Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Count down to leaving
Steve is planning to head to Haiti with the next group going down. The next group is planned for around the 13th of February. The plan is for Steve to stay down between groups to keep the rebuilding going working with the Haitians. He may be gone for as long as two months at a time. He will then come back to rest and renew for a few weeks to return and continue the work.
If you would commit to being a prayer warrior leave a comment to let us know you are standing with us. We will keep you updated as to how things are shaping up support wise and preparations for leaving. Then as word can get out from Haiti we will keep you posted on how things are progressing with the work.
Prayer list:
needed support for travel and living expenses
materials needed for building
needs met for the Haitian people
more to come to Christ through this trial
If you would commit to being a prayer warrior leave a comment to let us know you are standing with us. We will keep you updated as to how things are shaping up support wise and preparations for leaving. Then as word can get out from Haiti we will keep you posted on how things are progressing with the work.
Prayer list:
needed support for travel and living expenses
materials needed for building
needs met for the Haitian people
more to come to Christ through this trial
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Back home
FW: Prayer and Praises Jan. 26, 2010
Jan. 26, 2010
Hello from My cough is much better and I can talk again but not too much. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!! Time to go home. The Americans at Christian Light Ministries inOn our staff.......... Chantal died, Lizette injured buy OK, Madsen has injured hand. Brucely, Delva, Jolina, Anise & lost homes, probably more I don't know about yet. Most lost at least 1 family member. Ifonise ( I have heard a lot of criticism of our officiials for not getting relief to the people of Several school children are staying at the orphanage because they lost their homes. I know of Christly, Alex, Stanley, and Johanne but am not sure who the others are. Anne and Ivenson (not the twin) were injured but are OK. Please keep the children and their families in prayer. We sometimes won't know where their families are if they are in tent cities. I am very eager to get back to
God bless you, Sherrie |
Another stirring story from Haiti
Today at 3:05pm
MAF pilots were scheduled to fly a team of doctors to Pignon, Haiti, early in the morning on January 22. The night before the flight, someone called and canceled the reservation.
Despite the fact that the flight had been canceled, the doctors arrived at the airport around 9:00 AM, requesting to fly to Pignon. Will, an MAF pilot, told them they would have to wait until another previously scheduled flight to the Island of Lagonave had been completed.
The rest of this story is Will's personal account about the amazing events that followed.
"We had arranged to fly to the Island of Lagonave. We were dropping off food supplies and picking up a team that was inspecting the Wesleyan hospital for damage from the earthquake.
When we arrived, Dan Irvine, the director of the mission, said he had a 9 year old girl that had BOTH feet crushed in the earthquake. The hospital on the island had done all they could and they needed to find an orthopedic doctor in Port-au-Prince (PAP) for surgery. According to Dan, her feet looked like "ground beef". If infection set in, it could be fatal. I agreed to transport the girl back to PAP.
On the return flight I began to think about how we were going to get help for this little girl. Knowing the huge strain on the field hospitals in PAP, I was not hopeful of the girl finding an ortho unit to operate on her. Then I started to think about the doctors that were waiting for me in PAP. I seemed sure they said they were orthopedic surgeons.
When we arrived in PAP, I taxied to my parking place and ALL of the doctors were standing right next to the plane with all their supplies. I told Dan I thought that they were an ortho team and introduced them to each other.
In no time the team was examining the girl and making plans to take her directly to the Pignon hospital. We removed the girl from the plane to fuel and they were able to start an IV and examine her more.
After loading the plane, I was able to fly 3 doctors, the girl and her mother to Pignon.
It was so exciting to see how God worked the events of the day to bring these two groups together. I was humbled to be a part of it."
Sunday, January 24, 2010
HAITI TEAM UPDATE
Here is a letter sent out by Sherrie today. The team from our mission is working hard.
"Below is a report of what is going on at Christian Light Ministries in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. The teams at the house are doing a fantastic job. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!
I am trying to go back to Haiti with Missionary Flights International on Friday. Please keep this in prayer. I don't have a confirmed seat on the plane yet.
Please keep my health in prayer. I still can't talk very much. Too much effort lands me back in bed. I need to be strong."
Sherrie Fausey
Sunday, January 24, 2010
CONTINUED BLESSINGS
REPORT ON TEAM FOR SATURDAY, JANUARY 23, 2010
We serve a mighty God! There is no doubt that God has his hand on our mission team. He continues to bless them with an abundance of food, water, supplies, blessings and protection. There is power in prayer and the name of the Lord!
Our team had another "good day" serving in Haiti. The medical team continues to see patients from sunrise to sunset. Dr Karen McCarthy has such a heart for our Haitian friends and she is tireless in her efforts to see as many patients as possible during the day. Allison and Cindy complete her team with warm personalities and great nursing skills. It is incredible to watch them in action and see how efficient and caring they are with each person. On this trip, they added Debbie's medical knowlege and organization skills to the team and created a powerful force. What a blessing that we can take the medical team in to the people rather than waiting for them to come to us. On past mission trips, walking the ravine with Dr. Karen and her nurses was one of the most memorable parts of the journey. The ravine is one of the poorest, filthiest places in the city. People live along the banks in make shift homes of cardboard, cloth and plywood. Entire families may live in one small room with no floor or furniture. They drink from the same water in which they bathe and wash clothes while pigs wade through trash right beside them. Needless to say there are many sick children there. Most of the children in Sherrie Fausey's school are from this area and they are given food and loving care while under Ms Sherrie's watchful eye. Since this area had so little to start with, it hasn't changed that much since the quake. The medical team has walked the ravine trying to help these families in addition to the clinics. On Sunday they will be setting up a clinic to minister to the people around Pastor Cenor's "church on the rooftop". That is going to be quite a challenge as the homes are built into the steep mountainside and there was great loss in this area. On Monday, the team will be working a clinic at Karen's again. Please keep them in your prayers.
Pastor Michael Grooms preached at the clinic site today and 6 lives were saved. Mesi Jezi! (Can you guess what this means in Creole?) Pray that there will be a revival among the people of Haiti as God begins to heal this land. Praise God that we have Christian doctors, nurses and laborers who give God the glory as they work. Thank you Pastor Mike for the sharing of your anointed word. The team will be having a praise and worship service at the clinic site Sunday morning with Pastor Cenor's congregation. Pastor Mike will be preaching with a translator. Oh how I wish I was there with them! Haitians truly enjoy their songs and worship - there will be a whole lot of clapping and praise going on in those hills today! Pray that more souls will be saved as Pastors Mike, Jonathan, and Jim share their faith.
It appears that the larger support organizations have quite a supply of food and water just sitting at the airport waiting to be distributed. Many of the volunteers have never been in Haiti before and are actually afraid to go out into the communities with the Haitian people - probably due in large part to the alarming reports of violence being played on CNN and other news channels. How frustrating to know much needed water and nourishment is just sitting there unused . Jeff and the guys on the Georgia mission team are making sure the people around the school and the ravine area are getting supplies. They have been making numerous trips to the airport to load up supplies and distribute them to those most in need. It is amazing what you can do when you walk with authority! I understand some people even got crutches today! You rock, Jeff!
Kathy Brooks is doing a GREAT job running the base camp until Sherrie returns in the near future. They have secured a generator, set up a working bathroom, and the Haitian cooks are preparing meals for the large group of children and adults now staying there. They cook in large pots over open fires - lots of beans and rice! Peanut butter, poptarts, and MRE's (military version of tv dinner) are the popular foods now. The Haitian laborers have completed one of the outer walls and continue to work hard to complete the rest of the security wall.
The team has loved the beautiful songs of praise that can be heard coming from the street during the night and early morning. Last night there was one beautiful voice that stood out like the voice of an angel. Jim was so taken with it that he sought the lady out today. He found a 20 year old woman behind the captivating voice and made a video of her singing to share with us when he returns. He invited her to join the team for their evening devotion time and she serenaded them with three solos. Jim said it was simply amazing!
In the midst of all this praise report, the reality is that there is an overwhelming amount of work yet to be done, and the conditions are really rough. The safety of our team continues to be a major prayer request. There are thousands of starving, frustrated, hurt, homeless people filling the streets. It has to be overwhelming for our team to know they are leaving soon when the need is still so great. The next few days will be very emotional for them as they feel torn between their two worlds. Please hold them up in your prayers.
I pray each of you supporters will enjoy a day of rest and restoration on this beautiful Sunday. Thank you for standing in the gap with me for this important mission team. To God be the Glory.
Posted by Donna Tyson at 1:29 PM 0 comments
Saturday, January 23, 2010
UPDATE FROM OUR TEAM IN HAITI
FRIDAY, JANUARY 22, 2010
Jim Hambrick's sister, Donna, has received an update from him on the team our mission currently has in Haiti:
I began and ended the day talking with Jim. What a blessing! I was thrilled to hear his voice this morning assuring me that all is well. The team is making a difference every day in the name of the Lord. I began to immediately ask a million questions about the team's health, safety, and work. They are praising God for his incredible faithfulness every step of the way. In the middle of our conversation, a strong tremor, later to be identified as a 4.4 quake, hit and I listened as Jim yelled "Tremor" out to those around him. I could hear the fright in his voice as he hurried to escape the concrete second floor sleeping quarters. He exclaimed that the whole building was shaking and I held my breath in disbelief while saying a prayer for their safety - this 30 seconds of chaos was surreal - and then it abruptly stopped. Jim hadn't yet descended on the ladder and he resumed our convervation with a bit more emotions. He said that the tremors are frequent, though not as hard as this one, and he asked that the prayer warriors pray for these tremors to cease so that our team can work and sleep on solid ground. When the tremors hit, they produce great anxiety and fear as everyone goes on alert - they have a routine to get away from any buildings asap. Evidently one person can feel a powerful tremor and a person only 100 feet away will feel nothing! They keep everyone on constant alert. Jim shared a story about sitting at a metal table yesterday while a young Haitian boy played in a small tent beneath it. A big tremor rocked the house and the young boy panicked and began to scream in fear. The zipper was stuck on his tent and he couldn't get out. Jim struggled with the zipper from the outside as the boy pulled at it from the inside. The ground was shaking beneath them and Jim said he felt so helpless at that moment. His emotions overflowed with the awareness that he must get out of the building but he couldn't leave this young boy behind. The zipper released and when they both finally got safely outside, he was so weak he had to sit down. He realized that these precious children will have to live in this type of ongoing fear long after he returns home. I stopped asking questions then and listened as my brother shared his heart with one story after another of emotional experiences from this week. He spoke of his visit to the ravine where a nun called him over to help a young preteen boy with a crushed leg. The boy had open infected wounds wrapped in a bloody, pus covered bandage. Jim knew they had to get him to the clinic that was 1 mile away, so he prayed for strength to physically carry him. When they got to the street, along came Jeff driving a truck going to distribute food for one of the agencies! Jeff stopped and gave them a ride to the clinic - Praise God. ( These are not accidents - these are miracles! ) . The young boy cried out in pain the entire ride. but evidently transformed into a whole differnt personality when the pain meds took over. He began to smile and joke and give high fives to those around him. Unfortunately when this dear Haitian boy's pain meds wear off, he is going to have to live in excruciating pain again. Jim was overcome as he saw Sherries house and how close she had stood to death. He wept with Pastor Cenore as he listened to the details of the destruction of our beloved "church on the rooftop" . So many lives were buried alive as all the houses built into the hillside came tumbling down into the valley . He said the US troops were able to save many, but wouldn't carry off the dead bodies. A mass grave now lays in the rubble of a once awe-inspiring spot. The team is handing out lots of food and water for the UN and other support agencies. Everyone has a role now, and Jeff is doing a lot of supply distribution. It seems the smaller non-profit agencies are doing a much better job than the large agencies at getting the food and water from the airport to the people. Jim said in order to avoid mobs, he often gives the local pastors the food and supplies who in turn call their congregation together to distribute them to the indiviual families. He doesn't see a lot of armed forces there in the slums of the ravine area, yet there is little violence. There are many pictures of children helping other children throughout the streets. Some of the street venders are setting up again with their limited supplies ( a couple cans of tuna, a bottle of mustard, vegetables, dusty flip flops ). The big cargo planes and the helicopters transporting patients fly over them constantly, but the most beautiful sound is that of the Haitians singing their praises to God throughout the night. I am convinced that this is how God is refreshing the spirits of our weary team each night and morning. That is a very different sound than the voodoo drums I heard on my last trip. Jim said to be sure to tell you about the airport. Each assisting country has taken a field of their own where they set up tents and proudly fly their flag above their relief efforts. It is a beautiful picture of a united world joined together in hope and love. Hopefully someone will get a picture of it for us. I apologize for rambling. There is so much to share and so little space. There is another mission team of 6 Georgians staying there at Sherrie's also. It is really hot there now ( 90s) and everyone is struggling to stay hydrated. Water is not readily available all the time and they end up giving away most of it everytime they get another supply. They are working hard. Today the medical team saw 103 patients. Yesterday they saw 133! Pastor Genada is staying with them to oversee the rebuilding of the outer security wall. They have hired Haitian men to help and the wall is really progressing. It looks like we are one of the only homes rebuilding in that poor area. Jim says familiar faces greet him everywhere as he walks and everyone wants to share their story of loss. Tonight Jim sounded tired but was happy to report that "It was a very good day!".
Please pray very specifically for these things today:
1 - The tremors cease and our team has firm ground to stand on.
2 - Renewed strength and energy for our team as they work long hours in high heat in the poorest of circumstances.
3- That God will continue to walk before our team preparing the way
for them to make a difference.
4 - That a spirit of revival will overtake Haiti and God will be honored
5 - Continued physical protection for our team
6 - Pray for their emotional well being while seeing so much tragedy and loss constantly.
7 - That souls will be saved!
Jim ended our conversation thanking everyone for their prayers. They are overwhelmed at the number of people who are praying for them each hour. Prayer works! Our team is living proof.
There is power in the name of our Lord!
Friday, January 22, 2010
Sherrie's house
This was Sherrie's bedroom. She was in it when the quake hit but ran out to her bathroom. She does not believe she would have gotten out had she not done that.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Eyewitness accounts from another missionary group in Haiti
Read here for stories you won't hear elsewhere. God is at work in Haiti and Steve is excited and anxious to be a part of it.
The Livesay family is not part of our mission but have been a big help to all through this. Troy went on foot to try and find word on our missionary Sherrie Fausey. Read their stories as they share the moments they have had. Sending their kids to the US while they stayed behind and so on.
http://www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
A letter from Sherrie herself
Hello from Jacksonville,
I am in Jacksonville but not feeling very well. I'm exhausted. The concrete dust has taken a toll on my breathing and I am running a fever. I have a cough, total laryngitis and cannot talk at all.
Some structures are OK. Many houses fell down. Many more are standing but were damaged and are unsafe. Thousands of people have died. Many are hurt.
By the grace of God and a miracle, I am alive. I was walking in my room when the earthquake hit. I tried to run but fell down into the hall and couldn't get up. I crawled into the bathroom, put a little plastic table over my head, and watched my room fall off the bui;lding. Had I been sitting in my room, I would not have gotten out. The noise was terrible and concrete was falling all around me. I praise the Lord that I got out with just a few little bumps & bruises. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The house is totally destroyed. The back third of the house fell off. It is a miracle anyone got out.
The children all ran outside. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! They are OK except for Peterson who died instantly when the house fell on him.
We had about 150 people sleeping in the yard Tuesday evening. Pastor Cenor came by Tuesday evening and I asked him to sing & pray with the people in the yard. They thanked the Lord that they were alive. 9 people accepted Jesus. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The children have a praise time every evening. They thank the Lord for everything they have.Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!
There were many injured people in the yard Tuesday evening. One little girl had a big gash in her leg and was losing a lot of blood. Karen Bultje was able to take them to the Sisters of Charity who still had a building and medicines & bandages. Then the little girl was brought back because everyone slept outside because there were frequent aftershocks, some pretty strong. Karen gave us some Ibuprophen to give the injured.
The children are eating. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! We found boxes of Feed my Starving Children rice mix. Then someone gave us cases of Poptarts. They like Poptarts. They are sleeping in the yard of the construction site. Tuesday night the slept on the ground, but by Wednesday we had started to find some mattresses. It is cold at night. By Friday we were finding blankets and sheets. It is very cold at night - especially sleeping outside on the ground. The wind blows fine concrete dust all the time. We have worked very hard scavenging whatever we could from the rubble. We are all exhausted.
We got our medicines out. Sometimes there were aftershocks and the building was shaking as we were working. A doctor with the Restavek Assoc. came by and asked for medicines. She went off Thursday and Friday with a laundry basket full of medicines and bandages to help people.
We have taken in more children. I don't know how many because we had no paper to make a list. Some school children are staying there while the family stays with relatives in the countryside. I expect to get multitudes of children. Please pray that we can help the children who lost parents in the earthquake.
It is very important that we try to keep going. We need to continue the feeding program and medical program. The children in 4th - 7th grades still have classrooms. They need to continue. They need some sort of a normal life. Please pray that we can continue feeding and caring for children.
We got some stuff out of the house. Most of the clothing is ripped & covered with concrete. The children need shoes.
Please help us. The wall around the construction site fell down and needs to be rebuilt. We need to finish the 2nd floor of the construction site to make space. Right now, we are very crowded. We will have about 20 boys in 1 bedroom. We need to build a school kitchen and an orphanage. We need clothing, shoes, and everything for daily living.
Thank you for your prayers. The Lord took care of us.
God bless you,
Sherrie
I am in Jacksonville but not feeling very well. I'm exhausted. The concrete dust has taken a toll on my breathing and I am running a fever. I have a cough, total laryngitis and cannot talk at all.
Some structures are OK. Many houses fell down. Many more are standing but were damaged and are unsafe. Thousands of people have died. Many are hurt.
By the grace of God and a miracle, I am alive. I was walking in my room when the earthquake hit. I tried to run but fell down into the hall and couldn't get up. I crawled into the bathroom, put a little plastic table over my head, and watched my room fall off the bui;lding. Had I been sitting in my room, I would not have gotten out. The noise was terrible and concrete was falling all around me. I praise the Lord that I got out with just a few little bumps & bruises. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The house is totally destroyed. The back third of the house fell off. It is a miracle anyone got out.
The children all ran outside. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! They are OK except for Peterson who died instantly when the house fell on him.
We had about 150 people sleeping in the yard Tuesday evening. Pastor Cenor came by Tuesday evening and I asked him to sing & pray with the people in the yard. They thanked the Lord that they were alive. 9 people accepted Jesus. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! The children have a praise time every evening. They thank the Lord for everything they have.Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!!
There were many injured people in the yard Tuesday evening. One little girl had a big gash in her leg and was losing a lot of blood. Karen Bultje was able to take them to the Sisters of Charity who still had a building and medicines & bandages. Then the little girl was brought back because everyone slept outside because there were frequent aftershocks, some pretty strong. Karen gave us some Ibuprophen to give the injured.
The children are eating. Praise the Lord!!!!!!!!!! We found boxes of Feed my Starving Children rice mix. Then someone gave us cases of Poptarts. They like Poptarts. They are sleeping in the yard of the construction site. Tuesday night the slept on the ground, but by Wednesday we had started to find some mattresses. It is cold at night. By Friday we were finding blankets and sheets. It is very cold at night - especially sleeping outside on the ground. The wind blows fine concrete dust all the time. We have worked very hard scavenging whatever we could from the rubble. We are all exhausted.
We got our medicines out. Sometimes there were aftershocks and the building was shaking as we were working. A doctor with the Restavek Assoc. came by and asked for medicines. She went off Thursday and Friday with a laundry basket full of medicines and bandages to help people.
We have taken in more children. I don't know how many because we had no paper to make a list. Some school children are staying there while the family stays with relatives in the countryside. I expect to get multitudes of children. Please pray that we can help the children who lost parents in the earthquake.
It is very important that we try to keep going. We need to continue the feeding program and medical program. The children in 4th - 7th grades still have classrooms. They need to continue. They need some sort of a normal life. Please pray that we can continue feeding and caring for children.
We got some stuff out of the house. Most of the clothing is ripped & covered with concrete. The children need shoes.
Please help us. The wall around the construction site fell down and needs to be rebuilt. We need to finish the 2nd floor of the construction site to make space. Right now, we are very crowded. We will have about 20 boys in 1 bedroom. We need to build a school kitchen and an orphanage. We need clothing, shoes, and everything for daily living.
Thank you for your prayers. The Lord took care of us.
God bless you,
Sherrie
Saturday, January 16, 2010
A memorial to little Peterson
The son of co workers from Venezuela days, Jeremiah Hambrick and his wife have a blog where they have written a memorial to young Peterson that lost his life at our mission's orphanage in Haiti. I have posted the link for it here for our readers. Please go to the link and read this touching story about the young boy.
http://www.thehambrickfamily.blogspot.com/
Thursday, January 14, 2010
MESSAGE CONCERNING SHERRY FAUSEY
Here is the word we have been waiting for!!!
Hi, just got the internet working today. We have the inverter working but I can’t keep it on long. We don’t know when we will have regular electricity again. SHERRIE’S HOUSE SUFFERED SEVERE DAMAGE AND PETERSON WAS KILLED IN THE RUBBLE BUT MIRACULOUSLY EVERYONE GOT OUT INCLUDING SHERRIE AND JULIE. The new building held well and everyone is staying there. Too risky to stay in buildings and everyone is sleeping outside. Everyone is working hard. It is a disaster here. Many killed and injured. Have everyone pray for Haiti.
Hi, just got the internet working today. We have the inverter working but I can’t keep it on long. We don’t know when we will have regular electricity again. SHERRIE’S HOUSE SUFFERED SEVERE DAMAGE AND PETERSON WAS KILLED IN THE RUBBLE BUT MIRACULOUSLY EVERYONE GOT OUT INCLUDING SHERRIE AND JULIE. The new building held well and everyone is staying there. Too risky to stay in buildings and everyone is sleeping outside. Everyone is working hard. It is a disaster here. Many killed and injured. Have everyone pray for Haiti.
What I saw in Haiti
Steve's thoughts on Haiti:
I thought I knew poor people. I grew up among the Yanomamo people in Venezuela and they are poor. They have nothing. But when I made a trip to Haiti I met poor people. Compared to them, the Yanomamo are far from poor. They seemingly have nothing but when hungry they can hunt. They can and do grow gardens in the jungle. They are free to pick up and move anytime they want or need to.
The people in Haiti have no way out of their situation. They have no place to plant a garden. There aren't even any trees for shade. They have no where to move to. Jobs are scarce. They don't even have hammocks to sleep in like the Yanomamo. Many just sleep on the floor. No place to roam and hunt in. I saw a people with no hope at all in this world of ever improving their situation without outside help. And even then what can be done is limited. They live around what is a ravine that looks to have sewage flowing through it. And they even dip water from it.
Their hope is in the life to come through Jesus. And I saw a great need to help anyone there spreading His Good News. This is where my heart is and why we are so worried about Sherry Fausey who as of today has still not been heard from. There will be people from our mission going down there and I plan to be among them. I want to see this work of raising godly children in Haiti continue. Sherry took on teaching the children and then after the Hurricane disaster taking in live in orphans. Her goal is to make changes in the country by raising the children under God's principles and raising them with the needed education to change things around. Pray we find her well and then pray for the provision to rebuild or repair whatever the need is. Then this work can continue.
Livesay family update on Haiti
Troy Livesay went on foot to try and find news on our missionary Sherry Fausey. The area was so bad he could not get in. So we still do not have word. Here is a note from Troy's wife, Tara, on their blog.
Thursday
I don't know how long the internet will hold up. Follow Troy's tweets for information.
Many roads are blocked by fallen buildings. MANY people walking around with open and serious wounds. It is hard to travel freely to the areas you've asked us to check, that is why we don't have that information for you.
The deceased are being dragged to the side of roads, covered in sheets and left. We don't live in the hardest hit areas but even so there are many bodies.
Everything in Haiti (PRE earthquake) runs on generators and inverters and batteries == sometimes (pre earthquake) we get a city power current. Now there is no city current. Right now the Internet companies need to use diesel and generators to offer us service. It won't likely last ... and will come and go. We'll do our best to stay in touch. Diesel is going to go fast and will be needed for any sort of communication.
Pray.
tara
Thursday
I don't know how long the internet will hold up. Follow Troy's tweets for information.
Many roads are blocked by fallen buildings. MANY people walking around with open and serious wounds. It is hard to travel freely to the areas you've asked us to check, that is why we don't have that information for you.
The deceased are being dragged to the side of roads, covered in sheets and left. We don't live in the hardest hit areas but even so there are many bodies.
Everything in Haiti (PRE earthquake) runs on generators and inverters and batteries == sometimes (pre earthquake) we get a city power current. Now there is no city current. Right now the Internet companies need to use diesel and generators to offer us service. It won't likely last ... and will come and go. We'll do our best to stay in touch. Diesel is going to go fast and will be needed for any sort of communication.
Pray.
tara
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Links to Haiti blogs
Our daughter, Erin, has friends that are either in Haiti or connected there. Here are links to their blogs.
http://www.iansadoption.blogspot.com/
http://www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/
http://www.iansadoption.blogspot.com/
http://www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com/
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
MAF reports from Haiti
Mission Aviation Fellowship, that flew us in and out of the jungles of Venezuela, has a work in Haiti and are located where the quake hit. Here is an early report from them.
-----Original Message-----
From: "Rick Dickson"
Subject: FW: Earthquake
Phone lines and electricity are all down in Haiti as nightfall has now come We have managed to receive two e-mails from our program manager there, sent via his Hughesnet Satellite Dish saying that all seven of our MAF families are safe, praise the Lord! Each is currently hunkered down in the doorways of their cement homes waiting the night out in alert for any destructive aftershocks.
We have heard from two sources, not confirmable at the moment, that the home of one of our young pilots is down. We aren't sure if it's his home or just his wall, since the program manager did mention that "two walls are down."
Only our Lord knows what lies ahead for Haiti in the next few days. Security will be an issue for looting and such because there is absolutely no infrastructure in Port-au-Prince to handle a crisis of this magnitude and quickly things go to an "every man for himself" mentality. (Rick and I have seen this before in Africa.) Rick got a report from a relief agency already that water will be the foremost critical issue. One of our families has a pool so we're praying it hasn't been cracked so that it could be a good source of potable water for some time for our team.
MAF is already working tonight in contact with relief agencies that will be sending in supplies.
Rick leaves tomorrow around noon to go to Haiti. The only flight he could get has to overnight in Miami and he'll arrive in Port-au-Prince early morning on Thursday.
That's all we know for now. (But we know that God is in control and we are trusting Him in all things.)
Thanks for praying!
It was a 7.0, and initial reports are lots of damage, probably deaths. Looking at mobilizing some relief activity,
Will send more as I get it.
Rick
________________________________
From: Mark Williams January 12, 2010 5:47 PM
Subject: Earthquake
Hi everyone,
At about 4:45 PM an earthquake shook our area for about 20 seconds. I am no expert, but I would think it is right up there with a 4 or 5.... The ground was surging, walls and telephone poles were swaying like I have never experienced. All the staff at our side of town, the Kruls, Carwells, Whites, Edgertons and Williams are doing fine, but shaken. The phones don't call out so I am not able to get hold of the Broyles and Munsells. I understand from outside sources that they are OK.
All houses are intact. There have been many after-shocks, to a much lesser level. Lots of dust in the horizon which to me indicates many structures collapsed in the downtown area.
We have no idea of the extent of the damage. I will be in contact with various sources if/when able.
We will be "sleeping" by our doors. We live in cement houses and do not want to have them collapse on us. I have briefed all the staff to sleep near exits in the houses. I will most likely call off flying tomorrow but try to go down to the airport to access damage...pray there are none.
Thanks for your prayers.
Mark
-----Original Message-----
From: "Rick Dickson"
Subject: FW: Earthquake
Phone lines and electricity are all down in Haiti as nightfall has now come We have managed to receive two e-mails from our program manager there, sent via his Hughesnet Satellite Dish saying that all seven of our MAF families are safe, praise the Lord! Each is currently hunkered down in the doorways of their cement homes waiting the night out in alert for any destructive aftershocks.
We have heard from two sources, not confirmable at the moment, that the home of one of our young pilots is down. We aren't sure if it's his home or just his wall, since the program manager did mention that "two walls are down."
Only our Lord knows what lies ahead for Haiti in the next few days. Security will be an issue for looting and such because there is absolutely no infrastructure in Port-au-Prince to handle a crisis of this magnitude and quickly things go to an "every man for himself" mentality. (Rick and I have seen this before in Africa.) Rick got a report from a relief agency already that water will be the foremost critical issue. One of our families has a pool so we're praying it hasn't been cracked so that it could be a good source of potable water for some time for our team.
MAF is already working tonight in contact with relief agencies that will be sending in supplies.
Rick leaves tomorrow around noon to go to Haiti. The only flight he could get has to overnight in Miami and he'll arrive in Port-au-Prince early morning on Thursday.
That's all we know for now. (But we know that God is in control and we are trusting Him in all things.)
Thanks for praying!
It was a 7.0, and initial reports are lots of damage, probably deaths. Looking at mobilizing some relief activity,
Will send more as I get it.
Rick
________________________________
From: Mark Williams January 12, 2010 5:47 PM
Subject: Earthquake
Hi everyone,
At about 4:45 PM an earthquake shook our area for about 20 seconds. I am no expert, but I would think it is right up there with a 4 or 5.... The ground was surging, walls and telephone poles were swaying like I have never experienced. All the staff at our side of town, the Kruls, Carwells, Whites, Edgertons and Williams are doing fine, but shaken. The phones don't call out so I am not able to get hold of the Broyles and Munsells. I understand from outside sources that they are OK.
All houses are intact. There have been many after-shocks, to a much lesser level. Lots of dust in the horizon which to me indicates many structures collapsed in the downtown area.
We have no idea of the extent of the damage. I will be in contact with various sources if/when able.
We will be "sleeping" by our doors. We live in cement houses and do not want to have them collapse on us. I have briefed all the staff to sleep near exits in the houses. I will most likely call off flying tomorrow but try to go down to the airport to access damage...pray there are none.
Thanks for your prayers.
Mark
Many Casualties Expected in Haiti Earthquake
The earthquake that struck Haiti, struck in the location of the school and orphanage that Steve went to work on and where he left a piece of his heart. We have not heard any word yet to know if Sherry Fausey and her children she works with are alright.
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The largest earthquake ever recorded in the area rocked Haiti on Tuesday, collapsing a hospital where people screamed for help and damaging other buildings. An aid official described "total disaster and chaos."
Communications were widely disrupted, making it impossible to get a clear picture of damage as powerful aftershocks shook a desperately poor country where many buildings are flimsy. Electricity was out in some places.
Karel Zelenka, a Catholic Relief Services representative in the capital of Port-au-Prince, told U.S. colleagues before phone service failed that "there must be thousands of people dead," according to a spokeswoman for the aid group, Sara Fajardo.
"He reported that it was just total disaster and chaos, that there were clouds of dust surrounding Port-au-Prince," Fajardo said from the group's offices in Maryland.
The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 and was centered about 10 miles west of Port-au-Prince, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It had a depth of 5 miles. It was the largest quake recorded in the area and the first major one since a magnitude-6.7 temblor in 1984, USGS analyst Dale Grant said.
An Associated Press videographer saw the wrecked hospital in Petionville, a hillside Port-au-Prince district that is home to many diplomats and wealthy Haitians, as well as many poor people. Elsewhere in the capital, a U.S. government official reported seeing houses that had tumbled into a ravine.
Haiti's ambassador to the U.S., Raymond Joseph, said from his Washington office that he spoke to President Rene Preval's chief of staff, Fritz Longchamp, just after the quake hit. He said Longchamp told him that "buildings were crumbling right and left" near the national palace. He said he had not been able to get through by phone to Haiti since.
Don Blakeman, an analyst at the USGS in Golden, Colorado, said such a strong quake carried the potential for widespread damage.
"I think we are going to see substantial damage and casualties," he said.
The earthquake's size and proximity to populated Port-Au-Prince likely caused widespread casualties and structural damage, added quake expert Tom Jordan at the University of Southern California.
"It's going to be a real killer," he said.
The temblor appeared to have occurred along a strike-slip fault, where one side of a vertical fault slips horizontally past the other, Jordan said.
"Whenever something like this happens, you just hope for the best," he said. "The damage caused by this earthquake is not going to be pretty."
Minor earthquakes are common in the Caribbean, but there has not been a major one in Haiti in 16 years. The country of about 9 million people, most of them desperately poor, has struggled with political instability and has no real construction standards. In November 2008, following the collapse of a school in Petionville, the mayor of Port-au-Prince estimated about 60 percent of the buildings were shoddily built and unsafe in normal circumstances.
The quake was felt in the Dominican Republic, which shares a border with Haiti on the island of Hispaniola, and some panicked residents in the capital of Santo Domingo fled from their shaking homes. But no major damage was reported there.
In eastern Cuba, houses shook but there were also no reports of significant damage.
"We felt it very strongly and I would say for a long time. We had time to evacuate," said Monsignor Dionisio Garcia, archbishop of Santiago.
Haiti, however, was another story.
"Everybody is just totally, totally freaked out and shaken," said Henry Bahn, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official visiting Port-au-Prince. "The sky is just gray with dust."
Bahn said he was walking to his hotel room when the ground began to shake.
"I just held on and bounced across the wall," he said. "I just hear a tremendous amount of noise and shouting and screaming in the distance."
Bahn said there were rocks strewn about and he saw a ravine where several homes had stood: "It's just full of collapsed walls and rubble and barbed wire."
In the community of Thomassin, just outside Port-au-Prince, Alain Denis said neighbors told him the only road to the capital had been cut but that phones were all dead so it was hard to determine the extent of the damage.
"At this point, everything is a rumor," he said. "It's dark. It's nighttime."
Former President Bill Clinton, the U.N.'s special envoy for Haiti, issued a statement saying his office would do whatever he could to help the nation recover and rebuild.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti," he said.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid said U.S. officials were holding emergency meetings.
"We need to gather what information we can quickly. We will of course assist in any way we can," he said.
Felix Augustin, Haiti's consul general in New York, said he was concerned about everyone in Haiti, including his relatives.
"Communication is absolutely impossible," he said. "I've been trying to call my ministry and I cannot get through. ... It's mind-boggling."
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The largest earthquake ever recorded in the area rocked Haiti on Tuesday, collapsing a hospital where people screamed for help and damaging other buildings. An aid official described "total disaster and chaos."
Communications were widely disrupted, making it impossible to get a clear picture of damage as powerful aftershocks shook a desperately poor country where many buildings are flimsy. Electricity was out in some places.
Karel Zelenka, a Catholic Relief Services representative in the capital of Port-au-Prince, told U.S. colleagues before phone service failed that "there must be thousands of people dead," according to a spokeswoman for the aid group, Sara Fajardo.
"He reported that it was just total disaster and chaos, that there were clouds of dust surrounding Port-au-Prince," Fajardo said from the group's offices in Maryland.
The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.0 and was centered about 10 miles west of Port-au-Prince, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It had a depth of 5 miles. It was the largest quake recorded in the area and the first major one since a magnitude-6.7 temblor in 1984, USGS analyst Dale Grant said.
An Associated Press videographer saw the wrecked hospital in Petionville, a hillside Port-au-Prince district that is home to many diplomats and wealthy Haitians, as well as many poor people. Elsewhere in the capital, a U.S. government official reported seeing houses that had tumbled into a ravine.
Haiti's ambassador to the U.S., Raymond Joseph, said from his Washington office that he spoke to President Rene Preval's chief of staff, Fritz Longchamp, just after the quake hit. He said Longchamp told him that "buildings were crumbling right and left" near the national palace. He said he had not been able to get through by phone to Haiti since.
Don Blakeman, an analyst at the USGS in Golden, Colorado, said such a strong quake carried the potential for widespread damage.
"I think we are going to see substantial damage and casualties," he said.
The earthquake's size and proximity to populated Port-Au-Prince likely caused widespread casualties and structural damage, added quake expert Tom Jordan at the University of Southern California.
"It's going to be a real killer," he said.
The temblor appeared to have occurred along a strike-slip fault, where one side of a vertical fault slips horizontally past the other, Jordan said.
"Whenever something like this happens, you just hope for the best," he said. "The damage caused by this earthquake is not going to be pretty."
Minor earthquakes are common in the Caribbean, but there has not been a major one in Haiti in 16 years. The country of about 9 million people, most of them desperately poor, has struggled with political instability and has no real construction standards. In November 2008, following the collapse of a school in Petionville, the mayor of Port-au-Prince estimated about 60 percent of the buildings were shoddily built and unsafe in normal circumstances.
The quake was felt in the Dominican Republic, which shares a border with Haiti on the island of Hispaniola, and some panicked residents in the capital of Santo Domingo fled from their shaking homes. But no major damage was reported there.
In eastern Cuba, houses shook but there were also no reports of significant damage.
"We felt it very strongly and I would say for a long time. We had time to evacuate," said Monsignor Dionisio Garcia, archbishop of Santiago.
Haiti, however, was another story.
"Everybody is just totally, totally freaked out and shaken," said Henry Bahn, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official visiting Port-au-Prince. "The sky is just gray with dust."
Bahn said he was walking to his hotel room when the ground began to shake.
"I just held on and bounced across the wall," he said. "I just hear a tremendous amount of noise and shouting and screaming in the distance."
Bahn said there were rocks strewn about and he saw a ravine where several homes had stood: "It's just full of collapsed walls and rubble and barbed wire."
In the community of Thomassin, just outside Port-au-Prince, Alain Denis said neighbors told him the only road to the capital had been cut but that phones were all dead so it was hard to determine the extent of the damage.
"At this point, everything is a rumor," he said. "It's dark. It's nighttime."
Former President Bill Clinton, the U.N.'s special envoy for Haiti, issued a statement saying his office would do whatever he could to help the nation recover and rebuild.
"My thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti," he said.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Gordon Duguid said U.S. officials were holding emergency meetings.
"We need to gather what information we can quickly. We will of course assist in any way we can," he said.
Felix Augustin, Haiti's consul general in New York, said he was concerned about everyone in Haiti, including his relatives.
"Communication is absolutely impossible," he said. "I've been trying to call my ministry and I cannot get through. ... It's mind-boggling."
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
DEATH BRINGS NEW BIRTH
Many times while living in the jungles in Venezuela among the Yanomamo we witnessed miracles. But none ever top the miracle of new birth. It is a story you can never tire of hearing. It is what Steve is anxious to be a part of again and what he feels God leading him to do in 2010.
Here is such a story sent back to us by Steve's brother, Mike.
A BABY DIES. PARENTS ARE REBORN!
"From Ashes to triumph!
Today, Sunday, the 3rd of January the Lord allowed us to witness a huge miracle. But on the 28th of December, a miracle had been denied and hopes were crushed. We had been called to come up and pray for Sergio and Dada's little three year old boy, well, he would have been 3 on the 24th of February. but it was not to be. He died shortly after we finished. Malaria had claimed another victim here and we were of course crushed. Deaths are so hard, especially for a young couple, and this little boy was their first death. The funeral fire was made and we stood around with tears in our eyes watching the poor couple wail their grief. I further grieved with the couple knowing that in spite of the fact that they were both born and raised here in a Christian village neither one of them had ever made a personal confession of faith in Christ.
So I was shocked when on Sunday morning, Sergio and Dada stood up in front of the church and asked to be allowed to say something to the congregation. Sergio's nervousness was obvious, but griping the microphone he started. "My friends," he began, swallowing hard to keep from breaking down, "I am very sad. My wife and I are really suffering, but we have been talking. We know our little boy is in heaven with God, and we also know that if we died now, we would not go to heaven to be with him. We have decided that we want to ask Jesus to forgive us our sins and clean our hearts and make us HIS. We want to make sure if we die, we go to heaven to be with God and with our son. I want the elders to come up here and pray for my wife and I and then we are going to pray and ask God to save us."
Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather. I stared and I am sure my mouth was hanging open. I suddenly realized they were waiting for me to get up and go up with the elders to pray for them. I was choked up as i prayed for them remembering my own grief, and wondering how in the world they had found the peace needed to go through this so soon. For a Yanomamö, to even be seen in public this soon after their loss is unheard of, and here, not only were they in church, but were talking openly about their son. My eyes were filled with tears when after the elders prayed for them, he prayed a simple prayer of repentance and asked God to save him. His wife then made her own public profession of faith.
After they finished, I sit there deep in my own thoughts. This work has grown increasingly difficult and if i might say, "less fun." Not that we are to be looking for fun and excitement, but up till this last couple of years, i have always loved working with the Yanomamö and have enjoyed the time i have spent with them. Now however, many of them are getting into politics and being the novices that they are, are extremely prone to manipulation and what not. Authorities in town, both mil and civil use many of these wannabe politicians to put pressure on us and have succeeded in making life very difficult. So to be honest, there have been times when i have wondered why we have stayed. It is easier to get discouraged and harder to keep our eyes focused on HIM. Praise God, HE showed us again this morning that HE will build HIS church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it."
Please consider support to help Steve make the trips to help begin the classes again to grow more spiritually mature Yanomamo.
Here is such a story sent back to us by Steve's brother, Mike.
A BABY DIES. PARENTS ARE REBORN!
"From Ashes to triumph!
Today, Sunday, the 3rd of January the Lord allowed us to witness a huge miracle. But on the 28th of December, a miracle had been denied and hopes were crushed. We had been called to come up and pray for Sergio and Dada's little three year old boy, well, he would have been 3 on the 24th of February. but it was not to be. He died shortly after we finished. Malaria had claimed another victim here and we were of course crushed. Deaths are so hard, especially for a young couple, and this little boy was their first death. The funeral fire was made and we stood around with tears in our eyes watching the poor couple wail their grief. I further grieved with the couple knowing that in spite of the fact that they were both born and raised here in a Christian village neither one of them had ever made a personal confession of faith in Christ.
So I was shocked when on Sunday morning, Sergio and Dada stood up in front of the church and asked to be allowed to say something to the congregation. Sergio's nervousness was obvious, but griping the microphone he started. "My friends," he began, swallowing hard to keep from breaking down, "I am very sad. My wife and I are really suffering, but we have been talking. We know our little boy is in heaven with God, and we also know that if we died now, we would not go to heaven to be with him. We have decided that we want to ask Jesus to forgive us our sins and clean our hearts and make us HIS. We want to make sure if we die, we go to heaven to be with God and with our son. I want the elders to come up here and pray for my wife and I and then we are going to pray and ask God to save us."
Well, you could have knocked me over with a feather. I stared and I am sure my mouth was hanging open. I suddenly realized they were waiting for me to get up and go up with the elders to pray for them. I was choked up as i prayed for them remembering my own grief, and wondering how in the world they had found the peace needed to go through this so soon. For a Yanomamö, to even be seen in public this soon after their loss is unheard of, and here, not only were they in church, but were talking openly about their son. My eyes were filled with tears when after the elders prayed for them, he prayed a simple prayer of repentance and asked God to save him. His wife then made her own public profession of faith.
After they finished, I sit there deep in my own thoughts. This work has grown increasingly difficult and if i might say, "less fun." Not that we are to be looking for fun and excitement, but up till this last couple of years, i have always loved working with the Yanomamö and have enjoyed the time i have spent with them. Now however, many of them are getting into politics and being the novices that they are, are extremely prone to manipulation and what not. Authorities in town, both mil and civil use many of these wannabe politicians to put pressure on us and have succeeded in making life very difficult. So to be honest, there have been times when i have wondered why we have stayed. It is easier to get discouraged and harder to keep our eyes focused on HIM. Praise God, HE showed us again this morning that HE will build HIS church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it."
Please consider support to help Steve make the trips to help begin the classes again to grow more spiritually mature Yanomamo.
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