We just returned from an amazing trip to Haiti with an enthusiastic group from Mt. Marty College in Yankton, South Dakota. On this January 2020 trip, we were joined by students Emily Vande Kop, Elizabeth Bauer, and Kiley Burggraff as well as Assistant Director of Campus Ministry, Sister Rosemarie Maly. These ladies gave a lot, and received even more in return. Most importantly, we went up and down the mountain, holding hands with the children and feeling God’s presence as we traded smiles with our newfound friends. The smiles penetrated the language barrier and became the one thing that they had as much to share with us as we did with them.
The Mt. Marty group served in many ways. They visited a 4th generation, 125- year-old sugar cane mill near LePina. We delivered friendship bags to the owners of the mill, and watched the process of pressing out the syrup from the sugar cane.
By far the most popular event for the team was the pillow case dress fashion show held at the mission house. Girls of different ages picked out dresses made from pillow cases, and a few of the girls got to model for us complete with a photo shoot! The pillow case dresses were designed by Phyllis Knutson, a friend of ours from Sioux Falls. How can you not fall in love with these precious girls?
The team was able to visit many families in their homes. The house on the left is what you would typically find in Haiti (and oftentimes even smaller in size compared to this one). It has a leaky roof, no ventilation, a dirt floor and no security. The houses below, built by Helping Hands for Haiti for just $3,000.00 per house, are a part of the Mauger Housing Project. When finished it will provide 100 new or remodeled homes to the mission house area in the next year. These homes have cement floors, proper ventilation, roofs that don’t leak and are modest but safe and secure.
A few of the other ways we contributed were:
- Packed over 80 friendship bags with beans, rice, oil, toothbrushes, toothpaste, lotion, combs, deodorant and a towel and distributed them at LePina and the mission house area.
- Distributed Children’s Bibles and Days for Girls at LePina, Jumelle, and Savane a Roche.
- Delivered over 100 children’s books (in Creole) for a new library in the Verrettes school.
- Purchased formula for a three-month-old baby whose mother had no milk. We also bought formula to leave at the mission house for future similar situations.
- Provided transportation and funds for a C-section at HAS.
- Repaired an all terrain wheelchair for a young girl.
- Provided grant money for an agronomist in Jumelle for a fruit tree project as well as business start-ups for 10 women in the Mauger area.
We struggled in our evening devotions to find answers to why we were blessed with so much and why they had so little. We left a piece of our broken hearts in Haiti. But we hope to return soon, and we will forever be changed by our experience.
