1/26 Day 7

Gina:

Hello all, well it here it is our last night in Haiti.  We are happy to be heading home, but saddened to leave ours friends, our brothers and sisters. 

Sometime I can’t find the words to say what my heart really feels. This year things are different, the words to the following poem came to me, so I thought I would share them with you.

 

Hope Springs Eternal in Haiti

Hope springs eternal in Haiti from the school kids on the street,

To the taptap’s gospel beat .

Hope springs eternal in Haiti from the mountains high

To the ocean’s side.

Hope springs eternal in Haiti from the Bible’s search

To the funky white Haitian church.

Hope springs eternal in Haiti from the valleys and countryside

To the lakes, streams, and hitches running wide.

Hope springs eternal in Haiti

From the Hearts

The Arts, and

The Marks of grace left by Christ , until all peoples see his face again.

 

Hope, Hope in his face

Hope, Hope in his grace

Hope, Hope in his love

 

Hope springs eternal in Haiti,

When our team gels and fits like a glove.

Hope springs eternal in Haiti,

When we see Christ in a baby’s face.

Hope springs eternal when he uses our talents in this

New and exciting place.

 

Hope springs eternal in Haiti,

When God’s voice is calling.

Hope springs eternal in Haiti,

When God’s love is soaring,

                                 Is pouring,

                                 Is filling,

Our hearts with faith to return to Haiti again.

 

Peace & Blessings,
Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

1/24 Day 5

Ginger:  

Matthew 25:35-36  “for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.”

On our way to Balan, we stopped at VOH to pick up one of the Doctors at the clinic and there, we met Raymond. Raymond was two weeks old and was brought into the clinic by his neighbor, to get some formula and other necessities. Most of us had a chance to hold Raymond and even feed him. Raymond captured our hearts along with his new care taker; you see, Raymond’s mother had died the day before from a heart attack and now the neighbor was his new family.

As we drew closer to the village of Balan and passed the child playing with a handmade pull toy made from a string and an oil can, with wheels made from plastic bottle caps and a woman bathing in a stream of water while another was washing clothes in the same stream, we realized that this scripture was never going to be truer than today. Waiting inside their church were 105 children who mostly had never seen a “blanc” person before. Evens, our interpreter, greeted the children with songs and praise as each team member introduced themselves with, “our you ready to know me?” Gina read the story of Jacob’s Ladder to the children while Evens interpreted.  Pastor Dave lead the children in some music and much to his surprise, they knew a song he thought he was going to ‘teach’ them. He continued the message of Jacob’s Ladder and that “God makes his home in us”.  We divided the children up into two groups at this point, boys and girls and while the girls put together a Jacob’s Ladder craft, the boys went outside and played soccer, duck-duck goose and also played several different games with a parachute and then the groups switched.

After the activities, we gathered back in the church where the pastor blessed the peanut butter sandwiches that were to be handed out to the children; for most of the children, this would be their only food for the day and in some cases, a couple of days.

As we prepared to leave, the children lined up and were handed a gallon size zip lock bag full of some snacks and small toys.

On our return to VOH to drop off the doctor, some had an opportunity to participate in a soccer game with some of the children while others we able to talk to some of the older students, with the help of an interpreter of course.

Once back at Hope House, there were projects waiting to be finished and a delicious soup dinner with fresh fruit, salad and bread.

As we do every night, we reflected on the day and shared our thoughts and closed out in prayer and then had our nightly game of UNO before turning in.

Thank you to all who have continued to pray for our team and blessed us with all the donations, without you all, we could not be the hands and feet of our LORD so, we thank you and may God continue to bless you.

Peace & Blessings,
Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

1/23 Day 4

Mike:

Today was our earliest start yet! We were in the vans and on the way by 7am to head towards the Village of Hope School (VOH) compound. When we arrived, we were greeted by ‘The Parade of Cute,’ as our host Rob says. The 3-year-old, 4-year-old, and 5-year-old kindergarten classes greeted us and welcomed us with songs and games!

We then spent time with the 3^rd grade level students playing games with them yet more importantly we told the bible story of Daniel and the Lions Den and made a take home craft about the story. It was great fun to lead this craft with them.

We even got to have lunch with the students which was a delicious creole dish of fish and rice. It was quite amazing to learn that their lunch meals are fortified with Mana Packs from Feed My Starving Children! I have packed with Feed My Starving Children several times before and never thought I’d find myself eating what I’ve packed.

Our afternoon was spent connecting 44 newly refurbished computers for VOH’s brand new computer lab for their students. This lab will be such a great benefit for the students of VOH. There is a vision that this lab will be able to stimulate learning and growth far beyond the just the VOH students. We then hiked up to the highest point of the VOH property for some spectacular views of the Haitian countryside. A truly breathtaking view!

Our evenings have been times of fun and fellowship as we enjoy cold beverages and story telling around the dinner table. We then finish our evenings with devotions which for tonight was spent packing roughly 150 peanut butter sandwiches for our remote village VBS tomorrow!

Peace & Blessings,

Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

1/25 Day 6

Jeff:

Today we had the amazing opportunity to visit Little Children of Jesus (LCJ).  At this facility campus we were able to spend time with the Brothers (who are from Africa serving in Haiti) who are caring for the disabled children.  To put things in perspective, locals have told us that Haiti may be one of the most rejected countries in the world and the children who are left at the door steps of LCJ are rejected by the local Haitians.  But the Jesus says in the Bible “what you have done to the least of these you have done to me.”  It was amazing to see how happy these children are even among such challenging conditions and to see how the staff are doing such a fantastic job with the limited resources.  My prayer is for these children to continue to be loved and cared for by the Brothers and others who are able to serve here. 

Breakfast and lunch meals are simple, fruit, granola bars and peanut butter sandwiches.  Dinner was a local meal prepared for us by local employees who come to the Hope House.  They prepared meatballs and local rice pilof (beats, onions, seasoning, rice) with a salad, local bread and a dessert with carrots and jello?  It was delicious and I am so pleased how well we are eating.
  

We finished the day with group devotions and playing Uno/cards.  The devotions were special as we shared how we felt about being present at LCJ today.  Each of us have different feelings and comfort levels being around disabled children.  It was a blessing to see Caleb, who shared he is not comfortable being around these kind of things, playing with the kids and doing exercises and stretches with the children who have contractures and need positioning in order to prevent skin breakdown.  It was enlightening to also hear others share how deep and moved we are from being around these precious children of God, they are important and being a part of caring for them, even for a day, is part of God’s plan.  Good night and be blessed.

Peace & Blessings,

Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

1/22 – Day 3:

Lynn:

A little change of plans for today. We were going to be headed to the Little Children of Jesus Orphanage today, but they were having a medical team come in for assessments and healthcare, and we would have been a distraction for all of the kids! So, we decided to make today our Hope House work day instead and it has been a flurry of activity. As soon as lunch was over, the painting began. The guest houses are now a bright and colorful yellow and aqua. A new bathroom vanity has been built and installed, screen doors replaced, screens themselves replaced throughout the kitchen and common space. So much has been accomplished and it really looks quite great. Several of the local Village of Hope employees were also working today and it has been a joy to work along side them and get to know them as well.

It was nice being able to love on Rob and Trish and showing some love to Hope House.  It is so nice being a part of this team as we have been working so well together and having a great time.  We are gelling nicely together and really creating many great memories to last a lifetime!  After the day of work, we had a very good dinner which consisted of Haitian chicken, djon djon rice, milton squash, salad and some fresh mangos.  Yum Yum!!  After dinner, I was surprised with a homemade card and a Haitian cake to celebrate my birthday!  This was such a surprise and much appreciated!  Thank you to all of you!  It sure made my day.  We wrapped up the day playing many games of Uno.  Off to bed we went since we have an early start to the day so that we can see all the children at Village of Hope!  What a great day that will be!!!  Good night all!  Thank you for the prayers while we are here!  Its been another great experience!!!

Peace & Love,

Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

 

You can also check out some great photos of our team from the Village of Hope Facebook Page!

 Check it out here: https://www.facebook.com/Village-of-Hope-Haiti-814928685280131/

 

1/21 – Day 2:

Pastor Dave:

Its our first full day and first overnight here at the Hope House Compound. It has been incredible thus far to observe and drink in all the that Haiti has to offer. For this first timer to Haiti, there wasn’t much in the least that was familiar once we touched down in the Port au Prince airport. But familiarity isn’t the experience I was hoping to have. There is a rhythm and a flow to life here that works and makes sense from traffic to commerce to social life.

Being that our first full day in Haiti is a Sunday, we all went to church. For myself, it was a unique experience just being a parishioner and not a worship leader! Unlike years past, we went to Port au Prince Fellowship, which is an English-speaking congregation for worship service. There was wide variety of people present from Haitians, to other American live-in missionaries. And wouldn’t you know it, there is much that you all would be familiar with from the Joyful Spirit worship experience. All of the music was lead by a wonderful praise band. Much music was sung jubilantly, and a living Word was heard by all.

After worship Rob & Trish (our in-country mission administrators and wonderful hosts) took us to one of their favorite restaurants for lunch. Now this lunch spot is one of the places they frequent for when they are wanting a bit of an ‘American Fix.’ The restaurant is located in a complex that houses the majority of temporary in-country government workers. To their credit, it was delicious!

After lunch we came back to Hope House and got started on some of the work projects around the compound. Some of my This Old House viewing come into good practice! I changed out the three drains in each of the kitchen sinks.

Our day rounded out with dinner, fellowship, devotions and even a euchre game or two. And now, time for rest and sleep to be ready again for tomorrow!

Peace & Love,
Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

1/20 – Day 1:

Steve:

Our first day. The airport experience was better than expected. Under an hour, from the Immigration to the “finding Bags, to very helpful Porters. We were loaded and ready to go.

Along the way I noticed a lot of improvements to roads and housing. It has looked better than I was fearful of. Has my years of coming to Haiti actually helped?

So far – so good. Waiting for tomorrows journeys through the landscape.

Peace & Love,
Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

Hello Everybody! We have made it safely to Haiti and to the Village of Hope compound. We're looking forward to getting everything started tomorrow. Stay tuned everyone!

Peace & Love
2018 Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

Almost Ready!

January 17, 2018

The team has been busy gathering donations and packing. They are all set to depart on Saturday (1/20/18). Thank you for your generosity and support as we prepare for this incredible experience! We could not do it without your support. Please pray for the team's safety and that we can be His hands and feet to those in need.

Peace & Love
2018 Joyful Spirit Haiti Team

Last Day... Let Us Praise!

So, our time here is coming to a close.  What a bittersweet moment!  While we are all anxious to see our loved ones back home, leaving Haiti is hard.  The women took a final trip to Missionary for the Poor, and spent the day loving on the wonderful residents there.  Gina helped David (a resident with CP) write letters, Sara and Francy performed massage and myofascial release on almost all the residents, and Meghan and Trish took the residents for walks.  The men did phenomenal work at the Village of Hope School.  They finished the ceiling, and started and completed the vestibule.  It is honestly astounding the amount of work they managed to complete!  As this is our last night, following this summary, we are all going to take a moment to reflect on our week.

Meghan

I have said it over and over this trip, but I am going to say it again… this trip was such a blessing.  Thank you to everyone who supported us spending our time here.  Arriving at the orphanage was overwhelmingly emotional, but once I got my wits about me, it was hard to leave.  Honestly, leaving it today was almost as overwhelming as arriving.  It was so hard to say good bye.  But, hopefully we will all be seeing each other again soon!

George

This has been my second trip to Haiti, and I continue to be amazed by the spirit of the Haitian people. Although they have been subjected to poverty and lack of necessities due to their corrupt government, they live joyous and productive Christian lives. Their positive attitudes and smiling faces are an inspiration to me. I will always remember this trip and will strive to keep the plight of the Haitian People in my heart and soul.

Sara

This was my first trip to Haiti, and I was immediately struck by the natural beauty of the country-the hills and beautiful trees and plants.  I have met so many wonderful people-our missionary hosts, members of the team from Purdue, and the orphans at Missionaries of the Poor who stole my heart. We worked hard and accomplished a lot, but there is still so much left to be done and so many people in need. I am definitely hooked, and I’ll be looking for my next opportunity to return!  

Jim Cantrell (Jimmy)

We took our project to the point where we could not continue (building out the computer lab.). We framed and installed the ceiling as well as installing the lights. We also installed the new door, framed in and walls installed. A very good week.

Jim Culp

I have been so blessed on this trip; from seeing another culture and comparing it to how I live, is just so unbelievable.  I have been reminded time and time again how blessed I am.  At graduation, the kids reaching out and wanting to grab and hold on, and how well behaved they were, was so touching.  I feel blessed by my parents that they gave me the traits that helped me serve God.  I thank God for giving me the opportunity to come here and pay forward a small portion of what I have been given.  I pray that what I have done here will benefit the people of Haiti.  As in my other mission trips, I will be leaving part of my heart here.

Gina

Wow, where do I start, to say my heart is moved every time I’m here is an understatement!!!  What strikes me and leaves me in amazement every time, is the progress I see.  Yes, I said progress!  From a group of 40 kids meeting under a tree, to a student body of 651, receiving a formal education, and a Christian education no less. This is only possible by God’s grace and the support of many, many, many people.  To think that Joyful Spirit is just one team in this network of teams.  Wow, that is the body of Christ working together! I hope and pray that a many people as possible that read this blog, or hear of Village of Hope will join us, in serving Our God, in such a meaningful and amazing way.

Francy

On my second trip to Haiti and the Village of Hope I felt the spirit of Christ Jesus with me constantly, from the time we arrived, to the work we were privileged to do in the orphanage, the school and exceptional graduation event with wonderful music and dances performed by the children ages 3 to 5 to the hosts and staff here at Hope House. I have been blessed working with a great team and thank all who prayed for us back home.

Danny

This is my first trip to Haiti, the Village of Hope, the School, Medical Center, and the Orphanage.
What a blessing it has been to get to serve here with the Joyful Spirit team. What an impact these beautiful Haitians have made on me; it has been a life changing experience. Rob and Trish Low are the best hosts! They have taken care of the team and they are both such a Godsend to us and to Haiti. Thanks for your prayers.

Steve

My third trip to the sunny dusty island of Haiti. Another great week of construction / building maintenance, to improve the high school and the new computer room. Hopefully, by the grace of God, my blessings to a group of wonderful folks, or my extended family, has helped.

Gene

On the way down I was seated with two young ladies that were on their first trip to Haiti and were dumfounded when they asked if I have been here before and I said yes, this was my 14^th year. They asked what was my best advice and I said do not be surprised by anything you see, hear or experience. I have been thinking about that answer all week and realize the better answer would have been to embrace every experience, that is how you grow in life and in faith. The folks we interact with remind us that it is not what you have but what you do with what you have is how your life will be defined.   

 

The Magnificent Purdue Team!

This trip we were greatly blessed by the addition of three wonderful individuals from Purdue, Bill Larson (also a member of the Board of Directors), Dr. Bob (an engineering professor ) and Claire (a graduate student of engineering).  They were here to survey and soil sample the dozens of acres that Village of Hope owns out at the Village of Hope School.  The long term goal is to move Hope House out to this land, and also to plant large gardens and orchards, as well as raise chickens.  This would make the overall operations for Village of Home much more streamlined and efficient.  It would cut out a lot of travel time, and allow for some revenue to be generated by renting out the current Hope House.  The gardens, orchards, and chickens would also allow for real world application learning with the students.  Bill, Dr. Bob, and Claire accomplished an astonishing amount of ground work while they were here to make this dream a reality, and we were so lucky to have them!

Big Man on Campus... TORO

Introducing the big man on campus here at Village of Hope... TORO!

Toro's many talents include fitting his 40 lb. body onto anybody's lap, cleaning out peanut butter jars, tearing apart soccer balls until they are unrecognizable, and gracing us with an abundance of St. Bernardish drool.  He greets us every morning, and every evening when we get home.  Life here wouldn't be the same without him!

 

 

Day Five... Feeling Alive!

Today was an incredible day!  The kindergarten students at Village of Hope School had their graduation ceremony.  It was a two hour program, and consisted of about twenty songs, dances, and skits.  The 3 year olds through 1st grade students performed every part by memory.  They sang and danced their sweet hearts out!  The theme of the program was the environment, and all of our hearts just melted when two little kids walked out dressed as trees.  All of the decorations were made out of recycled plastic bottles and really showcased the students creativity.  After the program, one of the family members borrowed Danny's guitar and taught us the Creole version of "Awesome God."  Then, the men continued working on the ceiling, and the women cleaned one of the offices and started painting it.  The men will complete the painting project tomorrow because the women are headed back over to the orphanage.  Once our work was completed for the day, we were treated to a trip to the metal working village.  The artistry displayed was truly one of a kind!  Overall, it was a great mixture of work and Haitian culture today.

 

 

 

 

 

Day Four... Give us more!

Today was a wonderful day.  It was the last full day at Village of Hope School, so we all piled into the van and headed out to serve the students lunch.  Upon arriving, we had some time before the first round of lunch, so we got a tour of the school and the medical clinic.  Going through the classrooms, particularly the rooms with the younger kids, was so much fun!  The teachers have complete order in their rooms, and the students are learning quite advanced curriculum, and yet there are forty kids in a classroom, and no technology.  It is amazing what they accomplish.  The students were just as sweet as can be, and greeted us with the biggest smiles and boisterous high fives.   We then headed over to the medical clinic and got a tour there, as well.  It is a beautiful building with a triage, pharmacy, dental clinic (that runs once a week), nutrition program, and the start of an optomology clinic.  They also run a malnutrition program every Tuesday, so we got to see some sweet babies today as well.  There have been low crops the last few years, so the nutrition program is vital for the young children and pregnant and/or nursing mommas to thrive.  After the tours, it was time to start serving the meal.  The first round of classes atge at 9:30 and we served the meal through about 1:30. It was great seeing all of the students come through the cafeteria.  As it was the last day of school, they got a special treat of chicken with their rice and beans.  Once we were done serving the meal, we split up, with some continuing to work on the ceiling for the computer lab from the day before, and others sorting medications at the medical clinic.  On our way home from Village of Hope, we stopped by the Missionary of the Poor to say high to our friends from yesterday, and to give a tour to some of us on the trip that will not have an opportunity to serve there on Thursday.  All in all, it was a fantastic day, and we are looking forward to the Kindergarten Graduation tomorrow!

 

Day Three... Yippee!

Today we woke up anxious to jump into our work assignments.  The women, Trish, Gina, Meghan, Sara and Francy, went to the Missionary for the Poor, and the men, Jim, Jim, Gene, Steve, Danny, George, and Rob we to the Village of Hope School to complete a ceiling in their new computer lab. 

Last night during our project meetings, the women specifically were asked to pray for an opportunity to work hands on with the residents at Missionary for the Poor.  There had been a change in leadership there, and with that change came a shift in philosophy regarding how much hands on support the residents should receive.  As we all felt strongly called to love on these residents, we prayed fiercely for an opportunity to work directly with them.  Upon arriving at the Mission, there was new leadership (unbeknownst to us) and he was incredibly open to how we wanted to serve, and allowed us to move freely among the mission.  It was an incredible experience, and one we are all so blessed to have experienced.

At the school, the men were drilling holes in concrete holes that had stone masonry behind the concrete.  This presented a significant challenge, but they managed to pull together, and framed the headers into the masonry and stone walls.  This prepares them to put up the ceiling joists and paneling.  They are on schedule, and excited to jump back into their project tomorrow.

Please continue praying for our team and the people of Haiti.

Day Two, Yahoo!

We had a relaxing morning eating breakfast and visiting with one another.  Around 9:30 we piled into the van and embarked on the one hour drive to the American Haitian Church - Port Au Prince Fellowship.  The church was incredibly welcoming, and had a wonderfully talented band and pastor.  The pastor spoke on being open to the divine timing in our lives, and taught us a three part prayer centered on being open to his calling – Be open to his calling, open your mouth, and open the ears others.  After an almost two hour church service, we headed to lunch at the Observetoire.  It was a beautiful restaurant up in the hills and was also attached to a small marketplace.  Haitian culture treats meals a bit differently that American culture, and we ended up spending about 3-3.5 hours at lunch.  Upon our return to the Village of Hope, some of the men fixed one of the broken picnic tables, and we unpacked some of the school supplies we brought.  Tomorrow will be an early morning as we head to our projects.  Some of us will be spending the day at the Missionary of the Poor orphanage (previously Little Children of Jesus) and others will be going to the Village of Hope School to help build a computer lab for the students.  We are all so excited to start our work!

 

 On the patio at Observatoire

 Looking down on Port Au Prince

 Working on the picnic table

We have arrived!

We have arrived!  After meeting at Gene’s at 4:30 AM, we arrived at O’Hare without a hitch.  After a quick breakfast in the airport food court, we had a lovely flight into Ft. Lauderdale.  Thanks to a short delay with our first flight, we did an almost complete turnaround back onto our plane and headed into Port Au Prince, Haiti.  Upon landing, we were greeted by our friends Populer, Lucine, and Rob (who is stationed here from the States with his wife Trish).  Our ride into the mission’s compound was a great sight-seeing opportunity as we were driving through down town during their market day.  After settling into our rooms, we were treated to a delicious dinner made by Trish and finished up with a Bible Study led by Francy. 

We are all so looking forward to the work we will be doing this week, and are anxious to see how our gifts will be used and what gifts we will discover. 

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:1

Almost Ready!

The 2016 Haiti Team would like to thank you for your prayers, donations and support as we prepare to depart on Saturday (6/18)! Your generosity has allowed us to pack a large quantity of needed items for the people of Haiti. It has also allowed us to obtain supplies for our projects that we will complete while there. Please follow the blog to join us in this journey!

And We're Off To The Airport!

Changed

It is Thursday night. We have celebrated communion after our devotions and have had some time of reflection while considering the logistics of packing so we can be on the road to the airport at six AM.

The work was sometimes difficult but the spirit of those we came to serve, the Haitians, kept us focused. Time and again, at the school, the orphanage, at worship service and even moving the streets, each of us were captivated with the interminable spirit of the Haitians.

There is much beauty here, however, it is difficult to miss in the dust, the garbage and the difficulties associated with survival here in the densely populated urban area. Somehow, people are friendly and even joyful in their expression. It came through powerfully in the service last Sunday and it carried us through our week in many ways. Francy read a verse (Romans 5:5) during her devotion just last night that explained the impression. Looking difficulty in the eye when you need to sustain personal peace enough to make the next move and go forward, we should see not the disabled child or the possibility of disease. We must know we are looking into the eyes of Christ. We should then find the certainty that we will be sustained.

We are soon to be home again to our families and loved ones. We look forward to returning to our lives but we look forward most to living changed by this experience. May God give us the power to live the lessons learned here in Haiti. We want all to know that this inspirational trip is one we are ready to share.

Greg Paulsen