Life-changing experience in Haiti: Part 2

On their week-long deployment in December, Brad and his fellow Reservists experienced just how real poverty and destruction are for the people of Haiti. The team performed medical consultations, taught community health classes, and participated in the Christmas gift distribution for families in the Child Sponsorship Program. Following is part 2 of Brad's story:

On day five Brad got to do what he had been looking forward to for the whole trip --putting his medical expertise as a paramedic to use. "Being able to help the people of the village, teaching, and playing with kids was such a fun and memorable experience, but that was the day that I got to be 'Dr. Brad'." He and another medically-trained HFI Reservist worked alongside a group from Medical Teams International at a local clinic. The clinic did not have electricity, running water, or any advanced medical machinery, and the supply of medication was very limited. Since he normally provides emergency care in ambulances, Brad said that he was a bit out of his element in this medical environment.

"Everything was done in one big room so, your waiting room was church benches in the front of the building, triage was just in front of the waiting room, and in front of triage were the patient rooms," Brad said. "The pharmacy was Tupperware containers full of various medications that were in no certain order. There were no rooms, no privacy curtains, and no signing a patient privacy paper -- what you saw is what you got!"

Close to the end of the day, Brad was called to check up on a woman who had given birth 20 minutes earlier. He walked in to see her sitting on a blue tarp with a newborn baby in her arms. "I really couldn't wrap my head around what I was seeing," Brad said. "When I was walking back to the clinic, I was just thinking to myself, 'Did that really just happen?'" 

Day six held more medical consultations and teaching school children about health. On the way home, the team stopped for the translator to buy coconuts from a local family, who insisted on giving the Hope Force group coconuts free of charge. "At that moment I had another culture shock," Brad said. "I was sitting on rubble from what use to be a house with beautiful mountainous landscapes around me, two turkeys walking around that were tied to a rope (they breed turkeys there), and now I was about to eat coconut right off of the tree!"

Throughout the trip, Brad was continually surprised at the Haitians' view of their poverty. "What I saw as devastation was just another day to them, because they don't know any different," Brad said. "The village of Sous Savanne was probably one of the saddest things that I've ever seen, but all of the children had big smiles on their faces and seemed so carefree. These children have it very bad, yet they continue to smile. While I was over there I was working for free, risking my health, stuck in traffic for four hours a day, but I was so genuinely happy with what I was doing. If that doesn't prove that money can't buy you happiness, then I don't know what else will."

On their final day in Haiti, Brad and the rest of the team distributed Christmas gifts to sponsored children in Sous Savanne. "Our team spoke about the true meaning of Christmas before the distribution," Brad said. "We also said a prayer and then sang a few Christmas songs. It gave me chills to hear 'Silent Night' sung in Creole."

After a week of sobering realizations, cultural experiences, and gratifying outreach, Brad and the other HFI Reservists returned from Haiti. "What a week it was!" Brad said. "I had gotten so used to taking hot showers, brushing my teeth, or even just having a house to live in that I never took a minute to stop and think how good I really have it. Going to Haiti was such an amazing experience that I will never forget. God is doing amazing things in my life, and He has placed me right where He wants me!"