Hit with Cholera...

This wasn't the update I was hoping to write when I said I'd write again soon.  Last night the HOH was hit with Cholera when Jn Mary (pictured here working on his camp craft) came down with it.

  

He was admitted to our partnering hospital's Cholera wing and has been given IV solution and oral serum all night long.  Linda says he seems to be doing better this morning. 

This is not good news to hear from our standpoint, because Cholera spreads like wildfire and it can be fatal or bring other more complicated health problems after it.  At a place like the HOH it could spread very quickly and with some of our kids so frail it could be very hard on them.  Jn Mary is one of our very helpful kids, quite often taking care of the younger ones during the day -- this could have caused him to spread it around before he showed symptoms.  We'd like to ask you to pray...

• That it doesn't spread to others -- that the measures they have taken to disinfect the HOH, and are taking to not spread it further would work and no others would come down with it.
• That Jn Mary would continue to improve and recover from this completely.
• For strength and wisdom for Linda.  She has had some busy weeks and is supposed to teach a 2 week Child Evangelism Fellowship course starting tomorrow.  This is not something she needs on her plate right now.
• For Rosnel (one of our older boys, pictured below) as he gives one-on-one care to Jn Mary while he is sick and down in the Cholera ward.  Pray for his protection and health as he takes care of Jn Mary.

 Thank you so much for your prayers on our behalf.

Full speed ahead...

Summer vacation has been cut short this year in our part of Haiti.  Many of our kids are either taking make-up summer courses, exams or already back into classes in preparation for the upcoming school year.  Each school seems to try and come up with the perfect plan to make their students get ahead and because of this we had to push the fast-forward button on our summer plans with the kids.

Now that I am living in Canada so I can help the HOH more effectively, it's always a joy for me to head back to spend some time with my very big family there.  After a few days of travel -- I was more than ready for the exuberant reception when our car pulled into the HOH yard.  100 + hugs and kisses can make up for any amount of travel frustration!

I was so thrilled to see first hand how things are going at the HOH.  Linda and her team of young leaders are doing a great job of the every day running of things.  It is really moving to watch God  using our unique individual abilities and gifts to bring hope to the children and youth in our care.  On this particular trip I was very encouraged by our older boys, some of whom no longer live at the HOH taking their role of "older brother" seriously.  In their distinct ways, they were an invaluable help to me while I was there. They also regularly help out Linda as well as take an active role in helping the younger kids coming along behind them as they seek out their next steps in life.  It's exciting to watch it all happen.

Part way through my time there, we were joined by some friends from Miami and Colorado.  Pastor Dennis and Emma from MSPC have been down to help us out previously and this year they were joined by the Georges family, a Haitian family living in Miami and attending the same church.  From Colorado, James returned to the HOH -- this time with his wife Katie and their young friend Acacia.  Over the years, this summer team has come to mean so much to us all.  Their time was spent loving on our younger kids, encouraging the older ones and just making everyone feel special and loved as they joined in life with us.  

One of the biggest activities going on during our stay was our annual Summer Camp.  I'll wet your appetites with a picture of the 189 youth and children who attended the camp this year.  

I still have several thousand pictures to sift through (I told everyone I needed lots of pictures and they all took me seriously).  So, as I am able I'll share more with you about our time in Haiti  and show some of the pictures.  Keep in tune for more news and updates on the kids I saw there...

We were pleased to be able to meet up with a young lady who has spent the past number of months helping out at the HOH.  Sophie comes from France and while she was supposed to serve our head mission organization at another location in Haiti, she fell in love with the HOH -- and more specifically with several of our most needy kids.  She has spent countless hours caring for children like Madeline and Widson, and has made a huge difference in their lives and recovery process.  She has now finished her time in Haiti and has returned to France.  Her kind, caring spirit and willingness to help out wherever she was needed will really be missed.   (I will include her as well as the kids she has helped the most in the pictures in the future as well).

For now, I wanted to share two of the biggest needs we came across while down there because one of them is quite time sensitive.  

• As I mentioned before, for some of our kids, school is already back in session -- meaning school fees are already starting to role in making this need urgent.  It costs us approximately $300 US  for each of our students to cover school fees, books and uniforms for the year.  Each year we send just under 50 kids to school.  Can you help us out with the financial needs we have in order to give our kids the hope of a future through education? 

•  Our second need, while perhaps not as time sensitive is definitely urgent.  We are really in need of replacing our mattresses at the HOH.  Several years ago we were able to replace the crib mattresses, but we have been using the same mattresses on the beds for many years.  They are really in poor condition to the point of some of them being unsanitary.  Our beds are various sizes, but we need 62 mattresses ranging from trundle size up to Queen size.  If anyone happens to know of some place where we could get mattresses, or has a connection for us with regards to this need -- please get in touch with us for more details on exact sizes and numbers.  

We are so thankful for each of you who partner with us in so many ways.  We know that not everyone will be able to help us out, but we also know we have a Father who is able to meet all of our needs.  So, whether you can help us out with your prayers, sharing the news with others who might be able to help, or by giving financial gifts we ask that you consider helping us out with these needs. Thanks so much for caring about and helping us bring hope to the children and youth God brings into our home.  

More later...

Summer at last

Most everyone can relate to the sigh of relief that comes when summer is finally here.  School has ended for most of our kids and they are excited to begin their summer holidays.  And with them, a flurry of activity in our home...

Lala, Mike, Vava, Nannie and Kiky enjoyed an end of the year school field trip to a local beach...

 Esther gives Mits a ride in the hand-pedal tricycle

Finding ways to keep everyone busy and out of trouble becomes a full time job!  In this effort, Linda recruited our young men to start repairing things around the house that have been neglected over the past few months as everyone was deep into their studies.  

The benches and tables received a nice coat of paint and some tightening up in anticipation of our upcoming VBS Camp.

 The basketball court and play area got a fresh pour of cement...

And some holes in the roof and ceiling tiles were fixed.

A few of the kids are still studying, however, as the government exams for Grade 9 and Grade 13 are coming up.  Our grade 9 students:   Lovedine and Gachner will be writing exams the week of July 3.  And our Grade 13 students:   Sonson, Evelte, Herby, Reginald and Toodley, will be writing the week of July 10.  They'd really appreciate your prayers as they work study hard and take these often difficult exams.  

The next event on everyone's minds is the upcoming Spiritual Life Conference held by our parent Haitian organization each year.  Literally thousands of people descend on our little village to take part in Bible studies, times of worship and music and most notably for our kids a special children's program throughout the week.  Our kids love learning new songs and joining into some fun with other children from all over Haiti.  It is a highlight of their year and it happens in early July.

But the really exciting upcoming event is my (Jenny's) arrival during the 2nd week in July.  We have a great VBS day camp planned for this year -- the theme is Galatians 2:20, "...I no longer live ...but Christ who lives in me."  The Bible study books are made up and packed in my suitcases, the crafts and games are planned and supplies on their way in.  A team of 6 from Miami and 3 from Colorado are going to be joining us the 3rd week in July for the actual camp, and around 200 children and youth (80 from the HOH and the rest from our local area) are counting down the days for it to start.  

We'd love it if you prayed with us for safety in travel for each one heading down to Haiti.  Pray that all our supplies arrive safely as well.  Pray for health while we're down there and pray for a great time of praising, learning and community together.

In the midst of all the activity, we have a new arrival at the HOH.  7 month old Hendy arrived a couple of weeks ago.  He is quite malnourished and we were asked to give him a hand as his mom was also receiving treatment in a local hospital and wasn't able to care for him.  

Gotta love those big eyes!  It has taken a little while to get him feeling better and willing to smile... but here it is....

I can't wait to get there and hold him!

We hope you all have a lovely summer and want you to know we appreciate you all so much and all the different parts you play in making this ministry possible.  As you can see we have some busy weeks ahead -- thank you for praying.  Thank you to each of you who have come on board to help us financially, there is still room for more on our partnering team.   $10 a month goes a long way in enabling us to bring hope to the children and youth in our care.  If you are interested in helping us out with our financial needs, please let us know or see the previous post to see how to give financial gifts.  

Giving Information...

It was brought to my attention after writing the last update, that unless you go to the main House of Hope News blog page, you might not be able to see our partnering organizations information.  So I am including it here...

Financial donations can be made through Extreme Response at www.extremeresponse.org ,
or checks may be made out to: Extreme Response and sent to:
Extreme Response
PO Box 345
Snellville, GA
30078-0345

and in Canada:
Extreme Response Canada
PO Box 1013
Simcoe, ON N3Y 5B3

Donations may also be made through Crossworld at www.crossworld.org,
or send a check made out to Crossworld to:
Crossworld
10000 N. Oak Trafficway,
Kansas City, MO 64155

Or in Canada to:
Crossworld
1020 Matheson Blvd. E. #11
Mississauga, ON L4W 4J9

For both, please include a note that it is for the House of Hope in Haiti. All gifts are tax deductible.

Thanks again for considering helping us financially.

Seeing Improvement

Good Morning!  Thank you all for your patience in awaiting another update from us.  The past month has been quite busy and we appreciate so much your prayers for us all.  Jenny is safely back in Canada after her travels (more on that later).  And for now, here's what's happening at the HOH...

Praise God we are finally starting to see some marked improvement with Dorothy.   They have been able to remove the feeding tube as she is eating and taking her meds on her own.  She also has more strength, participates in some of the activities around the HOH and is in much better spirits.  Unfortunately, her extended period of time so deathly sick seems to have taken a toll on her mental health and she is having trouble thinking and processing through things so please continue to keep her and her complete healing in your prayers.

 A big thank you to everyone who has specifically prayed for Dorothy -- it has made a difference!

Widson has also shown marked improvement after spending this month with us.  The change in him is amazing, and while he still can't do a lot of things a child of his age should be able to do, we have high hopes as he gets stronger and stronger he'll be able to improve in those area as well.

 As you can see, he's not able to hold his head or sit on his own yet, but look at that smile!  

Lyse seems to be doing better these days as well, but we know it will be a long struggle yet for her with her condition.  The constant ups and downs can really take a toll on her parents and you can continue to pray for her parents as the face each day with her and try to meet her needs as they come up.  Getting blood to transfuse Lyse is always a problem as her blood count seems to drop rapidly when it does and the local blood bank doesn't always have enough supply.  We are thankful she has a very common blood type and we are extremely thankful for God's provision and keeping her this far.

Rain seems to be the biggest problem for the HOH and surrounding area these days.  It has been raining off and on for the past number of days and is starting to cause some damaging flooding in our town and also the town of Port-de-Paix, close by.  While the HOH hasn't received any damage, the same cannot be said for our town, our staff's homes and some of our kid's extended families who live in the area.  We'd ask you to pray for the people who are most affected.  Pray for God's provision to repair and replace what has been lost, for strength and courage as something like this really takes a toll mentally and physically on them.  Pray also for some sun to replace the rain so they can dry things out and clean up the mess left behind.

Thank you so much for your prayers for me (Jenny) as I traveled to Philadelphia, Vermont and the Lancaster areas.  I had such a wonderful time reconnecting with friends, family and partners in that area.  A huge thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make me comfortable, encourage me and help me share the news of what God is doing at the HOH.  Pray with us that from this time visiting with His people in those areas, God would bring more partners alongside of us to help us continue this special work.  

We are encouraging people to consider helping us with $10 a month in financial help.  It may not seem like a lot, but with the many people who truly care about this ministry, when you put it all together -- it enables us to bring hope to those God brings through our doors.  Over the 61 years that the House of Hope has been functioning, thousands of children have found hope here.  And while the financial needs feel daunting at times, we know God has shown us time and time again that He will provide all of our needs.  If you'd like to help us in this area, please let us know or simply send your gifts to one of our sponsoring organizations listed on this page.   And if you are not able to -- we totally understand that and ask for your continued prayers as we bring hope to the children of Haiti.  Thanks so much for whatever way you can and do help us out!

Welcome to Our Home, Widson!

We hope this update finds you all doing well and enjoying this special time of the year.  Easter is always an exciting time at the HOH.  Not only are the kids home from school the whole week, each year they together with Linda put on an open air, evening conference in our yard to share the Good News of Jesus with all who come.  Each evening they have a time of singing, worship and one of our local pastors shares the Gospel and the special meaning of this time of the year.

Linda reports that the meetings have been well attended.  On top of the 100 or so people in our family, there are so many people coming from our local community some nights there is standing room only.  The meetings will continue throughout this week, ending with a special service on Easter Sunday morning.  It is always exciting watching our young adults put their skills and talents into something like this.  Please pray for all the people involved in these meetings, pray as God's Word and Good News is shared that it would be heard, received and life changing for those who hear it. 

Another event this week has brought some excitement into our home as well.  We were happy to receive a new baby boy named Widson.  

He is 2 and a half years old but extremely malnourished and underdeveloped.  He is the son of a teen mom who abandoned him at a hospital in another town, so they brought him to us.  Unless something extreme happens, looks like he'll be part of our family for a while.  And this make certain people at the HOH very happy... like...

Lala just turned 13 and she was so excited at Widson's arrival, she declared herself his new "mom".  Lala loves being "mom" to the babies most in need and what could be better than a new baby on the very week she was off school!  But she's not the only one happy to give care.  All of us at the HOH are happy to have this addition to our family, and we are so thankful for your support in so many ways that helps us help children like Widson.

Here are some ways you can pray for us these days:

• The issue with our funds is still not solved, although we hope it will be in the coming week.  If anyone wants to help us with our shortfall during this time, please send gifts to Extreme Response  (www.extremeresponse.org).  Thank you to those of you who have helped out with this already.
• I, Jenny, had great weekend with Ashern Gospel Chapel in Ashern, Manitoba last weekend.  What a great group of people, it was a great weekend and we are happy to have new partners join our team.  Now, I am preparing for my trips to the North Eastern US.  Pray as I rush to finish logistics and travel next weekend.  I'll be at Valley Bible Church in White River Junction, VT the weekend of April 28 - 30.  Then Grace Baptist Church in York, PA the next weekend. 
• Thankfully, our three sickly girls all seem to be doing better this week.   We appreciate your prayers for them.  Please continue to pray for their healing.

I will be busy over the next couple of weeks, so if you don't hear from us for a while -- please know we appreciate your prayers and support as together we bring hope to the children and youth in our care.

Things to Pray about

Life can be uncertain at times and it's always nice to have a team of partners to share things with and know you will pray with us about them.  It is also a comfort to know that even though we have no idea how each of these issues are going to work out in the end; we know we can trust our Father to walk with us and no matter the outcome, work things out for His glory.   So, we want to share a few things we've been dealing with and ask you to pray with us about them.  

• The Fletcher family who have been part of the larger HOH family for years had an unexpected death in their family.  Jonathan had come to the HOH several times and left a very impressionable mark on all of us.  He passed away suddenly, leaving behind a wife and small daughter.  They could really use your prayers during this difficult time.  Pray also for our kids, Dieujuste and Desimène who are especially close to the Fletcher family and took this news hard.

• Then comes our 3 girls with medical issues... 
• Lyse has taken another turn for the worse and need another transfusion of blood.  Pray that they can locate that for her and find veins to be able to give it to here.  
• Dorothy continues to remain the same with no noticeable improvement.  At least she isn't worse, so please continue to pray for her.
• Oliana, our young lady with the numerous health issue, diabetes being the most difficult is really in rough shape again.  This morning they woke up to her being completely delirious and not knowing who she was or where she was.  Her blood sugar levels are just on a roller coaster up and down and they are having difficulty stabilizing them.  She has been with us a long time and is such a huge part of our family.  Please pray for wisdom for the doctors, courage and strength for all those who are caring for Oliana, especially Linda (as many of you might be able to empathize, it is so difficult to feel so helpless and unable to help someone who means so much to you), and pray for healing for Oliana.

• Our last challenge of the week is that our parent Haitian organization has encountered some issues with their US bank.  They are working very hard to get it all sorted out but in the meantime are not able to get us any funds through them.  We had already waited almost a month to receive the funds they sent us and now we found out we can't access them.  As you might be able to imagine, this puts us in a very tough spot and has caused quite a bit of stress this week.  We are so thankful that we received a shipment of dry food this past week, so we are still able to feed the kids, but we are going to need some help to get through this challenge until those funds can flow again.  We are also thankful that we have more than one method of receiving funds.  While most of our funds come through the Haitian organization, we do have another partnering organization that can receive funds for us and get them to us in a much less complicated method.  We'd ask you to pray for 2 things:
• Pray that the Haitian organization can work out this bank issue and get our funds flowing again.
• Pray that God would provide for our immediate financial needs through other gifts. (if anyone wants to help us out with this need, they can donate through Extreme Response International either online at www.extremeresponse.org or by sending a check to one of their offices:  PO Box 345, Snellville, GA  30078-0345; or PO Box 1013, Simcoe, ON  N3Y 5B3  Canada).

Thank you so much for caring about us and our needs.  Thank you for praying for us and helping us face our challenges.  Thank you for loving our kids and holding up their needs before our loving Father.

Ups and Downs...

We were full of good news in our last update.  But you have to be ready in our line of ministry for the ups and downs.  This past couple of weeks has not been as good for our two girls that we've been tracking with you all.  

Dorothy has not made any more progress ahead.  She continues to receive her food and meds through the tube and cannot spend much time out of bed.  They doctors continue to be stumped and unsure of their diagnosis.  But we are doing everything we can for her at the moment.  Please continue to pray for her physical, emotional and spiritual healing.

Lyse had a rough couple of weeks as well.  Her blood count dropped significantly and the local blood bank was out of blood for over a week.  As you can imagine, her parents were incredibly frustrated and discouraged as they waited for blood to become available.  Thankfully they found some and she has received it now.  Please continue to pray for all of them.

Meanwhile, we have received a few newcomers to our home these past couple of weeks.  Brothers, Markens (3) and Marc Edner (2), came to the HOH with malnutrition. 

Another little girl, Rose Naisha (20 months) came with malnutrition as well.  

These children will be at the HOH at least a couple of months as we feed and care for them and also find out what is going on with their family situation.  Often, with learning some of the issues going on in the family home and then with some education for the moms or other key family members; these children are able to return home once they are healthy again.  

As for the rest of the HOH...

• Our students are facing mid-term exams and so are studying and feeling a bit stressed.  They'd really appreciate your prayers for them.   
• Our vehicle is broken down.  It is being fixed, but it is taking a lot longer than originally thought.  It is a vital part of our work and not having it to rely on is tough on Linda and the young people who help her.  You could pray that it gets back up and running again soon.
• While we've significantly reduced our debt to the hospital, it is not completely gone yet.  Our staff are really due a raise, but we are not allowed to raise the salaries until our bill is at zero.  Please continue to pray that we would receive more funds and be able to pay this off -- then that we would get in enough to give our staff a much needed and very  much overdue raise.
• Jenny will be making a trip to the North Eastern US to visit some supporting churches, friends, family and supporters.  She hopes to encourage our current supporters and also pick up some new ones as she travels.  She will be in the Philadelphia area off and on from April 22 to May 13. She'll be in White River Junction, VT at Valley Bible Church for the weekend of April 28-30.  Then she'll be in the Lancaster, PA area from May 4 - 10.   Sunday, May 7th she'll be at Grace Baptist Church in York, PA.  If you are in or around those areas and would like to schedule a time to get together with her -- just let her know.  If you want to come to one of the church services while she's there -- you are most welcome.  She hopes to see as many of you as she can!  For those who aren't in the area, please pray for safety and health as she travels.

We are so thankful for each of you who plays such an important part in this ministry.  This past month here are some of the blessings we've also received:

• A church sent us some tubs of much needed clothing and medical supplies -- especially insulin syringes that we've had trouble getting in our area of Haiti.
• A friend in Haiti has been working hard to help us get our car fixed.  A supporter raised funds to help us cover the costs of fixing it.
• A church donated funds to cover food costs and shipping this month.  The food started arriving over the weekend as the boat was being unloaded.  Food shipments are always a huge help to Linda.  A friend in Miami always helps us purchase it and ship it over -- couldn't do this without him.
• Another church sent over a bunch of sheets and towels -- they haven't been unloaded off the boat yet, but the excitement is high for those -- everyday they wait for those drums to get offloaded!
• Many of you have supported us either with finances, encouragement or prayers -- We are so blessed by you all.  Thank you!

Good News!

I received some good news from the HOH and wanted to share it with you.  It seems like Dorothy is steadily improving, and was even able to stand for a little bit yesterday.  Linda took a picture for me to post so you all can see how she's doing and rejoice with us...

Thank you so much for your prayers for her.  We'd ask that you continue to pray that she will take her meds on her own volition (we are still having to give them to her in a tube), eat our good food and continue to improve.  Also pray for her emotional needs.  Many of our kids know what if feels like to be discouraged and feel like there is no hope; so pray that they will be able to minister to Dorothy and share the hope they have found with her.

Another good bit of news I received last night is that our little girl Lyse is doing much better.  She had a crisis a couple of weeks ago and needed a blood transfusion.  When they went back earlier this week to have a check up they found that for the first time in her life her blood count went up not down in the past couple of weeks.  This feels like a big turn of events in her little life and while she is not out of the woods yet, we feel this is a big step ahead.  Please continue to pray for her and her family as well.

Lyse has a lot to smile about these days!!

Thanks so much for your care for this special place.  We appreciate the many ways you stand with us to bring hope to these precious ones.  Have a great rest of the week!!

Moving ahead

Thanks for your prayers for Dorothy and those giving her care.  She is continuing to take small steps ahead.  She is talking more but still needs the tubes to eat and is not able to sit up yet.  We are thankful for every little bit of improvement and ask you to continue to pray for her and her needs. 

Lyse has had a few rough days as well, but seems to be on the up side of that.  As you can imagine, with so many bodies in our home, every day is a surprise when you wake up to see who is doing better and who is worse health wise.  Thank you for allowing us to care for these precious lives and for standing with us in prayer and support as we do so. 

Happy Valentines Day to you all!  (or as our kids call it, Happy Chocolate Day!)

A Small Step ahead for Dorothy

Once again, thank you so much to everyone who has been praying for Dorothy and for your notes of encouragement.  While it may not seem like a huge deal, she has made a small step ahead, she is speaking a few words -- so we'll take that!  We just wanted to let you know that and ask you to keep it up!  We'll share more as things progress.  Thanks!

Update on Dorothy

Thank you to everyone who has been praying for Dorothy.  We appreciate your prayers and your notes of encouragement for everyone involved.  She had a really rough weekend and while she seems to have rallied a little bit, she is not improving much at all.  Over the weekend she became unresponsive and the doctors fear she might have had a stroke.  She is at least a little bit responsive now, Linda took a picture for me but I can't share it online as she is not in good shape at all.  

This is one of those frustrating cases where we are doing all we can, but are hindered greatly by the limitations of health care in our area.  Even if her family could make it happen she wouldn't survive a trip to the capital city where they might be able to do more extensive testing for her.   So, please continue to pray for the doctors and nurses -- for wisdom to do all they can.  Pray for her family who have come to be with her and hurt so much for her.  Pray for the HOH family as they continue to serve Dorothy and her family at this difficult time.  

Your partnership enables us to bring what hope and health care we can to the children who come to our home.  Please continue to pray for the other areas of the HOH -- for our students as they are studying hard for a successful school year -- and for our continuing financial needs. 

Please continue

We were hoping to be able to offer you an update of Dorothy doing much better, but unfortunately that is not the case.  She seems to have gotten worse and they are having to feed and give her meds through a tube they've put from her nose into her stomach.  We know it is hard to imagine how she'll be able to pull through at this point, but we have seen it happen before... so, please continue your prayers on her behalf.  We will update as we are able to.

Prayer needed for Dorothy

I mentioned 14 year old Dorothy in our last blog.  She is not doing well at all.  She is extremely sick with TB and as you can see by her picture extremely sad.   She refuses to eat or take the medication that she needs

Linda asked me to ask for our prayers. She needs wisdom in dealing with Dorothy and trying to get her to open up and be willing to receive treatment.  Pray also for the kids and staff as they try to reach out to Dorothy by serving her needs at this time.  We are so glad Dorothy has come to our home and has the chance to learn what a precious young lady she is.  Thank you to each of you for the part you play in bringing the message of hope to Dorothy. 

Happy New Year!!

Christmas is such a special time at the House of Hope.  The house is all decorated and the kids are all excited.  Those who have been here for previous Christmas times tell their most grandiose stories to the newcomers who in turn get equally excited.  

This year was no different as the decorations went up, the songs started to be sung and taught to the new arrivals.  Throughout the house impromptu singing sessions would break out into Christmas songs always within earshot of Linda.  She would respond with her usual response, "I know, I know, you are just singing for your gifts", at which point the kids would run away laughing the kind of laughing that comes from deep within the gut and explodes all over the place.  The little game never seems to get tiring -- for the kids at least.  

So, as can be expected all eyes were on the boat bringing in the gifts this year.  We had assurances from the shipping company that they would arrive in time for Christmas, but started to doubt as Christmas morning arrived and the gifts were nowhere to be found.  

No problem, this is Haiti -- we are flexible.  With great gusto Linda and the kids threw themselves into preparing a lovely  meal to be shared by the HOH kids, staff, friends and some neighbors.  We don't often get to eat all together as a whole family, so this is always a special meal and everyone helped to put it together...

 

 It takes a lot of work to get a special meal prepared for as big a family as we have.  Then, in the middle of all the meal preparation came a call -- the gifts were ready to be picked up!  You can sure believe some of the boys dropped everything they were doing, grabbed the vehicle and went to pick up the gifts...

Even though they waited until the next couple of days to go through everything and organize the gifts, it was well worth the wait and allowed Christmas to be stretched out for even more days.  

 

 

 

The gifts once again came from a supporting church in York, PA with some staff gifts and big Christmas cloth gift bags came from our church in Simcoe, Ontario Canada.  Some friends in Texas helped us with some extra funds to use for the Christmas meal, and others in Colorado sent some new Christmas decorations for this year.  Our friends in Miami made sure everything got to us, as well as purchased and sent in food and other items we needed.  We are so blessed to have a such a wide and varied support team that allows us to have such a special time for our kids.  Thank you to each one of you who played a part.

The best part of our Christmas Season is being able to share the true meaning of the season with our kids.  The hope that Jesus brought to us all when he came so long ago means a lot to our kids who come from extremely hopeless situations.   We received 2 new arrivals over the holiday season and everyone at the HOH now has a chance to share this message with them.  

They've asked me to ask you to pray for them as they share God's love with Dorothy and Saskie.  Saskie is a little 2 year old girl suffering from extreme malnutrition; she is at the HOH with her mother.  Dorothy is 14 and is having a particularly difficult time being at the HOH.   She is in such terrible physical condition Linda is not comfortable even taking a picture to show us.  She has been suffering from TB for quite some time and has just now come for medical care.  She needs daily medication but refuses to take it.   Our staff, and the other kids are doing all they can to care for her.  Many of them remember how hard the first few weeks at the HOH can be, especially when you are feeling so very sick.  Please pray for patience for all those giving her care and that they would be able to show her the love and hope that come from life with Jesus.

 

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas season and we look forward to another year sharing life with all of you, our friends and partners.  A Happy New Year to you all!

A nice calm...

It's not often I get to write an update at a time when all seems to be calm at the House of Hope.  I do realize that "calm" is probably a very relative term.  Calm in some of your houses will likely look very different than "calm" in a house full of 100+ bodies at any given time!  But, calm is how things feel at the HOH at this moment, and it feels good.  It reminds us of how many things we have to be thankful for.  Here are a few that have encouraged us and we hope it encourages you as well:

• After a fairly rough virus went through the house over the past couple of weeks, it's nice to have everyone in good health.  We continue to pray for Lyse as she still needs blood transfusion every couple of weeks.  But, a pediatric friend in Quebec is running some tests on her blood and we hope for a more complete diagnosis soon.

• The boat arrived last week bringing some new Christmas decorations and also some Christmas gifts for our staff.  The Christmas gifts for the kids from our partnering church in Pennsylvania are presently on the boat and if all goes well should arrive before Christmas.  These things have everyone excited about Christmas.  Here's some pictures of the decorations...

Here are some wreaths they made out of old Christmas cards... 

• We have been receiving numerous financial gifts that have helped us pay back over half of the money that we owed to our partnering hospital.  This is a big relief for us to see that number getting lower instead of higher and we are so thankful to all who have helped us out in this way.  We also have been receiving more monthly gifts that will help us not get back in debt so badly in the future.  Thanks also to those of you who have been praying with us about this need.  We ask that you continue pray as we try to finish off this debt in the New Year.

• Our kids have almost completed this semester of school.  They are in the process of writing their exams, and should be done in the next week or so -- just in time for Christmas vacation.  They work hard and study hard and certainly appreciate your prayers for them in this area. 

• We just love this time of the year.  It creates such excitement and fun for our kids.  But the real reason it is such a special time for us is because it's about Jesus.  That he became one of us, one that we can relate with very much at the HOH -- a poor baby.  And that he lived and died and rose again to save us and give us life -- this is our true Hope.  What greater reason is there to celebrate?

So you see, there is much to be thankful for and each one of you plays a part in making this thing called Hope happen at our House! 

We want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas in your corner of the world.   Thanks for reaching out and touching ours.

 

Catching up

Greetings to you all from a wet, soggy House of Hope.  Almost since the hurricane went through, there has been constant storms and rain showers go through our area of Haiti.  While for us it has been mostly annoying dealing with constant damp and muddy conditions, for many others it has caused flooding and destruction of property and more loss of life.  

 Nannie trying to stay dry on her way to school during the rain.

 

As a result of one of these storms, we lost one of the lovely trees in our yard.  We are very grateful that it fell in a direction that was away from our buildings and didn't cause a lot damage, but we did have to cut the rest of it down.  It took a couple of days work to get it all cut up and moved off our yard.  Thankfully, we were able to make charcoal out of it and will be able to use it for cooking for a while.

The boys working on clearing out the fallen tree

Another project the kids and Linda have been working on is updating our kitchen.  We were blessed by a gift from a partner, who visited us last year, to be used to update the kitchen.  This project includes getting new propane cooking burners...

And new tiles on the floor and part of the walls...

and paint on the walls...

We still have to find and purchase stainless steel counters and tables to be used for food prep and the kitchen project will be finished.  This is something we've wanted to do for a really long time and we are so thankful to the people who put money towards us accomplishing this project.

As you can imagine, there are so many logistical details that go into running a ministry like the House of Hope and we cherish each and every supporter that helps us in many different ways.  After many days of waiting for the rain to slow down so the boat could be unloaded we finally were able to receive a shipment of food to fill up our pantry...

These food shipments come to us from our friends in Miami and are such a blessing to us.  Lately, they have had trouble raising enough funds to send in full shipments of food, so we make do with what they are able to send and purchase the rest ourselves in Haiti.  If anyone would be interested in directly helping them supply this food shipment for us, we could link you with their organization to help in this area. 

This food shipment came in just in time to help us receive a few new children into our home.  The first of these children is a young girl named Chanika.  She has Tuberculosis in her stomach and will need care at the House of Hope for at least the next 9 months to a year to receive treatment and become healthy again...

Several young children have come with severe malnutrition and skin infections.  These children remain at the House of Hope along with a family member who helps us care for them.  They will only stay a few weeks, up to a month until the child is healthy again.  We have a constant rotation of these small children in our home.  

Another important addition this past week is 4 month old John Kerry (it is a boy, in spite of the pink outfit!)...

The reason John Kerry's admittance to the House of Hope is so important is because of his parents.  Both of his parents are significantly intellectually challenged.  There is very little if any help for people with these disabilities in our area of Haiti and John's mom knows nothing of taking care of a small baby.  We are happy to be able to provide them with a safe place to stay while Linda and our staff take time to show and teach her how to care for her child.  

 

We love being able to provide hope in all of it's forms for those in need around us. Thank you so much for your part in helping us do this.

Some News

Greetings to you all from the House of Hope.  Linda and the kids asked me to thank you specifically for your prayers for us over the past few weeks.  They are all doing well, the kids are in school and life seems pretty much back to normal.  The only fallout for us from the big hurricane that went through has been receiving more children into our home.  We've already received about half a dozen from the affected areas out west of us and we anticipate that going up even further in the next few weeks.  

Thank you too for your prayers as I traveled out to see some of our partners out in Western Canada.  We made it there and back safely in spite of having to drive through a pretty bad storm and counting semi-trailers stuck in the ditch part of the way along.  It was a bit of stressful driving -- but we made it and had a great time with our friends out there.  

An exciting story that came out of this trip is that while speaking at our partnering church in Banff on Sunday morning I shared the story of Lyse and our desire to find someone who could help us with her case.  Banff is a tourist town and they often have visitors from all over the world in their church services.   In the service that morning was a family from another area of Canada  They had family visiting from Brazil and they brought them to see this beautiful area of Canada.   So, turns out the father of the family just happens to be a pediatric doctor in a children's hospital here in Canada!  He offered to do what he could to help us with Lyse's case.  He has all her information and is seeking some answers with the other doctors in their hospital.  We are so grateful that our Heavenly Father cares so much about each of us that he coordinated all these events so that we would cross paths!  Keep praying for wisdom for the doctors and that we could get some definitive answers for Lyse.

On the same note of exciting news, we are so grateful for everyone who has sent in extra financial support for us over these past few weeks.  We have been able to make 2 significant payments on what we owe to the hospital and while we still have some debt left, we are feeling much better about it than before and are hopeful that the rest will come in as this year is coming to an end.  Our next prayer request would then be that we would be able to get some more partners to support us on a monthly basis so we don't go back into debt to them in the future.

 We have some prayer requests to share with you for the days and weeks ahead:

• Linda had a fall last night and injured her foot.  She had x-rays today and the doctor said it wasn't broken, but it is swollen and painful.  Please pray for quick and total healing for her.
• There is a medical team visiting our partnering hospital this week and another one heading there next week.  The team that is currently there will be doing skin grafts on one of our little girls at the House of Hope this coming Friday.  Five year old Neisha has been in our home for a little over a month now and she came with significant burns across her stomach.  We are grateful that this team has the tools and skills to do these grafts for her, and we ask you to pray for them as they do the work and for Neisha that she would heal nicely and that this would really help her.
  

A big thank you to everyone who has given and prayed for us -- you are such a blessing to us!

An Update

Good Morning Everyone.  First of all, very sorry I didn't get to write an update yesterday, I was not home all day.  I did keep in touch with Linda and the kids throughout the past couple of days to make sure all was OK. They are doing fine.  

We are located on the North coast of Haiti, so not in the area where the hurricane hit directly and where it seems there is much more damage.  I haven't heard anything about if there is damage in our general area, but I do know the HOH and all our kids are safe.  The had lots of wind and rain through the day yesterday; what scared them the most was how dark it got throughout the day.  Now it is calm but still raining off and on.  

Thank you so much for your prayers on their behalf, and please continue to pray for Haiti and those who now have to start cleaning up and helping those most affected. 

I'll update when I can, but I am heading out on a road trip today to visit with a supporting church in Alberta, Canada, to visit family and to attend the funeral of a friend of ours who passed away suddenly this past week.  While the HOH is dealing with rain, I'm preparing to drive through our first snow storm of the season!  So, I could use your prayers as well.

Thanks so much for all the messages of concern and assurances of your prayers.