A new link

I have added a new link under Haiti links for Caroline.  PLEASE check out her blog she is posting about lots of things going on here at RHFH.

Don’t forget to check out Lori’s blog about her house project.  The links are below.

And don’t forget to be a light for Jesus today!

Matthew 5:14-16 (The Message)

 

 ^14-16“Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven

Yon ti kay pou Se-m

Lori and I do not talk about our personal lives on the blogs to much.  We just share what is happening here at RHFH, the clinic and the rescue center.  But sometimes life swings you a curve and you need to let others know your needs and what you are dealing with.

Most of you know last September that there was a flood that went through Cazale.  It destroyed many, many homes in the area.  Charles and Lori were renting a house and that house was totally flooded.  The water was waist high throughout the house.  At the time of the flood they were in the states speaking for RHFH and packing a container full of supplies.  I often think of what would have happened if they were here.  It was in the middle of the night, dark and the flood waters were raging.  We just thank God so much that they were gone and that their lives were spared.

Most of their belongings were lost in the flood.  Some washed away, some were destoyed, some had bad water and mud damage.  They were able to  ship many things on the semi container to be able to replace those lost items.  They are so very thankful for all those that donated items and helped them pack things to come back to Haiti.

With there being many houses destroyed it become difficult for them to find a home  to rent.  They needed to be close to the clinic in cases there was an emergency at night or other problems.  The house they rented before was not repaired by the owner and is still in the path of the water if another flood would come.  They looked for several months and just could not find a place.  So they decided to build a house.  They bought a small piece of land and began the process of building a small home for themselves.

They have used all their funds to get where they are at right now.  They are ready to begin putting up the walls and the roof.  This is where they could use your help.  You can read Lori’s blog here or even better check out their blog about the project here.  

Right now Lori and Charles are staying in a room where teams usually stay.   They need a place of their own.  A place to get away and have some peace a quiet.  A place to relax after a hard days work.   For those of you that really know us, it has been 10 months since the flood.  Ten months of helping other in need, rebuilding houses, giving out supplies and food to flood victims, worrying about clean water, getting supplies in here for several months without a road.  So much has happened.  I  feel sometimes we forget about ourselves and our needs.   It is time for them to have a break and have a place for themselves.  There is a donation button on the Moise house project blog.  These funds will not be going through the RHFH donation so if you would like to give towards this project use the donation button on the Moise House Project blog.  If you have any questions you can email lori at lori@realhopeforhaiti.org.  If you cannot help them financially then please if you have a minute send them a note of encouragement and love and let them know that you care. 

We are all so thankful to all of you out there that have been such a support to us here at RHFH.  God bless each of you!

Nou pa kon Soufrans

This little baby came into clinic last week.  He name is Blanco.  He was burned badly when his house caught on fire in the early morning hours.  They lost everthing.  The mother had to borrow clothes to find something to wear to carry her burnt child down to the clinic.  She had to walk many, many miles.  While she was walking Blanco was crying and in lots of pain.  His body was in shock.  They arrived here late morning. The mother was totally wore out from walking, losing her home and not knowing if her child would live.  She had another lady with her that had carried some beans down to try and sell to get a little money to eat.    This is just to much.  We saw right away that it was a bad burn.  The skin under his chin and neck were bascially fried.  Burnt to the fat and muscle.  We ran around found blanket, clothes, sheets and anything else that we thought they might need.  We had a staff member take them in to the Doctor’s Without Borders Hospital in Port-au-Prince.  They have a place there that treated burns.  Unbelievable heartache.  Unbelieveavle pain. 

The hospital and mother began calling early this morning on Lori’s cell phone.  Blanco died.  The mother did not know how to get on a tap-tap to get back to Cazale.  Bless her Jesus!  She trusted us to get her someplace to help her.  She had no idea where she was at or how to get back home.  A staff member just went yesterday to see her and check on the child.  We sent a staff member in right away to get her.  They met in front of the hospital.  The child was in a card board box.  The staff member carried the box and brought them both back to Cazale. They mom stayed for awhile and then just wanted to get home.  She had to walk many hours to get back to her village to tell her family that Blanco had died.  She had to return to her burnt house with no child. 

Psalm 31:8-10 (Amplified Bible)

⁸And You have not given me into the hand of the enemy; You have set my feet in a broad place.

    ⁹Have mercy and be gracious unto me, O Lord, for I am in trouble; with grief my eye is weakened, also my inner self and my body.

    ¹⁰For my life is spent with sorrow and my years with sighing; my strength has failed because of my iniquity, and even my bones have wasted away

Sòm 31:8-11 (Haitian Creole Version)

⁷(31:8) M’ap kontan, m’ap fè fèt, paske ou renmen m’. Ou wè jan m’ap soufri, ou konnen nan ki pwoblèm mwen ye.

    ⁸(31:9) Ou pa kite lènmi m’ yo mete men sou mwen, ou mete m’ yon kote pou anyen pa rive m’.

    ⁹¶ (31:10) Gen pitye pou mwen, Seyè, paske mwen anba tray. Figi m’ fin rale, mwen kagou. Kò m’ ap fin deperi afòs mwen gen lapenn.

    ¹⁰(31:11) Mwen pase tout lavi m’ ap soufri, se tout tan m’ap plenn. Mwen santi m’ap febli paske mwen fè twòp move bagay. Tout zo nan kò m’ ap fè m’ mal.

The Creole Version is so powerful.  Nou pap bliye ou Blanco!  Rete nan men Bondye a ou pap soufri anko. Nap we yon jou!

RHFH

Here are two videos that Lori made last year. The first one is of the clinic.

The second video is about the Rescue Center. Enjoy!

Sonel is back!

Remember Sonel?  Sonel came to the clinic several years ago.  His had severe club feet and needed surgery to be able to walk straight.  At that time, we did not know of a place here in Haiti that could provide the surgery that he needed.  But shortly after he left we came in contact with a wonderful organization that can do surgeries for these kids here in Haiti!  That is such great news for other patients like Sonel.

Sonel’s parents had to make a big decision.  Sonel needed surgery to be able to walk straight.  It had to be such a difficult choice for them  to make for him.  They had to trust RHFH and MAT to find a host family and a doctor that they would never know to give their son the care that he needed.  Trusting a foreigner to do this for your child is a big thing.  Imagine your child being sick and having to send them to a different country to get their needed surgery and then pray, hope and belief that they surgery goes well.  Then waiting hoping and praying that your child returns soon to you.  What a hard thing for any parent to have to go through.  Sonel’s mother is so excited that he was able to get surgery and that he can now walk normal.  She has been waiting for him to come back to be with her. Sonel’s dad is a different story.  He was never to interested in Sonel’s case.  He even said at one point that Sonel could just stay in the USA.  But his mother wanted him to return to her.  She was so happy to see him and to see him walking like a normal child.

Sonel’’s mother and RHFH are so thankful to his host family for all their time and love that they gave Sonel during his stay in the US.  He will always remember them and know that they were a part of his journey to being able to walk on his two straight feet.  We are also very thankful to Dr. DeHeer and all his care that was given to Sonel.  His mother with be forever grateful for this life changing surgery.

Since Sonel was in the US for an extended period of time, his transition back to his family will take some time.  He has to learn to speak Creole again and learn how to live with out the “normal” american things.  It will be hard for him.  We are praying that he does well and that he will be able to return to his mother’s house when they are both ready.   We thank all that gave for Sonel’s medical visa cost and to all those that prayed for him during his extended stay in the US.  God is good and we thank HIM for all that HE has done!

A NEW TRUCK!!!!!!!

In Feb of 2008 we had a team here from Hickory Grove Church in Delphi, Indiana (pictured above).  This church helped us out so much that week with many different projects.  They saw a need and filled it.  They saw other needs and over and over again each day that week they were there to help us.  On the way to the airport, the old truck was having some problems.  The team members saw a need and again wanted to help fill this BIG need .  They asked our permission to raise funds for a new truck for RHFH.  How exciting that was for us!  They began raising funds themselves and then sent out a letter from the team members to our mailing list.  Through their effort and the many that donated the funds were raised to purchase the truck below.

 

Lori and I and the staff here at RHFH put in many hours of work each day to  help those in our area.   But we cannot give this help of medication, food or supplies unless they are here!  That is where the truck is needed.  Dad spends many, many hours driving the roads and hauling supplies, medication and food to the clinic and Rescue Center.  He is gone 4 to 5 days a weeks just driving and getting the supplies needed to keep us going .  If we do not have a good vehicle then it is hard to accomplish this each week.  We would  have to hire someone to do all this work for RHFH.  What a blessing this is for us!

 We are so thankful to Pastor Ken & Trina,  Brian and Pat and all the other teams members for all their hard work!  We love you guys and are so blessed to be able to call you our friends. 

Buying a truck is not as easy as it might seem.  You have to go and make a payment and then wait 6 to 8 months before the truck arrives.  That is what we have been waiting for.  Dad had to sit at the office this week for several hours and get the papers and plates done.  We were all so excited to see him drive the new truck home!

Colossians 3:12-14 (The Message)

  ^12-14So, chosen by God for this new life of love, dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline. Be even-tempered, content with second place, quick to forgive an offense. Forgive as quickly and completely as the Master forgave you. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It’s your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it.

Fami

tools

We want to send a special thank you to  Grace United Methodist Church in Naperville, IL.  This church has helped out in the past with flood relief and organized and raised fund to ship a container of Feed My Starving Children rice to Haiti for flood victims.  They took on another small project to buy tools for local farmers.  These farmers will be able to use the tool in their fields to help them plant and harvest crops.  They can also work on other people land for a days pay with the tools.  It is a way for them to be able to do something for themselves and their families.  It empowers them to be able to work and not have to depend on hand outs.  It is a great small project for any one to take on.    What a blessing. 

The tools

The group receiving the tools

Happy farmers

Psalm 67:5-7 (NIV)

  ⁵ May the peoples praise you, O God;
       may all the peoples praise you.

 ⁶ Then the land will yield its harvest,
       and God, our God, will bless us.

 ⁷ God will bless us,
       and all the ends of the earth will fear him.

Saintilus

This is the journey of a rotten foot that belonged to Saintilus.  He was able to receive surgery on the Comfort ship.  Thanks for all that donated for those expenses!  We wanted to write a post about it but I think the slide show will fill you in.  We sure do miss Saintilus!

T-shirts for RHFH

J & A Ivey are selling T-shirts for RHFH.  You can check out there post here or go to buy them here!