Cite Soleil

July 5^th 2016 – Today was our second day in Haiti and boy was it hot! We started off our morning with breakfast (fresh mangoes, French toast, oatmeal, pancakes and eggs) followed by circle time to prep ourselves for the day ahead. After closing in prayer, we loaded up into the tap-tap (a brightly colored truck that is enclosed in the back and serves as our mode of transportation)! Once out, we visited three different districts of Cite Soleil, delivering water to each of them. At each stop, we were greeted by chants of “Hey you!” and warm hugs from all the children. At our first stop, we were able to witness one of the wonderful opportunities Healing Haiti has created by visiting the new church and school that has been built on what used to be a waste filled lot. It is so amazing to learn about how those here worship and love God despite living in such poor conditions. It is truly inspirational.

We've been having some trouble with the internet - but pictures of our day will be posted shortly!!

- Caitlyn  

We Arrived!

July 4^th 2016 – We arrived safely in Haiti! After a long day of traveling from Chicago and Minneapolis, we met most of the team in Miami, ready to start this adventure as a group. After a 90-minute plane ride, we finally arrived in Port-au-Prince! We were greeted at the airport by a wonderful band, friendly smiles and warm welcomes by all of those around us. Around 3 p.m. we arrived at the guest house where we met another team member. We decided to utilize our time before dinner for playing soccer with the neighborhood kids, and boy were they amazing athletes! While we started off ahead in points, the ending score resulted in them winning by a long shot. What we lacked in skill, we made up for in effort!  

Dinner, made by our amazing hosts, was shepherd’s pie and pepper salad, and needless to say, there were absolutely no leftovers by the time we were done! We closed off our evening in some processing time and word of the day. “Blessed”, “Content”, “Excited”, and “Home” were some of the amazing things that we were all feeling after arriving to our new home for the next 8 days. At the end of the evening our two final team members from Atlanta arrived. Our team was now complete with a total of 19 goers! Full of anticipation, and exhaustion, we felt prepared and ready to start our first day in the field delivering water. 

-Caitlyn 

A Day full of Beauty in Haiti

Our day in Monfort

        Our day began as always with the delightful tastes and smells originating from the house kitchen and Russ' tunes blasting throughout the halls into our dorms. After breakfast and our usual ritual of smothering our skin in bug and sun screen we were off riding in the reliable transport truck known as "the tap tap" with our Hati

ian translator and friend "Valerie" at the wheel.  A ride through Port-au-Prince is always interesting to say the least and their one was no exception, driving in haiti can best be described as organized chaos where there are no true written rules to follow but it seems to work for them. As we drove we witnessed burning trash, stray cows, endless salesmen, some of Haiti's breath taking landscapes with huge mountains, and most interesting to me, A few armed U.N peace keepers patrolling the streets. When we first arrived to the dirt road leading to the Monfort Institute for the deaf children of Haiti we where greeted with the usual 10 foot wall with barbed wire and a metal gate. When the tap tap entered we drove down a narrow path with plenty of bumps and trees to scratch the side of our beloved tap tap, after we continued like this for a good three minutes we found ourselves in what almost looked like a small village. Once the tap tap came to a halt we where all told that we would be meeting and playing bingo with some of the (deaf) kids. I was given a suitcase filled with bingo prizes and goodies that weighed a good 25 pounds, I carried it out to a small concrete wall under a tree while we waited for our other translator "Emanuel" to get one of the Staff so we could begin our tour and most importantly Bingo. About Twenty minutes passed before A Haitian woman dressed in white appeared accompanied by four kids, three girls and one boy between the ages of 4 and 10. I do not think I have ever seen a group of kids so happy and excited to see us this entire week, with is understandable because the sad truth is that the deaf population of Haiti is looked down upon and neglected. After we became aquatinted with the sister and the children, we began a tour of the facility. After the tour some of us regrouped in the tap tap for some snacks and water. Ten minutes had pasted before Jon number two, better known as Jon Hayes joined the three of us (Austin, Micah, Chris) with some sandwiches he had received from the cook when he had peeked his head in the kitchen, he offered one to me so of course I tried it and it was really good even though we had no idea what kind of meat was used to make the sandwich! Then we did bingo and it was great - Austin

A Water Filled Day

          The group took the tap-tap down the windy roads kicking up dust down to a town called Cite Soleil which is one of the poorest communities in the country. The houses are made primarily by whatever they can find out of the rubbish on the ground, or things that they grab out of the sewer before someone else desperately wants it. We pulled up and our tap-tap driver named Brunei honked the horn a couple of times throughout driving the couple blocks that we did. Almost immediately we saw kids and women running up to the truck with buckets to fill with water or just to touch our hands. As we opened the door to the back of the caged truck all we heard was, "hey you!" or, "potem," which means pick me up in Creole. Over the course of 30 minutes to an hour depending on how chaotic people got we would try to manage the hundreds of people with their buckets and fill them up to the brim with water out of a water truck that we had to follow into the city. The joy on these kids faces as soon as we picked them up or danced with them or even just gave them a little splash of water was outstanding. We stopped at three cities over the course of the day and we were exhausted!! We had an amazing time filling up buckets and buckets of water or carrying them into the tiny allies leading from slum to slum. Here is a picture of the joy that is on this little girls face to have a bucket of water.
     
               -Hunter

June 28th, 2016

Hello friends and family!

Today was our first full day experiencing the culture here in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. The trash filled streets; the lack of traffic rules; five people to a motorcycle and the joy that these people have about them.
We were up and out of the guest house by 9:00am this morning and headed off to the home for the sick and dying. There we were able to hold, play and feed these kiddos for 3 hours or so. We traveled back to the guesthouse at lunch time and ate a quick lunch/snack before heading back out to visit an organization called Rebuild Globally, where they make sandals, tote bags etc.. The group then traveled to La Phare orphanage where we were greeted with smiles and hugs! We taught these kids how to play bingo and they taught us how to jump rope to their standards! We clearly were not as skilled as they were.
The team ended the day with a dip in the neighborhood pool and a devotional/share time in the cozy guest house.

I would love to share the thoughts and feelings that I felt throughout the day with you all!
As we began our day at the home for the sick and dying, I quickly learned the impact of a simple touch, hand hold and smile. I think we stray away from physical touch back in the states and take that for granted. Here in Haiti, all these kids want is to feel loved, and that is through our physical touch. It did not matter to them that I was a complete stranger, let alone a completely different color from them. All they cared about was that I held them and showed them love. It breaks my heart to know that they are so desperate for physical touch and lack the healthy amount. There was a little boy who I instantly bonded with in the beginning. He was funny, energetic, and did not want to leave my arms. Heck every kid I held did not want to be put down. Leaving these kiddos after several hours was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. When would they get to be held next? Who would give them enough water? I felt so helpless knowing that I probably would never see them again. And yet it brought a smile to my face every time a child smiled or showed ME love!

Driving around Haiti and seeing the poverty leaves me feeling very helpless and makes me feel like there is no hope for a better life for the people of Haiti. Visiting the organization of Rebuild Globally showed me that there is hope and that these men and women are making steps toward a better lifestyle and as we learned today, they are getting "wants" vs only "needs".

We finished the day out at another orphanage that was a completely different experience. We were with older kids and the interactions were totally different. I got to joke around with three teenage boys, and sit and play bingo with three different boys between the ages of 7-10. The amount of laughter, joy and curiosity is amazing and so uplifting! To get to interact with these kids and communicate with them as much as we could with our language barrier, was so fun, satisfying and gave me extreme hope that these kids are happy and are going to be okay!

I look at these Haitian's lifestyles and am shocked at how they live, where they live and how they go about their day with a smile. But why am I? They aren't shocked or unsure of their lives. That's all they've ever known and today was my day to try to learn and adapt to that mind set. They WILL be okay and ARE okay.
How you may ask? Because of their endless hope, their endless love for their country and community and our Lord and Savior.

We'll talk to you all tomorrow!
Much love from the team and I,

Hannah Hayes

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT???? LET YOUR FAITH LEAD YOU ... NOT YOUR FEAR!

June 27th 6:15 pm— Marin Ryan and Alaina Gacek

Day 7… Can you believe it?!

This morning we woke up at the normal time. Most of the adults went to bed while some of the kids stayed up late laughing. The cause of the laughter was funny creole words found in the book Creole Made Easy (for citational integrity) and a video of Michelle Obama saying “Sweet Potato” (it doesn't sound that funny, but feel free to look up the video). After waking up, people continued to pack up. We then met for breakfast at 8 as usual. We ate french toast, eggs, and oatmeal. We had eaten this meal before but it hadn't lost its appeal. Then everyone finished there packing and some played cards and others chilled on the couch because there was plenty of time between breakfast and the time to leave for the airport. When it became time to leave, everyone started to move outside to gather for the tap taps and put shoes on. It was hard for some and harder for others to leave the guesthouse.  We would all miss this place dearly. We gathered in two pick-up trucks and a tap tap because one tap tap was broken. I was able to snag a spot in the back of the truck and saw the city from a different perspective. How often do you get to buzz around a busy city in the back of a truck? You have to take advantage of those opportunities! You are so close to the other cars and motorcycles whizzing past you. To put it in perspective, you would probably lose a hand if you stuck your hand out of the side of the bed of the truck. We arrived at the airport and began to hug our drivers goodbye. They were so funny and giving to us all week. They deserve endless thanks. It gets a little difficult trying to maneuver 28 people though the airport but we managed. It was a little slow getting through but we finally boarded the plane. The views on the flight to Miami was jaw dropping. We passed over many islands and bright blue waters. You could watch out your window the entire flight and not get bored. We landed in Miami around 3pm and waited in a bunch of lines after that to get through customs and all that jazz. I am sitting writing at the gate with one hour left of our five hour layover. See you soon Minnesota!

-Marin

“Let your faith lead you, not your fear.” 

We explain to people that we are going to Haiti to be the hands and feet of Jesus, and I don’t think people fully realize that what they are saying really means until they are put into an uncomfortable situation and do not know what to do. The quote that I put above had significance for this team because I felt that every single person on this team, new or veterans, would be pushed out of their comfort zone during the trip. For me, my daily life in Minnesota is very comfortable and safe, and I feel that this is true for a lot of people. We were all called in some way to go on this mission trip together. Every single person pushed their fear of the unknown aside, and just let God guide them in their faith. That feeling of knowing that God was going to protect and lead us in our ministry is an amazing feeling. To know that we are supposed to be in that spot, holding that child, and just being in the moment, you can’t help but feel God’s presence. Living in the moment is so important. We often forget when we get in a routine and just go through the motions. Haiti has made me realize that it’s okay to not think about what is going to happen in the future or tomorrow or even later in the day. In Haiti, literally we could have a plan for the day, and in an hour we could have a completely different plan. Why worry about what you are doing later when you have right now to enjoy? Once I got that into my head, I think I was able to fully appreciate everything I did. I remember holding a sweet sleeping baby, taking care of a young boy’s foot when he got cut by glass, learning Creole from seven year old Jameson, having a conversation with a girl about my age in Spanish because we figured out we were both fluent. Literally that list could go on and on. 

Yesterday at church, one of the songs and then the talk that the pastor gave after was about rising up. We were asked that no matter how long it takes, no matter what it takes, if we would rise up and serve the Lord. I was very happy that this was the message since it was the end of our week. We all had been trying to figure out all week how we would serve the Lord each day. For me personally, I have struggled this past year with figuring out what my purpose is and how I am supposed to serve. With the stress and distraction of my first year of college, I felt like I was lost. This trip was like God was trying to show me what my path is in life. I am here on Earth to serve people and to serve Him. I am here to be a voice for those that cannot advocate for themselves. I am here to love everyone, no matter what their path in life is. And finally, I am here to provide hope for the hopeless even when I feel hopeless myself. That is why Healing Haiti is so important. Hope. Sure, we don’t change everything that is wrong or broken in Haiti when we go down there. What we do is provide hope on a daily basis to those who need it. Hope is one of the most powerful things in the world and everyone needs it. Without hope, these people in Haiti will lose their purpose in the world. Hope is how I believe Haiti can be healed, and I am so excited to be apart of this amazing ministry. Every little thing or action we did this week had an impact on someone, whether it was someone from Haiti, someone on the team, the staff, or even on ourselves. Each impact provided a little bit of hope for that person for whatever they are struggling with in their life. With a little hope and a lot of faith, I know we can all find our path in this crazy world and learn how we are supposed to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.”

Romans 12:12

-Alaina Gacek