Family and Friends,
Day 83 of our Haiti Adventure!
To follow up on the post about John, the decision was made that he will finish out the school year in the orphanage and then return to live with his mother this coming summer. We will continue to pray that this is the best arrangement for him and the transition will go smoothly.
Yesterday the team from New Life Reformed, Sioux Center, headed back to the US. They had a good week down here working on a variety of projects. There are too many memories to mention right now, but two projects come to mind that will undoubtedly have a lasting impact. First of all the men worked hard on building a roof for one of our new orphanage buildings. After watching the whole process the main contractor in this community told us he was very impressed and plans to use the design on future projects. That was a nice compliment for the guys. Also, many of the team members, mostly women, set up and staffed the new preschool for the week. We are hoping the Haitian teachers will catch on to the vision and be able to effectively utilize (and not destroy, steal, or sell) all the new learning tools in the classroom.
Yesterday was also Alexandra's 4th birthday, and we had a fun time celebrating. Special thanks to Alcester Baptist Church, who sent us a couple of pizza kits, complete with crust mix and sauce and Parmesan cheese. We were also able to score some pepperoni and mozzarella cheese from the nearby city of Les Cayes. To top it all off we made cupcakes! It was a nice little celebration. The kids also had a tea time in the clubhouse with fruit snacks and lemonade. Alexandra probably had “Happy Birthday” sung to her about twenty times, so she was happy and worn out by the end of the day. In the morning she was a little concerned that she wasn't really four yet, because she didn't seem any bigger. We assured her that getting bigger would take some time.
Another big change this week was my (Cory) new teaching schedule. I had the chance to actually substitute teach at the local high school on four different days of the week. I taught English class for 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. It was a lot of fun. They aren't paying me or anything, so I figure I can do whatever I want to help them learn without fear of being fired. We read simple books for children in English, composed stories, sang songs, and laughed a lot. They taught me some Creole, too. The classes were a lot of fun, and I think the students appreciated not being beaten by the teacher! I also had the chance to help our friend Chelo start a new English school in a nearby village. It is another good chance for me to practice teaching and possibly recruit future students for the Bible School.
We found ourselves a little bit overwhelmed by the number of people in the yard this week. We had an extra 20 Americans to host, and whenever Mike and Pam (Mission Haiti Directors) are here the locals get a little rambunctious. There were usually several dozen of them waiting at the gate or in the yard throughout the day. People and bags and tools were stacked on Lynn's wheelchair ramps, which adds to the stress. It always feels a little awkward when you have to sit down in the middle of a crowd of hungry people to eat your lunch or read your Bible.
Mike and Pam had some good conversations and meetings this week with some of the Haitian staff and us. We decided to scale back some of the things we are doing, because they aren't getting the results we are hoping for. It was really refreshing. We also decided to set up an office in the community for people to come and receive the different items for the sponsor program such as shoes, backpacks, medication, etc... Imagine 1600 different students and their families coming to your house at any hour of any day to get that stuff. That won't be as much of a problem anymore.
So we are looking forward to a quiet week before the next team comes.
May God bless your adventure today and this week!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Sunday, January 30, 2011
One-hundred Fold- How Can Iowans Help Haitian Farmers?
Family and Friends,
Something happened a couple of weeks ago that has continued to pass through my mind every day, and I thought it would be good to share the memory with everyone who reads this so you can think and pray about it as well.
You might remember that First Reformed Church Sioux Center was here on a mission trip, a group comprised of many people with farming backgrounds, and our theme that week had to do with farming and hard work and faith in God. At the end of the last meeting Patchouko, our Youth Pastor and Facilities Director, thanked the team for the messages and testimonies but also asked a challenging question of the group. He said something like, “American farmers are prospering and growing huge amounts of food. Haitian farmers work hard all day every day and barely produce enough food to survive. What can you do and what will you do to help us?”
Understand that Patchouko gets the big picture. In other words, he wasn't asking if the Americans would give handouts to the Haitians or anything like that. He knows that the best way to help people is through education and partnership and development. He comes from Port-au-Prince and is very familiar with both effective and ineffective American ministries in Haiti. So his question was really asked to challenge the team to consider partnering with the community long-term. He was saying, “You have taught us truth from God's Word, but are you willing to nurture these seeds you have planted and see them through to harvest?”
Speaking of planting seeds, if you study Jesus' parable about the seeds and the sower (Matt. 13, Luke 8, and Mark 4), you will see that God is able to multiply the seed 100 times when it is planted on good soil. I was thinking about that number, because I like math, and it connected with something one of the farmers said during that week in January. He said, “This was possibly the best corn crop ever in the region where we work. Many farmers average at or above 200 bushels of corn per acre.”
That is truly amazing and a true blessing from God. Conversely, if you look at a typical Haitian corn field, it is hard to imagine that they yield more than 1 or 2 bushels per acre from their land. The individual plants are weak and spaced very far apart. Also, each ear of corn normally only grows about one fourth the kernels of what the ear of corn in Iowa grows. So simple math tells you that back home in Iowa God is blessing us each year at a rate of approximately 100 times what the Haitian farmer receives.
So we need to wrestle with the questions, What is God up to in all of this? Why is He consistently blessing one people so much more than another? What do we need to learn from this, and what is He asking us to do?
Haiti seems like a faraway place when you live in the upper Midwest of the USA, but we are linked by history. A little over two hundred years ago Haiti was the most prosperous colony in the new world by far, exporting most of the world's coffee, sugar, and tobacco. In fact, at one point France seriously debated over whether to keep Haiti or Canada. Around 1800 Haiti broke free from colonial powers and began their own country, but France attempted a few times to recapture the lucrative little island. During the reign of Napoleon forces were sent to try again, and money was running low. This was part of the reason why France decided to sell the Louisiana Purchase to the United States for pennies on the dollar. As you probably remember from grade school, that immense piece of land included all of Iowa and the majority of what we would call the upper Midwest today. So the rich land we farm today was sold to generate money to try to re-enslave the people of Haiti.
How many of us reading this post have benefited from these events in history? Our ancestors moved to Iowa and Minnesota and South Dakota with the hope of a new life, religious freedom, and prosperity...and we their descendants have received all of these things and more. Now a new chapter is being written in the story as many of us have received a burden from God to spread both our monetary wealth and our wealth of knowledge and education and faith.
II Cor. 8:14-15 says: “At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: “He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little.” (a quote of Exodus 16:18)
I don't know exactly how the farmers from Iowa can help the farmers from Haiti. I personally know little to nothing about farming in either country. All I know is that our lands were linked together in the past, and it appears that God is linking them together in some kind of shared future. What that will look like only God knows...but what a privilege to be here and see the Holy Spirit working all things out for God's glory.
God Bless,
The Grimms
Something happened a couple of weeks ago that has continued to pass through my mind every day, and I thought it would be good to share the memory with everyone who reads this so you can think and pray about it as well.
You might remember that First Reformed Church Sioux Center was here on a mission trip, a group comprised of many people with farming backgrounds, and our theme that week had to do with farming and hard work and faith in God. At the end of the last meeting Patchouko, our Youth Pastor and Facilities Director, thanked the team for the messages and testimonies but also asked a challenging question of the group. He said something like, “American farmers are prospering and growing huge amounts of food. Haitian farmers work hard all day every day and barely produce enough food to survive. What can you do and what will you do to help us?”
Understand that Patchouko gets the big picture. In other words, he wasn't asking if the Americans would give handouts to the Haitians or anything like that. He knows that the best way to help people is through education and partnership and development. He comes from Port-au-Prince and is very familiar with both effective and ineffective American ministries in Haiti. So his question was really asked to challenge the team to consider partnering with the community long-term. He was saying, “You have taught us truth from God's Word, but are you willing to nurture these seeds you have planted and see them through to harvest?”
Speaking of planting seeds, if you study Jesus' parable about the seeds and the sower (Matt. 13, Luke 8, and Mark 4), you will see that God is able to multiply the seed 100 times when it is planted on good soil. I was thinking about that number, because I like math, and it connected with something one of the farmers said during that week in January. He said, “This was possibly the best corn crop ever in the region where we work. Many farmers average at or above 200 bushels of corn per acre.”
That is truly amazing and a true blessing from God. Conversely, if you look at a typical Haitian corn field, it is hard to imagine that they yield more than 1 or 2 bushels per acre from their land. The individual plants are weak and spaced very far apart. Also, each ear of corn normally only grows about one fourth the kernels of what the ear of corn in Iowa grows. So simple math tells you that back home in Iowa God is blessing us each year at a rate of approximately 100 times what the Haitian farmer receives.
So we need to wrestle with the questions, What is God up to in all of this? Why is He consistently blessing one people so much more than another? What do we need to learn from this, and what is He asking us to do?
Haiti seems like a faraway place when you live in the upper Midwest of the USA, but we are linked by history. A little over two hundred years ago Haiti was the most prosperous colony in the new world by far, exporting most of the world's coffee, sugar, and tobacco. In fact, at one point France seriously debated over whether to keep Haiti or Canada. Around 1800 Haiti broke free from colonial powers and began their own country, but France attempted a few times to recapture the lucrative little island. During the reign of Napoleon forces were sent to try again, and money was running low. This was part of the reason why France decided to sell the Louisiana Purchase to the United States for pennies on the dollar. As you probably remember from grade school, that immense piece of land included all of Iowa and the majority of what we would call the upper Midwest today. So the rich land we farm today was sold to generate money to try to re-enslave the people of Haiti.
How many of us reading this post have benefited from these events in history? Our ancestors moved to Iowa and Minnesota and South Dakota with the hope of a new life, religious freedom, and prosperity...and we their descendants have received all of these things and more. Now a new chapter is being written in the story as many of us have received a burden from God to spread both our monetary wealth and our wealth of knowledge and education and faith.
II Cor. 8:14-15 says: “At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: “He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little.” (a quote of Exodus 16:18)
I don't know exactly how the farmers from Iowa can help the farmers from Haiti. I personally know little to nothing about farming in either country. All I know is that our lands were linked together in the past, and it appears that God is linking them together in some kind of shared future. What that will look like only God knows...but what a privilege to be here and see the Holy Spirit working all things out for God's glory.
God Bless,
The Grimms
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Dear John
Family and Friends,
Day 79 of our Haiti Adventure!
Today we post with mixed emotions. The missing mother of John, one of the boys in the orphanage, miraculously showed up today. Mike and Pam had been led to believe she died in the earthquake with the rest of John's family. John had been dropped off out here in the country to live with some uncle/cousin who turned out to be a terrible caretaker of children. That was why John had been living in the orphanage most of this past year.
So today everything changed for John. His mother showed up, and it turns out his other four siblings did die in the earthquake. The dad is alive but the mother doesn't know where he is. John's mother also has a newborn baby now. She showed up and Mike and Pam have begun to discuss with her what will be best for John. She seems like a good lady and obviously she has the right to take her son home to live, but it will be a hard adjustment for everyone involved if that is what happens.
I haven't spoken yet with the other kids in the orphanage to see how they are reacting, but our kids seem a little bit stunned by the whole thing. I asked Kester, "Will you be sad if John goes to live with his mom in Port-au-Prince?" Kester replied with a distant look in his eyes, "Yeah, he's my best friend." Alexandra said she doesn't want John to leave, and right now John himself is afraid to leave the safety of the orphanage. He is ten years old, but not seeing your parents for over a year and gradually getting used to the idea that they were dead takes a toll for sure. Now he may have to conceive of an entirely different life once again.
So we are praying that God will make sure John ends up in the best situation possible. Please join us in praying.
The team from New Life is here and hard at work. Tonight we will have a "concert of prayer and praise" with the youth group.
God Bless!
-The Grimms
Day 79 of our Haiti Adventure!
Today we post with mixed emotions. The missing mother of John, one of the boys in the orphanage, miraculously showed up today. Mike and Pam had been led to believe she died in the earthquake with the rest of John's family. John had been dropped off out here in the country to live with some uncle/cousin who turned out to be a terrible caretaker of children. That was why John had been living in the orphanage most of this past year.
So today everything changed for John. His mother showed up, and it turns out his other four siblings did die in the earthquake. The dad is alive but the mother doesn't know where he is. John's mother also has a newborn baby now. She showed up and Mike and Pam have begun to discuss with her what will be best for John. She seems like a good lady and obviously she has the right to take her son home to live, but it will be a hard adjustment for everyone involved if that is what happens.
I haven't spoken yet with the other kids in the orphanage to see how they are reacting, but our kids seem a little bit stunned by the whole thing. I asked Kester, "Will you be sad if John goes to live with his mom in Port-au-Prince?" Kester replied with a distant look in his eyes, "Yeah, he's my best friend." Alexandra said she doesn't want John to leave, and right now John himself is afraid to leave the safety of the orphanage. He is ten years old, but not seeing your parents for over a year and gradually getting used to the idea that they were dead takes a toll for sure. Now he may have to conceive of an entirely different life once again.
So we are praying that God will make sure John ends up in the best situation possible. Please join us in praying.
The team from New Life is here and hard at work. Tonight we will have a "concert of prayer and praise" with the youth group.
God Bless!
-The Grimms
Monday, January 24, 2011
Little Snapshots
Family and Friends,
Day 77 of our Haiti Adventure!
Everyday life goes by in a flash, whether you live in Haiti or the US or somewhere else, and all we are left with are little snapshots...the memories that for some reason stick with us for a few days, a few years, or forever. Lately I (Cory) have been seeing many interesting things for the first time and taking little mental snapshots. I have also been trying to see life down here through the eyes of my kids, and I have been wondering what they will remember from these early days in Haiti.
Here are some interesting, funny snapshots:
1. A boy pulling a toy car through the streets by a string. Upon closer inspection I discovered that the car was an empty quart of oil, and the wheels were four oil quart lids. How creative!
2. Ten kids running through the streets led by one kid with a long, thin string attached to the tail of a dragonfly. The dragonfly would fly up into a tree or land on a bush. Then the kids would pull him back, let him go, and chase him some more.
3. One man on a motorcycle with his leg outstretched and his foot pushing another man on a motorcycle.
4. A man carrying a pig on a motorcycle.
5. A man carrying a mattress on a motorcycle.
6. A man dragging about a ton of re-bar on a motorcycle.
7. A house under construction with a cornfield inside the walls.
8. Alexandra pushing Elyse (who is 6 foot 5 or so) on a baby swing and telling him, "I'm your mommy!"
9. Elizabeth (our kindergartener) reading in English to several Haitian children.
10. All three kids totally engrossed in a big game of UNO with the youth group boys.
These are just a few of the many snapshots from our days down here in Haiti. We feel a little more adjusted to life here each day, though we long for the day when we will have our own home to live in. After examining the new compound this afternoon I can say that it won't be so long until that becomes a reality! They are really working over there.
Well, the team will be here soon and we better be ready. A large team is arriving today from New Life Reformed, Sioux Center, Ia. Please pray for them and us and the people of Haiti whom we will hopefully impact this week. Pray that God will move in powerful ways.
Hope your adventure is an amzing one today!
-The Grimms
 |
| Playing in the clubhouse...having a tea party with graham cracker soup |
Day 77 of our Haiti Adventure!
Everyday life goes by in a flash, whether you live in Haiti or the US or somewhere else, and all we are left with are little snapshots...the memories that for some reason stick with us for a few days, a few years, or forever. Lately I (Cory) have been seeing many interesting things for the first time and taking little mental snapshots. I have also been trying to see life down here through the eyes of my kids, and I have been wondering what they will remember from these early days in Haiti.
Here are some interesting, funny snapshots:
1. A boy pulling a toy car through the streets by a string. Upon closer inspection I discovered that the car was an empty quart of oil, and the wheels were four oil quart lids. How creative!
2. Ten kids running through the streets led by one kid with a long, thin string attached to the tail of a dragonfly. The dragonfly would fly up into a tree or land on a bush. Then the kids would pull him back, let him go, and chase him some more.
3. One man on a motorcycle with his leg outstretched and his foot pushing another man on a motorcycle.
4. A man carrying a pig on a motorcycle.
5. A man carrying a mattress on a motorcycle.
6. A man dragging about a ton of re-bar on a motorcycle.
7. A house under construction with a cornfield inside the walls.
8. Alexandra pushing Elyse (who is 6 foot 5 or so) on a baby swing and telling him, "I'm your mommy!"
9. Elizabeth (our kindergartener) reading in English to several Haitian children.
10. All three kids totally engrossed in a big game of UNO with the youth group boys.
These are just a few of the many snapshots from our days down here in Haiti. We feel a little more adjusted to life here each day, though we long for the day when we will have our own home to live in. After examining the new compound this afternoon I can say that it won't be so long until that becomes a reality! They are really working over there.
Well, the team will be here soon and we better be ready. A large team is arriving today from New Life Reformed, Sioux Center, Ia. Please pray for them and us and the people of Haiti whom we will hopefully impact this week. Pray that God will move in powerful ways.
Hope your adventure is an amzing one today!
-The Grimms
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Lynn's Typical Day
Family and Friends,
Day 73 of our Adventure in Haiti!
Have a great Adventure today!
Day 73 of our Adventure in Haiti!
Many people have asked what Lynn's typical day looks like. What does she do in Haiti? Well, first of all you have to understand that living in Haiti almost necessitates the removal of the word “typical” from your vocabulary, because things are always changing from day to day. However, there are some things that Lynn does on a regular basis that you might find interesting.
When we get up in the morning we start the process of feeding the kids breakfast, visiting the bathroom (outhouse), and getting dressed like any other family. The room has to be rearranged because our living quarters consists of a 12 X 14 (or so) room where we all sleep at night. The other day I finally found a decent mattress for Lynn and me, so now we are off the army cots. Each of the kids sleeps on a cot, and we sort of stack them on one side of the room to make room during the day. We lean the mattress against the wall.
All of these little chores take time and organization, and Lynn tries to help the kids keep moving and doing what they need to do. She also tries to find a few minutes early in the morning to have a cup of coffee and some devotional time. Sometimes she also takes her bath in the morning. I bring in a five-gallon bucket of water, and she uses a rubbermaid container as a bathtub.
On weekdays around 8 o'clock we try to start the homeschool activities which look something like this:
- Devotions and prayer
- Bible Study
- Bible Memorization
- History/Geography/Missionary stories
- Math
- Language Arts
- Recess/Snack
- Science
- Special Activity (not every day...art, music, etc...)
- Review Bible Memorization
Lynn overseas all of these classes and makes sure we are on track with everything. I just help out when I am home with a few of the things on the list. This program has been going well and we normally finish with plenty of time before lunch, long before the orphanage kids return home from their school in the village.
Here are some other things Lynn often does on a “typical” day:
- Bake bread
- Wash dishes
- Read books to all 14 kids (3 of ours, 11 in the orphanage)
- Give rides up and down the sidewalk
- Meet with various members of the youth group to talk and practice Creole
- Attend Youth Group Bible Study
- Prepare Supper for family/team
- Attend the Children's Bible Study in the afternoon
Lynn is also beginning to work with the distribution of the various “in-country” budget items for Mission Haiti. She attends church in the village on Sundays and occasionally gets out for a home visit or other special event. She also helps with our new english class. Sometimes team members ask us, “How can you stand having 50 people from the village on your yard all day every day without going nuts?” First of all, the crowds increase dramatically when a team is visiting, especially if Pam is with them, so normally it isn't like that. Also, having people come to us is really nice since Lynn is limited in her mobility.
I want to share something related to this post that you might find interesting. Three different Haitians came to us and told us they had dreams about Lynn being miraculously healed. They saw her get out of her wheelchair and walk. That would be amazing! Who knows, if God can speak and create the world out of nothing, every other miracle we can conceive of would be easy for Him. So we will be bold and crazy enough to pray for those dreams to come true, and my secret hope is that the youth group would be the ones who pray for her when she is healed, that their faith would be strengthened forever.
Have a great Adventure today!
God Bless,
The Grimms
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
First Reformed Sioux Center Visits Mission Haiti
Family and Friends,
Day 71 of our Adventure in Haiti!
Just an hour or so ago I said “goodbye” to the team from First Reformed Church, Sioux Center, Iowa. There were also a few other people from two other Reformed churches who came on the team as well. All of them did a great job here with a variety of ministries and projects, from clinics to repair to cement work to VBS programs to english classes to just helping out in any way they could. They left to travel to Port-au-Prince during the day, just in case any political uprisings take place tonight. They will fly out and head home tomorrow.
It was really meaningful for me (Cory) to help lead a team of people from the church where I grew up. Two of the couples were the actual youth leaders who used to take me on mission trips in the summers, so we have really come full-circle. I even joked with the Haitian youth group that, “I thought they were all old back when I was in High School, but they are still going on mission trips!”
I think the overall feeling I will remember from this team is one of them being rock-solid in faith and commitment, which is no surprise. Most teams that come down here go through some pretty dramatic times of emotional adjustment when they are confronted with the poverty and the stark living conditions and the spiritual atmosphere. This group did a great job of wrestling with some of the difficult questions we face, yet they never wavered in their belief that Jesus Christ is the answer.
We did something unique this week. We talked about farming with the youth group each night, because many people on the mission team either farm for a living or grew up farming or at least are very familiar with the basic ideas. The young people here seem to be ashamed of farming and resistant to learning and carrying on the agricultural traditions of Haiti. We talked about that and applied God's Word to the situation. But when it was all said and done, Verlyn Raak probably gave the most impactful testimony of the week when he simply said, “I'm proud to be a farmer.” He and his wife Nancy also talked about how they see their work on the farm as mission work as they feed the people of the world.
Something funny you NW Iowa people will appreciate...Lynn's mom Ardith sent my favorite treat, Almond patties, to the Mission Haiti office about five or six weeks ago inside a care package. At that time Pam was coming a trip, but there was no room for the treats. In Pam's defense, I don't think she knew there was food in the package. Anyway, they finally made it down here on January 13, and they were in perfect shape! I think God did a miracle. Yum.
Alexandra fell on the cement and bruised/scrapred up her face pretty good, but she is fine now. Just yesterday a boy from the mountain came down and showed us his broken arm which he had kept untreated in a sling for weeks...it made Alexandra's injuries seem pretty small. He got an X-ray in the city today, and one of the wrist bones was broken clean in half. He will go back next Monday to get it fixed, hopefully.
In five days we will welcome another team from Sioux Center, from New Life Reformed Church. It should be another great week of ministry. I will try to update the blog several times before they come. We have so much to share because God is working powerfully every day we are here!
We hope you are all doing well and enjoying your adventure with Jesus!
God Bless,
The Grimm Family Adventurers
 |
| Verlyn and Cody Raak and Troy Van De Berg pouring a sidewalk for Lynn's wheelchair...right now it seems to lead to nowhere, but on the other side of that wall is the new orphanage compound...soon a door will be added to connect both properties. |
Day 71 of our Adventure in Haiti!
Just an hour or so ago I said “goodbye” to the team from First Reformed Church, Sioux Center, Iowa. There were also a few other people from two other Reformed churches who came on the team as well. All of them did a great job here with a variety of ministries and projects, from clinics to repair to cement work to VBS programs to english classes to just helping out in any way they could. They left to travel to Port-au-Prince during the day, just in case any political uprisings take place tonight. They will fly out and head home tomorrow.
It was really meaningful for me (Cory) to help lead a team of people from the church where I grew up. Two of the couples were the actual youth leaders who used to take me on mission trips in the summers, so we have really come full-circle. I even joked with the Haitian youth group that, “I thought they were all old back when I was in High School, but they are still going on mission trips!”
I think the overall feeling I will remember from this team is one of them being rock-solid in faith and commitment, which is no surprise. Most teams that come down here go through some pretty dramatic times of emotional adjustment when they are confronted with the poverty and the stark living conditions and the spiritual atmosphere. This group did a great job of wrestling with some of the difficult questions we face, yet they never wavered in their belief that Jesus Christ is the answer.
We did something unique this week. We talked about farming with the youth group each night, because many people on the mission team either farm for a living or grew up farming or at least are very familiar with the basic ideas. The young people here seem to be ashamed of farming and resistant to learning and carrying on the agricultural traditions of Haiti. We talked about that and applied God's Word to the situation. But when it was all said and done, Verlyn Raak probably gave the most impactful testimony of the week when he simply said, “I'm proud to be a farmer.” He and his wife Nancy also talked about how they see their work on the farm as mission work as they feed the people of the world.
Something funny you NW Iowa people will appreciate...Lynn's mom Ardith sent my favorite treat, Almond patties, to the Mission Haiti office about five or six weeks ago inside a care package. At that time Pam was coming a trip, but there was no room for the treats. In Pam's defense, I don't think she knew there was food in the package. Anyway, they finally made it down here on January 13, and they were in perfect shape! I think God did a miracle. Yum.
Alexandra fell on the cement and bruised/scrapred up her face pretty good, but she is fine now. Just yesterday a boy from the mountain came down and showed us his broken arm which he had kept untreated in a sling for weeks...it made Alexandra's injuries seem pretty small. He got an X-ray in the city today, and one of the wrist bones was broken clean in half. He will go back next Monday to get it fixed, hopefully.
In five days we will welcome another team from Sioux Center, from New Life Reformed Church. It should be another great week of ministry. I will try to update the blog several times before they come. We have so much to share because God is working powerfully every day we are here!
We hope you are all doing well and enjoying your adventure with Jesus!
God Bless,
The Grimm Family Adventurers
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
A Wedding, a Funeral, and a Chicken Coop
Family and Friends,
Day 65 of our Adventure in Haiti!
This year I (Cory) have already had the chance to attend both a wedding and a funeral in Haiti. Both were very interesting to observe, though not terribly different than a typical wedding or funeral in the US.
The groom who was getting married is a guy I just met, but he invited me to attend, and since the church wasn't too far away I accepted. Like everything in Haiti the start time came and went and very few people were in the church. Some musicians were warming up, a cameraman was feverishly setting up his equipment, and the Pastor was pacing around the place, checking on some last minute details. Then the people started showing up and you could tell it was very important to make a big entrance. Of course it is a big deal to have a car in Haiti, so many people came packed into cars of all sorts, and those who couldn't fit in cars arrived crammed into tap-taps.
The clothes were truly beautiful. Many of the women wore dresses that were as formal as the dresses worn by brides or bridesmaids in the US. Virtually all of the men wore suits. After everyone finally sat down the festivities began. Entering the building was a big deal. It began with a little flower girl doing a well-choreographed march down the aisle complete with the scattering of flower petals. Then each of the bridesmaids entering to her own song. As each processed down the aisle she would do a little dance, continuing to look back to the bride. Then the bride did the biggest entrance of all. She was escorted to the front in the middle of a children's choir who sang together as they walked. I knew some of the kids in the choir, so that made it fun to be there.
After that there was a ton of music, with several different singing groups, sevaral hymns sung to the sound of organ played on a keyboard, and other solos. I didn't understand all of the other elements of the service, though I remember one part where the Pastor was grilling the groom and bride about whether or not they would be faithful to each other. Instead of the formal vows we do, it was more like a question and answer session, so they had to be on their toes. There was one moment where everyone laughed. Afterwards, someone explained to me that the Pastor asked the groom if he was going to see other women after this. He quickly respond, “Oh yes, of course.” I think he didn't hear the question correctly...at least let's hope he didn't.
Obviously the funeral was quite different. The boy who died was only eighteen years old, and it was a very tragic death. He just got a stomach ache one day and dropped dead. He wasn't sick before that at all. Sue, the nurse here, thought it sounded like regular case of ruptured apendix. Who knows. Either way it was really sad. The boy's brother Willie is a good friend of ours, so my friends Zachary and Patchouko and I travelled to a neighboring town to attend. We were all on one motorcycle, a very Haitian thing to do.
One part of the event that was memorable was the location of the church. It was a rural area located in the flatlands near Les Cayes. This is where people grow a lot of rice and sugarcane. So we were driving a motorcycle on little footpaths that run alongside the fields. As I look back now, I'm not sure how in the world they got the casket out to this little country church. It is amazing what you can accomplish with human labor.
We didn't stay for the whole funeral, but people were openly weeping and moaning for the loss of the young man, Gerald. It was sad. Hymns were sung, eulogies were given, and we left with our heads hung down. Death is always present here. Around the same time as this young man died, another young man in our community killed himself trying to tap into the electrical wire to pirate some power. He had already paid the electric company to give him electricity, but since they didn't do it he decided to try it on his own. Not a good idea. Then just yesterday a boy fell off of a motorcycle and died.
Oh yeah...there was a bad tap-tap accident the other day as well. We saw the wreck afterwards, and the word on the street is that the driver had been using the truck with little to no brakes for the previous few days before the accident. Nice. People were thrown out of the truck when it collided with another vehicle. No one died this time, but many people had head wounds. Sue helped a couple of them.
On a happier note we are having a great time with the small team that is down here right now. Richard is working hard cranking out the cabinets and shelves and really anything made out of wood, and the others have been helping out in the clinic, with youth group, and with our new english classes. We started the “advanced” english class Sunday and it went really well. This is a good opportunity for us to meet more people in the community, for Lynn to be involved with the ministry, and for me to practice teaching Haitians in a low-pressure environment.
Oh yeah...the chicken coop.
We used to have chickens in the orphanage compound, but the roosters would always drive everyone crazy. Haitian roosters don't wait until sunrise to start crowing. They sometimes do it at all hours of the night. Anyway, part of the old chicken coop is still standing. After a thorough cleaning and some repair, it has now become the most popular hangout around...a clubhouse of sorts. We don't see our kids all afternoon and finally someone says, “Where are the kids?” Well, they are playing in the clubhouse with the kids from the orphanage. Fun.
Today is the 1 year anniversary of the huge earthquake that changed Haiti forever. After I observe the prayer services and whatever else happens today I will be sure to blog about the experience sometime soon. Please remember Haiti in your prayers!
God Bless,
The Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 65 of our Adventure in Haiti!
This year I (Cory) have already had the chance to attend both a wedding and a funeral in Haiti. Both were very interesting to observe, though not terribly different than a typical wedding or funeral in the US.
The groom who was getting married is a guy I just met, but he invited me to attend, and since the church wasn't too far away I accepted. Like everything in Haiti the start time came and went and very few people were in the church. Some musicians were warming up, a cameraman was feverishly setting up his equipment, and the Pastor was pacing around the place, checking on some last minute details. Then the people started showing up and you could tell it was very important to make a big entrance. Of course it is a big deal to have a car in Haiti, so many people came packed into cars of all sorts, and those who couldn't fit in cars arrived crammed into tap-taps.
The clothes were truly beautiful. Many of the women wore dresses that were as formal as the dresses worn by brides or bridesmaids in the US. Virtually all of the men wore suits. After everyone finally sat down the festivities began. Entering the building was a big deal. It began with a little flower girl doing a well-choreographed march down the aisle complete with the scattering of flower petals. Then each of the bridesmaids entering to her own song. As each processed down the aisle she would do a little dance, continuing to look back to the bride. Then the bride did the biggest entrance of all. She was escorted to the front in the middle of a children's choir who sang together as they walked. I knew some of the kids in the choir, so that made it fun to be there.
After that there was a ton of music, with several different singing groups, sevaral hymns sung to the sound of organ played on a keyboard, and other solos. I didn't understand all of the other elements of the service, though I remember one part where the Pastor was grilling the groom and bride about whether or not they would be faithful to each other. Instead of the formal vows we do, it was more like a question and answer session, so they had to be on their toes. There was one moment where everyone laughed. Afterwards, someone explained to me that the Pastor asked the groom if he was going to see other women after this. He quickly respond, “Oh yes, of course.” I think he didn't hear the question correctly...at least let's hope he didn't.
Obviously the funeral was quite different. The boy who died was only eighteen years old, and it was a very tragic death. He just got a stomach ache one day and dropped dead. He wasn't sick before that at all. Sue, the nurse here, thought it sounded like regular case of ruptured apendix. Who knows. Either way it was really sad. The boy's brother Willie is a good friend of ours, so my friends Zachary and Patchouko and I travelled to a neighboring town to attend. We were all on one motorcycle, a very Haitian thing to do.
One part of the event that was memorable was the location of the church. It was a rural area located in the flatlands near Les Cayes. This is where people grow a lot of rice and sugarcane. So we were driving a motorcycle on little footpaths that run alongside the fields. As I look back now, I'm not sure how in the world they got the casket out to this little country church. It is amazing what you can accomplish with human labor.
We didn't stay for the whole funeral, but people were openly weeping and moaning for the loss of the young man, Gerald. It was sad. Hymns were sung, eulogies were given, and we left with our heads hung down. Death is always present here. Around the same time as this young man died, another young man in our community killed himself trying to tap into the electrical wire to pirate some power. He had already paid the electric company to give him electricity, but since they didn't do it he decided to try it on his own. Not a good idea. Then just yesterday a boy fell off of a motorcycle and died.
Oh yeah...there was a bad tap-tap accident the other day as well. We saw the wreck afterwards, and the word on the street is that the driver had been using the truck with little to no brakes for the previous few days before the accident. Nice. People were thrown out of the truck when it collided with another vehicle. No one died this time, but many people had head wounds. Sue helped a couple of them.
On a happier note we are having a great time with the small team that is down here right now. Richard is working hard cranking out the cabinets and shelves and really anything made out of wood, and the others have been helping out in the clinic, with youth group, and with our new english classes. We started the “advanced” english class Sunday and it went really well. This is a good opportunity for us to meet more people in the community, for Lynn to be involved with the ministry, and for me to practice teaching Haitians in a low-pressure environment.
Oh yeah...the chicken coop.
We used to have chickens in the orphanage compound, but the roosters would always drive everyone crazy. Haitian roosters don't wait until sunrise to start crowing. They sometimes do it at all hours of the night. Anyway, part of the old chicken coop is still standing. After a thorough cleaning and some repair, it has now become the most popular hangout around...a clubhouse of sorts. We don't see our kids all afternoon and finally someone says, “Where are the kids?” Well, they are playing in the clubhouse with the kids from the orphanage. Fun.
Today is the 1 year anniversary of the huge earthquake that changed Haiti forever. After I observe the prayer services and whatever else happens today I will be sure to blog about the experience sometime soon. Please remember Haiti in your prayers!
God Bless,
The Grimm Family Adventurers
Thursday, January 6, 2011
The Team Arrived Safely!
Family and Friends,
Day 59 of our Adventure in Haiti!
The team of Sue, Richard, Heidi, and Rachel arrived safely yesterday with Kiki in the truck. They seemed to have a good, uneventful voyage down here and are ready to have a powerful mission trip. Interestingly, none of them seem to be staying the same amount of time. That makes this group unique. Heidi is staying for two weeks, Rachel for four weeks, Richard for six, and Sue indefinitely. Sue will go back to the states on a regular basis, but her long-term plan is to live and work here full time, mainly focusing on medical clinics. It will also be nice to have her here to help out in different ways with the Haitian kids, since she knows them all really well having run the orphanage for quite some time.
The word on the street is that the businesses in Les Cayes will be closed today and tomorrow in response to the murder of a prominent businessman on New Years Eve. The story is that this man, who owned and operated a gas station we normally use, and was also a pastor, would traditionally give out gifts to the poor at the end of the year. While he was doing that, someone walked up and demanded to be given something. The wealthy man reached into his pocket, but then the man who walked up pulled a gun and shot him. Sad. So the other businessmen in Cayes are observing a day of mourning and also protesting the low level of protection from Police by not opening their shops.
This puts us in an interesting position because we need food for this team, our family, and the staff and children in the orphanage. We also need wood for Richard who is planning various projects while he is here...but we'll find ways to get by with what we have, as usual. That is something you have to be able to do here...no quick 9PM runs to the grocery store.
One other fun thing Lynn thought we should write about is our daily Bible lesson with the other kids in the compound, which is led by Patchouko. We all gather around in a circle from 4-5pm and sing songs, do activities, and hear a Bible lesson, all in Creole. This is a good regular time for us to learn the language, spend time with the other kids, and praise God. We look forward to the time when we can understand every word that is said during the lesson and remember all of the songs for ourselves.
I better get back to the team and make sure they have everything they need.
Enjoy your adventure with Jesus today!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 59 of our Adventure in Haiti!
The team of Sue, Richard, Heidi, and Rachel arrived safely yesterday with Kiki in the truck. They seemed to have a good, uneventful voyage down here and are ready to have a powerful mission trip. Interestingly, none of them seem to be staying the same amount of time. That makes this group unique. Heidi is staying for two weeks, Rachel for four weeks, Richard for six, and Sue indefinitely. Sue will go back to the states on a regular basis, but her long-term plan is to live and work here full time, mainly focusing on medical clinics. It will also be nice to have her here to help out in different ways with the Haitian kids, since she knows them all really well having run the orphanage for quite some time.
The word on the street is that the businesses in Les Cayes will be closed today and tomorrow in response to the murder of a prominent businessman on New Years Eve. The story is that this man, who owned and operated a gas station we normally use, and was also a pastor, would traditionally give out gifts to the poor at the end of the year. While he was doing that, someone walked up and demanded to be given something. The wealthy man reached into his pocket, but then the man who walked up pulled a gun and shot him. Sad. So the other businessmen in Cayes are observing a day of mourning and also protesting the low level of protection from Police by not opening their shops.
This puts us in an interesting position because we need food for this team, our family, and the staff and children in the orphanage. We also need wood for Richard who is planning various projects while he is here...but we'll find ways to get by with what we have, as usual. That is something you have to be able to do here...no quick 9PM runs to the grocery store.
One other fun thing Lynn thought we should write about is our daily Bible lesson with the other kids in the compound, which is led by Patchouko. We all gather around in a circle from 4-5pm and sing songs, do activities, and hear a Bible lesson, all in Creole. This is a good regular time for us to learn the language, spend time with the other kids, and praise God. We look forward to the time when we can understand every word that is said during the lesson and remember all of the songs for ourselves.
I better get back to the team and make sure they have everything they need.
Enjoy your adventure with Jesus today!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
A Quick Prayer Request
Family and Friends,
Day 57 of our Adventure in Haiti!
This will be a quick update as we are preparing to host three important mission teams in January. That is also what the prayer request is about. Tonight we will possibly hear a new announcement about the presidential election in Haiti, and there is a good chance that the manifestations, or political riots, will begin again in response to that news. We have a small team flying to Miami tonight and then into Port-au-Prince in the morning if the situation allows. Please pray that they will be able to enter the country safely and travel to Ti-Rivier safely and on schedule.
We have Kiki in Port-au-Prince monitoring everything, so it isn't a case that the team won't know what they are getting into. Also, American Airlines stops their flights if they don't feel good about what is going on, so those are two good safeguards in place when these things happen.
Thanks so much for joining us in prayer!
I am sending out a newsletter to everyone on our email database which contains a brief summary of our adventures in 2010 and our financial contributions. If you are not on that list and would like to receive occassional newsletters and other prayer updates, please send an email to cory@mission-haiti.org requesting to be added.
Enjoy your adventure for Jesus today!
-The Grimms
ps. Be sure to take a careful look at our new photo on the top of the blog! You can see Alexandra walking on Paradise Island looking for seashells. Don't miss how you can see her reflection and her shadow at the same time, yet she isn't leaving any footprints as she walks the narrow wet strip between the ocean and the dry sand. Pretty cool living in Haiti!
Day 57 of our Adventure in Haiti!
This will be a quick update as we are preparing to host three important mission teams in January. That is also what the prayer request is about. Tonight we will possibly hear a new announcement about the presidential election in Haiti, and there is a good chance that the manifestations, or political riots, will begin again in response to that news. We have a small team flying to Miami tonight and then into Port-au-Prince in the morning if the situation allows. Please pray that they will be able to enter the country safely and travel to Ti-Rivier safely and on schedule.
We have Kiki in Port-au-Prince monitoring everything, so it isn't a case that the team won't know what they are getting into. Also, American Airlines stops their flights if they don't feel good about what is going on, so those are two good safeguards in place when these things happen.
Thanks so much for joining us in prayer!
I am sending out a newsletter to everyone on our email database which contains a brief summary of our adventures in 2010 and our financial contributions. If you are not on that list and would like to receive occassional newsletters and other prayer updates, please send an email to cory@mission-haiti.org requesting to be added.
Enjoy your adventure for Jesus today!
-The Grimms
ps. Be sure to take a careful look at our new photo on the top of the blog! You can see Alexandra walking on Paradise Island looking for seashells. Don't miss how you can see her reflection and her shadow at the same time, yet she isn't leaving any footprints as she walks the narrow wet strip between the ocean and the dry sand. Pretty cool living in Haiti!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
The Adventure of 2011 Begins!
Family and Friends,
They say the more life changes, the more it stays the same. I guess this is true in Haiti as much as everywhere else. With the celebrations of Christmas and New Years over, we hear there are manifestations, or political riots, in the streets of Port-au-Prince once again. Hopefully it won't develop to the point that it did last time. Hopefully God was able to speak to the Haitian people last year and change their hearts through the earthquake, the Cholera, and the many other trials. Of course, you could argue from the other vantage point and say, because God spoke to the people last year they will no longer put up with corruption and injustice in their government. It goes both ways!
But life here in the little village of Ti-Rivier is calm and enjoyable. We forgot to post about our little excursion on Christmas eve, but we rented a boat and two men rowed us out to "Paradise Island" just off the coast. The waves were really choppy that day, so it was a bit of an adventure. The boat was a bit creaky and old and small, but it was fun. As Bruce, a recent member of one of our trips said on a recent trip to the island in the same boat, “If it wasn't the actual boat the Lord used to travel around the Sea of Galilee, it was at least from that time period.”
We are looking forward to a great year in Haiti in 2011. Our plan is to stay here until around June 1st and then go home for a few months to visit family, raise missionary support, speak in churches, and vacation. Then we will return around September 1st for another school year and assess from there what the future plans will be.
We feel good so far about achieving our goals of learning Creole, adjusting to everyday life here, and investing in the future ministry leaders of the community. We feel we are on track to be able to meet those goals in the coming year. All around us are people constantly asking us to do more, so we have been very careful to put family first and move slowly with our ministry in Haiti. Too many people have gotten overworked and burned out on the mission field, people with probably double our faith and ability, so we have to know our limitations and trust God to show us which commitments are the right ones to make.
A special thanks to everyone reading this blog for your prayers, financial support, and just your interest in what we are doing, or more to the point, what God is choosing to do in and through us. We are so privileged and humbled to be able to live our dream here in Haiti, and as predicted, the people here are touching our lives just as much if not more than we are impacting them.
Tomorrow we will try to skype for the first time (from Haiti) with the grandparents. That should be fun if it works. We hope to get regular internet access in January and will blog more if we do.
May your 2011 be a great adventure!
God Bless,
Grimm Family Adventurers
 |
| Alexandra stakes her claim on the previously uninhabited Paradise Island |
Family and Friends,
They say the more life changes, the more it stays the same. I guess this is true in Haiti as much as everywhere else. With the celebrations of Christmas and New Years over, we hear there are manifestations, or political riots, in the streets of Port-au-Prince once again. Hopefully it won't develop to the point that it did last time. Hopefully God was able to speak to the Haitian people last year and change their hearts through the earthquake, the Cholera, and the many other trials. Of course, you could argue from the other vantage point and say, because God spoke to the people last year they will no longer put up with corruption and injustice in their government. It goes both ways!
But life here in the little village of Ti-Rivier is calm and enjoyable. We forgot to post about our little excursion on Christmas eve, but we rented a boat and two men rowed us out to "Paradise Island" just off the coast. The waves were really choppy that day, so it was a bit of an adventure. The boat was a bit creaky and old and small, but it was fun. As Bruce, a recent member of one of our trips said on a recent trip to the island in the same boat, “If it wasn't the actual boat the Lord used to travel around the Sea of Galilee, it was at least from that time period.”
We are looking forward to a great year in Haiti in 2011. Our plan is to stay here until around June 1st and then go home for a few months to visit family, raise missionary support, speak in churches, and vacation. Then we will return around September 1st for another school year and assess from there what the future plans will be.
We feel good so far about achieving our goals of learning Creole, adjusting to everyday life here, and investing in the future ministry leaders of the community. We feel we are on track to be able to meet those goals in the coming year. All around us are people constantly asking us to do more, so we have been very careful to put family first and move slowly with our ministry in Haiti. Too many people have gotten overworked and burned out on the mission field, people with probably double our faith and ability, so we have to know our limitations and trust God to show us which commitments are the right ones to make.
A special thanks to everyone reading this blog for your prayers, financial support, and just your interest in what we are doing, or more to the point, what God is choosing to do in and through us. We are so privileged and humbled to be able to live our dream here in Haiti, and as predicted, the people here are touching our lives just as much if not more than we are impacting them.
Tomorrow we will try to skype for the first time (from Haiti) with the grandparents. That should be fun if it works. We hope to get regular internet access in January and will blog more if we do.
May your 2011 be a great adventure!
God Bless,
Grimm Family Adventurers
 |
| Cory and Elizabeth find some nice shells |
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