Psalm 22:24
For he has not despised or scorned
the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him
but has listened to his cry for help.
Upon arrival earlier this month at the small terminal in Port au Prince Haiti, where Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) is located,
Neal, LeaAnn, Christopher and I were met by Christopher's mom and an older brother. As most of you know, Christopher is Haitian and has lived
with Gail and me Stateside the past 3 months. Chris’s mom brought him some ‘real’
Haitian cooking which he quickly devoured!
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| Emergency room at the hospital in La Point |
It was a brief time before we loaded up the 5 seater plane and took off to Port de Paix. From what
I was told, Port de Paix is the 3rd largest city in Haiti and is on
the northern coast. The flight took about 40 minutes. To make the trip by
car/truck would have taken anywhere from 8-10 hours. The roads are, well, not
really what we would classify as roads! They would compare to really bad ATV
trails! So the journey by air was our best option for this short trip.
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| LeaAnn seeing patients in La Point |
The runway at Port de Paix proved to be a busy place! As we
took a fly over, it looked like a regular busy street! There were people
everywhere, motorcycles running up and down it, donkeys carrying their cargo,
kids playing. Sure didn’t look like a runway! There was even one man standing
just off of center waving his hands indicating that we needed to ‘go to the
right’! Come to find out, there was a big hole filled with water he didn’t want
the plane to hit. We didn’t hit it, thank you Lord!
It was a short ½ hour ride from the runway at Port de Paix
to our destination, the hospital at La Point. We were met there by a hospital
representative and taken to our 2 bedroom apartment. Even though we kept
hearing rats running in the ceiling, the accommodations were very nice. We even
had a lady that came in and cooked 3 meals a day.
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| Pastor's house at Philadelphia |
Neal helped out in the emergency room while LeaAnn worked
with women and children. We were impressed that this hospital, which started as
a mission years ago, is now fully staffed and run by local Haitians. Although
their technology may be way outdated, they seem to function well.
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| Meeting with the leader of Boukan Patriyo (far right on cement) |
After a few days in La Point, we headed to Anse Rouge, a city along the west
coast. We were met at the runway by Krishell, a missionary with ‘Lemuel’
ministry. We had a wonderful lunch then headed into the city to purchase water
and rice. This city doesn’t have a well, and water is hard to find. We ended up
purchasing a bunch of small bags of water that were being sold along the road.
It proved enough for the remainder of our journey.
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Working with the nurse and Restocking
the pharmacy in Boukan Patriyo |
We took the rice to an area that Gail and I have been
working with called Philadelphia. We think the little dirt/rock floor church
they have there is what is called Philadelphia and not the village. We were
greeted by the pastor and his family. Great bunch of people! They were so
thankful for the rice. This area has a desert like climate, and from what we
have been told, hasn’t had a good rain for many years. Their gardens aren’t
able to sustain them so they have resorted to making charcoal. But now, there
aren’t really any more trees to cut down and they don’t know what they
are going to do for food in the future.
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A school room at the church school in Boukan Patriyo
Notice the lact of books. They learn by rote. |
We were provided a car to use thanks to Living Water
Ministries. What a blessing! Thank you Fred & Pastor Etienne! We took the
one hour drive up from the desert into the hillier region of the northwest.
There they have trees and plants, but are also suffering from the lack of
water. Their only supply is a small stream about a 45 minute walk down the
hill. Of course that means that they have to carry the full water pails back up
the hill.
Neal and LeaAnn were able to spend time helping to advance
the knowledge of the one and only nurse in the area. We were given
medical supplies and tests to help assist the nurse. She was supplied and
trained in the following tests:
HIV
Malaria
Urinalysis
Pregnancy tests
A glucometer
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Children in Boukan Patriyo. Notice the yellow tint on the two
girls hair. That is a sign of malnutrition. |
What a blessing it will be for the people of that area. In
the past, people would have to travel long distances to get these.
Our accommodations weren’t as comfortable as in La Point.
Here in Boukan Patriyo there is no running water, no electricity, and no
bathroom. We did have an outhouse, but you would want to use before it got
dark. There were creatures in that place at night! There weren’t beds, so we
resorted to sleeping on the cement floor in the clinic... which always proves to
be a treat. Thankfully, we did have a small air mattresses that eased some of
the pain!
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When we arrived, the Pastor at Philadelphia church was listening
to the solar powered audio bible that we gave him a few months ago. |
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The clinic in Boukan Patriyo. We have most of the materials
purchased to replace the roof, but are in need of more funding
for screws and cement for the beam needed to go around the
top. Please prayerfully consider helping this clinic. It serves
a geographically large area. |
We had an opportunity to meet with the leader of the
community. We discussed their needs and desires. There number one need is
accessible water. I believe this is something we can help with. They
capture very little rain water when it does rain. A simple, yet effective, rain gutter
system on their huts with a collection barrel would certainly aid in their
need. We're doing some research into the best way to build these simple yet effective systems.
I’ll be taking a team back there to start installing some of them next year. Not sure when yet, but if you are interested in either financially helping or coming on a trip to help build them, please let me know!
On Sunday, Neal gave a good message to the local church in
Boukan Patriyo. After church there was a time of fellowship. This church is in
need of prayer for a new pastor. Pastor Voix is needing to retire, but there
isn’t a replacement for him. Problem being, there is money to pay a pastor.
Pastor Voix hasn’t received a salary for years. This is the only church in the
area that preaches the truth! We hope to be able to come alongside it in some
way.
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We visited a small girls orphanage in La Point. A doctor from
the hospital we helped out in is seated.
He does what he can to help them. |
We returned to ‘Lemuel’ in Anse Rouge the night before our flight back to
Port au Prince. The next day we were blessed to eventually make it back to
Chicago.
We thank the Lord for His blessings and support during this
trip. We also thank those that have given in prayer and finances toward Grace
Hill Ministries. This wouldn’t have been possible without it! By the Grace of
God, we plan to continue serving His people in Northwest Haiti.
May God bless you and your families!
In His Service,
Chuck & Gail
Contact Info:
Chuck & Gail Guerber
% Grace Hill Ministries, P.O. Box 171
Ironwood, MI 49938
USA: 715.258.2500
Haiti: 509.4753.0270
