Red-Cross

Article about the Red Cross again here

Djounka

This is a story I do not like to tell.  I want to believe that all the malnourished children we see are like that because there families cannot find food to feed them.  Just that simple, right? I do not want to belive that it is due to  straight neglect.  But every once in a while we have someone come in like little Djounka below.  This makes the third time she has visited the clinic.  Each time she came we  talked to her mother about her daughter.  We spent time with her and even gave her food to feed her.  Each time the mother laughed at the nurses and said it was not her fault.  She did not want her body to become “ugly” if she breastfed her daughter.  Today she brought Djounka into the clinic.  She was given a special ticket to pass immediately.  We do this with very sick kids that need to pass right away.  The nurse called me and asked me to please admit her in the RC right away.  I agreed and went to start the paper work for her to be admitted.  The first thing I do when admitting a child  is to get a picture for our records.  When I took  Djounka to get her picture she was in the end stages of dying.  She was struggling to breath and was in bad shape.  I called Lori right away to come and see if there was something she could do.  I knew there was not, but we always try.  If they are still breathing we try. 

We started a IV right away and did what we could but she died within a few minutes.  Her mother stood there the whole time and either laughed or just looked at her.  It was strange.  We sat with her until she took her last breath and then removed the IV.  There was nothing from the mother no reaction nothing.  I said your child is dead –thinking okay maybe she does not realize that she is dead and still nothing.  She just wanted to leave and go back home.  Her daughter died from straight neglect.  Nothing more.  Many, many people who were in the clinic were very upset with her.  Everyone told me not to let her leave.  They asked me to call her family.  She said she could not remember anyone’s phone number.  So someone who lived by her called a family member and told them what had happened.  Her family said that they told her that morning that she was going to die and the mother did not want to bring her. So they gave her money to pay the taxi fee to get here.

She died a neglected child 10 pounds 13 pounds old.  For no reason at all.

 

Container update

I wanted to give you an update on the funds being raising for the 2 semi containers coming into Haiti.  There has been $8385.00 that has been donated so far.  That means we still need to raise $11,615.00 for both containers.  This can be broken down to around 46 pallets at $250.00 a piece.  I was able to be in Indiana where we packed one of the container up.  It was a lot of work to get 4o pallets of items sorted, packed, shrunk wrap, numbered, weighed and put into the container in 2 short weekends.  There is a lot of supplies on their way to Haiti.  These supplies will be a great help to many, many people here in Cazale and the surrounding areas.  There are lots of diapers, dresses and items that groups have been sewing for us.  I am excited to get everything here and unpacked.  There are lots of bumbo seats coming.  Love them for the  kids.  There are many items to help the farmers.  Giving a farmer a tool to help him be able to make a living is such a gift to their whole family.  I ask that each of you pray this week for the two containers that are on their way to Haiti.  Pray they arrive safely and that we get them through customs with ease.  We will keep you updates on the progress of getting them through customs and to Cazale.

 loading the pallets onto the container in Indiana.

Henley and Carmelo ran the pallet jack inside the container.  Go Henley!

We had lots of volunteers come and help with the sorting and packing.

We are so thankful to each of you that have given of your finances, time and energy to help us here at RHFH.  God Bless!

 to get these containers to us.  God bless each of you!

Artist For Hope

I love my friends at Artist for Hope.  They recently visited us here at RHFH.  They taught a group of women how make bracelets.  The bracelets are being sold here.  I appreciate someone taking the time to show these ladies a skill that can help them in the future.  We are hoping to build on this project and have many more things to sell to help these ladies with supplying themselves with an income.  Go Artist for Hope –You Rock!

Local Hospitals struggle to stay open and pay staff

Large hospitals and clinic’s are struggling to stay open with all the free health care being provided by foreign countries.

read the article here

Together again + a new puppy

Trey’s Birthday picture

Meet our new Backhoe! Coming to Haiti soon!

We are back!

The boys and I arrived back in Haiti yesterday afternoon. It was a long wait in the customs and baggage claim to get through. We could see Enoch outside but we could not go out to him until we had our luggage and passports stamped. The boys were jumping up and down yelling his name and he was jumping up and down outside yelling their names. We had a great time riding home and talking and talking and talking. They wanted to tell him everything that has happened since they left. It has been three months since they left. Three months since they have seen their dad. It was just so good to be back together-all of us!

There are two semi containers full of supplies on there way to Haiti. It was a wild two weeks getting everything sorted, packed onto pallets and loaded into the containers but we did it with so many of you helping us! Dad will return to Haiti for a week to unload and get them out of customs at the end of the month. We are excited about these much-needed supplies. I will have an update on the funds being raised with in the next few days.

I have hundreds of hundreds of emails to get through in the next few days. So if you have written to me I will be trying my best to answer everyone. It will take me a few days to get back into the schedule here and start posting again. I appreciate all of you and your encouraging words to the boys, Enoch and I.  We really are so thankful to have so many of you that love and pray for us and RHFH.

Haitians Proverbs

Yo pa ka achte moso manman nan mache

One can’t buy a piece of mother in the market

Mothers are irreplaceable

Ou se papiyon, mwen se lanp

You are a moth, I am a lamp

You will always come to me

 

Chak chaple gen kwa pa li

Each person has a destiny

Everyone is on earth for a reason

Tout chay gen twoket li

Every load has its pad

Every problem has a solution