Heading Back to Haiti

So as I get ready to head back down to Haiti next week I find that there are some people I haven't had the opportunity to share what my exact plans are....so here is a short post to introduce the current path I am on:

I will not be returning to The Hands and Feet Children's Village, though a wonderful ministry where i made some amazing friends, God has set my feet in a new, though related, direction.  I am moving down the road a bit to work with HaitiBaby and SurfHaiti and by work with I mean, help start these two new ministries.  My main focus will be the Infant Rescue and Recovery Center...or so the plan is, I find that in ministry - and I assume this is true anywhere- you must be flexible and ready to shift where God opens doors, so I am happy to lend my skills to any area of ministry these organizations require them.

One of the tragedies in Haiti is seeing parents, specifically mothers, who give up their children to an orphanage because they can't afford to feed and clothe their baby, or the infant requires some special medical care that she is unable to provide.  I am told that one in every four newborns in Haiti die in the first year for lack of nutrition, love, and medication. HaitiBaby will be a temporary home where babies can be loved and cared for while each mother also receives the love and care she needs in order to be able to someday care for her own child, as God intended. Our purpose is to empower mothers by helping them find a way to make money through learning skills, or marketing and utilizing skills they already possess. Often this will include providing meals, vitamins, and shelter for the mother while giving her time to "prepare a nest" where she can take her baby.  We are concerned with orphan prevention whenever possible...and when not possible, due to death or abandonment, we will care for the infant through the first year of their life and then find a safe, loving place for each child to live and grow. 

SurfHaiti is another ministry I will be participating in.  This organization teaches street children to surf and through surfing hopes to teach skills necessary to succeed as an adult; skills like showing up on time, and being consistent are skills that will help them find and keep jobs as they grow and mature into adulthood. It also facilitates the distribution of water filters to surrounding communities.  80% of the ground and surface water in Haiti is contaminated and this clean water initiative brings clean drinking water to communities that have never had access to it before.  We also have a pharmacy/clinic that we are setting up in order to provide for medical mission teams that come down and need a place to work out of. 

As these ministries grow and begin to expand in many directions to reflect the need and opportunity to create long term ministries that will hopefully create true solutions and not create dependence upon charity, I look forward to sharing with you all more.

The Adventure is About to Begin...

In 23 days I will arrive in Haiti to work with Hands and Feet Project at the Children's Village in Cyvadier, a village just east of Jacmel on the southern shore. As many of you know, Haiti is a country plagued with corruption, poverty and hardship. The mission of the Hands and Feet children's village is to raise up the children in their care, not to be adopted out to other countries (though a very few are), but rather to love them, educate them and train them to then, as adults, be responsible, capable, loving members of the Haitian society who can effect a change to improve their nation.

My plan, though I know God often changes plans, and I am open to His direction, is to spend three months in Haiti before returning to the states. The three month internship is an unpaid position and if you would like to help support my time there financially, or contribute to the ministry in general there are a couple ways to do that. The first is to write a check to Redeemer Church in Norman (let me know if you need an address) and put something in the memo line about Hands and Feet, the second is to donate directly through hands and feet through their website. Both of these should be tax deductible contributions.

Two other ways to contribute would be through prayer support and moral support! I won't have phone access, which is how I usually keep in touch with people. So, emails and facebook messages will be greatly welcomed! I will try to keep my blog and facebook updated to share with you all what is happening and specific ways you can pray for me and the children (and other staff).