Saturday - Day 6

Well, we'd been pleased and amazed at how mild (relatively) the temperatures had been, and how much the cloud cover helped.  Then Mr Murphy found us today... :)

 Now, this was in the sun... we think it was really more like 41 or so in the shade ... like that makes a lot of difference though.. :)  The breeze coming in through the window mid-afternoon literally felt like the blast of dry heat you get when you open the door of a hot oven...  It has cooled down a bit now, but as you can tell from our Chia Pet Convention photo, even at 9:00 pm it's still warm:

Despite the heat, it was back to work day.  We started the day off with a dawn walk along the canal.  There is a lot that happens around here at that time of day.  Men line up on the bridge near the compound before light with their tool(s) to wait and hope to be picked up for a day's work in the fields or brush as laborers.  Some get picked up for the day, others don't.  They all go back and do the same thing the next day.  We also got to walk along the canal and see farmers at work in the fields, people making their way to or from work, or walking horses or donkeys laden with produce.  We ran into three boys (maybe in their teens) carrying their hoes to work today... what was really odd was that one of them was listening to an MP3 music player as they walked...

A lot of the work focused on trying to finish the walls for the apartment and get the remaining posts poured.  We ran short on cement blocks (we've already used 2000 or so) and didn't quite finish off the walls, and there are a couple of large posts remaining, but we're getting close.  A lot of the prep work for the headers that support the roof was accomplished as well.  Jim and Peter spent the morning digging (chipping may be a better description - the ground here is super hard!) for new footings and eventually a floor where the stairs were added.  This will also support one of the main new posts that we need to finish preparing on Monday.

We also received a large truckload of building materials at the end of the day - 500 more blocks, and a large collections of 4x4 supports and steel jack posts we'll be using when we get ready to pour the roof.  As Bob noted, we are lucky to be getting a steady flow of material - especially here in Haiti.

There are a lot of smaller projects all happening in parallel too.  Often there isn't room or need for the entire team to work on the apartment, but there are always multiple other projects going on.  The other day Bob, Jim, and Brian Bowers took apart and cleaned all the connections and terminals for the array of car batteries that the house runs on when the generator and local power aren't running/available:

(Jim's starting to wonder how we always manage to get his best side in these shots... better ones below...)
There have been many repairs going on (showers, cabinets, etc.) and new projects like rerouting the exhaust for the diesel generator, removal of the old generator to allow us to block the generator room in and further reduce the noise, working on school benches, and assembling wheelbarrows.  Here are a few shots of Brian Roberts, Leonard, and Peter on some of these projects - what's really nice is that some of the older boys (Vladimy - 14, and JJ - 8) were able to lend a hand with some of the projects too:

Vladimy spent some time with Jim and his camera a bit today and loved it.  Here's a shot Jim took of Vladimy, and one Vladimy took of Jim with Dieunel:

Most of the kids are happy to have their photo taken, but they love to see the results:

Alex (or Ti Luck) is thriving on all the playing and attention he's been able to enjoy lately.  He's really taken to Deux (as in Brian 2 - Brian Bowers):

Today we also finished organizing a lot of the donations and distributed them to the kids here at the orphanage.  Kate helped to lead a lot of this, measuring the kids' feet (by tracing them on paper) and gathering potential fits, along with Heidi.

Beach Day

Today was a bit of an early-in-the-trip break for the team.  We were getting ready to frame in and pour some of the vertical support posts / pillars and weren't particularly needed.  Usually the team takes a day and goes to a local beach resort for a day to swim, relax, and enjoy a restaurant meal about the mid-point of the trip, but we decided to take advantage of the opportunity and do so today while there was a lull in the work.  We had a nice day for it and an enjoyable time; everyone is feeling relaxed and refreshed for the upcoming work now.

As always, having a chance to drive anywhere in Haiti and see some of the homes, streets, and general scenes of life is an eye-opening experience.  Today was no exception.  A lot of the guys noted a guy on the roof of the gas station we filled up at armed with a gun - apparently they have a strong policy about paying for the gas you get...  We had a tire leaking air and had to stop at one of the roadside garages or stands - it was basically a pile of tires with a small hut behind, and a number of Haitians standing around.  It was a little intimidating, especially for those of the men sitting in the back of the trucks and attracting a LOT of looks.  The trip was pretty smooth overall (though dusty, and it put what we complain about as potholes back home in a whole new kind of context!).  Brian Bowers is certain that Gerry managed to hit every single pothole while he had his turn in the back during the drive home though!

Here are a couple of photos from our drive, showing our miniature convoy during a short break on the way, and passing through the streets of St Marc on the way home:

The water and the chance to relax together and get to know one another better were wonderful.  Just about everyone enjoyed a swim (the kids spent a lot of time swimming and snorkelling with Tim) and some time in the sun.  Here`s Leonard relaxing during lunch and then chatting with Bob, Colton, and Brian Deux (Brian Bowers - Brian Un being Brian Roberts):

Aidan did a school project on coral reefs this year and loved getting to see some for real.  We have some old-fashioned film pictures from a waterproof camera we`ll get developed when we get back, but no digitals unfortunately.  He liked a big brain coral he saw that was as big as Erin, as well as some pretty blue and purple fan corals.  Erin and Grampie had a bit of a treasure hunt along the water line for shells, rocks, and a pretty red (but dead) fish.  :)

The local Haitian crew made a lot of progress under Luckner`s direction while we were gone today!  The back walls are nearly at full height, and probably half of the posts have been framed up and poured.  We`re hoping to finish the walls and remaining posts tomorrow (Saturday) then when we resume work on Monday we`ll work on getting the headers (horizontal beams at the top of the wall that help support the roof) done.  Then it`ll be time to do the framing and rebar for the big roof pour at the end.  We`re also planning to work on several other projects while we`re here - some walls for the generator building to cut down the noise, fixing the clothesline, building a new table for the dormitory, and maybe a new laundry washing area for the dorm.  Here are a couple shots of the progress today:

Mercenaries or Missionaries - You Decide!

And here are two out of three of Karen`s Chia Pets:

Finally, here are a few other quick pictures we wanted to include:

Dominoes is one of our main night-time activities:

Peter hard at work:

Our main sleeping area:

Germaine, one of the mission support staff, with Dieunel:

Gerry and Vladimy during morning devotions:

Karen and Dieunel during devotions:

Second Full Day

Our second full day on site continued to go well. Most of the team focused on continuing construction of the apartment - the walls (external and internal) are taking shape and the layout is much clearer to everyone now. Bob and Karen drove in to St Marc to buy supplies to build a new table for the orphanage. Some of the guys worked on adapting some of the desks for the kindergarden class to better fit the children. Erin ran craft time for the kids, while Aidan continued to work with Grampie on some of the mortar work then played with the boys (JJ and Moise). Kate went back and forth to the orphanage visiting the kids. Heidi spent some time on email updates, organizing donations, and spent time with the kids and Karen. Tim and Jim worked on the computers (thankfully we received an upgrade for our Internet access late today, allowing the new laptops to be set up and generally making things work much better).


Here's a shot of the apartment at the end of the day - you can see the rooms taking shape and the walls rising. Tomorrow the missions team will take a day off to visit the beach while the local workers pour the various support posts/pillars and let them set.

We've been thankful for a bit of an overcast yesterday and today. That's kept us out of the full force of the sun which, combined with much more moderate temperatures than we had last year (low thirties), has made the work much more bearable.

The new tire swing was a huge hit - the kids were lining up to have turns and generally piling as many on at a time as possible:
Dieunel is very comfortable with the Blancs on the team (and especially the camera!):

Tifi is one of the special needs children at the orphanage. She often doesn't let a lot show, but was actively enjoying craft time and getting to color:

Heidi has been spending a lot of time getting to know the kids. All of them are quite used to digital cameras, and love to have their picture taken (then look at the results) and play with photography themselves:

Around lunch time everyone tends to run down a bit anyway. Colton decided he was tired enough that he struck a "Take me now, Lord" pose:

Our newest addition to the orphanage arrived late yesterday. He cried for the first while - we think it was the first time he had seen a Blanc, and look what he walked into! By this morning, though, he had already relaxed enough that he lit up when Ben went to visit him, and allowed his picture to be taken. Later he went to Karen and gave her kisses, too. A note from Ben: "This is Ben and his new grandson Judel, a foster child for Ryan and Natalie." While Judel was crying yesterday, Ben noted, "Judel is one of the lucky ones, he just doesn't know it yet."

Everyone is raving about the food. Marta and Germaine, our cooks, do a wonderful job. We've enjoyed home made pancakes for breakfast today, mac and cheese, rice with sauce, fried chicken with salad, wonderful bread, and exceptional chicken noodle soup. (So much for the Haitian diet plan we were counting on as we indulged over the holidays!) Kate has been raving about the food in general and the bread in particular - she wanted to order some from Kijiji when we got home... ;)

Karen has expressed her thankfulness that the work is going so quickly and smoothly. We're all very pleased with that. Gerry asks that everyone continue to pray for health and protection - we've had no real mishaps thankfully, but a couple of the guys have fought some minor stomach upsets and/or head colds that have slowed them down a bit.

Gerry does have a bit of a bone to pick with Dickie though (Karen's brother-in-law, who along with her sister Sandra work year-round to support the mission from Canada). Dickie obtained some new mosquito tents for the team to bring down, and Gerry was the first to use one:

Construction Begins...

We've all settled in quickly to the compound here today. After a long but fairly uneventful trip here yesterday we were all pretty beat, but hit the ground running this morning. After morning devotions (a chance to meet the kids and staff for the new folks, and to reconnect for the "experienced" ones), we quickly set to work scoping out the new addition.

The floor plans were reviewed, revised, and finalized, then the outline of the walls laid out. It was amazing how quickly things came together - tree branches that were in the way were cleared almost before we started, stacks of blocks lugged upstairs to the work area, mortar mixed, and people beginning to lay blocks by late morning. By supper time, some of the walls were nearing the half-way point, and most of the rest had at least a couple of layers laid. Everyone's really thrilled with how much progress we made on the first day!

We also had a chance to visit the school compound and see the finished extension many of us helped to add last January - it's a lot neater and cleaned up from the last time we saw it (the day we finished pouring the roof). A new tire swing was set up for the kids and was an immediate hit. We also started setting up the new computer equipment we brought down, organizing all the donations to distribute, and spending time with the kids. (A new 3 year old boy has just joined the orphanage as of supper time tonight, as well!)

Here are a few comments from the team:

Brian Bowers reports that his arms are now at least 10 inches longer after lugging so many blocks...

Peter said it was great to work side by side with the hard-working Haitians. He's thrilled that he made up his mind to come, and says "Hi" to Janice and the kids.

Ben said that sleeping last night was "intense" (in tents... groan... )

Colton plans to go home and put his uncle out of business.

Tim thought it was great to see how quickly Heidi and our kids fit into the orphanage crew. Kate worked hard sorting out donations and working with the kids. Erin and Aidan played a bit, and shared a bunch of crafts with the other kids, but then started in as part of the construction crew! Aidan is now devising a pulley system for lifting blocks and mortar. Erin is applying for the foreman position. :)

Erin says her favorite part is doing crafts with the kids.

We've arrived safely

Hi everyone - sorry it's getting late tonight but wanted to post a short note to let you know that we've all arrived safely after a nice, smooth trip here. All our bags made it too!!

We'll post some pictures and updates tomorrow, but we're just having a quick meal and getting settled in for now.

Thanks again for your prayers - it was wonderful how smoothly everything went!

First full day

Well, we all made it okay to Montreal - there were about 4 hours of delays from both Halifax and BC yesterday, so a bit later / more tired than planned, but a good day to have delays overall since it didn't really impact us at all. We've had a good night at the hotel in Montreal and are getting ready to head back to the airport and get checked in. Will update tonight once we arrive safely!

Thanks for all your prayers!

We're off...

Well, today's the big day! :)

Bags are packed (so far the zippers haven't burst, but they're close) and we're heading to the airport shortly. The crew from Yarmouth should be leaving any time, and we'll connect with them at Halifax airport late this morning for the flight to Montreal. We'll link up with Jim there and all fly to Port-au-Prince Haiti tomorrow morning.

Please keep us in your prayers as we travel. Thank you to all those who have helped make this trip possible - through prayer, financial contribution, donations of shoes and clothing, support to take the time off from work, and best wishes or encouragement. All have been appreciated!

We'll be sure to let you know as soon as we arrive safely - likely late Tuesday evening.

anxious to start the work

Dear Friends and Family, The time is getting close for our team to fly to Haiti as Christmas is over and the new year is almost here. Our team, families, fund raisers and churches have been extremely busy raising the funds for this project which will see a residence built to house a missionary-minded couple needed to help Karen with the work of HATS HAITI orphanage and school. Over the years, the work has grown and there is definitely a need for people that God has called to go and help in this ministry. Our team is numbered at 14 - some with past experince in Haiti and some on their first trip. We have Jim Steer, Karen's cousin from British Columbia, Tim and Heidi Newell and their 3 children, Kate, Aidan and Erin (from Dartmouth N.S.), Brian Roberts, Brian Bowers, Robert Comeau, Ben Churchill, Colton Colquhoun, Leonard Cottreau , Major Peter Rowe -Salvation Army, and team leader Gerry Rhyno (all from the Yarmouth area.) At this time Haiti seems to be fairly peaceful and we pray that it will remain so , but we do ask that you pray for our team during our stay in Deschappelle and that you always keep the work there in your prayers as Haiti can be a very dark place spiritually. I am sure that Karen will covet your prayers. Our plans are to fly to Montreal from Halifax and Vancouver on January 4th , then fly on to Port Au Prince the next morning , arriving about 2:30 in the afternoon. Karen plans to meet us there with transportation to take us to the orphanage compound which is usually about a 3 to 4 hour trip, so we should arrive around 7 pm . The children at the orphanage are always there to welcome us and it makes a wonderful finish to a very long day. Over this last year a Board has been setup in Canada to over see this work in Haiti and we have people from all across Canada on the Board. We have applied for charitable status from the Canadian Government and are in the final stages of that being granted so all future checks to the HATS HAITI mission can be written directly to HATS HAITI and we will send you your tax receipt. We really want to thank the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church who have helped us is this area for the last few years. Finally, I again ask for your prayers , God Bless You All- Gerry.

So Thankful...

Well, we've all been busy getting things ready for the past few weeks. Shots and checkups are behind us now. We've been busy fundraising, and are thrilled to report that we've been blessed with almost 75% of our financial goal so far. We have a bit more to raise still, but we trust that God will provide what is needed. Thank you so much to all those who have helped with this cause!

We want to say a special thank you to the students and staff of Sunnyside Elementary School in Bedford, NS - especially Mrs. Dart's Grade 3/4 class, and to Rod and Heather Laybolt who helped to organize things and put us in touch. Each time a team goes down to Haiti, we try to max out our baggage allowance with donations - clothing, shoes, etc. Our family (the Newells) wanted to make a point of bringing shoes down - especially dress shoes. The school system in Haiti requires uniforms, including dress shoes, for all the children. There are many occasions where the cost of uniforms, or even shoes, is too much for some of the families. While Tim was in Haiti last January there was an example of an absent little boy at the start of the new term. When his absence was checked into, it turned out he had no shoes to wear. The mission quickly provided some for him and he returned to school.

That one story struck a chord with many people, and we've been overwhelmed with the response. We had received fifty or sixty pairs of shoes, sneakers, sandals, etc., through our friends and local church. Mrs. Dart's class decided to adopt this as their Christmas project, and did they ever deliver! We received a carload of between 200 and 250 pairs of footwear - most in mint condition, and many were good children's dress shoes.

Here are some photos of us sorting and organizing the shoes. An extra thank you to those who loaned us duffel bags and suitcases, or came to help sort!


Our children are aged 12, 9, and 6. It's been a lot of fun to see how they are preparing for the trip (especially now that needles are done with - though they did fine). They've seen many photos and heard stories about Haiti from their Dad and grandfather over the years, and it's amazing how much they absorb. Our youngest has decided that she wants to take a watering can, so they can collect water when it rains and then help the crops grow. She ends her prayers many nights with, "Thank you that we've been blessed, and let the Haiti people get blessed." They want to save apple seeds and take them to plant, to help with reforestation and food. By taking a French-English dictionary, they're hoping to be able to share a few words of English with the kids there and learn a bit of Creole themselves.

Well, it's less than two weeks now until we leave. We pray you'll enjoy a wonderful and blessed Christmas over the next few days.

Please check back soon as we'll be posting more about the team in the remaining days before we leave!