Haiti Mission Trip by Pete Bullock, Senior District Sales Manager, Ingredient Division
This past April my wife, Jan and I, took a 7 day trip to the country of Haiti with 5 members from our church. The purpose of the trip was to provide sup- port to the Upper Room Orphanage and help with the local communities in any way possible. Jan and I were very moved by our trip. Visiting the country and people of Haiti was a truly unique experience that we will never forget. The country is physically a beautiful island with rolling hills and mountain- ous terrain surrounded by gorgeous light blue water, very similar to most Caribbean islands. That being said it didn’t take long as we drove from Port Au Prince airport to the The Mission of Hope (MOH)
Pete & Jan Bullock with the children of Upper Room Orphanage
facility in Titanyen to see the vast level of poverty that has engulfed this nation. We experienced this first hand when we spent time engaging with the people in the villages and orphanages. It’s hard to describe the great need the people have. The need for a better infrastructure in Haiti is very evident. Many areas of the country do not have running water, sewage, or waste disposal – no municipalities to pick up the trash. Receiving medical treatment is not so easy for many Haitians, often they can’t afford to pay the doctors and therefore go untreated. Medical Clinics are located throughout the island, but they are few and far between. The Mission of Hope facility runs a clinic where the locals can pay $1.00 and receive medical care and treatment. The Haitian people are very friendly, polite, courteous, talented, and artistic. They truly have a strong sense of com- munity, and help their neighbors in time of need. Unfortunately in Haiti there just aren’t enough decent job oppor- tunities to fulfill some of the people’s most basic needs. Haiti needs a major infusion of good leadership, something they have not had for some time. For this reason they will continue to need the support of church’s and charitable organizations throughout North America and around the world to help support this nation. While in Haiti we conducted some one on one home visits helping to minster to the people of Labodri, and were able to spend time in a farming community in Turpin which is supported by the Mission of Hope organization. We packaged food (rice and beans) for the Upper Room Orphanage and delivered food supplies to another very needy orphanage in the town of Cabaret. We would definitely have to say our favorite part of the trip was spend- ing time with the children of the Upper Room Orphanage, along with Papa Josy and Mama Kerlin who run the orphanage. These two are truly remarkable people who have opened their home to 33 children now. On top of that they run a school with well over 300 children that’s located adjacent to the Orphanage. We will never forget the look on the children’s faces and getting to know them. Some of the new children at the Upper Room Orphanage were sleeping on dirt floors. While in the town of Corail we were able to help buy some steel frames and hire some weld- ers to help build a couple more bunk bed assemblies that housed 3 beds each. They also repaired some of the exist- ing bunks that were damaged from normal wear and tear. With money from our church and supporters we were able to purchase new mattresses and sheets for all of the children. The children had fun decorating plaques we pur- chased for each bunk as well. We also purchased 3 fruit bearing trees and planted these in their yard (mango, papaya, cherry). We introduced the children to baseball, and gave them a quick lesson about the game. On one of our village trips we were joined by Carson Wentz and Zak Ertz from the Philadelphia Eagles, along with 3 other players from their team and two of their Pastors. These were all great guys with a true heart of compassion for the Haitian people. All in all it was a trip we will not soon forget. The Haitian people have left a lasting impres- sion on our hearts. We plan to go back again and will gladly continue to support this worthy cause.
July, August & September 2018 Crest Ink 17
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