Street Scenes and Goodbyes

On the way to the worksite on this last day, I snapped pictures from the van window.  Everyone who visits Haiti is fascinated by the snapshops of everyday life that they glimpse from the windows of a moving vehicle. One's senses are bombarded with sights, smells, and sounds.  It is mesmerizing.  And so today I share a few of these scenes.  The pictures tell of the contrasts between lifestyles for the multitudes of poor people and the few rich people.  (The Chinese motorcycles are a new phenomenon in Haiti and are owned by the poor.  The young men make a living from them by using them as taxis.  The motorcycles make driving in Haiti all the more complicated, exciting, and dangerous!)

 When we arrived at the church work site, the roof was complete!  Most of the scaffolding was being disassembled, but the perimeter scaffolding remained as the plasterers practiced their skill on the interior walls.  By the end of this week the plaster will also be complete.  I hope all the alumni of our VIM teams and all who have contributed money toward this project are cheering for this big step forward!  Bob and I are grateful to you and so are the people of Croix des Mission.

The crowd was larger than other days.  There were many children at play with jump ropes, soccer balls, and marbles.  Others just watched quietly.  The meal was delicious again.  One man bought our team of four Americans some cold Coca Cola as a thank you.

Our gifts of ball caps, t-shirts, and work gloves were happily received.  There was enough to go around!

It was hard to say goodbye to the many new friends and to the old friends we see each visit.  But Goodbye it was...until we meet again.

Bob is taking another team to Croix des Mission from February 26  to March 7 in 2013.  It is anticipated that this team will be painting the newly plastered interior walls!  Send him an email at parker20@juno.com if you want to come along.  August 6-15, 2013 we will be doing a Vacation Bible School for the Croix des Mission neighborhood.  Join us if you like to work with children.

 Donations of money are always welcome so that this church can be completed.  Your dollars will continue to be doubled through 2013 with matching funds from UMCOR.

The team members are back at home absorbing all they have seen and learned.

Until next time,
Sharon

A Tour of the Neighborhood

It was another hot, dusty day in the Croix des Mission neighborhood and we got to see it up close and personal.  Gilbert, the neighborhood leader, lead us on foot to see the businesses in the neighborhood, but first we walked through a tent city.

About 250 families or 1000 people are still camped out within Croix des Mission.  They pay no rent to the owner of the property whom we met.  Gilbert is on the committee that runs the tent city.  It looked like a difficult life to me.  The tents are right next to one another in a sunny field.  Fortunately there is a public water fountain right there and a row of public latrines.  Also in this field is a barren open place where soccer games are played.  Tomorrow at 5pm, the Croix des Mission Team that we met yesterday plays another tournament game there.

The first business we saw was a wholesale soda pop business located behind a large gate.  That man sells to street vendors who ply their wares on the streets or on their heads.  The next stop was a bread bakery.  It was a dark, smoky, hot room.  The small loaves of bread were baked in a wood fired oven much like the popular pizza ovens here in the states.  I have not seen pizza in Haiti, but I bet they would love it!

On her tiny porch, a seamstress was making school uniforms with a machine powered by her rocking feet.  .It looked like a pleasant job because her neighbors could come and chat with her as she worked.

The most prosperous business we saw was a factory that produced strong cement blocks, the preferred material for constructing buildings in Haiti.  The owner was an impressive young man with excellent English and savvy salesmanship.

Of course, any one with a wheelbarrow or trailer to push or pull, can have a business...a moving business.

Another excellent lunch was served by the church ladies.  You can see that the 75 children that we fed today really enjoyed every bite and so did the adults!

Sharon

Food, Soccer, and Sick Babies

Each morning on the way to the work site we purchase bread through the car window from street vendors.  When we get to the site we put peanut butter on each piece and hand it out for breakfast.  We also try to keep two four gallon coolers full of water for everyone.  We are fortunate that a water vendor has opened right next door.

Today we walked down to the current little church and watched the ladies making lunch.  They were using the 3 pot grate that Bob purchased for them last year.  Can you imagine boiling beans and rice for more than 100 people over charcoal?

The Croix des Mission neighborhood soccer team came by and played a demonstration game for us.  They look sharp and play well in the uniforms Bob bought for them last year.  They are number one in their league and a source of pride for the neighborhood.

Contrary to Haitian tradition, we decided to feed the 52 children first.  (Kids eat last in Haiti.)  Gilbert, the neighborhood boss man, made a plan.  He sat the children on concrete blocks in a small area of the yard and we formed a "plate brigade" passing the filled plates from person to person.  Quickly, all the children were fed.  Next the workmen got their plates heaped high with tasty beans and rice.  Next came the soccer team and then the remaining adults.  It went quite smoothly.  I need to confess that the VIM team was fed before the children at the insistence of the cooks.  I guess you can't break all the traditions.

On the way home from the work site, we stopped at Grace Children's Hospital to bring the babies "comfort dolls" which were handmade by ladies in New Hampshire.

Cynthia was still there.  She is a teenager now who was orphaned in the earthquake, but the nurses let her stay in pediatrics.  She has epilepsy.  I wonder what will become of her in the future?  As you can see in the picture, Joe's heart was touched as he talked with her.

Worship and Rest

Our team headed to the work site to see if any children would be joining us to sing at worship.  About a dozen children were waiting in their Sunday best.  Seriously, they looked adorable.  The girls were dressed as princesses and boys in very nice shirts and pants.  Three adult men, Gilbert, Jean, and Edwin, were also ready to go.  Gilbert explained that more children would have come, but a power outage had prevented mothers from ironing the dress up clothing.  Appearances are important to Haitians.

We felt like pied pipers as we paraded through the dusty streets of the neighborhood hand in hand with the children.  Our walk was about one quarter of a mile.  We were ushered to the very front pews of the small yellow church.  The current church of Croix des Mission is a small, narrow rectangle. The children sat on both sides of the aisle all alone.  We were seated behind them on other pews.  Our organist/musician Stevenson was no where in sight.  Worship began.  About 30 minutes into the 2.75 hour service.  Stevenson appeared in the small chancel and set up a microphone and loudspeaker which the preacher and all the other speakers happily used.  

Suddenly it was our turn to sing!  The team and the children crowded up front and suddenly we were joined by 5 teenagers with wonderful voices.  Stevenson knew we would need help singing in Creole and had recruited some of his best students to join us!  Wow, did we make the rafters ring!  In fact, all the singing at this small church was wonderful...and there was lots of it.  The preacher's dramatic sermon was over an hour long, and even in Creole, it entertained us.  Communion was served and we caucasian adults were first as honored guests.  Only a few of the 135 worshipers came forward for Communion.  We learned later that only adult members of the church took communion and membership is a two year process.

After church, I presented kitchen items collected by our Lebanon United Methodist Women ladies to some nice church ladies   They were appreciative.  They really loved the picture which I brought of the UMW ladies.

After lunch at a hamburger restaurant, we drove to the center of Port au Prince.  The Presidential Palace which had collapsed during the earthquake in January of 2010 and has been the symbol of that devastation is being hauled away stone by stone.  The Catholic Cathedral is still just a shell as is the Episcopal Church, but the Methodist Church and High School at College Bird looks good despite the temporary classrooms.

I have not commented on the appearance of the city compared with a year ago. The rubble is gone.  Homes and businesses are reconstructed and repainted.  The city looks very good.  I am surprised and impressed.  Of course, the impoverished people are visible as street vendors and their simple homes and tents are still in clusters.  Garbage is piled high here and there along the streets waiting for someone to set a match to it.  But all in all, I must say that Port au Prince is progressing impressively in its recovery from the earthquake.

Finally, we arrived home at the Guest House and rested.   After a yummy spaghetti dinner, we are writing our blogs and sending emails.  It is amazing to be able to share my day with you.

Sharon

Meet Ken Hall

Today I am going to feature Ken Hall, our team mate from Pennsylvania.  He is a pastor and school bus driver from Avondale, PA which is rural territory outside of Philadelphia.  He is a jack of all trades, enthusiastic without bounds, and a great addition to our team.  Today Ken sifted sand for the plaster, sang a duet "Celebrate Jesus", and was goalie for a winning soccer team!  He loves the children and they enjoy him.

The rest of us did similar things minus the singing and soccer playing.  We enjoyed another delicious meal from the church ladies.

The peak of the roof was being welded and one wall got its coat of smooth plaster.  It looks great.  The skilled Haitian plastering team works endlessly.  Such stamina.

Tomorrow we go to the work site to take any neighborhood children who show up to the small Croix des Mission church where they will be the featured chorus.  We'll try to sing along in Creole.

~Sharon

The Roof is Going On!

We arrived at the Croix des Mission site to find a beautiful blue metal roof going in place.  By the time we left, it was nearly complete! 

 Because this is high work and takes some skill, we mostly watched with fascination and pride.  The walls were also being plastered and this is highly skilled.

I spent the day with children and greeting the ladies of the church.  They cooked us another delicious meal of beans and rice with 100 guests attending!  They are amazing.

As you will see from the pictures, Joe has gotten in the swing of things!  He worked hard, hugged children, and sang with Stevenson. 

 Yes, Stevenson came with his trusty generator and keyboard to teach us 2 songs in Creole.  Fortunately 30 children lent their voices to our chorus.  I sure hope they show up to help on Sunday when we perform!

Signed,
A hot and tired, but enthusiastic, Sharon

"Currelly Mountain," Haiti

Today we were able to visit Deb and John and Janet on "Currelly Mountain." The sights were amazing,  hospitality most welcoming, and the spaghetti delicious. Seeing Janet at work and the wonderful quilting in progress was very special. 

At 6,000 feet the mountains of Haiti are both stunning and intimidating. The Currelly's 4WD was out of commission so we were hauled up the last mile behind a tractor. Village children ran behind us giggling!

The Parker Team is most grateful for a wonderful day.

Here are some photos from the day...

A finished quilt!

Inside the Currelly Home