SJLC
has
SKIN-SO-SOFT!
We Love Haiti and VOH!
Virginia, Minnesota and Texas represent!
Saturday, February 22, 2014
Friday, February 21, 2014
Still So Much to Do!
Today is Friday and as we reflect on the week, we accomplished many things to include projects, experiencing rural Haiti, spending time with the students at Village of Hope, and with the orphans at Little Children of Jesus. We all acknowledged that there is still so much to do! So much to do in support of the Lazarus Project here in Haiti including the Health clinic and the Village of Hope School and on a larger scale, addressing governmental, business, and agricultural reforms designed to benefit all Haitians. We encourage everyone to join us in a prayer for these needs.
Photos: Jana with an orphan at LCJ, Paul doing his thing with the balloons at LCJ, Susan playing with a little girl at LCJ, a street market on the way to the Baptist Mission, the view on the drive home from the Baptist Mission
Today, a few of us did some manual labor at Hope House. Jim and Sarah shoveled rock in to the wheelbarrow (and no we're not practicing to do hard time!), Paul moved the wheelbarrow and dumped in designated locations for Greer and Jana to rake. This was all accomplished before 8:00 this morning!
Then we went to Little Children of Jesus which is always a moving, emotional experience. These orphans have mental and physical disability. As we've learned they may have broken bodies and/or minds, but their spirits are alive. Our experience included holding, touching, and trying to communicate each of the orphans to let them know we care. There are 90+ orphans at LCJ ranging in age from 5 years to 40 years old. The facility is a previous UN compound which was a vast improvement over the facility that we first saw six years ago. It has been a blessing for these orphans. Paul and Devin (Marshall's daughter), blew up balloons which was a big hit for all of the kids, those who could walk and those confined to wheelchairs or cribs. It's a difficult visit but a joyful one as well.
Following our visit to LCJ, we headed up to the Baptist Mission which involved climbing up over 4,000 feet to the mountains beyond Port-au-Prince through Petionville. Again, the ride takes us through many different neighborhoods where Haitians work and live which is always an eye-opening experience. The Baptist Mission itself is an interesting destination, but it's more about the ride. At the Mission we ate lunch, shopped, toured the "zoo," and walked through the museum.
Returning to Hope House, we had some fellowship time. An added bonus was to visit with the family of Lucien, our driver. This is a family that Greer has known for 8 years and it has been fun to see them grow up over the years. We ended the evening with devotions lead by Jim and communion lead by Greer. Our devotions time each night has been an enriching experience.
One thing that we've learned is that everyone on the team has been spiritually uplifted through this experience. We would encourage others to consider serving on a servant team some time in the future.
Signing off from Haiti,
Sarah and Triple S
Signing off from Haiti,
Sarah and Triple S
Photos: Jana with an orphan at LCJ, Paul doing his thing with the balloons at LCJ, Susan playing with a little girl at LCJ, a street market on the way to the Baptist Mission, the view on the drive home from the Baptist Mission
Thursday, February 20, 2014
Where to Start, Where to End... Oh, Yeah, it Doesn't End!
We all hit the ground running today. We split up into teams today - the garden team, the concrete team, and the shopping team. The garden team and concrete team also formed a trench-making team. The garden team consisted of Diana, Greer, and Richard. The concrete team was Paul and Jim. The shopping team was Christine, Sarah, Jana, and Susan accompanied by Tracy and Marshall. Like all jobs here, we all gravitated towards helping each other out, working under the concept that no one is done until everyone is done.
The concrete team laid a foundation to support 55 gallon drums of diesel fuel. The pad was 8 ft by 3 ft. The concrete was made principally with stone, sand, and cement shoveled into a mixer which was then poured into a wheel barrow and carted to the location of the pad. Jim certainly learned a little bit about forms, rebar, and use of a trowel, while Paul seemed to know what he was doing.
The garden team ripped out a 40 x 20 area, ripping out the shrubs that were there, tilling by hand with rake, hoe, and a lot of sweat. This was followed by taking two huge mounds of dirt and spreading it over that same area and once again raking to smooth it all out. And if we weren't having enough fun, we started to dig out the trench which was 70 - 80 feet long and a foot deep. Then we laid the plumbing for a sprinkler system to water the future Hope House garden. And yes, Jim did learn something about plumbing including connecting male and female parts of piping, putting in a "T" in the piping, and what PVC pipe is.
The shoppers went to three different stores to price out furniture for the guard house, a stove for Hope House since the one in the main kitchen isn't working, and a few other items. The prices were unbelievable - and not in a good way. There didn't seem to be much rhyme or reason to them either. We did find a comfortable chair for the guard house, a couple of tables for Hope House, and other things. The last store we went to had just opened and was like the Target of Haiti. It had a little bit of everything.
When the shoppers returned to Hope House, we helped pack vitamins and antacids in ziplock bags for the mobile med teams. We quickly learned that we can't talk and count at the same time. After that was finished, we pitched in with the other teams as much as they'd let us.
Even though we are experiencing a servant high, we did experience a low point today. Hopie, the Hope House dog that has been here for many years, had to be put down today. She had cancer in her hip and leg and was having trouble walking. She wasn't eating and just wasn't herself. A veterinarian came today and put her down. For those of us veterans, she was both a guard dog and a friend. We all pitched in to dig a grave for her in the garden and had a moment of silence and prayer. She will be greatly missed.
We had another insightful devotion tonight, lead by Paul and sang another song from the songbook prepared by Nilah. Thank you! And yes, we are getting better as a choir but don't ask us to perform in public. Haha!
The Jim portion of this dynamic duo is ready for bed and signing off. I guess that means Sarah is signing of as soon as the pictures load, as well.
Tomorrow we are planning on finishing up a few odd jobs around Hope House, going to Little Children of Jesus, and then the Baptist Mission. We can't believe tomorrow is already Friday!
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Photos: Jim preparing the wall next to the concrete pad; Richard and Diana in the garden; Paul, Jim, and Keith mixing concrete; Susan and Jana counting vitamins; pitching in to fill in the trench; nightly devotions
The concrete team laid a foundation to support 55 gallon drums of diesel fuel. The pad was 8 ft by 3 ft. The concrete was made principally with stone, sand, and cement shoveled into a mixer which was then poured into a wheel barrow and carted to the location of the pad. Jim certainly learned a little bit about forms, rebar, and use of a trowel, while Paul seemed to know what he was doing.
The garden team ripped out a 40 x 20 area, ripping out the shrubs that were there, tilling by hand with rake, hoe, and a lot of sweat. This was followed by taking two huge mounds of dirt and spreading it over that same area and once again raking to smooth it all out. And if we weren't having enough fun, we started to dig out the trench which was 70 - 80 feet long and a foot deep. Then we laid the plumbing for a sprinkler system to water the future Hope House garden. And yes, Jim did learn something about plumbing including connecting male and female parts of piping, putting in a "T" in the piping, and what PVC pipe is.
The shoppers went to three different stores to price out furniture for the guard house, a stove for Hope House since the one in the main kitchen isn't working, and a few other items. The prices were unbelievable - and not in a good way. There didn't seem to be much rhyme or reason to them either. We did find a comfortable chair for the guard house, a couple of tables for Hope House, and other things. The last store we went to had just opened and was like the Target of Haiti. It had a little bit of everything.
When the shoppers returned to Hope House, we helped pack vitamins and antacids in ziplock bags for the mobile med teams. We quickly learned that we can't talk and count at the same time. After that was finished, we pitched in with the other teams as much as they'd let us.
Even though we are experiencing a servant high, we did experience a low point today. Hopie, the Hope House dog that has been here for many years, had to be put down today. She had cancer in her hip and leg and was having trouble walking. She wasn't eating and just wasn't herself. A veterinarian came today and put her down. For those of us veterans, she was both a guard dog and a friend. We all pitched in to dig a grave for her in the garden and had a moment of silence and prayer. She will be greatly missed.
We had another insightful devotion tonight, lead by Paul and sang another song from the songbook prepared by Nilah. Thank you! And yes, we are getting better as a choir but don't ask us to perform in public. Haha!
The Jim portion of this dynamic duo is ready for bed and signing off. I guess that means Sarah is signing of as soon as the pictures load, as well.
Tomorrow we are planning on finishing up a few odd jobs around Hope House, going to Little Children of Jesus, and then the Baptist Mission. We can't believe tomorrow is already Friday!
Thank you for your continued prayers.
Photos: Jim preparing the wall next to the concrete pad; Richard and Diana in the garden; Paul, Jim, and Keith mixing concrete; Susan and Jana counting vitamins; pitching in to fill in the trench; nightly devotions
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
A New View of Haiti
We may be on a servant trip but it's not all about tasks and projects. Today we spent valuable time with the children of the Village of Hope. We attended the kindergarten classes opening where they said the pledge, sang a welcome song to us, sang a song of praise, and as usual, touched as all. After the opening, we took a tour of the school with Clovis which included the lunchroom, the chapel, and the classrooms. For those that aren't aware, there are three years of kindergarten, starting with the age of three, followed by 13 years of primary and secondary education. Today the group split up into three teams and visited each of the three kindergarten classes, spending time visiting, coloring, and drawing with the kids. The response was very uplifting. Actually spending time with these kids is an important part of the servant trip.
Our time at the school was followed up by a new experience for both the veterans and the rookies of this team as we took a 6 hour round trip journey into rural Haiti. Our first stop was the memorial being built for the victims of the 2010 earthquake. It is being built on top of a mass grave of 50,000 victims. We had a moment of silence and offered a prayer lead by Greer.
Our next stop was the waterfall. Again, being able to experience Haiti as a country and culture as we drove through the mountains is an important part of the servant experience. Many of us had read Paul Farmer's book, Beyond Mountains, and seeing the area he wrote about and being able to see the hospital that he built with the help of many U.S. benefactors in Mireblais was especially satisfying. The number of Haitians living in the rural mountainside is astounding. It seemed like every corner we turned and every straightaway we went down, there were Haitians subsisting under conditions certainly foreign to most of us. The waterfalls were very nice and refreshing for those of us that walked through them. After the waterfall, we were drenched by a divine waterfall called a storm! Some of us escaped the rain by riding in the SUV while others experienced the downpour. Some of the roads we were on today were dirt roads with a vertical pitch that would make an expert skier envious. Our drivers were beyond spectacular. We are thankful for that fact! Our elevation went from sea level to 3,000 ft on roads meant for all-terrain vehicles. Yikes!
We returned to Hope House to which we experienced some fun fellowship. Apparently, Skin-so-Soft is the bug repellent of choice if you want to pick up chicks. And if you want a Meatloaf concert, call Jim and Paul. Dinner was a typical Haitian meal of rice, Creole chicken, and milleton au gratin. Devotions were lead by Diana and we talked about the highlights of our week so far in Haiti.
Tomorrow we're staying at Hope House with a full day of work scheduled. More to come!
Pictures from top to bottom are the kindergarten opening, raising the Haitian flag during opening, coloring with the kids, rural Haiti, and the waterfalls
Our time at the school was followed up by a new experience for both the veterans and the rookies of this team as we took a 6 hour round trip journey into rural Haiti. Our first stop was the memorial being built for the victims of the 2010 earthquake. It is being built on top of a mass grave of 50,000 victims. We had a moment of silence and offered a prayer lead by Greer.
Our next stop was the waterfall. Again, being able to experience Haiti as a country and culture as we drove through the mountains is an important part of the servant experience. Many of us had read Paul Farmer's book, Beyond Mountains, and seeing the area he wrote about and being able to see the hospital that he built with the help of many U.S. benefactors in Mireblais was especially satisfying. The number of Haitians living in the rural mountainside is astounding. It seemed like every corner we turned and every straightaway we went down, there were Haitians subsisting under conditions certainly foreign to most of us. The waterfalls were very nice and refreshing for those of us that walked through them. After the waterfall, we were drenched by a divine waterfall called a storm! Some of us escaped the rain by riding in the SUV while others experienced the downpour. Some of the roads we were on today were dirt roads with a vertical pitch that would make an expert skier envious. Our drivers were beyond spectacular. We are thankful for that fact! Our elevation went from sea level to 3,000 ft on roads meant for all-terrain vehicles. Yikes!
We returned to Hope House to which we experienced some fun fellowship. Apparently, Skin-so-Soft is the bug repellent of choice if you want to pick up chicks. And if you want a Meatloaf concert, call Jim and Paul. Dinner was a typical Haitian meal of rice, Creole chicken, and milleton au gratin. Devotions were lead by Diana and we talked about the highlights of our week so far in Haiti.
Tomorrow we're staying at Hope House with a full day of work scheduled. More to come!
Pictures from top to bottom are the kindergarten opening, raising the Haitian flag during opening, coloring with the kids, rural Haiti, and the waterfalls
Tuesday, February 18, 2014
The Body at Work
Good news! It rained last night for the first time in three - four months! The bad news, you couldn't really tell today!
Yesterday we reported that our principle task for today was to finish the security house which included painting the entire interior, the exterior, all furniture, and replace both doors and reinstall them. We are happy to report - mission accomplished! The Body at Work included St. John's servant team, as well as, Keith (surprise guest from New York and friend of the Dixons), and Hope House staff, Populaire, Lucien, Eric, and of course, our boss, Marshall. We divided the work between the team members and with any good team, we did deviate from the plan which provided everyone an opportunity to contribute whether it was painting or hammering. The weather today was the usual - hot and sunny. As the kids were dismissed from school, some became fascinated with our painting and were venturing in our work space. Richard, without meaning to, taught them a new "game" called "Shoo." He would "shoo" them away, they would run away laughing, and then come right back. We could hear them saying "shoo, shoo" to each other. It wasn't very effective but it was entertaining!
We ate lunch with the kids today. Some of us enjoyed some rice and bean sauce in addition to our sandwiches. Like every other year, the kids stare at us and we stare at them and we smile a lot.
This evening we "raised the roof" on the truck - literally. It was very entertaining to watch five tired old men and one young, short young lady lift the roof, stand it up straight, watch the truck move out of the way, and us, effortlessly, lay it down.
Tonight, we once again, we had our devotions. This evening was lead by Sarah which was interesting in and of itself. What was really interesting was Sarah had us pick names from a bowl and share with each other the gifts that each person brought to the team and to the project. It was a very unique way to involve everyone in sharing the day's experience.
Tomorrow's agenda is going to be geared more towards spending time with the kids at the Village of Hope. There will be more to come on that tomorrow night!
The photos below show the before, the after, the team, and Diana "raising the roof"!
Yesterday we reported that our principle task for today was to finish the security house which included painting the entire interior, the exterior, all furniture, and replace both doors and reinstall them. We are happy to report - mission accomplished! The Body at Work included St. John's servant team, as well as, Keith (surprise guest from New York and friend of the Dixons), and Hope House staff, Populaire, Lucien, Eric, and of course, our boss, Marshall. We divided the work between the team members and with any good team, we did deviate from the plan which provided everyone an opportunity to contribute whether it was painting or hammering. The weather today was the usual - hot and sunny. As the kids were dismissed from school, some became fascinated with our painting and were venturing in our work space. Richard, without meaning to, taught them a new "game" called "Shoo." He would "shoo" them away, they would run away laughing, and then come right back. We could hear them saying "shoo, shoo" to each other. It wasn't very effective but it was entertaining!
We ate lunch with the kids today. Some of us enjoyed some rice and bean sauce in addition to our sandwiches. Like every other year, the kids stare at us and we stare at them and we smile a lot.
This evening we "raised the roof" on the truck - literally. It was very entertaining to watch five tired old men and one young, short young lady lift the roof, stand it up straight, watch the truck move out of the way, and us, effortlessly, lay it down.
Tonight, we once again, we had our devotions. This evening was lead by Sarah which was interesting in and of itself. What was really interesting was Sarah had us pick names from a bowl and share with each other the gifts that each person brought to the team and to the project. It was a very unique way to involve everyone in sharing the day's experience.
Tomorrow's agenda is going to be geared more towards spending time with the kids at the Village of Hope. There will be more to come on that tomorrow night!
The photos below show the before, the after, the team, and Diana "raising the roof"!
Monday, February 17, 2014
A Satisfying Day
We started off as a usual day in Haiti - hot, sunny, and blue sky. But before we fill you in on today, let's go back to yesterday.
We immediately noticed many improvements upon our arrival in Haiti. In the past, we have had to deplane on the tarmac, walk a rundown warehouse-type building, fight to collect our luggage, hold off the Haitian porters, and try to survive just arriving in Haiti. But now there is a jetway and a newly tiled floor in an air-conditioned customs building and our luggage appeared on a carousel, just like in the United States. We no longer had to do battle with the numerous Haitian porters offering assistance we didn't need.
As we departed the airport, some of us commented on the fact that the roads seem to be vastly improved soon to be jolted back to reality as soon as we were out of sight of the airport. We shook, rattled, and rolled our way to Hope House. Hope House is now run by a family of five - Marshall and his wife, Tracy, their two teenage daughters, Devin and Cameron, and their eight year old son, Kaiden.
After dinner and devotions, we unloaded the 750 lbs of donated medical and school supplies that we brought with us from five different churches and three states. We greatly appreciate all who donated these supplies. The director was extremely thankful for your generosity. The highlight of the evening was the pumpkin whoopee pies we had for dessert. Yum!
Today we headed to the Village of Hope School and Medical Center. We walked through the Medical Center and admired our work from two years ago, reminiscing about the 80 gallons of paint we used that covered 30,000 square feet. It still looks good!
Our major task for the week is to clean, repair, and paint the security house that sits at the entrance of the Village of Hope. The guards each take 12-hour shifts and were sleeping on plywood beds on metal frames. Today we power-washed the security house that is about 500 square feet and repaired and reinstalled one of two doors. The living space is less than any standard that would be acceptable for us in the U.S. To illustrate how dirty the house was, we had to power wash a first time, scrubbed it down with Clorox and soap, rinsed that, and then power washed again. And then the same process was repeated for the exterior. We had a lot of spectators, who over their lunch hour, watched us in action. The kids seemed especially fascinated by the power washer. It was very hot, working outside, but as Jana said, whenever she got hot, she'd think about the 7 inches of snow piling up back in Minnesota and the heat suddenly felt great!
Our task tomorrow is to paint the interior and exterior, the bed frames, and the wood surfaces and to provide bed cushions for each bed frame. Later in the week we may shop for furniture to make it more comfortable. More to come!
On the way home, we stopped at the Metal Works. Marshall had told us we would be surprised by some new improvements and we were! The improvements included a paved road, sidewalks, benches, garbage cans, and big art structures as well as, improved appearance of their shops. Some of the money for this improvement was provided by the Clinton Initiative. As yes, we did leave quite a few dollars at the Metal Works which we are more than happy to do. It really is impressive to see these artisans bang away at these steel drums and produce such fine art.
We returned to Hope House around 4:30. Marshall took the women to a small grocery store. This was fun for the newcomers to see a Haitian grocery store.
Thanks, Liz, for preparing the devotions for us and providing us with a nice way to end each day.
We immediately noticed many improvements upon our arrival in Haiti. In the past, we have had to deplane on the tarmac, walk a rundown warehouse-type building, fight to collect our luggage, hold off the Haitian porters, and try to survive just arriving in Haiti. But now there is a jetway and a newly tiled floor in an air-conditioned customs building and our luggage appeared on a carousel, just like in the United States. We no longer had to do battle with the numerous Haitian porters offering assistance we didn't need.
As we departed the airport, some of us commented on the fact that the roads seem to be vastly improved soon to be jolted back to reality as soon as we were out of sight of the airport. We shook, rattled, and rolled our way to Hope House. Hope House is now run by a family of five - Marshall and his wife, Tracy, their two teenage daughters, Devin and Cameron, and their eight year old son, Kaiden.
After dinner and devotions, we unloaded the 750 lbs of donated medical and school supplies that we brought with us from five different churches and three states. We greatly appreciate all who donated these supplies. The director was extremely thankful for your generosity. The highlight of the evening was the pumpkin whoopee pies we had for dessert. Yum!
Today we headed to the Village of Hope School and Medical Center. We walked through the Medical Center and admired our work from two years ago, reminiscing about the 80 gallons of paint we used that covered 30,000 square feet. It still looks good!
Our major task for the week is to clean, repair, and paint the security house that sits at the entrance of the Village of Hope. The guards each take 12-hour shifts and were sleeping on plywood beds on metal frames. Today we power-washed the security house that is about 500 square feet and repaired and reinstalled one of two doors. The living space is less than any standard that would be acceptable for us in the U.S. To illustrate how dirty the house was, we had to power wash a first time, scrubbed it down with Clorox and soap, rinsed that, and then power washed again. And then the same process was repeated for the exterior. We had a lot of spectators, who over their lunch hour, watched us in action. The kids seemed especially fascinated by the power washer. It was very hot, working outside, but as Jana said, whenever she got hot, she'd think about the 7 inches of snow piling up back in Minnesota and the heat suddenly felt great!
Our task tomorrow is to paint the interior and exterior, the bed frames, and the wood surfaces and to provide bed cushions for each bed frame. Later in the week we may shop for furniture to make it more comfortable. More to come!
On the way home, we stopped at the Metal Works. Marshall had told us we would be surprised by some new improvements and we were! The improvements included a paved road, sidewalks, benches, garbage cans, and big art structures as well as, improved appearance of their shops. Some of the money for this improvement was provided by the Clinton Initiative. As yes, we did leave quite a few dollars at the Metal Works which we are more than happy to do. It really is impressive to see these artisans bang away at these steel drums and produce such fine art.
We returned to Hope House around 4:30. Marshall took the women to a small grocery store. This was fun for the newcomers to see a Haitian grocery store.
Thanks, Liz, for preparing the devotions for us and providing us with a nice way to end each day.
Sunday, February 16, 2014
We Have Arrived!
After uneventful flights to Haiti, we are here! It is VERY warm - 95 degrees or so, but we're not complaining! We just ate a fantastic dinner and are gathering supplies for tomorrow's work at the Village of Hope school. It's only 6:45 and many of us are wondering when we can go to bed. It's been a long day!
Sunday, February 9, 2014
T - One Week!
In just one week, we will be saying bon voyage to these cold temperatures and starting our week in Haiti! This year's mission team includes participants from three states! Greer Putnam, Jim Lofgren, Paul Swicord, Christine Payne, Diana Hoins, and Sarah Finger are all from Virginia; Jana Poppe and Richard Finger are from Minnesota; and Susan Gutjahr is from Texas! The Virginia contingent, minus Christine, met today to pack eleven suitcases full of donations. Thank you to everyone who has donated supplies and money. We are humbled by the outpouring of support from all of you including our home congregation, St. John's Lutheran Church and ECEC in Alexandria, VA; the FCA at Yorktown High School; and Girl Scout Troop 1588 from McLean, VA. Jana, Richard, and Susan will also be bringing donated supplies from their friends and congregations.
Please include our mission team in your prayers as we prepare for our trip!
Please include our mission team in your prayers as we prepare for our trip!
From left to right: Paul, Sarah, Diana, Jim, and Greer
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