H A I T I

The Story Isn’t Over Yet.

I spent the last week in Bon Repos, Haiti caring after orphans, shoveling gravel, building picnic benches, and simply loving on God’s people. Looking back to the past week stirs up many different emotions inside of me; emotions of joy, sadness, excitement, and serenity are a few. A piece of my heart will always remain in that extra-special place. Seeing Jesus at work in the midst of the broken was more than just beautiful; it was life changing.

On Sunday morning March 16, 2014, a crew of 14 Grand Canyon University students and 2 faithful leaders arrived in Port Au Prince, Haiti. After many hours of flight, we were anxious to arrive. Once we arrived in Port Au Prince, we were greeted by Brent Fudge, a missionary who lives with his family in Haiti and serves with Back2Back Ministries. We hopped in a “tap-tap” (imagine a truck with two benches in the back mixed with the Indiana Jones ride at Disneyland and that is what it feels like) and began our Haitian travels. Culture shock began to set in once we drove through the streets and noticed the women walking with baskets on their heads, children with barely any clothing on, and trash piled in every direction. It came as a shock to me because I often see images like these on the television screen, but to see them in real life was completely different and devastating. It almost seemed as if I was on a different planet, when in reality, I was only 2,640 miles from my home. What I consider to be essentials in my home were considered to be luxuries in Haiti. This in itself was shocking, but at the same time, was entirely humbling.

Upon arrival to the Guest House in Bon Repos, we were greeted by the Fudge family, as well as Jenna Ghizas and Brian Bertke from Back2Back Ministries. Once we arrived, we picked out our bunks, attempted to put up our mosquito nets, and toured the compound. After getting a tour of the property, we walked to Harvest Care Children’s Home. Here, a man by the name of Kelly, his wife, his children, and his adopted children greeted us. The children sand a “welcome song” as we entered their living room, leaving some of us in faint tears. These children were so beautiful. We took a tour of the children’s home/school where we saw the intense living conditions of a large family. One room housed 6 girls, but the room only had 4 small beds. This broke my heart into pieces. I stood there and thought about the countless times I have complained about how small my bed is and then I thought about how much joy the kids had being that they had a few beds to share. This was one of the most humbling experiences of my life. These kids radiated Jesus’ love.

After the tour, we played games and just had fun with the kids. We were each paired up with a child from the home. My little boy’s name was Alexisar (that probably is the incorrect spelling). He was the most polite and well-mannered child I have ever met. I will never forget his big brown eyes and his white shirt that had the word “hi” written all over it in blue sharpie. We had so much fun together. Seeing the joy on the faces of these children was absolutely incredible and like nothing I can even begin to attempt to explain. The rest of the day was spent playing futbol (soccer) and loving on kids. Before leaving for the day, Alexisar shook my hand, looked me straight in the eyes, and gave me a hug. That is a moment I will never forget. After we returned back to the Guest House, Nate and Lauren from JIHM (Jesus in Haiti Ministries) led us in worship and prayer. It was absolutely beautiful to sit in the backyard and just worship the God who has a heart for the orphan and who sent us on His behalf so that we may care for them.

The next day, we focused our attention on Grace Emmanuel School, run by JIHM. The second we hopped off the “tap-tap”, we were greeted by hundreds of students in uniform. There were kids hanging all over us, kissing our skin, and touching our hair. They loved taking photos with our phones and looking at themselves in the reversed camera. One little girl even asked to take a “selfie.” Yes, the word “selfie” is used even in Haiti…haha. The children at Grace Emmanuel were so joyous and full of life. Each child had a story. Some were victims of tragic events; all were of high poverty level, and some were living with other relatives and friends due to the fact that their parents were killed in the earthquake. We spent some time during this day at the top of a hill overlooking the ocean. While up on top of the hill, we prayed individually for the country of Haiti, the land and its possibilities for Jesus in Haiti Ministries and Back2Back, and that the children may find Jesus. I remember sitting at the top of that hill looking at the ocean on one side and run-down houses on the other. It was both beautiful and heartbreaking. I will never forget praying that the Lord may rise of leaders to love on the people of Haiti. It was in that moment that I committed to always remain faithful in prayer for the future of the country I was falling in love with.

“Glory is His holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and His strength; seek His presence continually! Remember the wondrous work he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered.” – Psalm 105:3-5

The next two days were spent working at Harvest Care and back at the Guest House. One team went to Harvest Care while the other worked at the Guest House. On the first out of two days, my team went to Harvest Care (The other group spent the day setting up an aboveground pool and beautifying the backyard). Our goal for the day was to dig out a large pipe in the ground and to make each kid smile. At first, digging a pipe out of the ground seemed tedious and time-consuming, but then we were told the purpose of the hard work. At that time, Harvest Care did not have a working toilet. The kids went to the restroom behind a tarp that was tied between two stumps in the ground. The thought of this made me sick inside. Knowing that and seeing it made us work harder and more efficiently. Looking back now, I realize that God gave us the physical abilities to uncover that pipe and it will now have a lasting-effect on those children because they will eventually have a toilet that works! HOW AWESOME IS THAT?! After a morning of tough work, we spent the remainder of the day having fun and playing games with the kids. I LOVED seeing the faces of those kids and watching their facial expressions when they were so excited about playing with beach balls and jump ropes. Thinking back to that time just makes me smile. I will never forget those little faces.

The next day, my group focused our attention on landscaping the backyard of the Guest House. We spent our day raking gravel and moving rocks from place to place. By the end of the day, the yard looked beautiful. It was amazing to think that our hard work will bless the groups that will follow after us and will allow the Fudge family to have a relaxing space to enjoy. One of my favorite parts of the day was when 5 water tracks showed up and filled the aboveground pool. This pool was used later in the week to allow the kids in the orphanage to swim in. After we ourselves took a dip in the pool, we got ready to go to the Lighthouse. Tom, the director and founder of the Lighthouse, took some time after dinner to tell us his story. Originally, Tom had never wanted to travel to Haiti, but he worked for a missions’ organization that forced him to go. Little did he know that that was the Lord at work in his life. Within a few days, God told him that Haiti is where he was to spend the rest of his life. God called him to Haiti, and he listened. He has raised over 30 kids that he has taken in as his own boys. Many of the boys have families of their own now or are in college. Most every child was a victim of a tragic event that Tom rescued. Tom was the beginning of Jesus in Haiti Ministries. He started Grace Emmanuel School and the Lighthouse, where we spent a large portion of our time. Hearing Tom’s story about answering the Lord’s call really affected me and challenged my walk with Christ. I want to be BOLD.

On our last day before departure, the kids from Harvest Care came over to the Guest House and went swimming. It was the MOST FUN we had all week! We loved seeing those smiling faces. It is something I will never forget. I will always remember sitting in a chair with a little boy on my lap all bundled up in a towel because the water was too cold. I could have sat there for hours and just loved on him. Honestly, I was looking up plane ticket prices to take him back home with me. It was in that very moment that God said, “You are exactly where I called you to be.”

Leaving Haiti was one of the most difficult things I have ever experienced. When you grow to love someone or a group of people so much and all of a sudden you have to say “goodbye”, it is devastating. Since leaving Haiti, I have had a little bit of time to reflect and pray about my experiences. God changed my heart. He humbled it, mended it, and instilled it with more love than it has ever had before. Those little kids have been permanently implanted into my brain. I still hear their little voices in my head shouting “merci”! I could go on and on for days about how much I love those kids and how much I miss them. Jesus has an extra-special plan for each one of the kids we were able to come in contact with. He has made them more beautiful than anyone could ever imagine. I look at pictures of the kids now and instead of seeing trauma, I see joy. I see gladness. I see happiness. I am so thankful I serve such a huge God who loves the orphan and who has given me a heart that loves orphans, as well. This trip was just the beginning for me. Haiti will always have my heart and I cannot wait to return in the near future to see the growth since we left. Jesus brought hope to the hopeless. Jesus sent me out of the country to realize His power and to gain a larger understanding of who He is. I am so very very thankful. The story isn’t over yet.

If you have any questions, please let me know! Believe it or not, this is a summarized version of my mission experience. Continue to join me in prayer for Haiti, Back2Back Ministries, the Fudge family, Harvest Care, the Lighthouse and JIHM.