The team was able to get seats on a MFI (Missionary Flights Int'l) plane that landed in PAP to bring supplies and medical people to serve in Haiti. The team took off at about 3pm from PAP and arrived in Fort Pierce around 6pm. They had an easy and safe trip back home. Joe Adames and Mike Hughes (and his wife) graciously offered to pick the team up and bring them to Boca. Now the team is home, getting some deserved rest and sharing their stories with their loved ones.
Many thanks to everyone who followed this blog and prayed for our team.
Friday, January 29, 2010
Day 9: Dr. Yelle catches a direct flight to Canada
While our team waited in line to get on the next flight out of PAP back to Florida, a big cargo plane from the Canada Air Force landed right in front of them. Dr. Yelle is from Renaissance Church (SRC church plant) in Ottawa, Canada. He had no trouble getting into that plane for a direct flight back home. Dr. Yelle served faithfully for a week-long in Haiti with the SRC team. God provided a present for him, by bringing this flight to the PAP airport exactly when the team was waiting to get home. Thank you, Lord!
Day 9: SRC team leaves Port Au Prince. On the way home...
The team is just boarding the MFI flight and leaving Port Au Prince in a few minutes. They will land in Fort Pierce, and we just need to confirm their time of arrival. More later.
Thanks for keeping them in your prayers.
Thanks for keeping them in your prayers.
Day 9: SRC team waits at Port Au Prince Airport
This morning our team communicated to us that they are at the PAP airport on standby, waiting for the next opportunity to get on a military plane or on a MFI (Missionary Flights International) flight. They were told that their names are down for the next flight out of the PAP airport. We are waiting for confirmation about what time they will take off, and where they are heading (Miami or Fort Pierce). We will keep everyone posted, so we can arrange drivers to pick up the teams. Please keep everyone in your prayers as they fly back home (Dr. Yelle, Dr. Janette, nurses Jackie and Toni, Craig, Scott and Daniel).
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Day 8: SRC team finishes the medical trip in Haiti
Today was the last day that our medical teams had to provide medical help and distribute medical supplies in Haiti. They spend most of the day at the mobile clinic that they set up at a tent city in Leogane. Many people were seen today, as another team of doctors and nurses came to help our team. Tomorrow, our teams return home. They will try to catch a charter flight that will leave Port Au Prince at 5pm (at least that's the plan for now). Each day was an adventure, and the team has many God stories to tell everyone when they get home. Here you can see one last time the faces of our team at work. Dr. Yelle (God's super-star from Ottawa, Canada) treating a patient. And our dear Jackie, always caring for her newborn babies.
Day 7: Team set up a big clinic in Leogane
Today our team headed south of Port Au Prince to a tent city near Leogane. Many people lined up quickly to receive treatment, as they say the bus approaching with the medical team and supplies. Other doctors and nurses who were in Haiti joined our team today, so together they could maximize their efforts and treat as many people as possible. This was the team last day in Haiti.
Day 7: Our team received many supplies at PAP airport
This morning, our team went to PAP airport to receive a big load of supplies sent from the US on a private plane. Dr. Janette and her team made arrangements to meet with the plane and get the supplies. Praise God for the many ways that He is at work. Thanks to Dr. Janette and her team for donating all the supplies to our El Shaddai ministry. Both teams were able to join forces and treat many more patients today.
Day 6: Our team sings with the kids in Croix des Bouquets
Many orphan kids, who are cared for our partner in ministry C3 Missions, live at the Eben Ezer mission site in Croix des Bouquets, Haiti. Here our team spends time with them, loving on them and singing with them. The team also cared for their health issues and treated many of them. Many orphans received a tetanus shot that the team prepared for them.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Day 6: Our team serves at Love a Child Compound
This morning, our team headed to Love a Child tent city to visit the two girls who had surgery yesterday. They are both doing well and recovering. The team visited them and followed up with the surgeons. Here you can see a quick video showing the tent city around the Love a Child site. Our team will continue to serve in Haiti until Friday, when they plan to return home.
Day 6: Scott Stapp is with our team in Haiti
Yesterday, another three people joined our team in Haiti: Dr. Janette Nesheiwat and her brother Daniel, along with Scott Stapp. After numerous hours planning over the weekend, the team flew to Santo Domingo, carrying lots of supplies and medicines, and met with Pastor Dony at the airport yesterday. Then, they drove together to Haiti. Today both teams continue to work and see people in need around Port Au Prince. Here you can see Scott and Craig (our trip coordinator) at the Love a Child compound. Because of the great need and the additional supplies that our team received, they decided to stay in Haiti until Friday, when both teams will come home.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Update #8 from our partner El Shaddai Ministries
Received on Jan. 25th at 4pm:
Dear Friends,
Tomorrow will make it 14 days since this devastating earthquake. The pressure and intensity to get aid to the people have not subsided. Time and resources continue to be our greatest challenges with still not enough food and medical care reaching the people with the greatest need. For example in Les Cayes alone, 150,000 refugees are now there from PAP. Louis wrote on Friday:
"I just talked with some key leaders in the south. The demand is so high and we don't have the means to meet it. The churches are crowded. People came from all over and they don't have anywhere to go. Most of the people, before they left the villages, sold their land and everything. So now they have to start again. Please continue to pray with us. We have so much medical need that a whole month of 100 doctors will not be enough to serve every body. So many people fled PAP with broken bones and severe, life threatening and infected injuries. We have a hospital at Bonne Fin which my father build. It has 300 beds. All of them are occupied and patients are on the floor. We have at Cite Lumiere another Medical Clinic equip with 75 beds. Same story."
Below is an update on the response that has come in to the immediate needs mentioned on January 17:
1. Containers with Food Supply via the DR-To date, ESMI has sent in 6 food containers and distributed with over 100 Haitian volunteers from the South helping.
2. Food Containers from the US- We have a container that will be ready to leave by this Wednesday from Miami to the DR. God's willing, it should be in Haiti early next week.
3. Medical Teams: 47 nurses and doctors are currently in Haiti. Thanks to Lisa, Susie, Julie and Fabiana for coordinating this. They have medical teams lined up to go in and out up to the end of February. Please contact esmieletter@aol.com if you would like to be a part of a medical team.
4. Tents for Churches and homes: thanks to Brother Ed who secured forty-five 10x12ft tents that can each house a family of 10 people. God's willing, these will be shipped by Wednesday to the DR and should be cleared by the end of this week to be given to the families most in need.
As ESMI continues to work on the above 4 needs, we will also begin to do the following:
5. ESMI has identified 400 pastors to begin a more intentional network of food distribution. On Wednesday, January 27, ESMI's leadership team will meet with these pastors in PAP. It is important that these leaders be empowered also to participate in the effort. This is a work that cannot be done alone. It is bigger than any one church or any one organization. With a unified effort, the church in Haiti can help meet the needs of her people.
6. There is the need for 3 huge tents to hold congregations with 2000 members. Most of the churches in PAP were destroyed. The congregations are on the streets. ESMI has identified 3 locations with key leaders for these. The desire is to encourage and rebuild the spiritual life of the Haitian church. What a wonderful opportunity to share the good news that in the midst of such hopelessness, there is hope in God.
7. Containers to be packed with tents, cots, sheets, blankets, food for immediate consumption, etc. God willing, the ports in Haiti should be opening up in a week. Ed has graciously agreed to offer his time to coordinate this effort. Please contact Ed at 1-561-988-0253. He will also assist in the coordinating efforts of the food containers from Miami.
8. Pray that by the end of this week ESMI would have secured a piece of land for temporary housing.
9. There is a need for about 6 Mack dump trucks. Once the food gets to PAP on containers, it must be reloaded onto dump trucks for distribution into the different areas of need. This is the best way to get the food out into those communities. Later these trucks will be used in clearing debris and bringing in construction material. Why Mack dump trucks? They are long-lasting trucks and the parts are easily available. There are excellent mechanics, like DouDou, who can make anything go as long as they have the parts available. To have piles of food and no means to get them to the people is a dilemma that the international aid community is now facing.
Thanks for your continued prayers and support.
El Shaddai Ministries International
13651 S. Biscayne River Drive
Miami, FL 33161
website: esmihome.org
Dear Friends,
Tomorrow will make it 14 days since this devastating earthquake. The pressure and intensity to get aid to the people have not subsided. Time and resources continue to be our greatest challenges with still not enough food and medical care reaching the people with the greatest need. For example in Les Cayes alone, 150,000 refugees are now there from PAP. Louis wrote on Friday:
"I just talked with some key leaders in the south. The demand is so high and we don't have the means to meet it. The churches are crowded. People came from all over and they don't have anywhere to go. Most of the people, before they left the villages, sold their land and everything. So now they have to start again. Please continue to pray with us. We have so much medical need that a whole month of 100 doctors will not be enough to serve every body. So many people fled PAP with broken bones and severe, life threatening and infected injuries. We have a hospital at Bonne Fin which my father build. It has 300 beds. All of them are occupied and patients are on the floor. We have at Cite Lumiere another Medical Clinic equip with 75 beds. Same story."
Below is an update on the response that has come in to the immediate needs mentioned on January 17:
1. Containers with Food Supply via the DR-To date, ESMI has sent in 6 food containers and distributed with over 100 Haitian volunteers from the South helping.
2. Food Containers from the US- We have a container that will be ready to leave by this Wednesday from Miami to the DR. God's willing, it should be in Haiti early next week.
3. Medical Teams: 47 nurses and doctors are currently in Haiti. Thanks to Lisa, Susie, Julie and Fabiana for coordinating this. They have medical teams lined up to go in and out up to the end of February. Please contact esmieletter@aol.com if you would like to be a part of a medical team.
4. Tents for Churches and homes: thanks to Brother Ed who secured forty-five 10x12ft tents that can each house a family of 10 people. God's willing, these will be shipped by Wednesday to the DR and should be cleared by the end of this week to be given to the families most in need.
As ESMI continues to work on the above 4 needs, we will also begin to do the following:
5. ESMI has identified 400 pastors to begin a more intentional network of food distribution. On Wednesday, January 27, ESMI's leadership team will meet with these pastors in PAP. It is important that these leaders be empowered also to participate in the effort. This is a work that cannot be done alone. It is bigger than any one church or any one organization. With a unified effort, the church in Haiti can help meet the needs of her people.
6. There is the need for 3 huge tents to hold congregations with 2000 members. Most of the churches in PAP were destroyed. The congregations are on the streets. ESMI has identified 3 locations with key leaders for these. The desire is to encourage and rebuild the spiritual life of the Haitian church. What a wonderful opportunity to share the good news that in the midst of such hopelessness, there is hope in God.
7. Containers to be packed with tents, cots, sheets, blankets, food for immediate consumption, etc. God willing, the ports in Haiti should be opening up in a week. Ed has graciously agreed to offer his time to coordinate this effort. Please contact Ed at 1-561-988-0253. He will also assist in the coordinating efforts of the food containers from Miami.
8. Pray that by the end of this week ESMI would have secured a piece of land for temporary housing.
9. There is a need for about 6 Mack dump trucks. Once the food gets to PAP on containers, it must be reloaded onto dump trucks for distribution into the different areas of need. This is the best way to get the food out into those communities. Later these trucks will be used in clearing debris and bringing in construction material. Why Mack dump trucks? They are long-lasting trucks and the parts are easily available. There are excellent mechanics, like DouDou, who can make anything go as long as they have the parts available. To have piles of food and no means to get them to the people is a dilemma that the international aid community is now facing.
Thanks for your continued prayers and support.
El Shaddai Ministries International
13651 S. Biscayne River Drive
Miami, FL 33161
website: esmihome.org
Day 5: Tomorrow will be our team's last day in Haiti
On Wednesday, our team will start traveling back to Florida. They will try to get on a charter flight directly out of Port Au Prince. If they can't get on the plane, they will have a long journey driving back to Santo Domingo to catch their flight that leaves at 4:40pm. We will know more in the morning as to what time they are expected to arrive in Florida.Another team from SRC, Dr. Janette and her two brothers traveled today to Haiti with Pastor Dony and a partner from MNA. Janette's team purchased a van in Santo Domingo to donate to El Shaddai Ministries. They also brought a lot of medical supplies to our clinics in Haiti. God's people are so generous. We are so blessed to work for our Lord Jesus Christ. We close our blog news today with this picture showing how blessed are the people in Haiti who were touched by the love and care of the SRC team!
Day 5: Team found the two girls who needed surgery
Praise God that Jackie, DouDou and John Snyder, a C3 volunteer, found both girls from tent cities at Carrefour and at La Collin and transported them to the Love a Child location where several plastic surgeons arrived today. It was a miracle that we found them and then to have surgeons available is even more amazing! God is good! A young boy, James, an orphan who we treated at Eben Ezer site had surgery there this morning and they will be taking him back to Eben Ezer.
It was a good, long day for the team.
Day 5: A quick view of La Collin tent city
Here you can see a view from the road of the tent city called La Collin, where our team served on Monday and Tuesday. Many people are temporarily living under tents made of sheets, and they wait for food, water and medical treatment. Our team made sure to bring them hope. The team met some medical needs, and also made sure that the love of Christ was shared with them.
Day 5: Team helps young girls to get surgery
Today, nurse Jackie went with DouDou to find two young girls who had serious facial injuries, one from Carrefour and another from La Collin. Jackie and two volunteers from C3 missions will try to get the girls to see a surgeon in the area who is doing plastic surgery. It will be a challenge to find these girls in the tent cities (our team treated them on Sat and Sun before they knew about the surgeon).
Day 5: SRC team helps with food distribution
Part of our team went back to La Collin today. Yesterday, the UN truck only distributed water, so today the team delivered food to that community, including three large bags of rice. Dr. Yelle helped to distribute the food to those families living in tents.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Day 4: UN truck stops to deliver food at our clinic site
Since many people gathered around the mobile clinic to receive medical treatment, a UN truck that was passing by the site, stopped and started distributing food for the tent city's temporary refugees. Today was a better day for that community, as they received food and medicines. Rescue came to them, and now they can have hope again.
Day 4: Our team is interviewed by French press
As our team was serving in La Collin, with the mobile clinic working at full power, a reporter from a French newspaper interviewed members of our team, through a translator, and covered the scenes of people receiving medical treatment and being seen by the doctors. Here you can see the reporter and her team making a special edition of today's news in La Collin, Haiti.
The team was also interviewed by the Globe (Canadian national newspaper) when they were seeing patients in Carrefour.
Day 4: Mobile clinic at tent city called La Collin
The city of La Collin (The Hill) is located between Gressier and Leogane. Our team arrived at the site around 11am after a long drive (the roads are blocked by big trucks and machinery who are moving the rubles). The team had to set up the mobile clinic quickly, as many people were waiting to be seen by the medical doctors. Today, three Haitian doctors helped Dr. Yelle and our team to see the patients and treat them. A truck from United Nations came to distribute food to that community while the clinic was set up. So those people got double blessed today: food/water and medical supplies. These are the greatest needs.
Day 4: Going beyond Gressier...
The team headed to another town this morning a little further west from Gressier. It is a tent city near the epicenter of the earthquake. The team will set up the clinic in a field there and spend the rest of the day helping injured people from that community. As the team was traveling to get there, they took this picture showing how people are lining up trying to get money or any aid they can.
Day 4: Our team prepares tetanus shots for orphans
One of the greatest needs in Haiti at this point, because of some many injuries, is for tetanus shots. Our team was able to order those before leaving the US, and today they are preparing them to give to the orphans who live at the Eben Ezer Mission House. Here you can see nurse Jackie and Dr. Yelle getting the shots ready to be given to the orphan kids tonight.
We are waiting to hear from the team about where they are going to set up the mobile clinic to see patients today. We'll keep you posted.
Day 4: Updates from SRC team
Today, our team is reduced to four people who are staying in Haiti until Wednesday: Dr. Yelle, nurses Jackie and Toni, and Craig. Their first task this morning was to find out a way to return to the US on Wednesday, since commercial flights out of PAP were all canceled. We were able to re-book their flights to leave from Santo Domingo, DR on Wednesday at 4:40pm. The team is scheduled to arrive in Miami at 6:05pm (if not delayed). The team went to the PAP airport to make contact with United Airlines for a possible free flight that is being offered in partnership with the US military, for helping to evacuate medical teams out of PAP back to the US. We will keep you posted on the status of their return.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Day 3: Team at work in Gressier, Haiti
Everyone got busy when they arrived in Gressier and found a long line of people waiting to receive treatment. Here you can see, on the left, nurse Karen taking care of a little girl with an injured leg. On the right, nurse Katrina provides IV treatment to a very dehydrated teenage boy. After it got dark, the team headed back to Croix des Bouquets, where they will eat dinner, rest, and spend the night outside in their tents. Nurse Terri left today back to the US. Tomorrow, nurses Karen, Katrina and Aimee with head back home. Dr. Yelle, nurses Jackie and Toni, and Craig will stay at least until Wednesday. We are trying to get another team of 4 medical people down there tomorrow. Please continue to pray for these relief efforts. The gospel goes in front of our team, and the Living Water is not being offered by many other groups.
Day 3: SRC team serves in Gressier
After serving in Carrefour this morning, the team headed to another city called Gressier. The mayor led our team to that site due to the many critically injured that still wait for medical aid.
On this site you can see some images of the earthquake destruction in that area: http://www.gressier.org/
Our team was very busy in the afternoon, treating the people of Gressier, considered one of the epicenter towns of the earthquake.
Day 3: SRC team joined a worship service in PAP
As the team was traveling to Carrefour this morning, where they went to see patients for half-day, they found a tent city worship service in PAP. They joined that church and worshiped with them for a few minutes, then Craig and Dr. Yelle introduced the SRC team and shared the gospel with the people attending the service. Pretty neat the door that God opened for the gospel to be shared.
Day 3: SRC team at work in Croix des Bouquets
This morning the team saw a few patients in Croix des Bouquets before heading down to Carrefour or Les Plein mobile clinic. Pastor Louis was going to confirm where team needed to go today. The need is so great, and several people haven't received any help yet. Les Cayes is also an area of great need right now due to many refugees moving to that city. Here you can see the team at work this morning at the Eben Ezer site, before they left for the day.
Day 3: SRC team starts early in the day
The team served yesterday all day, morning in PAP hospital and afternoon in Carrefour clinic. In the evenings, the team returns to the Eben Ezer Mission site to eat dinner, rest and spend the night. They have been sleeping in tents outside, as the building conditions are not 100% stable. Nothing is stopping the team from having a smile on their face and serving God with all their heart.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Day 2: Our teams are covering different cities in Haiti
The SRC team went to Carrefour after they helped at the Port Au Prince hospital this morning. They have started seeing patients in Carrefour yesterday, and needed to go back today as many people awaited to be seen (see picture). The team from South Carolina headed to Les Cayes with Pastor Louis, and will continue to serve that community until Wednesday. Pastor Louis informed that there is great need in Les Cayes since many refugees are moving there from PAP looking for help.
Our team home base is Croix des Bouquets for spending the night and eating meals (breakfast and dinner). Then they leave in the morning to go serve in other sites as needed. They will probably return to Carrefour tomorrow and serve there for another day. Monday plans are still in the works. We'll keep you posted. Stay tuned.
Day 2: Teams tries to save burned baby in PAP
The SRC team headed to the PAP hospital this morning in a rush to try to save a baby's life. His body had been seriously burned and was very dehydrated. He needed immediate attention, and our team responded quickly. As they got to the hospital, they had to take charge and continue to provide care for the baby. Unfortunately, because his condition was very critical, the little baby did not survive. Sad moment for our team. They need strength to continue to help others. Keep them in your prayers.
Day 2: Team helps at the Port Au Prince Hospital
Part of our team rushed to the PAP hospital to transport the burned baby, and ended up staying there to help with so many people who were waiting to be seen and the hospital was under staffed. The other half of the team stayed at the clinic to provide wound care and treatment to other patients. Here you can see a video of the baby with nurse Terri in the hospital.
Day 2: Team helps to rescue a burned baby
One tough case for the team to handle was a baby with serious burns on his body. The team had to act quickly, provide IV treatment and rush the baby to the Port Au Prince hospital. Here you can see the team transporting the baby to the hospital. As they got there, the hospital was under staffed so our nurses took charge and helped to treat the patients. The baby was in very critical condition.
Day 2: SRC Team in Croix des Bouquets
The team went back to Croix des Bouquets (15 miles east of Port Au Prince) last night to meet with the other team of doctors and nurses from South Carolina (Katrina from SRC joined that team), and to spend the night at Eben Ezer Mission site. This morning the two teams set up a mobile clinic there to provide medical attention to people in that community. Here is a picture of the team when they started the day.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Day 1: SRC Medical Team continues to work in Carrefour
The team has been seeing many patients from the town of Carrefour since this morning.
A boy with a dislocated hip just came to get treatment and was transferred to the local hospital.
The line of people to be seen and receive treatment continues to grow, as the team continues to work hard on their first day in Haiti. Another team is arriving tonight to add more help to the portable clinic that will be setup in Croix des Bouquets.
Our team started seeing patients in Carrefour
Our team arrived in Carrefour at 11am to set up the clinic and start seeing people in need. The team will spend all day working at the clinic, then will return to Croix des Bouquets in the evening. They will spend the night there and tomorrow will set up a mobile clinic in that area.Carrefour is a largely residential and very poor commune in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. The district has an estimated population of 408,000 as of 2003. It is mostly a bedroom community for those who work in central Port-au-Prince. The neighborhood is very poor and ill-serviced, however, as of recently, small-scale construction has gone on in the area along with street renovations. (Extracted from Wikipedia)
You can read more about Carrefour and how desperately it needs aid on this link. Carrefour was an epicenter town of the earthquake.
Day 1: SRC Team drives through Port Au Prince
As our team relocates to another site called Carrefour, where they are going to setup the clinic today, they drove through Port Au Prince, and they were speechless as they saw the devastation and the current situation of the people. Here is a video showing a little of what they are experiencing.
Day 1: SRC Team on the way to Carrefour - Haiti
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This morning the team had breakfast, organized the medical supplies, and is now in the process of transferring to another location where they will setup the clinic for today. The other site is Carrefour and has a safe building for them to work during the day, and perhaps spend the night.
Continue to pray for all the logistics and that many wounded people can be helped today. Here you can see the C3 Missions team (Joe Knittig, Beth Fox and Tracy) making the strategy for the day.
Day 1: SRC Team in Croix des Bouquets - Haiti
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The Eben Ezer clinic site is located 15 miles east of Port au Prince. The plan was for the team to stay there, set up the clinic, and care for wounded people until next Wednesday. Because of uncertain conditions of the building structure, the team will move today to another location called Carrefour (this is normally a C3 Missions orphan home, but the kids were transferred to Les Cayes). Here you see a picture of the Eben Ezer location, where the team was supposed to stay.
SRC Team at work in Haiti
As the team arrived in Croix des Bouquets, and they were getting close to the clinic, a desperate woman in pain waited to give birth to her baby. Dr. Yelle and Jackie went straight to work, and delivered a baby girl, 6 lbs 8 oz. The mother asked Dr. Yelle to name the baby after his daughter, Marika, who is 8 years old. By the way the delivery happened under flashlights and with a few supplies that they had in hand. Both mom and baby are well. God is so good!
SRC Team arrived in Haiti
After driving for about 4 hours from the airport in Santo Domingo, the SRC medical team arrived at the border of Haiti around 10pm last night. They had to transfer all the luggage and load other vehicles that were waiting for them on the other side of the border, now on the Haiti side. They traveled for another hour by car to the Eben Ezer Mission House (a place maintained by our partner C3 Missions). That was the place where the team was originally going to stay for the week...
Thursday, January 21, 2010
SRC Team is crossing the Dominican Republic
The medical team that SRC sent to help with immediate needs in Haiti is currently driving cross country in the Dominican Republic to get to the border of Haiti. We just received communication from the team that they were about 45min from the border, and when they get there other vehicles will be waiting to take them into Haiti. The Eben Ezer Mission Clinic where they will be serving is about one hour driving west from the border. The town is called Croix des Bouquets, and is located 15 miles east of Port of Prince. Here you can see a picture of Jean Pierre (DouDou), Pastor Dony and Jackie when the team was being picked up from the airport in Santo Domingo. God is guiding all the steps of this trip. We are so grateful for His mighty ways.
SRC Team on their way to Haiti
On Jan. 21st, early morning, the team left SRC towards Miami. Their flight left Miami at 10:05am going to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. 23 bags were checked in and the airline waived all the fees. That was a big praise. They landed in Santo Domingo at 12:30pm and went through customs with no problems. Another big praise. Pastor Dony met the team at the airport at 3:30pm, and they started their journey towards the Haitian border. It is a 3-hour drive to the border. We are hoping and praying that they can cross the border before it closes today.
SRC Team Preparing for Haiti Trip
On Wednesday Jan. 20th many volunteers came to help the Haiti team with the final preparations for their trip to Haiti. Plans started on Monday afternoon, and within 2 days the team was ready to go. God put all the pieces together in a marvelous way. The people, the supplies, the tickets, the money. Everything got accomplished in very short time. Thank you Lord!
We appreciate so much the help of the wonderful volunteers, who took their time, talents and treasures to help the team with the packing and getting ready to go. Special thanks to Allison Good and Jean Mackey for helping us to coordinate so many details. Let's continue to keep the team in our prayers.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Update from our partner C3 Missions
This village is where the medical team from SRC will be staying...
6.1 Aftershock Hits Port au Prince
Joe Knitting, our Executive Director and team are on the ground and reported this:
"Everyone in our transition village is doing fine amid the aftershock this morning. We set out early to try and help in the most affected areas of Port au Price (PAP). We are driving through PAP back to Eben Ezer hospital, a sick boy needs immediate attention (pictured above, name unknown), injured from the most recent aftershock. Doctors and team are readying for his arrival back at Eben Ezer. In addition to many other kids that we have gathered that are in need of help. There is no room in PAP hospitals for them so we are having to begin taking these kids to our village and help as best we can."
Update #7 from our partner El Shaddai Ministries
Received on Jan. 20th at 12:30pm:
Dear Friends,
An aftershock of a 6.1 magnitude hit Haiti this morning I'm awaiting news from Dony on what the situation is. ESMI is so thankful to many of you who will remain committed as Haiti walks this very difficult path.
Praise God for the response that is coming in. Two 20 ft truckload of food and water were purchased and crossed into Haiti from the DR yesterday. Thank you all for making this possible. We are also partnering with other ministries to get food into Haiti. Today at noon, God's willing, a 17-seater plane from the Bahamas will fly into PAP filled with food, medical supplies, and water.
Next is the distribution of food. Louis was organizing 30 people from the south to head to PAP yesterday. ESMI needs to secure vehicles, preferably dump trucks to go into different areas to do this. We are setting up stations in Petit Goave, Carrefour, Miragaone, and Grecier for now. These are areas that have suffered substantial damage also but have received little to no aid. We will work with the pastors of these communities.
Today will also be a day of more strategic planning on distribution and coordination of those desiring to help at this crucial time. Pray for wisdom. The plan is to have two sites to host Haitians and US teams: Croix des Bouquets and Carrefour. The orphans will be removed from the latter area and the home turned into a guesthouse for now. At the moment, there are 2 medical teams desiring to go tomorrow, and Friday. Pray for the logistics to be worked out and to see if this is still possible after this 6.1 aftershock.
Tents- These are needed for temporary housing. Many, as you have seen, are sleeping on the streets with sheets as tents. We are also looking for large tents for churches to have their services. It rained yesterday in PAP. I leave the rest to your imagination.
To maximize the use of space in the containers, pack these items in boxes.
Again, we thank you for your prayers. We serve a sovereign God whose good purpose through all of this will one day be seen.
Blessings,
Sharon St. Germain
Dear Friends,
An aftershock of a 6.1 magnitude hit Haiti this morning I'm awaiting news from Dony on what the situation is. ESMI is so thankful to many of you who will remain committed as Haiti walks this very difficult path.
Praise God for the response that is coming in. Two 20 ft truckload of food and water were purchased and crossed into Haiti from the DR yesterday. Thank you all for making this possible. We are also partnering with other ministries to get food into Haiti. Today at noon, God's willing, a 17-seater plane from the Bahamas will fly into PAP filled with food, medical supplies, and water.
Next is the distribution of food. Louis was organizing 30 people from the south to head to PAP yesterday. ESMI needs to secure vehicles, preferably dump trucks to go into different areas to do this. We are setting up stations in Petit Goave, Carrefour, Miragaone, and Grecier for now. These are areas that have suffered substantial damage also but have received little to no aid. We will work with the pastors of these communities.
Today will also be a day of more strategic planning on distribution and coordination of those desiring to help at this crucial time. Pray for wisdom. The plan is to have two sites to host Haitians and US teams: Croix des Bouquets and Carrefour. The orphans will be removed from the latter area and the home turned into a guesthouse for now. At the moment, there are 2 medical teams desiring to go tomorrow, and Friday. Pray for the logistics to be worked out and to see if this is still possible after this 6.1 aftershock.
Tents- These are needed for temporary housing. Many, as you have seen, are sleeping on the streets with sheets as tents. We are also looking for large tents for churches to have their services. It rained yesterday in PAP. I leave the rest to your imagination.
To maximize the use of space in the containers, pack these items in boxes.
Again, we thank you for your prayers. We serve a sovereign God whose good purpose through all of this will one day be seen.
Blessings,
Sharon St. Germain
SRC is the first to respond to medical teams needs
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 20th at 10am:
Dear Team,
You are the first responding team to go to Haiti from the US through ESMI. Dr. Don, whom some of you met, went to Croix des Bouquets last week with 5 nurses. I don't know what the situation is there. Maybe I'll get word from Dony today. But as you prepare, please expect the worst. Think of a war zone where you are helping those wounded and you have very little medical apparatus to work with. You only have God, your team mates and the supplies you came in with. If I hear differently, I'll let you know. A team tried to do medical missions in PAP and they were swarmed. The need is so overwhelming. You will be outside of PAP and the patients will be brought to you. Please know that there are lots, lots of details that Dony will try to work out today. Pray for the team there. As soon as I hear anything from Dony, I'll let you know.
Thanks Spanish River and New Covenant for working together to get down there this week and coordinating the small aircraft connection. It would be so much easier to go next week with AA. You are making an incredible sacrifice to be there this week and not later. May God bless your efforts for His glory.
We'll ask DouDou to be with you at all times, I know you love him and feel very safe with him. There are folks from Cayes who will also be with you at the missions site to help with translation. I believe the Haitian nurses who are already there will do triage.
Blessings,
Sharon St. Germain
Dear Team,
You are the first responding team to go to Haiti from the US through ESMI. Dr. Don, whom some of you met, went to Croix des Bouquets last week with 5 nurses. I don't know what the situation is there. Maybe I'll get word from Dony today. But as you prepare, please expect the worst. Think of a war zone where you are helping those wounded and you have very little medical apparatus to work with. You only have God, your team mates and the supplies you came in with. If I hear differently, I'll let you know. A team tried to do medical missions in PAP and they were swarmed. The need is so overwhelming. You will be outside of PAP and the patients will be brought to you. Please know that there are lots, lots of details that Dony will try to work out today. Pray for the team there. As soon as I hear anything from Dony, I'll let you know.
Thanks Spanish River and New Covenant for working together to get down there this week and coordinating the small aircraft connection. It would be so much easier to go next week with AA. You are making an incredible sacrifice to be there this week and not later. May God bless your efforts for His glory.
We'll ask DouDou to be with you at all times, I know you love him and feel very safe with him. There are folks from Cayes who will also be with you at the missions site to help with translation. I believe the Haitian nurses who are already there will do triage.
Blessings,
Sharon St. Germain
SRC is sending a medical team to Haiti
As a response to one of the immediate needs identified by our partner Dony St. Germain, SRC is sending a medical team of seven people, who will join another medical team flying from South Carolina. Together the two teams will serve at the clinic in Croix des Bouquets (15 miles from Port Au Prince) for one week. The SRC team members are:
Dr. Robert Yelle (SRC church plant in Ottawa, Canada - Renaissance Church)
Jackie Adames, RN (SRC office staff member)
Terri Bartuska, RN (SRC church plant - Treasure Coast Church)
Toni James, RN (former member of SRC from St. Augustine)
Karen Kluge, RN (SRC friend from Passport Health)
Aimee Brueck, PT (SRC member)
Craig Kindell, Trip Coordinator (SRC Deacon)
Please keep the team in your prayers, as they prepare to leave tomorrow to an experience that will be shocking and will change their lives. Pray for safety, for strength, and for flexibility to adapt to the difficult conditions. May God be glorified by the gospel going forward.
Dr. Robert Yelle (SRC church plant in Ottawa, Canada - Renaissance Church)
Jackie Adames, RN (SRC office staff member)
Terri Bartuska, RN (SRC church plant - Treasure Coast Church)
Toni James, RN (former member of SRC from St. Augustine)
Karen Kluge, RN (SRC friend from Passport Health)
Aimee Brueck, PT (SRC member)
Craig Kindell, Trip Coordinator (SRC Deacon)
Please keep the team in your prayers, as they prepare to leave tomorrow to an experience that will be shocking and will change their lives. Pray for safety, for strength, and for flexibility to adapt to the difficult conditions. May God be glorified by the gospel going forward.
How SRC is responding to the immediate needs...
Based on the needs that Pastor Dony identified, SRC is responding as following:
1) Thanks to the generosity of the SRC family, we were able to raise $54,234 last weekend!
2) $10,000 is being used to purchase the so needed medications (antibiotics, tetanus shots, wound care medication, gauze, bandages, splints, etc), so the SRC medical team can take with them on their mission trip.
3) $44,324 was given to Pastor Dony to purchase the food containers in Santo Domingo. He returned to the DR yesterday, and with the help of C3 Missions, will start driving the containers into the needy in Croix de Bouquets, where the C3 Missions clinic is.
4) SRC is sending a medical mission team on Thursday, Jan. 21st, to work in the clinic for one week. A team of eight people is flying to Santo Domingo, then driving for 4 hours to cross the border and get to the clinic. Another team of seven people from South Carolina is meeting our team on Friday. There will be 4 doctors, 9 nurses, and 1 physical therapist working together at the clinic, and they will be treating some 800-1,000 people per day.
5) We will continue to receive funds for Haiti Relief from partner churches around the globe. Those funds will be wired to El Shaddai Ministries to continue helping them with the relief efforts.
1) Thanks to the generosity of the SRC family, we were able to raise $54,234 last weekend!
2) $10,000 is being used to purchase the so needed medications (antibiotics, tetanus shots, wound care medication, gauze, bandages, splints, etc), so the SRC medical team can take with them on their mission trip.
3) $44,324 was given to Pastor Dony to purchase the food containers in Santo Domingo. He returned to the DR yesterday, and with the help of C3 Missions, will start driving the containers into the needy in Croix de Bouquets, where the C3 Missions clinic is.
4) SRC is sending a medical mission team on Thursday, Jan. 21st, to work in the clinic for one week. A team of eight people is flying to Santo Domingo, then driving for 4 hours to cross the border and get to the clinic. Another team of seven people from South Carolina is meeting our team on Friday. There will be 4 doctors, 9 nurses, and 1 physical therapist working together at the clinic, and they will be treating some 800-1,000 people per day.
5) We will continue to receive funds for Haiti Relief from partner churches around the globe. Those funds will be wired to El Shaddai Ministries to continue helping them with the relief efforts.
Immediate needs in Haiti and how SRC is helping...
We communicated with our partner, Pastor Dony St. Germain, as he came to Miami to gather supplies and funds to bring back to Haiti. These are immediate needs that were identified:
1) Food and water. With the help of our partner C3 Missions, Pastor Dony is able to secure containers in the Dominican Republic and those containers can be loaded with food, water, and other supplies. The cost for a 20ft container loaded with supplies is $10,000. Then the container can be shipped to Croix des Bouquets in Haiti (about 1 hours driving from the DR border). This is where El Shaddai Ministries and C3 Missions are setting up a big clinic to help the people with food, water, and medical care.
2) Medical teams. There are many people who are wounded and hurting in the outskirts of Port au Prince. The relief operations are concentrated in the capital, however several small towns were severely hit by the earthquake, and no help is getting there to save those people. That's where our partners will be focusing, and they need our help with medical teams and medications.
3) Because buildings were destroyed and many are cracked and not safe, people have moved away from their places and are now living on the streets. Church buildings were destroyed and congregations cannot meet. A big need right now is for tents. Big ones for churches to start meeting again, and small ones for people to get shelter. Pastor Dony can get those in the DR if he receive the cash donations.
1) Food and water. With the help of our partner C3 Missions, Pastor Dony is able to secure containers in the Dominican Republic and those containers can be loaded with food, water, and other supplies. The cost for a 20ft container loaded with supplies is $10,000. Then the container can be shipped to Croix des Bouquets in Haiti (about 1 hours driving from the DR border). This is where El Shaddai Ministries and C3 Missions are setting up a big clinic to help the people with food, water, and medical care.
2) Medical teams. There are many people who are wounded and hurting in the outskirts of Port au Prince. The relief operations are concentrated in the capital, however several small towns were severely hit by the earthquake, and no help is getting there to save those people. That's where our partners will be focusing, and they need our help with medical teams and medications.
3) Because buildings were destroyed and many are cracked and not safe, people have moved away from their places and are now living on the streets. Church buildings were destroyed and congregations cannot meet. A big need right now is for tents. Big ones for churches to start meeting again, and small ones for people to get shelter. Pastor Dony can get those in the DR if he receive the cash donations.
How generous are the people of SRC...
Last weekend in church Tommy gave an update about the situation in Haiti, and informed the church family that we were taking a special collection for the Haiti Relief Fund...
God provided through the generosity of the SRC family, His people, and we received $54,324 in donations for the Haiti Relief fund. Praise God! And thank you SRC family for your generous heart!
God provided through the generosity of the SRC family, His people, and we received $54,324 in donations for the Haiti Relief fund. Praise God! And thank you SRC family for your generous heart!
Monday, January 18, 2010
Update #6 from El Shaddai Ministries - Pastor Dony
El Shaddai Ministries International, Inc.
13651 S. Biscayne River Drive
Miami, FL 33161
January 17, 2010
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Thank you for your prayers in such a difficult time as this for my people and my country. We, Louis and I, have sensed your prayers as we too are mourning the deaths of key leaders in our ministry. I lost 10 key leaders in PAP. One of these leaders died with his entire family.
Church, what you are seeing on the television, as difficult as it has been to watch, fails in comparison to what is really happening in Haiti. There are too many people who are still not getting the help they need, many are suffering. For example, the concentration of the relief so far is in PAP but there are a number of surrounding cities that have also suffered major damage that no one is addressing such as Jacmel, Miragoan, Leogan, and the list goes on. There are still aftershocks being felt. Two buildings that were standing and showed no signs of damage fell yesterday with people in them. We continue to be in desperate need of your help to minister. Ministry must not only be in PAP but also in the surrounding cities where many are returning. ESMI is already strategically based in some of these cities and sees this as an opportunity for future church plants and growth. However, at this time, the focus must be on the immediate needs.
These are the needs we must work on now:
1. Containers with Food Supply from the Dominican Republic (DR).
PAP was the main entrance of food for the entire country. They have run out. Soon the trickling effect into other cities will begin as these cities become overcrowded with people who have left PAP.
We can get a 20ft container with $10,000 worth of food and transport it across for another $2,000. We need at least 20 of these right now. A team is already in place to do the purchasing and packing once the funds are received.
2. Food Containers from the US
Although rice, black beans, red beans, oil, canned meat, spaghetti, cornmeal, bulgar wheat, baked beans, canned soup, tomato paste are much needed items, other important items to pack are food for immediate consumption such as biscuits, tuna sandwich mix, canned sausage, lots of small bottles of water, etc., anything that does not have to be cooked. ESMI has the contact to have these containers cleared within 3 days in the DR.
3. Medical Team
Many, many people have not been treated for their injuries. Large numbers are sitting under sheets with swollen feet, arms, and face; untreated injuries with dried clots of blood; back injuries; some totally immobile because blocks fell on their backs or chest. Some are being fed by others that are too weak to feed themselves but it is only a matter of time before they are no more if no one sees them. The General Hospital is overcrowded, patients are outside waiting and the people are dying by the minute. This is just too much for the hospital to handle.
The Need:
i) Several mobile clinics with all the needed medical supplies to treat these patients in the different locations.
ii) Medical Team
We are ready right now to have medical teams come in to see patients. I have secured a clinic in the Croix de Bouquet area, 15-20 minutes outside of PAP. It is safe.
4. Tents for Churches and Homes
Most churches in PAP have collapsed but the body of Christ is very much alive. As the sun sets and night falls PAP becomes a city of worship. Singing is heard everywhere throughout the darkness. We need huge tents that can accommodate the thousands of church members, and smaller ones for those living on the streets until other housing is found.
Thank you once again for all your prayers and financial support that has come in these last few days. We still need your financial support to meet some of these immediate needs.
By God’s grace, I know we will prevail as His people.
In His Service,
Dony St. Germain
Haitian Ministries Coordinator
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Update #5 from SRC partners in Haiti
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 16th at 2pm:
Dear Friends,
We are on Day 4 of the aftereffects of the quake. Spoke with Dony late last night and received a few emails this morning.
Yesterday, he visited schools and hospitals in PAP. Did not go to the DR since C3 partners were already there. His words:
"One school has 350 children buried under it. Another nursing school, 100 students. No food. Day 4 without food and water in PAP. Interviewed a family that lost 12 people. PAP is not a city that can be rebuilt easily. Hundreds and thousands of people sleeping on the streets. Some are sleeping in tents but there are not enough. If I could get some in the DR and take in...Everyone is seeing things differently, but you have to be here on the field. Visited the hospitals - no antibiotics, no medication, not enough personnel to minister to the people. No gas in PAP. Need to purchase 2 huge containers to store for future. ESMI lost one of its vehicle. People are moving back to the provinces so ministry cannot only be in PAP but need to go to the villages to those people too. Still a lot of areas without help. A lot of people still in need. We have identified a clinic twice the size of the one in Cayes that we can use for the relief effort, and use it as our headquarters. It also has a guesthouse where we can host at least 200 people so I have taken control of the facility."
Today's plan:
1. Louis will send 5 nurses and 1 doctor, possibly 2, to the above facility to begin doing some preliminary treatment until we can get medical teams organized from the US to come in. This is a big need: medical personnel and medical supplies to treat earthquake victims. The facility is in a safe place about 15 minutes outside of PAP. If you are interested in being a part of a medical team, please respond ASAP to esmieletter@aol.com.
2. Dony will head to St. Marc and the Gonaives area to buy up as much food as he can for storage.
3. C3's trucks should be arriving today at a location about 3 hours from the DR border where the food will be stored and then distributed from.
4. Louis will also get staff from Cayes to manage this distribution center and will bring more supplies...food, water and medical.
Pray for these efforts today and for safety as one team travels from Les Cayes and another from the DR. Dony will need to return with whatever funds we can collect here. No banks are functioning in Haiti.
If you would like to send a contribution, please send to Spanish River Church, and indicate Haiti Relief on the memo. These funds will be sent to Dony and Louis ASAP.
Thanks to all who have already sent funds. Please know that 100% will go toward the relief effort.
Thanks too, to my friend, Susie Austin, who has been getting the word out to you via email. Thanks to Frantz St. Germain and Shane Hackett who have been posting the updates and at the same time working feverishly to get our website updated to make it functional during this relief effort.
May God continue to guide us and have mercy on His people.
With His Peace,
Sharon St. Germain
Dear Friends,
We are on Day 4 of the aftereffects of the quake. Spoke with Dony late last night and received a few emails this morning.
Yesterday, he visited schools and hospitals in PAP. Did not go to the DR since C3 partners were already there. His words:
"One school has 350 children buried under it. Another nursing school, 100 students. No food. Day 4 without food and water in PAP. Interviewed a family that lost 12 people. PAP is not a city that can be rebuilt easily. Hundreds and thousands of people sleeping on the streets. Some are sleeping in tents but there are not enough. If I could get some in the DR and take in...Everyone is seeing things differently, but you have to be here on the field. Visited the hospitals - no antibiotics, no medication, not enough personnel to minister to the people. No gas in PAP. Need to purchase 2 huge containers to store for future. ESMI lost one of its vehicle. People are moving back to the provinces so ministry cannot only be in PAP but need to go to the villages to those people too. Still a lot of areas without help. A lot of people still in need. We have identified a clinic twice the size of the one in Cayes that we can use for the relief effort, and use it as our headquarters. It also has a guesthouse where we can host at least 200 people so I have taken control of the facility."
Today's plan:
1. Louis will send 5 nurses and 1 doctor, possibly 2, to the above facility to begin doing some preliminary treatment until we can get medical teams organized from the US to come in. This is a big need: medical personnel and medical supplies to treat earthquake victims. The facility is in a safe place about 15 minutes outside of PAP. If you are interested in being a part of a medical team, please respond ASAP to esmieletter@aol.com.
2. Dony will head to St. Marc and the Gonaives area to buy up as much food as he can for storage.
3. C3's trucks should be arriving today at a location about 3 hours from the DR border where the food will be stored and then distributed from.
4. Louis will also get staff from Cayes to manage this distribution center and will bring more supplies...food, water and medical.
Pray for these efforts today and for safety as one team travels from Les Cayes and another from the DR. Dony will need to return with whatever funds we can collect here. No banks are functioning in Haiti.
If you would like to send a contribution, please send to Spanish River Church, and indicate Haiti Relief on the memo. These funds will be sent to Dony and Louis ASAP.
Thanks to all who have already sent funds. Please know that 100% will go toward the relief effort.
Thanks too, to my friend, Susie Austin, who has been getting the word out to you via email. Thanks to Frantz St. Germain and Shane Hackett who have been posting the updates and at the same time working feverishly to get our website updated to make it functional during this relief effort.
May God continue to guide us and have mercy on His people.
With His Peace,
Sharon St. Germain
Friday, January 15, 2010
Update #4 from SRC partners in Haiti
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 15th at 12:45pm:
"God is truly amazing! My God is truly amazing!"
Those words from a song are resounding in my mind as I write. Our C3 partners have been trying to get a hold of Dony and Louis as they hoped to meet in Port-au-Prince yesterday. Their plane, however, was not permitted to land and had to be diverted to Santo Domingo,DR. They were frustrated. Since they were in the DR, they thought of purchasing food and was able to contact a business woman who willingly helped with getting the vehicles. Were they ever encouraged to read update #3 that Dony was heading to the DR!! The next concern was how to connect with him.
God is AMAZING! They were able to do that this morning. C3 partners worked hard this morning in purchasing food, water, etc., packing the items and getting clearance to drive across. The plan is to meet up with Dony and DouDou who will organize the distribution from the Haiti end. Of course, the food will not be brought into PAP just like that. Food will be stored outside of PAP and brought in discretely.
Louis was in PAP yesterday with a Haitian team from the Les Cayes area. The 2 brothers have yet to meet.
Louis writes:
"I WAS AT PAP YESTERDAY, ALL DAY. WE ARE GOING BACK TOMORROW, SATURDAY.
WE BROUGHT FOOD, WATER AND MEDICAL SUPPLIES TO PETION VILLE.
WE RESCUED A YOUNG GIRL AT DELMAS 40.
BROTHERS, IT IS UNBELIEVABLE AND HORRIBLE, MORE THAN ANYONE COULD IMAGINE.
THE DISTRIBUTION WENT WELL.
INDEED, THEIR IS NO CAR RENTAL AT PAP. NO GAS IS AVAILABLE SO FAR. THEIR IS NO FOOD AT THE RESTAURANTS. CIRCULATION IS OK AT SOME PLACES. BUT THE SMELL IS HORRIBLE. IT IS WINDY AND ALSO THE DUST IN THE AIR MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO BREATHE. TOMORROW IT MAY BE CHALLENGING, BECAUSE THE SMELL WILL BE WORSE. THERE ARE MANY BODIES TRAPPED IN THE COLLAPSED BUILDINGS AND THEY CANNOT GET THEM OUT.
EVERY BODY NEEDS HELP. MOSTLY WHEN THEY SEE STRANGERS AND THE JOURNALISTS, THEY WILL APPROACH AND START TO ASK REPETITIVELY FOR HELP. THEY NEED TO SURVIVE AND THEY ARE STILL UNDER SHOCK FROM THE EVENT.
AT BROCHETTE (CARREFOUR), OUR KIDS ARE OK. WE CARRIED WATER, FOOD AND CLOTHING FOR THEM. WE WILL BRING MORE TOMORROW. WE WILL CARRY FOUR HUNDRED GALLON OF WATER FOR THEM TO DRINK. IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, WATER AT PAP WILL BE NON PORTABLE...
PART OF THE FRONT WALL COLLAPSED. THE GATE IS DAMAGED (BENT), BUT THE HOUSE IS OKAY AND SO ARE THE KIDS. I WAS SO HAPPY TO SEE THEM. THEY WELCOMED ME WARMLY."
Please check esmihome.org for current photos and videos from Louis. More will be posted today describing the drive from Les Cayes to PAP and what was seen and done yesterday in PAP.
On a sad note, those of you who have been to Haiti may remember Esaie, another driver we would use with Nader. His wife died in the quake and Dony had to do the funeral yesterday. Continue to pray for his family and so many who have lost loved ones in this manner.
Dony reports that many are returning to the provinces. There is now nothing for them in PAP.
Yes, there is a spirit of sadness and despair but thank God we can look to Him for hope, a hope that is eternal. We will continue to trust God to bring good out of this horrific situation. The Haitians are a resilient people, what says those who are firm believers in a Mighty God.
With His Peace,
Sharon St. Germain
"God is truly amazing! My God is truly amazing!"
Those words from a song are resounding in my mind as I write. Our C3 partners have been trying to get a hold of Dony and Louis as they hoped to meet in Port-au-Prince yesterday. Their plane, however, was not permitted to land and had to be diverted to Santo Domingo,DR. They were frustrated. Since they were in the DR, they thought of purchasing food and was able to contact a business woman who willingly helped with getting the vehicles. Were they ever encouraged to read update #3 that Dony was heading to the DR!! The next concern was how to connect with him.
God is AMAZING! They were able to do that this morning. C3 partners worked hard this morning in purchasing food, water, etc., packing the items and getting clearance to drive across. The plan is to meet up with Dony and DouDou who will organize the distribution from the Haiti end. Of course, the food will not be brought into PAP just like that. Food will be stored outside of PAP and brought in discretely.
Louis was in PAP yesterday with a Haitian team from the Les Cayes area. The 2 brothers have yet to meet.
Louis writes:
"I WAS AT PAP YESTERDAY, ALL DAY. WE ARE GOING BACK TOMORROW, SATURDAY.
WE BROUGHT FOOD, WATER AND MEDICAL SUPPLIES TO PETION VILLE.
WE RESCUED A YOUNG GIRL AT DELMAS 40.
BROTHERS, IT IS UNBELIEVABLE AND HORRIBLE, MORE THAN ANYONE COULD IMAGINE.
THE DISTRIBUTION WENT WELL.
INDEED, THEIR IS NO CAR RENTAL AT PAP. NO GAS IS AVAILABLE SO FAR. THEIR IS NO FOOD AT THE RESTAURANTS. CIRCULATION IS OK AT SOME PLACES. BUT THE SMELL IS HORRIBLE. IT IS WINDY AND ALSO THE DUST IN THE AIR MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO BREATHE. TOMORROW IT MAY BE CHALLENGING, BECAUSE THE SMELL WILL BE WORSE. THERE ARE MANY BODIES TRAPPED IN THE COLLAPSED BUILDINGS AND THEY CANNOT GET THEM OUT.
EVERY BODY NEEDS HELP. MOSTLY WHEN THEY SEE STRANGERS AND THE JOURNALISTS, THEY WILL APPROACH AND START TO ASK REPETITIVELY FOR HELP. THEY NEED TO SURVIVE AND THEY ARE STILL UNDER SHOCK FROM THE EVENT.
AT BROCHETTE (CARREFOUR), OUR KIDS ARE OK. WE CARRIED WATER, FOOD AND CLOTHING FOR THEM. WE WILL BRING MORE TOMORROW. WE WILL CARRY FOUR HUNDRED GALLON OF WATER FOR THEM TO DRINK. IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, WATER AT PAP WILL BE NON PORTABLE...
PART OF THE FRONT WALL COLLAPSED. THE GATE IS DAMAGED (BENT), BUT THE HOUSE IS OKAY AND SO ARE THE KIDS. I WAS SO HAPPY TO SEE THEM. THEY WELCOMED ME WARMLY."
Please check esmihome.org for current photos and videos from Louis. More will be posted today describing the drive from Les Cayes to PAP and what was seen and done yesterday in PAP.
On a sad note, those of you who have been to Haiti may remember Esaie, another driver we would use with Nader. His wife died in the quake and Dony had to do the funeral yesterday. Continue to pray for his family and so many who have lost loved ones in this manner.
Dony reports that many are returning to the provinces. There is now nothing for them in PAP.
Yes, there is a spirit of sadness and despair but thank God we can look to Him for hope, a hope that is eternal. We will continue to trust God to bring good out of this horrific situation. The Haitians are a resilient people, what says those who are firm believers in a Mighty God.
With His Peace,
Sharon St. Germain
Update from our partner C3 Missions
Received on Jan. 15th at noon:
After 2 days of travel trying to get into the ravaged country, Joe Knittig and Adrien Lewis just arrived at Croix de Bouquets, a small village just northeast of Port Au Prince. GREAT NEWS!! Pastor Claude Mondesir and all 109 children at Ebenezer are fine. There was minor damage to his campus, and Claude is exhausted – his clinic there is overflowing with injured people. There are ‘after-shock’ tremors occurring today in the area. Dony St. Germain and Dou Dou are there as well, and shared that they will want to move the 106 children to Ebenezer from Carrefour as the rubble and stench are very bad.
After 2 days of travel trying to get into the ravaged country, Joe Knittig and Adrien Lewis just arrived at Croix de Bouquets, a small village just northeast of Port Au Prince. GREAT NEWS!! Pastor Claude Mondesir and all 109 children at Ebenezer are fine. There was minor damage to his campus, and Claude is exhausted – his clinic there is overflowing with injured people. There are ‘after-shock’ tremors occurring today in the area. Dony St. Germain and Dou Dou are there as well, and shared that they will want to move the 106 children to Ebenezer from Carrefour as the rubble and stench are very bad.
Joe will be headed to Pastor Moise Vaval’s church to assist him with the search for his son, Jean-Marc, at his school, Ecole La Source. Please continue to pray for them.
And, this means – all of our orphans in Haiti are well – but, they will need much food and water throughout Haiti. Mike Fox and his team are on their way with some right now.
Update from Pastor Louis St. Germain
Received on Jan. 15th at 10:15 am:
I WAS IN PORT AU PRINCE YESTERDAY. WE BROUGHT FOOD, WATER AND MEDICAL SUPPLIES TO PETIONVILLE.
WE RESCUED A YOUNG GIRL AT DELMAS. BROTHERS, IT IS UNBELIEVABLE AND HORRIBLE. MORE THAN ANYONE COULD IMAGINE.
THE SMELL IS HORRIBLE. IT IS WINDY AND ALSO THE DUST IN THE AIR MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO BREATH. TOMORROW IT MAY BE CHALLENGING, BECAUSE THE SMELL WILL BE WORST. THERE ARE MANY BODIES TRAPPED IN THE COLLAPSED BUILDINGS AND THEY CANNOT GET THEM OUT. PLEASE BROTHERS CARRY A MASK WITH YOU. AND ALSO WATER. EVERYTHING YOU ARE GOING TO CARRY IN THE VEHICLE TO DISTRIBUTE NEEDS TO BE COVERED OTHERWISE PEOPLE WILL JUST JUMP ON AND TAKE IT FROM YOU. IT IS THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE.
LOVE YOU ALL…
SINCERELY YOURS,
LOUIS
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Update #3 from SRC partners in Haiti
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 14th at 7 PM:
Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for your prayers. Just heard from Dony at 6:25pm. He's well. He was only able to talk very briefly. The situation is horrific with dead bodies on the ground and everything smells. People are sleeping on the streets. No water. No food.
PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD! The pastor, the workers and the 106 orphans in Carrefour are fine. He passed also through Gonaives and the pastors and ministry there are well. THANK YOU LORD!
What is needed immediately are monetary funds. With whatever funds he took down, Dony was able to help those around the airport area who have so graciously helped us when teams would come in, and others. He is making plans to return to the Dominican Republic and buy supplies there - dry food items, water, etc. and drive those back to Port Au Prince. Pray for them as they will begin tonight.
Thank you, Father, for showing Your mercy continuously even in the midst of this indescribable devastation. Continue to pray for the many other organizations doing relief effort in these first few days which are always so crucial.
In His Service,
Sharon St. Germain
Dear Friends,
Thank you so much for your prayers. Just heard from Dony at 6:25pm. He's well. He was only able to talk very briefly. The situation is horrific with dead bodies on the ground and everything smells. People are sleeping on the streets. No water. No food.
PRAISE GOD! PRAISE GOD! The pastor, the workers and the 106 orphans in Carrefour are fine. He passed also through Gonaives and the pastors and ministry there are well. THANK YOU LORD!
What is needed immediately are monetary funds. With whatever funds he took down, Dony was able to help those around the airport area who have so graciously helped us when teams would come in, and others. He is making plans to return to the Dominican Republic and buy supplies there - dry food items, water, etc. and drive those back to Port Au Prince. Pray for them as they will begin tonight.
Thank you, Father, for showing Your mercy continuously even in the midst of this indescribable devastation. Continue to pray for the many other organizations doing relief effort in these first few days which are always so crucial.
In His Service,
Sharon St. Germain
Haiti Featured Video - from our partner C3 Missions
SRC partners with C3 Missions - The Global Orphan Project (http://theglobalorphanproject.org) to care for orphans in Haiti. On their website you can find recent news about the situation in Haiti and also updates about the projects that we support together. Here is a recent video that C3 posted:
Haiti Earthquake 1/12 10PM from The Global Orphan Project on Vimeo.
Update #2 from SRC partners in Haiti
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 13th at 7 PM:
Dear Friends,
I got an email from Dony at 5:44pm. He should be in PAP in 3 hours, God willing. His phone will no longer work. This is supposedly where DouDou will meet him. He was able to meet 2 men from a network station. Thank the Lord. They drove together from Santiago, DR to the Haitian border. The following is an email from Louis earlier today.
UPDATE FROM LES CAYES
THIS MORNING WHEN WE WOKE UP, WE THOUGHT WE WERE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY.
1. EVERY FACE HAS A SAD APPEARANCE.
2. SINCE THERE IS NO NEWS FROM PEOPLE IN Port Au Prince, EVERY ONE IS CRYING.
3. MOST OF THE BUSINESSES DID NOT OPEN TODAY.
4. THE MARKET WAS CLOSED.
5. TWO BUILDINGS COLLAPSED.
6. THE PEOPLE LEFT THEIR HOMES AND STAYED ON THE STREETS.
7. WE CAN FEEL EVERYWHERE THE SPIRIT OF UNITY.
8. SINCE Port Au Prince IS THE HEART OF THE NATION, PEOPLE ARE WONDERING WHAT TOMORROW WILL LOOK LIKE.
9. CHANTAL - PASTOR CHERY'S HOME WAS DAMAGED
10. CAMP PERRIN - ABOUT 15 MINUTES FROM LES CAYES - LOTS OF PEOPLE WERE INJURED.
11. MANICHE - A CITY ABOUT 20 MINUTES FROM LES CAYES - WAS TERRIBLY HIT. HUGE CRACKS IN THE HOUSES.
12. YESTERDAY AFTERNOON, SEVERAL STUDENTS WERE AFRAID AND JUMPED OFF FROM THEIR SCHOOL BUILDING AND BROKE THEIR ARMS AND LEGS.
13. IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, WE WILL NOT HAVE ENOUGH SUPPLIES IN LES CAYES... BIG QUESTION..
MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS YOU.
SINCERELY YOURS,
LOUIS (Pastor Louis St. Germain)
Dear Friends,
I got an email from Dony at 5:44pm. He should be in PAP in 3 hours, God willing. His phone will no longer work. This is supposedly where DouDou will meet him. He was able to meet 2 men from a network station. Thank the Lord. They drove together from Santiago, DR to the Haitian border. The following is an email from Louis earlier today.
UPDATE FROM LES CAYES
THIS MORNING WHEN WE WOKE UP, WE THOUGHT WE WERE IN ANOTHER COUNTRY.
1. EVERY FACE HAS A SAD APPEARANCE.
2. SINCE THERE IS NO NEWS FROM PEOPLE IN Port Au Prince, EVERY ONE IS CRYING.
3. MOST OF THE BUSINESSES DID NOT OPEN TODAY.
4. THE MARKET WAS CLOSED.
5. TWO BUILDINGS COLLAPSED.
6. THE PEOPLE LEFT THEIR HOMES AND STAYED ON THE STREETS.
7. WE CAN FEEL EVERYWHERE THE SPIRIT OF UNITY.
8. SINCE Port Au Prince IS THE HEART OF THE NATION, PEOPLE ARE WONDERING WHAT TOMORROW WILL LOOK LIKE.
9. CHANTAL - PASTOR CHERY'S HOME WAS DAMAGED
10. CAMP PERRIN - ABOUT 15 MINUTES FROM LES CAYES - LOTS OF PEOPLE WERE INJURED.
11. MANICHE - A CITY ABOUT 20 MINUTES FROM LES CAYES - WAS TERRIBLY HIT. HUGE CRACKS IN THE HOUSES.
12. YESTERDAY AFTERNOON, SEVERAL STUDENTS WERE AFRAID AND JUMPED OFF FROM THEIR SCHOOL BUILDING AND BROKE THEIR ARMS AND LEGS.
13. IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS, WE WILL NOT HAVE ENOUGH SUPPLIES IN LES CAYES... BIG QUESTION..
MAY GOD CONTINUE TO BLESS YOU.
SINCERELY YOURS,
LOUIS (Pastor Louis St. Germain)
Update #1 from SRC partners in Haiti
Received from El Shaddai Ministries on Jan. 13th at noon:
Dear Friends,
Your heart is breaking like ours as we listen to the news. This is just a very brief update on what we know. Louis (Pastor Louis St. Germain) made contact with us yesterday evening via "ooVoo", an internet phone. He and his family are shaken but fine. Thank the Lord. He emailed later to let us know that:
- Maniche - a small town from Cambry had lots of damage;
- Chantal - Pastor Chery called to say he was fine but one of the walls in his home fell;
- Jeremie - the construction workers there felt the shock;
- Cassa Major - Pastor Clotaire called. He may have some damage but doesn't know the extent.
So far, the orphans in the south seem to be fine. But we are still waiting to confirm this. We are also waiting to hear from all the other pastors in Gonaives and around Les Cayes regarding their communities.
Dony (Pastor Dony St. Germain) left this morning. He'll fly to Santiago, DR, and then drive into Haiti from Cap-Haitian and down into Port-au-Prince. God willing he should be there tonight or early morning. His concerns at this time are for the pastor, workers and the 106 orphans in Carrefour. The news is reporting this as the epicenter of the quake. Please pray that they are miraculously well. He'll try to keep us posted as much as possible.
Blessings,
Sharon (Sharon St. Germain - Pastor Dony's wife)
Dear Friends,
Your heart is breaking like ours as we listen to the news. This is just a very brief update on what we know. Louis (Pastor Louis St. Germain) made contact with us yesterday evening via "ooVoo", an internet phone. He and his family are shaken but fine. Thank the Lord. He emailed later to let us know that:
- Maniche - a small town from Cambry had lots of damage;
- Chantal - Pastor Chery called to say he was fine but one of the walls in his home fell;
- Jeremie - the construction workers there felt the shock;
- Cassa Major - Pastor Clotaire called. He may have some damage but doesn't know the extent.
So far, the orphans in the south seem to be fine. But we are still waiting to confirm this. We are also waiting to hear from all the other pastors in Gonaives and around Les Cayes regarding their communities.
Dony (Pastor Dony St. Germain) left this morning. He'll fly to Santiago, DR, and then drive into Haiti from Cap-Haitian and down into Port-au-Prince. God willing he should be there tonight or early morning. His concerns at this time are for the pastor, workers and the 106 orphans in Carrefour. The news is reporting this as the epicenter of the quake. Please pray that they are miraculously well. He'll try to keep us posted as much as possible.
Blessings,
Sharon (Sharon St. Germain - Pastor Dony's wife)
Tragedy in Haiti - Massive Earthquake
Extracted from the CBS News website:A 7.0-magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti at approximately 4:53 p.m. ET Tuesday, Jan. 12th, has left the Caribbean nation in shambles as rescuers scramble to save lives and the U.S. and other governments mobilize an international rescue effort. Early reports indicate the death toll could be in the tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands. (Haiti's population is nearly 10 million.)
Friday, January 8, 2010
The 2010 GO Conference is coming up...
April 25-28 will be the dates when SRC will host its annual church-wide event called Global Outreach Conference. At those dates our church family will come together to receive, greet and serve our church planters who will be attending from around the globe. Many serving opportunities will be available for this event, so you can plan to use your time, talents and treasures to serve the Lord and serve our church planters then. Contact Fabiana if you are interested in participating.
On the weekend of April 24-25th, we will have our church services to worship God for how He is at work, building His church all over the world, and allowing us to be part of His wonderful work of the gospel. Following the services, we will enjoy the GO Expo in the gym and get to taste food from the world (10 countries will be represented). Yummy! View 2009 pictures.
On Monday and Tuesday the conference sessions will take place. We will have a closing service with communion on Tuesday evening, when we will say goodbye to our church planters until next time.
On the weekend of April 24-25th, we will have our church services to worship God for how He is at work, building His church all over the world, and allowing us to be part of His wonderful work of the gospel. Following the services, we will enjoy the GO Expo in the gym and get to taste food from the world (10 countries will be represented). Yummy! View 2009 pictures.
On Monday and Tuesday the conference sessions will take place. We will have a closing service with communion on Tuesday evening, when we will say goodbye to our church planters until next time.
Video from SRC church plant: Truth Point Church
Global Outreach Newsletters
We have created another way for you to stay informed about what God is doing through the Global Outreach ministry of Spanish River Church. The Global Outreach News is a monthly newsletter showing three recent highlights about our church planting ministry. It also points the reader to different websites where more information can be found about SRC church plants. We are glad to share those news with our SRC family every month. You can pick up a copy in the church lobby or download it from the SRC website at http://spanishriver.com/453783.ihtml. Stay tuned to the monthly GO News!
Online Photos from Haiti Mission Trip
The mission team that went to Haiti had such a great time serving the Lord in 10 different locations where SRC has church plants around the Les Cayes area. Close to 1,000 people, the majority being orphan kids, received medical or dental attention provided by the team. The gospel was shared with each one of them and many praised the Lord for the life they have in Him. Visit this site http://src-go.phanfare.com/4471565 and take some time to enjoy the photos from a week full of blessings as the team served God in Haiti.
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