HFI Travels to Haiti

On any given day, it?s a rarity to see our Hope Force International staff team sharing a cup of coffee together.  Whether training new Reservists around the U.S., welcoming teams in Haiti, directing volunteer groups in West Virginia (Appalachia) and responding to disasters just about anywhere, we tend to be a team that is constantly ?on the move?.

With that, you will understand the smiles on our faces and delight in our hearts, when 13 out of 14 of us found ourselves in Haiti for a week?together!  Miraculously, a calendar window opened for us to join our resident Hope Force staff, Marianne and Rene Lako, to ?taste and see? the people, projects and villages we?d all heard so much about.  A group of seasoned Reservists remained ?on call? back in the U.S. , prepared and ready to respond in case a major disaster struck during our absence.

 As we enjoyed our first morning together over strong coffee and mangoes, we individually each sighed over the gift of being part of a team, but not in charge of the details.  The Lakos mapped out a schedule mixed with school visits, hiking to a remote village, food distribution, painting roof trusses and plenty of time to share stories together at the day?s end.

 For each of us, key moments of wonder left us smiling.

 Our first walk into the village of Sous Savanne along the gravel road found us stopping often along the way? marveling at the farmer in his field with a hand trowel, digging up rows of dirt for his next crop? looking up at lush green hillsides ? hearing the chatter of small children along the way calling out ?Bonjour Madame Marianne!!?? jumping aside for motorbikes carrying children to school for the day.

One morning, the men grabbed brushes to paint timber for roofing on a new House of Hope,being constructed for a local family.  The ladies hiked down a dirt path to Erline?s (????) hut to learn how to make jewelry.  A group of four women from Sous Savanne spend hours each day, carefully rolling bits of craft paper and magazine pages into colorful beads for jewelry to be sold.  We laughed as we tried to follow Erline?s direction, trying to be good students, while marveling at her joy.  At one point, Erline emerged from her home with a small china cup, half filled with coffee.  She carefully placed it in the middle of the table, pointed at it proudly, inviting us to share.   We looked at each other, then gently passed it around for each to take a sip.  Hospitality speaks love across cultures.

As part of our orientation, we drove to a hilltop in the village that provided view of _______homes built by Hope Force teams.   A gray-haired Grandma, with a bright sun-wrinkled face and dusty bare feet, jumped up when she saw our group.  Marianne introduced Jack as the leader of Hope Force.  In lightning fast Creole, she became teary and said ?I pray for you!?  Within minutes she grabbed Jack and Cherie?s hands and began praying for them.

 As we turned to walk further down the ridge, we noticed a huge pile of concrete dust. (??)  A couple stood proudly by with their aging donkey.  While the wife held open a large sack, the husband shoveled sand to fill it.  Rene pointed down the hillside to a small grove of trees.  ?Do you see that level spot?  That is where we will be building their house.  They are required to help with the labor.  All this sand needs to be hand carried down that winding foot path? about a 10 minute walk?  We inwardly groaned, as the husband loaded a second sack on the donkey and began to make his way down the path, smiling as he went.

 As a team, we found ourselves reminded that ?entering in the moment with God? takes many forms.    On Food Distribution day, families with children in our Child Sponsorship Program, arrive with bags in hand to receive rice, beans and a few toiletries.  Francine, our Child Sponsorship Coordinator, graciously greeted each child by name, delighted to finely meet the ones she?s cared for from afar.   In one corner, Chuck and Andrew sat watching the organized chaos.  Within minutes, both found their laps busily occupied with giggling little ones.  In another corner, Laura pulled out some brightly colored nail polish and quickly found herself surrounded by little dusty hands stretched out for painted nails.  On a chair nearby, Cherie and Karen sat boldly as more little hands grabbed strands of their hair to comb, brush and braid it.

On our last evening together, we sat around the dinner table reflecting on the week, the adventures, the people and the memories.  Sharing 7 days as a staff team in Haiti, joined in focus, free from interruptions of daily life, relaxing over meals and getting dusty and dirty together? we all knew we?d jumped to a new level of appreciation and affection for one another and for the people of Haiti.  As Sous Savanne village leader, Joseph expressed in his goodbye to our team, ?In Heaven, there will be no distinction between the poor and rich.  We will all be the same!?