Haiti "Herky Perky" Trip, October 13, 2012

Prayer Partner of the Day: Sam Medvene

George & his bag reunite!

It is amazing what a good night's sleep will do for one's body and attitude. After being physically, mentally, and spiritually exhausted, I feel refreshed, and all of my belongings have dried out after being drenched in the rain yesterday!

Today is bittersweet, though. Two of our family members, George and Tom, will be heading home. After four solid days in a truck together, we have bonded. We have shared stories, complained about roads, and danced the Herky Perky. The bonds teams form in Haiti are unimaginable, and I will surely miss these two fellas! However, two more members, Rollin and Samantha, will arrive this afternoon! Rollin is a veteran of Haiti trips, and one of my favorite people, and Samantha, his daughter, will be experiencing my home for the first time. They will surely bring us a breath of fresh air and a renewed spirit.

SUTS/LWW Installation @ Institute Racine

After four days without his luggage, George's bag finally arrived...just in time for him to go home. We hugged our friends and went on our way to complete the evaluations around Port Au Prince.

The first stop was Institute Racine. This was the site of SUTS installation #2 in March 2010. I had not visited this site since leaving in 2010, and with it came memories of our week right after the earthquake.  Stefano was still the operator, and the school looked just as it did two years ago. Jumecourt was our next stop, and this is home to the Global Orphan Project HQ. It was good to sit down with Mike Roundbahler, the new Haiti chief, and discuss our many LWW/SUTS projects at his orphanages across the country. As they say, it really is all about relationships, relationships, relationships.

By the time we made it to Fond-Parisien, the temperature had sky-rocketed. We met with Pere Frederic and discussed a system for his parish. On the way back into Port-Au-Prince, we hit the infamous traffic, and I hit another milestone -- running across six lanes of traffic to a gas station!

At the airport, we waited and waited. I snuck in the airport baggage claim again, and while we were waiting, the UN guards were all abuzz about the protests planned for the next day. This got my mind to churning and changing our plans to leave as early as possible.


Rollin and Samantha arrived, and we made it back to Walls Guest House for a leisurely evening and rest. The trip from here will be go-go-go, and your prayers will sustain us with each day!

Because everyone needs a reward after a long journey!