MONDAY November 8 – The road to Bwa Jera (day one)
Foundation Guillaume (FG) operates an elderly home, orphanage, clinic and a school. There is also a church on the property and an FM radio station. Before we have breakfast we go to the school for the morning assembly. The school has classes from Pre-k through 10th grade. The main school building where the houses the 3-year olds through 7th graders meet was damaged during the earthquake. Many of the interior walls of the building crumbled however the outer walls are still intact. Because they have no alternative, they continue to use this building.
Tina offers words of encouragement to the students before they are dismissed to their classes. We spend a few minutes looking in on several classes, speaking with some of students and teachers, and visit the computer lab which should be up and running by the end of the week. Mr. Elvis shares with us that most of the older children, 8th – 10th grade, have been at the school since its inception. FG has high standards, higher than required by the Haitian Education Commission. Students above the 5th grade who do not meet 70% proficiency (50% is the standard) are not allowed to continue at the FG School. Consequently, there are fewer than 12 students in each of the upper grades.
Most of the homes in the villages and hamlets which surround Plaisance were severely impacted by the earthquake. The walls of many homes are constructed of rocks and dried mud. The framing is made up of timber/sticks instead of lumber used in the US. Tin, tarps or dried palm frons are common materials used for roofing and the floors are most often compacted dirt or clay. Our plan for the week is to go into these areas to help people whose homes have been damaged but are livable and occupied. Because of the generosity of JJS Missions donors we will sew around $4,000 (USD) into our brothers and sisters while we are here. We will provide a weeks-worth of groceries, put up tarps where we can, pray with and encourage people we meet.
After a breakfast of pancakes and eggs we jump in our ride and head up the mountain. Our objective is to reach the village of Bwa Jera. We get halfway up the mountain and the devastation is evident. We decide to stop and help these folks.
People are very thankful that we stopped and freely invite us into their home. They often share their story with us. Averilia told us she was on her way further up the mountain when the earthquake hit. As she moved to the right she saw boulders headed that way and instinctively moved to the left only to notice more debris headed towards her. She told us she heard the voice of God tell her to sit still and she did just that. She sat still until the shaking stopped. She shared with us that she knew God spared her life. Mania said she was outside when the shaking started and had to run back into her home to rescue grandchild. We also met beautiful Cristela whose name means “Christ was there”. One of the most touching moments was when Delinson heard missionaries were around and brought his sister Jenita on a motorcycle for prayer. Jenita suffered an injury to her leg in January and, because of a supposed voodoo curse, didn’t seek medical attention for an extended time. As I prayed I assured them that OUR God is greater than the god of darkness but realized they had already seen the light, after all they sought us out.
TUESDAY November 9 – The road to Bwa Jera (day two)
Our goal today is to make it all the way to Bwa Jera. On our way we witness both the power of the earthquake and the majesty of our God.
As we are walking we see several people leading mules in our direction and pause to speak with them. The shared with us they are coming from the market and heading back home with goods to sell in their small village. Their roundtrip will take 14 hours…they left home at 4am and will get home around 6pm. We bless them with $5 (US) each which is the equivalent of what they would make selling their wares. They were excited and at least one of them breaks out into a praise dance. I am reminded of the lyrics, “little become much when you place it in the Master’s hands”.
We come across the home of Madam Marie which is covered in tarps and blankets. We remove the blankets and replace them with tarps to give her added protection against the weather. A local pastor tells us she faithfully cleans and cares for the church grounds. Mr. Elvis shares with us that Marie is on the list to receive a cinder-block and cement home when construction begins in the future. She is very gracious and thanks us for the food we leave her.
Madam Viergela’s home is covered in palm frons so we remove them and put up tarps. We learn there are a total of eight people living here including several elderly who would otherwise be homeless. She is also caring for a nephew who has some developmental challenges and cannot care for himself. I also ran came across Junette who had a smile so gorgeous that I took her picture and told her I would bring a printed copy when I returned.
I love reading these posts, Vernon! I am sitting alone in B305 and reading this is making my day!