TG Day #2 - Carrefour and La Lou Orphanage

Today we had a change of plans as we walk through this journey. We woke up to it raining outside. Hard. Instead of going to Cite Soleil, we attended CARREFOUR and La Lou’s Orphanage and got to see the city of Port-au-Prince up close for the first time. We hopped in the TapTap and left the guesthouse at 9am after a wonderful breakfast ( P.S. the consensus is that everyone slept very well and hard). We drove in the TapTap for about two hours through the crowded and loud streets of the city. We got to experience Haiti driving and traffic, which allowed for group bonding time and laughs; but there were also moments of silence as we caught a glimpse of the reality of many of the people who live in this poverty.

We pulled in on to the gravel -path that led to the large mint colored hospital. We were welcomed warmly by the nuns who serve at CARREFOUR. The first endeavor was visiting adolescent girls as we painted their nails and they in return, eagerly wanted to paint ours.  The language barrier made it difficult, but we found other ways to connect (shout-out to informal sign language) to make the most of today. We all learned that smiling is truly the universal language. After the visit with the girls, the group spilt as the boys of the group went to the male floor and the girls of the group went to the woman’s floor. We were there to serve the patients by putting lotion on them, and the ladies could also get their nails painted. This experience was tough for some group members as we first-handedly saw people suffering, and we felt that we wanted to do more, but we couldn’t. It was hard to leave, but we know that they are good hands.

We arrived to La Lou’s Orphanage, which was tucked away from a busy road in Port-au-Prince. We walked up the stairs to see a sea of children ages 3-14 anxiously waiting to play outside with us. We brought with chalk, jump ropes, and bubbles. Within 5 minutes, many group members had a child in their arms or on their back, and let us tell you, those kids’ feet did not touch the ground until we left. Unless… you’re Syd Borys, who ran the whole time around the building with a mob of kids. The bond that formed between the team members and the kids in those very first moments lasted throughout our entire time there. Even though it was slightly raining we still were able to go outside with the kids and take a tour of the orphanage.  Our time felt too quick as we had to leave shortly after.

 We arrived back at the guesthouse around 4 and many group members went to the gift shop here which doubles as Gates’ (a long-term missionary here) home. We enjoyed getting to know such a wonderful young lady. Then, some of us took showers, or played games in the house, or sang classic American hits to the neighbor boys over the fence. These renditions included (but are not limited to) Taylor Swift, Journey, and Michael Jackson. Tonight for dinner we had Chicken Yakisoba (which was delicious) along with some white rice. We had our nightly devotion, and we definitely bonded as a group even more. Tomorrow the plan is to visit Gertrude’s Orphanage, which is for kids with special needs. We are all super excited! (But as we learned today, plans can change overnight)

We would also like to express our gratitude to the wonderfully amazing dynamic duo of Gates and Debbie. When we grow up we aspire to be as fantastically, amazingly, bomb.com-ly inspiring as these two beautiful servants of God. #servantsheart

Shout-out time from the authors of this post!!!!

Jackie: Hey mom and dad and Andrea and Isaac! Love you all! Also, a special shout out to my cat, Egg back home. And to all of my friends and family, hey guys!

Theresa: To all the people praying for me and my team. Your prayers are in action. To my family, I love you!

Love from Haiti,

Jackie & Theresa (on behalf of the crew)

Wow. All I can say after a day like today is wow. Today I got to experience many different things. For me today brought upon many firsts in my life. I have never flown alone on an airplane and I have never been out of the USA before. Along with my firsts, brought upon many learning experiences. I have never thought about how thankful I am to have parents who teach me everything I know. Today, I was asked by a little boy how to throw a football. This is what made me think about how thankful I am for the opportunities I have been given. Today we did many different things. From flying from to Haiti, to playing soccer and football with the local kids.  ~JOE SHWARTZ

            Today the group had already created memories that will last them a life time. The Haiti trip all began today when we all met up at the airport and waited for the slackers to arrive. We prayed together before we left for our first flight out to Miami, Florida. Before we left we already had a hilarious moment when Guadalupe was stopped and searched at the security gate. No worries, everyone made it out alive and well. The second flight was a breeze. Many people stepping out into Haiti air for the first time already began to sweat profusely. Colleen started sweating before we even got outside the airport, haha.

             We jumped onto the Toptop (which is a vehicle) and drove to our beautiful guest home. When everyone first walked through the wooden doors, the smell of Sheperds Pie filled the air. Everyone threw their belongings into the rooms and run outside to play a game of soccer with the kids next door. Oh my goodness, watching these kids play soccer against Matt T. was an absolute sight to see! Other TG kids were playing with Matt T. but it was really only Matt T. against all the other talented Haitians playing soccer. Oh, and while the soccer game as going on some kids had their hair done and also played some football.

            Dinner was amazing! Everyone had the privilege to eat a home cooked meal known as Shepherd’s Pie. We all sat down at a long table and Guadalupe said praise. Afterwards, Jens, Logan, Anna K. and Michelle F. did the dishes and set up the table for breakfast the next morning. Some TG kids took showers before our meeting but some did not. The meeting was about what the week was going to look like and what we need to prepare for. Oh, we also went around and said one word that we though expressed our whole day. My word was bizarre because being in Haiti with all these amazing people is such a bizarre experience.  Once that was over Joe S. and I (Logan Knip) decided to write the first blog of this Haiti trip. Hannah Johnson was also supposed to be a part of this blogging but she dipped out… loser. Well…this is starting to get sort of long so I will be ending it here. Goodnight from everyone here and you will hear from us soon J ~ LOGAN KNIP