Upcoming Trip to Haiti

Hugues and I bought our tickets to Haiti this week. We will be in Haiti from March 2 - March 7. While there, we have a few goals:

1. 1. Food Distribution. We will distribute food to the families of the children in our education program and as many other families as possible. We will provide to each family a month’s supply of rice, beans, and cooking oil. We also will provide breakfast to the children on their way to school in the mornings.
   

2. 2.Bible Distribution. 20 audio Bibles were donated to Grain d’Espoir pour Haiti. These Bibles are spoken in Kreyol. Bibles in Haiti are generally printed in French, and church services are usually held in French. A large portion of the population do not read or speak French. Many do not read Kreyol either. Very few Haitian people have ever heard the Word in their own, native language. The Bibles we will be distributing are solar and crank powered, so do not require the purchase of batteries. We will be giving the Bibles to Christian leaders in the communities of Massey, Cap-Haitian, and hopefully Port-Au-Prince as well. Our hope is that people will congregate at each other’s homes to listen to the Word and many more than 20 people will be able to experience Christ in a new and exciting way.
   

3. 3.Preparations for the 2010-2011 School Year. School just resumed in Les Cayes and Massey this past Monday. Many parents still are not comfortable sending their children to school for fear that the buildings are damaged and will collapse from an aftershock. We have heard that some of the schools in the area sustained minimal damage. We will be visiting the schools our children attend to talk with the principals and assess their needs and ability to remain open. We will also be identifying families in need and speaking with them regarding including their children in our education program next year. Families who have been displaced from Port-Au-Prince and who have made Massey their new home will be first priority for any new sponsorships next year. There are 18 children in the program this year. We hope to have 25 next year.
   

4. 4.Anything else the Lord puts in our way. Through all we have heard and seen, we still do not have a real idea of what the situation is in Massey. We know it is difficult. We know people are hungry. We know food is very expensive. We know there has been a large influx of people from Port-Au-Prince. We don’t know what is happening in the individual lives of the people living there. We don’t know exactly how things have changed. But, we do know that God has called us to go and be of service in any way we can and we suspect He has a much larger plan than we ever could.
   

Many people have inquired as to what we will be taking with us and what items they can donate. Our baggage will be limited as we are traveling on a commercial flight, but here are a few ideas:

1. • Crank-powered flashlights (can be found at Walmart, Lowes, etc.)
   

2. • Water purification tablets
   

3. • Basic Hygiene Bags (Ziploc filled with a bar of soap, deodorant, toothbrush, toothpaste, and washcloth) You can also donate any of these items separately and we will assemble them in bags. Items are needed for children and adults.
   

4. • Individually wrapped snack foods (Teddy Grahams, Granola Bars, etc.)
   

5. • New or gently used children’s and young adult clothing
   

6. • Children’s and Adult underwear (Children’s size 8 and up)
   

We would also ask that you pray about sponsoring a child for next year. The need is greater now than ever and Grain d’Espoir pour Haiti remains committed to providing education for the children in Massey. Hugues and I will travel to Massey again in August to enroll children in school and provide them with needed supplies for the year. All monetary donations intended for sponsorship for the 2010-2011 school year will need to be received prior to this trip. We will keep you updated on those preparations and our dates of travel as the time gets closer.

For updates on our trip in March, keep checking back here and our Grain d'Espoir pour Haiti blog at www.graindespoirhaiti.com. We may or may not have internet while in Haiti, but will make every attempt to post updates when we can. If not, we will still write day-to-day updates and post them all when we get home.

Thank you to everyone who has donated to make this trip possible!

Hugues and Jodi