The Most Incredible Experience I Have Ever Had! Adrian Center

This trip was the most incredible experience I have ever had. God revealed himself to me and opened my eyes in so many ways. The night Mrs. Bunse told me about this awesome experience and invited me to go, I immediately felt God speaking to my heart. I knew He wanted me to trust Him, take this opportunity,and ignore all the doubts and fears racing through my mind. In just a few short weeks, God provided all the funds.
The day we arrived, we had a tour of the mission, then went to the village. I instantly fell in love with the people and all of the kids. They are the most beautiful people I have ever seen. They are so genuine and the joy in their smile is unforgettable. These people have so little, yet they are always willing to give more and help out in every way they can. As soon as there was a need and work was to be done, there was always a Haitian there ready to help. Everything we did was appreciated, even the smallest acts. My favorite part of every day, was watching the children go to school. When they stepped inside the gates in their adorable school uniforms, excitement would be on their faces, as they got ready to learn. It made me think of most Americans and how they view school. Every morning I wake up and complain, as I have to face another day of learning. However, with these people it is a privilege to go to school. In just one week I realized I need to trust God in whatever he asks from me and to not take for granted all that I have been blessed with. The people were so inspiring.
Leaving an experience like this is always the hardest part, especially after seeing so many needs that still need to be met. I did not want to leave those people and I wanted to spend everyday with those amazing kids. Even though it's been a few weeks, I have not lost the excitement of my experiences when I first arrived back from Haiti. I talk about it every time I get the chance, to anyone that will listen. I'm pretty sure I am annoying my family by my endless stories of Haiti. But I plan on going back as soon as it's possible; and this time, I hope it's much longer than one short week. I am graduating from high school this spring and I am not still not sure what God's plans are for me. I have a strong feeling it's going to do something involving missions, though. But I sure hope He wants me to go back to Haiti as much as I want to. (:

The Team Travels Home

Our final day on the trip was spent in travel. We got up early, ate a quick breakfast, stripped our beds, packed our bags on the trucks, and headed out amidst many hugs and tears. The drive to the airport seemed quicker than the drive just a week ago. We were able to get one last look at the country we had all grown to love in such a short time. We quickly unloaded at the airport, headed through security and customs, and soon boarded our planes.

It was interesting to note that the flight from Haiti to Florida was filled mostly with Haitians and missionaries, sprinkled with a few tourists. I know that Haiti appreciates the money brought in by tourism, but those people were a sharp contrast from the rest of us. We used the opportunity in the planes and in the airport to witness to people about what we had just experienced. Many eyes were opened to the poverty and destruction we had seen, but we were also able to share how Jesus was working in Haiti.

After a long day of travel, we were all glad to be home in our comfortable beds. Despite the comforts of home, we would not soon forget our trip and all we had seen and experienced. I know several of us are already planning our next trip back.

Day 7-Last Full Day is Always Tough

After our morning devotion most of the team packed Love Bundles and VBS supplies for our visits to the orphanages. Several of us went into the village to install a door that we built for a widow; she has been living in her home without a door and only had an old sheet to cover the opening.

Following that, we assembled the team and went to the first stop - Barbancourt School. A well kept property in a neighboring village owned and managed by Lifeline. We sorted the love bundles by age and gender and proceeded to distribute them to the youngest children first from preschool to 6th grade. The children were beautiful, dressed in their uniforms, they smiled and carried their packages while posing for a quick photo. Even the teachers and cooks received the love bundles. All were very thankful.

Our next visit was to a Tent Orphanage also supported by LifeLine. Up until May of this year the 32 orphans that lived there were living and sleeping in tents. Now several beautiful dorms are providing shelter and living conditions to these beautiful children. After a brief worship service we began our VBS program. We split-up the girls and boys and began crafts. Our team members either worked with the girls building colorful bracelets or the boys making necklaces. They all participated and appreciated their new gift. The team was then treated to a drama by a local youth troop that performed an awesome drama about the difficulties of life’s troubles and temptations to the backdrop of the song “Everything” by Lifehouse. It was awesome. After that we handed out candy to all the children and headed out.

Our last stop was for a little R&R after a very busy week; our destination was Wahoo Beach Club in the Northwest corner of the island. We had a great time snorkeling around beautiful coral reefs, colorful parrot fish, and even saw a few jellyfish. After snorkeling we had a great dinner of fresh seafood and did a little shopping from the beach vendors waiting like barracuda.
We had a wonderful day, a week of blessings that will last forever, and a desire to bless Lifeline and the Haitian people.

More Trucks!

Day #6 - This morning started off with two trucks full of Kids Against Hunger boxes showing up just as everyone started to eat breakfast. Each box contains 33 packets of high-nutrition vitamin fortified rice-soy casserole mix, each packet feeding a meal for six people. So once again we dropped everything and headed down to unload. It took just under two hours with great teamwork. We were able to then finish breakfast and head up to the prayer rock. This morning we were asked to share how this trip compared to our expectations. It was an amazing time of sharing and learning more about everyone. I am so very thankful to have been blessed with the opportunity to come here and share this experience with such a nice group of people. It really feels like family.

We were then off to VBS with the 2nd and 3rd graders. What a fun and uplifting experience it was to work with the kids. We taught them Jesus Loves Me with hand signs. It was awesome how quickly they learned and how excited they were to have us there with them. After the song we told them how much God loves us all and how He makes us all unique. We also told them how happy we are to be here talking to them about Jesus and how much He loves us. Then we helped them paint wood necklaces in the shape of a hand. The children then put their thumbprint on them to show how unique and special they are to God. They were so excited to put their thumbprints on, they were jumping up and down all over the place.

After VBS we headed over to the storage building, next to where the much needed new warehouse will be, to hand out love bundles to the school children. A love bundle is a pack of age appropriate supplies including a towel, peanut butter, school supplies, clothing, toys, toiletrees, etc. It was so wonderful to see the children's faces as we handed them out. During this time there were some kids from the village on the outside of the compound fence watching and they caught Pat’s eye so she had someone bring them around so we could give them love bundles as well. That was really special, they were so grateful to have been included. Those sweet sad little faces staring at us from the other side of the fence became faces of joy. I really am struck by the hearts of those that run this place and how quickly needs are addressed and taken care of. It so touches my heart and makes me want to stay here forever to serve alongside these wonderful people.

After lunch we went to a tent city near Titanyen to hand out beans and shoes. Once we arrived we sang some songs and then headed to the church which consisted of four poles and some tarps for a covering. We each took turns scooping up cans of beans for each child and then each adult to hand out a total of 500 pounds of beans. What a good feeling to know at least for a day or two these people would have food to eat. Next came the shoes, everyone lined up and we fitted them individually at one of several stations. Unfortunately we ran out of large sizes before everyone received shoes. We had one box of crocs that everyone wanted, the rest were mostly flip flops. There is a tremendous need for school/closed toe shoes here, the kids are not allowed into school without proper attire, flip flops cannot be worn to school. I am going to leave both pairs of closed toed shoes I brought here. When I come back I want to bring a bunch of school appropriate shoes. It is really sad that some people don’t have any shoes at all. It is crazy to see the kids running all over the place on the rocks with no shoes. It almost makes my feet hurt just watching them.

After we were finished at the tent city we headed back to the mission for delicious fried chicken dinner. Its hard not to feel guilty eating some of the meals we have while children are starving throughout the country. Yet we are appreciative of the care we are receiving here and know the mission is being good stewards with what they have been given. After dinner, people were getting showered and relaxing and another two trucks of food showed up that needed to be unloaded right away. These trucks were unloaded by flashlight because there is no electricity in the storage rooms. What a blessing that we have had 6 trucks equaling 3 shipping containers in two days(today's trucks alone contained 144,000 meals!). And what a blessing to have a group here to help unload! Praise God, He is good - All the time!!!!!

Market Day

Day #5 – Wednesday morning started bright and early with two trucks arriving full of supplies from the US. An average of one container per month is shipped to the mission, full of various supplies. No container is the same. Once it passes through customs, which can take a month or longer, the container is unloaded into two trucks and delivered to the mission. The mission never knows much in advance when a container is due to arrive. When they hear the trucks pulling in the compound, everyone stops work to meet the truck and unload. Generally Haitians are hired to unload the trucks, but today the team was able to unload the truck saving the mission money, which took about 90 minutes of non-stop assembly line work to unload the boxes of t-shirts and shoes, 50 lb bags of rice and beans, and various other supplies.

Once the trucks were unloaded, we ate a quick breakfast, then several members of our team headed into Port Au Prince to run some errands while the remainder of us headed up to the prayer rock for our morning devotional. Praise God the illness that hit a few members of our team yesterday was gone and we were able to get on with our day. Those of us remaining at the mission loaded up the truck for a trip to the market. The market is held only a few days a week in each town. The sights, sounds, and smells were different from anything else we have experienced in the US. This is the main shopping area for the locals and is filled with all manner of food, staples, clothing, etc. We passed everything from small pyramids of grains and vegetables spread on blankets to wheelbarrows of coconuts. Near the water were the charcoal fields where the vendors sell charcoal they have made. Many of the people do not have propane or gas to cook with and use charcoal instead. Much of the charcoal is brought in from nearby islands because there are few trees left in Haiti to make charcoal from. The lack of trees is one of the reasons mudslides are in issue here. There is nothing to hold the soil on the hillsides. On the way back from the market, we stopped at a local basket makers to purchase baskets made from banana leaves. After lunch, we painted some more classrooms, played with the children, and built a front door for one of the villagers whose cardboard door had disintegrated.

For dinner, we were treated to an authentic Haitian meal made by one of the local women. Some foods were familiar, others not quite so. Goat, mango, fried plantain, beans and rice were among some of the delicious foods we had to choose from. After feasting we relaxed for the remainder of the evening in a variety of ways – journaling, reviewing our day, star gazing, reading. A couple of the guys from our team attempted to hand wash some of their clothing. A young local boy who frequently helps around the mission, noticed their difficulties and offered to complete the task. Despite the men’s refusal, he insisted, saying “I work for you, Jesus repays me.” At the same time, a man came in with a stab wound. After assessing the injury, the man was driven to a local hospital for stitches. When a villager comes in for assistance, everyone stops what they are doing to help out. Daily we are seeing what it means to live a life for Jesus, something we don’t often remember in the States.

A Hike up the Mountain

Day #4 – Four AM Wake Up Call – First a quick breakfast and then onto what we thought was going to be an easy hike up the mountain to visit one of the schools the mission supports. We started our hike in the dark and it wasn’t too long before we realized it wasn’t going to be as easy as we thought. Several of our group was already feeling under the weather before we even started, one choosing to stay behind. Once we left the mission compound, the path quickly become rugged and steep. We weren’t even ¼ of the way up before two more members of our group got too sick to continue and turned back with one of the leaders. Several others were feeling ill as well, but were able to continue up the mountain with the help of the teammates. The prayed over each other, cheered one another on with encouraging words, carried backpacks, and even took turns carrying one of the younger girls. It was another great example of the unity amongst the body of Christ.

The scenery was beautiful if we remembered to take our eyes off the path and look up every now and then. The contrast between the beauty of the landscape and the trash strewn along the path was somewhat disconcerting, and the urge to pick up the water bottles and plastic bags was soon replaced by the need to concentrate on breathing and walking. It was humbling to be passed by Haitians of all ages carrying 50 pound buckets of water, bundles of sticks, or bags of bananas running up and down the mountain. And knowing they did this daily was even more humbling. Once we finally reached the top of the mountain two hours later, we were able to see God’s beauty in the beautiful blue of the Caribbean at the foot of the mountains, a striking reminder that He is always present, even amongst the ruin.

Once in the village, we joined the last few school children as they walked to school. We were met inside the school gates by an assembly of children who sang several songs during the morning flag ceremony. While they filed in their classrooms for their school day, we held our morning devotional in the church. Some of the group members shared their testimonies, and we prayed for the school and over the sick team members. We then distributed lollipops to the children, one classroom at a time. These children were different from the children from the village below in that they were much more quiet and reserved, probably a result of minimal interaction with the “Blan” (the “White”). This was the school we had made the benches for and our intention was to deliver them today. The benches were to be brought up the mountain in a truck via a longer route. By the time we were done distributing the candy, the truck had still not arrived and we were concerned that the recent storm activity had washed out that road. At the last minute, the truck arrived and the benches were delivered. We prayed over the pastor and then made our way back down the mountain, letting the two younger girls ride back in the truck. We made a stop at the local voodoo house and were able to talk with the voodoo priest and tour the house. He even allowed us to pray over him before we left. Voodoo is a common belief system in Haiti. The island was dedicated to satan twice in the past; 1991 being the most recent dedication. The walk back down was only slightly easier than the hike up, but what we lost in screaming lungs we made up for in screaming knees. Back at the mission it was a toss up what we wanted more: food or a nap.

After a short siesta, we spent the remainder of the afternoon working on some projects at the mission, building more benches, painting classrooms. Donald Jr, the President of CIL, arrived at the mission after dinner and gave us an overview of the ministry, telling us of its history, and its future goals. We were very thankful for our shower and bed as we ended this amazing yet long and tiring day.

Haiti from a Student’s Perspective

Haiti is an amazing place. It is very beautiful. We stepped off the plane and it was so sad. Children on the street yelling, “one dollar!” “God bless!” I just wanted to scoop them up and give them everything. We had to take an hour and a half drive to the town we were serving. The road was so bumpy. We got to the village and you hear all the kids yelling and chasing us. There are great people here. They are the nicest people you will ever meet. They will give anything for you. We met Daniel, Mark, Markson, Ensil, Beritone, and Alex. They all will help you if you need any thing. They are also very funny. God has touched my heart so many times this trip. Seeing all the kids, watching them live their lives. If it would be me, I would not make it. They walk with 50 pound things on their head without a problem. Half the children are hungry and the other half get fed by Lifeline. We were helping feed the kids at their lunch time and the difference between the sponsored school kids, and the public kids was amazing. All the school kids were organized and tidy, eating with spoons and manors. Then the populous kids came and it broke my heart. They were eating with there hands and spilling food all over themselves. I saw one girl dropped her food on the dirt floor and pick it up and put it on her plate. I wanted to get her a whole new plate but I knew I couldn’t. we played soccer with a bunch of Haitians and they were really good. Me and another girl are gymnasts. None of them knew what that was so we started doing flip’s and stuff. We drew a crowd. It felt good to make someone’s day.

We hiked up a mountain today. We have made benches for the past few days for the mountain people so we brought them up today. We hiked and someone else brought the benches up on the truck. We were hiking and a girl got sick. She decided to tough it out. She is a really good role model. We all prayed over her and she got better almost instantly. She was still feeling sick when we started again but better than before. It took us two hours to get up the mountain. We got to the school and had a devotional. We were praying over a girl and her family and I started feeling sick. They instantly started praying over me, I felt very loved and special, the color restored in my face and I felt a little better. God does wonders! The girl who was sick and I rode back down in the truck and instantly fell asleep. I woke up and built more benches. I felt A LOT better. We built benches and painted class rooms. Dinner was delicious! We had a ‘meeting’ time and Donald Jr. answered a lot of questions. Tomorrow is market day and also Haitian food dinner. It is so exciting! Haiti is an awesome place. You should come sometime!


- Hannah, age 13

Our First Full Day on the Mission Field

Day #3-Monday was the first official work day for the team. After an early breakfast, we began our day up at the prayer rock for devotional, worship and prayer where we shared some inspirational words from 2 Chronicles and Hosea. The prayer rock is a large rock at the top of a hill above the main house that is covered with a sugar cane stalk roof and surrounded by benches where we start our day, devoting it to God.

Our first task of the day was to make 10 benches for one of many schools that Children’s International Lifeline (CIL) supports in Haiti. These benches would be going to a mountain village located about five miles from the mission compound. The team worked in unity to plan and build the benches, which incorporate a bench to sit on and a desk top to write on. Some of the team then held Vacation Bible School with 30 first graders, which included a devotional about love and making foam crosses and necklaces, while the rest of us continued to work on the benches. We took breaks to play basketball and soccer with some of the youth and we also observed the feeding of the village children. First the school children were fed. The children that are able to attend the school are those that are sponsored or whose parents can afford to send them. They are clothed in uniforms, provided with school supplies, and fed a hot meal 5 days a week. In addition to the school children, the mission also feeds the “populace” children – those children of the village who did not attend the school. These children are not yet sponsored, but the mission steps out in faith, believing the God will continue to provide for their needs until sponsorship is secured. These children are but a portion of the 3500 children fed a warm meal daily by CIL Haiti.

After working on the benches, we ate lunch and then went for a ride to visit a nearby orphanage, one of the 50 schools and orphanages the mission supports. The orphanage has around 45 children and currently has teams of people from the US that are helping them improve the conditions of the facility. The 15 of us packed snugly into the back of the truck for the cozy yet fun 30 minute drive to the orphanage. We had a great time holding and playing with the children, giving them lollipops and some small toys, sharing the love of Jesus.

After arriving home, we had dinner and talked about the day’s events, sharing our experiences with one another. Throughout the day, many of the Haitian people in the surrounding towns will come to the mission to get help with medical, food and other basic needs. This night after dinner, there was a need to take a sick woman to the hospital in Saint Marc. After carrying the woman through the village on her pallet, and loading her into the back of the truck, Donald Curtis Sr. (he and his wife live at the mission, their son Donald Curtis Jr. is the President of CIL), took one of the team members and 2 Haitians on the dangerous nighttime drive to the hospital. This is no ordinary drive. There are no street lights or traffic rules, many of the cars and motorcycles do not have lights and there are sections where you are required to drive fast to avoid the snipers.

After 60 minutes of prayer filled driving, the crew made it to the hospital and dropped off the patient. The hospital was unlike any in the United States. The sanitary conditions were less than perfect, people were everywhere, cholera victims filling one section. When bringing a patient to the hospital, you are required to bring enough bedding, clothing, food, and water to last for the stay. The protocol before leaving the facility included spraying your shoes with a strong bleach solution to avoid the spread of disease. The group arrived home late after most of us were already in bed, tired from our first long day.

The Children of Haiti are Full of Love

Day #2. We all got up around 4am (it was daylight savings so we gained one hour and we needed it!), to get to the airport by 5:30am. It was very busy at the airport, but we all got checked in and through security on time. The flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Port-au-Prince is only 90 minutes long!! Such a short trip from one of the poorest countries in the world, it is amazing and hard to comprehend. As we got off the plane we were met by 5 men that were playing Haitian music to welcome the people that had arrived from the US. There was a hat to collect money. For a quick second, I actually thought I was at a paradise Caribbean island and we were headed to the beaches for 6 days of sun and fun.
As we got our bags, Patricia Curtis (her and her husband help run the mission) met us and helped us get our bags organized. It was not too much after we left the airport we were hit with the reality that we were back in Haiti and the need was so great that it is hard to get your arms around. There were kids just outside the airport that were asking for us to respond to them and you could see the need of a country that had been through so much. As we jumped into two trucks and drove to the mission who (it is an hour drive from the airport), many people got their first glimpse of the poverty of Haiti.
We drove by many tent cities that were still being utilized eleven months after the earthquake. There is still an estimated 1.5 million still living in tents. The smells that you get when passing these communities is very hard to explain, there is not restrooms, no sewers, no electricity, nothing but tents made out sticks and canvas tops. I think that many of our team had a hard time comprehending the smells, sights and sounds. The other thing that we got to see was some of the impacts from the earthquake. The mission is approximately 50 miles from the epicenter of the earthquake, but the damage was still very visible in homes and buildings that had been knocked down and damaged by the shaking of the ground.
We unloaded our bags and got situated in our rooms and then had some lunch. Patricia talked to the group and filled us in on the do’s and don’ts and she also shared her heart with all the things that they deal with each and every day. She shared her heart on how the need was so great and also how God had provided for them right after the earthquake when the entire country was shut down and no one knew what was going to happen. Patricia took us for a tour of the grounds and showed us the school, medical facility, church, the cross on the top of the hill and other buildings to help the community.
After we were done checking out the mission, we got to go out to the village. This was an unbelievable experience of children, young and old coming up to all of us, holding our hands, having us lift them up and walking with us. Each child would grab a person and cling on to them. When new kids would see us, they would yell “Blan”, which in Creole means white. These children that have nothing, held on to us like we were their best friends. The love that they showed to our group is indescribable. Many of the children were either naked or had a shirt on with no pants. Some of the children have an orange tint to their hair which means that they are not getting the right nutrition. These same kids that have nothing, were showing us a love that is hard to believe based on the conditions that we were seeing.
After we toured the village, a group of us played basketball and Blake, Christian, Lily, and Hannah played soccer with a group of younger boys from the village. The mission built a large soccer field for the children. All the Haitian kids had flip flops or Crocs to play in, no one had tennis shoes. After the sporting activity we all ate dinner and Patricia went through the week’s schedule of building benches, visiting orphanages, feedings, painting, hiking up to see the mountain families and doing a vacation bible school.
As we were eating dinner, a young missionary that is helping out the mission, Carrie Miller, came in a told us a story that one of the young men that we just got to know (Marck), had a cousin that just died that night. His cousin was just 21 years old and was sick and died. Marck’s cousin lived up in the mountains and had gone to the mission’s doctor to get help a few days before and then went back up to his village in the mountain, but it was too late, he was too sick. This is something that the people of Haiti are very used to and in some cases even expect. The average life expectance is only in the 50’s.
A lot of people talked and shared with each other. We had a long day, and had seen so much in one day that many were tired and went to bed.

Travel Day Has Many Surprises

Day 1 was a travel day for everyone. We had the majority of the group of 15 people going on the trip fly from Dayton to Baltimore to Ft. Lauderdale yesterday. We did have one coming from Chicago, two from Cincinnati and three from Portland and all of them made it on time and safe (PTL). From the start of our trip God was moving. I had to go back on the shuttle from where we parked our car because we needed some duck tape to make a duffle bag smaller. On the drive back, the lady driving the shuttle asked me where we were going and I told her. I asked her if she knew Jesus and she did. She asked me to pray for her grandson who actually led her to the Lord eleven years ago. She said he had fallen away for his walk and that he really needed prayer. Her church had fasted for him for 3 days and he had recommitted his life to the Lord, but then got put in jail. As she dropped me off to the gate again, I was able to pray with her for her grandson, she was crying. If I would not have had to go back to get the duck tape, we would have never had that conversation.
The next experience was on our flight to Baltimore. For those that don’t know Donna Harnishfeger, she has a BIG heart for our military troops. She sends cards, food, bibles, etc. When she sat down, the person next to her was a man that was in the air force. He was being moved to a US base in London. They talked the entire flight and exchanged addresses. The man also told Donna that she could stay with him and his wife if she was ever over in London. On that same flight, Anthony sat next to a Christian brother who is starting a ministry in the Washington DC area for troubled black youth, they encouraged one another, they exchanged cards and committed to stay in touch and pray for each other.
Our next experience was in the airport in Ft. Lauderdale. Anthony DiPenti got a skycap for all our bags (we all had large suitcase full of clothes, candy, medical supplies, etc). The man that he picked was named William and as we were waiting for our bags, William grabbed out his Bible and was reading it. Anthony and I went up and talked to him and he told us that he was in the process of starting a church and that he was a pastor and evangelist. He really knew that word and encouraged us on our journey to Haiti. We prayed with him and then sat to wait for our transportation to the hotel.
As we were standing at the hotel, there was a man in a wheel chair with two women. My sister-in-law Colette asked me to help them, because the man in the wheelchair had to get up to get in a van. As Anthony, Joe and I helped him, they noticed that they were on the wrong transportation. We sat him back down in his wheelchair. I asked the lady’s who he was with what had happened to him and they told me that they were on a cruise with him and he had a major seizure. He was in his 40’s and was on a cruise for physically challenged people when this happened. These two women said that he had never had a seizure like this and he was not doing well. I asked them if we could pray with him and we all laid hands on him and asked God to heal him. We then helped him get in a cab. The airlines would not put him on a flight since he was so sick, but these women had to get him back to Rhode Island.
I am amazed how God works, we have not even gotten to Haiti to help some of the poorest people in the world and God had us pray and encourage people in the United States. It just goes to show you that there an many people that need God’s love no matter where you are in the world, even in the richest countries, the US. I do believe that we are supposed to help people in our own city, county, state and country. I also believe that we are suppose to also go to the ends of the earth with the gospel as well (the good news), that is why Jesus told his disciples just before he left them and ascended into heaven to be with the father (Acts 1:8-But you receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
We are looking forward to all that God has planned for us in Haiti, but I know that he has already blessed us and we just got started. We thank you all for your prayers; please continue to pray for BIG things in Haiti. I have been praying for salvations and healings as well as showing God’s love to the people of Haiti. Thanks

Getting Ready for Haiti

We are now 10 days before we leave for Haiti. There will be 15 people heading to Haiti and staying at Children's International Lifeline 50 minutes north of Port-au-Prince. We will be working on projects, playing with kids and sharing the love of Christ with them. I believe that God is going to do some awesome stuff on our trip and our team will be changed by seeing all the need in Haiti. The mission does have some needs and we are trying to collect them before we go, so if you have any, please contact Christian Bunse at 513-226-4123


1. We need some print cartridges for a Hewlett Packard black 98 and color 95. However many you bring would be good we are using this printer for office use as well as school and clinic at the time.

2. We also got a printer it is Hewlett Packard and it is a model 170 the cartridge for it is black 45, and color 23, we are hoping that it will be able to be used in the school if we get cartridges for this one.

3. I also have a family of five that are very poor and they have no good clothes at all, I am sending you the sizes and even if you get some from used clothing or Goodwill that will be fine, as long as they are good quality. Girls size - 10-12, girl size 8, girl size 6 and boy size 5, then there is an 3months, and the mother probably size 7. This little family needs clothes and shoes but I don't know about the shoe size so I will try to help in that myself.

4. If you have some extra shoes of any size that are in good condition we can always use them. You see the children need full shoes for school not sandals or flipflops.

5. Any learning toys or music toys for children would be great. Yes, I know you are going to say they need batteries but it would be great for them to have with the little ones to learn and even the older ones would learn from them.

Thank you so much for asking about the concerns of our beautiful little children that are so needy. May God's Blessings be upon everyone of you!! Patricia”

Man in Armenia needs Prayer for Healing

Below is an e-mail from a lady in Germany (she is Armenian) that is requesting a prayer for her friend that still lives in Yerevan. He is dying and needs prayer and help now. Please pray for him and if you would want to help at all financially, please let me know.

My name Zhanna. A week ago I learned that our friend is seriously ill. His
name is Wanik is 34 years old and lives in Armenia. He is married and has
three and a half daughter. Now he is very ill and has no prospect of medical
treatment. He is suffering from gastro-intestinal cancer. He lies helpless
at home with strong pain, because of which he can not sleep and eat. About 1/2years he gradually lost his power - the diagnosis is now his wife for a
shock. He was the only one of the family, the money earned. Now the whole
family is threatened by abject poverty. He added there is no way for a good
diagnosis and chemotherapy, is itself a pain not. He needs a very rapid
medical intervention. Unfortunately, neither I nor my husband to provide the
financial means an operating room. He therefore needs your help.

I beg you in the name of Jesus Christ, please help Wanik medically, give him
hope and the opportunity to live on.

Heading into the Mountians of Armenia

Off to Vanadzor this morning (we are 9hours ahead of cincy), it is a two our drive. This area was hit by the earthquake in 1989 and people still live in shipping containers that had humanitarian supplies in them. If any of you have ever heard me tell the story of the lady we met that lived in one of these containers with her 5 kids and he baby got eaten by rats while they were sleeping. We have helped her start a microbusiness and are hoping to see her. Church service this morning, praying for God's wisdom if I speak agian. After that, we head into the mountains (can only get there by jeep) to see a church in one of the poorest areas in Armenia. We may be setting up another training center for the children of that community. Thank you for all your prayers.

Back in Armenia

Leaving for Armenia tomorrow night at 3:50pm from CVG to France, France to Yerevan. Pastor Bobby Mills and I will be meeting up with our friends from Orphans Promise, Yuri and Nataliya Khomyak. Our plans are to see two of our current projects, one in Yerevan and one in Vandazor. We also be seeing some orphanages in Gomori. Please pray for God's hand to be on us for this trip. For his hand to be on us and reveal what great work he is doing for these children through the ministries in Armenia that OP supports. We are also asking for divine appointments throughout our trip and unity in the Holy Spirit. Will update throughout the trip. Blessings and thank you

May 17, 2010 How Much Have You Been Given?

Well, we are on our last leg of the flight home. As we raced to catch our connections, there is not much time to think. But, when we sit on the plane, quiet for a moment, I can’t stop weeping. The heart of God must be breaking for these children of Haiti. Maybe not so much because of the things that I see, but because of what He sees. Because of the worship of voodoo, the polluting of His creation, the exploiting of the innocent, the discarding of the weaker, and the apathy of His people. “For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required.” (Luke 12:48) I testify that I have been given much…have you?

May 16, 2010 New Friends

Up at 4:00 am and to the airport to board the very small aircraft back to Port-au-Prince. The generator was still off so no lights while getting ready- interesting. It was amazing, however, to see how many Haitians were already up and walking in the dark either to fetch water or to set up their “store front” with their products to sell- chickens, mangos, chairs, plastic jugs of gas, anything potentially sellable. Eddy, our scout for buildings for Orphan’s Promise Prosthetics and Orthotics clinic, met us in Port-au-Prince and we traveled to a house for rent just 20 minutes from the airport. This was the 5th and best building we have looked at so far. It was clean and fairly new and had withstood the earthquake without damage. The setup seemed ideal for our purpose, including room enough for a lab to construct the prosthetics, a waiting room, a fitting room, a therapy room and plenty of living and sleeping space for those coming to the clinic to stay and work. Together with the landlord and his wife, we prayed for unity, clarity and a blessing over the owner, their family and the house before we left. We are continuing to pray for a reasonable and affordable rental rate!

Over lunch we met with the Gary LeBlanc, Michael O’Neal and Frank Barrett-Mills from Mercy Chefs. How exciting to hear of their vision to help the people of Haiti in a variety of ways. Donald Curtis from Children’s International Lifeline was encouraged by the new relationship he had formed with them and the assistance Mercy Chefs will be able to provide to him, enabling CIL’s feeding program to increase from cooking for 3,000 children to 9,000 children within the same amount of preparation time.

On our way back to the mission in La Digue, we visited another orphanage. Once at Children’s International Lifeline, Donald, Yuri and I went into the village to film a 14 year old boy who had built his own home. At just about 3 feet wide by 4 feet long, and maybe 4 feet high, he had constructed his home in the side of a hill out of stone and mud. The roof was made of scraps of metal and plastic and it had two windows (holes) and a door which was a piece of metal hinged by some wires. When I crawled inside the tiny house, I was taken back by what I saw. Inside there was a small, tattered blanket and two tin cans sitting on either side of the space. The cans were filled with dirt and in each of them grew a small plant. This ingenious and hardworking orphan boy not only carefully built himself a house, but he intentionally made it his home. I was so moved and so impressed.

My favorite part of the whole trip was going into the village. As soon as we got out of the gator, at least 10 or 12 kids grabbed my hands and arms at a time. More children would gather and pull off another’s hand so as to put their hand into mine. Surrounded, the kids attempted to talk to us in English. I laughed as one girl looked at me and said, “Gimme socket.” When she realized that was not word she was looking for, she went away and came back and tried again, “Gimme handle.” The third time she came up with something just as random and I couldn’t help but chuckle.

We walked over to the river and checked out the dam that the French had built in 1922 to effectively channel the river water into the village so that it is usable for daily living and irrigation. Although the water originates from the mountain when it enters the channel, people swim and bathe in it and animals drink and stand and eliminate in it, so, as the water continues to flow down the channel, it becomes dirtier and dirtier. Yet, people still drink from it. When asked if they could just boil it first, I was sobered to realize that using their supply of charcoal to boil water would mean they would not be able to cook their food to eat. Given the choice, it seems silly to them to boil water.

As we walked, children would bring children to us that needed medical attention. One had a rash all over his body, another had some sort of fungus in his hair and another had a sore on the back of his head. Donald addressed each child, telling them to come to the mission first thing in the morning. The remainder of the daylight was spent watching the children jump into the channels at the dam as a way of “showing off” to the “blancs” (whites). Then, we rode back to the Children’s International Lifeline base to have supper, get packed up and head home.

May 15, 2010 Something to Think About

This day was spent primarily venturing to the land purchased by Orphan’s Promise which will be the new Miriam Center. Once out of the city, the drive through the country and into the mountains was breathtaking! The ocean was an awesome aquamarine color as the waves softly rolled into the sandy shore. What a stark contrast to the villages where the streets, the rivers and even the beaches are ridden with trash. And an even greater contrast to Port-au-Prince, an oceanside city, where rubble and trash seem endless and vegetation is nearly absent. A feeling of peacefulness verses a feeling of chaos and confusion. When we arrived at the 3 acre parcel of land, Courtney, the director of Miriam Center, walked with the group and explained the potential layout of the new Miriam Center campus. It will truly be remarkable for the children!

As we prepared to leave, we were met by a group of children of all ages. One young girl was pulling a string upon which was attached a car. But this was no ordinary car. It was made of old plastic pop bottles, using the caps as the wheels, a whole bottle as the body and pieces of bottle for the axles. It was so creative and at the same time so humbling. I thought of the boy who walked with us on the property who had made a toy out of two plastic lids and some sugar cane stalk, and the boy in the trash heap who flew a kite made of an old paper plate, some string and a length of thin paper. Then I thought of my own children and the variety and complexity of the toys that they have. What does one do with that? It isn’t so much that they need to have the toys that the children in America have. Actually, I was tickled to see that such simple toys brought joy to children the same age as mine. It was the realization that this was really all they had, and in the midst of their hunger for food, education, and the love of the Father, they found joy in a little plastic car made from a dirty, old pop bottle.

May 14, 2010 Welcome to Miriam Center

Off to Northwest Haiti Christian Mission where Orphan’s Promise is partnering to build an orphanage for the special needs orphans of Haiti called Miriam Center. Already in existence, Miriam Center is a unique project of NWHCM housing 32 children with mild to severe developmental and/or congenital disabilities. Once at the mission, we were introduced to several beautiful children living at Miriam Center. There was John, Den-den, Owens, Walden, Jimson, Belle and Kem, just to name a few. At this time, the Center is over capacity. With the new Miriam Center, over 100 disabled orphans will be helped. Working together with a team from Orphan’s Promise, Northwest Haiti Christian Mission, Shepherd’s Crook Ministries and Kimmey’s House, we are in the midst of developing a building plan as well as a program plan to address the complex needs of these children. Also, future mission trips are taking shape involving physical, occupational and speech therapists. How exciting!

New to Miriam Center was a 6 month old baby named Cindy. She was brought to the center by her parents who knew there was something wrong with her and felt they were unable to help her and to adequately feed and care for her. Cindy presented with contractures in both of her knees and hips. She appeared to have club feet as well. She was severely underdeveloped for her age and was malnourished. But, Cindy was absolutely beautiful! I held her whenever I got the chance and worked stretching her legs to increase her knee and hip range of motion. She was so sweet, her big brown eyes staring intently into mine, as she managed an occasional smile. I was so thankful she was at Miriam Center where she could receive proper care and nutrition, knowing that if Miriam Center did not exist, Cindy probably would not exist either. There is a magnificent number of children in Haiti just like Cindy and many with greater limitations. These children have significantly less of a chance of survival than a “healthy” child in Haiti, which means that without organizations like Orphan’s Promise and Miriam Center, there is no hope for a future for these precious disabled children.

May 13th -Saving Lives

Up early and into the city of Barbancourt today. Packed day! We visited the building that Children’s International Lifeline constructed with funding provided by Orphan’s Promise and Life Church Westchester, Ohio. We met the orphaned children and the pastor and did some filming. The building is awesome! With the help of Orphan’s Promise and Life Church in Westchester, Ohio, CIL was able to complete the building of the “orphanage” for only $5,000 in less than 3 weeks! Amazing that such a relatively small sum of money can house and provide protection for 24 children in Haiti. And remember…$2500 was raised in just 3 weeks by a small group of determined Life Church members and matched by Orphan’s Promise. There is definitely more work to be done here. Most of the kids are sleeping on the floor for lack of beds. We gifted the children here with new dresses, underwear and shirts, toothbrushes and hair bands and candy.

One boy from outside of the orphanage came running to our truck when we arrived. His stomach was distended and he had an umbilical hernia, something that is common here because the malnutrition causes their bones, muscles and organs to become weakened. At about 12 years old, he was dirty, of course, with tattered clothes. I rummaged through my backpack and found a pack of peanut butter crackers and offered it to him. I am always amazed how the children smile at you with their beautiful white teeth even when you know they are anguishing inside. He stood outside of the stick and string fence and watched as we interacted and blessed the children inside of the orphanage. I asked him to wait for us so I could talk with him before we left but he was nowhere to be found, and as we climbed into the truck, I felt so sad that I was unable to give him something. Just as we were leaving, however, he came running towards us. Thank you Jesus! We gave him an armful of supplies and as he crossed through the field, I noticed him grab the hand of his younger sister, maybe about 4 years old and meet up with his younger brother, probably about 8. Together, they made their way to his waiting mother standing next to her dilapidated, stone and mud hut.

That’s the thing about Haiti. 78% of the population live on less than $2.00 per day and over 70% are unemployed. As for children, almost half of the population is 15 years old and younger and of that, 50% die before they reach the age of 15. In fact, 80 out of every 1000 children die before they see their first birthday. This is due to extreme malnutrition, lack of medical care and clean water. Haiti is one of the poorest nations in the world! Like this 12 year old boy, these statistics are true for all children of Haiti, not just those considered orphans.

From there, we visited some of the schools that CIL is feeding. It was such a humbling experience to witness the waves of children line up patiently to receive a bowl of beans with spaghetti and some tomato-y type sauce. Even as they stood waiting for spoons and bowls to be washed in between eatings, they were quiet and respectful. Once the school children were fed, the populous children, those at risk living in the nearby village, were served. What a drastic contrast! The school children looked healthy, bright-eyed, friendly and joyful with clean uniforms. The populous children were dirty, shoe-less, tattered and apprehensive. Many had orangish hair, sores, yellowing eyes and distended bellies. It was living proof that these programs are successfully saving the lives and spirits of these beautiful children!

May 12th Christa Story

Christa stole our hearts. She caught my eye as her young mother attempted to stabilize her in a broken chair so that she could feed her some sort of liquid. As Christa struggled to sit up, her mom began to lose patience. As I walked towards the crying baby, my smile was greeted by a warm but somewhat meek smile from her exasperated mom. Instinctively, I reached out to touch Christa and began to gently stroke her dirt covered arm. Her eyes wandered to meet mine and it became clear to me that she was born with some developmental disabilities. Within moments, Christa's tears turned to a smile and then giggles. Funny how love and laughter transcends all languages. She captured my heart. As I flirted with this beautiful and helpless child, Robenson, CIL's Haitian teacher and translator, communicated with her mom to learn that she is scoffed at and chastised by others because her baby is different. Her innocent eyes welling with painfulness, this teenage, jobless, homeless, husbandless mom of a severely malnourished and disabled child told Robenson of her anguish and hopelessness.

Christa's story is not unlike many children living in Haiti today. Her living conditions and malnutrition are not unlike most children living in Haiti today. Children's International Lifeline has "adopted" this tent city and two others like it totaling more than 8,000-10,000 people. Unimaginable, but they estimate that there are more than 1.2 million people without homes and living in conditions like these, more than half of them children! With every tent city that we visit and multiple others that we see along the road and hillsides, the same questions arise. "Where do they get water? What about toilets? How do they get food to eat? How do they survive? When these tents crumble and the people of Haiti are forgotten...who will help them?"

The good news is that several families have a dry shelter due to the tents that Orphan’s Promise provided to this and other tent cities. Today, we delivered “love bundles” full of hygiene items, clothing, towels, toys, peanut butter and such to this tent city. A crowd of people quickly encircled the Children’s International Lifeline truck as we arrived. More and more people lined up as we handed out the packages as swiftly and as orderly as possible. Christian gave a devotional and prayed a blessing over the people giving glory to the God who promises them a hope and a future in the midst of this horrific devastation. All glory and honor and praises and blessings to you, Lord.

Day 1 in Haiti-Port-Au-Prince. Searching for a building!

We are anticipating some good stuff out of this trip! We are so blessed to be friends with Children’s International Lifeline (Donald Curtis) and Northwest Haiti Christian Mission (Janeil Owen). Donald took the team to see some buildings for a prosthetics facility in PAP. We took a lot of photos and video footage of the flattened buildings and massive destruction in Port-Au-Prince. We have been praying for God to show all of us clearly what He wants to get done during our trip to help the children of Haiti. The devastation was incredible and it was amazing to see these buildings and think that there are still people entombed inside of the rubble.

We spent a good portion of the day assessing potential buildings to house a prosthetics and orthotics facility in Port-Au-Prince. We saw five buildings, at least two that would work for this project. The up side on both of these locations was the fact that they had second floors with rooms that could house Americans and others that would be fitting the Haitians with the prostheses.

After a long day we headed back to Children’s International Lifeline (CIL) and visited one of the outlying and very poor tent cities. Orphan’s Promise was able to team up with CIL to provide camping tents to house many of the families living there. In most tent cities, the people are living in makeshift coverings made from sticks with plastic draped over to provide some sort of protection from the elements. Now, 4 months after the earthquake, the plastic has holes in it and in many cases torn and barely providing any sort of covering. The reality is that many of these children have lost their parents and other family members as a result of the earthquake and have been relocated to these primitive communities away from all that is comforting to them.

Precious children like Christa, just barely 1 year old but with the stature of a 6 month old, living in her tent with her 16 year old mom… more to come when we return to the mission.

Hanging in Ft. Lauderdale Airport

Colleen and I flew from Dayton to Atlanta and hooked up with Yuri Khomyak who came in from Virgina Beach. We went on to fly to Ft. Lauderdale, grabbed 2-3 hours of sleep and are now ready to fly to Haiti at 7:30am this am. We'll be looking for a building that will accommodate a prosthetic facility. There are over 200,000 Haitian that have lost a limb in the earthquake, so there is a real need for this type of work in Port-Au-Prince. We will also be heading to the Hotel Montana to get some photos and footage of a statue of Jesus that has no hands (a reminder that we are to be the hands and the feet) . We may also be heading to a very large tent city with over 6000 people to hand out "Love Bundles" for the people in need. Thank you all for your prayers for this trip, we really appreciate them. Love to our children, thank you for all the people that helped us out by taking care of our kids and dogs at such late notice. Yuri says hi to Nat and the girls!!! Love you all

Schedule for Haiti is Taking Shape

• Wednesday, May 12: Arrive in PAP at 9:30am.
o Look for prosthetics and orthotics building
o Connect with Corrigan Clay. He is in Demas 75
• Thursday, May 13:
o Visit building for orphans (kids in tents)
o Visit tent city in PAP
• Friday, May 14tho Fly to PDP-11am
o Go to NWCHM-Visit Miriam Center and children.
o Talk to Courtney about new building and vision of project
• Saturday, May 15th
o Spend time with children in Miriam Center and Mission
o Head to Bonneau Property
• Sunday, May 16tho Head back to PAP 1pm
o Meet with Gary LaBlanc and Mercy Chef Team
• Monday, May 17th
o Head to airport early and leave for FLL

Getting Ready for Haiti

Getting ready to leave for Haiti. I fly out Tuesday night to Ft. Lauderdale and catch a hotel with Yuri that night. We have a 7am flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Port-Au-Prince the next morning and will be in Haiti by 9:30am. We will be spending the first two days in Port-Au-Prince looking for a building for a prostheses facility and visiting some tent cities. We also be outside of PAP to visit a group of orphans that Life Church and Orphans Promise helped build with cooperation with Children's Lifeline International(thank you Donald Curtis). We will then take a flight to Northwest Haiti to visit our partners at Northwest Christian Haiti Mission. We will be taking some footage of a project for special needs orphans that will one day house over 100 children. We really appreciate your prayers and your support by following us on our journey. We will be trying to update our blog and post film and photos each day. God Bless www.orphanspromise.com

Christian Alliance For Orphans-Orphan Summit VI

Colleen and I just returned from the Orphan Summit in Minneapolis that was held on April 29th and 30th. It was a spectacular gathering of ministries and organizations and ordinary people to share what God is doing in response to James 1:27. The conference was overflowing with information about orphan care, adoption and foster care. Some of the speakers included John Piper (Bethlehem Church), Mary Beth Chapman (Show Hope), Tom Davis (A Child's Hopechest) and many others. There was worship music from the Desperation Band and Steven Curtis Chapman. We were encouraged and blessed to be with 1200 other believers that have a similiar passion for helping the least of these. For more information on how to help orphans here in the United States and around the world, please see the offical Orphans Promise web-site at www.orphanspromise.org

Haitian Orphans Have a New Home!

Last week we got an update and some photos from Donald Curtis of the building that was mentioned in the last blog. Thank you Children's Lifeline, Life Church West Chester, Orphans Promise and all the people that donated to this project. All the parents and children that stayed out in the cold for "The Great Sleep Out" and raised money going door to door, all your work has paid off for these wonderful children. It is amazing how God works, the building could have been built before the earthquake, but it was not, and it now provides a wonderful home for many Haiti orphans. I will be in Haiti on May 12th to May 17th and will be able to see the great work of the Lord. God is good and there is so much more work to do for him.

Shelter Over My Head

Many of us take for granted that we have a roof over our heads. In fact, I don’t even think about the fact that I am so blessed, that I don’t just have a roof over my head, but I have many rooms in my house, filled with furniture, lights to see with and a piano for music. This is not the case for a small group of orphan children in Haiti. One of our partners, and a good friend, Donald Curtis, called me one day and told me about a group of children that he found that had no shelter over their heads and were living in tents. These children had been orphaned and had been gathered up by a Haitian pastor that loved these kids enough to at least let them stay on his land and provide temporary shelter. After hearing this, the Lord quickened both Colleen and I to take action. I asked Donald, “How much will it take to build these kids shelter (an orphanage)? He told me that with $5,000, his organization (Children’s Lifeline International), could build these children a building/orphanage. With a grant from Orphans Promise of $2,500 in matching funding, our church, Life Church, put together a “Sleep Out” in the cold and raised the additional $2,500 of donations from friends, neighbors and everyday people to get this important job done for the Kingdom and these kids. The building started last week and should be finished very soon. Donald Curtis is in Haiti right now through March 7th and I am anticipating getting some photos of the completed building. In Psalms 68:5, it says: “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling”. God is our shelter, we dwell in him and these children now have a dwelling place because of people like you that wanted to make a difference. If you are interested in doing something to help out orphan children, please contact me at cbunse@acosta.com.

Moving Forward on Speical Needs Orphanage in Haiti

We are going to start working toward our goal of building a special needs orphanage with Northwest Haiti Chrisitan Mission in the Haiti. We had planned to have this project started by February of 2010, but the earthquake has set our timing back for at least 6 months. The team will be meeting in March to move the project forward and I am praying that we can break ground by June of this year. Our friends at NHCM have already purchased some of the land and through Orphans Promise (www.orphanspromise.org), they will be matching funding up to $50,000 to raise a total of $100,000+ to build this orphange. The need in Haiti for children with speical needs has increased due to the earthquake, so the Lords timing for this project is increadable. Please pray for us, along with Northwest Haiti Christian Mission, Sheppard Crook Ministries and Kimmey's House that we can get this most important project done and start serving these children. God Bless