Haiti - Day 3

Monday, December 31, 2012

NEW YEAR'S EVE - In Haiti!!  Cool huh?

Today started out with the guys of the group doing some projects around Jim and Debbie's:  Building more bunk beds, making screens for the windows, installing a hot water heater for the kitchen sink, installing a washing machine, etc.  

We girls went to Dorothy's orphanage.  The Faith Hope Love Infant Rescue orphanage.  This is the place that stole Allyson's heart way back in 2009 when she first visited Haiti.  Dorothy  nurses malnourished and special needs infants back to health and then returns them to their families.  She also provides permanent care for children with HIV and/or special needs.  There are currently over 25 children there, all hungry for attention and love.   I was so excited to finally meet Dorothy and all of the kids that Allyson has fallen in love with and Samuel, Dorothy's driver too!  

 
   (Dorothy and Lovensky)

You could hear the kids chanting "Cassie-Allyson! Cassie-Allyson!" as we pulled into the driveway.  Allyson couldn't get out of the truck and into that yard fast enough.  I followed her out to hear the chanting first hand!  They were all so excited to see "Cassie-Allyson".  They, of course, were excited to see all of us too and before we could even get down 2 steps we had 3 children climbing on us!  Johnny, Allyson's favorite, gave me a HUGE hug and was not shy at all.  When Allyson told him I was her Mama, he looked at us both with a sheepish little grin.  After the initial onslaught, we went back inside to see the babies and Allyson introduced all of them to me.  I met Tamara, the little girl with OI who broke her femur last time Allyson was there.  She has the most expressive eyes of any child I have ever seen.  Her break from last May is all healed now and that child can go where ever she wants to by scooting around on her elbows and knees.  I gathered that she is the "leader" in the baby room.  There was a new baby - Mathieu.  He is 3 months old and is only at Dorothy's because his mother died during childbirth and his grandmother cannot raise him.  So sweet!!  

(Amy and Tamara)

Me and Baby Mathieu

(OK, I know I look rough, but geez, it was HOT people!!  And you know my hair doesn't do well in the humidity anyway - plus there were no conveniences like a hairdryer.  It was what it was.)

Another missionary who Allyson became friends with last time there - and who helped her out with Tamara's broken leg - was there awaiting a ride to Gonaives where she is now serving.  Her name is Katie.  Katie walked us down to The Apparent Project to do a little bit of shopping.  The Apparent Project is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that empowers poor Hatian families.  It allows them to work a trade to make money for food.  They make some of the most beautiful jewelry - out of magazines and cereal boxes!  You should check out their website:  http://apparentproject.org/   

Shopping at The Apparent Project

Katie left us there to walk back by ourselves.  Allyson said she knew the way.  Well, on our way back we took a wrong turn at a fork in the road.  Thank goodness we realized that things looked different before we got too far.  I was laughing about getting lost in Haiti.  We got back to Dorothy's and loved on the kids for a while longer and then went back to Jim and Debbie's.

Back at the house we helped the guys finish up a project, took naps and then we all got showers.  Another mission team staying down the road at Sherrie's - she runs the Christian Light School and Children's Home - was going to come over after dinner for snacks, games, singing, etc.  We didn't get to games, but we had some really good snacks and then went up on the roof for some singing.  They brought guitars and we sang for over an hour.  

 



Then at 11:30 Randall and Dan led us in a communion service on the rooftop and at midnight we watched fireworks all over the mountainside.   A very very nice way to bring in the new year!  Allyson said the fireworks were not as grandiose as they saw from Dorothy's roof last year, but we saw enough to make it worthwhile!   Donna shared a devotion about us having to be broken in order to really shine the light of Christ.  She used glow sticks as an example.  We all got one and broke it to make it shine in the dark of the night - the same way we need to shine Christ's love into the darkness of this world.

At 1:15 am when I was writing about the day in my journal, the music and partying was going strong - and LOUD - we girls put in earplugs and took a sleep aid to help us sleep through that because it went all.night.long.  Not only was it New Year's, but Jan. 1 is Haiti's Independence Day as well - so it was party week in Haiti!