Mary and I arrived in Waynesville Thursday afternoon and are doing well. It was great to worship with our home church on Sunday morning and visit with friends and family. Below is a report from Gonaives, by Kara. It is also attached and on the Blog at love4haiti.blogspot.com Please keep the work in Jubilee in your prayers along with the task which we will be assigned. We are continually amazed at what our God is doing through the Body.
In the last newsletter I included a picture of Pastor John and Emory in front of the Pastor’s orphanage. That day we visited was the first day I met his wife-- who was very pregnant and smiling ear to ear. Their daughter was born two weeks ago, just a little over four pounds. The first week of her life was a battle; she fought a 106˚F fever and began struggling to breathe, an infection had set in her lungs. Martha Hanna and Kelly Morgan, two nurses from Georgia, had just gotten here, truly on God’s timing, and lovingly spent the next five days working to keeping oxygen pumping and IV’s flowing into her tiny body.
Once she gained enough strength and proved stable, I watched her parents gather their things and take Eznie home-- all the while realizing that had if God not sent Martha and Kelly here at that exact week, this story would have ended very differently. God’s kindness is breathtaking!
More BIG news! The school in Jubilee now has tiled floors. Many thanks to Tony and Saundra McNorton and all that supported the Jubilee Kids Fundraiser! The day the tile was set the kids immediately took their shoes off and rolled around, putting their faces on the cool tiles and running their tiny hands over the grout lines. We also officially have two tiled, painted bathrooms in Jubilee School!
The English class taught by Chris Greene, continues to grow in number and in depth. Chris is using phrases that not only teach vocabulary but great wisdom. The discussions coming from that room are astounding. The Interns also facilitate a Bible study for young adults, twice a week. Again, the questions, the discussions , the depth of hunger for truth are like fresh wind blowing through us all.
The “Greening of Jubilee” was blessed to get several loads of good dirt brought in and we are about ready to plant the raised bed. We have two wonderful gardeners working with us. Moise and Jackyby. Pray for the Greening to become sight!
Chris Greene, Josh and Ben Rustin, and Isaac Gardener broke ground on the construction of their “adobe” dwelling in Jubilee. We drove down to Leogane, Haiti last week to investigate these super-adobe houses built after the earthquake and learn from what those builders accomplished. What we found were inexpensive, relatively easily constructed, houses that were strong, efficient and drastically cooler than the outside temperature. Right now the guys are temporarily living in one of the new poured concrete houses in the Jubilee neighborhood. This alone is creating new depths of relationships in Jubilee. The community is so happy to have them there. They “protect” these guys and give them lots of motherly advice! They will move into their adobe house as soon as possible. We will report the progress!
The Marketable Arts , Trade School : we are forming friendships and beginning to collaborate with other artisan groups here is Haiti…taking it step by step. The ApParent Project in PAP let us “borrow” one of their interns last week to come give new perspective and ideas to the jewelry portion of the trade school. It was both an affirmation of progress already made and a boost in continuing to help the ladies’ refine their craft. We are so thankful . God is allowing us to build toward healthy, life giving businesses that give families options , hope and the ability to feed and educate their children!
The Medical Training aspect of the TradeSchool has expanded three fold since its inception last spring. Martha Hanna is now leading nurses to teach in two hospitals here, in service training on a weekly basis, She is training a class of 12 in Jubilee to be potential nurses aids, to have real paying jobs in the Hospital! And she will begin teaching in the Gonaives Nursing School in November. Mid-Wife training begins Monday with two Mid Wives coming from Georgia to add to the knowledge of the practicing Mid Wives here. This makes such a difference ! Needless suffering ends sometimes with a passing on of some basic information. So thankful these ladies are willing to come ! Pray for Martha, her plate is very very full!
As for me, Kara Morrissey, talking to people and writing it all down has been my “job” here, one that, at times, seems daunting, but has proved to be very rewarding. In every conversation I have felt the heavy presence of God’s hand, opening doors and allowing trust to be built at supernatural speeds. I have been exposed to things and ideas and stories that I could never have imagined. One of the most beautiful things has been catching myself, in the middle of hearing about Jubilee and Gonaives history, wondering if we were still talking about the same place. I love that some of the horrors I have been told these past couple weeks seem unimaginable because of how much progress has been made.
“You cannot just take vices from the people-- you must fill their hands with something better, and they will naturally drop the violence, the addiction, and the selfishness. They, instead, will cling to their new vision.” -Addison, a leader in Jubilee
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