Day 3

It is nearing the end of day three and it will soon be time for me to go back home and my experience so far has exceeded my expectations. I showered this morning and took a bath in bug spray to prepare for a day of working on the compound and playing with the kids after lunch. I met with Sarah and Barry after breakfast to discuss the plans for the day and begin to plan for my trip into town tomorrow to meet with an immigration attorney.

The group from my church brought money to buy 10 fifty pound bags of rice and 4 fifty pound bags of beans to make indivudal bags for the visit to the tent city on Thursday. It was shocking to see what 250 dollars will buy in Haiti as compared to the states. For another 250 dollars you can provide rent for a family for one full year!!! We will begin to bag the rice and beans tomorrow to deliver and I will post pictures of the process. The left over bags will not go to waste as the kids will look forward to getting them so they can take them apart piece by piece and make string for their homemade kites.

After unloading the boxes I went down to the childrens side of the compound and held the special needs kids and babies. I immediatly began looking for Marilee and eventually found her in a crib. As I approached the crib I saw the biggest smile on her face not because of who I was but because there was someone there to hold her. After picking her up and holding her I began to get emotional because she is still struggling to breathe and it affects every area of her life. My positive emotions turned negative after thinking about all the services she would have available to her if she were in the states. Becasue of her condition she will never be able to thrive and the outlook on her future is negative unless something changes and a doctor in the states does the surgery for free.

After spending time with Marilee and the rest of the kids i proceeded to the back of the dormitory and began to work with members of my church on reparing the septic system. Because Haiti is a third world country and has not advanced there are no standards or laws on how to properly install a septic system. We began digging and after making it down about two and a half feet hit pvc pipe. The soil was very rocky and the further we dug the worse the smell was that came out of the ground. As we dug further and began preparing a trench I saw cockroaches 4 times the size of Kentucky cockroaches and was amazed at the size. The dinner bell rang and it was time to change my wet clothes and eat. We had pumpking soup a traditional meal in Haiti and discussed what type of meat we were eating the whole time???

When we finished lunch Dr. Bare and Claude a physical therapist that i met last year at New Life Childrens Home was back to assist Wisbens with the fit of his prosthetic leg. Claude is the PT who originally assisted Wisben and will be taking him to Bernard Mevs Medical Center tomorrow to be refitted. It is a three hour drive and because the only transportation available is a truck they will be riding in the back of a truck. I would be making the trip with him but because of my meeting in the morning will not be able to go.

We spent time playing soccer with the kids this afternoon and quickly found out that kids as young as ten years old were schooling us. It got so bad that the Haitian kids were laughing at us and telling the rest of the mission team that we were awful????? I questioned them on my ability to play soccer and soon gave in and agreed. Although we got destroyed it was a wonderful opportunity to hang out with the older kids even though they were laughing at us.

I got to spend some time with Wisbens today and took advantage of what time we had to get to know him better as well as watch him interact with the other kids. He is an amazing resilient kid and does more with one leg than most people who have both. I watched him hopscotch, play baseball without crutches and chase other kids around often catching them. I will be meeting with the attorney tomorrow at 11:00 and have prepared numerous questions that I hope will be answered. I will know more tomorrow about how the Haitian government works and the potential cost and timeframe of adoption. Regardless of both he is our son and we are excited to eventually bring him home.

Finally the part that Ms. Baker's and Ms. Calverts classes have been waiting for!! I went to the devotion service tonight and listened to praise and worship in Kreyole and had the opportunity to talk to everyone at the orphange at the conclusion of service. With a translator I talked with them about the love that they have in Franklin, Kentucky and how over 200 kids worked together to ensure that their Friday night movies did not involve watching Shrek over and over. I talked with them about the hard work that was put in before and after school by the teachers and students and how much that each one of them meant to students in Kentucky who have never met them. I presented them with a suitcase full of DVD's and immediatly there was cheering and chanting of DVD's, DVD's. The pastor hugged me and was emotional as he thanked each and everyone of you for taking time to think about an orphanage in Port Au Prince Haiti and the joy that it has brought to the kids. Everyone clapped and the pastor prayed and thanked God for Franklin Simpson Middle School. At the conclusion of service every child and adult made their way to me shaking my hand and giving me hugs of appreciation. I told them with a transaltor that the only thing I had to do with this was answering a few questions and delivering it to Haiti. After we were finished the kids ran to the suitcase and began digging through the movies with anticipation and excitement of what's to come for Friday night movie night. I can't say thank you enough too Ms. Baker, Ms. Calvert and the sixth grade class for making the day for over 100 orphaned children tonight. I sat in 100 degree temperatures as i type this with cold chills and in awe of what this has done for the kids. You all are awesome and I am proud to work at a school where students are willing to come together and serve others in need. THANKS!!! We will be giving out the kits tomorrow and I look forward to sharing similar stories in future post. I could not post any more pictures and will begin a new blog to share pictures from tonights service. It is 1:15 and time for bed. Thanks for the nice comments see you soon.