Team Journal 3 by Johnny S.
Monday January 6, 2014
Our third day in Haiti! We began with a hurried breakfast and a detoured drive, thanks to road construction, to the M.A.F. office in the domestic terminal.
At the airport we divided our team between two planes and began our flight to Pignon. We reached the United Christian International Mission in the late morning and were warmly received by Kristie and her husband Jean Jean.
After a traditional Haitian lunch of rice and beans we drove to the bustling village marketplace. Following our guide and translator, we required a good sense of Haitian country life.
When we arrived back at the mission we began our first project. We pieced together several sets of tables, chairs, and beds, which when completed furnished two small dorms.
We finished our job in time to play a rapid volleyball game with the mission's students just before night fell. Following our large dinner, we played a noisy game of Perpetual Commotion with Kristie and Jean Jean's two daughters and two fun, wild nephews.
After a wonderful day enjoying God's beautiful creation and witnessing His prospering work in Haiti we gained renewed anticipation for the days to come.
O LORD, how great are thy works! And thy thoughts are very deep. Psalm 92:5.
The Day in Pictures.
Early morning drive to the airport.
Men hard at work.
Stacked houses and fresh laundry.
On the tarmac heading to the MAF aircraft.
Future pilots.
Getting ready for takeoff.
Port au Prince from above.
Bare mountains.
Pignon.
HH-VAN on the ground.
Welcome friends.
Pignon's grass landing strip.
Make new friends.
Guest house.
Guest rooms.
Rice and beans for lunch.
Off to the market.
Crossing a river.
Lots to see.
Some not so yummy looking meat.
Chickens getting a free ride.
Visiting the water project.
The girls, minus Giselle.
Drinking fresh coconut milk.
Fetching water.
A small gecko friend.
Heading to work at UCI`s village.
Let me show you how this is done.
Many hands make light work.
And the sun goes down on the coconut trees.
January 5
Team 1, Journal 2
By Andy G.
Today was our first full day in Haiti. While not all of us are morning people I think we were all quite excited to get up and discover and learn more about this interesting country we found ourselves in.
We had pancakes and eggs for breakfast and then we got ready for church.
Some of us hopped on the back of the pickup truck and held on tight and dodged Jason's windshield sprays while the rest of us stayed nice and dry in the cab.
The Quisqueya Church we visited is one of two English speaking churches in the area and we arrived while the worship team was still practicing. Soon everyone started shuffling in and the singing began. It was refreshing to see such a diverse group of faces singing praises to God together.
After the singing, the Pastor spoke about starting out the new year with hope and then shared verses that gave the great commission it's context. We then had the opportunity to partake in the Lord's supper. After a couple more worship songs everyone shuffled out of the sanctuary. It was nice to see Jason and his son conversing with some of their local friends outside.
After church we hopped back in the truck and headed down the short but windy and bumpy path back to the Krul's home. We made some sandwiches, salad, and soup for lunch.
After lunch I quickly helped cleanup because I knew what was happening next; I was quite excited to go on a stroll through the neighborhood with Jason and his son as our guides! It was amazing to see up close the quantity of garbage that made up the back yards of so many thousands here. It was also stunning how close some of the nicest houses around here were to the most rickety wood and tin shacks.
We handed out candies to the kids, and said a friendly "bonjou" to anyone who smiled at us. We saw goats, chickens, and emaciated, limping stray dogs all over the place. We saw a man with a tub completely covered in un-boxed pills, apparently acting as the neighborhood's pharmacist, and a man with a large knife and an big old fly covered hunk of meat on top of a rickety table - the local butcher.
As we headed up one hill we started to feel the beginning of Port Au Prince's first rainfall in more than two months. It was so dry and hot that it felt like we were barely getting wet in spite of how much rain we saw coming down. As we turned onto the main road leading back to the house the rain began to subside, the sun peeked through, and over the beautiful mountains shone a gorgeous, perfect, full rainbow.
Walking up and down the hills was energizing but we were also relieved to be back at the house again. For dinner we ate lasagna and garlic bread. After dinner we listened to today's morning sermon from our home church via hrcnj.org. Then after a few fun rounds of Bible trivia we debriefed together.
Tomorrow we fly to Pignon to get started on the work at the mission. It is located in a rural village in Haiti's central plateau.
I'm going to get to bed now because we have to get up early to be ready for our flight! I'm so encouraged about this trip and excited to see what an impact it has already made on each of us so far! I pray that as we begin to install concrete floors, build latrines, set up irrigation systems for farms, and help with feeding programs that we can make an impact on the hearts of some of the beautiful people of Haiti as well!
The day in pictures.
Piling into the pickup.
The drive to church.
All kinds of interesting things to see along the way.
We made it.
The church yard.
Getting lunch ready.
Get in line.
A first time for everything :)
Playing with the boys.
Sunday stroll through the neighborhood.
A free ride!
The whole crew minus Joe, who took the picture.
Goats on a Sunday stroll too.
Taking a break.
The scenery along the way.
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| F |
Beauty,
and ashes.
The rainbow; God's creative handiwork.
Team 1, Journal 1, by Joe VW
January 4, 2014
It's 3:30 a.m. but I'm already awake. The alarm is set for 4:30 but sleep has vanished; today is the day we fly to Haiti!
At 4:30 I'm out of bed, dressed, and eating my cereal. At 5:00 I open my garage door and drive my pick up out into the bitter cold. The truck's thermometer bounces between -2 and +3 degrees Fahrenheit. Brr..
Thirty minutes later I'm the first to arrive at the church. There I get to work lining up the suitcases of donated items so they can be easily loaded into the two vehicles that will be taking us to the Kennedy airport. Thanks Paul Greendyk and Glenn Tanis!
Shortly afterwards other team members begin arriving and soon everyone is ready to go. By six o'clock we are on the road. When we arrive at the airport there are no real problems getting tickets, going through security, and boarding the airplane. We are, however, delayed for an hour or so before takeoff.
The flight goes smoothly and 3.5 hours later we land in Port au Prince, Haiti. Once we deplane we are met by a smiling Jason Krul. It is very interesting to watch him use his savvy connections to get us through customs, luggage, and into two vehicles in no time at all.
Outside, we step into 80˚ degrees temperatures. 0˚ to 80˚ in 4 hours!! Yes!!!
The most interesting part of the day is definitely the ride from the airport to the Krul's home. 10 of us are packed into two vehicles with Andy balancing in the back of the pickup on top of the luggage as we bounce and jostle over narrow, bumpy, crowded, smelly streets! Definitely the worst roads I've ever seen in my life!
Reaching the Krul's home we are welcomed by a smiley Wilhelmina, Jayden, and Justin. A great end to a great day!
Pictures of the Day.
Port au Prince in sight.
Haiti's bustling capital.
Joe playing basketball with Jayden.
Many hands make light work.
Buffet style dinner.
Smiley girls.
All tuckered out.
To avoid confusion I thought I'd give a quick update/explanation about the two teams we have here in Haiti from January 4 - January 22.
Our first team of ten people arrived from New Jersey/Ontario on January 4. After spending the weekend with us, Jason and another MAF pilot flew them and us (the two boys and I) to the village Monday morning where I spent the day helping get their schedule organized and getting them settled in before flying back to Port au Prince.
Our second team of fifteen, from Chilliwack, hopes to arrive Thursday and leaves the following day for the village as well.
Team 1 returns to our house this coming Monday and then flies back to New Jersey/Ontario on Tuesday.
Team 2 arrives back at our house next week Saturday and flies back to Chilliwack Wednesday morning.
The team journals I hope to post are from Team 1 as Team 2 has not yet arrived and I haven't checked with them if they are interested in posting journal entries as well.
