STACEY GAGNE – Today was the most labor intensive day of the week for us.  We worked a full day mixing cement, filling buckets and helping to pour it into the foundation.  Yes, we became human cement mixers.   While we continued to work on the building there were other locals out in the brush cutting down vines, brush and small trees.    There is also a large area of brush that is being gradually burned out because of thousands of bees and hornets!  We are steering clear of it.   Mike said that they should be able to harvest the honey once the bees move on, though.   Nothing goes to waste!

This evening after we cleaned up and were waiting for dinner, one of the Jacmel Bay artists came by to show us (and sell) some of the jewelry he has made.  Jacmel Bay is a project that my friend Denise has developed to help  hearing impaired artists in Jacmel develop a trade.   They make necklaces, small nativities and other beautiful creations that are in turn sold in the US to help raise funds for missions trips.  (I sold some to help raise funds for my trip.)  I loved making the connection with Jeann Ferissien.  I’m wondering if he made any of the necklaces that I sold!

Please pray for Joy in Hope as they seek to raise funds in the midst of all of the work that they are doing.   This is a growing ministry in Haiti that is making an impact.  There are opportunities to support the ministry that needs base support and there are also missions staff like Mike and Georgette, Directors of Development who are still working towards full sponsorship.

Thanks for praying for our team, too.   God truly put together a group with varied gifts, skills and personalities who can work well together and are now friends!

STACEY GAGNE – Today was a very full, productive and fun day.   Our team spent the morning working (and playing) on the Joy in Hope land.  We continued to work with rebar and other steel making parts that get put together for the base poles and connectors where the concrete will be poured for putting this house together.  It’s amazing to think that all of these little metal square and triangles we are making are going to help hold this building together.

I had brought some hacky sacks along to the land hoping that some neighbors would show up and they did!  I had fun playing with the boys and showing them how to hack.  Some of the other team members got in on the action, too.

A funny (now) story from this afternoon that is a good example of the unpredicable nature of living in Haiti… one of our team members was in the shower after our time at the work site.  The rule of thumb in conserving water is to get wet, turn off the water, lather up, then rinse off.  Well, though there is plenty of water in the cisterns, it’s practically a full time job for the staff here to keep switching between the two, pumping, and keeping up with the whole process of keeping the water going.  Well one of our friends got stuck in the shower for a good 10 minutes all lathered up.  We could laugh about it tonight.  🙂

This afternoon and evening we spent time at Joy In Hopes Haitians Childrens home (aka the Mangine home).  We were able to present them with the bags and bags of formula, cloth diapers, school supplies, clothes and more that we brought.   We also spent time tie  dying t-shirts with the kids and that was a big hit.  Dinner tonight was Haitian spaghetti with picklies (a spicy sort of coleslaw).  YUM.  The spaghetti was a drier version of our spaghetti with tons of spices.  They like to eat it with mayonaise, ketchup and/or hot sauce.   Interesting .

Tonight our team packaged up all the disposable diapers that we brought that will be distributed at the tent camps.  We also spent time debriefing (which we do each night as a team).  We share our highs and lows from the days and have a devotional time.  I love to hear the different perspectives of the team members and re-live the days memories together.

Tomorrow is a full work day.  Stay tuned for more updates!

STACEY GAGNE – Today was day one of the building project on Joy in Hope’s land.  Joy in Hope has 17 acres of land on the ocean in Jacmel, Haiti.  Our team has the privilege of helping to build the first building on the land!  Today we worked with a team of 15 – 20 men from Projet Connect .  After the earthquake, Joy in Hope helped provide several families from one of the tent camps with rental homes.   As part of a work for housing project, Joy in Hope has paid for their rent for the year with the agreement that the Haitians will help with various Joy in Hope projects to be eligible for another year of paid rent.

The men had the project underway having leveled and dug out the foundation.  When we arrived we were put to work bending, cutting and tying metal and assembling posts that will serve as structure for the house.  Mike and Georgette, the Directors of Development for Joy in Hope and some hired crew leaders gave us instruction and patiently re-directed people like me who are not so used to construction work.  🙂 We had fun joking around while sweating and trying to stay hydrated!

It is really exciting to know that what we are doing is getting the ball rolling for the development of this land!  Later this week we will get the full tour of the land.  Thinking that in the future the kids will be playing here in this beautiful land on the ocean and all of the possibilities this will offer for community impact is so exciting!

Oh, and on the way home … we saw the brightest double rainbow I’ve ever seen.  I think you can only see one in the pictures… so you’ll have to take my word for it.

There are opportunities to get involved with future projects or to join with the vision.  Please visit Joy in Hope online or on Facebook and connect!

STACEY GAGNE –  We’re wrapping up our first full day here in Jacmel.   Since today was Sunday, we had a great day including church with Joy in Hope and the afternoon at Raymond Beach!

I saw some examples of how life in Haiti may not always go as planned.  Like running water in the shower.  🙂  As we got ready to go to church this morning we got a rain storm.  Since our team and all of the children from Joy in Hope would need to pile in the back of tap taps for a long wet ride to get to church we decided to move to a plan B and had house church at the Haitian Children’s Home.    It was great.  The children taught us some songs in Creole and English and Nick shared a devotional focusing on the parables of the coin, the pearl and the lost sheep and talked about the truths hidden within the parables about how much God loves us and seeks us out because we are precious to Him.  I loved hearing the children processing what they were learning about Gods’ love for us!  This is what Joy in Hope is all about.  Loving these kids.  Being family. Demonstrating how Jesus loves them to the children.

After a delicious lunch made by the staff at the Isaiah house, we headed to Raymond beach.  The weather in Haiti changes quickly and our rainy day turned gorgeous!  We piled in the tap taps … I chose to ride in the back and it was really fun (and windy).  On our way, one of the vehicles had a flat tire that was quickly changed by Nick and Hughes while the children enjoyed some sugar cane.   With the conditions of the roads around here I would guess this is not an unusual thing for them.

The beach was beautiful… the view, spectacular blue water.   At the same time there were also piles of trash everywhere … and livestock.    This was definitely something to get used to.    There were also the vendors who were determined  to sell us their various souvenirs, art and food.   We had a blast playing in the ocean with the kids, making sand creations, flying kites and just hanging out.

I’m thankful for a true day of rest and fun before we head into our work week.  The building project work bright and early!

STACEY GAGNE –  We’re here!  The OBX Haiti team is settling in at our home for the week at The Isaiah House here in Jacmel.   Our team of 8 from the Outer Banks, Raleigh, Tennessee, Illinois, Missouri and Pennsylvania made all of our connections and came together with about 1000 lbs of luggage.    Our team ranges from one who has never been out of the country to several well seasoned travelers.    Over the last several months we have connected through Facebook and it was really exciting to meet each other face to face and begin our journey.  I plan to introduce you to some of the team during some of my call in reports.  Members of our team will also be sharing their thoughts at OBX Haiti.

Today we flew into Port au Prince and made the (about) 3 1/2 hour journey along the coast and over the mountains to Jacmel.   We loaded all of our luggage into the back of the Joy in Hope Truck/Tap Tap and were on our way.  We passed by some of the tent cities in Port au Prince, many roadside markets, and then drove an incredibly windy road through the mountains.  Our driver honked his horn continuously to let drivers around the upcoming curves know we were coming through (or to push our way through traffic).

We’re excited to get started on our project this week, but first tomorrow we will go to church and then spend some time at the beach with the  Joy in Hope family.  The rest of the week we’ll be working on building a home on their land (the foundation has already been laid for us), spending time with the kids, sorting through and distributing the supplies we’ve pulled together and learning more about the people here in Jacmel.

Here are some pictures that I took along the way (many out the window of a moving van).

STACEY GAGNE –

It is a very exciting time right now.  I’m currently packing my office for our move to Junction Road while also packing the items that I need for Haiti.    As I’ve been sitting here loading files into file boxes I was thinking about the trip and what I’m most looking forward to.

On the practical side, I have to admit I’m really looking forward to that moment when we get our luggage loaded onto the truck!   I’ll also be glad when I pack my luggage into the car on Friday knowing that I have fit everything I could think of into my carry on.  Woo hoo.  Sweet relief!

The thing I’m most looking forward to, though, is those moments of just being there, in the moment, loving people!   When I  traveled to Ethiopia with Compassion last year, I quickly found that the things I will bring and the “help” that I can give are certainly important … but the time spent playing with the children and hearing their stories and telling mine … making live, human connections … these are what I took away from the experience.   These are the moments I’ll be sharing  with you back here at home.  It’s my desire to connect you with the organization:  Joy in Hope, while also showing how JOY and HOPE through JESUS are being displayed in another part of the world.   What an opportunity!

Stacey Gagne

Packing, Preparing and Full of Anticipation

STACEY GAGNE –

Yesterday I was sitting in the Passport Health Office realizing it had been almost exactly a year (off by one day) that I was there!  Some of you may remember my trip to Ethiopia with Compassion International last October.   It was my very first missions trip on my very first passport and really was life changing.   Yesterday  it was time to update some immunizations for another adventure!

I’m excited to tell you that I am preparing to travel this October to Jacmel, Haiti!  I will be traveling with a team going to work with Joy in Hope, a ministry whose vision is to:

“support, encourage and build Haitian families in order to provide them with the spiritual, educational cultural and physical foundation needed to impact their community, their nation and the world for Christ.   Joy In Hope accomplishes its mission through three branches of ministry: children’s homes, churches and schools and numerous outreach efforts such as educational programs, evangelism, feeding and nutritional programs and medical clinics. Each of these avenues allows Joy In Hope to provide a Christ-centered model for serving in the local community.”  

Our team of 9 from several different states will be joining together to bless this community that is still recovering from the earthquake.   It’s also a special trip for me because I’ll be traveling with some friends I have made through volunteering at Creation Festival as well as making some new ones.  Also,  my friends Gwenn and Nick and their family are on staff with Joy in Hope and live in Jacmel.  The leader of our trip is Denise, Gwenn’s mom.   I expect that it will be a special trip in many ways and I’m thrilled to introduce the WJTL audience to my friends at Joy in Hope.

Some things we’ll be doing there as a team may include home construction,  distribution of diapers,  formula and other supplies,  working on the land where the Children’s Home is to be built and just generally being an encouragement to the community there in whatever ways we can as we share the Love of Jesus.

I am excited to have the opportunity to serve on this team and share my experiences with the WJTL listening audience.   Tune in during the week of October 24th as I report to you live from Jacmel, Haiti!  .   Thanks for keeping our team in your prayers.

Preparing for the Adventure!

Stacey

Lisa Landis takes the Kids Cookie Break on a field trip through Hope International’s Pathways Out Of Poverty.

LISA LANDIS- In 2007 Hurricane Felix unleashed its power on the village of Boom Sirpi.  The village is located along the Mosquito Coast (or Miskito Coast), Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua.  Friends in Action Executive Director Tim Johnston and I visited with one of the village judges who was living in the village at the time of the storm.  He talks about the storms impact and the hope that FIA is bringing to the people, who are still rebuilding after the 2007 storm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyVO2mTsNZY

lisa@wjtl.com

LISA LANDIS- It’s been two weeks since my return home from an amazing trip with Friends In Action International (FIA) to Nicaragua.  FIA is located in Middletown, PA. FIA is a team of people with diverse gifts and abilities who serve indigenous people groups and missionaries in remote parts of the world with humanitarian aid & relief projects while establishing the church.

Here is an example of how FIA is working in a remote part of the world.  This video features several highlights from my visit to the small island Rama Cay, a half-hour boat ride from Bluefields, Nicaragua, on the Caribbean coastline.  Approximately 883 people live on this tiny isalnd, which is the size of two city blocks.  The island is overcrowded and FIA is helping to establish a village on the nearby mainland so there will be an environmentally stable and self-supporting community as the community continues to grow.

FIA is looking for people to come along side them as volunteers, work teams, and financial supporters so they can continue to bring the hope of Jesus Christ to the Rama people.  Visit FIAintl.org for information on how you can help.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NY1h6_JuCDk