Iowa Team Days 7 to 9

Sunday 28 January the team split into 2 groups. One group went with Greg and Barb and Jean Robert to the Maranatha Baptist Church of Bohoc – about a 5 to 10 minute walk from the HAFF dorm. It only takes that long because we have to walk all the way up the to front gate, backtrack on the road past the dorm and on to the church!

The second group, with Connie, George and Wood-Ky, went a bit further. About 25 minutes walk west of HAFF is the Missionary Church Association's Ebeneezer Church at LaJeune. Both groups enjoyed wonderful singing and worship and sermons – in Creole! Thank goodness for our wonderful young men translating! That afternoon was spent in various ways – all at a slower pace than the previous week.

Monday, 29 January the team was determined to get their list of jobs done! Dr Cheryl, Nate, Regina, Rhonda, Louise and Paul went with Carla, Jean Robert, Derold and Wood-Ky to Monac for clinic. Peggy, Amy, Ken and Andy went with Barb and Met Justin to deliver some of the chalkboards that had been made during the week. The chalkboards were given to those school that were fairly close, but in desperate need of them. 

Later in the day, the 4 chalkboard santas sanded....

and started varnishing (there was not enough varnish to finish) one of the cupboards for the dorm kitchen. They did a great job and it will look great when it is done!

Andy and Peggy and Amy all also helped Barb and Greg make some badges for the HAFF night guards (including Sophie the dog!) and for a man who will temporarily represent HAFF in Port for some government work.

Yesterday, Tuesday, 30 January, the team had breakfast, got packed up, posed for a team photo... 

took a HAFF staff (Barb Van Schoyck, Connie Curilla, Carla, Rachel, Colin and Becky Wilson and Greg Van Schoyck) photo....

and got on the truck....

and headed for the airport.

They should now be home in below freezing weather leaving HAFF with the bougainvilla blooming. We had a great week with them as they blessed us and blessed the Haitians. 

Adou Update & Yet Another Prayer Request

Thank you all for the prayers. The road finally opened up, Adou was able to get to Cange and our contact there was able to get him right in to see the doctor. The doctor looked at the test results and told Adou that they have a piece of equipment coming in that can do a further test. Then later, there is a liver specialist coming. The doctor wants Adou to come back both for the further test and to see the specialist. So. please keep praying -- that Adou's strength would keep up while he is waiting, that he can make it through at least 2 more trips to Cange and that the doctors can find some way to help him. Of course, divine healing would be a good thing to pray for, too! Thanks so much!

This is a photo of Genius Azemar, the man that carries water for the houses at HAFF. He is standing with his wife outside their home. Mme Genius is very sick. Dr Cheryl and Nate stopped this morning to see her. It appears that she has meningitis. She needs to be in the hospital at Pignon. But she refuses to go. Please pray that the Lord would change her mind, heal her and that He would protect her family from this highly contagious disease.

May the Lord bless you all for your prayers. 

Iowa Team Activities -- Days 3 through 6

Wednesday, 24 January 2007, we did not get a lot of digital photos of the team. We did get these photos of the sugar cane press the team visited in the evening. This technology has not changed much at all in over 500 years.

The press is driven by 2 bulls which walk around the press. The rollers of the press then turn and someone feeds the cane stalks between the rollers to extract the juice. The juice is then boiled down to molasses or further to rapadou in the straw covered shed you see in the background.

The press was near the home of Fordner Cadet, HAFF's assistant mechanic. Here Fr Fordner peels some cane for the team to chew. 

Thursday, 25 January, half the team went with Dr Cheryl and “Almost Dr” Nate to hold a clinic in the remote area of Guacimal, north and west of HAFF. It took about an hour and a half to get there and they saw 65 patients between 10:30 and 3:00! The rest of the team did many things at the HAFF campus including packing up oatmeal to be distributed to needy folks in the area (Peggy Hausler, Barb Van Schoyck and Louise Wolf-Novak)

and assembling the chalkboards that had been painted the day before (Colin Wilson, Rhonda Mebus and Paul Matzen).

At supper that evening, the team hosted Met Telius Berson, who works in HAFF's office. He is also a deacon at the local church. He talked to the team about the church in Haiti and about voodoo.

Friday, 26 January, I got lots of digital photos! Doctor Cheryl and Nate and a rotating staff of other team members saw close to 90 patients – 60 scheduled and about 30 BTI student walk-ins. 

Various ones helped take temperatures and blood pressures (Regina here with Wood-ky Cadet translating)

while Dr Cheryl (with Mme Telius Berson and her brother Derold Mompremier translating)

and Nate saw patients (with Rhonda Mebus and Geroge Cadet, 2nd from left, translating).

Paul graciously reviewed the steps for examining blood smears with Mme Telius and Mme Emmanuel, HAFF's clinic nurses. 

Colin Wilson and Ken Bronkhorst installed the completed basketball backboard.

Louise Wolf-Novak and Regina Arthur packed cornmeal for distribution.

Peggy Hausler and Amy Nicholson taught Rubens Jean and Bill Docteur, 2 of HAFF's Math teachers, to do sudoku.

It is a game they can introduce to their classes to help the students with math, problem solving and logic. In the afternoon, the non-clinic part of the team did home visitation to pray for people. 

Today, Saturday 27 January, several BTI students and their friends came to use the new basketball backboard.

Then, after breakfast, the team heard about the role of women in Haitian society and learned to make peanut butter. At left, the 9 step process is illustrated. Sort the peanuts, roast them, remove the skins, winnow the skins away, grind the peanuts once and then again, add some heated vegetable oil, mix well and taste!

Mme Destorel, the Van Schoycks' cook was the teacher.

Then the team headed off to make a medical house call and to visit the Pignon market. They had lunch in town at a snack bar and will continue with various projects this afternoon.  

Iowa Team Activities -- Day 2 & 3

Yesterday, 5 members of the team went to Campeche -- a remote rural area south and west of HAFF -- to hold a clinic in a church. The rest of the team built and painted a basket ball backboard, started making and painting chalkboards, helped in the Godly Woman class and helped me with computer problems.

This is part of the group of people that were waiting at Campeche.
At Campeche, Barb Van Schoyck (left) helped out in many ways where she was needed. Rhonda Mebus (right) took blood pressures and temperatures.
Carla Wilson helped where she was needed as well. The team took turns helping people find reading glasses.
Former BTI students Jean Robert Joseph (left) and George Cadet (right) were the Haitian translators. Jean Robert and George are both home on winter break from their first year as university students in the north of Haiti. We are blessed to have their help.