzard, the generous laughter of workers in greeting across the yard, and the spark of laughter in the eyes of children? I take pleasure in the shade of the sprawling mango tree, the worshipful singing of the Nannies both scheduled and spontaneous, the passion that springs from the heart of the staff, the booms of thunder that somehow seem louder than any I've heard at home...
Of course my feelings are bent toward the sentimental, and it may seem like I am glossing over the grinding poverty that grips most of the people who live in and around the compound. We are insulated by the gates that surround this priviledged community, but a walk in the countryside doesn't lessen the experience of joy. The local people greet us with the singsong bonswahhh (good afternoon) of the afternoon and smile at the children we lead. Those with shreds of clothing and emaciated limbs cast no observable eye of judgement as we approach well dressed and over-fed. The lack of material and physical well-being is pervasive, but no less the joy and determination to live well. So often we see people with nothing but God, praising, loving, and serving him in thier day to day walk.
It seems a paradox to have beauty and pain so closely intertwined, but perhaps this is what the Bible means when James says, "Has God not chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?" and " the brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position."
We have so much to learn from our brothers and sister who are truly poor, but rich.
Christina
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Day 7 at COTP.
Bonjou from Haiti!
The day started quickly as we had the job of cleaning the baby house from top to bottom. We cleaned not only the walls and floors but also the contents of the baby house such as cribs and beds. Prayer and singing time this morning involved lots of dancing. The kids started dancing and clapping along. It was amazing to see all the joy expressed throught the singing and dancing. Brenda, Cassie, Mary, Mia, and Breanna all got their hair braided in different ways by 2 of the nannies. We all had fun getting to know them as we tried and failed at speaking Creole. We knew the nannies were laughing AT us as well as with us. Later in the afternoon at least 10 of us went on a walk with A Lot of kids. On our way back we barely escaped a huge thunderstorm. The strong winds indicated the coming storm so we hurried back to the compound. We were very suprised about how cool the winds were..some of us were actually cold! Once we returned we fell back into the routine of supper, tooth brushing, and prayer and singing time led by the nannies. Our time of prayer and singing was again filled with dancing and scripture reading. The nanny who led worship had it translated for us and we were invited to join with them in prayer for the country of Haiti, COTP, and personal concerns.
~ Ang and Abby
The day started quickly as we had the job of cleaning the baby house from top to bottom. We cleaned not only the walls and floors but also the contents of the baby house such as cribs and beds. Prayer and singing time this morning involved lots of dancing. The kids started dancing and clapping along. It was amazing to see all the joy expressed throught the singing and dancing. Brenda, Cassie, Mary, Mia, and Breanna all got their hair braided in different ways by 2 of the nannies. We all had fun getting to know them as we tried and failed at speaking Creole. We knew the nannies were laughing AT us as well as with us. Later in the afternoon at least 10 of us went on a walk with A Lot of kids. On our way back we barely escaped a huge thunderstorm. The strong winds indicated the coming storm so we hurried back to the compound. We were very suprised about how cool the winds were..some of us were actually cold! Once we returned we fell back into the routine of supper, tooth brushing, and prayer and singing time led by the nannies. Our time of prayer and singing was again filled with dancing and scripture reading. The nanny who led worship had it translated for us and we were invited to join with them in prayer for the country of Haiti, COTP, and personal concerns.
~ Ang and Abby
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Mattea and Danielle home safely
Mattea and Danielle notified me that they are home safely. The young girl of missionary parents that traveled with them had some issues getting back into the states being a minor, but another lady on their flight functioned (maybe was) and angel from God and helped them "get the girl out" of customs so she could travel on. They made their connecting flight after helping her with just 10 minutes to spare. Again, thank you Danielle and Mattea!
Kirk
Kirk
Amazing Long-term Staff
Well I havn't taken the time to blog yet since we've been in Haiti. It's not that I have no thoughts on this experience, rather, so many, I scarcely know how to put all my thoughts into words, so I've let the others tell of the experience from their perspectives...
This has been a wonderful time here in Haiti, and one of the things that has made is so has been observing and experiencing the lives of the long term staff and long term volunteers. I was thinking about this and how the short blip that usually describes the long term staff does little to really tell who they are in in their day to day lives, so I'd like to share a bit of what I see of these remarkable folks.
Nick and Nicki, are the directors who oversee the day to day running of the facility. Nicki had to leave for a family emergency at home, just a few days into our stay, so I havn't had too much opportunity to get to know her. During her absence, Nick cared for their soon to be adopted son, all the while jumping in to the unplanned activities of the day, such as impromtu tours of the facility, going to get supplies, and dealing with the constant stream of new volunteers and visitors. Nick has a friendly, laid back style that is rarely ruffled (externally, ayway!). He takes time for meaningful conversations and brainstorming with anyone who will engage him, and loves to think about new ways of generating and conserving power for the compond. He preaches the virtues of solar power to the neighboring ministries, all with good humor and plenty of ribbing. It should also be noted he can play a mean game of Prudo, for anyone interested in learning.
Amy is the compound nurse. She has an easy smile, and lilting walk, and her skirt sways about her knees as she scurries from one part of the compound to another. Apparently there is a second long-term staff nurse, Tori, who is away on medical leave, so Amy is basically the local medic. Her primary responsibility is, of course, the children of the creche, but somehow she gets roped into much, much more, likely because of her very big heart! She will tell you it is a struggle to balance between giving care to those who show up at the gate and setting healthy boundaries in the community, but somehow she does so with tremendous grace and a really calm demeanor, and when she does set the needed limitsm she does so with kindness. In addition to taking care of the medical needs of the kids during the day, she also cares for kids at night who need extra attention. Even if they're not in her direct care, she regularly gets woken up in the middle of the night to advise. I'm not sure how she functions on what must be too little sleep. Despite her exceptional busyness, she makes time for me when I've asked, I have never seen her act irritated, and even if she doesn't have the exact answer for a query, she has a reassuring, unhurried presence. I experienced this firsthand in consulting her regarding our boys illnesses the first week and when I accidently overdosed Elijah on Dramamine!!! It's really a delight to see Christ in her.
Jen is officially termed the Nanny/Depot supervisor. Somehow this seems such an uninspiring title for all the she accomplishes. While she does, indeed, supervise Nanny's and is in charge of the depot (the storage room where all the supplies for the baby house and MUCH MUCH more is stored), she also serves as a community liaison of sorts, and is getting involved in coordination of the sponsorship program as well. Jen is an adventurous, full spirited soul. While she often quietly endures physical ailments, she rarely complains and instead is a favorite dance off competitor during evening prayer and singing. Jen likes to think about the implications of COTP's actions on the local community and culture and will sit down for an engaging chat if you're willing. She is an official coke (as in Coca-cola) addict, is working hard on her Creole (which is already quite good), and is working on her moto (motorbike) skills. She already does her fair share of driving on supply runs, which is an activity only for the brave and spirited. Which she is. Jen would really like to be free to serve longer term here at COTP without worries about fundraising or fiancial support. She certainly would not say so quite this directly, but I will -- she could use some additional financial support as she is a member of a small church back in the states. She is a passionate, sold-out advocate for the kids of COTP and the kids and Nanny's alike love her! I admire her greatly.
I would like to tell you about some of the short term staff as well, but I think I'll leave that for next time as I've gone on quite a bit I hope this has given you the opportunity to know these great folks just a little more personally - it's really a treat to see the body of Christ alive and well and full of love and service in this beautiful community.
Christina
This has been a wonderful time here in Haiti, and one of the things that has made is so has been observing and experiencing the lives of the long term staff and long term volunteers. I was thinking about this and how the short blip that usually describes the long term staff does little to really tell who they are in in their day to day lives, so I'd like to share a bit of what I see of these remarkable folks.
Nick and Nicki, are the directors who oversee the day to day running of the facility. Nicki had to leave for a family emergency at home, just a few days into our stay, so I havn't had too much opportunity to get to know her. During her absence, Nick cared for their soon to be adopted son, all the while jumping in to the unplanned activities of the day, such as impromtu tours of the facility, going to get supplies, and dealing with the constant stream of new volunteers and visitors. Nick has a friendly, laid back style that is rarely ruffled (externally, ayway!). He takes time for meaningful conversations and brainstorming with anyone who will engage him, and loves to think about new ways of generating and conserving power for the compond. He preaches the virtues of solar power to the neighboring ministries, all with good humor and plenty of ribbing. It should also be noted he can play a mean game of Prudo, for anyone interested in learning.
Amy is the compound nurse. She has an easy smile, and lilting walk, and her skirt sways about her knees as she scurries from one part of the compound to another. Apparently there is a second long-term staff nurse, Tori, who is away on medical leave, so Amy is basically the local medic. Her primary responsibility is, of course, the children of the creche, but somehow she gets roped into much, much more, likely because of her very big heart! She will tell you it is a struggle to balance between giving care to those who show up at the gate and setting healthy boundaries in the community, but somehow she does so with tremendous grace and a really calm demeanor, and when she does set the needed limitsm she does so with kindness. In addition to taking care of the medical needs of the kids during the day, she also cares for kids at night who need extra attention. Even if they're not in her direct care, she regularly gets woken up in the middle of the night to advise. I'm not sure how she functions on what must be too little sleep. Despite her exceptional busyness, she makes time for me when I've asked, I have never seen her act irritated, and even if she doesn't have the exact answer for a query, she has a reassuring, unhurried presence. I experienced this firsthand in consulting her regarding our boys illnesses the first week and when I accidently overdosed Elijah on Dramamine!!! It's really a delight to see Christ in her.
Jen is officially termed the Nanny/Depot supervisor. Somehow this seems such an uninspiring title for all the she accomplishes. While she does, indeed, supervise Nanny's and is in charge of the depot (the storage room where all the supplies for the baby house and MUCH MUCH more is stored), she also serves as a community liaison of sorts, and is getting involved in coordination of the sponsorship program as well. Jen is an adventurous, full spirited soul. While she often quietly endures physical ailments, she rarely complains and instead is a favorite dance off competitor during evening prayer and singing. Jen likes to think about the implications of COTP's actions on the local community and culture and will sit down for an engaging chat if you're willing. She is an official coke (as in Coca-cola) addict, is working hard on her Creole (which is already quite good), and is working on her moto (motorbike) skills. She already does her fair share of driving on supply runs, which is an activity only for the brave and spirited. Which she is. Jen would really like to be free to serve longer term here at COTP without worries about fundraising or fiancial support. She certainly would not say so quite this directly, but I will -- she could use some additional financial support as she is a member of a small church back in the states. She is a passionate, sold-out advocate for the kids of COTP and the kids and Nanny's alike love her! I admire her greatly.
I would like to tell you about some of the short term staff as well, but I think I'll leave that for next time as I've gone on quite a bit I hope this has given you the opportunity to know these great folks just a little more personally - it's really a treat to see the body of Christ alive and well and full of love and service in this beautiful community.
Christina
Danielle and Mattea heading home
Danielle and Mattea left this morning around 7:30am. Bill and Darla (from the Manna compound next door) took them to the airport along with their 15 year old daughter who traveled back to the states with Danielle and Mattea.
They were sad to leave and we were sad to see them go. They were an amazing help in transitioning group 3 into the daily tasks and did a great job of taking a leadership role. Thanks to the 2 of them!!
Today is a humid day, but overcast, so at least the sun isn't beating down on us. I took Noah and Elijah for a motorcylce ride today--we had a blast. We drew a fair amount of attention as we rode--a white guy and his two boys--and being I don't speak much Creole I took a cell phone with just in case we had motorcycle issues--all went well though and the boys were sad to have to come back to the compound at the end of our ride.
I'm sure there will be more later tonight as we've not had a shortage of bloggers. Kirk
They were sad to leave and we were sad to see them go. They were an amazing help in transitioning group 3 into the daily tasks and did a great job of taking a leadership role. Thanks to the 2 of them!!
Today is a humid day, but overcast, so at least the sun isn't beating down on us. I took Noah and Elijah for a motorcylce ride today--we had a blast. We drew a fair amount of attention as we rode--a white guy and his two boys--and being I don't speak much Creole I took a cell phone with just in case we had motorcycle issues--all went well though and the boys were sad to have to come back to the compound at the end of our ride.
I'm sure there will be more later tonight as we've not had a shortage of bloggers. Kirk
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Tuesday--Day 3
Bonuit from COTP!
For those of you that were worried, this is Kari, and I'm still alive! :)
This morning I was a little sick and slept a couple hours, took some advil, and was back to work in no time. Mary, Cassie, and Abby cleaned out the pre-school while I was sleeping and it looks fantastic. Soon after, Jenn asked me and Cassie to help with finding out the nannies sizes for scrubs again. The language barrier made it challenging, but it was still fun.
During the kids' naptime, our group, along with the four from Indiana and two ladies that are Nick's family went to Cap Haitien to visit another orphanage. I'm trying to find the words to explain Pastor Blue, but there are literally no words to explain how awesome he was. He had such an unbelievable amount of faith. I think the words that stuck out to me the most was when he was talking about how the kids only have 2 meals a day and they were so blessed. He went out of his way to make us comfortable and reassured us that he prayed for us and our country every day. He also asked us to pray for him and Haiti--(a good suggestion for you too!:))
On our way home, the red truck got their 2nd flat tire of the day within 2 hours. Nick and Kirk went to a close-by vender and got some cheetos and drinks for the local kids around us and ourselves.
When we got back, we played with kids as usual...Not much new to say about that!
It was hot all day, but towards the evening it got cooler. It started to thunder and lightning, and then came the rain. During prayer and singing the nannies wanted us to sing a few songs. Afterwards, when Jenn was praying and thanking God for all the blessings a loud....LOUD... burst of thunder broke through the sky. Jenn laughed and shouted "Alright God!" and a chorus of Hallelujahs and Amens followed. It was pretty cool I must say!
I'll conclude by saying today was another great day in Haiti, and I'm very much looking forward to the next 6 days.
PS-Dawn Poppema: I got your note, read it over, but didnt really comprehend it much because I wanted to get outside, but when I looked at it again I found it ironic that you wrote that kid's name. He's my favorite too!!
Mom-Every day I wonder who your favorite is and I can never figure it out!
A few words from Kirk:
Group 2: I made instant mashed potatos tonight with summer sausage pieces--yum!!
Also had a fun experience tonight. Took the tractor down the road a bit and mowed a soccer field into a local pasture where the local folk had set up some bamboo soccer goals. There was no one there when I started and about 30 guys (age 4-30) when I finished. Wilson translated for me, but they were extremely grateful for the mowed soccer field. Just a fun community building service to bless the community. The local community loves COTP and COTP benefits because the community likes having it here.
For those of you that were worried, this is Kari, and I'm still alive! :)
This morning I was a little sick and slept a couple hours, took some advil, and was back to work in no time. Mary, Cassie, and Abby cleaned out the pre-school while I was sleeping and it looks fantastic. Soon after, Jenn asked me and Cassie to help with finding out the nannies sizes for scrubs again. The language barrier made it challenging, but it was still fun.
During the kids' naptime, our group, along with the four from Indiana and two ladies that are Nick's family went to Cap Haitien to visit another orphanage. I'm trying to find the words to explain Pastor Blue, but there are literally no words to explain how awesome he was. He had such an unbelievable amount of faith. I think the words that stuck out to me the most was when he was talking about how the kids only have 2 meals a day and they were so blessed. He went out of his way to make us comfortable and reassured us that he prayed for us and our country every day. He also asked us to pray for him and Haiti--(a good suggestion for you too!:))
On our way home, the red truck got their 2nd flat tire of the day within 2 hours. Nick and Kirk went to a close-by vender and got some cheetos and drinks for the local kids around us and ourselves.
When we got back, we played with kids as usual...Not much new to say about that!
It was hot all day, but towards the evening it got cooler. It started to thunder and lightning, and then came the rain. During prayer and singing the nannies wanted us to sing a few songs. Afterwards, when Jenn was praying and thanking God for all the blessings a loud....LOUD... burst of thunder broke through the sky. Jenn laughed and shouted "Alright God!" and a chorus of Hallelujahs and Amens followed. It was pretty cool I must say!
I'll conclude by saying today was another great day in Haiti, and I'm very much looking forward to the next 6 days.
PS-Dawn Poppema: I got your note, read it over, but didnt really comprehend it much because I wanted to get outside, but when I looked at it again I found it ironic that you wrote that kid's name. He's my favorite too!!
Mom-Every day I wonder who your favorite is and I can never figure it out!
A few words from Kirk:
Group 2: I made instant mashed potatos tonight with summer sausage pieces--yum!!
Also had a fun experience tonight. Took the tractor down the road a bit and mowed a soccer field into a local pasture where the local folk had set up some bamboo soccer goals. There was no one there when I started and about 30 guys (age 4-30) when I finished. Wilson translated for me, but they were extremely grateful for the mowed soccer field. Just a fun community building service to bless the community. The local community loves COTP and COTP benefits because the community likes having it here.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Day 3 - Monday
Today was the first full work day for us. In addition to the regular tasks like dishes, mopping the baby house and toothbrushing, we had our first day of one-on-one time with the kids and some took kids for a walk. It's amazing how quickly you get to know each child's personality and what they like to do. During naptime one group bought river rock from some locals at the river and did some landscaping with them in front of the volunteer house and along the fence. Cassie and Kari got to learn a little Creole asking the nannies what size clothing size they wore and later picked out scrubs for them. We assembled gift bags with a nail polish, emory file and hard candy for the nannies as well. Tonight more nannies were given a suitcase. Ellen, Shara, Mary and Abby sorted a huge pile donated baby clothes into tubs. Some went to play soccer with some local kids. The swings were scrubbed, toys washed and medicine/vitamin containers were sorted for Amy (nurse) to use for giving meds to local people who come here for care. Marilyn is great at keeping the kitchen cleaned up and help keeping us fed. Marilyn, Angie & Brenda all seem to think alike when it comes to feeding people and running a kitchen. :)
We also had a chance to buy some goods from a local woman who comes to COTP. Her prices were went up and down with each question, but in the end she always wanted to throw in something extra. She was so sweet and eager to bargain.
We're having a few plumbing problems tonight - some showers were backing up so tomorrow I think something will have to get cleaned out. Probably doesn't help that we have so many women and most have long hair. JK
The kids ended the night having a soda cracker contest with some volunteers from Indiana (who could put a saltine in front of their teeth but behind their lips without breaking it).
Do good in your game tomorrow, Cameron! Love, Mom
Blog from Brenda.
Quick little word from Mary. I have now decided that if my sunglasses modeling doesn't take off well I will become a Haitian Security Guard! Looks really fin, I totally have the personality and image for it too:) Love everyone still. Goodnight.
We also had a chance to buy some goods from a local woman who comes to COTP. Her prices were went up and down with each question, but in the end she always wanted to throw in something extra. She was so sweet and eager to bargain.
We're having a few plumbing problems tonight - some showers were backing up so tomorrow I think something will have to get cleaned out. Probably doesn't help that we have so many women and most have long hair. JK
The kids ended the night having a soda cracker contest with some volunteers from Indiana (who could put a saltine in front of their teeth but behind their lips without breaking it).
Do good in your game tomorrow, Cameron! Love, Mom
Blog from Brenda.
Quick little word from Mary. I have now decided that if my sunglasses modeling doesn't take off well I will become a Haitian Security Guard! Looks really fin, I totally have the personality and image for it too:) Love everyone still. Goodnight.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Happy Fathers Day!:)
Hey everyone! This is going to be Mary writing first, becuase Mary is tired and will try to make this kinda short but I can't garrentee (don't know how to spell that(embarrassing)) anything. I hope I don't repeat stuff you know already from the first two groups , but I didn't read all theirs so oops. So our journey over to Miami went pretty well. On our way to the hotel from the airport we saw the worlds largest plane, be jealous, and pulled over on the interstate to watch it, because our driver man just felt like it I guess. It was coming in from a nine hour flight from Germany. Our first day in Haiti was intense, but I don't remember much so maybe someone else will tell you about it later, besides that I met a child that likes cows, I would say that child is pretty awesome. Today we went to two different churches, one Haitian and one for missionary people. In the Haiti one we got wine, but it burned my throat (I didn't know it was wine the moment I took it until I smelt it and I couldn't give it back by then haha). As we were riding home from church in the back of the truck and it is like being in a parade waving to everyone! One child threw a rock at us though.. Also the bed of the truck is kinda rough and so is the riding so it sands the hair off your legs which is interestingly nice:) If you come here and want to catch a lizard they are ninja fast so just whack and knock them out! They have corn ice cream. Sorry if I bored you. I don't go to detaily.Well I miss you Mom and Dad!! I miss you a lot too Luke!! Thanks for the note and fans:) I miss you Kailey a bunch!! I don't miss Rachelle at all though.. Just kidding!! I do a whole lot!! I miss everyone and I love you all!! Happy Fathers Day Daddy!! I love you!! Eat a piece of cake for me!! Racer people tell me how you did. Mary out. Peace!!!
Hi. This is Abby speaking. Happy Fathers Day Daddy!!! I love and miss you sooooo much! Hope you found and liked the card I left on your dresser. :) And yes, I also miss Zach (kinda...jk), Aaron, Allie, Skyler, Seth, and Sam..not Bear. ummm..I'll start talking about yesterday when we arrived and such. We got here around 9:30ish a.m. Unfortunately, I was sick: excruciating pain and stomach aches. ugh. but by evening i was walking around and hanging with Bruce (named in honor of Mary's suitcase...long story), one of the cutest little puppies I've ever seen. Gapping here, but I found so much joy in seeing the nannies experience joy. Their prayer and singing time is all in Creole so we can't understand it but you just know how meaningful it is and how happy they are when singing. The children also like to sing along. I was holding this little boy and I said "Chante" which is "to sing" in Creole and he just started belting out a song..it put a huge smile on my face. Today was a great day. Sundays are very lowkey here besides the obvious needs of the children such as tooth brushing, feeding, and bathing. Church was interesting because communion was with real wine so it kinda threw my stomach off.haha. but yeah, there were also a few chickens in the congregation. In the afternoon we headed to Cap Haitien for another church service. I don't think I will ever complain about bad roads anywhere ever again. We sat in the back of a truck and every single time we hit a bump (more like huge pothole or mountain in the middle of the road) it would hurt...a lot. I also almost got my head decapitated by leaning out of the truck a few inches..ahhhh. Standing up was much more enjoyable. The poverty is really hard to comprehend, even while looking at it yourself. Pictures cannot even come close to try and explain what it's actually like here. But I could stay here a lot longer than 10 days..I love it. The kids find the funniest ways to brighten up my day..like playing "Ki Kate Ou" or Peek-a-boo. haha. Well, I better get going. I am hot and tired. Miss my little siblings! the kids remind me so much of you guys! 2 boys I play with a lot suck their 2 fingers like Seth does..makes me miss you a lot little buddy! mk, Abby signing off. Boni!
Happy Father's Day, Steve! Hope, Allie, you're surviving with all he guys :) It seems like we've been in Haiti far longer than 2 days. A lot to take in...the girls just touched on a few of our experiences. Love you! Ang.
Happy Father's Day, Pete! Hi, Cameron! (And Brandon :) Hope you had a good weekend. We had a trip into Cap Haitian today for a worship service. We road in the back of a big truck across gravel, dirt and some paved roads. The driving is crazy here - I'll have to tell you about it when I get home. Miss all of you! Love, Mom
Happy Fathers Day, Dad, Clint, and Grandpa! This is your favorite beatiful daughter Breanna. Hi Paige, Megan, Carter, Mariah, and Shanny! I love you and think about you every day! Mariah, I found my favorite baby here and realized after 2 days being here that she has the exact personality as you but you'll always be my favorite baby. She loves to do the airplane just like you and her favorite part is the crash. I even see you in her smily face. She has a lot more hair than you though (no offense.) I'm having a fantaspectacnomically (fantastic + spectacular + phenominal + ca + wonderfully) grand time. My favorite part about this trip so far is the praise and worship in the morning and at night. Paige, you would've loved the flight..I though of you the whole time while we were taking off. Today we went to church and even though we couldn't understand them you could still feel God's presence stronger than I even do at Willmar church. Megan I knew you would've loved church. I thought of you the whole service. and Carter, I saw a whole bunch of little kids fighting in the street and I thought of you and Simon. I met a nanny and she was really nice and friendly towards me. She tried to commincate but the language barrier was too strong. Shanny and Clint, I miss you and love you! I can't wait to get home and tell you more! uhh bye.
- Breanna
HAPPY FATHERS DAY DAD:) I hope everything went well. im glad you got your grill you wanted:) I miss all of you guys :( i have had alot of fun since ive been here..and its only been two days since we have arrived. this will be a very good expericance for me. Mom i loved the airplane ride it was fun but very scary at the same time. when we were landing in haiti you could see a big moutuin it was beauitful. An amazing view. When we were in town driving to the compond it was a very different way to be( if that makes since) it almost felt like i was in a moive it was cool. i love you guys very much ...Mom if tanner or jordan doesnt see this please tell them that i miss them and love them. I would like to tell you more but i cant right now. hopefully the next time we blog i can. Ok i love you all and cant wait to see all of you
-mia:)
Hi. This is Abby speaking. Happy Fathers Day Daddy!!! I love and miss you sooooo much! Hope you found and liked the card I left on your dresser. :) And yes, I also miss Zach (kinda...jk), Aaron, Allie, Skyler, Seth, and Sam..not Bear. ummm..I'll start talking about yesterday when we arrived and such. We got here around 9:30ish a.m. Unfortunately, I was sick: excruciating pain and stomach aches. ugh. but by evening i was walking around and hanging with Bruce (named in honor of Mary's suitcase...long story), one of the cutest little puppies I've ever seen. Gapping here, but I found so much joy in seeing the nannies experience joy. Their prayer and singing time is all in Creole so we can't understand it but you just know how meaningful it is and how happy they are when singing. The children also like to sing along. I was holding this little boy and I said "Chante" which is "to sing" in Creole and he just started belting out a song..it put a huge smile on my face. Today was a great day. Sundays are very lowkey here besides the obvious needs of the children such as tooth brushing, feeding, and bathing. Church was interesting because communion was with real wine so it kinda threw my stomach off.haha. but yeah, there were also a few chickens in the congregation. In the afternoon we headed to Cap Haitien for another church service. I don't think I will ever complain about bad roads anywhere ever again. We sat in the back of a truck and every single time we hit a bump (more like huge pothole or mountain in the middle of the road) it would hurt...a lot. I also almost got my head decapitated by leaning out of the truck a few inches..ahhhh. Standing up was much more enjoyable. The poverty is really hard to comprehend, even while looking at it yourself. Pictures cannot even come close to try and explain what it's actually like here. But I could stay here a lot longer than 10 days..I love it. The kids find the funniest ways to brighten up my day..like playing "Ki Kate Ou" or Peek-a-boo. haha. Well, I better get going. I am hot and tired. Miss my little siblings! the kids remind me so much of you guys! 2 boys I play with a lot suck their 2 fingers like Seth does..makes me miss you a lot little buddy! mk, Abby signing off. Boni!
Happy Father's Day, Steve! Hope, Allie, you're surviving with all he guys :) It seems like we've been in Haiti far longer than 2 days. A lot to take in...the girls just touched on a few of our experiences. Love you! Ang.
Happy Father's Day, Pete! Hi, Cameron! (And Brandon :) Hope you had a good weekend. We had a trip into Cap Haitian today for a worship service. We road in the back of a big truck across gravel, dirt and some paved roads. The driving is crazy here - I'll have to tell you about it when I get home. Miss all of you! Love, Mom
Happy Fathers Day, Dad, Clint, and Grandpa! This is your favorite beatiful daughter Breanna. Hi Paige, Megan, Carter, Mariah, and Shanny! I love you and think about you every day! Mariah, I found my favorite baby here and realized after 2 days being here that she has the exact personality as you but you'll always be my favorite baby. She loves to do the airplane just like you and her favorite part is the crash. I even see you in her smily face. She has a lot more hair than you though (no offense.) I'm having a fantaspectacnomically (fantastic + spectacular + phenominal + ca + wonderfully) grand time. My favorite part about this trip so far is the praise and worship in the morning and at night. Paige, you would've loved the flight..I though of you the whole time while we were taking off. Today we went to church and even though we couldn't understand them you could still feel God's presence stronger than I even do at Willmar church. Megan I knew you would've loved church. I thought of you the whole service. and Carter, I saw a whole bunch of little kids fighting in the street and I thought of you and Simon. I met a nanny and she was really nice and friendly towards me. She tried to commincate but the language barrier was too strong. Shanny and Clint, I miss you and love you! I can't wait to get home and tell you more! uhh bye.
- Breanna
HAPPY FATHERS DAY DAD:) I hope everything went well. im glad you got your grill you wanted:) I miss all of you guys :( i have had alot of fun since ive been here..and its only been two days since we have arrived. this will be a very good expericance for me. Mom i loved the airplane ride it was fun but very scary at the same time. when we were landing in haiti you could see a big moutuin it was beauitful. An amazing view. When we were in town driving to the compond it was a very different way to be( if that makes since) it almost felt like i was in a moive it was cool. i love you guys very much ...Mom if tanner or jordan doesnt see this please tell them that i miss them and love them. I would like to tell you more but i cant right now. hopefully the next time we blog i can. Ok i love you all and cant wait to see all of you
-mia:)
Saturday, June 18, 2011
3rd Group arrives safely with 17 additional suitcases of supplies.
Group 3 has arrived safely at COTP--again, travel went smoothly.
The group dove right in by having a pool day and helping with all the regular tasks of caring for 46 babies. Having Mattea and Danielle around yet for a few days has been a big asset in training the 3rd group in to the tasks--it's nice to have a few extra people who know what is going on so that we do not have to trouble the long term volunteers as much to train us in.
Baby Ruth continues to stay with the Vander Pols as she adjusts to life at COTP and puts on some pounds to get her closer to where she should be at weight-wise. Other than Ruth there are no other babies staying in the volunteer house tonight as Ezekiel has moved on to his new home in the special needs room.
Most of the ladies have gone off to bed, and now that the dice game is over likely the rest of us will be nodding off shortly.
Tomorrow's worship options are Haitien church next door at the Manna compound or the Missionary fellowship tomorrow afternoon. Other than that Sundays are a low key day at COTP so that the long term staff can have a sabbath. We will still help with the daily tasks and care for babies though.
I have not heard yet of group #2's return, so I cannot post that yet. I know their plane left about 10 minutes before the 3rd group's plane landed as we saw both planes while we waited.
Blessings to all of our family and friends,
Kirk
The group dove right in by having a pool day and helping with all the regular tasks of caring for 46 babies. Having Mattea and Danielle around yet for a few days has been a big asset in training the 3rd group in to the tasks--it's nice to have a few extra people who know what is going on so that we do not have to trouble the long term volunteers as much to train us in.
Baby Ruth continues to stay with the Vander Pols as she adjusts to life at COTP and puts on some pounds to get her closer to where she should be at weight-wise. Other than Ruth there are no other babies staying in the volunteer house tonight as Ezekiel has moved on to his new home in the special needs room.
Most of the ladies have gone off to bed, and now that the dice game is over likely the rest of us will be nodding off shortly.
Tomorrow's worship options are Haitien church next door at the Manna compound or the Missionary fellowship tomorrow afternoon. Other than that Sundays are a low key day at COTP so that the long term staff can have a sabbath. We will still help with the daily tasks and care for babies though.
I have not heard yet of group #2's return, so I cannot post that yet. I know their plane left about 10 minutes before the 3rd group's plane landed as we saw both planes while we waited.
Blessings to all of our family and friends,
Kirk
Friday, June 17, 2011
From Shannon
Last Day, and many mixed feelings in this house. Every day was different and it's amazing how many things happen in a day around here. But through it all, the most often thought I had was ... WE ARE SOOO BLESSED.... HELP ME NEVER FORGET. If only I could pack up all these babes in my carry-on and bring them home. But God had bigger and much better plans for each of these tots... thanks to the committment and love that the Long Term Staff has sacrificed to be here & the work of those who work behind the scenes even from the states. They are clearly Jesus to EVERYONE they come in contact with. The Holy Spirit is clearly leading this ministry and you can see him in EVERY corner of this compound. This ministry is a refuge for so many and may God continue to Bless and Move in this place. Thank you COTP for allowing us to share in your vision of these beautiful children.
And to my family.... I'll be home in less than 24 hours. Can't wait to squeeze each one of you!
And to my family.... I'll be home in less than 24 hours. Can't wait to squeeze each one of you!
Behind closed doors final performance!
This is luke here, lead singer of the latest and greatest new band, behind closed doors. We have now officially performed internationally and will be doing our final performance of the haiti tour tonight at cotp. It will be in the boys room, behind the closed doors. If you want to listen to us warming up you can stand outside the shower room and we will be singing in there. By the sounds of it, it looks like the members of the band will go our seperate ways as soon as we return to the states. So if you want to hear the final performance, you will want to be here within the next 20 minutes! Thanks to all our faithful fans!! Fairwell!
Jeff's final note
I can't believe our time is up. It has been a great week, one to remember and act on. My wish is our churches will be transformed by the moving of God because of this trip.
Yesterday we had a great time building a wall and bunk beds in Cap at a school that was forced to take 37 orphaned kids from Port a Prince after the earthquake. It was very hot again but we finished by 3:30. The ride in the back of the truck home was awsome, cooled us down.
The singing the past two nights has been awsome. I will miss it. It is nice hearing singing all thru the day as the nannies care for the kids.
Today we finished the fence and wiring projects from Wed. We also took out a bathroom stall and toilet in the wash room since it never got used. We were all dragging by noon. I had to get the Waaaaabulance out often for Luke. He must have been tired b/c he didn't even have something to say for a comeback. That doesn't happen very often.
We had a great sharing time and prayer time again tonight. We even enjoyed some chocolate cake, quite a treat.
It will be hard to leave tomorrow but at the same time I am anxious to be home too. My heart has been touched and I have certainly been encouraged by the staff and local brothers and sisters in Christ. I hope we can do justice to our experience and share it well with friends and family.
Katie, the blonde from the south, won in Perudo. Had all 5 dice left. Good job southern belle.
I am offically passing on the Waaaaaambulace authority to Megan. Use it well. It got used quite a bit.
Thanks again for all your prayer. Looking forward to seeing you Sunday in Pburg
Jeff
Yesterday we had a great time building a wall and bunk beds in Cap at a school that was forced to take 37 orphaned kids from Port a Prince after the earthquake. It was very hot again but we finished by 3:30. The ride in the back of the truck home was awsome, cooled us down.
The singing the past two nights has been awsome. I will miss it. It is nice hearing singing all thru the day as the nannies care for the kids.
Today we finished the fence and wiring projects from Wed. We also took out a bathroom stall and toilet in the wash room since it never got used. We were all dragging by noon. I had to get the Waaaaabulance out often for Luke. He must have been tired b/c he didn't even have something to say for a comeback. That doesn't happen very often.
We had a great sharing time and prayer time again tonight. We even enjoyed some chocolate cake, quite a treat.
It will be hard to leave tomorrow but at the same time I am anxious to be home too. My heart has been touched and I have certainly been encouraged by the staff and local brothers and sisters in Christ. I hope we can do justice to our experience and share it well with friends and family.
Katie, the blonde from the south, won in Perudo. Had all 5 dice left. Good job southern belle.
I am offically passing on the Waaaaaambulace authority to Megan. Use it well. It got used quite a bit.
Thanks again for all your prayer. Looking forward to seeing you Sunday in Pburg
Jeff
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Another Kirk post...
So this morning we left at 7:30 to visit & work at Crossroads orphanage. It's a church and school that was pushed by the government to take in 37 orphans from Port. They sleep in one room with one toilet and one shower--girls and boys ages 4-12. After we had a tour of the entire school, and Noah was introduced in front of every class, the group left and some of the guys stayed back to work.
We stayed most of the day and built a wall separating the girls and boys sides and built 6 bunk beds attached to the wall to provide more floor space (the beds were all about 12" apart and head to toe.) We also built a door on a bathroom in the office space. Our visit and time there provides a stark contrast of how different COTP is from Crossroads. It was a good place, but COTP is just so much more beautiful in comparission--plus the staff to child ratio at COTP is amazing compaired to Crossroads where they had two staff on at a time (4 total for 37 kids!).
Back at COTP the ladies made a cake for one of the girls that turned 2 today and they had a big birthday party. Painting in the playroom continued as well--I think it's finished now.
A new girl was admitted and will be staying with the Vander Pol's tonight. (Been a while since we've had a baby that needs to feed every 3 hours, so we'll see how that goes....) Oh, and Kerry Breems, no we cannot simply "take her home with us" so no need to ask.
The group is pretty amazed that tomorrow is the last day already. Time has flown by. Group 3 leaves tomorrow morning early, so keep them in your prayers please. They will be traveling through Miami rather than Ft. Lauderdale.
It's after 10, and even though back home I stayed up much later, this is getting to be a bit late for me, so I'm off to bed--that is if the old farts (Jeff and Dawn) don't make too much noise playing dice with some of the long term folk.
We stayed most of the day and built a wall separating the girls and boys sides and built 6 bunk beds attached to the wall to provide more floor space (the beds were all about 12" apart and head to toe.) We also built a door on a bathroom in the office space. Our visit and time there provides a stark contrast of how different COTP is from Crossroads. It was a good place, but COTP is just so much more beautiful in comparission--plus the staff to child ratio at COTP is amazing compaired to Crossroads where they had two staff on at a time (4 total for 37 kids!).
Back at COTP the ladies made a cake for one of the girls that turned 2 today and they had a big birthday party. Painting in the playroom continued as well--I think it's finished now.
A new girl was admitted and will be staying with the Vander Pol's tonight. (Been a while since we've had a baby that needs to feed every 3 hours, so we'll see how that goes....) Oh, and Kerry Breems, no we cannot simply "take her home with us" so no need to ask.
The group is pretty amazed that tomorrow is the last day already. Time has flown by. Group 3 leaves tomorrow morning early, so keep them in your prayers please. They will be traveling through Miami rather than Ft. Lauderdale.
It's after 10, and even though back home I stayed up much later, this is getting to be a bit late for me, so I'm off to bed--that is if the old farts (Jeff and Dawn) don't make too much noise playing dice with some of the long term folk.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Jeffs third post (AKA The boy band "Behind Closed Doors" is born
Hey everyone
It is a little cooler this evening, cloudy and a slight breeze w lots of lightning and thunder but no rain yet. We had another great day of service today. All the kids pitched in really well. The baby house was short one nanny today so the kids and women did a great job of picking up the slack and helping out.
The guys did some more wiring and fence building w bamboo. It is cool looking stuff when green. Hopefully we'll get some pictures on line for you later.
The kids are out "ratting". Most of us have not had a problem seeing them once in a while but a couple of the kids have not had that luxury yet so they are out w a flashlight looking.
The guys made a list of requests today. I'm not sure the world is ready for what they have to offer but we are enjoying it. They now have in their reseme' that they have performed world wide. Not sure if they got bookings in Kandiyohi yet or not. Better check w Nate, he's the agent for the group.
I have 2 new friends since getting here. Baby powder and Desitin have made being here easier, another one of those little things we take for granted back home.
Danielle had become very close to one of the residents here. Toby has short brown hair and loves to sit on her lap. He doesnt like to be picked up but loves to jump into your lap if coaxed. He is being well cared for Jenny/Jamie.
The play room got a new painting on the floor today. The girls and Nick painted a flower, ladybug, and a butterfly on the floor. Really looks nice.
We are all talking about the next trip already so if you're interested I don't think it will be a long wait.
Love in Christ
Jeff
Hi to my family & friends at PB. I'm having an awesome time and will not be ready to come home in a few days. See you all soon!
Dawn
It is a little cooler this evening, cloudy and a slight breeze w lots of lightning and thunder but no rain yet. We had another great day of service today. All the kids pitched in really well. The baby house was short one nanny today so the kids and women did a great job of picking up the slack and helping out.
The guys did some more wiring and fence building w bamboo. It is cool looking stuff when green. Hopefully we'll get some pictures on line for you later.
The kids are out "ratting". Most of us have not had a problem seeing them once in a while but a couple of the kids have not had that luxury yet so they are out w a flashlight looking.
The guys made a list of requests today. I'm not sure the world is ready for what they have to offer but we are enjoying it. They now have in their reseme' that they have performed world wide. Not sure if they got bookings in Kandiyohi yet or not. Better check w Nate, he's the agent for the group.
I have 2 new friends since getting here. Baby powder and Desitin have made being here easier, another one of those little things we take for granted back home.
Danielle had become very close to one of the residents here. Toby has short brown hair and loves to sit on her lap. He doesnt like to be picked up but loves to jump into your lap if coaxed. He is being well cared for Jenny/Jamie.
The play room got a new painting on the floor today. The girls and Nick painted a flower, ladybug, and a butterfly on the floor. Really looks nice.
We are all talking about the next trip already so if you're interested I don't think it will be a long wait.
Love in Christ
Jeff
Hi to my family & friends at PB. I'm having an awesome time and will not be ready to come home in a few days. See you all soon!
Dawn
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Jeff's second note
Today is Tuesday. Cant believe we only have 3 work days left.
We had a good work day on Monday again. Repaired 3 sections of roof on the baby building, back filled around new cement the first group poured, did some wiring, made more block (the girls even did a bunch of them), and loaded the block from last week onto the truck to be delivered this morning.
The boys have found great joy in singing in their bunks before bed. I don't think Justin B needs to worry.
We took 6 kids out for a walk in the afternoon down the road. It is cooler in the afternoon because clouds develope by then. If you can stay out of the sun, the heat is accually getting less exausting.
We had a great devotion time last night and again tonight. The kids are really thinking a lot.
Today we went to the Citadel on a day trip at around 7:30 but before that Nick, Wilson and 6 of us went to delivere the block to the building site. It took us 45 min to get there, 10 min to unload and 30 min to return. We left at 5:30 and most of the kids volunteered to go. Awsome.
The view from the citatel was spectacular. We got to climb on and around the canons and stuff in the fortress without limitation. Pretty cool.
Danelle rode a horse up and down the trail. Not bad for someone who doesn't like horses. Ask Matty about the tour guide. He "kept her from falling out of the truck" on our ride up the mountain by putting his arms around her. We'll have to keep our eye on her. :)
Luke keeps us all on our toes, never a dull moment. We did use his driving prowess when the tractor got stuck getting bamboo for a new fence but don't tell him I said so, it will go to his head. :)
We had another good night of devotions after having mac n cheese and spuds w sausage in it. Our food has been excellent and a cold Coke never tasted so good at the end of a day.
Tomorrow we'll do more wiring, build a fence and finish back filling around cement. Should be a good day.
One thing to consider: Wilson (one of the yard workers) builds and sells Adirondack lawn chairs out of pine. Each is 50 bucks plus 25 to get them back to the states. They look pretty nice. So far we have 8 orderd for the return trip. If you are interested in one or more let one of us know and we can get them along for you.
Thanks again for your prayers and the support. It is soooo vital.
Jeff
We had a good work day on Monday again. Repaired 3 sections of roof on the baby building, back filled around new cement the first group poured, did some wiring, made more block (the girls even did a bunch of them), and loaded the block from last week onto the truck to be delivered this morning.
The boys have found great joy in singing in their bunks before bed. I don't think Justin B needs to worry.
We took 6 kids out for a walk in the afternoon down the road. It is cooler in the afternoon because clouds develope by then. If you can stay out of the sun, the heat is accually getting less exausting.
We had a great devotion time last night and again tonight. The kids are really thinking a lot.
Today we went to the Citadel on a day trip at around 7:30 but before that Nick, Wilson and 6 of us went to delivere the block to the building site. It took us 45 min to get there, 10 min to unload and 30 min to return. We left at 5:30 and most of the kids volunteered to go. Awsome.
The view from the citatel was spectacular. We got to climb on and around the canons and stuff in the fortress without limitation. Pretty cool.
Danelle rode a horse up and down the trail. Not bad for someone who doesn't like horses. Ask Matty about the tour guide. He "kept her from falling out of the truck" on our ride up the mountain by putting his arms around her. We'll have to keep our eye on her. :)
Luke keeps us all on our toes, never a dull moment. We did use his driving prowess when the tractor got stuck getting bamboo for a new fence but don't tell him I said so, it will go to his head. :)
We had another good night of devotions after having mac n cheese and spuds w sausage in it. Our food has been excellent and a cold Coke never tasted so good at the end of a day.
Tomorrow we'll do more wiring, build a fence and finish back filling around cement. Should be a good day.
One thing to consider: Wilson (one of the yard workers) builds and sells Adirondack lawn chairs out of pine. Each is 50 bucks plus 25 to get them back to the states. They look pretty nice. So far we have 8 orderd for the return trip. If you are interested in one or more let one of us know and we can get them along for you.
Thanks again for your prayers and the support. It is soooo vital.
Jeff
Luke again.....
Hey everybody its luke again! Obviously im the only person here that will blog by the looks of it. So today started out bright and early for me, Jeff, Justin, Nate, Matea and Daniel. We got up at 5 15 to haul a load of bricks to some place over in Cap. We had loaded them all up the night before, we guessed it to be about 250 of them. It took us about an hour to get there hanging our legs off the back end of this flat bed truck cruizin down these awful doars with puddles and ruts about 2 feet deep! After we had unloaded the bricks at our destination, we headed back to COTP. When we got back, we headed up to the ciddadel for the day. the ciddadel is an old castle built on top of a mountain that was built 200 years ago to protect Haiti from the French. From the top you could even see the boarder to the Dominican Republic. It was amazing!!! Except for the hike up there, really really really long and steep hike! The people at the bottom would follow you up the whole way and give you information about it and then try to get money from you at the bottom. The guy that followed me seemed so nice until i told him that i had no money with me, he kind of ignored me from there on out.... After our visit to the cidadel was done, we returned back to COTP to do work for the day. We got back at about 1, and big nick asked me if i knew how to run a tractor. I said yeah, and he told me to go out with a guy standing outside the gate that he had never even meet before and we would go get bamboo out back. Turns out that "outback" is about a half a mile across a pasture, crossing about 3 rivers, and i managed to find a lot of mud! It was a pretty small tractor with a front end loader on it. I got it stuck crossing a river in a couple feet of water. I used the loader on the front to crawl my way out, and just as i was about out, the other man with me, who did not know a word of english, thought he could do it. So he kicked me out of the seat and said he would do it. I know for a fact that this person had never driven a tractor before and he got it burried!! It took us about 2 hours to get it back out. I was starting to get a little sketched out, cuz we were like half a mile away from the compound in a random pasture with bulls wandering around and this random man that no one here even knew had a machette. Its kind of funny now though i guess. So basically i wasnt around much today, everybody was kind of wondering where i went to haha. But while i was gone it looks like the rest of the guys got a lot down on the bamboo fence we are going to build tommorow! They got all the post holes dug and they got the whole area leveled out and ready to be fenced in! We will let you know how that goes! Everybody take care! See you in a couple of days!
Monday, June 13, 2011
Day 4 i think?
Hey everybody, this is Luke! One thing here i have found amazing is time really doesnt mean anything. I never even know what day it is or what time it is. It is actually quite a comforting feeling not having to worry about the time or having to be somewhere at sometime! Well... except for breakfast time and lunch time, i like that time!!! So today me justin and reikins went into town to get some stuff. Me and justin talked to reikins most of the time about back home. He said that the previous group had told him about the snow that we get there and he still coulnt believe it. I started talking to him about ice fishing and he just could not believe that we would drive full size vehicles out onto a frozen lake! It was really cool being with him just me and justin. He gave us a tour of the city for about 2 hours! It is was so amazing seeing the communities and the way that the people live in the city! He also took a different way home, and we passed through about 3 small villages, and it seemed like absolutely everybody knows everybody in these small villages. One of the most interesting things i saw in the city was that there is a river running through, just plump full of garbabge everywhere! But what they did, is they had cleared an area out, and they would drive their vehicles right into the river about up to the doors and they would wash them right in the river! Reikins also showed us the ocean and garbage lines the whole beach for miles, all the way up to the storm wall all the way down to the water about a foot thick. It is all plastic bottles and styrofoam pieces is what it looks like. Well thats about all i got. To mom and rachelle, you two were right about the hair. It needs to be cut, it would have been much more comfortable if it was short right now! Love you guys. Take care!
Quick Post
I needed to email home to ask for some blenders--the one that had been floating around the compound konked out today. So I thought I'd stay in front of my fan for a few minutes and post as well--I've been sweat through since about 8:30 this morning. (Hey, Group 1, it has not rained since the morning you left!)
Today Cory, Jeff, Justin, and Nate have tag teamed making block. Jeff, Luke, and I have worked on tracing down and fixing a small electrical short as well as reworking some light switches where a wall had been removed. Luke, Justin, and Reikerns just got back from getting some additional electrical supplies, so we'll get some additional exterior lights wired up today as well.
Wilson has been gathering bamboo today --the moon is finally in the right spot for harvesting it (apparently there is something with the moon and chlorophyll and longer lasting bamboo). We hope to make a bamboo picket fence to redirect people to a different entrance.
It's hot. There's a few people with stomach cramps and a few feeling a tad dizzy, so they will be taking it easy today. No one is seriously ill though, so that's great!
Thanks for your prayers.
Kirk
Today Cory, Jeff, Justin, and Nate have tag teamed making block. Jeff, Luke, and I have worked on tracing down and fixing a small electrical short as well as reworking some light switches where a wall had been removed. Luke, Justin, and Reikerns just got back from getting some additional electrical supplies, so we'll get some additional exterior lights wired up today as well.
Wilson has been gathering bamboo today --the moon is finally in the right spot for harvesting it (apparently there is something with the moon and chlorophyll and longer lasting bamboo). We hope to make a bamboo picket fence to redirect people to a different entrance.
It's hot. There's a few people with stomach cramps and a few feeling a tad dizzy, so they will be taking it easy today. No one is seriously ill though, so that's great!
Thanks for your prayers.
Kirk
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Nathan's two cents
Sunday. I woke up sweating at too early of a time. We (Poppemas, Bonnemas, Shannon, and I) left the manna compound, which is right across the fence, at seven am. We went to a church on the smaller of the two mountains of which Cap Haitien is situated. It took about an hour drive in Bill and Darla's, two missionaries next door on the manna compound, four wheel drive "troop transport" toyota. We sat facing each other on bench seats through the hectic streets that reached fifty degree angles. When the roadlike trail came to an end we hiked about ten minutes to an amazing view. The church was mostly tin and extremely muggy. The service was the two weeks delayed mother's day service and lasted roughly three and a half hours. I had "volunteered" for a short skit which Bill used as part of his (the third sermon) lesson. Cory, little Nic, Mackenzie (community kid), and I had fun doing it. This afternoon Justin, Kirk + wife and kids, Danielle, Mattea, Luke, and I were taken by Bill to a (most likely the only in Cap) English bible study. No one had prepared a lesson so Bill went over psalm 25 with us for about an hour. On the way back we visited La kay where we got ice cream, a rarity in haiti. So far a great sunday, and I'm enjoying my time before I have to get back to work.
PS. Mom, I'm still alive.
Hi all
This is my first note. It has been great to meet all the people here, so many committed young people working for the Lord. It really is encouraging to me.
On Friday the guys and I helped Wilson, one of the yard workers, make 100 cement blocks by hand. All the cement and sand is mixed by hand and put into 2 forms, kind of like building sand castles and then set on the ground to dry. It takes about 3 days for them to dry hard enough to use. They are not very strong as cement is a costly item but once they are in a wall they do fine. Sat. we did 150 in the sun. We were going to do more but being in the sun took it out of me so we stopped at 150. There were not arguements from anyone, not even Wilson who seems to handle the heat just fine. In fact he usually wears jeans and 2 shirts while working. Must be used to the heat.
Some of the other projects we have already done are paint the battery framework, pulled out a few trees, weeded in the complexes garden, fixed small items in the kitchen and of course, play w the kids. It is amazing to me to watch the nannies work w the kids. The seem to be filled w joy to be here. Hope I remember that when I get back to my own world and am tempted to complain.
The rat kill count so far this year is 38. I was shaken awake last night by the ladies. There were several milling around in the room next to them which freaked most of them out. The two compound dogs were chasing them around and knocked a lot of stuff over. Once I got the dogs out of the room and the door closed again, I went back to sleep. I think it took Shannon a while to wind down. I guess that's what I get for having my cot closest to the door.
Yesterday, Nate bought some stuff from a lady selling stuff at the compound. He didn't barter w her so she gave him some free stuff because he paid her too much. Good experience.
We're all sweaty but getting a long well. All the kids are doing great. They are working very hard and have been fun to be around. The joy in serving is easy to see. You parents should be proud of your kids.
I would certainly recommend this to all my friends. It will change you and at the same time be of great encouragement to those working here.
Paul, if you read this, I got to meet Will's mom. She is a sweet woman and so appreciative for the care he gets in the states.
It has been a ball hearing all the things that the kids remember from 5th grade. I cant remember most of it.
Thanks for your prayers. Jeff
PS. Mom, I'm still alive.
Hi all
This is my first note. It has been great to meet all the people here, so many committed young people working for the Lord. It really is encouraging to me.
On Friday the guys and I helped Wilson, one of the yard workers, make 100 cement blocks by hand. All the cement and sand is mixed by hand and put into 2 forms, kind of like building sand castles and then set on the ground to dry. It takes about 3 days for them to dry hard enough to use. They are not very strong as cement is a costly item but once they are in a wall they do fine. Sat. we did 150 in the sun. We were going to do more but being in the sun took it out of me so we stopped at 150. There were not arguements from anyone, not even Wilson who seems to handle the heat just fine. In fact he usually wears jeans and 2 shirts while working. Must be used to the heat.
Some of the other projects we have already done are paint the battery framework, pulled out a few trees, weeded in the complexes garden, fixed small items in the kitchen and of course, play w the kids. It is amazing to me to watch the nannies work w the kids. The seem to be filled w joy to be here. Hope I remember that when I get back to my own world and am tempted to complain.
The rat kill count so far this year is 38. I was shaken awake last night by the ladies. There were several milling around in the room next to them which freaked most of them out. The two compound dogs were chasing them around and knocked a lot of stuff over. Once I got the dogs out of the room and the door closed again, I went back to sleep. I think it took Shannon a while to wind down. I guess that's what I get for having my cot closest to the door.
Yesterday, Nate bought some stuff from a lady selling stuff at the compound. He didn't barter w her so she gave him some free stuff because he paid her too much. Good experience.
We're all sweaty but getting a long well. All the kids are doing great. They are working very hard and have been fun to be around. The joy in serving is easy to see. You parents should be proud of your kids.
I would certainly recommend this to all my friends. It will change you and at the same time be of great encouragement to those working here.
Paul, if you read this, I got to meet Will's mom. She is a sweet woman and so appreciative for the care he gets in the states.
It has been a ball hearing all the things that the kids remember from 5th grade. I cant remember most of it.
Thanks for your prayers. Jeff
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Day 2 for trip 2 in Haiti
HEY! this is luke! Hi mom dad and mary! Miss you guys! Mary you will love it here! Hey shelly :) I miss you! So today we got going at about 7 15 in the morning and after doing a few odds and ends, we started making bricks at about 8. We made 150 bricks today which is A LOT!!! But of course one of the workers here, named wilson, claims to have made 700 in one day!!! Yesterday i got to go into town with big nick (the director of COTP), not little nick(nick bonnema). He brought us into Cap to buy some shovels and get 30 bags of cement and to pick up all of the checked luggage for the nannies that came on a later flight. There was a ton of people there that would try to help you with your bag, but if you would let them they would more than likely just run off with it is what we were told. Well... its about my bedtime! Just wanna say that all the children here and the staff are amazing! It is so cool being down here! Im sure you will be hearing more from me considering I love to talk. Take care!
This here is Justin,
Hey Mom Dad and Kailey i miss you! Hey Dana <3!! Its been a while! hope you had as much fun as im having here in Haiti, I miss you lots!! My first couple days were very intense! the first day me Jeff, Nick B and Wilson made a whole bunch of brick yesterday, and after hours of doing that me Jeff Luke and Nate pulled weeds in the garden and finished off with a relaxing shower. The food here is amazing!! This morning we woke up bright and early and started off the morning doing Bricks again! then about noonish Me Jen Reikerns (re-kins) Kirk Nick B and Noah Went to town to pick up some bread from the market and it was airconditioned!! But we got got to find out what the inner city Cap was like it was chaos once we got back there was some terrible noises coming from the truck and once we got back i asked Wilson if i could take a look at it and we got the problem fixed everyone was very happy! tonight was a very fun as well, i made a new best friend his name is Jedson we are Best Pals!! so far the trip has been great no airconditioning but you get used to the heat!! Hope everything is going well back in the states!!
Signing out
Justin!!
A few more notes from Kirk...
It has not rained for two days!! Hasn't been to overwhelmingly hot either if you stay out of the sun. So, Jay, if the sun continues we will be able to level the mud tracks we made when pouring the sidewalk.
We did two things today that group 1 didn't do--we had a pool day with the kids. What a riot!! We and the kids had a blast. My boys loved it too playing in the pools with all the other kids. The other thing was that we watched a movie on the roof of the volunteer house. Nick set up a projector and hung a sheet for a screen. It was a nice night. The moon was fairly bright, so we couldn't see a ton of stars, but tonight was the first since we've been here that we could really get a decent view of the stars.
A few other things that happened today were removing two trees/bushes betwee the mango tree and the baby house that were problematic (Group 1--no rats came out when we pulled them up with the loader.) Sorting clothes continued in the depot. The volunteer house frig, water cooler, cupboards, etc. were all scrubbed and cleaned! The battery rack was sanded and painted as well. That on top of playing with the kids/babies and helpig with the daily tasks of COTP--like bathing, teeth brushing, feeding, snacks, etc.
It was a great day!
This here is Justin,
Hey Mom Dad and Kailey i miss you! Hey Dana <3!! Its been a while! hope you had as much fun as im having here in Haiti, I miss you lots!! My first couple days were very intense! the first day me Jeff, Nick B and Wilson made a whole bunch of brick yesterday, and after hours of doing that me Jeff Luke and Nate pulled weeds in the garden and finished off with a relaxing shower. The food here is amazing!! This morning we woke up bright and early and started off the morning doing Bricks again! then about noonish Me Jen Reikerns (re-kins) Kirk Nick B and Noah Went to town to pick up some bread from the market and it was airconditioned!! But we got got to find out what the inner city Cap was like it was chaos once we got back there was some terrible noises coming from the truck and once we got back i asked Wilson if i could take a look at it and we got the problem fixed everyone was very happy! tonight was a very fun as well, i made a new best friend his name is Jedson we are Best Pals!! so far the trip has been great no airconditioning but you get used to the heat!! Hope everything is going well back in the states!!
Signing out
Justin!!
A few more notes from Kirk...
It has not rained for two days!! Hasn't been to overwhelmingly hot either if you stay out of the sun. So, Jay, if the sun continues we will be able to level the mud tracks we made when pouring the sidewalk.
We did two things today that group 1 didn't do--we had a pool day with the kids. What a riot!! We and the kids had a blast. My boys loved it too playing in the pools with all the other kids. The other thing was that we watched a movie on the roof of the volunteer house. Nick set up a projector and hung a sheet for a screen. It was a nice night. The moon was fairly bright, so we couldn't see a ton of stars, but tonight was the first since we've been here that we could really get a decent view of the stars.
A few other things that happened today were removing two trees/bushes betwee the mango tree and the baby house that were problematic (Group 1--no rats came out when we pulled them up with the loader.) Sorting clothes continued in the depot. The volunteer house frig, water cooler, cupboards, etc. were all scrubbed and cleaned! The battery rack was sanded and painted as well. That on top of playing with the kids/babies and helpig with the daily tasks of COTP--like bathing, teeth brushing, feeding, snacks, etc.
It was a great day!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Day 1 at COTP
Hey Family! This is Shannon. Just a quick note to say we made it okay and we have put in a long day already! At 7:00, I thought it was at least 10:30!! But, Elli... You would LOVE all the babies here!! I need your help... I don't have enough ARMS to hold all the ones who want me to hold them!! Hope all is well at home with all the baseball and bible school... Love and miss you ALL.. TJ, Tanner, Elli and Bob!
Group 2 arrives safely at COTP--Group 1 begins trip home
7 this morning we took a picture by the front gate COTP sign, hopped in the truck and drove to the airport. It took a while for the group to get through security--it's just a slow process in CAP.
Nick and I took a little drive to the market getting some mangos and a pineapple. We then came back and picked up Group 2. They arrived safely and had a relatively uneventful trip.
Group 2 has had a tour already, Jeff, Justin, and Nic are making concrete blocks, the ladies have helped feed and care for babies, Cory, Nate, and Luke have just returned from getting the luggage--again, all 22 suitcases arrived and are being unloaded so we will sort through them soon. Group 2 has also had their first meal--french toast with cinnamon. Oh, and I see the guys picked up Coke and concrete as well when they went to get the luggage.
More later...
Kirk
Nick and I took a little drive to the market getting some mangos and a pineapple. We then came back and picked up Group 2. They arrived safely and had a relatively uneventful trip.
Group 2 has had a tour already, Jeff, Justin, and Nic are making concrete blocks, the ladies have helped feed and care for babies, Cory, Nate, and Luke have just returned from getting the luggage--again, all 22 suitcases arrived and are being unloaded so we will sort through them soon. Group 2 has also had their first meal--french toast with cinnamon. Oh, and I see the guys picked up Coke and concrete as well when they went to get the luggage.
More later...
Kirk
Thursday, June 9, 2011
The First group's last night in Haiti
Well, group two should be comfortably in their hotel in Ft. Lauderdale--I've heard nothing to the contrary.
Most of group one is already in bed. We need to leave by 7am tomorrow morning to get to the airport by 7:30. Group 2 arrives and 8 and Group 1 departs Haiti at 9am. Unfortunately they will not get to interact other than possibly a wave through a window.
The last day was spent pouring more concrete for the last section of a sidewalk. Installing bunk beds that Wilson (COTP employee) had built for the VP boys. Finishing up organizing the playroom--you can see the floor now!! Helping organize in the depot (supply room). Caring for babies was also a priority as people spent their last days with some of the kids they have become attached to.
Jess & Dana had their hair braided. Jill had her hair put in little puffs--not sure what you call it...
It rained hard this afternoon while some of our boys went over to the compound next door and played soccer with kids from the community. Then some of the guys--Neil and Evan--stood out in the rain and waited for rats to come out of some known hiding spots, but they had no luck. By the way, you may think there is a lot of talk of rats, but its really not like this place is crawling with them--its just an interesting topic.
We had our final devotions with staff tonight as a wrap up--the long term staff has enjoyed us as a group, and we definitely have enjoyed the long term staff along with the local staff!
Kara has taunted me a bit that she will be having Dairy Queen tomorrow and Zach and Jake keep talking about Cini-bon. It's okay though, I'm content being here.
Kirk
Most of group one is already in bed. We need to leave by 7am tomorrow morning to get to the airport by 7:30. Group 2 arrives and 8 and Group 1 departs Haiti at 9am. Unfortunately they will not get to interact other than possibly a wave through a window.
The last day was spent pouring more concrete for the last section of a sidewalk. Installing bunk beds that Wilson (COTP employee) had built for the VP boys. Finishing up organizing the playroom--you can see the floor now!! Helping organize in the depot (supply room). Caring for babies was also a priority as people spent their last days with some of the kids they have become attached to.
Jess & Dana had their hair braided. Jill had her hair put in little puffs--not sure what you call it...
It rained hard this afternoon while some of our boys went over to the compound next door and played soccer with kids from the community. Then some of the guys--Neil and Evan--stood out in the rain and waited for rats to come out of some known hiding spots, but they had no luck. By the way, you may think there is a lot of talk of rats, but its really not like this place is crawling with them--its just an interesting topic.
We had our final devotions with staff tonight as a wrap up--the long term staff has enjoyed us as a group, and we definitely have enjoyed the long term staff along with the local staff!
Kara has taunted me a bit that she will be having Dairy Queen tomorrow and Zach and Jake keep talking about Cini-bon. It's okay though, I'm content being here.
Kirk
Wednesday's Post on Thursday morning
Our adventure yesterday started at 8am--to conquer the Citadell! We piled (literally) 18 people into the small Toyota pickup. It is a 4 door that holds 6 (tightly) with a small bed in back. We squished 7 people in the cab and 11 people in the bed of the pickup. About half had to stand and half could "sit". It was about a 45 minute ride with only a few miles being a smoothly paved area--Jess thinks only about a mile paved.
We picked up a tour guide at the bottom of the mountain--he jumped in back to make 19. After locking in the front hubs to switch into 4 wheel drive we snaked up the stone road half way up the mountain--thankfully it wasn't raining as the tires occassionally slipped the way it was. As we neared the end of our drive people saw us and chased after us for the last quarter mile to swarm us when we stopped trying to sell us trinkets, horse rides up the hiking portion, and to be our "tour guides" up the mountain.
We then started our hike up the last say 1000 vertical feet. Thankfully the sun was behind the clouds, but many of us still were drenched with sweat when we did reach the top--actually, I was drenched after about 500 yards. None of us took a horse though and made it up on our own.
The citadell was amazing! For those of you who like Lord of the Rings it felt like we were in the castle at Minastirith! Very cool. There were sections that could be shut down and even flooded if they were breached as potential attacking forces came in.
We have to mention the toilets. They were so high up you could finish peeing before your pee even hit the ground! (I held Elijah just to make sure he didn't fall through the toilet seat.)
The hike down was much better but a bit hard on the knees.
In other news there have been two new babies admitted in the last 2 days. They are currently adjusting by staying in the volunteer house with one of the long term volunteers, so we all help out with them quite a bit.
Group #2 should be at MSP as I type this. Group #1 misses people and back home a bit, but eveyone is generally sad to be leaving. There has been a lot of talk of coming back already.
Signing off...Kirk (with Jess and Dana's help).
We picked up a tour guide at the bottom of the mountain--he jumped in back to make 19. After locking in the front hubs to switch into 4 wheel drive we snaked up the stone road half way up the mountain--thankfully it wasn't raining as the tires occassionally slipped the way it was. As we neared the end of our drive people saw us and chased after us for the last quarter mile to swarm us when we stopped trying to sell us trinkets, horse rides up the hiking portion, and to be our "tour guides" up the mountain.
We then started our hike up the last say 1000 vertical feet. Thankfully the sun was behind the clouds, but many of us still were drenched with sweat when we did reach the top--actually, I was drenched after about 500 yards. None of us took a horse though and made it up on our own.
The citadell was amazing! For those of you who like Lord of the Rings it felt like we were in the castle at Minastirith! Very cool. There were sections that could be shut down and even flooded if they were breached as potential attacking forces came in.
We have to mention the toilets. They were so high up you could finish peeing before your pee even hit the ground! (I held Elijah just to make sure he didn't fall through the toilet seat.)
The hike down was much better but a bit hard on the knees.
In other news there have been two new babies admitted in the last 2 days. They are currently adjusting by staying in the volunteer house with one of the long term volunteers, so we all help out with them quite a bit.
Group #2 should be at MSP as I type this. Group #1 misses people and back home a bit, but eveyone is generally sad to be leaving. There has been a lot of talk of coming back already.
Signing off...Kirk (with Jess and Dana's help).
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
The Adventures of Dana, Jill and Jessica
Today was an exciting and eye opening day for some of us! We started out with the normal routine of feeding the kids breakfast, brushing teeth and enjoying 1-on-1 time with the kids. This afternoon we (Dana, Jill and Jessica) went with Nick and Jamie to Cap to run an errand and visit two nannies. We visited one nanny and she was the sweetest lady ever! She did not have much, but was so thankful for having us and she was also very welcoming! We went on to the next nanny's house and met her brother, and some others in her family. She was very hospitable and did not want us to leave, so she pulled out Coke and Toro (which is a knock off of Red Bull-Very good! Nick calls it Black Bull :) After that, we met up the other people in our group and visited Cross Roads which is the name of a Church and also has a school and orphanage in it. The orphans are children ages 4-12 and came after the earthquake. After seeing what this orphanage had, COTP is very fortunate to have the support from all the people. Cross Roads is blessed by the Godly Director of the orphanage, school, and church.
Also- Nick is an amazing driver on these roads!! We would be so stressed if we had to drive against the traffic here. We took a 3' deep drive through murkey rain water. Lets just say that we were nervous!
Thanks for reading our blog :)
-Jill, Dana and Jessica
Actually, instead of starting with todays adventures, I'm starting with last night (Monday). Last night, during the nannies praise/worship time, it started downpouring very hard. It was really cool to see last night. David, Jacob, Neil, Evan, Jessica, Dana, and I went into a mud slide out in the yard because it was so deep. It reminded me of the high school retreat back in September, except this was in Haiti. All the nannies were watching and laughing at us silly Americans. It was pretty cool to see all them enjoying it. Well today was kind of a normal, routine day here, but this afternoon we went into Cap Haitien to go visit a neighboring orphanage, just like the girls said up above. We met the Pastor, Yves Blot. He is amazing and full of God in there. He said he has a big church and an orphanage connected to it. He said it was a blessing that we were here and he was praising God for it. It was amazing to see the Holy Spirit go through him. It's amazing to see what God is doing in the spirit of people down here, for what little they have. He is definitley working down here. Thats pretty much all I've got to say. Thanks for reading!
Zach
The Pastor of the other orphanage asked for prayer. 37 kids all in one room, one toilet, one shower.
Kirk
Also- Nick is an amazing driver on these roads!! We would be so stressed if we had to drive against the traffic here. We took a 3' deep drive through murkey rain water. Lets just say that we were nervous!
Thanks for reading our blog :)
-Jill, Dana and Jessica
Actually, instead of starting with todays adventures, I'm starting with last night (Monday). Last night, during the nannies praise/worship time, it started downpouring very hard. It was really cool to see last night. David, Jacob, Neil, Evan, Jessica, Dana, and I went into a mud slide out in the yard because it was so deep. It reminded me of the high school retreat back in September, except this was in Haiti. All the nannies were watching and laughing at us silly Americans. It was pretty cool to see all them enjoying it. Well today was kind of a normal, routine day here, but this afternoon we went into Cap Haitien to go visit a neighboring orphanage, just like the girls said up above. We met the Pastor, Yves Blot. He is amazing and full of God in there. He said he has a big church and an orphanage connected to it. He said it was a blessing that we were here and he was praising God for it. It was amazing to see the Holy Spirit go through him. It's amazing to see what God is doing in the spirit of people down here, for what little they have. He is definitley working down here. Thats pretty much all I've got to say. Thanks for reading!
Zach
The Pastor of the other orphanage asked for prayer. 37 kids all in one room, one toilet, one shower.
Kirk
Monday, June 6, 2011
Rain Again -- No Rat
Kirk here just giving an update on the health of the VPs. Elijah and Noah's fevers seem to be pretty low grade at this point. They are pretty worn out and Noah took a 3 hr nap today. Probably aren't out of the woods quite yet, but definitely much better--thanks for the prayers. Mom and Dad are a bit worn out from last evening but are doing pretty well.
COTP continues to impress us--well, me at least. The local staff and long term staff are wonderful!! Tomorrow we are excited to visit another orphanage--it will likely be an eye-opening experience as COTP is such a neat, nice, organization.
Wednesday we hope to hike up to the citadel (large fortress on the top of a mountain--Google it if you want to know the history). Hopefully the weather will cooperate so the roads are good and we can have good visability and not get completely soaked on our hike--we will anyway from sweat I guess, so maybe it's no big deal if it rains.
That's all for me today, Kirk...
Hi everyone, this is Sue DG. We have been busy with many projects here and just the everyday care of 45 + kids! I think I had a little heat exhaustion....didn't feel well for the last couple of days, but I am getting back to normal tonight. I figure God wanted me to spend some time praying vs caring and doing physical labor! It has been raining every day here, again this afternoon, which makes it very humid. Well, we will be heading over to the baby house here shortly for the nannies Praise and Prayer time, so I will sign off. Hi to my family and friends! Love and miss you all!
Sue
COTP continues to impress us--well, me at least. The local staff and long term staff are wonderful!! Tomorrow we are excited to visit another orphanage--it will likely be an eye-opening experience as COTP is such a neat, nice, organization.
Wednesday we hope to hike up to the citadel (large fortress on the top of a mountain--Google it if you want to know the history). Hopefully the weather will cooperate so the roads are good and we can have good visability and not get completely soaked on our hike--we will anyway from sweat I guess, so maybe it's no big deal if it rains.
That's all for me today, Kirk...
Hi everyone, this is Sue DG. We have been busy with many projects here and just the everyday care of 45 + kids! I think I had a little heat exhaustion....didn't feel well for the last couple of days, but I am getting back to normal tonight. I figure God wanted me to spend some time praying vs caring and doing physical labor! It has been raining every day here, again this afternoon, which makes it very humid. Well, we will be heading over to the baby house here shortly for the nannies Praise and Prayer time, so I will sign off. Hi to my family and friends! Love and miss you all!
Sue
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Sunday Evening Post
Today was much more low key than our previous days.
A small group went to a 3 hour traditional Haitien church service in a nearby village where the women and men sit separately from each other.
Another group took some babies and went next door to the church service at the Manna compound in the morning as well.
Then this afternoon some of the group went to a church service in English near Cap Haitien where a lot of the missionaries gather. They had hoped that it would be indoors, but the building ended up being locked, so they ended up with an outdoor service. On the way back they stopped by a very modern air-conditioned convenience store (guarded by a guy with a shotgun) and got some M&Ms and Oreos!!!
The Vander Pol (my) family has all been a bit sick today. The boys both have fevers, but so far nothing we haven't experienced back home. I am hopefully out of the woods as of tonight, and Christina hopefully will be soon. Both boys went to sleep with a fever, but seem to be sleeping okay--thankfully it's a cool night tonight in the low 70s.
David is feeling better (he says "Hi Mom"). Jacob is feeling better. And the couple others who had some issues seem to be doing better as well.
We helped out some in the baby house as well today, but not to the extent we had on the previous days. It was a good day to rest/change pace (some were gone for 7 hours as they went to two services today) after being here for 4 days working.
That's the basics for the day.
Oh, a couple more things to note. The yard guys Samson (& his wife) and Wilson cooked--starting last night--and served us today! Turkey, beef, fried plantain, green peppers, onions, & tomato.
Also, the guys spotted a rat today in the playroom--attached to the volunteer house where we are staying--and have set a trap for it. It's been a couple hours, and no rat yet.
Signing off...Kirk
A small group went to a 3 hour traditional Haitien church service in a nearby village where the women and men sit separately from each other.
Another group took some babies and went next door to the church service at the Manna compound in the morning as well.
Then this afternoon some of the group went to a church service in English near Cap Haitien where a lot of the missionaries gather. They had hoped that it would be indoors, but the building ended up being locked, so they ended up with an outdoor service. On the way back they stopped by a very modern air-conditioned convenience store (guarded by a guy with a shotgun) and got some M&Ms and Oreos!!!
The Vander Pol (my) family has all been a bit sick today. The boys both have fevers, but so far nothing we haven't experienced back home. I am hopefully out of the woods as of tonight, and Christina hopefully will be soon. Both boys went to sleep with a fever, but seem to be sleeping okay--thankfully it's a cool night tonight in the low 70s.
David is feeling better (he says "Hi Mom"). Jacob is feeling better. And the couple others who had some issues seem to be doing better as well.
We helped out some in the baby house as well today, but not to the extent we had on the previous days. It was a good day to rest/change pace (some were gone for 7 hours as they went to two services today) after being here for 4 days working.
That's the basics for the day.
Oh, a couple more things to note. The yard guys Samson (& his wife) and Wilson cooked--starting last night--and served us today! Turkey, beef, fried plantain, green peppers, onions, & tomato.
Also, the guys spotted a rat today in the playroom--attached to the volunteer house where we are staying--and have set a trap for it. It's been a couple hours, and no rat yet.
Signing off...Kirk
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Bonswa from Haiti!
Bonswa! from Jill
It's raining agian today. Gotta say the clouds and rain are a relief. We haven't even used sunscreen.
Today we finger painted with the older kids and the babies played in a pool with little balls. They very much enjoyed it!!! So did we. I got to be the project photographer with the COTP camera, so you may see some of us in news letters some day.
I have been so blessed already! The weather, as I said, has been wonderful. Just a bit sticky. The food is delicious. Like Jess said, we aren't going to lose weight that's for sure. My favorite part is singing in the evening. After the babies are fed and bathed (for the 4th time!!) we go back to the baby house and listen (because we can't understand!) to the nannied sing. It's so fun to watch the kids enjoy it and run and dance.
Jake was sick a bit yesterday and today it was David's turn. So far it lasts for just a day. By the way Tammy, it was Zach who yelled RAT. Some us are getting a little upset stomachs. So far for me I'm fine. We are all making sure we are drinking lots of water and propel.
Turns out one of the long term staff lived with my best friend from high school! REALLY a small world :)
Kari, I know you won't read this, but you're gonna love it here!! It's so amazing. Steve and Britt, love you too!
Have a blessed day to you all. Thanks for all your prayers and keep commenting! It's fun to read :-)
Jill
It's raining agian today. Gotta say the clouds and rain are a relief. We haven't even used sunscreen.
Today we finger painted with the older kids and the babies played in a pool with little balls. They very much enjoyed it!!! So did we. I got to be the project photographer with the COTP camera, so you may see some of us in news letters some day.
I have been so blessed already! The weather, as I said, has been wonderful. Just a bit sticky. The food is delicious. Like Jess said, we aren't going to lose weight that's for sure. My favorite part is singing in the evening. After the babies are fed and bathed (for the 4th time!!) we go back to the baby house and listen (because we can't understand!) to the nannied sing. It's so fun to watch the kids enjoy it and run and dance.
Jake was sick a bit yesterday and today it was David's turn. So far it lasts for just a day. By the way Tammy, it was Zach who yelled RAT. Some us are getting a little upset stomachs. So far for me I'm fine. We are all making sure we are drinking lots of water and propel.
Turns out one of the long term staff lived with my best friend from high school! REALLY a small world :)
Kari, I know you won't read this, but you're gonna love it here!! It's so amazing. Steve and Britt, love you too!
Have a blessed day to you all. Thanks for all your prayers and keep commenting! It's fun to read :-)
Jill
Friday, June 3, 2011
HAPPY 40th BIRTHDAY TO KRIS!!!!!!
Today is day 3 of the amazing mission trip in Haiti. Today Zach, Jay, David and a worker from here went to Cap Haitien to buy brake pads for the trucks. The trip was iuteresting/weird in some way. When we went to the city the people had some kind of joy and im guessing that was God's doing but for what little they have it's amazing to see that joy here. You see these mud huts and all these brick foundations and very bad conditions, even a very dirty river that people were swimming in there. It was interesting to see that what they had in the city. They had cell phones, tv's, and radios. For what little they have, they have some of the same stuff we do. The traffic was also very interesting, because it's a small road with cars and motorcyles going both ways and bikes and running people and huge mac trucks. You would see these nice looking, brand new vehicles every once and awhile and the United Nations trucks, and even a tour bus! The traffic would probably be worse then New York City or Los Angeles. It is horrific. Our driver makes all Americans with manual transmission vehicles look bad! He shows up every American driver, cause it takes some serious skill just to drive in this country. During our ride to the city, he bought us mangos and Tampico (a juice), which were very good. The little kids are interesting to see when they see white people. The joy comes over their face because, if im correct, they think Americans are sort of the heroes here in this country. So I thought it was interesting and whenever they looked at the truck and they saw white people, they would just stop and stare which I didn't mind, but I thought it was just interesting. Once we got back it was so cool to see all the kids in the baby house when you walked in, they would just surround you and "compete" just to get held by us. It makes you feel wanted! The kids are very loving and they love attention and they are half the reason we are here is to help out with them. The nannies also enjoy us here and their praise and worship time is amazing to hear and see. They make the kids happy and are very filled with the Lord. Also before praise and worship, way before, we helped scrub out the baby house which took a lot of work but the communication between us was funny and even one of the guys pulled a little prank and shut off the water and jumped out and scared me when I went to turn it on. They find joy in little things which make it even more fun to be here. The love and joy here makes it very fun and worth our time!
-Zach
--Hello to the Hillers, I'm having a blast here.. from Dana :)
--Hi to all my family and friends at home!! I am having a blast and don't want to leave, even though I do miss you! ~Love, Jessica
On the girls side of the day...Our highlight was the walk with the older kids. We walked to the next village with children piled in wagons and on our hips! Noah and Elijah were a "hit" by the Haitian children! They followed us and kept touching the boys' hair. As we were walking, the cows were on their way back to their homes with the owners following. A few of us girls were a little nervous when they would walk by, because they were on a leash...but the leash was on the ground. Christina was pulling a wagon when a calf came from behind and bumped her in the rear! It was a bit of a shock to her, but we were thankful it was just the calf that ran into her!! Towards the end of our warm walk, it started to sprinkle and eventually rained pretty hard (which felt good!) The kids were hungry and ready to eat when we got back!!
It was a fun day and there are more to come!
-Jessica
P.S. Kris turned 40 today!! We had a spaghetti supper and cake to follow made by Jamie Groen and Carla ( a long term volunteer!)
...No Rats! (Well, Christina saw one...but did not say anything at the time! Thank goodness!) Except, the boys pulled a prank and screamed RAT and Sue jumped and screamed pretty loudly!
-Zach
--Hello to the Hillers, I'm having a blast here.. from Dana :)
--Hi to all my family and friends at home!! I am having a blast and don't want to leave, even though I do miss you! ~Love, Jessica
On the girls side of the day...Our highlight was the walk with the older kids. We walked to the next village with children piled in wagons and on our hips! Noah and Elijah were a "hit" by the Haitian children! They followed us and kept touching the boys' hair. As we were walking, the cows were on their way back to their homes with the owners following. A few of us girls were a little nervous when they would walk by, because they were on a leash...but the leash was on the ground. Christina was pulling a wagon when a calf came from behind and bumped her in the rear! It was a bit of a shock to her, but we were thankful it was just the calf that ran into her!! Towards the end of our warm walk, it started to sprinkle and eventually rained pretty hard (which felt good!) The kids were hungry and ready to eat when we got back!!
It was a fun day and there are more to come!
-Jessica
P.S. Kris turned 40 today!! We had a spaghetti supper and cake to follow made by Jamie Groen and Carla ( a long term volunteer!)
...No Rats! (Well, Christina saw one...but did not say anything at the time! Thank goodness!) Except, the boys pulled a prank and screamed RAT and Sue jumped and screamed pretty loudly!
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Bon Weat!
That means good evening in Creole. We are learning quite a few words and phrases - it helps in relating to the nannies better and even the kids! Today we are feeling more caught up on sleep because yesterday we were up at 3:00 am and after arriving at COTP we put in a full day of work on too little sleep...we were exhausted! The weather has been cloudy and rainy, but it's a blessing because it's much cooler than we were expecting. Probably feel like 80 degrees or so. We are all feeling well and the cook here does an amazing job. We have American food one day and Haitian the next and our meals are served at 9:30 am and 2:00 pm. The guys are putting in a sidewalk from the entrance of COTP to the prenatal care area and even getting it done despite the rain. Please continue to pray for us as we know you have been. Thanks for supporting us so graciously as well! Take care and we'll post again soon! Kris TeBrake
A quick note to Wendy Ulferts: Thanks from Christina for the help - problem solved.
To Logan and Austin (and rest of family) - Mom, Dad and Evan are doing good! I hope your vacation is fun and baseball is going good, too - I can't wait to get back and see you play! We love you!
Hi MOSES and GRIFFIN!!! Mommy misses you soooo much! I've been holding lots of babies and kids so I think about you all the time. There's one boy who looks and acts so much like you Griffin, it makes me smile. :) I've also seen all kinds of little lizards! They crawl all over the playground and on our screen windows but hop away too fast for me to catch. ;-) I hope you boys are having fun with daddy! Sleep well and give daddy lots of hugs and kisses from me! You have the most amazing daddy in the whole world so make sure you tell him I miss him too. I love you all very much and am thankful for all of my family and friends back home--love you dad. ;) See you all soon! Night night Moses and Griffin. Love, mommy Kara
A quick note to Wendy Ulferts: Thanks from Christina for the help - problem solved.
To Logan and Austin (and rest of family) - Mom, Dad and Evan are doing good! I hope your vacation is fun and baseball is going good, too - I can't wait to get back and see you play! We love you!
Hi MOSES and GRIFFIN!!! Mommy misses you soooo much! I've been holding lots of babies and kids so I think about you all the time. There's one boy who looks and acts so much like you Griffin, it makes me smile. :) I've also seen all kinds of little lizards! They crawl all over the playground and on our screen windows but hop away too fast for me to catch. ;-) I hope you boys are having fun with daddy! Sleep well and give daddy lots of hugs and kisses from me! You have the most amazing daddy in the whole world so make sure you tell him I miss him too. I love you all very much and am thankful for all of my family and friends back home--love you dad. ;) See you all soon! Night night Moses and Griffin. Love, mommy Kara
June 2, 2011 -Day 2
We are having a blast in Haiti! The weather is rainy, but cool! The guys finished painting a room and the girls are busy working on sorting baby clothes, formula, diapers, and toilet paper while the kids are sleeping. Dana and Jessica helped with preschool and the kids are so adorable! A lot of us women helped feed the babies lunch and they are full of joy! (They eat A LOT!) The people are super nice and fun to talk to, even though some of them don't speak English we can understand their hand gestures. (Zach uses a lot of them!)
The nannies told us how thankful they were to have us come and help -especially during feeding time!
The food is awesome here...a few of us were nervous we would lose weight, but I'm afraid we will gain it! Every other day is American food and Haitian food. Yesterday we had bbq chicken and it was delicious.
Thanks for all your prayers and support!!
-We killed one wall spider today, but still No Rats -or alive ones anyways!!
~Jessica, Dana, and Zach
The nannies told us how thankful they were to have us come and help -especially during feeding time!
The food is awesome here...a few of us were nervous we would lose weight, but I'm afraid we will gain it! Every other day is American food and Haitian food. Yesterday we had bbq chicken and it was delicious.
Thanks for all your prayers and support!!
-We killed one wall spider today, but still No Rats -or alive ones anyways!!
~Jessica, Dana, and Zach
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
And there was evening, the first day...
10:10 pm and I am the only one not in bed. (Don't worry I took a power nap today.)
Sidewalk prep has been started and some concrete forms are up, but it is currently raining, so we'll see what that looks like tomorrow.
Jacob, David, Neil, and Jay had an interesting and eye-opening trip to the market today. All went well, but it's worlds apart from what we are used to back home.
Evan & Zach worked with kids, cleaned the playground equipment, and helped with the sidewalk project.
Everyone helped with unpacking and sorting the luggage we brought--so nice that everything showed up--there were some leaking soaps and lotions as well as a few broken baby food containers, but nothing serious at all.
The TeBrakes had the unfortunate occurance today of getting the fans they had packed out and discovering to their dismay --and our slight laughter-- that they only plugged into a cigarette lighter in a car.
Kara and Sue volunteered to do dishes the first day and washed an aweful lot of dishes in the volunteer house. All the ladies worked hard and organizing the playroom equipment, washing playroom equipment, feeding babies, playing with babies, and just getting things done.
We've enjoyed meeting the long term staff as well as the nannies. It's pretty quiet here except for either the frogs or crickets chirping, the generator running, and the soft rain falling. Goodnight all, Day 1 in Haiti!
Sidewalk prep has been started and some concrete forms are up, but it is currently raining, so we'll see what that looks like tomorrow.
Jacob, David, Neil, and Jay had an interesting and eye-opening trip to the market today. All went well, but it's worlds apart from what we are used to back home.
Evan & Zach worked with kids, cleaned the playground equipment, and helped with the sidewalk project.
Everyone helped with unpacking and sorting the luggage we brought--so nice that everything showed up--there were some leaking soaps and lotions as well as a few broken baby food containers, but nothing serious at all.
The TeBrakes had the unfortunate occurance today of getting the fans they had packed out and discovering to their dismay --and our slight laughter-- that they only plugged into a cigarette lighter in a car.
Kara and Sue volunteered to do dishes the first day and washed an aweful lot of dishes in the volunteer house. All the ladies worked hard and organizing the playroom equipment, washing playroom equipment, feeding babies, playing with babies, and just getting things done.
We've enjoyed meeting the long term staff as well as the nannies. It's pretty quiet here except for either the frogs or crickets chirping, the generator running, and the soft rain falling. Goodnight all, Day 1 in Haiti!
Safe Arrival at COTP
We arrived at COTP by 9am. Our flight left on time at 6:30am and was a wonderfully smooth flight--it was actually much smoother than our flight on the 757 yesterday from MSP to FLL. We landed in CAP and deplaned. When we walked into the airport Jamie was there waiting for us. It took us about 10-15 minutes to get through customs, we walked to the truck and road to COTP.
Our luggage did not come on our flight--it came on a cargo plane that was supposed to follow ours by a half hour to an hour. Nick, Jay T, Neil B, David V, and Jacob Z left to go back to the airport a couple hours ago to get our bags and head to the market for other supplies. They have yet to return, so hopefully all 33 bags arrived.
Zach Z. and Evan T spent some time with some babies, but since have been washing and repairing some playground equipment. The six ladies have been caring for babies, organizing toys, and now washing toys, folding diapers, etc.--all this and we've only been here 5 hours.
Our group is a bit tired after two early mornings in a row--today has already been a long day and its just mid afternoon.
Noah and Elijah are adjusting--Noah has been collecting eggs from the chickens, trying to catch a lizard, and Elijah has already been witness to a large "wall spider".
That's it for now, as I have been typing the truck returned and all 33 bags were retrieved from the airport! Now for another task of unpacking those supplies and getting them in the right places!
Oh, and by the way, it's overcast and humid, but definitely not unbearable at all.
Our luggage did not come on our flight--it came on a cargo plane that was supposed to follow ours by a half hour to an hour. Nick, Jay T, Neil B, David V, and Jacob Z left to go back to the airport a couple hours ago to get our bags and head to the market for other supplies. They have yet to return, so hopefully all 33 bags arrived.
Zach Z. and Evan T spent some time with some babies, but since have been washing and repairing some playground equipment. The six ladies have been caring for babies, organizing toys, and now washing toys, folding diapers, etc.--all this and we've only been here 5 hours.
Our group is a bit tired after two early mornings in a row--today has already been a long day and its just mid afternoon.
Noah and Elijah are adjusting--Noah has been collecting eggs from the chickens, trying to catch a lizard, and Elijah has already been witness to a large "wall spider".
That's it for now, as I have been typing the truck returned and all 33 bags were retrieved from the airport! Now for another task of unpacking those supplies and getting them in the right places!
Oh, and by the way, it's overcast and humid, but definitely not unbearable at all.
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