Success is Measured by Peanut Butter!

Well, not all the time, but this month it is.  We shipped 3 55-gallon barrels full of peanut butter to Haiti last week.  Two more churches will be shipping what they’ve collected themselves, bringing the total to over 1000 jars collected.  Woo!  Hoo!!!  Thank you to all those who donated.  “Men anpil, chaj pa lou!”  (Many hands make light work!)

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Change of Plans

Lex headed back to Haiti without us on Thursday, after receiving some very sad news.  Our construction department head (counselor and friend, too!), Boss Fanes had passed away.

Shortly after we’d left Haiti, we received news that he had become ill.  The doctors told him that he had worms.  My frustration with health care in Haiti has been ignited even stronger than before.  Can a man die in less than a month from worms?  Perhaps.  Could they tell us what kind of worms?  No.  Diagnosis is such a critical step in health care and so difficult to find in Haiti.  Did he have something else going on that wasn’t detected?  Perhaps.  It’s a rather common call in Haiti when someone has digestive issues that they have worms.  We may never know what Boss Fanes had.  We only know that we will never see him again in this life.  We hold onto the hope of heaven and being reunited at that time.

The burial service was held yesterday morning in les Cayes – Boss Fanes’ home town.  Pastor Lex told me it was a very difficult service to do.  Bus loads of mourners traveled 3 hours each way from Grand-Goave and St. Etienne.  The happy faces I am so accustomed to seeing looked drained in the photos I received after the funeral.

As I think about our time serving together with Fanes in Haiti, I have to smile.  He always made me smile.  He was such a generous soul, often bringing me fruit from his gardens in the mountains.  It was his gift of a turkey that encouraged us to celebrate Thanksgiving in Haiti for the first time, two years ago.  He brought me one last year, too.

Boss Fanes was a huge asset to this Mission.  All the men working construction at MOHI, the Hands and Feet Project and the Be Like Brit orphanage owe him a debt of gratitude, as it was he who hired them and even fought for them at times.  He spent time locating materials when they appeared to be unavailable in the country.  He even would find us the best prices.

I remember how Lex would really listen to Boss Fanes.  Whatever the scenario, when Boss Fanes offered his opinion, it carried a lot of weight with us.  If he thought we were making a mistake, we would stop and consider his words.  When it came to construction, Boss Fanes always showed me the utmost respect.  I always appreciated that, as it was not the norm for knowledgeable contractors to give me the time of day!

All this to simply say, Boss Fanes will be greatly missed.

The MOHI Bus

I received the keys in the mail yesterday for the MOHI bus.  Our friends at Mission USA (Akron, OH) purchased the bus and then flew out to Kansas City and drove the bus back to Ohio.  They will be spending the next month and a half ensuring it’s in great mechanical health, painting and filling it with items needed at MOHI in Haiti.  In December they will drive it to Miami and ship it to us in Haiti.  Wow!  This is so exciting!

MOHI in Thozin from the Sky

Len Gengel was so kind as to share these pictures of the Thozin campus with us.  They were taken from a helicopter overhead.  Isn’t the school looking impressive?

Visitng Friends

My favorite part of coming back to America each year is, of course, getting to see friends.  We had dinner with our friend Shawn Alexander before Lex headed back to Haiti.  Shawn spent just over a year working closely with us in Haiti on micro-financing for women.  Each time we see him the conversations pick up like we never left off.  He loves to hear all the details about all the folks he knows so well in Haiti.  We pray that the Lord will give him opportunity to return again one day.

This morning the kids and I got to visit our dear friends at the Evangelical Church in Fall River, MA.  This church, under the leadership of Pastor Carlos and Sis. Rita Pereira, puts out our monthly newsletter, sends barrels of supplies to Haiti, sponsor many of our classes and pray for us regularly.  It’s always such a joy to be with them.  Today joined them for their Portuguese service.  A. Jay told me that he now understands what it is like for Americans visiting our church in Haiti.  I had the privilege of sharing with them in English, however, and Pastor Carlos interpreted it for them.