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Photo Team
Many of the families and households broke out in giggles at the photos...
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Meet Mackenson
At the age of 10 Mackenson became ill and lost his hearing.
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Language & Music
Teaching languages with music...
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We Have Land!
The deaf community is looking at a new life in homes that will be permanent...
Welcome to the Blog of Kyle Reschke
Please be in touch and follow along on this blog for all news related to this massive undertaking. There are ways for everyone to be involved and I encourage you to be in vigilant thought and prayer regarding how you can help.
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Education Brings Advancement and Peace
Whew - what a last couple of weeks it has been. I hope this post finds you doing well and loving life wherever you may be. Everyone in Leveque and La Piste made it through the storms just fine, and the extra rain has actually done some good for the gardens in Leveque! All of the floods receded very quickly - most them pretty much receded after 1 day. While there was some damage to tent cities, and there are many who are picking up the pieces of their homes and businesses, most people had enough warning beforehand in order evacuate certain areas and have safely returned to rebuild and settle in again. We are busy at work here trying to get children in Leveque registered for school, setting up for a fall series of agricultural seminars, and getting ready for the next move in and housing distribution for 20 families on Saturday September 8. It will be a busy fall as tensions in the community have turned to new friendships and learning opportunities, which means we are back on schedule cranking out houses and looking at a housing distribution each month, until all ...
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1 Year in Haiti – WOW What a year!!
Bonswa! I write tonight from my home in Titanyen, Haiti. As a beautiful electrical storm rolls in off of the mountains, I am enjoying the distant rumbles and peaceful night to write outside. This blog is about 1 week overdue as last week marked the end of my first year living in Haiti. I have struggled in the writing of this post due to the difficulty in trying to summarize the mountain of amazing events that occurred over the last year. For those of you who have followed this blog regularly, many of those stories have been mentioned . . . but be assured, there are dozens more to be found in the 1000+ pages of my personal journals from the last year (not sure when those will be typed up and included in this blog as they are obviously always in progress). There are also a couple of publications I have begun discussing with experienced friends - maybe the next year will see the fruits of those discussions. Before the end of the month we will be moving in 20 more families, and if everything remains on schedule we will have relocated everyone ...
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Challenges and Trials – Working Through Them and Keeping the Vision
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life wherever you may be. We have had a challenging couple of months here in Haiti as we try to move forward within the new community at Leveque. We will continue to move forward as best as we can given the circumstances and climate within the community, but based on the last couple of months I have some new thoughts and reflections on the nature of work in Haiti and on the difficulties that come with development here. I want to clarify before these reflections that I truly believe that the community at Leveque is a game-changer for development, Christian mission, and the empowerment of communities in Haiti. That amidst all challenges, there is a light and a hope for the future that will continue to take stronger root in the hearts and minds of the community. In the pursuit of that light and hope for a better life there will be battles that rage, challenges that will emerge, and people who will attempt to undermine the good work for the sake of greed, political ambition and power. We know ...
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Leveque Community is Becoming Magnetic for People ALL OVER HAITI!!
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life amidst grand adventures. I write to you tonight from the new 410 Bridge guesthouse in Cabaret. I am about ready to fall into bed for a good night’s rest, but wanted to get a few of these thoughts down before I close the day. Our rapid pace of growth and progress on many projects remains unabated this week and I once again have much to report. In exciting news, we welcome Kathryn Montoya to Haiti this week. Kathryn is very experienced in deaf ministry and will be spending 5 weeks with us here in Haiti in order to pour into the deaf leaders and take some of our spiritual development and educational development plans and programs to the next level. Check out her website at www.cbdeafministry.org. It is once again amazing to reflect on all of the people that the Lord has brought together in this great and challenging work in Haiti. I praise the Lord this summer for all of our teams, partners, and the people working so hard in the US in support of me and our ...
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Water Flowing in Leveque!!
Bonswa!! Greetings from Titanyen Haiti! I hope this message finds you all loving life in the midst of grand adventures. I sit this sunny afternoon in the shade of a small tree in the foothills of the Haitian mountains. We have had quite the week in Leveque with the groundbreaking of the church, the installation, final training, and running of the new water filtration system, and the continuation of our already up and running programs within education and small business development! First of all - THE LIVING WATER TREATMENT SYSTEM is up and running at Leveque!!!!! Whew, this has been a long . . . long . . . I will repeat . . . long process that will now enter the next phase. Admittedly, a big part of me wanted to fill up those buckets of water and just start dancing as we threw water all around - however, remembering how precious water is as a resource, I strongly fought those urges (resulting in only a mini dance party with a few of the deaf leaders and operators). As I have written all along, I ...
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Groundbreaking for New Church!!!
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life wherever you may be. I apologize for the time since my last post - we have been very busy and all kinds of new challenges have arisen of late. A couple of days ago I took some time to write a different blog post for this week, but in light of everything else going on, the updates I write for you all tonight are just too exciting to hold off announcing any longer. The other post, which was more of a personal reflection on the nature of ministry in Haiti and the foundations of poverty in the developing world will be posted sometime in the future when I am in need of a post :). I am sure you will all probably find these deaf community specific updates to be more interesting and exciting. The month of June has been extremely busy with several teams (including several members of my family). My father, sister, aunt, and mother traveled to Haiti in the beginning of June to work on a service trip and check out what we have been doing for the last 11 ...
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LEAPS AND BOUNDS IN DEAF ADVOCACY!!
Bonjou!! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life amidst grand adventures. I write to you once again early in the morning from the front porch of Mackenson’s home, with a warm cup of Berthide’s delicious coffee by my side. The deaf construction crew sits next to me as we all soak in the sunrise before getting to work for the day. The alarm went off very early this morning to allow me an hour for a solid run through the mountains near Leveque - what a great way to start the day in the midst of a busy week. I am reminded this morning of a chapter intro from “In the Heart of the World” by Mother Teresa that I read this week. Echoing Matthew 6:25-34, the short little intro stated simply this: “Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin” I LOVE IT!!! We have had a great week so far with many meetings and some wonderful training/discussions that have been led by Emmanuel Jacques (a French Diplomat and member of the organization International Deaf Emergency (IDE). I have mentioned ...
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Deaf Construction Crew – Hard at Work!
Bonjou!! I hope this post finds you doing well and loving life amidst grand adventures. I write to you all this morning from the front porch of Mackenson’s home - there are five of us here at the moment (Berthide, Mackenson, William, Melanie and I) and we have enjoyed some good quiet time as well as Bible study this morning . . . all the while drinking Berthide’s delicious coffee - I am a big coffee shop guy and while in the US I can often be found at the Tipping Point, Barnes and Noble, Starbucks or Caribou (or all four throughout a long day of reading :). However, I must write today that the “coffee shop” atmosphere we have here on the front porch this morning rocks my world . . . Whew - once again there is much to write about. I think the biggest joy of the last week is observing the progress of the deaf construction workers as they complete their first contract building two homes here in the new community. With this blog are a few pictures - check out ...
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Deaf Advocacy and Exciting New Possibilities!
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you loving life in the pursuit of grand adventures. I write to you tonight after a beautiful sunset mountain bike ride over several rugged goat trails deep in the Haitian mountains. This week has been a good one, but I found myself craving some truly quiet and personal time - hence the long and rigorous mountain bike ride this evening. About a month ago, Mackenson and I were sitting around the house with a few other deaf leaders. Our conversation turned to thoughts and plans for the future of not only this deaf community, but for all deaf people in Haiti. The leaders remarked that they would like to visit several of the schools currently offering at least some education for deaf children. There is a small school named Jubilee Christian Academy 2 hours away from Leveque that is run by a friend of ours named Franklyn. Last week we visited the school and I was honestly very impressed by the quality of education they are providing for young children in a very rough area of Haiti. My mind is immediately drawn to the possibilities of support and development ...
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Light The Way for Haiti
ONE HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT TO BEGIN THIS BLOG!!!! - A little over a month ago I shared with you all that I was in the midst of writing a large grant proposal to Hear the World Foundation that would fully fund the rest of our community lights for everyone at Leveque. Against all odds and even against the assertions that our project did not meet the usual requirements for funding and partnership, I was informed late last week that our project titled - Light our Way will receive FULL FUNDING. This means that all community outdoor lights are now 100% covered for the community!!!! Our prayers that the Board would be captivated by this remarkable story have been answered, and answered fully. AMEN!!! I get the feeling that this grant could be the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership. I sit today at the end of a very cool meeting for PRAISEFEST 2013 - I am on the task force for planning and programming within this festival (not really sure what that means yet) . . .In Haiti there seem to be task forces for pretty ...
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People of the World – UNITE!!!!
Bonjou!!! Greetings from Haiti. I write to you this morning from the mountains of Haiti as I overlook the sunrise over the ocean. I hope this post finds you all loving life and in the midst of grand adventures or challenges that are stretching you. As many of you know, I recently returned to Haiti from time in the US with family and catching up with many of our wonderful partners and friends. As I travelled around the US in mid-april I was often struck by how God is using this work in Haiti to unite and challenge many kindred and beautiful spirits around the world. This morning I want write about how the Lord has provided so abundantly through all of you and the hundreds of people around the world who have fallen in love with “Deaf Haiti.” At home in Naperville, IL I frequented many of my favorite coffee shops and restaurants with family and amazing friends. At each establishment the barristas, servers, and staff of my regular hangouts greeted me with warm embraces and genuine interest in the progress of our work in Haiti. They are all following this blog and my regular ...
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Deaf Families Cultivate BEAUTIFUL Gardens
Greetings once again from Haiti!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and finding grand adventures. I am happily back in Haiti feeling refreshed and energized after some time with family and friends back in the US. I returned to Haiti on Friday and of course stopped by the mission just long enough to drop off my bags and be on my way to visit the deaf. Many leaders and families waited for me in the community and I absolutely felt the love of the entire community as at least 15 kids started yelling out as soon as they saw me and raced towards me in order to be the first one to get our daily high five or “exploding fist bump.” Bear hugs, warm embraces and kisses on the cheek ensued for many minutes as we were all overjoyed at being back together again. The deaf of course commented, as they always do, that I looked much bigger - they say this with big grins and giggles as they pat my belly. I spent the next several hours being pulled by the hand to the homes of several dozen families who were proud ...
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Learning about Servant Leadership
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you well and loving life. I write to you all this afternoon from the second story cafe of a Barnes and Noble and in my hometown Naperville, IL. I am in the US for a couple of weeks for some rest and time with family, a chance to catch up with everyone at Frazer UMC, and a few speaking engagements at universities in the South to hopefully generate more interest and support for our work in Haiti. Solar lights have been installed and are functioning in the new community!! The deaf are enjoying their new gathering places opportunities to convene outdoors through the night! We are still seeking funding for the second half of the lighting solution but for now, it is a great start. The clean water solution is also underway and the community committee is receiving training in the management of water as a community asset. The deaf families have also installed gutters on their homes as we are entering into the rainy season. All families have an opportunity for clean water from multiple sources out in Leveque. I want to take ...
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Growing in Trust
Bonjou!! Greetings from Port au Prince, Haiti. I write to you this morning sitting next to a team of 20 people who traveled to Haiti on a family trip with Frazer UMC. We have had a wonderful week together and as always, teams of people from the US have come here and been obviously touched and changed by their interactions with the community at Leveque. Rev. Patrick Quinn from Frazer UMC is leading the family team this week. On Sunday afternoon he preached on the hilltop that will be the location of the new church for the community. With dozens of deaf families we discussed the nature of worship using Mark 14 and followed Patrick’s thoughts with a prayer from William and the use of oil to bless the ground that will be the site for the community church. It was apparent from the beginning that the deaf community understood the significance of their involvement as community leaders both eternally and temporally. As the oil was poured out over the land by community members and team members together, we were reminded of the importance of our partnership together - that love, encouragement and fellowship are ...
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Community Soccer, Art Club and Learning
Bonjou! Greetings from Titanyen, Haiti. I write to you this morning in the predawn chill after a beautiful run through the mountains north of Port au Prince. With a hot cup of coffee and journal by my side I look forward to this day of work and fellowship with the deaf community in Leveque. As always, I hope this post finds you all passionate about your daily adventures and pursuits. I once again have a lot to report and am excited to write these short paragraphs to share all of the excitement with you. The community continues to do well and are overall happy and healthy. We are still working out the kinks with community leaders to make sure that clean water is being run as a community asset and not as a 410 Bridge or Mission of Hope project and we are moving forward slowly but surely. The leaders and newly elected water committee still have some training to undergo before they take complete charge of the water solution, but with the start of the rainy season we are also hooking up several water collection systems so that we may utilize that daily water ...
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Life and Progress in the New Community
Bonswa!! Greetings from Haiti. I hope this post finds you all loving life and feeling passionate about your pursuits. It has obviously been a whirlwind couple of weeks down here as I have not written in over a week - I apologize for that lapse in information and sharing, but am excited to write to you tonight with good news on many fronts. Thank you for your continued prayers, letters, and e-mails of encouragement as we are all working very hard in the pursuit of the ambitious and beautiful goals of the deaf community. This post will be more of a progress and programming update and I am overwhelmed with happiness at the changes and progress over the last couple of weeks. First of all, our water solution: We are now pumping regularly from a nearby aquaduct to provide grey water to the entire community (water to be used for bathing, washing clothes etc...). This is a difficult endeavor as we run often into issues with farmers downstream who feel that we are taking all of the water they need for irrigation - this is not the case as we are pumping at a ...
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How to Start – “Building Back Haiti Better”
Bonswa!! Greetings from Port au Prince. I hope this post finds you all loving life and engaging in grand adventures. In my quest to learn all I can about a country I now call home I have been reading a lot of Haitian literature including poetry, short stories, post-earthquake accounts, histories, and the many anthropological works surrounding the nature of poverty that obviously permeate works on Haiti. I recently finished Haiti: After The Earthquake by Dr. Paul Farmer. For those interested in brilliant insights into Haitian medicine, anthropology, and an account of the successes and failures of aid organizations following the 2010 earthquake, I highly recommend this read. One passage in particular stuck out to me as it contains many of the questions we should continuously be asking ourselves as we engage in this work together in Haiti. (included below). In my mind we are doing a good job in a pursuit of sustainability and the empowerment of many communities here in Haiti - I hope this passage encourages you to reflect deeply on the nature of our work and fires you up to become even more involved. From Dr. Paul Farmer -
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First Families all Moved In!!!!
Bonswa!! Koman ou ye? Mwen kontan ekri aswe a soti comonite nouvo nan Leveque. (Good evening!! How are you? I am happy to write tonight from the new deaf community in Leveque). I hope this post finds you all loving life and finding daily adventures. We had a wonderful day here in Haiti moving 19 families into their new permanent homes which completes our first phase of moving - SWEET!! Everyone at the new community seems happy and hopeful. In the last two days many families have already built their outside kitchen areas and I arrived this morning to find laundry hanging out on a line between two deaf homes (see included picture). These homes that were empty less than a week ago are full of life, work, laughter, and the beautiful bustle of families going about daily chores. After unloading all of the families I sat in Mackenson’s new living room with 4 leaders of the Leveque community (all hearing). We talked for awhile and sang songs both in Kreyol and in Sign Language!! The leaders at Leveque are already attempting to learn sign language and the ...
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Another Busy but Good Day in Haiti
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all at the end of a great day wherever you may be. Whew!! Another busy but good day here in Haiti. I am once again driving along the coast with leaders from the community - the waves look great and I am admittedly craving a surfboard right now. However, very content to return to the deaf community to coordinate our last big group of movers for Saturday. Everyone is very happy today. Many of the children who moved today checked with me multiple times, making sure that they are going to be starting school soon. For at least 5 children today, school has not been available for 2 years - this month they are starting up again and are very excited! They jumped up and down in the back of the truck the entire ride to their new homes. When we left late this afternoon I caught a glimpse of the ever beautiful vision I have been writing about in my last several posts. As we gathered together for a prayer on the porch of a new home I ...
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Moving Day – 1
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and feeling passionate about grand adventures. I sit today with my computer in my lap as my legs dangle over the edge of a large moving vehicle we used to move several families out to Leveque today. It was another early morning for everyone as we started packing around sunrise in order to leave the current community before 10 am. Many families are preparing to move tomorrow and Saturday so this part of the saga will continue for another few days. Also waking up around dawn, several people from Mission of Hope traveled to help us pack at La Piste and unpack at the new homes. I was extremely thankful for the help in coordination and manpower today - and also extremely encouraged that while our volunteers from Mission of Hope do not speak sign language, I watched them all in joy and happiness with the deaf families moving today. Proof that joy and service of others transcends all cultural and linguistic barriers. The families are settled and I am traveling back with Mackenson, Dieffe and Alexis to have ...
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Moving Celebration!!
Bonswa!! I hope this message finds you all loving life and feeling passionate about the awesome work of the day here in Haiti :). The day for us started extremely early today with a few slight problems and the general difficulties and challenges that will accompany any coordination of people and belongings on this scale. However, I can end this paragraph here as all of those issues were taken care of (admittedly stressfully) but at the end of the day they were still taken care of and we celebrated with over 100 deaf people today as they received the papers and keys for their new homes!! I was greeted once again this morning with excited and warm embraces at the deaf community as everyone prepared to load a large bus and travel to Leveque (the site of the new homes) for the celebration. We arrived at Leveque after a somewhat cramped bus ride to be greeted by many good friends and supporters of the project. However, all eyes were on the deaf community and their new chance at life. The deaf were greeted with a little bit of curiosity by the hearing residents of the community, ...
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The Night Before
I hope this post finds you all loving life and engaged in adventures that make your heart race! I just returned from the deaf community for one last meeting with the leaders to coordinate transportation and clarify all details for our travels together tomorrow. Many people once again came up with incredible embraces and obvious excitement over a chance to sign papers for a new and permanent home tomorrow. Follow along on this blog each day this week as I will be writing progress reports at the end of each day. Many of our partners on the deaf community project are now in Haiti for the celebration tomorrow including Manu, Steven and Sandrine from International Deaf Emergency, Yollette and Evelyn from Friends of Deaf Haiti, Butch from Frazer UMC, Kurt from 410 Bridge, and many representatives from Mission of Hope Haiti. It is wonderful that so many passionate people have gathered together in support of this work - we truly see the manifestation of 1 Peter 410 (the verse that inspired the name of 410 Bridge). Which states, “Each one should user whatever gift he has received to serve others. Faithfully administering God’s grace in ...
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Deaf Community Visits their New Homes!
Bonswa!! Greetings from Port au Prince Haiti. I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life wherever you may be. I write to you tonight at the end of a very long couple of weeks during which I experienced many days of leaving home in the pre dawn gloom, only to return from work to a dinner many hours cold. Fatigued, sometimes frustrated, and always working hard, please allow me the opportunity to share with you tonight the kinds of relationships and experiences that make every mere hardship melt away into overwhelming joy that uplifts a tired body and mind. On Saturday a bus full of people from the deaf community traveled to Leveque to view the new homes they will be moving into on February 7th. Many families had requested this visit before the big move as there are understandable fears and anxieties surrounding what will be a major life change for them. The bus arrived and over 70 deaf people exited the bus at the site of the first 50 new homes for their community. Within a few seconds many were running ...
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Excitement for the Move
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life. For my midwestern family and friends, I am a little jealous of the snowfall you are currently receiving as I was home for almost a month and did not have a single chance to cross country ski or engage in any fun winter sports (other than my regular runs through the woods). What a week it has been with the deaf community. I know, I start off so many posts with statements like that, but over and over we find ourselves meeting amazingly passionate people who want to be involved, and I personally find myself even more indescribably blessed to be engaging in life everyday with people who are growing and taking up a massive challenge in a pursuit of new lives for themselves. It is so hard to sit here and try to write blog posts of a reasonable length as I everyday feel that even the most talented writer (and I am definitely not that) would have trouble articulating these experiences. With that said - onward with an attempt. . . We have ...
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The Earthquake Anniversary – Always Hoping in Haiti
Bonswa! I hope this post finds you doing well and loving life wherever you may be. I am happy to write to you today from Haiti at the end of an extremely busy first week back after the holidays. I traveled straight to the deaf community from the airport on Monday morning and felt my heart uplifted and warmed by an incredible welcome from many people in the community and the usual train of children who chase my motorcycle for a few hundred yards. After big hugs of welcome back to the community several people laughed and commented that I had returned to Haiti much bigger than when I had left (giggling and using the hand motions for a bigger size, describing my face and my belly). I guess that is a sign of a good holiday with family and friends in the Chicago suburbs. On Monday we enjoyed many hours of time spent catching up, joking and casting vision for the next six months. A vision team also traveled to spend monday and tuesday viewing the project and getting to know the deaf leaders. Similar to anyone who has traveled to the ...
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Looking towards the New Year!!
Bonswa!! Greetings once again from the Chicago Suburbs. I write to you tonight a couple of days after our busy yet delightful Holiday festivities. I hope this post finds you all loving life and still enjoying time with good friends and family in this holiday season. It is snowing outside right now which means I must always follow my winter running rule - “when it is snowing late at night, I must get into my warm running gear and head out for a few miles in the woods.” In just a few more days I will no longer have the luxury of bundling up and heading out for a cold run in the middle of the night, so I will continue to take advantage of all of these quiet and snowy nights. So far this has been a very good Holiday break for me as I have been able to spend many hours around the fire with good friends, many early mornings and good books near a fire at Starbucks, great nights of conversation, movies, and games with family - to name just a few of our endeavors over the last couple of weeks. We ...
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The Importance of Storytelling
Bonjou!! Greetings from chilly Naperville, Illinois. I hope this post finds you all preparing for the holidays with your families and enjoying some time of relaxation together amidst the hustle and bustle of the season. I write to you today from a favorite coffee shop near my home in the Chicago suburbs. As I am home for the holiday season and spending many hours sharing stories with family and close friends, I have felt blessed for a chance to reflect on the first phase of our work together in Haiti. Many of you who know me know that storytelling and the sharing of fun adventures is one of my favorite endeavors in life - whether at the coffee shop, pub, at home around the fire, or at various remote locations around the world, I think the sharing of stories reminds us of the amazing stories that we are living. . . or could be living. As I am back in American culture and observing the activities around me I am reminded of the blessed purity of life that I experienced for long stints in the Himalayas of India and Nepal and the jungles of the ...
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Reflections On My First Months
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and looking forward to the holidays with family and friends. I write to you all tonight from the balcony of the Children’s Home where I currently reside. The stars are bright on a cloudless night and the Friday night noise of Port au Prince seems to surround us on all sides. I am heading home to Naperville, Illinois tomorrow in order to spend the holidays with my family and I must say that I am very excited for a short break and the festivity/energy that only time with family can bring. As I sit here tonight after a great day with the deaf community I am drawn to reflection regarding the last several months. In short, I can only say that it has been quite a ride. Frequently I look around me or just sit back and soak in a meeting with leaders in the deaf community that is taking place in a temporary wooden shelter on the outskirts of the most dangerous slum in the Western Hemisphere. I moved down here several months ago anticipating a crazy ride and many new challenges that come ...
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New Life in the Deaf Community!
Bonjou!! I write to you all early this morning at the start of another beautiful week in Haiti. The sun is just rising and I am actually in a long sleeve shirt in the pre-dawn chill (a little preparation for my travels to the midwest in 2 weeks!!). I hope this post finds you all loving life and finding fun winter adventures together. This week in the deaf community we added a new regular class to our educational programs that already include leadership training, 2 Bible studies, sign language for children, English for children and adults, music in Kreyol, English and Sign Language, and our various times of crazy fitness competitions :). This week we added a class for new mothers!! At the end of October, members of a team from 410 Bridge conducted a class for expectant mothers covering a lot of important information for the excited expectant mothers. Ending the class, the women on the team explained that they would like all of the expectant mothers to take time in relaxation and find some small measure of peace. The team proceeded to bring out basins of water, soaps and moisturizer to wash and massage the aching feet of the Haitian ...
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Holiday Field Trip
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life with great friends and grand adventures. I write to you tonight at the end of a very busy but phenomenal week in Haiti. We are as busy as ever writing grants, implementing education programs, planning for trips, building homes, conducting meetings, learning languages and many other endeavors that ensure I go to bed very tired at the end of each day!! A good feeling. The week finished with a beautiful trip up the mountains to a historic site called Fort Jacques. Friday the 18th was a national holiday here in Haiti and many of the leaders of the deaf community coordinated a little field trip to take in the celebration of thousands of people up on the mountain. The leaders graciously invited me to come along for the day and I happily accepted. Well, I showed up on friday morning to travel in true Haitian style, in a tap-tap bus (old and very colorful trucks now being used as public transportation). In America my guess would be that we would complain about being cramped if more than 8 ...
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Photo Mission
Bonswa!! I write to you all tonight during a beautiful sunset after a great day of work in the deaf community. As always I hope this message finds you all in the midst of adventures that make your heart race! Last week a team from Frazer United Methodist Church came to conduct a photo mission trip in the deaf community in order to capture family photos. In short, it was a wonderful week filled with a lot of laughter, great community, and an incredible relational dynamic between the team and hundreds of members of the deaf community. Once again we witness how true fellowship and a mutual interest in the stories of people from different cultures can transcend cultural and language barriers. Many members of the team had limited sign language at their command, but that rarely mattered as our professional photographers showed families their beautiful photos and shared simply that they are beautiful and that Jesus loves them. If I had to come up with one major theme of the week it would be laughter together. Many of the families and households broke out in infectious giggles as they viewed their photos and ...
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Awesome Story
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and finding great adventures that may scare you a little - This post is slightly different than my usual writings as today I want to share the incredible story of a remarkable person with you. While living in Haiti I have been blessed to meet and work with some amazing people who have overcome the types of challenges that most of us cannot even imagine. It is truly an honor and a privilege to work with this man on a daily basis and to have the opportunity to learn from one another. As many of you know, sharing life stories and collecting the stories of the amazing people I have met while traveling the world is a passion of mine. In Haiti, many of the stories I hear and share with people revolve around an indescribable and beautiful hope in the face of immeasurable heartbreak and tragedy. The people I spend everyday with in the deaf community embody the virtue of hope and service of one another. The first of many remarkable stories I hope to share on this blog, here is your introduction to 26 year old leader of the ...
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Encouragement in the US
Bonswa!! I hope this message finds you all doing well and loving life amidst grand adventures. I write to you today after a very busy but productive 6 days in the US. I flew into Atlanta last Wednesday to prepare for a meeting of several partners in the deaf community project on October 28th. It was wonderful to sit down with so many people who are passionate about working with the deaf community in Haiti. Other than 410 Bridge who ran the meeting, we had representatives from Frazer UMC (the major church partner on the deaf community project), Mission of Hope (the new partner that has made so much of our progress possible), International Deaf Emergency (IDE), Friends of Deaf Haiti, and the Foster Freiss Family Foundation. Everyone has thus far been incredibly generous with their time, efforts and resources and I look forward to our continued work together. It is great to be a part of a group of people who definitely would not have been brought together outside of a love for the deaf community in Haiti. The rest of my time in the states was spent in Montgomery, ...
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Provision and Challenges
Bonswa! I hope this post finds you loving life amidst some amazing and challenging adventures. Things continue to go well here in Haiti and it seems that my most common thought remains, “this cannot possibly be real life...” I should clarify that this thought almost always comes up in response to beautiful and challenging experiences down here that leave me in awe of provision and interesting people. Admittedly, I experience occasional low points and a heaviness of heart that is usually fleeting. These low points are to be expected in a journey in which I am far from home, incredibly challenged, and often isolated in a place where I spend my days speaking two languages I am still learning and working alongside people that are incredible but still much different than me in the scope of our lives. Overall, these challenges provide for a wonderful adventure, but that does not mean they won’t occasionally weigh on my heart. On sunday I took a true sabbath and enjoyed a joyride around Port au Prince, ate a solid meal at a nice restaurant, and read most of a good book at a quiet spot. I still left ...
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Teaching Languages With Music
Bonjou!! As always I wish you the continued experience of the abundant grace and peace of our Reigning King! I hope this message finds you loving life and pursuing grand adventures. Several weeks ago, the National Sign Language Choir was formed in our deaf community and the adults have continued to practice and enjoy singing together on a regular basis. After observing the passion with which so many of the adults are engaging in their project it has been on my heart to start a choir with the children of the community. Most of the children in the deaf community are hearing and love to sing. With this in mind we started a new children’s choir last week with the intentions of using their excitement to begin teaching them two new languages (english and sign language) using song. For this post I want to share with you a recent entry from my personal journal - here it is . . . “Dako - (ok) onto the endeavor that was pretty much the highlight of my day everyday this week - music and worship with the kids!!! I ...
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Competition Transcending Culture!
Bonswa! I hope this post finds you loving life and living grand adventures wherever you may be. It has been too long since my last post and I apologize for the delay. We have been extremely busy down here over the last few weeks. I promise to post often over the next week in order to catch you up on everything that has occurred recently. Last week I was privileged to spend 7 days with a team from Frazer United Methodist Church that came down to work in the deaf community and engage in fellowship with the great people there. I have other stories from the week but I first wanted to write about one of the coolest instances of transcending cultural barriers that I have ever experienced. The story begins when Sid Ogden, a team member who was experiencing back problems grabbed a rafter of a temporary shelter in order to stretch out his back. A leader from the deaf community immediately asked, “how many can you do?” Thus began what we will affectionately call “Man-FEST, 2011” in which every young man within the vicinity had to ...
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Leaders Rising to the Occasion
Bonswa!! I hope this message finds you all loving life. I apologize that it has been over a week since my last post, but I am also happy to report that my inability to sit and write for this blog is due to some new incredible partnerships, amazing meetings, and time spent with some “higher ups” from the US who traveled to Haiti to meet with the leaders of the deaf community to notify them of all of the new developments and also to begin answering all of the questions and concerns that are on the minds of the community. For my next post I hope to write just several short paragraphs with all of our new and exciting partnerships and developments with the deaf community. Admittedly, I found myself in tears at several points over the last week in working with the leadership council of the deaf community to prepare them for this meeting. The leaders of the community are eager to learn and continue developing as leaders who I will regularly look to in order to continuously revise goals and the projects aimed at meeting the goals of the deaf ...
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Incredible Support
Bonjou!! I hope this post finds you all loving life. While it has been another good start to the week here in Haiti I want to take this time to write about projects that are going on in the US and that are being run by good friends, family and churches all over the United States. Before beginning this project and a new life down here, many people spoke of how big our plans were and questioned the feasibility of getting anything done. There were others who were confident that communities, families, and the body of the church were key instruments of change and true transformation. I feel privileged to write today about many people who have become mobilized for the sake of our friends in the deaf community. The following examples show us all that each and every gift, talent and resource can be used to serve one another. Pursuing the development of a new library and community learning center, my parents and good friends in Naperville, Illinois set out to inform the administrators, teachers, students and parents of the need ...
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Great Developments
Bonjou! I write to you in the midst of a beautifully chilly dawn here in Haiti. I hope you all are well and finding grand adventures wherever you may be. The last week has been very busy with visits to the deaf community everyday, some long conversations with friends at colleagues at Frazer UMC and 410 Bridge, and a few tremendous storms. Last night I found myself quite content with a hot cup of Haitian coffee in hand after taking my shower in the midst of a terrific storm. It has been a very hot week in Haiti (as expected), but with the arrival of a big storm, we generally also welcome the arrival of much cooler weather. I awoke this morning in the pre-dawn gloom feeling ready for a full day around here at the orphanage with time split between games and fun with the kids, as well as some much needed time to write and reflect on the last week. I am enjoying my time in the deaf community even more this week as our relationships continue ...
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Settling In
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and finding amazing adventures. As I am now wrapping up the first month of this several year journey, I have been reflecting on the nature of many aspects of places we call home. While there is still a lot that can feel isolating in life here in Haiti, I am beginning to feel settled in here which is a great feeling. I have always said that there are very few material aspects of our lives that make us truly feel “comfortable.” In the knowledge and confidence that God is everywhere in His redeemed creation, my level of comfort in a place has always been determined by the people around me and a belief in what we were working for. From a material standpoint I have usually said, “good people, good books and good coffee... are all that we need.” Earlier this evening several long term residents of Haiti and I sat down over dinner to discuss a book titled “Erasing Hell” by Francis Chan (the book review will be ...
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Hope
Bonswa!! I hope this post finds you all loving life and experiencing grand adventures. Today I hear that some rough weather is headed our way so I ask you to please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers this week. There are hundreds of thousands of people currently living in tents and other very flimsy temporary homes. A hurricane of the magnitude that Irene is shaping up to be is a very scary thing for many down here. The first medical team to visit the deaf community left two days ago and I am once again residing at New Life Children’s Home. It is good to be back here and to see all of the kids. I missed them a lot over the last week and am happy to be back with them. We all still worship together and then hang out afterwards at 7:00 every night. This time every evening is one of the highlights of everyday. The following is an excerpt from my personal journal from yesterday that I want to share with you all . Every now ...
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Medical Clinic Days 2 and 3
Bonswa! I hope this message finds you doing well and loving life amidst the business of school starting and the approach of fall. I write to you tonight in the middle of a big storm that just rolled in off of the coast and has now turned into an incredible electrical storm over the mountains. The mission team in Haiti this week has continued to enjoy amazing fellowship and work with the deaf community. It is a joy to witness and be a part of two groups of people that on the surface seem to be drastically different but who have found the ability to laugh together, have fun together and serve one another. Many of the team members have commented on the seemingly endless patience of the residents of the deaf community. At the clinic, our friends all wait patiently and are always willing to pass the time by teaching everyone more sign language. The team from Frazer is eager to learn how to communicate with our new friends and in the midst of a language barrier, the deaf have been remarkably patient and encouraging. Once again we think about ...
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First Day of Medical Clinic
Bonswa!! As always I hope you are all loving life and finding amazing adventures. We had a very successful first day of the medical clinic and the team is currently unwinding before a traditional Haitian dinner. For the medical clinic this week we wanted to focus the project on the deaf community but will also be serving the hearing residents of the surrounding area on Thursday and Friday. Everyone scheduled for today showed up as well as a few dozen other friends from the deaf community. We all enjoyed the time in fellowship with the deaf as many people hung around all afternoon in order to teach our team members as much sign language as possible. Observing the development of relationships between the members of Frazer UMC and the residents of the deaf community was a true and beautiful illustration of mutual encouragement. Our non-medical personnel spent the majority of the afternoon running our makeshift pharmacy, learning sign language, and putting almost a thousand pounds of rice and corn-meal into hundreds of plastic baggies for dispersal to everyone who attends the clinic throughout the week. Starting ...
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Availability of Land
Bonswa! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving an adventurous life wherever you may be. I write to you this evening from the guest house of Medical Teams International (MTI) where I am staying with a wonderful medical team from Montgomery, Alabama who have come here to Haiti to run a free medical clinic for our friends in the deaf community. I must admit that even though I am only into my second week here as a resident of Haiti it is good to see many friendly faces from Frazer Church. For those of you who don’t know, Frazer United Methodist Church in Montgomery was my home church for the 18 months I spent in graduate school in the South. While my work down here as project coordinator will take me to many locations around Port au Prince and the entire country, I will be present for team trips to the deaf community as much as possible. Frazer has partnered with 410 Bridge to be a major community partner with the project with the deaf community. For our work with the deaf community, one of the largest ...
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Arrival in Haiti
Bonswa! I hope this post finds you all doing well and loving life wherever you may be. I write to you tonight at the end of a beautiful day in Haiti from the balcony of New Life Children’s Home and guest house. I am only six days into what is most likely a several year journey and already I find myself in the difficult situation of trying to articulate what has been an extremely busy and incredible start to this adventure. As many of you know, over the last ten years I have been able to travel extensively to some of the most remote corners of our world. From running with Kangaroos in the Outback, mountaineering in the Himalayas of India and Nepal, racing ostriches in Malaysia, to spearfishing and hunting wild boar in the jungles of the South Pacific, (to name a few) I have enjoyed and experienced some incredible adventures. However, all of those adventures have been small sidebars to the true reason for all travel and adventure - our call to obedience and service. Permeating all of these experiences is a fervent belief in the Lord’s abundant provision ...
