How i became involved in HAITI!
It started by accident in March of 2010. I was in the winter semester of school at GRCC. The previous summer I had worked in Texas for four months, which for me was quite an adventure. So I sat in a classroom one afternoon at GRCC wondering what the summer of 2010 would bring me. I wanted to do something fun, something exciting, and something I would never forget. I began looking at some mission trips, volunteer opportunities, and study abroad programs later that night. Nothing really appealed to me the first night. The next day, however, I kept searching for something that looked like it might be fun. I stumbled across adventures.org which is Adventures in Missions (AIM) website. At the time they were offering a 1 month mission trip to Haiti during the month of June, 2010. I started to read about the trip but was disappointed when I read the trip was only for people between the ages of 21-35, I was 19. I waited a few more days wondering what to do and I figured a call to AIM wouldn’t hurt. I called them and they accepted me to come with them for the month of June to Haiti. I was so ecstatic I couldn’t believe it. I had many things to accomplish before leaving including finishing the semester, getting shots, and raising support. Some particular individuals really stepped up quickly and helped me raise the support that I needed, I was stabbed multiple times by the Health Department, and school was finished. I was headed to Haiti….
The month I spent in Haiti was one that I will never forget. My team and I became so close during the time that we spent together and God worked in some amazing ways. We spent 2 weeks in Fonds Parisien, Haiti at Haitien Christian Mission organizing the pharmacy, doing crafts, playing soccer, and painting. We spent another week at a deaf orphanage in the mountains of Mirebalais, Haiti. Another team and ourselves organized a VBS for the kids, played lots of basketball, and explored the countryside. We spent one last week in Jacmel, Haiti including a quick trip to the beach for some team bonding. God opened many doors for me in Haiti and I quickly had access to a nice sized network of friends and family in Haiti. During my time at HCM, I had the chance to meet Cay Merritt, who I will talk about later, and her friend Lisa. I worked alongside these two Aussie ladies for two weeks and got to know them well. I also really connected with the staff at HCM who treated me like a brother.
I returned home on June 30 and was so sad. I missed Haiti, missed my team, and missed my daily rice and beans. Little did I know that I would be back many more times. I got to share my experiences with my church, Crystal Springs Alliance Church, which was quite an experience because I had not talked in front of people to that extent. This was a cool opportunity to share my experiences in Haiti. God at this point was also working in the heart of my friend, Zac. He had seen my presentation, my photos, and my love for the country. I wanted to go back so badly, but I didn’t want to go just by myself. One Sunday in July, I asked Zac if he was interested in going back with me before the end of the summer. Zac replied, “Sure, sounds cool.” Done deal!
Zac and I traveled back to Haiti for 10 days at the end of August, 2010. We spent 9 days in Fonds Parisien at HCM and another day in Mirebalais with the deaf orphans. It was so great to be back and such an experience for Zac, who had barely set foot outside Grand Rapids.
I returned home at the end of August and started a new semester, this time at GVSU. Haiti always seemed to stay in my head; the faces of the children, the streets, and the landscapes. Around November I made plans to go back to HCM to join another group from Oregon and celebrate Christmas in Haiti with them. The next couple of events in December really changed my life and God showed me what He wants me to do in Haiti. I was supposed to leave right after exams week, around December 14. At this time however, mayhem was in Port-au-Prince and riots closed the airport for about a week. My flight was canceled and the Oregon team canceled their trip altogether. I was faced with a decision: don’t go at all, or go alone.
I don’t remember how it happened but Cay Merritt, the Aussie I had met in June 2010 at HCM, had recently told me about the Good Samaritan’s Children’s Home in Cap Haitien, Haiti that she was directing. She asked me if I had an interest to go there instead of HCM. Taking a big leap of faith because I was stepping into unfamiliar grounds, I told her I would go. She scrambled to find and order Christmas presents for the kids that I could bring along for them. Many things were done in a very short amount of time, but everything worked out so well. I met my translator and now one of my very good friends, Frantz, at the airport in Port-au-Prince. We then took a domestic (SCARY!) plane ride to Cap Haitien in North Haiti. From there it was another two hours to the orphanage, but all the travel time was worth it. These 24 beautiful children in Trou-du-Noord Haiti will always be in my heart from the moment I took my first step in the door. I spent five day at the orphanage and two days in Santiago, Dominican Republic with a Haitian pastor who welcomed us into his family. Those were truly times I will never forget.
Haiti had now captured my heart and God had made it so clear to me where I should be focusing my efforts. In July of 2011 the first “team” came to Trou-du-Noord. Cay Merritt and her husband Max, John Dickson (Aussie), myself, and Frantz came to the orphanage for one week where we built the kids bunk beds, taught the older boys how to use power tools, and watched a daily movie in the evening. It was amazing to me how many of the locals knew my name and recognized me from the first trip to the orphanage; it was unfortunate I didn’t always remember theirs!
Skipping ahead six more months to present day, one week ago I came home to my most recent trip to the GSCH. The kids had “unspeakable joy.” I can still see all their faces, every single one smiling and laughing; so happy to receive so much for Christmas. It is incredible to think that just 18 months ago, malnutrition affected many of these kids. They were drinking bad water, eating stale, moldy bread, and sleeping on the floor. Cay and Max Merritt have done so much to help these kids and I can’t begin to imagine how these kids might have turned out otherwise. I am extremely thrilled that God has done HIS work in this orphanage and I have become part of it.
God truly does work in amazing ways. From turning “a something to do” in the summer of 2010 to a passion that is deep within me to give these 24 children hope and a promising future.
see more pics of my Haiti adventures:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150696421461982.495761.734546981&type=3
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150697318376982.495908.734546981&type=1
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150373746431982.434458.734546981&type=1
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.491745716981.272468.734546981&type=1
