View of Mt. Pignon near the HAFF compound. 

Soaked to the bone after walking back from Monac in the rain. Good times had by all! 

Don't you wish all outhouses had a view like this! Picture from Carolyn and I's walk to Monac. 

The acquired entourage on our Tuesday evening walk. 

Teaching at Durrano's. 

Tona, Kari, and I with the watermelon they gave. 

The fun of walking in Haiti

Tuesday evening, Carolyn, Jenny, and I decided to go for a walk to get off the compound and see more of the surrounding area. We started walking down the main street in town. On the main street we passed the church we have attended for the past two Sundays. The community was having a soccer game in the church yard and there were a number of people hanging around and watching. We stopped and watched for a little while and talked with a few people there. That was a fun thing to see. Continuing we walked down the main road and took a right off onto a country road.

We walked up and down a few hills and the road slowly narrowed into a foot path. The foot path led us by some houses and connected fields. The houses started to get farther apart as we walked, and I couldn’t help but enjoy seeing the country in its simplest form. I felt really blessed to be venturing in a part of this country that most people may never have a chance to see. We were able to see out over the country side and feel like a bigger part of Haiti as a whole.

As we walked by a small group of houses a group of kids ran out of their yards and began to follow us. We hadn’t really noticed they were following us until we heard them giggling behind us. We turned around to 5 small children examining everything about us. We said hello and asked them all their names and they said that they wanted to walk with us. So we continued down the foot path with our entourage. I lead the group, there were three kids behind me, then Jenny, two more kids, and Carolyn brought up the rear. To have a little fun I began to make fun movements with my arms and the kids copied. Then Jenny and I switched places and we all copied Jenny. It was really cute to see these little kids copying what we were doing and eager to interact with someone new and different from themselves.

The foot path made a loop and opened back up to the larger road that we had walked on before. This was fun because the kids began to walk beside us then. One of the girls on my left grabbed my hand and we walked holding hands. She gave me a large smile and seemed so content to receive a little physical affection. Out of the corner of my right eye I could see a little boy walking a little to my left and behind me. He was eyeing my hand unsure if he should grab it, or perhaps wondering what my white skin felt like. I held my hand out a bit and watched him muster up the courage to grab it. As soon as he took it he seemed excited and proud of himself for accomplishing this feat. He held my hand limply at first, but after a few minutes his grip tightened and his smile widened. So we walked down the uneven dirt street with kids in each hand chattering away at what Creole we know. It was a really special moment for me. I was reminded why Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me,” and the importance of child-like faith.

At that moment I was walking an uneven muddy road in the back woods of Haiti with the God of all creation and some children that I know are so precious in his sight. What an amazing thing!

I was blessed again today to get off the compound and out for some exercise. The weekend began just like most others with Tim, Paige, and the interns piling into a HAFF truck and heading to Pignon. In Pignon we visited the market, which is becoming less intimidating as my language skills increase. It’s amazing how much calmer you feel surrounded by scores of people bargaining and walking from vendor to vendor when you can actually understand some of what they are saying. We bought all the food we would need for this next week and returned to the Pignon Hospital to eat at the snack bar. Instead of a Coke and hamburgers I ventured out to try a plate of Haitian spaghetti and a Limonade (a Haitian soda that tastes kind of like 7-Up with a citrus flavor). Satisfied we returned to the truck and braved the muddy roads back to Bohoc.

In the truck I asked Tim if there were any good hikes in the area or fun places to walk to. He suggested walking to a nearby town called Monac because of the scenic views. Excited about the opportunity to get out and hike Carolyn and I helped put groceries away, lathered on some sunscreen, grabbed our water bottles and headed for the hills.

The walk to Monac takes about an hour and provides beautiful lookouts as you climb up the hills. Carolyn and I stopped at the top of a hill overlooking Monac when an elderly man from a nearby house came out to say hello. He introduced himself as Benold Pierre and asked where we were from and where we were going. We told him we worked at HAFF (which everyone around here seems to know) and that we were just out for a walk. He asked if he could walk with us and we agreed. We walked down the hill, along the river, and through a couple of fields. As we walked Benold told us of the levels of the river, things that he has planted in his field, how many kids and grandkids he has, and the Creole words for a couple of things we passed. He was a lot of fun to interact with. Just a very friendly and caring old man!

Eventually Carolyn and I said we should turn around and Benold walked with us back to his house. We thanked him for walking with us and continued on our way back to HAFF. Not long after we left Benold’s house the storm clouds that seemed so far in the distance caught up with us. It started sprinkling followed shortly by full out rain. Carolyn and I were soaked from head to toe before we knew it with about an hour walk left to HAFF. The rain began to puddle in the foot path turning the trail into a river and becoming fairly slick. Carolyn and I laughed as we slipped off our shoes and ventured the rest of the way in our bare feet. I must say that Haitians have feet of steel. They can walk anywhere in their bare feet and I confess that my feet were sensitive to every single rock in the path.

At one point in the walk Carolyn and I descended steep ravine to the river and up the other side. This was challenging as the ravine has become somewhat of a river of its own feeding into the river below. We found the best footing we could and walked down, crossed the river and up the other side. Definitely a challenge, but fun just the same.

When was the last time you got caught in the rain and didn’t have anywhere else you had to be? It is definitely the simple unplanned things in this life that make everyday a gift. Thank you Jesus for this day!

Language, Visiting, the Market and Teaching

Pictures to come for this entry!

It is hard to believe that I am drawing closer to the two week marker of when I came to Haiti. Time has passed quickly with each day holding new experiences and challenges of their own. I must admit that I am still trying to find my bearings here, but each day I feel more settled then the last. So progress is being made!

The largest challenge of each day is the language. Many times a day people will ask us questions or make statements and all they get in return is a deer in the headlights look. This is not completely true, as I know enough basic vocabulary now to get the jist of things. But answering questions is a whole other thing. Jenny, Carolyn, and I have a language teacher named Mary Noel, who comes to help us three days a week, and this is really helping. However, I am finding that I am good at understanding Kreole on paper, but I blank out when I try to speak it. I don't think my brain moves that fast. Please pray that I would think faster and have more confidence to speak this new language.

Last Friday, we were invited over to another missionary couple’s house for dinner. Their names are Christi and Jean Jean. Christi is a former ECHO intern and Jean Jean is Haitian. They have two beautiful little girls, Tona and Kari. We walked about 15 minutes to their house and sat on the front porch drinking sodas and talking. Then we ate dinner and sat to visit a little more. They have a swing hanging from a mahogany tree in their yard, so I pushed the girls on the swing and they pushed me a few times as well. Then they showed us their garden where they were growing mostly corn and cabbage and one watermelon plant. The watermelon plant had two watermelons on it and the girls wanted to give us one as a gift. They gave us the bigger of the two. It was pretty cute and sacrificial on their part. I could tell they were a little disappointed to see the bigger of the two be given away, but excited to give it. I could learn a lot about that kind of giving.

Saturday, we woke early and had breakfast so we could go to the market in Pignon. We got into the HAFF truck and drove over the horrible roads about half an hour into Pignon. We parked and walked to the market. The market was crazy. People all over the place were pushing each other to get around and walking from one open vendor’s booth to another. We had to go to probably 10 different vendors to buy the food we needed for the next week. It was a challenge trying to hear what they were saying for prices, figuring out the Haitian money, and making sure we go the right amount of change. Thank God Paige was there to help us!

After the market we walked to the Haitian hospital where there is a snack bar. We sat and had cokes and ham and cheese sandwiches, which they put catsup, onions, and tomatoes on as well. I must say, the food here is pretty good, but everything is bread, fried, or rice and beans. Good food for now, but I know I will begin to crave fresh vegetables and fruits.

One of the big highlights from the past two weeks is that I taught in a classroom setting for the first time in my life! There is a man who lives down the road from the mission named Durrano who speaks English well. Durrano teaches classes in a make shift classroom in his front yard. In the past interns have gone to help him, so I let him know that I was interested in helping if he wanted. He said that he would welcome my help and invited me to stop by when I had some time. So Tuesday of this week, Carolyn and I walked to Durrano's house to help with his 10:00am class.

When we arrived a little after the class had started and tried to sit in the back, not to disturb things. Durrano stopped his class and introduced us. He had us come in front of the class and talk a little bit about who we were and what we were doing here in Haiti. After the short introductions Durrano took a seat and asked us to teach them. Apparently what he meant by helping was having a native English speaker teach a lesson. Having no lesson in my head, Carolyn and I asked if the class had any questions. There was no response, so we decided to teach question words (Who, What, When, etc.) We formed questions on the board and the class helped us translate them into Kreole. After questions, one of the students wanted to know the difference between like and love, so we explained that. Then on into plurals. Adding a s or es to the end of words, and irregular plurals such as tooth and teeth. All in all, it was a lot of fun to teach something that I knew and that they desperately want to know.

At the end of the class the kids thanked us for coming and helping them. They were so appreciative. I must also say that I have a much higher respect for the English language. It is very complicated. Those who learn it and are not native speakers should be applauded for the work it takes to learn!

Durrano invited us to come and teach again, so Carolyn and I went and taught on Wednesday as well. Wednesday we taught them the Hokey Pokey so they could learn parts of the body and right and left. It was a fun lesson. Challenging at first because the class didn't know the melody of the song at all, so we taught that, then the words, then the body parts, and tried to put it all together. I hope they learned something. If not, they had a real good laugh watching Carolyn and I shake our arms and legs and spin around. All in all, it was really fun. Durrano's class ends next week but he will begin another class in September, so I hope to help him some more. We will see.

Made it safe and sound!

Carolyn and I are safely here in the central plateau of Haiti. We arrived on August 8th, a very adventurous day! Thank-you all so much for your prayers! Below is a copy of the e-mail that I sent to friends and family. You may have already read this, but below the e-mail is more information about my first days in Haiti, so read on!

The e-mail:
Our flight out of Miami took off close to schedule and we arrived in Port-au-Prince without any problems. Our luggage even arrived on the same flight, which we were grateful for. We gathered our bags, had a little confusion about where we were to meet our driver, Nader, but we eventurally hooked up with him outside the airport.

Nader drove us from the main airport to a smaller airport where we were to catch a charter flight into the central plateau of Haiti. We checked in for our next flight and waited for a few hours to take off. While we waited a Haitian man named Shellot began to talk to us. He explained that he is 27 and lives in Port-au-Prince with his wife, children, and extended family. He worked at the airport. We talked with him for about an hour receiving our first Creole lesson. He spoke English pretty well, so we began to ask him how to say different things in Creole and he wrote them down in a notebook for us. We then helped him spell the words in English as well, so he could get some practice. He was really excited to learn! It was a really fun experience.

Eventually the ticket officer for the charter flight let us know that is was time to take off, and we walked out onto the airstrip to get into a 6 seater plane. It turned out that Carolyn and I were the only one's on this particular flight. So it was the two of us and the pilot in a tiny little plane. A little nerve racking at first, but I eventually chalked it up to being a really fun roller coast type ride. We flew over the mountains that are so beautiful and prevalent here in Haiti and landed on a grass airstrip outside of Pignon.

We were greeted by Tim and Paige Motis, the directors of the ECHO project here, and Jenny another intern from ECHO. They were excited to see us, and it was exciting to see someone that we knew. We loaded our bags into the HAFF truck and rode the rest of the way to the HAFF mission. That was an adventure all of its own with the roads, yet fun!

We got to the mission and Carolyn and I were shown the house were we will be living! I must say that it is nicer then I thought. Now I am all unpacked and planning to meet Paige and Tim for dinner. Pictures: Carolyn and I's house. Our sitting room. Me on my bed with mosquito net.












I must say that I am really excited to be here and nervous at the same time. I know the language barrier will be a challenge, yet I am already learning some phrases. Please pray that I will continue to learn the language quickly and have the courage to use it and mess up until I learn! Again, thank you all for your prayers, and please continue to lift me, and the work here up to the Lord! May he receive all the glory!

More News:
The past few days feel slightly like a blur. Carolyn and I awoke on Tuesday and went over to the Motis' house for morning devotions. This is a ritual. We meet every morning at 7:15am to study, pray, and talk about activities for the day. Right now we are studying in 2Samuel. Very interesting because I do not know the Old Testament very well and Tim knows so much of the history. I am learning a lot listening to him and reading the word. I am grateful for this time every morning.

After devotions, Jenny, Carolyn, and I usually take off to do some work outside. Here at HAFF ECHO has a garden known as the intern garden. This garden is right on the main road through Bohoc, so different types of plants and techniques are planted here. The idea is to demonstrate some successful techniques so the locals can see how they work, and hopefully stop the interns while they work and ask questions. This is a really exciting idea for me. So far we haven't spent much time in this garden, but I know there are many days ahead still. Plus, I don't think I could figure out what someone was asking let alone answer their question at this point.

HAFF also has a field about 15 minutes down the main road. Yesterday morning, Dr. Motis walked us down and showed us the experiments that are going on there. When we got to the land there were two Haitian workers who had been hired to till the land for planting. In Haiti, tilling means a few people with hoes, tilling up the soil. I imagine it is back breaking work as they sink their hoes into the grassy dirt and pull it apart. Not to mention the heat of the sun. I know that they could work any one of us into the ground without even taking a breath. A very humbling thing to know.

Another neat thing about being here has been the singing. HAFF is right next to an orphanage and for a number of nights the orphanage and other people in the community have been singing. They play instruments and sing worship songs in Creole. I wish I understood what they were singing, but it is beautiful just the same. I think that will be the background music I will always hear when I think of Haiti. I am slowly learning to fall asleep to the sound, as they often sing into the late hours of the night!

Today I met with Tim to discuss some of the activities they would like me to do while I am here, you know, PR stuff. Tim would like me to work on the website, develop a brochure for the ECHO-Haiti Project, and help with other data needs. I am excited about the prospect of helping in these needed areas, but I am also eager to learn more about the plants and the research that is happening here. We will see how things come together as my role here becomes more concrete. I image it must be difficult to define as I am the first PR intern to come to Haiti for the full three months. They do not have a full three months worth of PR work for me to do, but I do not have the same agricultural training as the other interns either. So please pray that a middle ground can be found.

The first days have been fun and new, but the newness is beginning to wear off and it is time to be more responsible and involved. Please pray that God would reveal to me the role He would have me fill here, and that I would have the obedient heart to follow. I pray that you are all doing well and growing in your understanding of the Father every day! You are in my thoughts and prayers!

Camp, Birthday, and back to Florida

Saturday, July 23rd, I drove from Portland to Gig Harbor, WA to volunteer at Camp Agape. Camp Agape is a camp created to provide a fun, relaxing, and loving environment for families with children who have cancer. This year I believe 15 families attended. The camp is really neat because it provides an individual counselor for every child who attends camp, whether they are a child with cancer or the sibling of a child with cancer.

The first two days in Gig Harbor were spent setting up camp, doing counselor training, and preparing for the families to arrive. As part of the setup process I was able to put my engineering skills to work helping set up an old army tent without directions (let's just say we had extra poles when we were finished, but the tent didn't fall down during the week) and my carpentry skills assembling a gazebo type stucture for the parents to hang out in and relax. Let's just say I was pretty proud of myself. On Sunday the families began to arrive and were greeted by excited counselors ready to involve them in all kinds of activities. All in all, the week was filled with fun and new experiences for many of the campers, and a more relaxing time for the parents.

My role at camp was more technical in nature. I was part of the team taking pictures and putting together the end of camp slide show. I was very blessed to work with Emily, Dave, and Jon, friends from the AO House in Missoula. Dave, Emily, and Jon took most of the pictures, and I tried my hand at the art of photography as well. In the evenings we would copy pictures from our cameras onto an external hard drive and proceed to spend hours deleting, editing, and selecting pictures for the final slide show. I later inserted all the pictures into a powerpoint to create at 15 minute presentation with approximately 300 pictures. Not so bad for a weeks worth of work if you ask me! It was tiring, but definitely fun!

Camp ended with the slide show and a sharing time on Friday evening. It was great to hear the laughs and sighs of the audience as they viewed the pictures from the week. Such a blessing to be a part of something that touches so many people's hearts and lives. It is awesome how God allows us to be a part of things so much bigger than ourselves!

I don't quite know how to express the way this camp has impacted my heart, but I think I met some of the bravest people I will ever meet in life sometime during that week. I still struggle to understand why God allows some things to happen, but I thank him for the opportunity to be a part of these families' lives.

Following the slide show and sharing time I got back into my car and drove back to Portland for the night. The next morning I drove to Depoe Bay, OR where I met my family for my Mom's 50th Birthday! It really was an awesome weekend. My sister, Leigh, and her fiance, Waylon, flew in from Phoenix on Friday to surprise Mom. She had no idea they were coming! Then they all drove out to the coast to say at an inn by the beach. When I arrived I found my Mom and little sister, Lacey, down on the beach. The weather was sunny and beautiful with clouds of mist drifting in from the ocean, and the water was amazing colors of blue and green. I sat and talked with them for a bit, then we returned to the inn for lunch. Picture: The beach at the Inn from above.

Mom was again surprised when her coworkers began to arrive for the party as well as one of her friends from college who she had not seen in 25 years. It was so neat to see them all interact and the smile on Mom's face. We then had a delicious lunch and some cake, and she opened gifts. All in all, I think it was a great birthday! Picture: View from the beach!

The evening winded down and we all eventually went to bed. In the morning, we met some of Mom's friends for breakfast and a short walk. Leigh, Waylon, and Lacey were traveling back to Phoenix that afternoon, so we said goodbye to them and sent them on their way. Mom and Patrick went to visit some more friends, and I finally settled in for a nap. After waking up to the ocean breeze and sunshine I decided to head down to the beach for some sun, exercise, and time to journal. It was a very peaceful time! Picture: My sunny spot on the beach.

The next day Mom, Patrick, and I traveled back to Portland where I spent the remainder of the day packing for Haiti and running last minute errands. The next morning Dana came to pick me up and take me to the airport. We had a great breakfast together, and then I was off to Florida.
I was met at the airport by good friends from ECHO and was eager to hear all the recent news. We chatted all the way back to the ECHO farm where I was showed my room and quickly went to bed. The past couple days have kind of been a blur readjusting to the time, heat, and humidity here. I spent the first day saying hello to people and doing logistical things, the second day at the beach, of course!

My friends Carolyn, who I will be traveling to Haiti with, Andrea, Daphne, and I drove out to Sanibel and Captiva Islands to spend the afternoon. We stopped and had lunch at The Bubble Room, a very eclectic restaurant that puts theme restaurants like Applebees and the Hard Rock Cafe to shame. It was a really neat place. After lunch we went to the beach, threw around a football, went for a long walk, and a swim. The perfect beach day! Picture: Daphne, Me, and Carolyn trying to be bubbles outside The Bubble Room.

Later in the week, as sometimes happens on a farm, an animal is slaughtered. In this case, it was one of ECHO's goats. So on Friday we had a goat roast at an ECHO staff member's house. This was my first time eating goat, and I must say that it does NOT taste like chicken. Goat has a distinct taste of its own, but I liked it just the same. I'm sure this won't be the last goat that I eat for a while, so bon appetit! Picture 1: Me eating some goat meat. Picture 2: Grilling the goat.

Today I am again packing and doing laundry. I'm getting really good at both of these activities. This afternoon a group of us are going to the beach, and tomorrow I will travel to Miami with Carolyn and Daphne to head off to Haiti. Consequently, this will be my last blog from the states. Please pray for safe travel to Haiti and servant hearts for Carolyn and myself. I am grateful for this opportunity and excited to share this experience with all of you.

As I prepare to leave the Lord has placed this passage on my heart. I will leave it with all of you. Be encouraged, for Jesus has already overcome the world!

¹⁵Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. ¹⁶Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. ¹⁷And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

More soon...