Haiti Mission Trip: Day 1

Saturday:

When we arrived in Grand Goave we went straight to the compound. It had high walls which were either topped with broken bottles or with razor wire all around. There was also a guard who stood at the door to keep up with which kids went out and where they were going.  When we got there all 31 kids (ages 10ish-17) were there. Half would leave on Sunday to go to camp in Jacmel.

compound walls and some of the ladies

 We expected the kids to be very excited to see us, since we were so excited to see them. But our greeting really wasn’t very warm. Who can blame them with a new group coming in every week over the summer? Several kids helped us to get our luggage to our rooms. The girls and the guys each had a place to stay with 4 bunk beds, a toilet, a sink, and a shower. We were so thankful to see a toilet and a shower there (but flushing TP was a no-no!) because we were prepared for, well, other things. The language barrier was difficult at first. Most of the kids understood some English, but some would not try to use it to speak to us. We settled in and played some with the kids and chatted with the missionaries that work at H&F.

Here's a little picture tour of the compound!

bedroom

 

where we met and ate our meals



playground, rock wall, and the well/water tower

soccer field

 

our favorite place to sit and talk

missionary house on the left, kids' showers on the right

kids' bathrooms

basketball court

kitchen

monkey bars the guys installed between the boys' rooms

 We ate spaghetti for dinner and it was very good! The Haitian sauce is a little oilier than American spaghetti sauce and it had onions in it.

After dinner we were playing with the kids when we were told we were leaving for church in fifteen minutes! They canceled the English-speaking service on Sunday because of a conference going on, but they had one on Saturday night. The church was close by, but we rode in the truck anyway. We fit ten adults and one child in the back of the pickup- all sitting! The church building is temporary and is made of wood posts and a tin roof. To enclose the building they used lots of beautiful curtains. It really gave the building a neat feel. Haitian people seem to have a gift to turn plain things into beautiful things. The service was mostly in English with a Haitian translator. They sang some songs we knew and we were still able to sing along when they sang in Creole!

outside the church

 

 After church we met with our team for a bit before time to get ready for bed. Not long after we got to our rooms it started to rain. It was super loud on our tin roofs, and we couldn’t even talk to one another over the sound! We were all exhausted after a long day of traveling and exploring, so we were ready to get to bed anyway.