Blog Changes

Again, it has been a while since I have posted anything to either blog. It has been a busy time again and I was also away for a week. More about that later. Today marks a shift in the emphasis on both this blog and the HAFF Details blog. This blog will return to being mostly about me and my activities at HAFF and in Haiti. The HAFF Details blog will now be a team blog -- one to which several people can post. So, in the coming days and weeks, hopefully you will start to see posts to HAFF Details from Barb or Greg Van Schoyck and Colin or Carla Wilson as well as me. So check from time to time to see what's new!

Teams and Conferences

So. What has been keeping me so busy? We had 2 teams from Long Island back to back. I was busy planning meals and market lists for them. Once they got here, I helped translate for them.

The first team had 2 pastors and preached in 2 different churches.

Then during the week, they did Bible Studies and seminars for men and women

both here at HAFF and in various churches around the area

The second team did more work with women's and childrens groups.

But in the middle of the second team, I went to Les Cayes on the south coast of Haiti. Colin and Carla Wilson and Ely Mompremier (HAFF Farm Manager) and Millius Hillaire (HAFF Ag Extentionist) went as well and we attended an Konferans Agrikol 2007 (Agricultural Conference 2007).

We spent 5 days in the lovely lush area near Les Cayes learning about the environment, biodiversity, fruit and forestry trees and ecotourism

There was also a whole lot of networking going on!
I spent most of my time in registration and the book store making name badges, making certificates and duplicating conference audio tapes.

We had the opportunity to fly to the conference and back with Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). We flew over parts of Haiti I had never seen before! This is Pignon Mountain and the town of Pignon and the landing strip. Thanks Carla for this and the following photos!
The Central Plateau due west of Pignon,

the Artibonite River valley,

the cell phone towers at St Michel,

the Bay of Gonave.

On the way back, we flew around the HAFF campus -- it was hard to see with all the trees! Compare the following photos with the photos posted 12 September 2006!

Guards, Gazebos, Weather and Baby Birds

This is what you see as you enter the front gate of HAFF. This view is in the process of changing very quickly. Just beyond the tree on the left will be the new gazebo for the guards.
This is Poles the day-time gate guard sitting in the middle of the new gazebo yesterday afternoon! The footers are being dug even more today. If you want more details about this job, you can find them at www.haffdetails.blogspot.com. Click on this link or on the link on the sidebar to take you there.
Yesterday was the third day of me providing a new service for the community of Bohoc. Thanks to Accu-Weather (based in State College, PA), I can check the weather forecast for Pignon and Hinche and reproduce a 15 day chart showing what days will have rain, clouds, clear skies, wind or will be hot or cold! Fr Poles posts the charts on the brick post by the front gate. And Genius, who carries water for the houses, is always eager to see the new chart for the day! I think I am creating some weather junkies!!!

By the way, you can check out the weather forcast for Pignon for yourself -- I have added an Accu-Weather forcast box to the sidebar of this blog!
One of the joys of being a homeschool student is the flexibility of the schedule. This morning Carla Wilson mentioned that today would be a weird homeschool day. While she and Rachel were out doing some morning Agriculture work, they found 2 baby birds fallen out of their nest. We are not sure what kind of birds they are. The Haitians call them katdje (cat-djay). We are told they eat all kinds of fruit, so the Wilsons will try to raise these babies at home. But first they will have to find a way to protect them from Belle and Beni, the cats. Both cats recently had kittens (Belle 4 and Beni 2) and might think Mom and Rachel brought them a nice lunch!

Long Time No Post

It has been a couple weeks since I posted anything to the blog. Since the second Michigan team left we have been busy getting ready for the HAFF board meeting that took place last Saturday (5 May). The time between when the team left and then Greg and Barb left to attend the meeting was spent in meetings here in Haiti to get a proposed busget and other information ready for the board. Even the week Greg was gone (Barb comes back Tuesday), Colin and I were working on finding more information to email to the Van Schoycks and the board treasurer as they worked on the financial report for the meeting. Now we are busy again gearing up for 2 back to back teams from Long Island and working toward new teacher contracts for the coming school year.

New Christian Curriculum

This year has been an exciting one for Justin Mompremier's Primary School Teacher Training Program -- PALP (see 7 February 2006 post). There is an organization in Haiti called the Consortium for the Reinforcement of Christian Education in Haiti (CRECH). For a number of years they have been working on a Christian curriculum for the Primary Schools in Haiti.

That curriculum is now complete and CRECH and HAFF are partnering in a pilot program through the schools in HAFF's PALP program. Through generous donations, HAFF has been able to obtain enough books for 25 of the 46 PALP schools to start using the CRECH curriculum

Met Ostel, the local CRECH representative, has trained the teachers in the use of the books and he and Met Justin are following up with the schools.

The books are beautiful and address a different aspect of Christianity each school year giving students scripture to memorize, activities and a Bible story all relating to specific Christian character traits.

1st grade is "On the Road Toward the Father"

2nd grade is "The Love of Jesus"

3rd grade is "Living as a Christian"

4th grade is "The Holy Spirit and Us"
5th grade is "Living in Brotherhood"

Met Justin says that if this curriculum could be in all the primary schools in Haiti, it could change Haiti in 10 years. Please pray for this important program.

Guards' Gazebo

HAFF has undertaken yet another construction project! Beginning today, a small gazebo will be rising near the front gate. It will be a place where the guards can sit out of the sun and the rain and still have a good view of the front gate. It will have a palm frond roof so they can still hear during Haiti's torrential rainy season rains!

This morning Greg and Colin met with construction boss Elicien Etienne to discuss the plans.


While they were talking, the "demolition boss" was removing the last stump to clear the land for the foundation.