Family and Friends,
Day 141 of our Haiti Adventure!
There are many aspects of Haiti that make this land memorable and endearing. However, almost everyone who has come here would agree with the statement that the best part of Haiti is the people. There are some real characters here, and I want to use this blog to tell you the stories of five of them over the course of the next few posts. The five I have chosen are simply a handful of the people who spend time in, around, or near our property on a daily basis. If people enjoy this short series maybe we will continue to tell more stories about the characters here including the stories of each kid in the orphanage, the stories of the staff members, the stories of key figures who work for us, etc…
So in the spirit of Mr. Rogers and his tradition of introducing his audience to the people of the neighborhood, we begin with…
ANTOINE
I thought it would be fun to begin with Antoine, because he just got married this past Saturday right here in the orphanage compound. It was an unforgettable event! With Antoine everything is an adventure, so the past few days were just like normal.
Antoine was born in Haiti and spent the first part of his childhood here for something like seven years. After that his family immigrated to Connecticut to start a new life. They were always a church-going family, but adjusting to life in the US was difficult at times. Somewhere in Antoine’s teenage years and/or early adulthood he got headed in the wrong direction. To make a long story short, after living in the US for 26 years he was deported on drug-related charges. That was about four or five years ago. His family remains in Connecticut.
I’ve never asked him to give any more details about any crimes he may have committed in the past, but it really doesn’t seem important anymore when you look at what God has been doing in his life. After spending some time in the prison in Port-au-Prince, Antoine decided to give his life more fully to Christ. He says jail put the fear of God in him. He was soon released and moved back to Ti-Rivier to live with his grandmother and start a new life.
When he moved back here he effectively had to re-learn the Creole language. You would never know that now, because Antoine is a very passionate teacher, tutor, translator and overall communicator. He has a way of getting kids excited about learning. Most afternoons he works with the kids in the orphanage on their French and Creole lessons, and he teaches English on the weekends. He also plays a very important role whenever teams come down here as one of our best translators.
I call Antoine “the bridge”, because he is truthfully the only person around here (besides Adrien) who completely understands both the American and the Haitian cultures. He told me the other day that when he came back here, at first people called him “Blanc” (white person). He looks like a normal black person, but he had to reacclimate to the local culture and earn the right to be “Haitian” again. Now he is well-respected both in the community and in Mission Haiti. Pam absolutely trusts him with the kids, with money, and with any type of work that needs to be done.
The best thing about Antoine is his sense of humor. Many a team member has left here armed with funny stories about things Antoine did or said during the trip. For example, Sue has plenty of funny stories about Antoine making funny faces when he has to translate in the clinic regarding any kind of feminine issues. Also, he loves to purposefully murder various languages, especially Spanish and Chinese. His shouts of “Que paso, mi amigo?” and “No problemo!” can be heard all over the village. I think some of the kids around here really believe Antoine can speak every language!
So this past Saturday Antoine got married to Jesula, a local girl from the nearby mountain area. We have enjoyed getting to know them and pray they will do well as a married couple and as a Father and Mother. Like I said it was a memorable event, and nearly everyone who attended got food poisoning as well! Some of the food was cooked a couple of days earlier and brought from Port-au-Prince, apparently.
The team members who came to visit had a great time, and right now they should be arriving back in Sioux Falls. We pray all of you are doing well back home, and just know that we are blessed down here in Haiti and enjoying all of the great relationships with neighborhood characters like Antoine.
Many Blessings on Your Adventure!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Glimpses of Joy
Family and Friends,
Day 134 of our Haiti Adventure!
A special shout-out to my sister Molly, who turns 29 today. Happy birthday!
JOY (n.)- A deep sense of fulfillment and wholeness in Christ that goes way beyond your everyday feelings of happiness. Can cause laughter and tears simultaneously.
Lately we have begun to get these brief moments of seeing what our future could look like here in Haiti. I call these "glimpses of joy" for lack of a better term. For just a moment we can imagine a little image of what God could do here in our lives and the lives of the people around us. These glimpses usually come when our kids are playing happily with the kids in the orphanage, or when I'm out roaming the village and enjoy a conversation with someone where I actually understand a little bit of what he/she is saying. There is something big and powerful and meaningful and life-changing wiating here for us if we are willing to persevere and trust God to do His work in and though us.
There is a price to pay, however, in order to reestablish yourselves in a completely different cultural context. You have to gradually give up little dreams and expectations for your life you might not have even realized were lurking there. For example, I have always wanted to live in a big old house with wood floors, and to enjoy a cold winter night near the fire or a hot summer day out on the shady, wrap-around porch. That isn't going to happen if we stay here. The dream has to die, and there is a kind of mourning that takes place in your soul as you let that personal expectation die.
A better and more important example is all of the activities and opportunities our kids might have had back in the states. I guess there is a part of me that always imagined my kids would one day play on sports teams or participate in the marching band, the choir, some drama team, or whatever else there is out there to do. If we stay here long enough, they will miss out on all of those things, and we will miss out on seeing them do it as parents. Maybe some missionaries are able to say goodbye to those things the moment they board the plane for wherever, but I have found it to be more of a gradual process over the course of time as God draws these desires to the surface to be dealt with.
I know what some of you might be thinking. You might say, "You aren't missing much here. We go back and forth to activities day and night, and we wish we could find a way out of this vicious cycle." I appreciate that sentiment, I really do. But it is still hard to give all of our cultural expectations for our kids completely. And yet if that is what God is calling us to do, we are trusting that the benefits will outweight the sacrifices, if not in this life, then in the next.
The great thing lately, like I said, is that already after 4-5 months here we can catch a tiny glimpse of the amazing plan God has for us in Haiti. I just pray we can stay true to our calling and manage to discern and obey what God wants us to do. Part of that involves undertaking the painstaking process of letting go of our own dreams and expectations and fully embracing God's plan, whatever that may be. If we can do that, anything is possible.
May Your Adventure be filled with JOY!
-Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 134 of our Haiti Adventure!
A special shout-out to my sister Molly, who turns 29 today. Happy birthday!
JOY (n.)- A deep sense of fulfillment and wholeness in Christ that goes way beyond your everyday feelings of happiness. Can cause laughter and tears simultaneously.
Lately we have begun to get these brief moments of seeing what our future could look like here in Haiti. I call these "glimpses of joy" for lack of a better term. For just a moment we can imagine a little image of what God could do here in our lives and the lives of the people around us. These glimpses usually come when our kids are playing happily with the kids in the orphanage, or when I'm out roaming the village and enjoy a conversation with someone where I actually understand a little bit of what he/she is saying. There is something big and powerful and meaningful and life-changing wiating here for us if we are willing to persevere and trust God to do His work in and though us.
There is a price to pay, however, in order to reestablish yourselves in a completely different cultural context. You have to gradually give up little dreams and expectations for your life you might not have even realized were lurking there. For example, I have always wanted to live in a big old house with wood floors, and to enjoy a cold winter night near the fire or a hot summer day out on the shady, wrap-around porch. That isn't going to happen if we stay here. The dream has to die, and there is a kind of mourning that takes place in your soul as you let that personal expectation die.
A better and more important example is all of the activities and opportunities our kids might have had back in the states. I guess there is a part of me that always imagined my kids would one day play on sports teams or participate in the marching band, the choir, some drama team, or whatever else there is out there to do. If we stay here long enough, they will miss out on all of those things, and we will miss out on seeing them do it as parents. Maybe some missionaries are able to say goodbye to those things the moment they board the plane for wherever, but I have found it to be more of a gradual process over the course of time as God draws these desires to the surface to be dealt with.
I know what some of you might be thinking. You might say, "You aren't missing much here. We go back and forth to activities day and night, and we wish we could find a way out of this vicious cycle." I appreciate that sentiment, I really do. But it is still hard to give all of our cultural expectations for our kids completely. And yet if that is what God is calling us to do, we are trusting that the benefits will outweight the sacrifices, if not in this life, then in the next.
The great thing lately, like I said, is that already after 4-5 months here we can catch a tiny glimpse of the amazing plan God has for us in Haiti. I just pray we can stay true to our calling and manage to discern and obey what God wants us to do. Part of that involves undertaking the painstaking process of letting go of our own dreams and expectations and fully embracing God's plan, whatever that may be. If we can do that, anything is possible.
May Your Adventure be filled with JOY!
-Grimm Family Adventurers
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Some Random Thoughts About Life in HAITI
Family and Friends,
Day 129 of our Haiti Adventure!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Or Happy St. Patricko’s Day, as we say around here! (After Patchouko, which sounds like “Patricko”, our facilities manager and youth pastor)
The following is a collection of random thoughts about our life in Haiti that don’t necessarily constitute a blog post on their own but nevertheless are worth mentioning…
Today is Kenny’s Birthday! Kenny is the youngest child in the orphanage. He is now three. Technically he can go to school now, but it is hard to imagine. He isn’t potty trained, for one thing. Joshua (Patchouko’s son), his 2-year-old best buddy, would be lonely without him to play with all day.
Everyday we see baby tarantulas crawling around outside. They have a beautiful dark blue color to their hair, or fur, or whatever you call it. This must be the hatching season for them. We killed about ten today alone.
This morning the temperature was climbing steadily into the 80s like normal. Then, around 9 o’clock, a rainstorm came up and it immediately fell back into the 70s. How refreshing! Rain. We better get used to it, because rainy season will be here soon!
There is a rumor that Aristide, a former president and extremely polarizing figure, is returning to Haiti. Just that rumor alone could spark political instability. When Adrien caught wind of it, he went to Les Cayes to fill up with gas and buy food and water. Other people around here are very superstitious about this priest-turned-president. They swear he can turn into various animals or simply disappear.
Top Ten Reasons it is both a trial and a blessing to live in the same compound as an orphanage:
10. Being asked, “Can you come please? Can you read to me? Can you hold me?” fifty times each day.
9. Ten kids right outside our door for our kids to play with.
8. People are great at throwing birthday parties here, and between the orphanage and our family, we have 1 or 2 every month.
7. Trying to keep track of who-is-mad-at-who on any given day.
6. The girls and our daughters spending hours braiding each others’ hair.
5. Wondering if and when relatives of the kids will come to visit and how that will affect their ability to remain here.
4. French lessons, Bible lessons, drum lessons, math lessons, potty-training lessons, etc…
3. Sharing Haitian and American food with each other.
2. Four little boys aged four and under + garbage piles waiting to be burned and/or piles of ash waiting to cool and be thrown out = a recipe for disaster
1. Being taught patience and perseverance all day every day
No school again today, or tomorrow, or Monday. No one knows exactly why there is no school. There was no school last week because of Carnival. There were literally only 10 days of school the first semester this year because of starting late, bad weather, and political instability. They will probably only have school 50 or 60 days this entire year at this rate. Sad.
I’ve had my eyes peeled for a used motorcycle to get around on, and someone told me Nelien had one for sale. He is a 30ish man who works on a local construction crew. Once he heard I was interested he jacked up the price. This is normal procedure here, to try to gouge white people, but the sad part is that one day when Nelien was working construction barefoot I personally gave him my only pair of boots. He saw me walk in the house and get the boots, so he knows I gave him my own personal belongings, yet he still jacked up the price on the Motorcycle. That is a microcosm of why Haiti is in such a bad way. People here try to get over on the very people who are trying to help them, both at a personal level and at a national level, and in the end they only hurt themselves.
On a brighter note, we still don’t have a cholera outbreak in Ti-Rivier! I think the Doctors Without Borders clinics in Les Cayes must be doing a very good job with the whole situation. They are operating the clinics around the city, two of which I have visited. So when someone out here in the country gets Cholera they are sent to the city to get quality treatment, which cuts down on the spreading back home. This is working out good so far. We pray it continues.
Enjoy Your Adventure Today!
-The Grimms
Day 129 of our Haiti Adventure!
Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Or Happy St. Patricko’s Day, as we say around here! (After Patchouko, which sounds like “Patricko”, our facilities manager and youth pastor)
The following is a collection of random thoughts about our life in Haiti that don’t necessarily constitute a blog post on their own but nevertheless are worth mentioning…
Today is Kenny’s Birthday! Kenny is the youngest child in the orphanage. He is now three. Technically he can go to school now, but it is hard to imagine. He isn’t potty trained, for one thing. Joshua (Patchouko’s son), his 2-year-old best buddy, would be lonely without him to play with all day.
Everyday we see baby tarantulas crawling around outside. They have a beautiful dark blue color to their hair, or fur, or whatever you call it. This must be the hatching season for them. We killed about ten today alone.
This morning the temperature was climbing steadily into the 80s like normal. Then, around 9 o’clock, a rainstorm came up and it immediately fell back into the 70s. How refreshing! Rain. We better get used to it, because rainy season will be here soon!
There is a rumor that Aristide, a former president and extremely polarizing figure, is returning to Haiti. Just that rumor alone could spark political instability. When Adrien caught wind of it, he went to Les Cayes to fill up with gas and buy food and water. Other people around here are very superstitious about this priest-turned-president. They swear he can turn into various animals or simply disappear.
Top Ten Reasons it is both a trial and a blessing to live in the same compound as an orphanage:
10. Being asked, “Can you come please? Can you read to me? Can you hold me?” fifty times each day.
9. Ten kids right outside our door for our kids to play with.
8. People are great at throwing birthday parties here, and between the orphanage and our family, we have 1 or 2 every month.
7. Trying to keep track of who-is-mad-at-who on any given day.
6. The girls and our daughters spending hours braiding each others’ hair.
5. Wondering if and when relatives of the kids will come to visit and how that will affect their ability to remain here.
4. French lessons, Bible lessons, drum lessons, math lessons, potty-training lessons, etc…
3. Sharing Haitian and American food with each other.
2. Four little boys aged four and under + garbage piles waiting to be burned and/or piles of ash waiting to cool and be thrown out = a recipe for disaster
1. Being taught patience and perseverance all day every day
No school again today, or tomorrow, or Monday. No one knows exactly why there is no school. There was no school last week because of Carnival. There were literally only 10 days of school the first semester this year because of starting late, bad weather, and political instability. They will probably only have school 50 or 60 days this entire year at this rate. Sad.
I’ve had my eyes peeled for a used motorcycle to get around on, and someone told me Nelien had one for sale. He is a 30ish man who works on a local construction crew. Once he heard I was interested he jacked up the price. This is normal procedure here, to try to gouge white people, but the sad part is that one day when Nelien was working construction barefoot I personally gave him my only pair of boots. He saw me walk in the house and get the boots, so he knows I gave him my own personal belongings, yet he still jacked up the price on the Motorcycle. That is a microcosm of why Haiti is in such a bad way. People here try to get over on the very people who are trying to help them, both at a personal level and at a national level, and in the end they only hurt themselves.
On a brighter note, we still don’t have a cholera outbreak in Ti-Rivier! I think the Doctors Without Borders clinics in Les Cayes must be doing a very good job with the whole situation. They are operating the clinics around the city, two of which I have visited. So when someone out here in the country gets Cholera they are sent to the city to get quality treatment, which cuts down on the spreading back home. This is working out good so far. We pray it continues.
Enjoy Your Adventure Today!
-The Grimms
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Prayer Requests
Family and Friends,
Day 128 of our Haiti Adventure!
For those of you who pray for us and the people of Haiti, we wanted to update the list and give you a few things to include on your prayer list this week:
1. Upcoming Election- On March 20th the people of Haiti will finally vote to decide between the two remaining candidates for president. After that the result will come in April and the change of power in May, Lord willing. There is a high probability of political unrest in the next two months. Please pray for this process and for a good president to emerge.
2. Antoine’s Wedding- Antoine is a great guy who works with us. He lives in Ti-Rivier and formerly lived in the US for 26 years. He is getting married to a local girl on March 26th. Please pray for the wedding and for their marriage.
3. Small Team Coming- Actually it isn’t really a mission team in the normal sense. Mike and a few others are coming for Antoine’s wedding. Please pray for their safety as they travel on March 25th and after.
4. Health- It seems like half the people are sick around here. We have been hit really hard, and so have many of our friends. My (Cory) health continues to be up and down each day, so we’ll see what happens. Please pray.
5. Construction Projects- Right now there is construction at the new orphanage compound, the new ocean property, two of the schools, and several houses. Please pray for these buildings to be finished well and to be used for the glory of God.
6. Grimm Family Summer Plans- We plan to be back in the US this summer, visiting family and friends and speaking at churches. Right now we haven’t lined up very many opportunities to share about Haiti and/or raise missionary support. Please pray that more doors will open, or that God will provide in other ways. Also pray that it will be a restful summer, preparing us to return for a busy time this Fall.
7. Youth Group- We are working hard to build up the youth group when teams are not here. When Pam and the mission teams come, usually a lot of young people show up to youth group. When they are not here, we typically have bad attendance. Please pray that God will give more students the hunger to know Him through His Word.
8. PRAISE: Missionary Support- After a rough January our financial support was strong in February. Praise God! Please pray for this area of our work.
9. Protection and Safety- Everything we do here has a certain amount of risk to it, whether traveling on motorcycles and tap-taps or entering spiritually hostile places to share Christ. We are always at risk from spiritual attacks as well as the everyday dangers of life. Please pray for safety and for spiritual protection from God and his angels.
May your Adventure be bathed in prayer!
-Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 128 of our Haiti Adventure!
For those of you who pray for us and the people of Haiti, we wanted to update the list and give you a few things to include on your prayer list this week:
1. Upcoming Election- On March 20th the people of Haiti will finally vote to decide between the two remaining candidates for president. After that the result will come in April and the change of power in May, Lord willing. There is a high probability of political unrest in the next two months. Please pray for this process and for a good president to emerge.
2. Antoine’s Wedding- Antoine is a great guy who works with us. He lives in Ti-Rivier and formerly lived in the US for 26 years. He is getting married to a local girl on March 26th. Please pray for the wedding and for their marriage.
3. Small Team Coming- Actually it isn’t really a mission team in the normal sense. Mike and a few others are coming for Antoine’s wedding. Please pray for their safety as they travel on March 25th and after.
4. Health- It seems like half the people are sick around here. We have been hit really hard, and so have many of our friends. My (Cory) health continues to be up and down each day, so we’ll see what happens. Please pray.
5. Construction Projects- Right now there is construction at the new orphanage compound, the new ocean property, two of the schools, and several houses. Please pray for these buildings to be finished well and to be used for the glory of God.
6. Grimm Family Summer Plans- We plan to be back in the US this summer, visiting family and friends and speaking at churches. Right now we haven’t lined up very many opportunities to share about Haiti and/or raise missionary support. Please pray that more doors will open, or that God will provide in other ways. Also pray that it will be a restful summer, preparing us to return for a busy time this Fall.
7. Youth Group- We are working hard to build up the youth group when teams are not here. When Pam and the mission teams come, usually a lot of young people show up to youth group. When they are not here, we typically have bad attendance. Please pray that God will give more students the hunger to know Him through His Word.
8. PRAISE: Missionary Support- After a rough January our financial support was strong in February. Praise God! Please pray for this area of our work.
9. Protection and Safety- Everything we do here has a certain amount of risk to it, whether traveling on motorcycles and tap-taps or entering spiritually hostile places to share Christ. We are always at risk from spiritual attacks as well as the everyday dangers of life. Please pray for safety and for spiritual protection from God and his angels.
May your Adventure be bathed in prayer!
-Grimm Family Adventurers
Sunday, March 13, 2011
No Life Without the Pain
Family and Friends,
Day 125 of our Haiti Adventure!
This song (or poem) came to me in the middle of the night…
“No Life Without the Pain”
Every son and every daughter
Of the mountain families
Hauls the wood and ports the water
From the age of two or three
The rocks, familiar friends
The shrubs and all the trees
This path leads to the river
This path leads to the sea
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
One girl walks with the others
Yet she is all alone
A restavik, a servant
Her life is not her own
One boy does all he can
To feed his family
Though twelve he is a man
No time to learn to read
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
Most homes might see the father
A few nights of the year
The children are a bother
Again he disappears
He left them with some money
A bruise or two or three
And by this time next year
Another mouth to feed
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
Round here the change comes slowly
There’s fear in the unknown
But Jesus, too, was lowly
And He softens hearts of stone
There’s beauty in the mountains
There’s comfort for those who mourn
There’s wholeness for the broken
There’s new hope being born
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
I’ve been thinking about the mountain people a lot lately, especially a pastor up there named Roger. Nothing is easy up there. Life is really hard, and yet the people resist change like the plague. It is probably oversimplifying things, but I like to tell people that in Haiti there are at least three distinct cultures. There is the city culture you find in Port-au-Prince, which I personally haven’t experienced very much. Then there is the culture of the villages along the highways (like Ti-Rivier), which seems quite different. Finally, there is the truly rural, mountain culture. These are the people who live far from the roads and the markets, the people described in the poem above.
We interact with mountain people on a regular basis, and Mission Haiti runs three different schools for mountain children. These schools have been very difficult to direct, to put it lightly. We have difficulties insuring the quality and integrity of the work of the directors and teachers, maintaining any kinds of standards for education and attendance, and with many other issues. Pam is in the process of trying to hand over the control of one mountain school to the people of that community, and there are many growing pains in that process.
Then of course there is the poverty, the lack of healthcare, the poor quality of farmland, the broken families, the voodoo influence, the hyper-dogmatic Christianity, and the restavik situation. “Restavik” is the term used here for children who become servants to other families for a variety of reasons. Sometimes poor families send a child or two to another family for the promise of regular food and a chance to go to school. The problem is that those children are often treated poorly, and in some instances it is more like slavery than foster care. Some have estimated that approximately 5% of the total number of children in Haiti are “restavik.” Pam recently saw more restaviks in the nearby mountain community, and she is taking some steps to try to help them have a better life.
Pastor Roger desperately wants to learn English, and I want to learn some things from him, too. More to the point, I want to learn about his relationship with Christ. He loves God so much that he takes in orphans he finds wandering the mountainside or the nearby city steets of Les Cayes. He gives them a place in his home. He loves Jesus so much he gives everything he has to direct a school up in the middle of nowhere, and He himself doesn’t even have much of an education, or money for that matter. I want to learn how to love like that. I think I need to learn more from him than he from me.
May your adventure include life in the midst of pain...
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 125 of our Haiti Adventure!
This song (or poem) came to me in the middle of the night…
“No Life Without the Pain”
Every son and every daughter
Of the mountain families
Hauls the wood and ports the water
From the age of two or three
The rocks, familiar friends
The shrubs and all the trees
This path leads to the river
This path leads to the sea
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
One girl walks with the others
Yet she is all alone
A restavik, a servant
Her life is not her own
One boy does all he can
To feed his family
Though twelve he is a man
No time to learn to read
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
Most homes might see the father
A few nights of the year
The children are a bother
Again he disappears
He left them with some money
A bruise or two or three
And by this time next year
Another mouth to feed
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
Round here the change comes slowly
There’s fear in the unknown
But Jesus, too, was lowly
And He softens hearts of stone
There’s beauty in the mountains
There’s comfort for those who mourn
There’s wholeness for the broken
There’s new hope being born
No food without the fire
No drink without the rain
No love without desire
No life without the pain
I’ve been thinking about the mountain people a lot lately, especially a pastor up there named Roger. Nothing is easy up there. Life is really hard, and yet the people resist change like the plague. It is probably oversimplifying things, but I like to tell people that in Haiti there are at least three distinct cultures. There is the city culture you find in Port-au-Prince, which I personally haven’t experienced very much. Then there is the culture of the villages along the highways (like Ti-Rivier), which seems quite different. Finally, there is the truly rural, mountain culture. These are the people who live far from the roads and the markets, the people described in the poem above.
We interact with mountain people on a regular basis, and Mission Haiti runs three different schools for mountain children. These schools have been very difficult to direct, to put it lightly. We have difficulties insuring the quality and integrity of the work of the directors and teachers, maintaining any kinds of standards for education and attendance, and with many other issues. Pam is in the process of trying to hand over the control of one mountain school to the people of that community, and there are many growing pains in that process.
Then of course there is the poverty, the lack of healthcare, the poor quality of farmland, the broken families, the voodoo influence, the hyper-dogmatic Christianity, and the restavik situation. “Restavik” is the term used here for children who become servants to other families for a variety of reasons. Sometimes poor families send a child or two to another family for the promise of regular food and a chance to go to school. The problem is that those children are often treated poorly, and in some instances it is more like slavery than foster care. Some have estimated that approximately 5% of the total number of children in Haiti are “restavik.” Pam recently saw more restaviks in the nearby mountain community, and she is taking some steps to try to help them have a better life.
Pastor Roger desperately wants to learn English, and I want to learn some things from him, too. More to the point, I want to learn about his relationship with Christ. He loves God so much that he takes in orphans he finds wandering the mountainside or the nearby city steets of Les Cayes. He gives them a place in his home. He loves Jesus so much he gives everything he has to direct a school up in the middle of nowhere, and He himself doesn’t even have much of an education, or money for that matter. I want to learn how to love like that. I think I need to learn more from him than he from me.
May your adventure include life in the midst of pain...
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Thursday, March 10, 2011
A Pleasant Surprise: PART 3
Family and Friends,
Day 122 of our Haiti Adventure!
NOTE: This blog is part 3 of 3...
Over the past month I’ve (Cory) been battling an array of physical symptoms and wondering what in the world was wrong with me. Actually, I normally don’t think about it on any conscious level but just tend to ignore symptoms until I find myself pawing through the medicine cabinet and collapsing on the bed. With all problems, however, there comes a point when you can’t ignore the situation anymore. As mentioned in part one it was a pleasant surprise to have Marlon and Cora here as surprise guests with the team. They were able to help Lynn and the kids as I battled through a tough week.
The strangest symptom was this severe pain in my lungs (almost like being stabbed) which prevented me from breathing all the way in or exhaling all the way out. Our friend Adrien called a doctor who suggested antibiotics to treat pneumonia. That made sense because I was getting over a bad cold. However, then the whole thing kind of migrated through my back, up my neck, and into my brain. I spent one night in unbelievable pain. At one point I took a very strong pill given to us for just such an occasion, and it only dulled the pain slightly for a couple of hours.
I could tell by the looks I was getting from the team that I didn’t look too good. Sometimes it is nice to not have a full-length mirror. What you don’t know can’t hurt you, though I guess in this case that might not be true exactly. Finally Sue treated me with some really strong medication to kill any parasites I might have had. That also would make sense because over the past year I have lost fifty pounds or so, and lately I have found myself a lot less energized and sick a lot more frequently. Those are the two big warning signs of parasites.
One of the great things about being sick, though, is a chance to just lay there and pray and reconnect with God. You also get to see the people around you rally together and take care of everything you might have thought only you alone could do. It is both humbling and encouraging when that happens.
The team really did a lot this past week. As one member said, “Even though we were scattered all over the community doing so many different projects, there was a sense of complete unity and partnership in everything we were doing.” Pam agreed. She really got a good vibe from this team and felt the impact they were making was very positive.
Now I need to finish out some of the thoughts in the first paragraph of the first post of this series. First of all, little John, one of our kids in the orphanage, finally left with his mother (see post "Dear John" for more info). He was very happy to go. We had planned to send him after the school term, but in the end that was too long to wait. He left with his famous smile on his face, and I think everyone here was at peace with the whole thing. When you think about it, there’s no better place for a kid than with his mom, and we feel confident that she is a good mom. As Pam said, “He might not be smiling when he wakes up tomorrow to no food on the table.” But we pray God will protect him and give him a great future, and one day he will return and visit.
Another wild turn of events on the group’s final day involved Lynn’s sister Cora. Someone came into the yard and said, “So and so is delivering a baby up in the mountain.” So Cora hiked up there and played catcher. She was able to help with delivery, just like she does at the hospital back at home, and that was a nice memory for her to take from the trip. Healthy baby boy enters the world.
Not long after that Sue came running in from the clinic yelling, “A man is dying and we need to get him to the hospital in Les Cayes.” I was in bed resting, though on the upswing at this point, and I quickly got ready to drive a group to the city. Cora asked to go along. We went down to a house at the end of our drive, and a 60ish man was in there gasping for air. I recognized him as one of our neighbors (named Marin Damas), and we all quickly wrapped him in his blanket and carried him to the car. It was Sue, myself, Cora, Chelo, and the patient’s sister.
I drove pretty fast and did a lot of honking over the 40-minute drive, but in the end that doesn’t really distinguish you much from the rest of the traffic. We could tell he was fading as we were getting closer, so we got ready to rush him into the emergency room. We did just that and discovered a room completely packed with your typical crowd of motorcycle accident victims, dehydrated and/or starving individuals, and any number of other desperate souls begging for help and lying in their own filth.
We laid him on the ground in front of the nurse station and were met with cold, unconcerned glares. As Cora later described it, “The nurses just stood there, casually shifting through stacks of paper.” Finally one nurse walks up and asks (in Creole) “Does he have a cold?” Sue replies with unabashed sarcasm, “I think it’s a little more than that, honey!”
Meanwhile the ER doctor is over there performing CPR on some lady and then declares her gone. Our man is not doing well at this point. His sounds like he is trying to breathe underwater. His pulse is not strong. The Doctor comes over and takes a look. He says, “I don’t have any beds.” Again Sue (gotta love her) retorts, “Well, that lady over there just died.”
At this point Cora says to the rest of us, “I don’t think we’re going to need a bed.” Our man breathes his final, labored breath. The Doctor works hard to try to revive him, right there in the middle of the room in front of the nurse’s station, but he has nothing for tools but the hands God gave him…no oxygen, no defibrillator, no nothing.
After this we load him back in the car, take him home, and lay him back on his bed. I will never forget the sound of the neighborhood women wailing when we opened the back of the car and everyone could see that he was laid in there on a tarp. That night he had a wake and the next morning he was buried. No money in this family for embalming or fancy coffin or anything like that.
The contruction crew, with the help of Marlon and others, were able to stay late and finish a big chunk of the house that final evening. They were pleased when they returned late that night. All that was left after that was to get some supper, pack, talk through the next day's travel plans, reflect a bit on what God had done during this week, and grab a few hours of sleep before departing at 3AM for Port-au-Prince. We woke in the night to the familiar sounds of suitcases being dragged over gravel, and then they were gone.
As always it was an adventurous week, especially with this big and talented team here, and especially with our special guests, our pleasant surprise. Now we look forward to a long stretch of quiet, but of course even the quiet times can be interrupted by adventure at any moment!
A special thanks to everyone who made it possible for this team to come, especially Lynn's parents who watched Marlon and Cora's kids all week.
May your adventure for the Lord be filled with pleasant surprises!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 122 of our Haiti Adventure!
NOTE: This blog is part 3 of 3...
Over the past month I’ve (Cory) been battling an array of physical symptoms and wondering what in the world was wrong with me. Actually, I normally don’t think about it on any conscious level but just tend to ignore symptoms until I find myself pawing through the medicine cabinet and collapsing on the bed. With all problems, however, there comes a point when you can’t ignore the situation anymore. As mentioned in part one it was a pleasant surprise to have Marlon and Cora here as surprise guests with the team. They were able to help Lynn and the kids as I battled through a tough week.
The strangest symptom was this severe pain in my lungs (almost like being stabbed) which prevented me from breathing all the way in or exhaling all the way out. Our friend Adrien called a doctor who suggested antibiotics to treat pneumonia. That made sense because I was getting over a bad cold. However, then the whole thing kind of migrated through my back, up my neck, and into my brain. I spent one night in unbelievable pain. At one point I took a very strong pill given to us for just such an occasion, and it only dulled the pain slightly for a couple of hours.
I could tell by the looks I was getting from the team that I didn’t look too good. Sometimes it is nice to not have a full-length mirror. What you don’t know can’t hurt you, though I guess in this case that might not be true exactly. Finally Sue treated me with some really strong medication to kill any parasites I might have had. That also would make sense because over the past year I have lost fifty pounds or so, and lately I have found myself a lot less energized and sick a lot more frequently. Those are the two big warning signs of parasites.
One of the great things about being sick, though, is a chance to just lay there and pray and reconnect with God. You also get to see the people around you rally together and take care of everything you might have thought only you alone could do. It is both humbling and encouraging when that happens.
The team really did a lot this past week. As one member said, “Even though we were scattered all over the community doing so many different projects, there was a sense of complete unity and partnership in everything we were doing.” Pam agreed. She really got a good vibe from this team and felt the impact they were making was very positive.
Now I need to finish out some of the thoughts in the first paragraph of the first post of this series. First of all, little John, one of our kids in the orphanage, finally left with his mother (see post "Dear John" for more info). He was very happy to go. We had planned to send him after the school term, but in the end that was too long to wait. He left with his famous smile on his face, and I think everyone here was at peace with the whole thing. When you think about it, there’s no better place for a kid than with his mom, and we feel confident that she is a good mom. As Pam said, “He might not be smiling when he wakes up tomorrow to no food on the table.” But we pray God will protect him and give him a great future, and one day he will return and visit.
Another wild turn of events on the group’s final day involved Lynn’s sister Cora. Someone came into the yard and said, “So and so is delivering a baby up in the mountain.” So Cora hiked up there and played catcher. She was able to help with delivery, just like she does at the hospital back at home, and that was a nice memory for her to take from the trip. Healthy baby boy enters the world.
Not long after that Sue came running in from the clinic yelling, “A man is dying and we need to get him to the hospital in Les Cayes.” I was in bed resting, though on the upswing at this point, and I quickly got ready to drive a group to the city. Cora asked to go along. We went down to a house at the end of our drive, and a 60ish man was in there gasping for air. I recognized him as one of our neighbors (named Marin Damas), and we all quickly wrapped him in his blanket and carried him to the car. It was Sue, myself, Cora, Chelo, and the patient’s sister.
I drove pretty fast and did a lot of honking over the 40-minute drive, but in the end that doesn’t really distinguish you much from the rest of the traffic. We could tell he was fading as we were getting closer, so we got ready to rush him into the emergency room. We did just that and discovered a room completely packed with your typical crowd of motorcycle accident victims, dehydrated and/or starving individuals, and any number of other desperate souls begging for help and lying in their own filth.
We laid him on the ground in front of the nurse station and were met with cold, unconcerned glares. As Cora later described it, “The nurses just stood there, casually shifting through stacks of paper.” Finally one nurse walks up and asks (in Creole) “Does he have a cold?” Sue replies with unabashed sarcasm, “I think it’s a little more than that, honey!”
Meanwhile the ER doctor is over there performing CPR on some lady and then declares her gone. Our man is not doing well at this point. His sounds like he is trying to breathe underwater. His pulse is not strong. The Doctor comes over and takes a look. He says, “I don’t have any beds.” Again Sue (gotta love her) retorts, “Well, that lady over there just died.”
At this point Cora says to the rest of us, “I don’t think we’re going to need a bed.” Our man breathes his final, labored breath. The Doctor works hard to try to revive him, right there in the middle of the room in front of the nurse’s station, but he has nothing for tools but the hands God gave him…no oxygen, no defibrillator, no nothing.
After this we load him back in the car, take him home, and lay him back on his bed. I will never forget the sound of the neighborhood women wailing when we opened the back of the car and everyone could see that he was laid in there on a tarp. That night he had a wake and the next morning he was buried. No money in this family for embalming or fancy coffin or anything like that.
The contruction crew, with the help of Marlon and others, were able to stay late and finish a big chunk of the house that final evening. They were pleased when they returned late that night. All that was left after that was to get some supper, pack, talk through the next day's travel plans, reflect a bit on what God had done during this week, and grab a few hours of sleep before departing at 3AM for Port-au-Prince. We woke in the night to the familiar sounds of suitcases being dragged over gravel, and then they were gone.
As always it was an adventurous week, especially with this big and talented team here, and especially with our special guests, our pleasant surprise. Now we look forward to a long stretch of quiet, but of course even the quiet times can be interrupted by adventure at any moment!
A special thanks to everyone who made it possible for this team to come, especially Lynn's parents who watched Marlon and Cora's kids all week.
May your adventure for the Lord be filled with pleasant surprises!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
A Pleasant Surprise: PART 2
Family and Friends,
NOTE: This blog is part 2 of 3...reading part 1 will help this make sense!
After I told Lynn what the title was to the first blog post of this week, she gasped, “It was more than just a pleasant surprise!” We were truly blown away to see Marlon and Cora in our little humble corner of the planet. It is a cherished memory we won’t soon forget. The memory will also be colored by the little adventures that happened while they were here as well.
The morning after the team arrived everyone got right to work, especially the crew of four talented and passionate men from Westview CRC in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They were bound and determined to construct a hurricane-proof house on the new property down by the ocean. The first morning they decided to leave for work around 7:15, so they loaded up the truck and opened the big gate to the property. They had agreed to that time with Pam, and they were sticking to it. They hadn’t yet been here long enough to know that when Pam says “7:15” it means we will leave for sure by 8:00, if possible, hopefully, Lord-willing. (Pam’s been coming here so long she’s half Haitian). So they left without her! I had to laugh.
It wasn’t long before Larry, the senior member of the contruction team, came back with Kiki in the truck to dress a wound. He had tried to descend the old gravelly staircase to the new property, fell, and cut his shin. His first reaction was to wonder why his pants were getting all wet. Of course it was blood. He had a good attitude about it, got the wound taken care of by one of the many nurses, and then continued to work on wood forms for the cement columns they would later pour.
Part of the team went down to one of the local schools to do a children's Bible program, and the other men and I walked down to the construction site to check out what was happening. From there we combed our way back through the village, touching base with some of the men whom Patchouko and I had invited to the mini-Promise Keeper’s program we hosted each day. We had a chance to catch up with several of the guys, let the team get to know them a bit, and then make sure they knew when the activities would begin, etc… But as we approached the clinic one of the women on the team came running out and yelled to us, “We need help in the clinic. We need as many people as possible to help us pray.”
I knew right away it must be some kind of demonic activity. If it had only been something medical the nurses would have either handled it or rushed the patient off to the city hospital. By the look on her face I could tell we were looking at a spiritual problem. By the time the other men and I arrived, Sue and others had already been dealing with a possessed 11-year old boy for about ninety minutes. He was thrashing about and Gertrude and Renard (the Haitian ladies who run the orphanage) were praying energetically over him to be delivered.
To make a long story short (as always this particular event could have its own blog post, or two) the team continued to pray and worship for several hours until the boy was completely and utterly exhausted and collapsed on a bed. One of the scariest moments in the whole thing was when one of the men got overheated, sat down on the floor, and became a little bit incoherent for a minute or two. I had to laugh later, recalling how some of the Haitians went and threw a bucket of water on him. I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but that is just step #1 for them in any medical situation. He was fine the rest of the week.
After sleeping through the night the boy was better in the morning. The family later sent him up to Madame Saver, a prophetess of sorts up in the mountains. She continued to pray for him for a few more days, and the boy is his same old self now. Another blessing from this whole adventure was to see his Father come to Christ in the midst of the trial. That is absolutely key when these kids get taken over by demons. If their parents are Christians and take authority of the child, spiritually speaking, it seems to override the right of the demon to be there. Bear with me, I’m new to this!
So Day 1 of the big team's visit got off to an exciting start to say the least. Welcome to Haiti! After that the mens’ group got off on the right foot, and the construction crew remained busy. The women at the school finished their program, and some of the women back at the orphanage began teaching a small, diverse group of men, women, and children how to run a sewing machine and make cloth diapers.
I have to say something funny about that sewing machine. The brand name is “Finger.” We all had to laugh at that. I guess it is a cheaper version of “Singer.” You see that everywhere in Haiti. For example, there is one motorcycle company who makes the “Wave” motorcycle, so another one puts out the “Wvae” motorcycle. They just rearrange the letters a little bit. There are also the Dayun and Duyang motorcycles. People do brand stealing like that down here that would get you sued in the US for sure.
So after all that and a shaky start with the Youth Group for the week, we called it a day. Marlon and Cora, our pleasant surprise guests, got a good taste of what life is like in Haiti. The rest of the week was exciting as well!
May the Lord bless your life with adventure!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
NOTE: This blog is part 2 of 3...reading part 1 will help this make sense!
After I told Lynn what the title was to the first blog post of this week, she gasped, “It was more than just a pleasant surprise!” We were truly blown away to see Marlon and Cora in our little humble corner of the planet. It is a cherished memory we won’t soon forget. The memory will also be colored by the little adventures that happened while they were here as well.
The morning after the team arrived everyone got right to work, especially the crew of four talented and passionate men from Westview CRC in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They were bound and determined to construct a hurricane-proof house on the new property down by the ocean. The first morning they decided to leave for work around 7:15, so they loaded up the truck and opened the big gate to the property. They had agreed to that time with Pam, and they were sticking to it. They hadn’t yet been here long enough to know that when Pam says “7:15” it means we will leave for sure by 8:00, if possible, hopefully, Lord-willing. (Pam’s been coming here so long she’s half Haitian). So they left without her! I had to laugh.
It wasn’t long before Larry, the senior member of the contruction team, came back with Kiki in the truck to dress a wound. He had tried to descend the old gravelly staircase to the new property, fell, and cut his shin. His first reaction was to wonder why his pants were getting all wet. Of course it was blood. He had a good attitude about it, got the wound taken care of by one of the many nurses, and then continued to work on wood forms for the cement columns they would later pour.
Part of the team went down to one of the local schools to do a children's Bible program, and the other men and I walked down to the construction site to check out what was happening. From there we combed our way back through the village, touching base with some of the men whom Patchouko and I had invited to the mini-Promise Keeper’s program we hosted each day. We had a chance to catch up with several of the guys, let the team get to know them a bit, and then make sure they knew when the activities would begin, etc… But as we approached the clinic one of the women on the team came running out and yelled to us, “We need help in the clinic. We need as many people as possible to help us pray.”
I knew right away it must be some kind of demonic activity. If it had only been something medical the nurses would have either handled it or rushed the patient off to the city hospital. By the look on her face I could tell we were looking at a spiritual problem. By the time the other men and I arrived, Sue and others had already been dealing with a possessed 11-year old boy for about ninety minutes. He was thrashing about and Gertrude and Renard (the Haitian ladies who run the orphanage) were praying energetically over him to be delivered.
To make a long story short (as always this particular event could have its own blog post, or two) the team continued to pray and worship for several hours until the boy was completely and utterly exhausted and collapsed on a bed. One of the scariest moments in the whole thing was when one of the men got overheated, sat down on the floor, and became a little bit incoherent for a minute or two. I had to laugh later, recalling how some of the Haitians went and threw a bucket of water on him. I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but that is just step #1 for them in any medical situation. He was fine the rest of the week.
After sleeping through the night the boy was better in the morning. The family later sent him up to Madame Saver, a prophetess of sorts up in the mountains. She continued to pray for him for a few more days, and the boy is his same old self now. Another blessing from this whole adventure was to see his Father come to Christ in the midst of the trial. That is absolutely key when these kids get taken over by demons. If their parents are Christians and take authority of the child, spiritually speaking, it seems to override the right of the demon to be there. Bear with me, I’m new to this!
So Day 1 of the big team's visit got off to an exciting start to say the least. Welcome to Haiti! After that the mens’ group got off on the right foot, and the construction crew remained busy. The women at the school finished their program, and some of the women back at the orphanage began teaching a small, diverse group of men, women, and children how to run a sewing machine and make cloth diapers.
I have to say something funny about that sewing machine. The brand name is “Finger.” We all had to laugh at that. I guess it is a cheaper version of “Singer.” You see that everywhere in Haiti. For example, there is one motorcycle company who makes the “Wave” motorcycle, so another one puts out the “Wvae” motorcycle. They just rearrange the letters a little bit. There are also the Dayun and Duyang motorcycles. People do brand stealing like that down here that would get you sued in the US for sure.
So after all that and a shaky start with the Youth Group for the week, we called it a day. Marlon and Cora, our pleasant surprise guests, got a good taste of what life is like in Haiti. The rest of the week was exciting as well!
May the Lord bless your life with adventure!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
A Pleasant Surprise: PART 1
Family and Friends,
Day 121 of our Haiti Adventure!
We haven’t posted for quite some time, so I guess there is some explaining to do. Sometimes the adventure gets so adventurous you don’t even have time to sit down and think, much less write out a coherent thought to pass on to everyone back home. To make a long story short, the big team had a great week here, some surprise guests came along with them, most of a house was constructed, clinics were carried out all over, a successful men’s retreat occurred, people were taught to sew diapers for babies, demons were cast out, several individuals dedicated their lives to Christ, John left with his Mom, team members were present when someone in the village died and another was born within hours of each other, and I (Cory) spent a big chunk of the week sick in bed.
Let me start at the beginning and give you a slightly more elongated version of all that. This will take a few posts, so check back in the days to come...
The team had a hard time getting here on their first day. Pam had used up all of the pages in her passport…too many stamps! So they sent the whole team over to the US Embassy to get some details worked out and it ended up taking four extra hours. The team just sat there on the bus in Port-au-Prince waiting to travel out to Ti-Rivier. I hear there are some funny pictures of the men finding creative places along the road in the city to use as a toilet, including one of the surprise guests I will mention later. When in Rome… Finally they were on their way and enjoyed an uneventful trip the rest of the way.
Back here at the compound we were setting up tents and keeping the food warm for the team, with occasional phone calls from Pam to let us know how they were progressing. Despite the extra time we still didn’t manage to have the kids ready in time to go down to the road and watch for the bus. I was still bathing the kids when the group arrived. As we emerged from the shower we saw the first members of the team coming into the orphanage compound with the normal sound of suitcases being dragged over gravel.
We really hadn’t done a good job of communicating with Pam about the names of the people of this team, which set up the surprise nicely. Normally we have a better idea of who is coming so we can pray for them and look forward to seeing old friends or fellow members of previous Mission Haiti trips. But this time we just knew the team was big, had many projects going on, etc… So I was pretty surprised when I glance up and saw a familiar blond woman walking quickly up to the meeting tent where Lynn was waiting. I said to the kids, “Looks like we have a surprise team member.”
The surprise team member walked up to Lynn, and I think her reaction was to ask, “What?” It was her sister Cora! Then as the crowd continued to enter the yard we saw surprise team member number two…Cora’s husband Marlon! Lynn said, “You too?” Someone captured the whole event on video, so it will be fun to see that sometime and we’ll try to post it on the blog when we return to the states this summer. We were truly surprised. Somehow Pam and all of our family members managed to keep the whole thing a secret.
We were really happy to see Marlon and Cora. We knew Cora was planning to visit at some point with a team, but we weren’t thinking about the possibility of both coming the first time. I guess the whole thing just came together perfectly. Lynn’s parents had a good week in their schedule to watch Marlon and Cora’s three kids back home, so that was crucial. Also, it worked out good for them to be on a team which involved medical clinics, because Cora is a nurse. The team also had construction and men’s ministry, and Marlon was able to use his experience to get involved in both of those projects.
It was an especially timely week and a gift of God for the pleasant surprise to occur, because I got pretty sick and Lynn appreciated the extra help around the house with the kids and emotional support. As mentioned several times on this blog, the weeks when teams visit get pretty crazy around here. So it was pretty special to experience the whole thing side-by-side with our family members. Part two will share more of the adventures we experienced these past few days!
Thanks as always for your prayers!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Day 121 of our Haiti Adventure!
We haven’t posted for quite some time, so I guess there is some explaining to do. Sometimes the adventure gets so adventurous you don’t even have time to sit down and think, much less write out a coherent thought to pass on to everyone back home. To make a long story short, the big team had a great week here, some surprise guests came along with them, most of a house was constructed, clinics were carried out all over, a successful men’s retreat occurred, people were taught to sew diapers for babies, demons were cast out, several individuals dedicated their lives to Christ, John left with his Mom, team members were present when someone in the village died and another was born within hours of each other, and I (Cory) spent a big chunk of the week sick in bed.
Let me start at the beginning and give you a slightly more elongated version of all that. This will take a few posts, so check back in the days to come...
The team had a hard time getting here on their first day. Pam had used up all of the pages in her passport…too many stamps! So they sent the whole team over to the US Embassy to get some details worked out and it ended up taking four extra hours. The team just sat there on the bus in Port-au-Prince waiting to travel out to Ti-Rivier. I hear there are some funny pictures of the men finding creative places along the road in the city to use as a toilet, including one of the surprise guests I will mention later. When in Rome… Finally they were on their way and enjoyed an uneventful trip the rest of the way.
Back here at the compound we were setting up tents and keeping the food warm for the team, with occasional phone calls from Pam to let us know how they were progressing. Despite the extra time we still didn’t manage to have the kids ready in time to go down to the road and watch for the bus. I was still bathing the kids when the group arrived. As we emerged from the shower we saw the first members of the team coming into the orphanage compound with the normal sound of suitcases being dragged over gravel.
We really hadn’t done a good job of communicating with Pam about the names of the people of this team, which set up the surprise nicely. Normally we have a better idea of who is coming so we can pray for them and look forward to seeing old friends or fellow members of previous Mission Haiti trips. But this time we just knew the team was big, had many projects going on, etc… So I was pretty surprised when I glance up and saw a familiar blond woman walking quickly up to the meeting tent where Lynn was waiting. I said to the kids, “Looks like we have a surprise team member.”
The surprise team member walked up to Lynn, and I think her reaction was to ask, “What?” It was her sister Cora! Then as the crowd continued to enter the yard we saw surprise team member number two…Cora’s husband Marlon! Lynn said, “You too?” Someone captured the whole event on video, so it will be fun to see that sometime and we’ll try to post it on the blog when we return to the states this summer. We were truly surprised. Somehow Pam and all of our family members managed to keep the whole thing a secret.
We were really happy to see Marlon and Cora. We knew Cora was planning to visit at some point with a team, but we weren’t thinking about the possibility of both coming the first time. I guess the whole thing just came together perfectly. Lynn’s parents had a good week in their schedule to watch Marlon and Cora’s three kids back home, so that was crucial. Also, it worked out good for them to be on a team which involved medical clinics, because Cora is a nurse. The team also had construction and men’s ministry, and Marlon was able to use his experience to get involved in both of those projects.
It was an especially timely week and a gift of God for the pleasant surprise to occur, because I got pretty sick and Lynn appreciated the extra help around the house with the kids and emotional support. As mentioned several times on this blog, the weeks when teams visit get pretty crazy around here. So it was pretty special to experience the whole thing side-by-side with our family members. Part two will share more of the adventures we experienced these past few days!
Thanks as always for your prayers!
-The Grimm Family Adventurers
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
The Americans are Coming!
Family and Friends,
Day 113 of our Haiti Adventure!
We are gearing up for a huge mission team to visit starting tomorrow through March 7th. This is truly the variety team. We already have a family here who is working with the school sponsorship program, especially to take the yearly photo of each child in all of the various schools of our community. Soon another 23 people will be arriving, and a host of other projects are planned to keep them busy.
First of all we are excited to offer a scaled-down version of Promise Keepers for some of the men in the community. Each afternoon they will gather and learn about living out their calling to be godly husbands and fathers. Then Patchouko and I will follow-up with each participant in the weeks and months to come and help them not only carry out this teaching in their own lives but also pass on the information to other men. This should be a great opportunity for us, and it addresses what is a pressing need in this culture.
There will also be Bible teaching in the various grade schools we operate. We normally refer to these programs as VBS, but it is done within the framework of the normal school day. Some of the people in the team will be putting all of that together for each morning. We will also do various medical clinics in the community, including branching out to the Baptist Church up in the mountains, a location where I'm not sure if we have ever had a clinic before.
Now for the big projects, as if that wasn't enough! Some of the people on the team will be joining a local Haitian work crew to build a house on a small but beautiful piece of land Pam bought down by the ocean. They will try to complete the whole thing in the time they are here. That should be interesting to see the Haitians and Americans working side-by-side to design and build a complete house in only five days. It is part of a new project to offer some sort of care for elderly people who can't care for themselves. We'll share more about this as the whole thing develops.
Some other projects to fill any “down time” we might have include finishing and painting the new orphanage compound, moving the orphans and staff into their new homes, and doing some preparation on the house where our family will eventually move. I'm not sure we will get to all of these things, but they are on the list anyway! And of course we will round out each evening with a time of worship and Bible study with the Youth Group.
It should be an exhausting, yet hopefully Spirit-filled week of ministry. Today the whole family loaded up in the car and we went to Les Cayes to buy a ton of groceries for the week. We are preparing the house and the yard and letting everyone in the community know how they can participate and help. We are tackling this week with all the energy and positive attitude we can muster. I'm not sure who said it, but one of my favorite missionary quotes is this: “Revival happens when you go to bed tired and wake up totally exhausted.” In other words ministry always takes prayer and waiting on the Lord and the power and grace of God's Spirit, but it also just takes a lot of hard work.
Please pray for the safety and health and success of the team visiting us this week as they serve God with their various gifts and talents. We'll post soon and let you know how it is all going.
The road less travelled is always full of Adventure!
-The Grimm Familiy Adventurers
Day 113 of our Haiti Adventure!
We are gearing up for a huge mission team to visit starting tomorrow through March 7th. This is truly the variety team. We already have a family here who is working with the school sponsorship program, especially to take the yearly photo of each child in all of the various schools of our community. Soon another 23 people will be arriving, and a host of other projects are planned to keep them busy.
First of all we are excited to offer a scaled-down version of Promise Keepers for some of the men in the community. Each afternoon they will gather and learn about living out their calling to be godly husbands and fathers. Then Patchouko and I will follow-up with each participant in the weeks and months to come and help them not only carry out this teaching in their own lives but also pass on the information to other men. This should be a great opportunity for us, and it addresses what is a pressing need in this culture.
There will also be Bible teaching in the various grade schools we operate. We normally refer to these programs as VBS, but it is done within the framework of the normal school day. Some of the people in the team will be putting all of that together for each morning. We will also do various medical clinics in the community, including branching out to the Baptist Church up in the mountains, a location where I'm not sure if we have ever had a clinic before.
Now for the big projects, as if that wasn't enough! Some of the people on the team will be joining a local Haitian work crew to build a house on a small but beautiful piece of land Pam bought down by the ocean. They will try to complete the whole thing in the time they are here. That should be interesting to see the Haitians and Americans working side-by-side to design and build a complete house in only five days. It is part of a new project to offer some sort of care for elderly people who can't care for themselves. We'll share more about this as the whole thing develops.
Some other projects to fill any “down time” we might have include finishing and painting the new orphanage compound, moving the orphans and staff into their new homes, and doing some preparation on the house where our family will eventually move. I'm not sure we will get to all of these things, but they are on the list anyway! And of course we will round out each evening with a time of worship and Bible study with the Youth Group.
It should be an exhausting, yet hopefully Spirit-filled week of ministry. Today the whole family loaded up in the car and we went to Les Cayes to buy a ton of groceries for the week. We are preparing the house and the yard and letting everyone in the community know how they can participate and help. We are tackling this week with all the energy and positive attitude we can muster. I'm not sure who said it, but one of my favorite missionary quotes is this: “Revival happens when you go to bed tired and wake up totally exhausted.” In other words ministry always takes prayer and waiting on the Lord and the power and grace of God's Spirit, but it also just takes a lot of hard work.
Please pray for the safety and health and success of the team visiting us this week as they serve God with their various gifts and talents. We'll post soon and let you know how it is all going.
The road less travelled is always full of Adventure!
-The Grimm Familiy Adventurers
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