July 12 was the six-month anniversary of what has been described as the greatest natural disaster in recorded history. A major metropolitan area (Port- au-Prince is home to one- fourth of Haiti’s population) was hit by a major earthquake. The response of the Free Methodist Church was immediate and generous. Over $1.6 million has been received from churches in the United States, Canada, the Dominican Republic and around the world. To date, more than a mil lion of that has been distributed.
The full report can be reviewed in PDF format HERE.
Phases 1 and 2 of the recovery plan (which have been completed) included the following:
More than 1,000 people were vaccinated and more than 2,000 people were seen in free clinics. These clinics were staffed by Haitian medical people volunteering their time to serve their churches and communities.
We (the steering committee) have worked extensively with the local churches to develop programming for children prior to the restart of school.
We conducted distributions at every church in the West and South Districts. Some of these churches are hours from Port-au-Prince, and this was the only help these people received. We have also distributed relief supplies to school staffs.
We have given grants to 29 pastors to provide for provisional shelter and to an additional 19 pastors to assist in repairing their homes.
We have assisted a number of churches in demolition. The typical pattern is that local church people provide the labor to take down the buildings and we provide money to have the rubble hauled away.
We have been identifying and funding projects that can be accomplished with Haitian labor.
We have made major progress in rebuilding the financial system and hope to be done in the next week or so.
The Bible school has restarted.
Looking ahead
Nearly a dozen sites have lost both their church and school. We are working hard to get at least one usable structure at every site.
New building materials are being tested: a new (to us) steel frame building structure and a new (to Haiti) type of foam core building.
We are expecting a major shipment of tents.
We are looking at the possibility of a second pastors’ retreat. The first retreat was limited to only West and South District pastors. We would like to do something for all pastors and wives. The earthquake has had an impact far beyond Port-au-Prince. Superintendent Charite reports that in his region alone the population has swelled by 156,000 people and the schools are serving 20,000 additional students.
We are planning major subsidies to all FM schools to assist them in paying for staff.
We need to continue to rebuild the administrative structure of the mission in Haiti. This begins with finances but there are a number of other things, such as government reports and permits that need to be brought up to date as the government structure gets back to normal.
VISA Need in Haiti:
The FM recovery program in Haiti requires a geotechnical engineer to join a small team of structural engineers departing soon. DUTIES: Help in the ongoing assessments of selected FM churches and schools which remain standing following the January earthquake. Help prepare a brief report on findings and conclusions. ELIGIBILITY: A qualified geotechnical engineer experienced in time-efficient field assessments. A team player who understands and is in full sympathy with the Christian basis for this work is needed for this mission. MISSION DURATION: approximately one week. TIMING: soon – to be arranged in consultation with the team leader. Interested individuals should e-mail: conniek@fmcna.org.
More than ever before I am struck by the contrasts of life in the U.S. and life here in Haiti. A noticeable number of buildings are being demolished. I remember watching a house be demolished in the States – a giant machine came in and the house was gone in an afternoon. Here they are being demolished by crews of men with sledgehammers. It is a lot slower but things are just as demolished in the end. If there is an underlying lesson it is just this, life is a lot harder here.
This was driven home in a more personal way as I talked with my friend Jean Marc. Jean Marc is a pastor and a very able administrator, and we work very closely together for the relief effort. Last night my head hit the pillow about 9 p.m. and I slept like a log until about 4:30 or so. Jean Marc didn’t get much sleep. He sleeps in a tent in a school courtyard. It rained a good part of last night, and he had to get up and empty the rain that pooled up in the canvas tarps that overhung the courtyard. He was also awakened several times to help his elderly father to the bathroom. But today he was cheerful and full of hope. He went on and on about how God was at work and that we were entering good days for Haiti.
I see that all around me. People are in difficult circumstances but they are approaching life with peace and contentment. I think one of the reasons the Haitian people have been so resilient in their difficult times is that they are not as focused on the treasures of earth which they no longer have.
Other Haiti news
Edwani, wife of Erlin Blot the FOHO (Friends of Haiti Organization) caretaker who was killed in the earthquake, recently gave birth to a baby girl. The baby’s name is Jeanne after Pastor Jeanne Acheson-Munos who also lost her life in the quake.
The Miraj, India, FM Church is made up of members disabled by the ravages of Hansen’s disease (leprosy). Some make their living by begging and some by weaving. Out of their meager earnings, they contributed more than $100 to the Haiti Earthquake Relief Fund.
Workers with Clear Blue Global Water Project have provided 22 working wells in Haiti since mid-January. They plan to return to Haiti in July and August, as funds are available. To learn more about Clear Blue’s efforts to bring safe drinking water to Haiti and how you can be involved, click here.
VISA Need in Haiti:
The FM recovery program in Haiti requires a geotechnical engineer to join a small team of structural engineers departing soon. DUTIES: Help in the ongoing assessments of selected FM churches and schools which remain standing following the January earthquake. Help prepare a brief report on findings and conclusions. ELIGIBILITY: A qualified geotechnical engineer experienced in time-efficient field assessments. A team player who understands and is in full sympathy with the Christian basis for this work is needed for this mission. MISSION DURATION: approximately one week. TIMING: soon – to be arranged in consultation with the team leader. Interested individuals should e-mail: conniek@fmcna.org.
3.5 million people die each year from water-related disease.
84% of water-related deaths are in children ages 0-14.
98% of water-related deaths occur in the developing world.
884 million people, lack access to safe water supplies, approximately one in eight people.
The water and sanitation crisis claims more lives through disease than any war claims through guns.
Less than 1% of the world’s fresh water (or about 0.007% of all water on earth) is readily accessible for direct human use
An American taking a five-minute shower uses more water than the typical person living in a developing country slum uses in a whole day.
About a third of people without access to an improved water source live on less than $1 a day. More than two thirds of people without an improved water source live on less than $2 a day.
Without food a person can live for weeks, but without water you can expect to live only a few days.
The daily requirement for sanitation, bathing, and cooking needs, as well as for assuring survival, is about 13.2 gallons per person.
More wells are desperately needed, will you please help.
As of March 24, $1,445,618 has been given through the Bishops Famine and Relief Fund, Help Haiti Heal, Operation Hope and International Child Care Ministries for Haiti relief, recovery and development needs.
As of March 5, a total of $1,307,639 has been given through the Bishops Famine and Relief Fund, Help Haiti Heal, Operation Hope and International Child Care Ministries for Haiti relief, recovery and development needs.
Venezuela has joined the list of countries sending in offerings to help Haiti relief efforts.
Zook was in Haiti on a two-year mission with the Free Methodist Church where she was staying in the four story Friends of Haiti building that collapsed during the 12 Feb earthquake that devastated Haiti. Kelly Perkins was also in Haiti drilling water wells on a short term mission when the earthquake struck. He and others helped pull Katie from the rubble.
KTBV, Idaho News Channel 7 tells the story of Katie Zook’s rescue.
Many helped make this happen but especially Healing Hands International.
Now we need money to go directly to drilling expenses (fuel, casing, bits, pumps, etc.) so that we can get as many wells as possible providing clean water this spring when the need is greatest. We are actively working on getting a shipping container of pumps directly from the manufacturer in India purchased and shipped to Haiti. These pumps are the critical piece for the ongoing delivery of clean water. We can get a limited supply of pumps in Haiti for about $1,000 each but if we buy in quantity directly from the manufacturer we hope to get the price significantly reduced.
Your gifts and prayers, and your willingness to contact others with this urgent and immediate need is vital. Clear Blue is a very lean operation, all volunteer. The gifts going directly to the needs, Please help us keep a steady stream of money going so there is no delay in the life-giving resource.
As of February 26, 2010, a total of $1,221,863 has been given through the Bishops Famine and Relief Fund, Help Haiti Heal, Operation Hope and International Child Care Ministries for Haiti relief, recovery and development needs.
Three Brazilian leaders traveled to Haiti Mon., March 1, taking donations and tents. Venezuela also joined the countries sending an offering for the relief and recovery efforts.
Your funds at work:
Emergency funds are being used to purchase rice and oil to supplement distributions of free items acquired from various aid organizations.
A large number of doses to immunize for tetanus and typhoid have been acquired.
Resources are being used to relocate pastors and others who are living in refugee camps where people are surrounded by filth and the potential for disease is great. Three areas have been identified to set up secure camps with adequate sanitation.
Through the work of the Dominican Church, 80 shelterboxes will be received soon. These tents are larger and sturdier than many of the tents pastors currently have.
Plans are underway for demolition of FM churches and schools that cannot be repaired. These buildings pose a major safety threat if not demolished as soon as possible.
Grants are being made available to demolish and/or build temporary homes before the hurricane season.
Continue to pray for the Leadership Consultation taking place through Thurs., March 4 to strategize, pray and chart a course for the maturing Haitian Church.
Pray for these individuals currently ministering in Haiti:
Missionaries Rick Ireland and FOHO members Larry and Alice Judy
Medical/maintenance personnel, including Dan and DeeAnn Snyder, Cedric Johnson, Jerry Rusher, Greg Ingle, Garrett Stanley, Randy and Jane Wynn, and Jim Rowan, based out of Dessalines Hospital
Vahan Sipantizi, with a team of 6, and Arron Swenson, digging wells
Team of 18 led by Ron Hansen (Arlington FMC, WA) in Port-au-Prince
Team of three engineers to provide structural assessments
We join with the whole world in grieving this tragic earthquake in Haiti. Our hearts and minds cannot imagine the level of devastation, and we fear the news of the next few days will compound our grief.
Reverse mission: "The poor have a mission to the rich, the handicapped to the ‘normal,’ the dying to the living." -- Henri Nouwen02:31:12 PM September 07, 2010from TweetDeck
"...Touched by a loving heart, wakened by kindness, chords that were broken will vibrate once more." -- Fanny J. Crosby04:53:29 PM August 20, 2010from TweetDeck
“Every church seeking justice and showing mercy to the poor and disenfranchised”-- from from the Free Methodist Mission Statement, 200311:07:06 PM August 12, 2010from TweetDeck
