Trip Summary

Family and Friends,

Well, we've been home now for a couple of days and are thankful for a great trip to Haiti.  The final day of travel presented some interesting hurdles to get over, including Zacharie being held in customs for 3 1/2 hours and a subsequent missed flight, but we did eventually make it home that same night around 1:30AM.  Thanks again to everyone who contributed to this trip through gathering supplies, providing funding, and praying for us and for the people we impacted and who impacted us.  Below are a few more pictures from the trip.

Deaf kids signing a song of welcome to our group

Zacharie preaching at a church in Les Cayes, with Lucner translating

The humble church of Pastor Luc, which we attended on Sunday morning.  Pastor Luc was once a student of Zacharie's in school.  He now reaches out to unchurched teenagers and young adults.

Pastor Luc's humble home next to the church

Pastor Luc's family

Beautiful flowers & plants #1

Beautiful flowers & plants #2

Beautiful flowers & plants #3

George in his element

Planting the green peppers

Showing the crew some pictures of George's "farm" back home

The view in Port-au-Prince from the balcony of the home of some friends.  Just over the horizon is the ocean.

Jefte & Luckelson, friends in Port-au-Prince

Cory and Lynn with the Daudin family.
Back row-  Luckelson, Driana, Cory, Elmanie, Luckto
Front row-  Lynn, Kuckty

having fun together

not having fun...but at least we are together!

Family and Friends,

Greetings from Haiti!  We have reached that point in the mission trip when we are saying, "I can't believe the week is almost over!"  We had a good day today:

First thing in the morning we received a tour of Lucner's family nursery and flower shop.  We met his 88-year old mother, who shouted many blessings over us from heaven.  George was in his element as a former flower shop owner.

Lucner and a hodgepodge of his neighbors formed a crew and we used our morning to plant quite a few pepper plants.  The food will be used to supply the neighborhood and the Deaf School.

Around noon we visited Accolade, a new ministry in Les Cayes led by our old friend, Patchouko.  He takes in street children and rehabs them with education, creative arts, Bible instruction, healthcare, food, and a whole lot of love and patience.  We are considering this ministry as a potential future partner with H.I.M.

Next was a quick trip to the Deaf/Disabled School to catch a few children who weren't there for photos the other day.  Another of George's sponsor kids was there, and she was happy to see him!

We were in the neighborhood, so we spent a couple of hours visiting a family Lynn is mentoring.  This is the brother, and he is a rap artist in Les Cayes.  The boy in the background asked for a ride home from the Deaf School and doesn't look too happy to be stuck here with us.  We got him a coke and some watermelon, and he perked up.

The evening was spent visiting with old friends...Olgens, Donald, and Peterson.  Many other friends came as well and spent time with us tonight singing our favorite old songs, catching up, and joking around.  

Tomorrow, after we wrap a few things up, we will depart mid-morning for Port-au-Prince where we will enjoy a meal with some other friends and spend the night.  Early on Wednesday we will catch our flight to the USA and arrive home that evening, Lord-willing (as they always say in Haiti).  Please pray for safe travel, and be ready to welcome Zacharie to Minnesota when we arrive!

Many blessings on your adventure!
-Grimm Family and George

A Beautiful Day in Haiti

Family and Friends,

We are enjoying another good day in Haiti.  We spent most of the time in Ti-Riviere, the village where our family lived a few years ago.  It was fun to catch up with some old friends and see how the town has changed.  We also enjoyed a nice time of fellowship, prayer, and food at Zacharie's home.  Below are some pictures from our day...

Zacharie with Pastor Bouloute & his family
Pastor Bouloute gives guidance to Zacharie and the ministry he does in Haiti, and he is sending him to Luverne for the summer to do ministry.  He also wrote out a greeting to share with the church on June 14.

Enjoying Hot Chocolate on a 90+ degree afternoon

A beautiful and delicious meal- (from left to right)
1.  Fried fish
2.  Piklis-  a spicy cole slaw
3. Red sauce (tomato base)
4.  Corn mush with black bean sauce
5.  Fried plantains
6. Fruit juice (citrus fruit and grenadine mix)
7.  Goat meat with onion/tomato

Have a great time of worship tomorrow and know that we will do the same in Haiti.  We are one body and we share one Spirit...one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism!

Blessings,

-Grimm Family Adventurers and George

Family & Friends,

We enjoyed a good first day in Haiti.  Our main goal today was to visit the Deaf/Disabled School and take photos of the students and staff.  We also had a good time getting to know the students better:

George Bonnema with the older boys at the Deaf School

The kids range in ages from 4 through 18.

One of the younger girls at school

Some of the young women in the school are learning how to make "handy crafts"

We also had a chance to visit some old friends....

Patchouko, Jesoula, Joshua, Francisca, and baby on the way in August, 

Please continue to remember us in your prayers, as well as all the people in Haiti.

Blessings!
-Grimm Family Adventurers & George

Safe Arrival

Family and Friends,

Just a quick note to let you all know we arrived safely in Haiti yesterday and made the 4 1/2 hour drive out to the community where we will be staying.  We had some delays getting our rental car at the airport, but no major troubles along the way.  We are looking forward to a day visiting the Deaf/Disabled School and one other ministry in the city of Les Cayes.  Tonight we hope to report back to you and offer some photos of the adventure.

Thanks for your prayers!
-Grimm Family Adventurers and George

Leaving for Haiti Today

Family and Friends,

Today we leave for Haiti on a week-long trip.  One purpose for this trip is to visit the Deaf/Disabled School in Cayes, take new school photos of the kids, connect with Julianna and Lucner (school directors), and possibly do a project in their garden area.  Members of American Reformed Church in Luverne (where we serve and attend) have generously donated and prepared various items for the school.   It will be fun to bless the kids with these gifts and be blessed by their enthusiasm for God and life!

Special thanks to ARC for their generous financial donations to help make this trip possible!

We will also connect with old friends, visit new potential ministry partners, and scout out some details for the larger group trip we are planning for November.  Our good friend George will go along today, and it will be his first time in Haiti.  He has learned some common phrases and vocab words, and he is ready to dive in and help us any way possible on this trip.

Cory's parents are staying with our kids all week.  Cory's dad, Norm, just retired last week from teaching, so we thought it would be important to put him to work before he relaxes too much!

Please pray for our small team as we travel today and tomorrow, and we will be back on June 10!  Zacharie, H.I.M. director, will be flying back with us that day and joining us in Minnesota for the summer, so stay tuned to hear about some of his adventures with us...


Many blessings on your adventure for Christ today!
-the grimm family adventurers