Last Day for Team 3

2/21/10
Its Sunday morning...busy day ahead. We got up and out early and were at Carrefour at 7am to pick up Sybile and bring her to the hospital for her surgery. When we arrived we were amazed to see that the people of Carrefour had set up a tent for us to hold Sunday Service!!! It was so beautiful and just melted my heart! We told them yesterday we would hold service there, but we expected open air, so when we saw the tent we were just so amazed!! Unfortunately, Annie and I had to go and bring Sybile and her father to the hospital so we would not be able to make it back in time for the service.

Pastor Mimsie preached the first service at a church around the corner from the Carrfour Camp to about 200 people. Pastor Michel preached the second service at the Carrefour camp. They had a time of worship led by Juan and also had a time of testimonies from people at the camp. They said it was so inspiring how the people are still loving God through all of the tragedy and still maintain such a hope for a better future.

Both Sybile and her dad were so grateful to us for transporting them to the hospital and kept thanking us, but they were also nervous and had lots of questions. When we got to the hospital we discovered a specialist had arrived last night and was able to consult on the case and even do the surgery. He said that the lump was a fibroid and he could just do a lumpectomy and save her breast! Everyone was so happy...what an answer to prayer! Her surgery took 2 hours and she was able to go home that day. The other part I am not sure I shared before was that on Friday when they first saw her at the hospital the surgeon wanted to do the surgery that day and remove her whole breast, but the administrator insisted on a sonogram first. Since they didn´t have a sonogram machine that day we had to wait for Sunday. Now we know that was just God´s way of intervening and bringing us a specialist!!!

Since we were at the hospital we decided to check on Maxo, the man with the swollen face. One of the nurses told us that his surgery was delayed because 20 orphans came in yesterday because their orphange was shut down due to abuse and neglect. But this also just God intervening again because on Saturday a plastic surgeon had arrived and was able to consult on Maxo´s case and he is getting the best care possible for his face. He will have surgery today and go home tomorrow. Wow, God is just overwhleming us.

Annie and I couldn´t resist taking a peek at the orphans. They were all staying on the roof with the doctors. Annie and I went up to peek...they were soooo beautiful. They were mostly toddlers with a few little ones in playpens. They were so happy and playful despite their circumstances. Some did look very malnourished, but they will get a full medical work-up and then be replaced in another orphanage. Oh, and another God thing....we took down a suitcase of stuffed animals for the children we encountered, but were unable to give them out at the camps because there were too many kids and because we were just so busy with other ministry it just didn´t happen. So as we left for the hospital that morning I thought why not bring them to the hospital for sick kids. We were able to bring the stuffed animals to the orphans and there was one for every child!! Thank you Jesus!

AND ALL OF THIS HAPPENED BEFORE NOON!!! WOW!

All of the teams met back at home base, ate a woderful lunch made by Mama, took pictures, said our goodbyes and we were on the road to Santo Domingo. Because it was Sunday there was less traffic and we had a pretty smooth ride back. There were at least 5 checkpoints where Domincans were checking passports which slowed us down a bit. We finally checked into the hotel about 9pm and will have a night to rest before heading home tomorrow. Some of the team were not feeling well including our main guide Carla who had a bad stomach and fever for 2 days. Please keep her health in prayer.

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support. We will be stateside soon!
Love from Tara, Annie, Mimsie and Michel

Emails from Haiti Team 3

2/20/10
No rain Friday night so we slept well and were up early. There is a cat here who thinks he's a rooster so there is a whole chorus going on each morning. In fact, there are goats and pigs and dogs everywhere...all scrounging for food. After devotions led by Annie we headed out for Carrefour and brought some extra food for Patrick Jean and family. Then we went to a neighboring camp called the Camp of the love of Jesus. It was a fairly small camp that had asked us to come and give them medical care. The camp was half way up a mountain so when we pulled in we were greeted by an amazing view of Port au Prince and the harbour. You know I had to pull out my camera! I just don't think the lens can do it justice. In fact, I haven't had as much of a chance for photos as I would like because we have been so busy, but I am not sure I could even capture all the devastation. Just when you think you've seen it all, there's more. Just when you think it couldn't get worse, it does. The saddest ones for me are all the schools destroyed. So sad to see the desks and chairs hanging off the buildings and the levels crushed...and now the children have nothing to do and it hinders their future. To get back to the camp, Annie and I saw patients and Pastor Mimsie and Michel ministered to people. We saw a case of the mumps and diabetes and a lot of dehydration. The pastors asked the people if they were mad at God for the earthquake and the people looked at them like they were crazy. They said no, not at all, they love Jesus. Wow, how amazing! Then we went back to Carrefour to pick a woman we saw yesterday who had a possible femur fracture. She was injured in the earthquake and hadn't had any medical treatment in the 5 weeks since! She was reluctant to go to the hospital because she thought they would amputate her leg. She brought her son and sister for comfort. The blessing is they also get fed at the hospital. Again, wonderful doctors! They took her in and X-ray her leg. It was a femur fracture and the bones were side by side instead of in a straight line. When Celemese (patient) saw her X-ray she freaked out and thought they would definitely take her leg off. The doctor asked her to wiggle her toes, and she could, so he told her she could keep her leg! She was so happy! The put her in a cast and scheduled her surgery on Wednesday when the ortho docs come to put a rod in her leg and straighten it out. So wonderful! Another life changed. When we were finished at the hospital with Celemese our team realized we hadn't eaten all day! So we stopped for food and went back home. We spent a few hours re-packing and doing inventory for the next group. We also ate Mama's signature soup for dinner and a cake we bought to celebrate our last night at Mama's house. Carla asked Annie to examine some of the people staying at her house, which she was happy to do. Two young women lost their mother to breast cancer last year and were afraid they would get sick. Annie examined them and she was able to show them how to do self-breast exams. What an amazing privilege! Annie has been such a God send to this team, to this family and all the camps. We finished packing and off to bed...big day on Sunday!


2/19/10
Today was a looooong day! We got up and out on time and headed back to Carrefour. We were there from 8am to 12 noon providing medical care and ministry. As we began we prayed with those on line. One woman came forward and began leading worship...it was so beautiful. The funny thing is they pronounce Jesus as JayZ...sounds really funny, especially if you don't know what they are saying. Before we started seeing patients. Pastor Michel called people off the line who were feeling depressed and wanted prayer. Half the people came off the line! Many people were just battling the emotional effects of the earthquake. We were able to see over 60 patients, most of the same complaints, some impetigo and 4 people serious enough to transport to the hospital. We brought Max who has elephantitis (really large swelling) on his face, he is scheduled for surgery tomorrow. Little Patrick is 4 years old, but looks like 8 months. He was so malnourished and basically failure to thrive. They gave him pedialyte, vitamins and food. He began to perk up on the ride back home. He loved the dried cranberries I gave him...man after my own heart. Everyone who saw him fell in love with him, even the nurses and doctors at the hospital. BTW...the nurses and doctors at the hospital were awesome!! So helpful and caring. Many of them were from the Southern Baptist Convention International Relief Team. Big Paul, who ran the inventory, was a huge help loading us up with all the supplies we needed, he was from Arizona. The third patient was Pascal, who got a small piece of wood lodged in her ear. It was so far in that they couldn't remove it (too close to the eardrum), so they gave her drops and antibiotics. Patient 4 is our miracle of the day. She was not actually seen or assessed by Annie, she is the sister of patient 3 (Pascal) and we thought she was just riding along to be with her sister. She did say her chest hurt on the way over, but again we did not think it was serious. All four patients were registered and examined relatively quickly (thanks Paul). When they examined Sybile (patient 4), they had her take her shirt off. Annie said she could see the lump in her breast from across the room! Sybile is scheduled for a life saving surgery on Sunday AM. She will have a radical masectomy, which is tragic for a 26 year old woman, but due to lack of radiation or chemo, this is the best chance she has for survival. God only knows what her fate would have been if God did not bring us together. As Annie and I stayed at the hospital, the rest of the team brought more food to Delmas 62. We met back at home base, ate, de-briefed about our day and are now ready for bed. Still can't see the stars...too cloudy. Oh yeah, both Carrefour and Delmas made out OK in the rain. Today was hot and sunny so it dried everything up.
Goodnight from Haiti!
Tara, Annie, Mimsie and Michel

Emails from Haiti Team 3

2/18/10
There was crazy rain and wind last night and the mosquitoes ate me alive! Because of the mess the rain made we were delayed in getting out. We had devotions and prayer and then headed for Carrefour. We had to drive through the capital and got a first hand look at the devastation. Unbelievable. There are more fallen buildings than ones standing. And people have taken up residence in tents anywhere and everywhere...local parks, empty plots, even in the middle of the street divides. So many camps of displaced people, so much need. We got to Carrefour (basketball court camp). Annie and I set up the medical triage and the pastors began to sing and pray and preach with the people. Again we saw many people with headaches and stomachaches since the earthquake, several children with diarrhea and dehydration. One child was almost motionless he was so weak. We went to the hospital later and were able to get some re-hydration formula for him and bring it back. The line for medical attention was endless, mostly people wanting some attention and care. The weather became threatening so we had to leave. On the ride back Pastor Mimsie shared that he was able to gather a group of men and pray for them and share the gospel. Several men accepted Christ including one man who spoke perfect English. Turns out he was an English teacher before the earthquake and has now lost his home and his job. He and his family are now living in a tent. Pastor Mimsie had a good time ministering to him. We left Carrefour and went to the hospital. Big Paul was gracious enough to give us everything on our list so we can now go back to the camps and provide the children with much needed medicine. We had a chance to stop in town for some lunch, Annie and I had some local fare, crepes. Then back home to pick up food and Bibles for Carrefour. We were also able to use the baby bottles that were donated to help dispense the re-hydration fluid to the infants. We got to Carrefour and met with the committee and again there were more families than expected. The camps are growing quickly. We provided 52 buckets of food, water and Bibles to the families of Carrefour. It was a long day and we arrived home just as it got dark. We were able to eat another delicious meal of fish and rice before the lights went out. Now we are all sitting in the dark under tarps (its raining again) talking about the day. Thank you for your prayers. Team 3


2/17/10
The night air was perfect for sleeping last night. We were well rested even though we slept outside on concrete with pads and sleeping bags. We started the morning with devotions from Isaiah led by Pastor Mimsie and then prayer. Before we left Pastor Mimsie was able to share the gospel and pray with Didier, Carla's husband. We left our home base and headed to Jephte's church. Many were there digging thru the rubble and attempting to clear the site. They invited us to their Sunday service they hold just outside the church site. From there we headed to the first camp, Delmas 62. We went to the Madame, who had a foot injury, and Annie changed her dressing. Thankfully her injury was healing well. Then Annie and I set up shop and starting seeing patients, almost all children. James was our amazing translator. Annie took a lot of vital signs, listened to people's lungs and assessed their needs. There were mostly minor fevers and coughs, except on girl with a heart mumur, but the most common diagnosis was sadness. Children who did't run or smile or play anymore. If only there was a pill for that. But there is hope and we prayed with each one that God would bring them that hope. As Annie treated people and I kept the medical log, Pastor Mimsie and Pastor Michel shared the gospel with the camp. Several people accepted Christ and almost all of them asked for Bibles. So thanks to a generous gift from Pastor Mimsie's church we were able to go to Petionville and purchase 200 French Bibles to distribute with the food. Over a wonderful lunch of rice and beans we wrote "From One Life Missions With Love February 2010" in each Bible. After lunch we returned to Delmas 62 with the buckets of rice and beans and water the Bellevue family had packed. James went ahead and got a police escort because the crowd was getting large. Although there was some confusion because new families had not registered with Madame and others had come off the street looking for food, God provided us with safety and a system and we were able to complete the mission successfully. As we drove home you couldn't help but notice the life on the streets. Vendors were out with their colorful ware, buses were full and many had returned to work. Unfortunately, schools are still out and will be for some time. We got home and de-briefed the day and made plans for tomorrow. This is my first time in Haiti. Back home I have several Haitian friends who I consider angels walking on earth (mostly because they put up with me as a friend), and now I am surrounded by a household of angels. They are so kind and so sweet and treat us like royalty. Did I mention that MaMa is a chef...mmmm! Another great dinner! This "ground team" is truly a godsend and a blessing. Thanks for your prayers! Team Three...Mimsie, Michel, Annie and Tara