Hello Everyone,
Garry, Shane & I just returned from Morisseau, Haiti. While the information is still fresh I wanted to give a quick update. A more detailed summary will follow soon.
Thursday around noon we all met with our Haitian contact, Bob Monde, at the Port Au Prince airport. We jumped into his SUV (with security guard and shotgun) and made great time on the way to Morisseau. The roads were much better than previous trips. We were stalled by a road on the mountain that was washed out by a flash flood from mountain rain. After waiting 2 hours the waters subsided enough for us to proceed.
We arrived at Momma Laguerre’s at dark. We were met by a welcoming group of Pastor Ezra, the Elders and ladies from the church. The ladies all wore their Sunday going to church hats. It was a grand reunion for Shane and I while they easily embraced Garry. After dinner we sang songs of praise in a circle and prayed. It was in Haitian but we didn’t mind. We immediately felt at one with them.
Friday morning we visited our school. The lower grades sang us a welcome song. It was really nice. We took photos of all the children for future sponsorships. I attached a photo of one little boy-who could say no to $15 a month to provide food, books and tuition for him?
We then drove to Patricia LaGuerre’s school in Anse A Veau about 2 hours away. She was very helpful in explaining all she has done and learned in setting up her school.
We drove back to Momma Laguerre’s but the road was washed out by flash flooding caused by raining in the mountains. No way to get through so Bob found a hotel for us about an hour away. (Haiti is always an adventure requiring flexibility) The walls of the hotel compound were about 10 feet high. They also had security with guns.
Saturday we met with the teachers and principal of our school. We asked each of them what they needed to make the year successful. In addition, we presented our principal with a nice laptop and carrying case. You would have thought he was a 6 year old boy at Christmas. He was very thankful. The teachers will communicate their need of teaching aides, equipment, supplies, etc. to him. He will send the needs with an approximate cost to us. We discussed the logistics of getting food to the school. I am firmly committed to supplying our teachers with the necessary tools to teach these young students. They reiterated that food was a priority for them. We were very impressed with our current group of teachers and principal.
We also met with the Elders of the church. We found the biggest need is to train the men to disciple other men. The church is predominately women and we hope to see that change with our support. There is a good balance of older and young men serving in leadership positions. One elder, Michelet Samdy, is missing from the Elder photo.
Sunday we attended the church service. It was a little difficult without an interpreter but I had printed Garry’s message in Creole and gave to the pastor on our first night. It came off very well. We had to hurry to get across the road before the rain blocked us so we left right after the service.
We stayed in a nice hotel in Port Au Prince on Sunday night.
We need to move quickly with sending money to the school. Their first paycheck is October 3. Our full budget is around $1,625 per month and we have about $500 in the account. Please go to www.priorityoneworldwide.com to make any contributions.
Thank you for partnering with us,
Terry
