Remembering Haiti

I just returned from Haiti last week and just one of the memories I have was when we visited a tent city and passed out kitchen supplies. The People were so appreciative of the gifts and were thanking God. One lady said she had been praying for a sign from God that He had not forgotten them and then we showed up with supplies and clothes for kids.  God is moving in Haiti and only He can save them.

My Haiti WOW God Wednesday Moment

Last March I received a call from International Ministries that they had an urgent need to find a physician to complete a medical mission team that was leaving for Haiti in 11 days! I quickly found myself compiling my list of “why I can’t go” reasons that included the fact that I knew little about tropical medicine, I wasn’t current on many of the immunizations needed, I would have to gather any needed medical supplies in less than two weeks, it wasn’t a good time for me economically and it was an extremely dangerous time in Haiti.

Convinced that this was just not my time to become a medical missionary I got ready to head to the office the next day and send the email explaining why I couldn’t go to Haiti. I was a fairly new listener to KLOVE at the time but had left my car radio tuned to the local KLOVE station. When I started the car that morning the song playing on the radio was by Downhere:

“Here I am, Lord send me.
All of my life, I make an offering,
Here I am, Lord send me
Somehow my story is a part of Your plan,
Here I am”

I realized that I was indeed part of His plan. Ten days later I (along with one of my partners and 240 pounds of medical supplies) was on my way to Port au Price. We spent a week ministering the physical, emotional and spiritual wounds of a most gracious and beautiful people. God changes lives by changing hearts and I am forever changed.

Terry Morris MD
Independence MO  

I just received a text message from my Pastor's wife that said "Heard on KLove today that they are asking people to share amazing Haiti stories for Wow God Wed tomorrow. You can call or go to the website. Your Haiti story is wow worthy."
So here I am, sharing "my" Haiti story of how we really do serve a God of miracles.
Exactly 8 months ago from yesterday, myself and a team of 14 others from my school, Hannibal-LaGrange University (HLGU) in Hannibal, MO, left for Haiti to serve on a mission trip alongside Dee and Wilckly Dorce - missionaries for Blessing Hearts, International in Carries, Haiti. For the past several years, HLGU has been sending a team of students to work with the Dorces in Haiti over their Spring Break. We had made plans to once again go to Haiti in March of 2010.. but then disaster struck the country in the form of a 7.0 earthquake. Our trip was postponed, and most of us believed it would be cancelled altogether.
But God had bigger plans. After months of prayer, the decision was made that we would go to Haiti afterall, this time in May. On May 10th our team of 15 flew to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and then traveled by truck to the Dorce's mission in Carries, Haiti. The trip was life-changing, in more ways than one. The devastation and utter chaos of the country was overwhelming. I will never forget the looks on the faces of those we passed by.. empty and lost, struggling just to survive and to get through the day. The reality of how Haiti is so desperately in need of a Savior was incredibly convicting, and would be enough to bring tears to anyone's eyes.  
During the 8 days that we were there, our team accomplished many things. Our main outreach project was visiting several of the schools that the Dorce's oversee, and passing out drawstring bags full of supplies to each one of the students.. over 500 of them. Every single student got their own bag, which was filled with things such as their own bowl, spoon, drinking cup, bag of rice, washcloths, soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, coloring crayons, toys, candy, etc. It was a humbling thing to watch a 7 year old Haitian girl scream with delight as she exclaimed in Creole, "I get MY OWN toothbrush?!".
Our team also cut up huge tarps and distributed them to people throughout the village of Carries who had suffered destruction from the earthquake to their already shabby homes and were in need of shelter. Our team organized the supplies that the Dorce's had at their mission, unpacking and repacking and labeling things, and then reorganizing them so they would be more easily accessible. We invested in the lives of many Haitian children - by simply loving on them and playing with them.
Myself and another team member had just graduated from nursing school, so we were able to provide basic medical care to anyone who needed it. On the last full day of our trip, we traveled about 2 hours up into the mountains to attend a village church service - (at one of the many churches that the Dorce's support). This was an amazing experience - to see the light of Jesus shining in that mountain village of Haiti.. there were literally hundreds of people crammed into a make-shift church - (a tent consisting of wooden sticks and poles holding up a collection of tarps and blankets) - in the 100+ degree heat and humidity - all dressed in their best clothes and worshipping and praising God. Following the service, myself and the other nurse put on a 3-hour clinic outside where we treated everyone from the elderly with high blood pressures to young children and tiny babies with fevers and infections. After providing medical care and passing out food and clean water to the village people, our team of 15 Americans loaded into the back of our huge "dump truck" (that was our transportation for the week, and we would climb up into it and stand or sit in the back), along with about 15 Haitians, and started on the long trip down the mountain.
We had planned on going to the beach that night to relax and reflect on our trip, and then we would fly home the next morning.. but God had other plans. We had already seen the hands of God moving in Haiti that week like we had never seen before, but what we were about to experience next, none of us could have ever imagined.
We had made our way down the long, winding gravel mountain road, and had about 10 miles of steep road left to travel before we reached the mainland, when tragedy struck. The truck quickly began picking up speed and we began careening down the increasingly winding road.. the brakes in our truck had given out. Our driver, Wilckly Dorce, (whom we have always called "the best driver in Haiti"), basically had one of 2 choices as we approached a sharp 90 degree turn (and cliff) up ahead.. either drive straight off the cliff, (in which none of us would have survived), or attempt to steer the truck into the side of the mountain, causing it to tip on its side and slide to a stop (and pray to God that at least SOME of us survived).. he did the latter, the last thing I remember was a sudden enormous impact and the sound of metal being crushed against rock. Our truck had crashed into the side of the mountain at speeds of 50+ miles per hour, throwing all of its passengers who were sitting or standing in the back of the truck (with no seatbelts or anything to hold us in) onto the gravel mountain road. I, along with 90% of the people involved in the crash, suffered a severe concussion, and do not remember several things from this point on. After I regained consciousness, I remember 3 things very vividly - 1) white dust covered everything and everyone from head to toe, 2) the red from all of the blood also covered everything and everyone, and 3) screaming - from both Americans and Haitians in both English and Creole. The injuries suffered varied from person to person - some of the worst included this: Alysa, one of the girls on our team, received extreme trauma to the head; her left ear was almost completely severed. Chris, our team sponsor, suffered a massive concussion and bleeding on the brain, broken neck and pelvis; almost everyone had terrible road rash and severe lacerations to the head, requiring many staples. 2 Haitians had to have amputations to their legs, 1 Haitian almost lost his arms - both were completely mangled, but through several surgeries doctors were able to save them. Miraculously, everyone survived. This defies logic, and given the circumstances, is not humanly possible - which makes me stand even more in awe at the power and grace and sovereignty of the Almighty God we serve. This is how my team made it off that mountain that day: (and several other miracles occurred that I am leaving out due to the sake of time!, but this is the gist of it).. the other nurse on our trip did not suffer a concussion or severe head injury, and immediately began triaging people on the mountain until help arrived; he saved alot of lives that day. We were taken by "tap-taps" (Haitin trucks that usually serve as "taxis") to a mission that was run by Samaritan's Purse about 10-15 miles away from the scene of the accident, where we received medical treatment to the best of their abilities - they provided stitches and closed up wounds to those who were bleeding profusely, started IV fluids, and contacted a hospital in Port-au-Prince to send ambulances. The hospital they contacted was the last remaining American field hospital in Haiti since the earthquake. It was run by the University of Miami, and they had 2 ambulances that they used to transport the 30+ people involved in the accident. (Neither the hospital nor ambulances existed in Haiti before the earthquake.) Once at the hospital, we were treated and kept overnight. Here's an example of one of the miracles: the field hospital's best plastic surgeon happened to be there that week, and he was able to completely reattach Alysa's ear. Amputations were performed on the Haitians that needed it, and the most critical patients (4 Americans from our team) were medevac-ed to Miami, FL the next day. Our team sponsor, Chris, was in the most critical condition, and she was in the hospital in Miami for most of the summer (May-July) before she was finally able to return home to Missouri. The rest of our team flew home the next day - almost all of us severely banged up and in wheelchairs, bloody and wearing scrubs or hospital gowns that were given to us to wear at the field hospital. Once we landed in St. Louis, we were immediately taken to the ER at St. John's Mercy Hospital.
For most of us, it was a long road to physical recovery, and even longer for the emotional side of things. Yet out of ashes comes beauty - first from the earthquake in Haiti and the lives that we have seen come to Christ as a result of that, and also from the mess of this tragic accident that has strengthened our faith and allowed us to give all the glory to God as we proclaim His greatness and mercy to all who have heard and will hear our Haiti story. This is my "Wow God" experience, and everytime I see my scars or someone asks me how I got them, I am reminded of His neverending love and faithfulness. We serve a God of miracles.

Shortly before 5:00pm, on an otherwise ordinary Tuesday, I saw the facebook status of a missionary living in Haiti change with news of an earthquake hitting Haiti. That bewildering statement did not sink in until stories and photos came out of Haiti, detailing the unimaginable.  Our youngest daughter was born in Haiti (and has been home with us for 3 years), so hurt and pain we felt seemed so deep; even though we were so many miles away, our child's birth country has had a profound impact on our lives.  A huge 'wow' moment was taking place during the days that followed the quake, while the orphanage we worked with for our adoption deciphered the best way to help the children in their care.  (::and, to make a long story short: Ten days after the earthquake, Haitian children living at God's Littlest Angels, who were in the process of adoption, began going home to their forever families!  These were children that were already matched with families prior to the quake, and now they were able to go home sooner than previously thought.  In the end, around eighty children came to the U.S. from GLA, with dozens more joining families in Canada, France, and the Netherlands.  Now GLA had room to take in newly orphaned and desperately needy children.  The staff and supporters of GLA have continued to bless vulnerable children and their surrounding community with relief, comfort, and love in spiritual and tangible ways.

Dear KLOVE,
First off I just want to say I am truly thankful for your radio station!  It has not only touched peoples lives worldwide but it has touched my own life.  God is using you guys in a HUGE way!  
  My name is Ashley Letourneau and I live in Acushnet, MA (A small hometown near Cape Cod, MA).  I go to Long Plain Baptist Church, with only about 200 members to its name.  God is doing amazing things for this little church of mine.   This coming July He has given us the opportunity to go down to Haiti.  Haiti, as most people know, is a country filled with an incredible need.  The population has grown to 8 million and unemployment could be as high as 80%.  Starvation and access to clean water is a countrywide problem and thousands are literally eating dried dirt mud pies as their primary food source.  Ontop of all that the devastation caused by the earthquake in Port-au-Prince has been tremendous and the needs continue to grow.
  Each year Monadnock Bible Conference, located in Jaffrey, NH, compiles 8-10 teams with 20 members (one guide and 19 members from all over) to go down to Haiti  to work on construction for churches, schools and orphanages.  They also conduct medical clinics which strive to take care of the medical needs down there.
  Here is where God truly shines!  Out of our 200 members of our small church, 19 of those members are going down to Haiti as one team in mid-July!  Praise be to God!  We are such a small church but we have completely taken over an entire team!  It's amazing how God can use the small things in life!
  Our team started out just as a small idea in our Youth Group and has grown to  enormous proportions. People of all ages teens, adults, young adults, etc. have dedicated themselves to this missions trip. During our trip down there we will be helping to re-build an orphanage that was destroyed by the earthquake and left 32 orphans withouth an orphanage.
  We have named our team, Team Passion because not only do we have a PASSION for this trip and helping the people in Haiti but we have an extreme PASSION to be servants for God.
  The reason I am writing to you KLOVE is because we need your prayers.  The road ahead of us is filled with a lot of obstacles and it is going to be a difficult one.  I feel as if we are all "Davids" facing our own fair share of "Goliaths".  Our first major Goliath comes in the form of money.  You see, the trip costs each person about $1300.  This money is used to pay for food expenses, travel, a myriad of miscellanous expense and partial project materials.  Now $1300 does not seem to be a lot for one person to raise but because we are a team we have decided to all help raise not only our own share but each others.  The Bible says in Galatians 6:2 to "carry each other's burdens,and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." So altogether we have to raise about $20,000 to insure that we all make it to Haiti as a group. And we definitely don't want to leave one behind because we are all an asset to this team!
  We are inviting you to join this ministry and partner with this team.  How can you do this?  First, would you be willing to pray for us? Prayer is definitely important and we will definitely need it as I said. And second, would you be willing to help us get the word out to our community and surrounding areas?  
  Our goal is for all of this to be for the Glory of God!  God is glorified when people see the work and the power of  God and not His servants.  As a team every gift we receive we will use for His glory alone and not our own.
Thank you for you help!
With eternity in mind,                                                                                                                                            


Ashley Letourneau                                                                                                                                                                 Proud server of Christ our Lord and a proud member of Team Passion.

P.S. A little information about how we are raising money.  We are taking donations/gifts given to us by people and in exchange we are also giving back by giving away candy bars, bracelets, wreaths, etc.  to each person who donates.  
Thank you KLOVE!

My niece and nephew, Andrea and Mike Brewer, were married on the beach in Haiti in June 2009.  They returned to the states for a wedding reception and to prepare to return to Haiti in August 2009 as full-time missionaries and newlyweds.  They had each made many mission trips to a number of countries before they met including Haiti, but this was their first full-time missionary effort.    

They had 14 Haitian children waiting for them to arrive.  The children had been in an orphanage that lost its funding and were crowded into two small houses belonging to Haiti pastors until Mike and Andrea could arrive.  They found housing, moved the children in with them and began the process of becoming acclimated to how to survive and even thrive in the Haitian culture.  Lack of electricity, clean water, enough food and clothes for the children were daily challenges.

Two weeks after they arrived, two of the five-year-old boys were running in the yard playing games and fell into an abandoned, dry well that was covered with plants.  No one knew the dry well was there.  James died on impact of falling 40 feet into the well.  Tiga survived but was seriously injured and needed head trauma treatment which is not easy to get in Haiti.  Haitian police came to the house, terrifying Andrea because no one was there at the time who could translate.  The next few days were a blur as they dealt with what needed to be done in a country they knew little about.  They still mourn the loss of a sweet little boy.  Tiga still lives with them and has made a complete recovery.

Life settled into something of a routine as they learned how to make it in a country with few available necessities and no luxuries.  Many of the things they took for granted in the U.S. were not even available in Haiti.  They hired some Haitian young men who had been raised in American orphanages and spoke good English.  These young men are Christians and have become like family to Andrea and Mike.  Mike and Andrea began other parts of their ministry:  preaching, teaching the Bible, church planting, feeding programs.  They managed to make a home for the children and get them into school.  They took in more children, some from the poorest areas in Haiti.  Many were at the point of starvation when they came.  By Christmas they had 18 children and gave those children Christmas presents for the first time in their lives, thanks to family, friends and churches back in the U.S.  
  One little girl in particular, Marilyn, was age 3 and weighed 14 lbs.  When she was brought to them, she was too weak to open her eyes.  She had a serious protein deficiency and other medical issues, including a club foot.  Today Marilyn is regaining her health and has gone from a skeleton to a chubby, happy little girl.  She still needs surgery for her club foot, but she has survived.  

But on January 12, Marilyn had just been home from the hospital 2 hours and was in Andrea's arms when the earthquake struck Haiti.  The force of the earthquake threw Andrea across the room, but she managed to hold on to Marilyn and not drop her.  Mike screamed for everyone to get out of the house and into the road.  They managed to get everyone into the middle of the road with walls tumbling around them.  Only one child sustained an injury to her hip.   It was hard to find medical treatment for her but they finally did a few days later.  Another American missionary took them in – Mike, Andrea, the  children and staff.  

Back home in the U.S., we heard on the news about the earthquake.  We waited anxiously for word from Andrea and Mike that they and the children had survived.  We knew it might be days.   Then we heard that some people were getting out word to their families in the U.S. through Facebook.  Andrea’s sister and I monitored Facebook constantly.  Finally we got the message we were waiting for:  “We are all OK.”
What happened next is God’s great and mighty hand at work.  It has been an unbelievably difficult year for them, but also a year of miracles.  There are too many stories of needs being supplied from the most unlikely sources to list them here.  From the ruins of the earthquake, an orphanage is being built from the ground up.  It will be a place that children can grow and thrive and someday become the adults who will work to make Haiti a good place to live.  The hands to do the work and financial support are coming from many people across the U.S. through mission teams and donations.  There are people involved who did not know about Mike and Andrea prior to the earthquake.  It has taken our breath away as we watch this miracle unfold before our very eyes and see our God at work.  Sometimes He moves in mysterious ways and sometimes in obvious ways.   They now have 26 children and will add more when the orphanage is finished and they move in sometime this coming summer.  

Although the odds seem against them making a significant difference, Andrea and Mike know that the way to help is one person at a time.  They have seen starving children become thriving children who are now in school and have a hope for the future.  They have seen people respond to the word of God and accept Jesus' salvation.  They have seen people completely turn around their lives after salvation.  They have seen the hope in a hopeless situation that can only be put there by God’s great and mighty hand and the salvation and love of His son Jesus Christ.  
If you would like to learn more about Andrea and Mike Brewer’s ministry in Haiti, go to www.ReachHaiti.com.   I am so proud of them and grateful to each person who has contributed to their efforts and ministry in Haiti.  And most of all, I thank God for each and every blessing He has sent their way.  What a year these newlyweds have had!

One year ago the earthquake in Haiti happened, but also an earthquake in my soul. I had been to Haiti two years before with a medical team and when I left never really honestly knew if I would go back. When the earthquake happened it was automatic for me to say "Im going."
We did not go until Febuary and my husband and children were very supportive of myself and a PA going to do our mission group. Even in the WORST of conditions God was always in charge in Haiti. I experienced things that many 26 yr olds never will. As a fairly new RN I was able to work with nurses and doctors from all over the world in a natural disaster, feed and comfort children and adults. For many of them all they had left was a box and there they sat singing prasises to God. If anyone goes to Haiti and comes back not humble and thankful for the blessings we have here in the US, there is something wrong. An example is here my own children would fight over the last piece of bread, in Haiti a child wont take a bite until he shares with two others. God has put us all in our places for a reason, we all follow different paths but we all esentually help or bring each other back to the path of a faith driven and Christ like life. Disaster or not.

Hi my name is Jordan and I am from Lubbock Texas. I am a single mom and last year my older children heard about Haiti and were really impacted by this. My 9 year old became a Christian this summer and has been praying every day since for the people suffering. We listen to klove every morning and it is so wonderful the lessons my growing children learn. My daughter now is so very interested in helping people and said she wishes we could go to Haiti to help. Being a single mom it is so hard in this society to feel like you are doing things right with your kids. Heading the wow God stories is so amazing and inspiring and uplifting. I am amazed to hear all the love from people. Hearing stories like Eric's and knowing there are men out there like Eric I know that I can raise my son to be like. It gives me hope. Although I haven't been to Haiti to help I used it as a lesson for my kids and we donated 600 to help and that was part of their fun money that we used to help those people. If it wasn't for klove and the
wonderful people that call in with their stories I
would not know where I would be. Me and my kids are still praying for and giving to the people of Haiti. Although it was a tragic thing it has taught my children to give and to pray for others and that to me is such a blessing. Thank you for all of the amazing stories and for the hope that the people give. It definitely makes me want to be a better person.
Prayers and blessings
Jordan

My WOW God story is not about Hati but about the shooting in Arizona this past weekend.  Seven years ago my sister was shot in the head point blank range in a workplace shooting. She lived and is thriving. On Saturday, her family hoped that there was something that they could do to help the families in Arizona. Well, to make a long story short. She was contacted by both Fox news and ABC news to do an interview to encourage them families. They were showed on the local news yesterday and are scheduled to be shown on the national news. Check out the link http://www.ksat.com/video/26460394/index.html

One Year Later: Remembering Haiti, http://bit.ly/fOW43B
So tragic, R.I.P