The team in Haiti has sent an update. Amazing - God calls us to step out in faith and He always provides. I love how he calls us to simplicity in order to draw us deeper into His heart which is so beyond words. Please pray for us all and if possible, consider making a financial donation
Here it is:
"We received phones yesterday. Sara and Paul & Anna's had to be unlocked in Port-au-Prince and that took 2 days. We have no internet just using phones right now.
With just one week here we have had a lot of physical needs to attend to. A few days without water and intermittent power. Sean &; Sara spent a day with Fr. Louis at a monastery. It sounded awesome. There was not enough room to transport the whole team so Paul, Anna, Nathaniel & Stephen stayed at the base and busted walls to make a doorway for the nursery and a window in the chapel.
Another day Sean and Stephen went to Port Au Prince with Fr. Louis to get material goods which included shopping at a Home Depot type store and an amazing visit at Food for the Poor where we witnessed 1500 families being provided cooked meals EVERY day! Wow touches the heart. But their resources have been serioulsly cut. We were able to receive a container filled with furniture for the mission base. Great! Trip turned out to be an overnighter. Fr Louis went back today for a washing machine and stove.
We joined 100s for an amazing procession on the First Day of the Year of Faith. It was beautiful. We walked miles to the church singing and praying. The Alberts followed in truck. Bishop Dumas was so glad to see us and had us stand up in the Mass that followed the procession as he spoke of our mission to the entire crowd.
We attended Sunday Mass at St. Charles in Charlier where we will start Life Teen very soon. We drove because Fr.Louis Was running late but normally we will walk. There were lots of kids there. They hung around with us after. Life Teen will be so welcomed at this parish! With the exception of the two Masses at local churches and the two outings we have been here at the CJPIINE (JPII Center of New Evangeliztion) bonding and serving alongside one another. Needs are being appraised (and often put on hold) with respect to available funds. We also have bigger ideas but they need to wait like replacing the old leaky cement water storage tank on top of the bath house with plastic storage tanks. Not only does that require funds but a lot of labor in the demo of existing tank. We have agreed we need less "nice" food. 'Tite-Seour has prepared very good food but we are up for more simple meals allowing her more time to be missionary with us rather than for us.
Monday on JPII Day we are hosting a big celebration with 500 guests at the base!! Ought to be spectacular with praise and worship. The bishop will be here for that.
Our rhythm of prayer is good. We have Mass scheduled at 6:15 AM followed by Holy Hour and Morning Prayer. Evening Prayer before supper and night prayer after that. All of our liturgy of the hours and Mass celebrations have been English/Creole but more and more Creole each day. We’ve enjoyed increasing our personal use of the language in conversation, prayer and song. All are doing well and Sean is really determined to speak the language.
Our little community is not so little. In addition to Paul, Sara, Anna, Sean, Nathaniel, Fr.Louis and Stephen, we have 'Tite Seour who cooks and has 2 helpers, Marc Arthur, Reginald our "guardian. Clement has come to help with plumbing and electric and Rueben with masonry. So much to be done. Meschel, Fr. Louis’ brother, has also been here. Joe and Katy have come to visit from Moving With the Spirit. Local priests have come to visit. In fact, our first 2 days we had 20+ people here representing local parishes who were on retreat. In a few weeks 10 seminarians and a priest will
begin formation for a year. The school is still here for now but we have been so busy we haven't really been part of that.
Sean & Stephen are in a beach facing room in the guy's "dorm" the one just beyond the "main house."where Fr. Louis, the Albert’s, and Sara live. (We need to name these buildings.) We listen to the waves crash into beach that greet us in the morning and are like a lullaby at night. In the next room there has been one who keeps a Hatian radio station on all night. Pretty sure it is mostly praise and preaching. I can pick up parts.
The government is doing a great job of paving the road and making nice concrete ditches but we had no way to cross into the mission until late today. It has been a little awkward carrying stuff in and out.
This mission family is amazing and we love being part of it. It seems like we've been here longer than a week especially when you look at what we have had to do in order to get settled. Next week language classes will begin every day but Fr. Louis and Stephen will both be leaving for the US. We all really love having Nathaniel, especially Stephen Smith with 10 grands back in US. We have not done much laundry, just a few undies and diapers in a sink. No fresh water river here to wash in and we were without water a few days too. Most of us have had enough clean clothes so far. Today Fr Louis will return with a washing machine.
If the cement is hard and dry today we will paint and set up our Adoration Chapel for immediate use. It is the old radio station. I had to bust out the center wall that made it two rooms (2 day job with a small hammer) and a hole in the back for a moved window. All that's done now. Exciting!!
Thanks for your love and prayers."
Another day Sean and Stephen went to Port Au Prince with Fr. Louis to get material goods which included shopping at a Home Depot type store and an amazing visit at Food for the Poor where we witnessed 1500 families being provided cooked meals EVERY day! Wow touches the heart. But their resources have been serioulsly cut. We were able to receive a container filled with furniture for the mission base. Great! Trip turned out to be an overnighter. Fr Louis went back today for a washing machine and stove.
We joined 100s for an amazing procession on the First Day of the Year of Faith. It was beautiful. We walked miles to the church singing and praying. The Alberts followed in truck. Bishop Dumas was so glad to see us and had us stand up in the Mass that followed the procession as he spoke of our mission to the entire crowd.
We attended Sunday Mass at St. Charles in Charlier where we will start Life Teen very soon. We drove because Fr.Louis Was running late but normally we will walk. There were lots of kids there. They hung around with us after. Life Teen will be so welcomed at this parish! With the exception of the two Masses at local churches and the two outings we have been here at the CJPIINE (JPII Center of New Evangeliztion) bonding and serving alongside one another. Needs are being appraised (and often put on hold) with respect to available funds. We also have bigger ideas but they need to wait like replacing the old leaky cement water storage tank on top of the bath house with plastic storage tanks. Not only does that require funds but a lot of labor in the demo of existing tank. We have agreed we need less "nice" food. 'Tite-Seour has prepared very good food but we are up for more simple meals allowing her more time to be missionary with us rather than for us.
Monday on JPII Day we are hosting a big celebration with 500 guests at the base!! Ought to be spectacular with praise and worship. The bishop will be here for that.
Our rhythm of prayer is good. We have Mass scheduled at 6:15 AM followed by Holy Hour and Morning Prayer. Evening Prayer before supper and night prayer after that. All of our liturgy of the hours and Mass celebrations have been English/Creole but more and more Creole each day. We’ve enjoyed increasing our personal use of the language in conversation, prayer and song. All are doing well and Sean is really determined to speak the language.
Our little community is not so little. In addition to Paul, Sara, Anna, Sean, Nathaniel, Fr.Louis and Stephen, we have 'Tite Seour who cooks and has 2 helpers, Marc Arthur, Reginald our "guardian. Clement has come to help with plumbing and electric and Rueben with masonry. So much to be done. Meschel, Fr. Louis’ brother, has also been here. Joe and Katy have come to visit from Moving With the Spirit. Local priests have come to visit. In fact, our first 2 days we had 20+ people here representing local parishes who were on retreat. In a few weeks 10 seminarians and a priest will
begin formation for a year. The school is still here for now but we have been so busy we haven't really been part of that.
Sean & Stephen are in a beach facing room in the guy's "dorm" the one just beyond the "main house."where Fr. Louis, the Albert’s, and Sara live. (We need to name these buildings.) We listen to the waves crash into beach that greet us in the morning and are like a lullaby at night. In the next room there has been one who keeps a Hatian radio station on all night. Pretty sure it is mostly praise and preaching. I can pick up parts.
The government is doing a great job of paving the road and making nice concrete ditches but we had no way to cross into the mission until late today. It has been a little awkward carrying stuff in and out.
This mission family is amazing and we love being part of it. It seems like we've been here longer than a week especially when you look at what we have had to do in order to get settled. Next week language classes will begin every day but Fr. Louis and Stephen will both be leaving for the US. We all really love having Nathaniel, especially Stephen Smith with 10 grands back in US. We have not done much laundry, just a few undies and diapers in a sink. No fresh water river here to wash in and we were without water a few days too. Most of us have had enough clean clothes so far. Today Fr Louis will return with a washing machine.
If the cement is hard and dry today we will paint and set up our Adoration Chapel for immediate use. It is the old radio station. I had to bust out the center wall that made it two rooms (2 day job with a small hammer) and a hole in the back for a moved window. All that's done now. Exciting!!
Thanks for your love and prayers."
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