HAITI JOURNEY OF HOPE: March-April 2015
Location: Carrefour, Port-au-Prince and Bouvier Mountain, Haiti
Dates: Sunday March 22nd - Thursday April 2nd, 2015
Ground Cost: $1000
Before reading what we undertook in 2016... the short story so far:
In the four years since the devastating earthquake in Haiti took the lives of over 300,000 and left over 1 million homeless, our small team have forged precious and strong links with our partners - Light For Living International Ministries in Port-au-Prince - determined to make a difference for children & families who lost so much.
The Journey so far:
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BOUVIER SCHOOL: In 2012 our teams together started building a school in Bouvier - a remote mountain community where the children had been at risk of abduction, trafficking and rape when trying to trek so far to the city for their education. The old dilapidated building had been mostly destroyed in the 2010 quake. Many of our Haitian team were taught to build to safe standards - gaining skills for life. This building project was continued in 2013 with our Journey of Compassion in March - adding a kitchen and painting inside. We brought mini laptops donated by students at Coffs harbour Senior College. All gifts and equipment was carried up by men, women and children from Bouvier, and by local, hired donkey-teams. Our teams played with the children and interviewed each child - building relationships between families in Haiti on behalf of their sponsor families in Australia.
Another Frontier Projects team from Aus and Haiti again trekked the many hours to the school this year in April 2014; bringing building and teaching supplies and expertise. The 2014 Journey of Hope saw the building of a teacher's apartment and small clinic added as an upper storey to the school. Teacher Training was undertaken, and was invaluable to the small and dedicated team in Haiti that are giving their lives to teach and care for the students at Bouvier School. LOVE COMMUNITY HOME: In 2012 our small team began renovations of Love Orphanage (as it was then known), in Carrefour, Port-au-Prince. We partnered with our Haitian teams to renovate rooms, purchase new beds and sleeping mattresses and deliver donated quilts and gifts. It was a dramatic change from beds with no mattresses and a leaking roof above the children when they slept! This building project was continued during our journey in March, 2013 when the upper children's bedroom, bathroom and verandah were added. Computers were donated and we played with the children and interviewed each child – again building vital relationships of trust and hope. This year, 2014, we employed a local plumber to complete the upstairs bathroom, adding plumbing, water pump, toilet and sink. Now the children have a flushing toilet and running water in their bathroom! Sponsorship of these precious children continues! |
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What we undertook in 2015:
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BOUVIER SCHOOL: We took the team back to Bouvier School - a 3-hour 4-wheel drive, & then 6-hour trek into the mountains of Bouvier.
1. We completed practical building projects of the teacher's bathroom, balcony and interior walls with the Haitian builders. Finished the clinic walls, added the window shutters in the school rooms and repaired the school swing! 2. We met with all the children of Bouvier School, updated all their details and played games with them - just enjoying and loving on them. We continued to set up the computer laboratory with the donated laptops .... getting things ready to see them operating for the first time via solar power later in 2015! 3. We appointed a Deputy Principal who will liaise with the community, we met the Parent Committee and initiated the planning with them for their teams to undertake the drainage behind the school and cementing of the school floor - before the school Solar System could be Installed in December. LOVE COMMUNITY HOME: 1. We met with all the children at Love Community Home, updated all their details, played with them and enjoyed sharing fun and games! We brought more donated laptops. 2. We helped oversee the beginning of the next practical building and renovation project. This will be to begin the new kitchen. 3. We held a special plaque dedication ceremony and remembrance to our friend, Wayne Glenn, who was part of our 2013 Team. He is greatly missed and we will leave this lasting tribute to him at Love Community Home. |
What to Bring and Important Details:
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