Thankful for this Week

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

I hope you had a special day, as we did here in Haiti. We joined together with several other missionary families, Haitian leaders and our medical staff to give thanks to the Lord together and enjoy a special meal. I appreciated our time together so much that I didn’t stop to think about taking a picture to share with you. (My apologies!)

Another Mountain Outreach

I do have pictures from earlier in the day that I’ll share with you. Lex, our medical staff and a few local volunteers loaded up the bus and headed up into the mountains of Chérident once again, to continue reaching out to the people of that area. The need is so great, that it can be very difficult to handle on an emotional level. When the team arrived back for Thanksgiving dinner, they looked pretty exhausted. However, there is such a contentment when you know that the Lord has utilized you – your hands, feet, voice, knowledge… Fatigue is pretty minor by comparison. Once again hundreds of people were seen by our medical staff. Others handed out food from Kids Against Hunger Global (Tulsa, OK), clothing and footwear.

Chérident Outreach

Clinic

Our clinic in Thozin continues to provide needed care to people suffering from chronic conditions (hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, sickle cell disease, etc.), as well as a plethora of other ailments, both common and uncommon. Regular checkups, especially for young children, and the elderly saves lives. Because of supporters like you, a great partnership with Bless Back Worldwide (Charlotte, NC), and various other medical professionals who volunteer their time, we are able to continue providing this support to our students and communities. Thank you so much for all your support!!!

Thozin Clinic

School

We have some pretty awesome students in our schools! It just thrills me to see how the preschool and elementary students have learned to interact well with adults and visitors. They used to be so shy around us, but now they smile, say “Good morning,” and even shake hands and give hugs. Sometimes they are even a little too comfortable, but I prefer that over closing up.

As you can tell from the pictures below, the kids are thoroughly enjoying taking care of their teeth during school.

The things we do for healthy teeth!

School Fun

Christmas Tree Fun

Amy’s project with our preschool classes this week? Christmas trees!!!

Christmas Trees in the Preschool Classes

Church and Politics

We are in a politically fragile time in Haiti, as election results are being announced and challenged. We also have the final round of presidential elections coming up next month. This morning Lex was able to share a little bit with our church about what the Bible has to say concerning our relationship with our government (Romans 13).

Pastor Lex

Living in Haiti, I have learned it’s best not to be overly outspoken about my political opinions. I do think about how Jesus focused on His heavenly kingdom much more so than the political kingdoms (nations). He also told us to pray that we may live in peace, and so I endeavor to do that.

On another note, I just love it when the children are dismissed from the adult service to go to children’s church. That’s when Lex tells us to get up out of our seats and go look for someone we’re happy to see. Lots of hugs and kisses ensue.

Children’s Church

I’m always thrilled when Pastor Lex says “Stand up, find someone and tell them your happy to see them this morning.”

Flooding

Friday morning, I woke up to the sound of distant thunder around 4 o’clock. The thunder continued all morning, eventually bringing rain. (It’s very unusual for us to experience morning rain in Grand-Goâve.) The rain makes quite a racket on our metal roof, but all of a sudden it was making MORE noise. It sounded like little rocks hitting it. I ran outside to see if it could be true. Sure enough there was hail bouncing of the roof of the kitchen. Then a piece hit me in the face. It was about the size of a pencil eraser. Everyone I asked about it had never seen hail before. It also brought us two days of cool temperatures, which I really appreciated!

Unfortunately, the storm that brought hail to the missionary compound, brought flooding to our Thozin campus.

Flooding in Thozin

Congratulations to Madona Bazile!

Today was a very special day for Madona. She graduated from nursing school today. Madona has been a part of Mission of Hope International since the very beginning and was a part of our first graduating class. This is a wonderful accomplishment that she worked very hard for. We are so proud of her and wish her well in her career as a nurse!