First, there is Haiti.
Joe and I left for Haiti on Wednesday July 16. We left the IOC at 3am and traveled the whole day, arriving at Nehemiah Vision Ministries (NVM) at about 6pm. It was a long day. Here is Joe and fellow teammate John (aka Chuckles):
A little about NVM - there are about 6 year-round non-Haitians working on campus. They are all missionaries, drawing no salary from the organization. NVM was founded by a Haitian pastor who is called to evangelize, disciple, and empower the Haitian people. The ministry employs many local workers for a variety of jobs. The four pillars of the organization are education, health, economics, and leadership.
To support education, the ministry has a school onsite. Haitians consider an education complete when one graduates sixth grade, though those in the area rarely attended school for that many years. The school already has preschool through sixth grades established, and are beginning a seventh grade class this year. In previous years, there were none or too few students in order to justify the expense of a new classroom and another salary for a seventh grade. However, this past year, six Haitians graduated the sixth grade, and NVM was able to raise funds for a new building which will house the seventh grade class, along with future classes. The ministry's goal is to continue adding a teacher each year to follow these six students through grade 12.
To support the health needs of the population, NVM has a clinic onsite that sees no more than forty patients per day. There is currently one doctor, though there is space for a second physician. It is difficult to attract educated Haitians to this poor area, especially since the salary is not as competitive as in other areas of the country. The teachers and physician already employed have a love for God and Haiti. Employees and school children are seen at the clinic too, apart from the forty allotted slots. Each school child is vaccinated; the cost is included in the school fees.
To help the local economy, NVM not only employs many individuals, but also offers classes to adults to teach marketable skills. For example, women can learn to weave baskets or sew. Once a child completes enough education, NVM will help place him/her with a university or trade school. The goal is to educate this generation so that they earn a living. A common phrase heard around campus is, "we're here to give a hand up, not a hand out." There are several guards patrolling the premises at all times. Most businesses or organizations have guards; there have not been any instances of violence:
The last pillar is leadership. NVM trains formally-educated and lay pastors through discipleship and development. I know the least about this pillar as I did not interact much with the pastors.
The ministry also has a children's home within the campus. It is not an orphanage because some kids have parents but they are unable to care for the children and also because the children are not being adopted out. NMV is helping to raise them up with a love for Haiti. There are two houses onsite, one for girls and another for boys. Currently each home is about 50% full; there are 24 beds in each house. There is a house mother and a house father, both Haitian. Pictured below is just a glimpse of one of the actual homes:
So, that is Nehemiah Vision Ministries.
But, I am sure you are asking, what did Joe and I do?
Well, our team filled in a lot of gaps around the campus. Joe and two other team members worked with Paul, the Haitian mechanic, on a variety of projects.
I spent two days at the agriculture site before moving to the warehouse for the duration of our stay. The first two days of work, Thursday and Friday, I worked very hard beneath a brutal sun. I hoed, mulched, weeded, and helped lay down water hoses. Unfortunately, the brutal sun also gave me a migraine that first day. It took several days to adjust to the heat.
But when I moved into the warehouse, I was blessed to have the roof over my head and the giant bay door open so that the breeze could still reach me. I was helping to repurpose wooden pallets into shelves. Yes, I got to use the power tools!! Thanks to John and Stefan who reviewed the safety features so I could avoid cutting off a finger or two! Here are two of the shelves I helped build and then painted:
Here are several other projects we assisted in:
The Wall! We helped build a 100-foot section of a wall that will encompass the property. In Haiti, a wall indicates respectability. Everyone respects a wall and the property within.
The English School! For one week, several people assisted at the school by chaperoning and playing with the children. This was a great way for many people to form relationships with the children. Here is Josh playing a rousing game of Musical Chairs:
The Prayer Garden! We revamped the prayer garden, transforming it from an enclosed area where natural ran wild to a beautiful respite in the middle of the campus. The prayer garden was really Luwanna's baby:
The Ag Site! Two team members, in particular, worked very hard every day to hoe, mulch, irrigate, and plant a new section of farm. Literally, the day the last seed was set in the ground, the skies opened up and rained down. It was amazing to witness.
Although it was rainy season, the rain did not fall until that time, just days before we left for Texas. It also poured down the night before we left. While this was difficult for Haiti, it was a small blessing for our team as the mosquitos were not as plentiful due to the arid conditions.
Our daily schedule, Monday through Saturday, looked like this:
0730 - breakfast
0900 to 1200 - work
1200 to 1300 - lunch
1300 to 1500 - work
1730 - dinner
1930 - group meeting
Although I often worked until 1600 since I enjoyed painting so much. But, times are very -ish in Haiti. Dinner was at 1730-ish (that is military time for 5:30pm). Sometimes that was 1730, but sometimes that was 1800. Very -ish.
Sundays, we attended church which lasted about three (yes, three) hours. Then we lounged around outside since it was cooler in the shade with the breeze blowing than in our dorm rooms. There were two dorm rooms - one for men and one for women. Couples were obviously separated for the two weeks. One day, our leader took out her thermometer in the dorm room because she was not feeling well, and it read 106 degrees! As in, our dorm room consistently reached over one hundred degrees during the day!!
But, lest you think we were all work and no play….
We went to a luxury resort called Club Indigo. The second Saturday, we lounged on the beach all day. We had a scrumptious buffet lunch. After a week and a half of rice and beans every day for lunch, we were incredibly grateful for this lunch.
This was Joe's first international experience, and he did wonderful. We had a few rough days, but Joe kept me from asking for a return ticket on day 3. I was frustrated for inconsequential reasons, not feeling well physically, and just miserably hot. But he was a true helpmate, helping me to get past my frustrations to a point that I could be content in what I was doing. I consider Joe my greatest blessing that God has given me.
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