NEWS FROM NORA

Communiqué #081

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 June 12, 2010

Ahhhhh!   My return to Haiti! (My first time to see Port-au-Prince, since the earthquake.  My first time to come to Haiti to an unknown living arrangement.)

I had wondered what my first impressions of Port-au-Prince would be!  The very first thing that struck me was what I saw when the plane was coming in for a landing.  Prior to the earthquake, a spectrum of greys and whites were the predominant colors of the landscape, where homes lay scattered helter-skelter on the earth below.   This time, however, there were numerous specks of bright royal blue colors peppered amidst the normal hues of grey and white – an indication of the multitude of tarps being used as roofs for homes, as protection from rain for those sleeping in tents, and simply, as a house, for many others.

The traffic in Port-au-Prince was hectic, so our ability to stop and gaze at the ruins was limited.  For most of the ruins, I had to be told what building it was originally before I could recognize what the rubble used to be.  At other times, the site of structure was familiar but the view brought acid-like pains to my stomach, as I witnessed what it had become.  Still at other times, the tears that stung my eyes was a result of a combination of dry dust and smoke making them so and the sadness of what I was seeing and feeling.  Often, it was hard to distinguish the pre-earthquake rubble from the post-earthquake rubble.  Yet, at even other times, it was more-than-obvious that the damage was from the earthquake.

I took photos, but soon realized that photo-after-photo was that of tent cities.  Certainly, the one I just photographed was the last one that we would see.  How wrong I was!  Out of our car windows, tent city after tent city after tent city whizzed by.  The tent cities came in all colors and fabrics.  Tents of brown, tents of green, tents of white, tents of gray, tents of blue and “tents” of a hodgepodge of fabrics and scraps of wood and plastic and metal.  Row-upon-row of Port-a-Potties was another weird-sort of surprise – a kind of blessing in disguise.  Never have there been so many public places for people to answer the call of Mother Nature!

We arrived at our guesthouse in LesCayes in late afternoon on Friday.  We had arrived before the cleaning lady had a chance to prepare our room.  Opening the door, revealed bird droppings and bugs and the pungent odor of the chicken coop located just outside our door.  My “bug alert radar” continued to go off as commonplace geckos and chameleons also made on appearance.  Soon the ants would discover the last of my cherished peanut M&Ms. Ugh!  Before I plopped on top of the bed for a desperately needed nap, I wearily explained to Léon that I was not so sure that my allergies would tolerate the aroma of chicken poop!  In spite of it all, I slept and slept and slept.  I was so much more than exhausted than I realized.  The cleaning lady arrived while I was still in a stupor. When I awoke the room was much more appealing, although the odor from the chicken coop was no more delightful.  After eating a light meal of rice and beans, I again collapsed into bed to sleep the night away.  Things did seem a little better after I woke on Saturday morning, when I was feeling a little more human.  After a breakfast of boiled egg and bread with cheese, I found my exhausted body craving yet another nap.  While Léon headed out to get our motorcycle running, I collapsed into another “coma-like” state.   I remember only vaguely the sound of the croaking of a frog.  I remember thinking, “I’ll find that thing and scoot it out the door once I wake up.”  When I actually did wake up, I totally forgot about my quest for the frog.  It was not until Léon called me on the phone and asked me why I had not answered the two prior times when he had called, that I had myself a good laugh!  I had totally forgotten that, prior to leaving Haiti, I had purchased a new cell phone and had programmed the ringtone to “croaking frog!”  Whew!  One less critter to chase out of my room! 

Needed rest brings with it a much better outlook on life!  Guess I will just have to take myself another nap or two!

Tomorrow is a fresh new day!  (For an odor-free night – I will be praying for northerly winds!)

Nora Léon                        

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                        Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #080

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 March 6, 2010

I have now been back in the USA for over a week.  I am surprised at how difficult the transition has been for me this time.  With my other returns to the USA, I have been able to quite quickly adjust to life here.  Not so this time.  I really did not expect that the earthquake would have such an impact on me.  In Haiti, I did struggle with feeling the earth moving when it was not, but I really did not expect those sensations to continue once I reached American soil.  I have been taken aback by the unexpected times that I am caught off guard by the slightest movements of things around me.  I am dreaming very vivid dreams of Haiti and having difficulty sleeping.  That too I did too I did not expect.

These events are making me more aware of what soldiers experience when they return to the USA following a war.  Their post-traumatic stress syndrome must be even more intense and long lasting.  In a small way, I can now relate to them.

I ask you to pray for the Haitian people as they too suffer from post-traumatic stress syndrome.  It must be especially difficult for those who were in collapsed buildings or watched as loved ones died or were unsuccessful in locating missing family members.  Mental health care in Haiti was virtually non-existent prior to the earthquake.  Following the earthquake, the mental health care workers who have come to Haiti on short stints cannot possibly treat all of the many people who are in need of their services.

It has been almost two months since the original BIG quake and still many Haitian people fear going into buildings or sleeping inside.  This fear will not soon go away!  It is my plea that you continue to remember in prayer those many people who will have long term effects from this trauma!

Nora Léon                        

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                  Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #079

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 February 22, 2010

At least for now, my days of living in a tent at the Refugee Camp are coming to a close.  If all goes as planned, I will be leaving Haiti on a teeny missionary plane that will overnight in the Bahamas.  There I will sleep in a real bed and eat food that is not served in a round tin pan.  The next day, I will head to the land where the Haiti earthquake seems very far away.  I will be going to the states for a reprieve and to conduct some CCF business, including various speaking engagements.  I will be able to see and hug my daughter and her family!  I will treasure anew my family and friends!

You may ask, “Do I wish my time in the Camp never happened?”  “Absolutely not!”  I have learned so much!  I have heard so many stories of tragedy and survival.  Although I have not seen with my own eyes the devastation in Port-au-Prince and the surrounding communities, I have seen the aftermath through the eyes of the survivors.  I have felt the heart of the long term effects of this disaster!

I cannot adequately express my thanks for the outpouring of love and support for the people of Haiti.  People from around the world have come to offer help.  Prayer warriors have been on their knees.  Wallets and hearts have been opened!  Now it is very important that people do not forget the struggles that the Haitian people will continue to face, as the challenges will be long lasting and difficult.  Thank you for being the faithful hands and feet of Jesus!

Nora Léon 

Communiqué #078

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 February 15, 2010

As Monday morning arrived, I found myself drawn to the school children who were gathered at 8AM - the time they stand at attention and sing their national anthem.  Something is soothing about normalcy!   This is the beginning of the second week of classes here at the Les Cayes School.  The attendance is about 1/8^th of what it usually is.  The reasons vary.  For some parents, the children are getting on with their education.  For other parents, they are too afraid to send their children to a building that has not been declared safe to go into.  For the children of the orphanage, this is the case.  They will remain at home until the building has received a professional inspection.  For refugees from the areas hit the hardest by the earthquake, their children will wait at least until the beginning of next school year to resume their education, as most schools do not admit new students mid-year!  Next year, the parents will need to find a school willing to take on additional students.  They will need to find money to pay the tuition.

When I returned to the soccer field where the tents are all staked, I noticed a little baby sitting all alone in the shade, surrounded by clothing that needed to be washed.  “What a perfect photo opportunity. “ I thought.  I love to take candid photos of everyday life here in Haiti, rather than posed shots.  With no one else around, I would have just that chance to take photos of this little baby.  I grabbed my camera from my tent in hopes the baby would still be alone when I returned.  Sure enough!  There he was!   I was able to get several shots, but then I started to wonder where in the world his mother was.  As I looked up and across the field, I noticed that a great big huge royal blue tarp had been spread on the ground.  Sacks of, boxes full of, and suitcases of donated clothing were being dumped on the tarp.  The people were attracted to the clothes like magnets are to metal.  Obviously, this little guy’s mama was right there in the midst of them grabbing what she could scoop up before someone else did.  I walked over to the tarp with my camera to witness and photograph the joyful chaos.  People were grabbing armfuls and then retreating to their tent to sort out what items they could use and what items they would share with others.  Some were very selective in what they took, being pushed aside by those who were not as choosy. 

I returned to find the baby wailing!  It was obvious that his mother in her “shopping frenzy” had totally forgotten about her baby on the other end of the field.  The crackers the baby had been teething on were now ground into the dirt.  Snot and tears and flies covered his little face.  I started holding his hand and talking to him in soothing tones.  He looked up and started stifling his cries.  He took little gasps of air for quite some time before he realized that I would stay with him.  I talked to him about how his mama was “shopping” for clothes for him.  He held onto my hand and did not want to let go.  Finally I lifted him, bare bottom and all, onto the stack of soiled clothing.  There he let me play little games with him and let me coax a little smile from him.   The sun was pushing the shade away from the area where the baby and I sat.  I moved him into a shadier place.  His little eyes became heavy and he fell fast asleep on the pile of dirty laundry that was covering a dirty, stony place.   There he lay asleep while I went to eat my breakfast.  It was several more minutes before the mother finally returned to rejoin her little son Stanley!

 

There continues to be remainders of how the earthquake has changed Haiti.  You know things are really grave when you hear that Mardi Gras in Haiti has been canceled.   The “mother country” of Mardi Gras does not have a whole lot to celebrate this year!   How different for the Christians of Haiti!  They still have a faith to cling to - one that is never failing!!

Thank you for keeping the people of Haiti nearby in your thoughts, prayers and deeds!!!

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                  Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #077

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 February 9, 2010

I have to say that I feel somewhat like a lion in a cage at the zoo.  There are constantly people coming to see the “people in the tents.”  The Baptists come. The Jehovah Witnesses come.  The Catholics come.  They come with tracts.  They come with treats.  They come to hold worship services and to pray with the people here.  The doctors come.  The nurses come.  The UN comes.  The Red Cross comes.  The school children come on their recesses.  The people of the neighborhood come.  The white missionaries with their Kodak cameras come.  Each group peers into each tent to see what they can see.  In Haiti, it is not impolite to stare.  So many people stare at the people in the tents.  When they come to my tent and see a white woman, I am the source of an extra long stare.  Sigh!  Such is the life of a lion in a cage!

Everyday activities are repetitious.  The ground under the goal zone is no longer a place of goals and missed goals.  It is, rather, just a place for the kids to run and play.  The locker room no longer houses the teams, but is a bath house for camp residents and a place to show movies, on the exterior wall, during nighttime hours.  The spectator stand no longer crowds in hundreds of people eager to cheer-on their favorite team.  It is now the clothes line for the many clothes that need to be dried in the intense sun.  The corner of the field where spectators enter the field is now used nightly for worship services.  A singer with a megaphone begins the long repetition of familiar religious songs.  A seemingly endless prayer is followed by shouts of “Thank you Jesus!” and “God bless you!”  It is in direct competition with the movie being shown on the opposite side of the field.

 

Children find the simplest ways to entertain themselves.  One little girl has been collecting plastic bottles caps of all colors and sizes and plastic spoons.  She spends hours on end sorting the colors of caps and lining up the spoons in a particular order.  She then turns her treasures into a tea party.  She uses collected sand to serve food in her tiny bottle cap dishes, giving each willing participant a spoon to eat the “food” with. 

When the temperatures turn cooler at dusk, the children make big fun of playing tag and running and jumping.  A group of them will come to my tent door to see if Mommy Nora will come out and spend time with them.  Some try to learn a few English words.  Others are content sitting on my lap or playing with my hair, hair that is so unlike their own.  Adults come out to chat with their neighbors.  Conversations carry on deep into the night.

The days have become routine, almost to the state of being boring!   No one seems to notice, except me.  Life in Haiti is simple.  Life in a tent city is not so different than life in the poorest communities of Haiti.  Americans are just not made of the same resilient constitution as that of the Haitian people.  Haitians take every circumstance in stride - whether it is sleeping on the ground or having absolutely no privacy.  Tents crowded with people beyond their capacity are a norm for them.  Everything and everywhere is crowded.  Sharing the same one spoon with the whole family is no big deal.  Toting a baby around, to keep him/her happy, is done by anyone nearby, whether or not it is a family member.  Discipline is handled by the oldest person in any given situation.  Even then, it does not matter if you are a relative of the child who is receiving the spanking.

I never thought of myself as a person needing creature comforts, but I guess I am.  I am starting to look forward to my time in the USA next month.  Oh how nice to have a normal bed to sleep in!   I cannot wait for a nice LONG warm shower!

I cannot help wonder how many weeks, months or years it will be before this Tent City is turned back into a soccer field!  It takes one resilient people to not be concerned about that!

As the people of Haiti continue the day-to-day business of living, your continued prayers are appreciated! 

Thank you for putting into action the Words of our Lord as in Matthew 25 : 35 & 36 

“For I was hungry and ye gave me food, I was thirsty and ye gave me drink … Naked and ye clothed me!”

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                  Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #076

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 February 4, 2010

My morning walks continue.  Most mornings, my nostrils flare from the pungent smell of freshly spilled urine or urine that has been absorbing on the ground for quite some time.  At times, a butterfly will briefly flutter by me.  I use the time spent in walking to reflect about the people surrounding me.  I see a wife uses a small plastic basin filled with water and a rag to bathe her husband, reaching the places that he is unable to.  He is blessed to finally have a cast on, after spending several days awaiting the supplies needed to set his arm and to make it immobile with a sling.  I hear radios blaring, some with Haitian Kompa music intermingled with Celine Dion songs, others with the ever-present religious songs.  Someone nearby is brushing their teeth, using a discarded plastic pop bottle refilled with water, a toothbrush and toothpaste (if they are fortunate enough to have these items.)  Their spittle is then ejected to the ground below. It is customary for Haitians to brush their teeth first thing in the morning in order to have fresh breath before greeting family members with a kiss on the cheek.   I see babies standing or sitting in a bright red plastic basin filled with cold water.  Their morning bath removes the smells of the night for children who have no diapers.  A single razor blade (without a holder) is being used to trim the hair of a young man; a small mirror in hand to assure the haircut is meeting his approval.  Children are carrying plastic jugs or five gallon pails to the water spicket.  They return to their tent with very little water sloshing to the ground.  The family then begins their bathing and clothes washing routines.  A young woman can be seen squatting over a basin, rubbing clothes vigorously between her two fisted hands.  No food is in sight, as most have no money to buy any.

After my walk, I return to my tent to see my “protector” husband removing the tarp that was over our tent during the night to protect us from water leaking into our tent.  He is securing the tent stakes once again to assure that out tent will not collapse.  He has made our “bed” and emptied the pee bucket and cleaned the floors!  What a guy!

We have hired a cook for us.  She prepares food at home and brings it to our tent at different times during the day.  It is not unusual for the dog to show up as he follows his nose to the smell of food.  People start to casually sit near our tent in hopes that we will offer them some of our food.  Sophia peeks into our tent windows and tells us she is hungry.  There is a Haitian saying that says, “No Haitian is ever hungry.”  We know that is not true! A large majority of the Haitian people are hungry!  But, they are also unselfish and have a gift of hospitality.  When a Haitian person only has a loaf of bread, he will break it in half to share with those nearby.  Thus, the meaning of the saying!   I saw this very thing in action last night.  French fried potatoes had been prepared for me.  I could not eat all of them, so I offered them to one of the neighborhood children who I knew was hungry.  Soon she was offering some of it to her sister and then the Camp children started gathering around.  As one little girl bit into a fry, she took the second half of the fry and put it into the mouth of another child.  They all took turns sharing the spoon to scoop up the sauce that was at the bottom of the pan.  All the children went away happy having had at least one bite of food.  These actions continue to remind me what a selfish person I am!

A very pregnant lady in the Camp has come to us asking for a job at the orphanage.  She used to be a cook at a restaurant in Port-au-Prince.  She shared her story with us.  She was at her home with her infant son, while her husband and her two older sons went for a walk.  Then the earthquake happened!  She tried several times to call her husband on his cell phone.  She never received an answer.  Assuming that both he and her sons had died; she boarded the bus with her baby and headed to the Camp in LesCayes.  It was at the Camp that her wounds were attended to.  What remains for her now is a struggle to piece her life back together.

 

Many of you have written me telling me that you are praying for Sophia and the other people of the Camp.  Please continue to do so!  Their problems will be life long!  They need your prayers EVERY DAY!  Thank you for being faithful in doing so!

LATE BREAKING NEWS!

Two additional children from our orphanage have joined or are enroute to joining their families!  Charly is at home in Ohio and eagerly attending school!  Djones is headed to Miami to join his Michigan family!  God is soooooooooooooooo Good!

TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                  Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #075

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 February 1, 2010

The Refugee Camp has evolved into a new neighborhood in LesCayes.  Children can now be seen making kites and flying them.  The children and the camp staff can be seen playing jump rope.  Even some of the teenage girls of the orphanage were starting to find their “first loves” in the camp!  Yikes!  Good thing it was moving day today!

 

The move to the site in Torbeck was met with a mixture of feelings.  The children asked if Léon and I were coming too.  Some of the orphans cried.  Some disappeared from sight to sulk in silence.  Many said they did not want to leave the house where they had lived for so many years.  They expressed apprehensions about almost everything.  This afternoon the bus was packed with all the last minute things as Léon and I stood and waved goodbye.  Things were VERY quiet at the church compound after they left.  Now Léon and I need to find a small, safe house to rent, until our permanent home on the orphanage site can be built.

The children will be temporarily housed in the house that was being built for Leonie and in another building nearby that was previously used as a medical clinic.  A few of the vacated tents will be kept on hand in the event aftershocks force the children to sleep outside once again.  We have been told that aftershocks can be expected through most of February. 

The new orphanage campus has been on the drawing board for a long time.  People would ask us when we would get started on the actual construction of the children’s new homes.  Because of the earthquake, our answer has become, “Now!”

TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                           Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #074

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 29, 2010

Another rainy night at the Refugee Camp has come and gone.  This time it was a torrential rain.  My cell phone was a casualty of our leaky tent as steady drips fell on it all night!  Ugh!   I think disassembling it and drying it in the sun may restore it to life!  While sleeping, drip after drip fell on my feet, reminiscent of a torture technique.  When we attempted to move the mattress to a drier location, another part of our bodies were recipients of the drips. To top it all off the “pee pail” got knocked over!  Yuck!   In the morning, we discovered soggy clothes and wet bedding.  A lot of cleanup is occurring around the camp.  Tents are being dried out, children are changing into dry clothes, and wet documents are being dried in the sun!

Other people in LesCayes most likely did not fair as well.  A majority of residents are still sleeping outside, fearful of an earthquake that may appear during sleeping hours.  Many have no tarp to sleep under and are too afraid to retreat to their compromised home for shelter.

Today, I ask you for prayers for my new friend.  Her name is Sophia.  She is thirteen years old and is in the 3^rd grade.  When she was just a toddler, her poor parents gave her as a restavek to a family in Port-au-Prince.  She tried to attend school, but her chores were too many for her to attend regularly.  Eventually, the headmaster sent her home because the family she was working for had not paid her tuition.  The day of the earthquake, she was sent out to buy popcorn for her “mama.”   The quake began and when she returned to the house where she lived, she discovered all the people inside had died, except for a little baby who was quickly removed by someone she did not know.  And thus, she boarded a bus heading to LesCayes.  This is how she came to live in the Refugee Camp in the tent right next to mine.  The people living in the tent have allowed her to stay with them.  She does not where she will go from here.

 

When I asked Sophia if I could take her photo she said “Yes!” accompanied by a beautiful smile.  When I commented about her beautiful smile, she was visibly embarrassed by the compliment!  My heart goes out to her!

If this were an isolated story of one young lady, it would be bad enough, but each and every day we are hearing more and more stories from the survivors.  It is heartbreaking!

 
TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                           Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #073

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 27, 2010

Household sizes are swelling rapidly.  A family of six may now be a family of fifteen.  Households of six, who were struggling to feed their family and send their children to school prior to the earthquake, are now worrying about how they will possibly feed more mouths and clothe more bodies.  Earthquake victims who have lost their home have gone to join extended family (if they have any) who are living in other localities.  They usually arrive with the clothes on their back and no money to contribute to their future needs.  Please pray for these families who now face even greater financial challenges!

Leonie Izidor and her two grandsons were able to get a plane out of Haiti on Monday evening, after a LONG, LONG wait at the airport.  They landed in Orlando and will be picked up by family members there.

Rain has come to the Refugee Camp.  We are finding that most of the tents have leaks.  I suppose for some of the residents of the camp, this is not an unusual circumstance.  Perhaps their previous homes were also prone to leak, depending on what type of structure they lived in before.

I have received a telephone call that one of our “runners” has arrived and delivered needed goods to our driver.  I now await the second phone call.

Banks have reopened, but the tellers are instructed to only give out small amounts of cash, so that everyone in line will get a little.  The lines, of course, are VERY long!  It is not possible to serve all the people in line, before the door of the bank closes.

Plans are being made to move the children and caregivers of the “Children of Israel” Orphanage to the property in Torbeck, which is the vacant site of our future permanent campus.  The transfer of children will occur on or about February 1^st.   A latrine is being dug, an outdoor “kitchen” is being built and three month’s worth of supplies is being stored.  The distance to the new site may be too far from some of the employees (cooks, laundry women) to travel, which means they will be job-less.  It pains the Izidor family that this move will adversely affect those who have been so faithful in their labors for the children.  The children are apprehensive about the move, wondering where they will go to school and to church.  It will be too expensive for our rickety, gas-guzzling bus to transport them back and forth daily.  Perhaps once a week, they will return to worship at the church that is so familiar to them.  When that is not possible, on-site worship services will take place. School, for now, is not a problem as no schools are in session.  We are researching a way to employ someone to conduct classes at the site.  It will be necessary for us to hire a nighttime security guard.  We will plant gardens, when it is growing season, to supplement the food supply and to give the children some activities to occupy their time.  There are many plans to be made.  Please pray for the Orphanage during this transition time!

We cannot thank the people of America enough for their outpouring of love during this difficult time.  Your prayers have been a HUGE blessing and will continue to be needed.  The financial support that has started to come in is making it possible for us to “keep things together”.   It is impossible for me to thank each of you individually, but please know that does not mean that I am any less grateful for what you have been doing and will continue to be doing for the children of Haiti!

I would like to dedicate this communiqué to my daughter Tasha! 

She has been a rock through this whole event.

She has turned her worry into action to help the people of Haiti!

She makes me proud to be the mother of such a loving Christian woman!

I love you Tasha!

TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                           Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #072

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 23-24, 2010

Today, I had an extra good time getting to know the children at the Refugee Camp.  There was a group of 4 little girls that were especially interested in hanging out with me today.  Their names are Flore, Angela, Barbara and Levalencia!   They took over like little mother hens.  I guess I must have been a mess because they smoothed my hair into place.  They picked lint out of my hair.  They used their little fingers to clean out my ears and told me that I had something in the corner of my eye.  They giggled when I taught them some English words.  They sang for me.  I sang for them.  We sang together.

 
Angela told me that she and her papa had come to LesCayes from Port-au-Prince, where her home and her school had been destroyed.  When her papa came by to introduce himself, he told me that they would be leaving for Jeremie in the morning.  I asked if he had family there.  “No!” was his reply.  Perhaps he is going there in search of a job or just a fresh start.  The journey of 50 miles over very, very rough roads will take him and his daughter five hours or more.  I was saddened that today Angela is my friend.  Tomorrow I will most likely never see her again!   On Sunday morning, Angela joined me for my walk.  We talked about Jesus.  I told her that after she was gone, I would remember to pray for her.  I told her that I would not forget her.  She told me that when she said her night time prayers, she would pray for me too.  How precious!

Little seven year old Levalencia especially stole my heart.  She told me that she was going to get me something to eat.  When I told her that I was not hungry, she said, “Mommy Nora, I have never seen you eat anything!”  Imagine such a little one being so concerned about MY wellbeing!   I asked her about the last couple of days.  She told me that her papa had died in their crushed house and that she had cried!  She told me that her school had been destroyed and that her mama has four children, but that she had come to LesCayes only with her mama and her 3 year old little sister, Dariana.  She told me I was her mama too!  Later in the day, she brought her mother and little sister to meet me.  Levalencia always wants to be right next to me or sitting on my lap.  Many times she will gently shove the other children aside so that she can have her “rightful” place by my side.  I am sure that bright and early tomorrow morning she will be calling out my name at the door of my tent!   What a little sweetheart!   When Sunday did arrive, Levalencia said she wanted to go to church with me.  She entered the church with the only dress that I have seen her wear and a pair of shoes that are at least three sizes too large for her.  She looked around and noticed that her dress was not as beautiful as the other little girls’ dresses.  She politely excused herself and returned with a dress fitting for Sunday worship, according to the Haitian tradition of dressing in your most beautiful clothes to honor God.  I’m not sure where she got the dress.  My hunch is that she borrowed it from someone else.

Today, airplanes are starting to fill the air.  The US Military has arrived in LesCayes.  I just saw a US Navy plane fly over, followed shortly thereafter by another.  On the ground military visited the camp this afternoon distributing American Red Cross Solar/Crank Radios.  We have been receiving little individual bags of water.   Community leaders have banned together to provide trash receptacles, diapers, snacks for the kids and hot food for the families.  Faces of doctors, that have just arrived in Haiti, are showing up at the Camp Medical Tent.  It is a good sign that help is here now!

I have the feeling that the “this is not fun anymore” stage is arriving.  Can you imagine not having an actual chair to sit in for all the time you have been at the camp?  When there are more mosquitoes inside your tent than in “all of the great outdoors”, reality sets in that this arrangement is not a weekend campout!

As you can imagine, I have received hundreds of emails!  It strikes me as odd, when I receive emails where subject line reads “REMODEL YOUR KITCHEN TODAY” or “MAKE $10,000 IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME.”   My kitchen? What kitchen?  Make $10,000 from my tent in the Camp? The outside world just keeps marching on, going about everyday business, some seeming oblivious to the pain Haiti is suffering!

One of the pains Haiti is now suffering is in the area of education.  Prior to Earthquake 2010, only those who had enough money to go to school were able to attend.  Now, even those thousands of children are unable to attend because all schools are closed.  For some it is because the school building is gone.  For some it is because the building is unsafe. For others it is because they have moved and there will not be room for new students to be enrolled at already overcrowded schools. 

It is uncertain when classes will resume.  Possibly they will resume in September 2010 or even later.  The school buildings need to be inspected to determine if they are safe!  Some of those buildings will need to be repaired or torn down.  For the collapsed schools, a totally new school will need to be erected.  This means most children will not receive an education possibly for months or even years.  Teachers will lose their jobs and source of income.  In communities that do not conduct inspections of their schools, their children will be at risk of a collapse while they are attending classes.  It will become a huge challenge to fill the children’s minds and time with constructive activities.  Many are already asking if they can go to the states to resume their education.  For those who do not have visas, this is a dream that most likely will never see reality.   This challenge ALONE is monumental.  Multiply this challenge by the numerous other challenges facing the Haitian people and you will start to see the magnitude of the situation.  PRAY, PRAY, PRAY …. as we know God can find a way!

God is using this time to bring people to Him.  Last night, Lèon and I were up late taking advantage of the city power to get internet work done.  Many children and other camp residents were gathered around.  Quietly sitting next to Lèon was a young lady who lives with her mom in the tent next to ours.  She told Lèon her story.  When the earthquake happened, she stayed inside her house in Port-au-Prince.  She watched as neighbors rushed out into the street and were hit by panicked drivers of oncoming cars.  All the homes collapsed, except the one that she was in.  She continued talking and she explained that her whole family are voodoo worshipers.  On Sunday morning, while I attended church, Lèon remained in the camp to keep an eye on things.  This same young lady approached him and told him that she wanted to follow Jesus.  Church had just let out and so Lèon summoned the President of the congregation and some other young people from the church to come over to where this young lady was sitting.  They sang a hymn and offered a prayer, while this young lady took Jesus into her life!   It doesn’t get better that!  Thank Jesus for a new soul that is now bound for Heaven!

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon 

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                           Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #071

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 21-22, 2010

It is evening and I am sitting at my “command center” (a computer at a card table with a LONG extension cord to electricity) under the stars of Haiti.  In the daytime, I sit in any shade that is available where the extension cord reaches.  From the command center, I am able to access the internet a few hours a day.  I must say that I prefer the evening times over the hot temperatures of the day.

 

As I write this, a large bus has arrived at the Refugee Camp with another load full of people coming to us from Port-au-Prince.   Once again, this will change the flavor of the camp.  I was just getting acquainted with the little ones here and now I will have more names of children to try to remember and pronounce correctly.  The children are starting to call me Mommy Nora, rather than the usual “blan!” (white!) greeting!

A visitor to the camp yesterday asked me if I realized that Les Cayes is the fastest growing city in the world.  I hadn’t thought about that, but indeed it is!   I am somewhat saddened that the “small town” feel will no longer be here.  I am anticipating a change in the level of crime and that too saddens me.  I will walk the streets with much more caution than in the past.

A young boy has been fascinated while watching me work on the computer.  He came to me with a piece of paper with a line or two of handwritten Creole words on it.  I was surprised to learn that he was writing down his feelings about the day the earthquake happened and the days that have followed.  We talked about the importance of getting those feelings out, instead of storing them inside one’s gut.  I encouraged him to write a long, long paper.    He assured me that he would!  I told him that what he was doing was very important and that one day he would be able to share his story with his grandchildren.

It has surprised me how casually people speak about the loved ones they have lost in the earthquake.  They tell me that their house is flat.  They tell me that their father is dead, their brother is dead, or their friend is dead as if they are reporting the weather to me.  Can it be that the Haitian people are so accustomed to untimely deaths that it is just like a passing rain storm???

I have been asked if I am suffering any post-traumatic stress.  I have to say that to some extent, I am.  When I re-enter the room that I have called home for the past five years, I think that I feel it swaying.  When I close my eyes at night, I think I feel the earth moving!  How much more horrible it must be for those who watched their houses crumble and were unable to save those trapped under the rubble.

Last night was filled with new noises.  There was much more talking.  There were hacking coughs and cries from the additional babies that had arrived.  The influx of the newest people to the Refugee Camp has brought another period of adjustment.  The newcomers are filled with anticipation and struggling to find their place in their “new world”.  To aide in the adjustment, a “comedian” entertained the crowd for an hour.  It was good to hear the laughter, in midst of the pain.

This morning, I noticed a large number of teenaged boys.  They must have arrived with the group during the previous night.  Where there are boys, there is a soccer game! A small corner of the soccer field is now being used for just such a purpose.

 

I have been trying to build up my strength by walking around the perimeter of the field early each morning.  Bright yellow flowers were blooming in one corner of the field, totally oblivious to the changing world around them.  As I passed by, it was so uplifting to hear singing coming from two adjacent tents.  In the privacy of their own “home”, the occupants were praising their God, but to the whole camp they were being a witness of God’s grace!

 

Everyday activities bring some normalcy to life here.  Water is being carried to plastic tubs from which baths will be taken.  Clothes are being hand washed in buckets, teeth are being brushed, children are being disciplined and friendships are being made.

Another day has passed in the Refugee Camp!  Yet another bus has arrived!   Sigh!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon  

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                           Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #070

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

January 21, 2010

Day #1 at the Refugee Camp (on the soccer field next to the church compound) is here and Night #1 has passed.  The tremors of Wednesday’s early morning 6.0 quake abruptly shortened our slumber on the floor of the church.  With our building on the church compound being declared “severely compromised” we had taken refuge in a less threatening structure, until we could determine where we would relocate the children and staff of the orphanage.  By the end of the day, God provided us tents in the Refugee Camp, a shining example that God truly does know our every need, even BEFORE we ask Him!   Léon and my “new address” is now Tent #915-2836 A6!

 

There are so many lessons to learn from the Haitian people, especially in a crisis such as this. 

Last night, when it was time for the camp to be quiet, especially to benefit the sick and injured, a man with a megaphone announced that it was time for everyone to retire to their tents.  But before that happened, everyone joined in the most beautiful voices-only choir of anthems.  What a way to go peacefully to sleep!  In the individual tents, I could hear the children of our orphanage singing with their caregivers, again, a bedtime ritual that bears duplicating.  Prayers too could be heard from various tents.  No!  They were not silent prayers, but unashamed voices rendering thanks to God for the blessings of life and health and shelter.  It always strikes me that in a land permeated with voodoo, the Christian people express their beliefs unchallenged and unashamed.  Why don’t we claim that freedom in the United States more than we do???

On more than one occasion, I have been told that when you have things bad there is always someone in the world who has it worse.  I just have to look around to see the truth of that statement.  Although I am now living in a tent, I still have a gigantic “storage locker” to quickly return to to grab a change of clothes or other needed item.  It is a stark reminder that the other residents in the Refugee Camp no longer have ready access to basic things like clean underwear or deodorant or a myriad of basic items!

 

It seemed really strange for white-skinned incoming relief workers to come in and find me another “blanc” as a resident of the camp.  Only if you are walking in someone else’s shoes can you truly understand what the experience is like.   Now it was ME that they were taking photos of.  Now it was me who was “peeing” in a pail during the night.  Now it was me that was wondering what it was going to be like when the rains come.

People continue to ask, “How can I help?”   That question alone is overwhelming.  Not only are there a thousand answers to that question, but there is also the need to prioritize.  It sounds easy to say, “We need cash!  The banks are all closed and we have very little money.”  But then the answer to the question, “How do we get it to you?” turns into a more complex answer.   There is not enough fuel for vehicles to bring us cash from the airport in Port-au-Prince to our location in LesCayes.  There is danger on the roads from looters who are seeking money and goods from vehicles that do pass by.  Thankfully, we are told that Western Union plans to open an office in LesCayes, where people can wire us money at NO CHARGE.  But that, too, presents new challenges.  There will be at least 400 people standing in line.  The “you are next in line” theory just doesn’t work here and this, of course, results in heated arguments in “the line.” The available cash will run out before the requests for money do.  For those successful in obtaining cash, there will be security issues of people trying to steal the money from them.

People are asking about adoption of the many, many existing and new orphans.  That question too does not have an easy answer.  The buildings that process lost birth certificates and other documents are no longer standing.  The few people who remain who can answer the “how to” questions are overwhelmed and under equipped.  It will take time for experienced organizations and refugee management personnel to work out the many details.  If you are interested in adoption, please be patient, but don’t give up on your desire to help in this way!

I thank God, this morning, for a relatively good night’s sleep.  My biggest challenge today is to not get more sunburned, as I sit in the shade typing this communiqué to you.

More than ever, we continue to treasure your prayers and support!

TO DONATE

Send your tax-deductible checks to

CARIBBEAN CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

1303 Forest Park Road

Muskegon MI   49441.4638

OR

Donate online (where a fee will be deducted from your donation)

at

www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                        Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #069

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 17, 2010

The refugees are arriving.   Persons who can a find a way out of the city of Port-au-Prince are coming on motorcycles and in automobiles, trucks and buses.  Each is trying to return to the city of their birth, where they can hopefully find refuge with family members who remained in their original villages trying to eek out a meager living there.  Long ago, the refugees had left their people to seek a better life in the big city, only now to return home for the safety and comfort offered there.  Sadly, there are no jobs to return to.

The United Nations has set up a refugee camp on the soccer field just next to the church compound.  From the balcony of the room where Léon and I live, we can watch as more and more tents are erected and people come and go.  Local disaster relief groups are tending the wounded, bringing in food and water, sorting donations of clothes and other items.

 

As Léon watched the first tents being erected, he commented that those were the same type of tents that he had stayed in at Guantanamo Bay.  I could see those memories stirring around in his mind.  During the political unrest of the 1990s, Léon and some friends from Ile-a-Vache had built a small boat and set out to sea to seek a better life in the USA.  After 5 days on the ocean, the occupants ran out of food and water.  They landed on the island of Jamaica.  From there they were flown to Cuba and placed in camps for at least 30 days, waiting their deportation back to Haiti.

Today we visited the refugee camp, after first speaking with the mayor of LesCayes to get permission to bring items in.  We brought clothes, hygiene products and prenatal vitamins.  We visited with some of the people.  The people living in the tents were mostly people who had come to LesCayes for medical care at the hospital.  Because the hospital is too full, some of the less critical cases were asked to come to stay at the refugee camp.  After the people arrived, the healthy people were asked to leave if any of them had family in LesCayes that they could stay with.  Many of them were able to find housing elsewhere.  The sick remained, along with the ones who had no place to go.  Periodically, additional tents are erected.

Life in the remaining “intact” cities and villages will soon change dramatically due to the influx of people.  The crowded housing will become more crowded.  More and more homeless will be living on the streets.  The short supply of food, water, fuel, cash and other goods will be used up more quickly by the rapidly growing numbers of people!  Desperation, hunger and fear will spark the escalation of crime!

Your prayers and financial support are cherished even more than ever before! 

THANK YOU for caring!

To help…you can DONATE online at www.CaribbeanChildrensFoundation.org 

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                        Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #068

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 January 13 & 14, 2010

Another disaster continues to prove what a resilient people the Haitian people are!  Haiti has seen riots, coups, political unrest, food shortages, gas shortages, kidnappings, hurricanes, mudslides, and now the earthquake (tranblemandtè) of Tuesday, January 12, 2010!

On Monday, January 11, when I arrived back in Haiti, friends greeted me with “Bonne Anne!” (“Happy New Year!”)   Little did we know that, in mere hours, life in Haiti would change dramatically.  In just one day, a terrible scar was left on Haiti.  

Léon and I returned from the United States and traveled the road from Port-au-Prince to LesCayes with an incoming team from the state of New York.  Partially because there were many team members coming to Haiti for the first time, our driver took us to see and take photos of the Presidential Palace.  Those photos would quickly become some of the last photos taken of the Palace before its collapse during the rumbling of the earth beneath it!

In the midst of all the chaos, I clearly saw God’s mighty hand.  During the morning hours of Tuesday, I had walked the team to view downtown LesCayes and to visit the people’s market.  Upon our return, the overwhelming fatigue that I have experienced following my illness reared its ugly head.  I pulled the team leaders aside and through tears explained to them my struggle of having to “cop” out on my liaison role to sleep off my weariness and the mental confusion that had set in.  I slept for over 3 hours and woke up feeling much better.  I started unpacking my luggage that was still strewn all over my room.  I was putting something away, when I lost my balance.  At first, I thought it was dizziness.  Then, I looked around and saw the building swaying and listened as students, attending classes in our building, started screaming and shuffling through the courtyard rocks as they scurried out of the building.  I thought that perhaps they had gotten rowdy and had made the building vibrate from their excitement and jumping.  But, all too quickly, I realized this was an earthquake and everyone needed to be out of the building.   I herded as many of the students and mission team members as I could, out of the school courtyard and into the open lot next to the church.  The school court yard was too dangerous of a place to stand, as buildings surround it on all four sides.  Out in the open, we starting making a head count of the team members and the children of the orphanage.  It was then that the first aftershock materialized.  We could visually see the big ole yellow school bus dancing in the church lot.  The wave of movement started and ended quickly.

In the rush of students leaving the school, it appeared that one student had hurt herself.  Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as this young woman was helped to a sitting position on a spare tire laying in the yard.  Assisting her was our deaconess intern, Allysa.  Since so many things were happening at once and it appeared that Allysa was handling the problem, I chose to place my attentions elsewhere.  Because many of the team members and orphans were unaccounted for, I placed my efforts there.  Everyone was relieved to learn that the remainder of the “missing” were in the soccer field on the opposite side of the church compound. Knowing that the boys of the orphanage may be in danger, two team members walked down to the boys’ orphanage to bring the boys and their caregivers to the church compound where everyone could be together.  Once we were certain that everyone was safe, the team members in the church yard decided it was best for everyone to be together in the soccer field.  

For some reason, I felt I needed to stay with the students in the church yard.  A short while later, the Pastor came over and asked if I had an aspirin as a young lady was having a heart attack.  Léon and I gingerly made our way into the pharmacy, locating aspirin and sanitary wipes.  We made our way back through the crowd and found Allysa still sitting with the young lady that I had seen her with earlier.  The student was terrified and was hyperventilating.  We tried to work with her by having her slow down her breathing.  But in her panicked state she would not listen.  After several unsuccessful attempts to have her slow her breathing down, she passed out.  I asked for several people to lay her down on the uncomfortable ground of rocks and gravel.  No other more comfortable choice was in sight.  The young lady was no longer breathing, her eyes were rolling back in her head and she went limp, with no heart beat.  Allysa and I teamed up to do CPR.  Although we both had taken CPR training in the past, neither of us had ever had to use it, until this day!  Later, I named the two of us “CPR Sisters”.  Allysa took the breathing part and I took the compression part.   We asked the surrounding crowd to pray.  I prayed that God would spare someone so young!  After several thrusts, her heartbeat resumed with a strong rhythm.  It took several tries to get her breathing again.  Although we may not have used the most perfect technique, she came back.  Of the dozens of people gathered around us, I am certain there were many who did not even know what CPR was.  Some gasped as they watched what we did.  If nothing else, this was going to be a demonstration that CPR can make a difference.   We knelt in the rocks for a long time, giving her breaths each time she stopped breathing on her own.  The first impulse was to call 9-1-1!  But, there is no 9-1-1 here.  We asked Pastor to call for his car, which was in the shop being repaired.  After some time, the car arrived, spinning rocks under its tires in the hurry to get this young woman to the hospital.  Several people carried her to the car and placed her on the ridged floor bed in the back of the suburban.  As we raced to the hospital, we careened over speed bumps and through the crowded streets.  Upon arrival, it was instantly evident that the General Hospital already had more people than it could handle.  We turned around and headed to a hospital up in the mountains.  We called ahead for someone to notify the hospital that we were on the way!    Once again, we sped down the road with the horn honking the whole way.  We encountered many obstacles….throngs of people in the streets, car accidents, traffic jams, and detours.  We took an alternative route to the hospital.  Our patient was lying on the hard metal floor bed, as her sister held her hand and prayed. Allysa knelt beside her and I continued to monitor her heart beat.  The pavement ended and we took a flying journey over the bumpy, rutted dirt roads that lead to the hospital.  We were actually happy to hear our patient cry out in pain as her body bounced on the floor bed of our vehicle.  At one point, we had to stop the vehicle to give her respirations.  And then the speed mode resumed until we arrived at the hospital, where doctors were waiting!

The staff searched for a paper bag for the young lady to breathe into.  At first they had to use a gauze sheet for a make-shift bag.  Finally, someone was successful in locating a paper bag.  An IV was started and anxiety medications were administered.  It was then when we felt like she was going to make it.  The doctor stated that more than likely we had saved her life.

I could not help but know that God’s hand was in all of this.  In my fatigued state of the morning hours, I would not have had the strength to perform CPR.  God had provided me the rest I needed to perform the work that God later would need me to do for Him!  I had recalled my CPR training, even though it had been years since I last took the class.  It was just like learning to ride a bicycle all over again … it all came back to me quickly.  I believe God brought me back to Haiti to be here during the earthquake, just so He could use me to save this woman’s life!   It was by the Grace of God that I was able to do so.  Thus, it seems so appropriate that this young lady’s name is Graciana!

Upon returning to the church compound, I learned that the UN had asked people to sleep outside, away from the compromised building structures.  It was feared that another earthquake would strike during the night time hours. During the next several hours, I lost track of the number of aftershocks.  There were at least six. 

All of the mission team members, the Izidor family, the orphanage staff and children and some community members slept on the rocks in the church yard.  Haitians are used to sleeping almost anywhere.  They took sleeping on the rocks in stride.  God provided a light breeze and a sky clear and bright with a multitude of stars.  There was no rain. 

The following afternoon, we returned to the building, still on guard for any swaying of the floor beneath our feet.  We were able to get some news from television and radio.  Phone service was not available for many hours.  As of this writing, internet service is still not available.

We learned of the extent of the damage in Port-au-Prince and Jacmel.  As more news unfolded, we soon realized that soon we will be facing power outages, food shortages, gasoline shortages, money shortages and chaotic business operations.  Desperation for medical care and supplies has already sparked clashes among people vying for what is available.

The aftermath of the earthquake will continue to have long term effects.  Your prayers are cherished now more than ever!  THANK YOU for caring about the people of Haiti!

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                        Until next time. God willing …………

Communiqué #067

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 November 19, 2009

Even though November 26, 2009 is not a holiday in Haiti, I will still be reminded of things to be thankful for.  

This year was filled with the blessing of fifteen (15) mission teams coming to serve the ministry here.  Overjoyed with the abundance of willing volunteers, the time to expand out into other areas of Haiti is very evident.  Teams are now going to Jacmel and soon to Cap Haitien and Ouanaminthe and possibly to work with the Haitian sugar cane worker communities in the Dominican Republic.

The orphanages in our sponsorship program have reaped benefits of visiting missionaries too!  Toting dozens of pieces of luggage, they have helped to supply food, clothes, sandals, hygiene products and many other needed items for the children of the orphanage.  Those who have pledged to sponsor a child help the orphanages to operate on a daily basis.  The “Children of Israel Orphanage” child count remains at 29, with no new children admitted or no adoptions during the year of 2009.  We are eagerly looking forward to starting the wall around the new orphanage campus early next year.  The “House of the Lambs of God” Orphanage continues to add new rooms to its campus and the number of girls residing there keeps growing.  During my October visit there, the count was at 30 children, with more expected in the near future.  The still-under-construction orphanage in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic has a waiting list of 7 boys and a long line of children that need to be added to that list.  We are praying for sponsors to help make it possible for these children to also have a place to call home.

The lines for everything in Haiti are long!  The line for children needing assistance to attend school will undoubtedly be longer for the 2010-2011 school year.  By the end of August 2009, I had to start turning away children whose families came asking for assistance.  The families were asked to pray that God would open doors for their children to be helped next school year.   We were blessed to be able to help over 125 school children in the LesCayes area alone.  Our volunteers, who are administering school sponsorship programs on Ile-a-Vache and in Jacmel, have found equally large numbers of children needing tuition assistance in those communities.   God has blessed all of our sponsorship programs with many faithful donors.  Hundreds of children are able to attend school, some of whom are fifteen years old and attending school for the first time in their lives!   Generous donors have also sent us backpacks and pencils and other school supplies.  In a country where most of the learning is done by memorization, due to lack of books and school supplies, these donations are a true blessing for the school children of Haiti.  My joy comes when one of those students comes to me, later in the school year, to proudly show me the school uniform they now wear or display a recent report card that indicates that they are taking their education very seriously!

For the children coming to me for medical assistance, a new blessing has taken place in the last year.  All of the surgeries that needed to be done this year were able to be performed right here in Haiti!   A new program has brought in doctors from other countries on a regular enough basis that the kids can have surgery here, with a family member at their side.  Undoubtedly, there will still be some serious surgeries that cannot be performed here and there will be cases that I cannot find help for or conditions that are too complex to be corrected.  Recently, families with children with severe birth defects have come hoping for “a miracle.”   Sadly, I must turn them away because even with a multitude of surgeries and therapies their child cannot be made “whole”.   Those are the tough ones - the discouraging parts of the work here.  I thank God for the “successes” that keep me going!  What a joy it is when a little 4 year old returns to visit me who without the surgery received when she was but a year old would have certainly died!  Thank you God for balancing out the hard cases with the “happy-ending” cases!

Another joy that 2009 has brought is the launching of a feeding program for the children of GRACE School!   Through the efforts of a ministry called Trinity HOPE, over 300 school children are now being fed a nutritionally-balanced meal EVERY school day.  Previously, the children of this community often would find themselves without food to eat once the fruit-bearing season had ended.   Families were too poor to buy expensive rice, when growing season was past.  The children sometimes resorted to eating dirt when hunger pains grew too severe.  What a HUGE blessing the school feeding program is!  Not only are little bellies now getting nutrition on school days, but the children can now study without hunger pains invading every fiber of their bodies making it impossible for them to learn.

God has granted miracles large and small!  The biggest miracle has been that of the reality of the building GRACE School.   My husband was called “crazy” by his friends when he mentioned his dream for a school/clinic/vocational center/guesthouse in the community of his birth.  He did not have even a dime in his pocket to make a start.  But God did!  My husband and I talk often about what an amazing God we have, as evidenced by the building of the school and the outpouring of people willing to help make it happen!  The first floor is all finished (except for the cosmetic items) and already people are scrambling around to find funding for the second and third floors.  Only a Great God can make things like this happen!  Isn’t He amazing?!?!?

When you sit down to your Thanksgiving meal this year, I am sure you will reflect on all that you have to be grateful for, even in light of the poor economy that has faced everyone in the last year!    Please add a special prayer at your table for the children of Haiti!

I will not be sitting down to a meal with a stuffed turkey, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie, but I will certainly be thankful for all of you who have found various ways to help make a difference in the lives of Haitian children!  What an amazing God we serve!

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….

Communiqué #066

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 November 2, 2009

“Until next time” is the way I always close my communiqués.  Little did I know that it would take me from August until November before I jotted down my next thoughts.  Much has happened in the intervening months. 

In September, I was privileged to spend time with BOTH of my grandsons on their birthdays!  It was the first year that I was able to do that.   The little guys are little guys only once and I treasured my time with them as they turned two and four.  On each of their special days, I got to take them for a “Day Out with Grandma!”   A session at the photo studio and lunch at a special place highlighted some of our time together!

I returned to LesCayes for three short days, before heading out again on a whirlwind journey to cities in both the Dominican Republic and Haiti.  Léon and I traveled with Leonie Kessa Izidor and my dear friend Lynn to visit the orphanage being constructed in the Dominican Republic by Pastor Edriss Quessa.  Seven boys, ages 7 to 12, are on the waiting list to enter the orphanage, where they hope to live once funding is available.  Jomale, Lubin, Johnson, Robinson, Medgo, Willio, and Miguel patiently wait for a home where there will be food every day, clothes to wear and a school to attend.  These boys were born to Haitian families who are working as slaves in the sugar cane fields of the Dominican Republic.  Home is a site adjacent to the city dump that borders a busy airport.  Identification papers were stripped from their parents when they were brought illegally into the country to work the fields.  When children were born to these families, there was no proof of who they were.  Thus, the children are born “without a country.”  They cannot prove they are Haitian.  They cannot prove they are Dominican.  This leaves these children with no access to education or medical care.  But for the hope of a home in the orphanage, these children have no future!   What is needed now are sponsors for these children!  It is the hope of Caribbean Children’s Foundation to find persons who are willing to make a long term financial commitment to the children living in the bateys (sugar cane worker communities) of the Dominican Republic!

After a few short days, we returned to Haiti.  Léon and Leonie returned to LesCayes to the work that awaited them there.  Lynn and I met up with a team coming from Ohio to work in the area of Jacmel, on the southeastern coast of Haiti.  The all-women team would present seminars to several communities in and around the Jacmel area.  Dental hygiene, family planning, breast feeding and menopause seminars were presented to combined groups of men and women.  The men were equally as eager as the women to learn from the missionaries.  Many old wives’ tales are still prevalent throughout the country.  It will take repeated seminars to dispel many of the beliefs.  Questions that make us shake our head in disbelief are very commonplace.  We were asked questions like, “Is it true that the milk from a new mother will go to her head and make her crazy?”   We know this phenomenon to be post-partum depression, but in a country where there is only one doctor to every 10,000 people, not only is medical care hard to come by, but mental health care is almost non-existent.

The group was also able to visit some of the schools where newly sponsored students were attending.  Dental hygiene seminars were presented to the student body, dental hygiene kits were given to the students and additional students were interviewed for the student sponsorship program.

The week passed quickly.  Lynn and I bid farewell to the team and headed to the north and northeastern part of Haiti.  Scouting out these areas with a seasoned team leader will assist in my goal to expand the number of places missionary teams come to help.  Jacmel has started receiving teams in the last year.  Cap Haitien and Ouanaminthe are areas where teams could also be very useful.  Medical teams, construction teams and orphanage interaction teams would be helpful in these two localities. 

Pastor Daniel Paul’s ministry in Ouanaminthe includes a home for 30 little girls at the “House of the Lambs of God” Orphanage.  The building needs to be expanded and the children would benefit from people willing to donate funding to help feed, clothe and educate these precious little ones. 

Pastor Eliona Bernard’s ministry in Cap Haitien includes a medical clinic, a partially completed school and the need for construction of a church.    Both of these communities are located close enough together, a team could serve both pastors during their mission time in Haiti!   What a wonderful blessing it would be to both ministries!

God is at work every day in the lives of the little ones of Haiti.  One of the newest arrivals at Pastor Daniel Paul’s orphanage is an example of God in action.  The story of Adeline begins with her arrival in Ouanaminthe on a bus with a traveling companion.  After arriving at their destination, the two became separated at the bus station.  Adeline wandered about and began walking until she came upon the truck that Pastor Daniel Paul was driving.  Thinking that he was a chauffeur, she asked him for a ride.  When she learned that he was not a chauffeur, she asked him for food.  As the story unfolded, it was apparent that this young girl had been brought to this strange city to be placed into child slavery in someone’s home, where she most likely would never go to school and would be treated worse than the family watch dog.  It was but by the grace of God that she ended up being placed on the same path being traveled by Pastor Daniel Paul and was eventually given police clearance to come live in the loving orphanage home provided by Pastor Daniel Paul and his wife Clynie!  Her smile is a good indication that indeed she is now home!

Our visit to the north of the country was also far too short!  Lynn and I returned to Port-au-Prince where she readied to leave the country and I prepared for another incoming team who were coming from Canada and Michigan to also serve in the Jacmel area.  They came to conduct medical and dental clinics.

Lynn had been feeling poorly for the last several days of our traveling adventure.  She struggled with making it through her last few days in Haiti and was eager to get home to see her doctor back in the states.  It was not until I settled into the new team’s routine in Jacmel that I too became ill.   As it turns out, somewhere along the way, both Lynn and I had received gifts from some local mosquitoes.   We would learn that each of us had contracted Dengue Fever.   For all but one day of the second team’s stay in Jacmel, I was of no use at all.  I lay in the hotel room for the whole week, fighting the fever, the chills, the body aches, the rash and the itching.  The fever took a toll, leaving me weak and fatigued.  I am still recovering, following my return to LesCayes.   I am told that in some parts of Haiti, Dengue Fever is called “three days and you’re dead disease!”   Haitian people with their malnutrition and low immunity actually do die from this.  I have to say that I felt like I wanted to.  Thank God that I have a good immune system and a reliable doctor to consult!

November and December will prove to be busy too.  Three teams will serve in the LesCayes area.   I thank God that Léon is taking charge of the first team who has come to help with the building of GRACE School on Ile-a-Vache.   I remain “back at the ranch” trying to regain my strength.

Your continued prayers for the work here in Haiti are greatly appreciated!  Whether you are a member of a team that travels here to help OR you are a member of the team who keeps the home lights glowing and prays for those who have come, WE THANK YOU!!!!!

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….

Communiqué #065

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

 August 25, 2009

Decisions that need to be made continue to be hard.  One mother came to me hoping to send three of her children to school.  They had not attended school last year and she was hoping that this year it could be different.  Her situation is desperate.  One of her teen-aged daughters died recently because she had no money to get her to a doctor.  The mother is too sick to work.  The family rarely eats.  When I can, I send rice to the family, but it is not something that I can do every day.  Essentially, the mother has no money, no food, no life for her children and no family to help her.  She was hoping that at least she could find someone to help give her children an education.  This year, I tried to add some new students to the tuition assistance program, thinking that perhaps I could help this mother.  Unfortunately, far too many children came for me to help each one.  I do not want to add new students if I cannot continue helping them in the following years.  What good does it do to send a child one year and not the next?  Thus, after looking at all the names that I had received for assistance and looking at the money that I had to work with, I had to make some hard decisions.  I turned many children away simply stating I had no more funding.  I gave partial funding to some whose families could pay a portion of their child’s educational expenses.  I decided that I could help only one of this woman’s children.  Even if I were to give a little to help each of her children, the mother has no money to pay the balance.  The choice was to help one child completely or to help none of her children.  I needed to explain this to her.  It was thought best to send the oldest daughter to school.  She would be attending a school to receive training to become a teacher and in two years she could possibly find a job.  This would eventually enable the family to have a meager income!  Seems like a cut and dry decision, doesn’t it?  But the next day, after I had discussed the decision with the mother, I learned from her next door neighbor that she had heard the mother crying all through the night.  Can you imagine wanting an education so badly for your children and knowing that you could not provide it for them???  The USA is blessed with free education and children are required by law to get an education.  In Haiti, it is not a right!  It is a priceless privilege, a sought-after treasure, and for so many, only a dream.  (As no school in Haiti is free and the average personal income is about $1 per day, most parents face this same dilemma.)  Nonetheless, I still feel so bad when I hear of the gut-wrenching pain my decisions have caused.

In the midst of sad choices, I am able to derive a little joy too.  Just this last Sunday, I was godmother at a darling baby girl’s dedication at her church.  She would wear a christening gown and matching bonnet that I have loaned to more than one baby in Haiti.  The gown was given to me by a lady living on the northwestern coast of the USA.  When she was younger, she had lived in England.  There she purchased a beautiful white, eyelet lace christening gown and bonnet in hopes that one day a baby of her own would wear it.  After she returned to the USA and was married, she found herself childless.  When we met, she asked that I take the gown and have little Haitian babies wear it for their baptisms.  What a joy it has been to share this special gown!

I first met the baby’s family in 2007, when they brought to me their skinny, critically ill infant son.  Their baby boy was in need of life-saving heart surgery, a surgery that is unavailable in Haiti.  God opened doors for him to receive the surgery in New Jersey.  In a few short weeks, the baby returned to Haiti and quickly began to thrive.  He rejoined his family consisting of a father, a mother and two older brothers.  When a new baby arrived in their family, they were thrilled that it was a girl.  They came to show her off to me and to ask me to be her godmother at her dedication. 

Traveling to and from the dedication was quite an event.  We were able to find a ride out of Les Cayes with friends who had a car that was heading in the direction that we needed to go.  We had called the baby’s father ahead of time to let him know to wait by the side of the highway to show us the way to the church.  We arrived in a market area.  Our driver dropped us off and we found the father there.  He was carrying the baby and his three little sons were tagging along behind him.   We crossed the busy highway and headed into the village on foot.  I was amazed that so much of the road was paved.  We walked quite a distance, in the hot 90 degree sun, until we came to a place where the road turned into rough, rocky terrain.  The father suggested that maybe I could not walk the remaining distance to the church and maybe we should wait for a taxi (motorcycle). We waited and waited, but none came.  We decided to forge ahead.  By this time, the 3 year old’s little legs were having a hard time keeping up, so I decided to carry him.  The father continued carrying the baby and the two remaining little boys walked alongside Léon.  Eventually, I traded children with the father.  I carried the baby, who promptly fell asleep on my shoulder, and the father carried the 3 year old.  The footing was difficult and I finally decided that indeed a taxi would be a wonderful idea.  Two taxis happened upon us at the same time, both carrying passengers.  A mid-road discussion took place and one passenger got off one of the taxis and doubled up with the other passenger on the other taxi.  Then, I climbed on the back of the passenger-less taxi with the baby in my arms.  It made no sense to send a “half-full” taxi on its way, so, the 3 year old was plopped on the back of the motorcycle too.  Here I am holding the infant in one arm and tightly holding the arm of the little boy whose arms were snuggly wrapped around by waist.  We traveled quite a distance over hills and around the large rocks in the road before we arrived at the church.  The three of us got off and the taxi traveled back to transport some of the remaining walkers to the church.  When Léon arrived and went to pay the driver, a small dispute broke out.  From previous experience, I could tell that I was the source of the problem.  Because I am white (and assumed to be rich) the taxi driver had tripled the price of the fare. 

Sunday School was finishing up and the church service began at 9AM.  Apparently on the walk to church, the father has asked Léon if he would deliver the Sunday morning message.  Léon has gotten used to similar last-minute requests, so he now keeps previous sermons that he has written in the back of his Bible.  During the song portion of the service, he was able to pull out those old notes and select a message for the day.  The congregation was a small one, but as is usual Haitian style, they sang loud and strong with enthusiasm and full, rich voices.  The mother of the baby to be dedicated arrived at church.  She had toted a small cooler containing a cold bottle of 7-Up just for me, presuming I would be hot and thirsty.  She was more worried about me and my thirst than that of her own after walking a long distance in the hot sun to church.  During the service, it was explained how I had come to be named the godmother of the baby being dedicated.  It was really no surprise then, that after church, two hand-carved wooden chairs were placed in the shade under the mango tree in the front yard of the church.  Léon sat in one and I sat in the other.  Many people gathered around.  They started talking to me about children who needed medical care.  One little boy had a cyst behind his left ear.  A man talked to me about a young boy who had a growth on his abdomen.  A young man of twenty, whom I had noticed in church, came with a severely deformed spine.   It seems that he was injured playing soccer 8 years ago and had received no treatment to alleviate the pain or correct the problem.  He was told by the original doctor that he saw that he would need to travel to Jamaica for the needed surgery - an impossibility for his family.   I took photos and wrote down information about each ill child who was present, stating that I would see if there was a way that I could help them.  In an instant, it was clear that a medical mission team would be of great service to this community.

It was then time to walk to the family home where a celebration was held with family and friends.  We started out to the road and once again a taxi was suggested.  Léon was wise to the fare scheme this time and asked the price before we got on the motorcycle. We drove a long distance and were again let off at a marketplace.  We waited in the shade of a vendor’s stand for the father to arrive and direct us the remaining distance to the family home.  We walked once again over rocky roads and then along the busy, main highway.  When large buses would whiz by, we had to be certain that we were well off the road, as vehicles stop for nothing or no one!  We crossed over the highway to walk in the shade of the roadside trees.  I was very happy that I had thought to pack walking sandals.  I have to estimate that it was three miles from the church to the family home.  (I cannot imagine people in the USA walking three miles to church each Sunday, especially with four little people tagging along.)   We crossed the busy highway once again and headed down a gully to their home that was tucked back behind the homes that lined the street.   The yard was shaded with several banana trees and the rock-hewn home was nestled in their shade.  Once again, two wooden hand-carved chairs were brought out into the shade and ice-cold pop was served to us in beautiful crystal glasses.  The children had already changed into their everyday clothes (or lack of clothes) and family, friends and neighbors gathered around to watch this mysterious white woman who had come to visit.  Taking digital photos and showing them on the camera to the adults and children was a big hit!   We were then invited inside to take photos of the baby sitting on the beautifully quilted bed covering on the parent’s bed - a source of pride in every Haitian home.  The home consisted of only two rooms - a dining room and a bedroom.  The bedroom had two beds - one for the adults and one for the children.  We proceeded out back to the “kitchen” were a multitude of women were huddled under a lean-to of grass fronds preparing chicken and plantain and rice.  They proudly displayed their cuisine.  We were then issued to the beautifully laden table in the dining room.   A hand-embroidered table cloth, fancy dishes, crystal glasses and finely bottled homemade alcohol adorned the table - another source of Haitian pride.  Léon and I, alone, were served as everyone gathered around to watch us and to be sure we were enjoying the food that they had prepared for us.  Cold beverages from glass bottles with ice hewn from a large block of ice were served to us, the special guests. Beverages (in plastic bottles of the less expensive variety) were later consumed by the family.  Once the family was assured that we had been fed well, they again placed our chairs outside for the cooler breezes of the day. 

Our time of farewell arrived.  The father escorted us to the highway where we would await a passing tap-tap for transportation back to the city.  A tap-tap is a colorfully painted pickup with a short bed that has a wooden bench on each side of the bed and a cap overhead to shield its riders from the sun.  When one wants to get off, you “tap-tap” on the metal sides to alert the driver that someone wants to get off.  We waited and waited and waited.  It was Sunday and few tap-taps run on Sunday.  The father insisted on going back to the home to again provide the wooden chairs for us to sit in.  Just as he returned with the chairs a tap-tap arrived.   The father stood in the middle of the road and made the customary hand motions that signaled the driver to stop for us.  Much to my surprise, there were NO passengers on the tap-tap.  Ahhh - no crowded ride back to the city!  That comfort did not last long.  After several stops, we had at least sixteen hot, sweaty bodies nestled into the back of the truck.  Once we were back in Les Cayes, we were dropped off at the “end of the line.”  From there, Léon and I took separate taxis back to our home.  A cold shower, a cool drink and a stretch out on my bed were very welcomed!  Sunday clothes, ninety degree weather, walking in the sun, and traveling in crowded transportation resulted in one hot mama - ME!   Whew!   The ice cold water tasted good!  A nap in front of the fan was even better!   But you know what????   I would not have traded that day’s experience for the world.  I feel privileged to have been asked to be the godmother to this precious little girl.  May she grow up to be a fine Christian woman!   God bless you little Ruth Sophia!

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….

Communiqué #064

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

August 21, 2009

Only one thing can explain the ongoing miracle of the construction of the school on Ile-a-Vache.  It is but by the grace of God that the school is becoming a reality.  From this, GRACE School received its name!  The long awaited time to put the cement roof on the first floor has come.  Combined fundraising efforts by supporters in the United States have made the huge financial undertaking possible!   The support of the community on Ile-a-Vache has put a labor of love into action.  On one day alone, one hundred fifty (yes, 150!) men showed up to help with the roof.  Some men were hired laborers.  Other men demanded no pay, just asking for food at the end of the day!  They know in their hearts that the school brings hope to their children - the next generation.  Many of these men never had the opportunity to have a formal education of their own, but they are anticipating that with their participation their children will have a better future through education!   Thank you God for making this possible!

Nothing in Haiti is easy!  Imagine building a school on the side of a mountain, with no vehicles or modern equipment to help get the job done!  Supplies are purchased on the mainland.  Men with pull carts are hired to bring the supplies to the wharf.  Other men are hired to load the supplies on to a boat.  Boat captains, with rugged wooden boats, are hired to transport the supplies over the 10 miles of Caribbean Sea to the island.  Once they arrive at the island’s shore, more men are hired to remove the items from the boat and bring the supplies up the mountain.  Sometimes, the school children also show up to help!  If the supplies are cement blocks, they are carried one at a time up the steep, uneven path to the work site.  If water is needed to mix the cement, men and women are required to fill 5 gallon buckets at the well at the base of the mountain and carry them (usually on their heads) to the work site.  Sand and rock are brought up using mules with side sacks.  The sand or rock is shoveled into the sacks and the mule and its master head up the rough terrain. 

To do the roof alone, it took 50 lb. bags of cement in quantities exceeding three hundred bags.  The cement usually arrives in Haiti on a large ship from countries like Venezuela.  If we can catch the boat at the wharf, before the cement is brought into town, we can get it for a better price.  If we are not there when the ship docks, we must pay a higher price to get the cement at the local store and then pay to have it transported back to the wharf where it had come from in the first place.  The cement bags then need to make the journey (as described in the paragraph above) from the mainland to the work site.  Once the cement is on-site and ready to be mixed, it is all done by hand, using simply a shovel and water.  A hand-built ladder is erected and the “bucket brigade” of men start to hoist metal buckets of wet cement up to the workers on the roof.  An assembly line of men stand on the ground to hand the buckets from the man doing the cement mixing to the men on the ladder (one on each rung) who pass the cement-laden buckets to the workers on the roof.  Once the bucket is emptied, a man on the roof inserts the handle of the bucket on to a rope that whisks the pail down the rope back to the ground where a waiting worker stands.  This same bucket is then re-filled with cement and begins a repeat of its journey, through the many hands of men, back up to the roof. 

The roof itself is about 12” thick, made of steel bars and concrete.  It is made to withstand hurricane-strength winds and the weight of a second and third floor.  The small army of men were able to put the roof on in ONE day.  It had rained during the night, not stopping until 10AM.  With the cooler morning air already gone, the workers began the job at 11AM.  They worked straight through until 4PM in order to finish the job.  All this was done on a cloudless day of ninety degree temperatures and high humidity.  Now that is commitment!!!

Please check out my “GRACE SCHOOL” photo album for a complete photo journal of the making of the roof!

Léon is SO excited to see his dream, for the community of his birth, become a reality.  He is already planning ahead for more rooms to accommodate high school students and then trade school students, and a medical clinic and a guesthouse for missionaries!   As he put it,  “ I feel like I have just written the first line of the story.”  He has so many hopes for an improved lifestyle for this impoverished, isolated community!

A huge “thank you” also goes out to the many people who believed in the dreams for Ile-a-Vache and supported it with prayers, with labor, with funding and with encouragement!

Isn’t God Good???

 Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….

Communiqué #063

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

August 8, 2009

Unique lessons are learned in the environment in which you live.   In Michigan, during thunderstorms, one knows not to stand in an open area when lightning is present.  In Haiti, I’ve been told not to walk directly under a coconut tree.  It seems experience has taught that a falling coconut can knock one out cold.  In Michigan, cars are subject to rust due to the salt used on the winter roads.  In Haiti, cars are subject to corrosion of its metal parts due to the salt air from the nearby ocean.  Even coins will rust in Haiti!  In Michigan, one applies lotion to heal cracked and dry skin resulting from winter temperatures.  In Haiti, one applies lotion to soften dry skin from the perspiration and heat rashes caused by constant sun rays and high temperatures.

I have marveled at the tedious work put into drying out the nearby soccer field following a heavy rainstorm.  The large pools of water, puddled on the field, must be cleared to allow the grass to dry before the afternoon soccer match.  Several men will come and use carpet squares or large towels to soak up the water.   They will then wring the water out of the carpets and towels into a bucket and then pour the collected water into a wheelbarrow.  The wheelbarrow is then pushed off the field, water sloshing over the sides, to a location on the perimeter of the soccer field where the water can be emptied and not flow back into the field.  Other times, a shovel is used to scoop the water directly into a pail or wheelbarrow.  Again, the water is removed from the field.  To me it seems like an excessively time-consuming and an impossibly long job!  But then I reflect on a stranger’s observation of the removal of snow in Michigan.  We spend hours and hours shoveling snow from one place to another.  We use all sort of methods - shovels, snow blowers and trucks.  I guess the two weather-related phenomena are not all that different!

 I am also learning about the similarities in people everywhere.  People here struggle with jealousy, local gossip, hurt feelings, disappointments and broken promises.  It seems that heartbreak, at the hands of other people, is universal.

 I am not sure why the similarities that would exist never occurred to me prior to my arrival in Haiti.  I had expected differences, but had not put a lot of thought into similarities.  I suppose, in part, I was still in the “honeymoon” phase when I arrived.  I guess I just figured that a world so different from my birth world would also result in an absence of interpersonal relationship problems and also no similarities in weather-related issues.

Over the years, I have found that I have made other incorrect assumptions.  At one time, I assumed that as one got older, one became more perfect.  After all, wouldn’t experience over the years have taught an older person to become better and better, until one reached almost perfection?  I also thought that church workers were exempt from conflict within the workplace.  Wouldn’t it only stand to reason that working so closely with Godly people would just naturally make it so?   When I actually started working with each of these groups - the elderly & church workers - I was surprisingly disappointed by my misconception.  Everywhere, in every circumstance, sinful nature of man rears its ugly head!

Maybe this is one of the reasons that I enjoy being around children.  The youngest are still very innocent of the trappings of interpersonal relationships.  A toddler will look up at you with an unbiased smile or will give an unsolicited hug of affection or will look past your imperfections and just have fun being with you!

I recently made some new little friends from the housetop of where I live.  Many times I go to the roof to catch the cool evening breezes.  It is a place where I can see many of the surrounding homes.  One day, I noticed that, at a newly constructed home located at the base of the wall surrounding the church compound, there were two little girls who lived in the house below.  Closer observation revealed that they were twins.  They were “cute as buttons” and I estimated that they were about fifteen months old.  It soon became a game that every time they would see me, they would squeal, break out it smiles and then start waving at me.  If one was there, when I appeared, and the other was not, the one would leave to find the other so that they could both squeal at me together.  We graduated from waving, to clapping, to dancing.  The three of us had huge fun imitating each other.  Not a word needed to be spoken.  Soon the father and the mother learned of my encounters with my little friends.  If the little girls were not around when I appeared, they rushed to find them for me, so that we could have our squealing and waving session.  What a joy it was when the twins actually came to visit me on the housetop late one afternoon.  I could actually see them up close and touch them and hold them and give them a kiss!   One of them warmed up easily to me.  The other one was more comfortable clinging to the skirts of her mother.  Now when I see them by their house, we have even a closer bond.  We have even advanced to blowing kisses!  Aren’t little ones precious?!?!?   I think God made them, in part, to chase away the imperfections and pettiness of adult relationships.  In some ways, I think God wants us to be more like children.  He wants us to be less judgmental.  He wants us to be more accepting.  He wants us to be more tolerant!  He wants us to be more forgiving!

 God, thank you for my little Haitian friends!  Help me to learn the lessons well that are taught by these little beings!

And Jesus said …”suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for of such

is the Kingdom of Heaven!” Mark 10 vs. 14

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….

Communiqué #062

TO MY PARTNERS in MINISTRY

to the PEOPLE of HAITI

July 27, 2009

July is proving to be a busy month for me.  The families here are starting early with their requests for financial help in sending their kids to school.  Perhaps it is because they learned last year that waiting too long means the money is gone and their child will not attend school for another year.  Since no school in Haiti is free, this challenge faces families each and every year!

Each day is now filled with knocks at my door.   The knocks begin early in the morning, many times before I am even dressed for the day.  The parade to my door continues until dark and sometimes even after dark.  It usually is a mother or father or a family member who is now responsible for children of deceased family members.  The plea is the same.  “Can you help send my children to school?”  A sad story comes with just about every request.  One mother came to me with three of her children.  The mother has no job.  The fathers have disappeared and are not helping to support their children.  The family is eating only two meals each week.  It is this same family who, about six months ago, came to me with a critically ill teen-aged child.  She died less than 24 hours after I met her and got her to a doctor.  How can a back be turned on situations as sad as this?   But, the hard facts are that there is not enough money to say “Yes!” to each person who comes to my door!

I am forced to tell each family that I will take their children's names and tuition cost information and will notify them if and when I have enough money to help them.  I make no promises that I will be able to help them.  They will hear from me, one way or the other, by the end of August, as initial fees are due to the schools the beginning of September.  They wait and hope and pray!

If you would watch me as I convert US dollars into Haitian gourdes to pay the tuition bills, you would laugh!  My bed is spread with mounds and mounds of money bills.  It looks like I am a millionaire.  The reality is that ONE US dollar is equal to 41 Haitian gourdes.  A little math will tell you that when I exchange 1000 US dollars, I have the equivalent of 41,000 dollars to count in the exchange process!  The counting is also a dirty process.  Never in the United States will you see a bill as dirty, as limp, and as smelly as are the Haitian gourdes.  One never knows where those bills have been before they reached my hands.  It is possible they have been dropped in the sewer, munched on by a goat, used by hands that had no toilet paper or a variety of other hard-to-believe possibilities.  You can be assured that I thoroughly wash my hands after being on money-counting duty!

After only a few short days of tuition pleas, Léon and I were looking forward to our one day retreat in celebration of our 3^rd anniversary.  We splurged on an overnight trip to one of the resorts on Ile-a-Vache.  The rest and relaxation was amazing!   The sand on the beach is white and warm.  The water is aqua blue and cool enough to give some relief from the heat.  The meals are elaborately prepared.  (The chefs even made a special cake for us with three candles on it!)  The room is AIR CONDITIONED - a very special treat!  The view, in every direction, is amazing.  The walks on the beach are breath-taking!  The one day and one night were over too soon and the door knocking resumed immediately upon our return to Les Cayes.

I may sound like a broken record (does the i-pod generation even know what that means?), but I wish to thank EACH AND EVERY ONE of you who have made contributions to the tuition assistance programs of Caribbean Children’s Foundation.  You are giving an incredibly wonderful gift to the children of Haiti.  Children here treasure an education and the chance to go to school.  You help keep their hopes and dreams alive….hopes for a better life!  THANK YOU FOR GIVING THEM THAT CHANCE!

I would like to dedicate this communiqué to my dear friend

Diane Louise Riojas Bennett,

who lost her battle with brain cancer on Monday, July 20, 2009! 

Diane and I were friends since I was in 1^st grade and she was in 3^rd grade.

We both were “only girls” in families filled with brothers.

I was maid of honor in her wedding.

She was one of those friends who would always pick-me-up with her sunshiny outlook on life!

I look forward to being reunited with her in Heaven!

Rest in peace my dear friend!

Nora Léon

Missionary to Haiti & the Dominican Republic                                  Until next time ………….