World Cup

Sorry for the silence, my internet is still not working and I`ve fallen out of the routine of updated every couple of days. I`ll try to get back into the routine, since I`ve had a few complaints!!
Along with most of the world, Haiti has gone crazy for football (AKA soccer) and the world cup. Now I`m not much of a sports fan but even I have joined in the hype. Football fans in Haiti are divided over two teams, Brazil and Argentine. Stats vary from person to person, but Brazil has considerably more fans than Argentine. (maybe 70 - 30) When either team is playing, the streets are eerily empty, so we`ve begun to plan our trips for during these times, it cuts your travelling time in half, if not more!! The first time I drove on the streets during one of these games I became alarmed by a large group of people crowded together on the `sidewalk`, upon closer inspection I realized there was nothing to be concerned about, they were all crowded around one TV trying to watch the game.
In the spirit of the world cup, I`ve decided to become a diehard Argentine fan. I put a lot of thought into this decision, I didn`t want to cheer for Brazil because it was just too popular and I didn`t want to follow the crowd, on the other hand I didn`t want to cheer for a team that no one else was cheering for. (boring) That being said, my idea of being a die-hard fan may be different than most people`s; I have an Argentine jersey which I wear every time they play, I bought a flag to hang on the outside of the office and I`ve watched one entire game. For someone who NEVER follows sports this is a big deal. The teachers find my enthusiasm quite amusing, since I rarely know the score of the games, they say that I`m faking my love for Argentine. One of my friends gave me a keychain with an Argentine flag on it. The other day I was in a hardware store and I had the keychain in my hand, the guy working behind the counter became quite excited to find a fellow fan (remember we are the minority) and wanted to sit and discuss the teams prospects. I smiled and nodded for a while but I really just wanted to purchase what I came for. After assuring him several times that I too think they will be the champions he let me go. Now when I go into hardware stores I hid my keychain! When either Brazil or Argentine wins there is usually a celebratory parade in the streets. If Brazil and Argentine play each other I think I`ll make myself scarce when the game is finished, either way they`ll be some pretty unhappy people around here.

Memorial Service

Yesterday morning was a pretty special one for me.  Every since the school re-opened we've wanted to have a memorial service to commemorate those we as a school community lost in the earthquake.  But up until now we haven't had a place to have the ceremony, the classrooms are too small and the yard is just too sunny!  As much as I love the sun, even I can't sit in the sunny yard for more than a few minutes at a time without feeling quite uncomfortable.  So this past weekend, a large tent was set up on the temporary property.  A group of men worked VERY hard Friday and Saturday to put it up and cover the ground with gravel.

On Monday morning we were able to have the memorial service.  It was a time of grieving, healing, and a time to reflect on all that God has done for us.  Randy spoke about Job and how he was able to say "God gives and God takes away".  A lot of tears were shed but it was a beautiful time of remembering those who we loved, celebrating their lives here on earth and rejoicing that they are now in heaven with their heavenly Father.  We were also very thankful to have Jim and John here, they are the two board members who were here at the time of the earthquake.

Samuel, Guerdson, and Mackson we miss you.

An update finally....

No internet or electricity has really cramped my blogging style.  I have new batteries at my house and I have to admit that I got a bit cocky... I was running the fridge off them and loving having a cold drink at the end of the day, until I realized I wasn't getting any electricity, so I put a quick stop to that and turned everything off!  back to fans only and only when we're sleeping, but alas it wasn't enough.  The batteries lost all their power and we went a few sleepless nights without any fans.  Fans are interesting really, they simply blow the same hot air that is all around you but somehow it manages to cool you off considerably, so much in fact that I REALLY  noticed the difference when I didn't have one. 
So things are really falling into a routine once again, no exciting teams coming to visit and giving me lots to write about.  The school property is almost complete, the toilets are almost ready to use and hopefully sometime this week we will set up a large tent to house the waiting room for the medical clinic, the church and any other large events we hope to hold.
We have visitors this week, the same two board members that were here during the earthquake.  They were evacuated with us and now they are back to see Haiti post-quake and see all the exciting events at Adoration.

New pictures!

The new toilets are almost done!  No more port- o-potties.Lunch:  rice with our new vegetable sauce courtesy of Ontario Christian Gleaners.

The new playing field.  The offices are at the end and the classrooms are on the right.

The First week

The first week of school is complete!  It went quite well all things considered, most of the students showed up and the teachers put them right to work.  The students apear happy to be back in school and they are already up to their usual trouble making. The floors of the classrooms are covered in small rocks which keeps them nice and dry but it also provides the students with a lot of ammunition to throw at each other! The toilets are half built and the land is mostly leveled. We are glad to be "back in business". 
I have a temporary roommate right now and my social life has improved greatly.  She is working with CRWM (Christian Reformed World Missions) and their staff has invited us to several dinners and today we were even invited to go swimming.  I might try to convince her to stay longer than her planned month.
The internet is barely working these days which is SUPER frustrating.  I can't upload pictures unless I visit someone with better internet.  I'm feeling quite uninspired to write right now but I can't miss out on the opportunity to use the internet. It's been a good weekend and now it's time to have a good nights sleep and prepare for another busy week.

First Day of School!

I have three very valid reasons for not posting earlier this week.  1.  My internet is not working for longer than five minutes at a time and therefore won't upload pictures.  2.  I've been very busy with the re-opening of the school.  3.  I've been feeling quite under the weather and when I get home I go straight to bed.
Now that I'm done defending myself, let me tell you about the first day of school!  It went off with only a few small hitches. The students are very eager to be back at school and arrived on time.  Most arrived with their uniforms and much excitement.  The classrooms work beautifully and the yard is a great size for the kids. 

Here are the students and their parents waiting outside for the gate to open and let them in.

A Day of Firsts

Today we used the new kitchen for the first time!  We also ate a delicious vegetable sauce courtesy of Ontario Christian Gleaners for the first time!  We had running water for the first time. And last, but not least, a backhoe arrived on the property for the first time!
Today's weather was very unusual for Haiti, it rained almost all day long.  The teachers and myself weren't too concerned as we had a lot of work to do indoors. Yesterday, we purchased a lot of books to replace the books lost in the school or in family's homes and they all needed to be taped and plastified (to help them last longer).   So we worked on the books and set up the classrooms for Monday morning.  The men hired to work on the property continued to work on leveling the land by hand, despite the falling rain.  By mid-afternoon we had given up any hope of the backhoe showing up and the rain wasn't letting up, so we started to pack up and decided it was time to head home.  Then, out of the blue the backhoe showed up!!  I've never been so happy to see a vehicle in my life.  This guy didn't mess around and got right to work.  We all watched and cheered him on as he quickly started leveling the land!  What a blessing!  What an answer to prayer.  Now the land will be leveled and the gravel put down and there won't be mud EVERYWHERE when 120 kids arrive on Monday morning.  YEAH!!! 

One of the classrooms, ready for students.

The water tower (and Samuel).

 The backhoe busy at work.

 Several of many supervisors.

Last, but not least, the new office!  I love it.  A HUGE thank you to the many team members who helped make this a reality!  We really appreciate all that you've done. And another HUGE thank you to all those of you who donated money to enable us to pay for everything!

Almost Done

Finally some "almost done" pictures of the site.  If only the backhoe would arrive, then we'd really have something to show!!
We will officially be starting school on May 31st!  Only one week behind our original plan (not too bad:)  If the toilets are not functioning by then we'll have to rent a port-o-potty.  Right now I run to the hardware store around the corner almost once a day to buy something and use their washroom!  We always seem to need another paint brush or tape about half way through the day:)  However, once school starts, I think it will be a bit obvious if I try to sneak into "Ecko Depot" with 120 children in tow!
The Haitian government has announced that all schools must run through the summer and take September off for vacation.  We want to honour the government's wishes so we will be doing the same.  It will be HOT during July and August, but our hope is that the majority of the students will be able to complete their current grade and move on in October when we re-open again.

I spoke too soon!

Friday was day three of no electricity and I knew that my batteries would never survive.  My roomate is out of the country right now and the idea of going home to an empty house with no lights was a bit scary to me, so Randy and Karen invited me to stay over at their place.  No sooner had I settled into their couch to watch a movie and the electricity came back on.  I figured I'd still stay the night seeing as you never know how long it will last.  Strangely, we've had electricity ever since, all day Saturday, and now it's Sunday afternoon and we still have it.  This NEVER happens in Haiti, and most definitely NEVER in my neighbourhood.  I really hope this doesn't mean we won't get it again for 2 weeks! (I'm such a pessimist)
On another more serious note, security is starting to become a problem these days.  There are a variety of reasons for this, first of all, there is A LOT of money flowing into Haiti these days.  There are more NGO (Non-government organizations) than you could ever imagine driving around the city with their brand new SUV's and they are spending a lot of money.  The temptation is just too much for some and kidnapping has starting once again, not as bad as when I was here before (2005-2006) , but it is something to be concerned about.  Secondly, there is supposed to be an election in November of 2010 which is fast approaching, however, President Preval has announced that he would like to stay in power for a bit longer (into 2011) until things are a bit more stable.  After the earthquake, Preval wasn't as visible or supportive of his people as he could have been and he is therefore not very popular right now.  There have been manifestations (riots) throughout the city for a few weeks now and some have become violent and innocent bystanders are sometimes robbed or hurt.  As well, during the earthquake many prisoners escaped from prison and are back on the streets once again.  Lastly, people are still living in tents, the promises of aid are not coming as fast as they would like and some are getting angry.   Needless to say, we are being extra cautious.  Normally I don't like to write about these sorts of things on  my blog, I know that I have lots of loved ones back home who worry about me a lot and when things get worse here, they worry even more.  The reason I'm writing about it is to ask for prayer.  I know without a shadow of doubt that I am in the arms of the Lord and I don't worry about myself.  However, right now, Haiti needs security, they need investors to come and invest in Haiti to create jobs and change the economic situation here.  If this unrest continues investors will move on to other countries and things will get worse here instead of better.  Right now, Haitians need NGO's to help them get back on their feet, but in the long run, Haitians need jobs and that requires business people coming here and starting factories etc. Please pray for security to return to Haiti.

No EDH!!

When you begin to take something for granted, it is often taken away from you so you can appreciate it more:)  For many months now we've been receiving electricity every night for approximately 6 hours.  This is enough time to charge our batteries and keep our fans going through the night.  The batteries at my place are nearing the end of their life, so we've been rationing their power for a while now, but the last two nights we haven't received any electricity and even rationing isn't working any more.  Only fans are permitted at this time and tonight it'll be a miracle if even they work!   Some people have generators which they can use to charge their batteries, but we don't have one at my house so that's not an option.  When I drove by Randy and Karen's this afternoon I heard a generator running and discovered that they had borrowed a generator for a few days, and therefore have power right now which is how I am able to write this post.  Ah the joys of Haiti.
One another note, the Ontario team left today and we will miss them.  They were a great team, enthusiastic throughout, even with the heat.  They were able to accomplish A LOT!  Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures today because I thought there was no electricity, therefore no computers or internet.  Next week I'll try to update some pictures.  A lot of painting has been completed and it's starting to look GOOD!  I've met with the teachers each day this week, which has been good.  Unfortunately we had to push back the opening day of school until May 31st, so next week will also be full of meetings and preparations, without the joy of actually seeing the student's faces.  All in God's timing, I know! This will likely be my only post this weekend, so until Monday!

Sweating the little stuff, literally!

Dave and his assistant(s) are busy making new tables and benches.Samuel and I are sweating it out, painting inside the offices and bedrooms.  My new desk in my new office!  The water tower is nearing completion.  (It's upside down don't worry.)Martin is busy trying to fix the generator so he can keep welding the water tower.  The generator kept overheating, I can't imagine why:)

Dave is smoothing out the cement floor of the medical clinic.

The backhoe never showed up, which is a disappointment and a blessing at the same time.  The disappointment is that the property was never leveled and we don't have washrooms, therefore, we won't be able to open school the day we had hoped.  The blessing is that the team has done a lot of little jobs that would probably never get finished due to lack of time i.e. the tool room is organized and ready to use, benches and tables have been built, office desks and bookshelves have been built and A LOT of painting has been done.  I can't believe how much painting, we have done.  Several students from Adoration have come everyday to help paint.  To be completely honest, they come in hopes of being able to "play" with a drill or some other tool that makes noise, but they usually end up with the job of painting and despite getting paint all over themselves (literally) they seem to enjoy it and work pretty hard.  It has been HOT lately without much of a breeze, which causes us to sweat like crazy.  It's been one of those weeks when you don't mind at all that you don't have a hot water tank:)

Weekend etc.

On the weekend the team took a short break on Saturday afternoon to visit Forth Jacques and the Baptist Haiti Mission.  We had a nice lunch and then explored the fort.  It was sad once again to see how much it was damaged in the quake.Sunday morning we had a great time of fellowship at First Presbyterian Church.  The team appreciated the fact that the sermon was translated into English for them.  After lunch they decided to play some basketball, Haitians vs. Canadians.  Despite my repeated offers to play for either time, I was assigned the job of cheerleading with Maia.  We had fun cheering on the Canadians, but despite all our efforts they only won one of the three games.

Things at the new property are not going exactly as planned.  (oh Haiti....)  The backhoe that is needed to level the property as well as dig out the septic tank, has yet to arrive.  This puts things at sort of a stand still as far as the big projects go, so everyone is busy making tables, benches and putting the finishing touches on the offices/kitchen/bedrooms and of course painting.... there's so much painting to be done.  The teachers came into today and I got them started on a variety of jobs.  They are always happy to see each other and helped out a lot today.

Team #3!

If you don't think of blogging as competitive, you've never worked with Randy and Karen!  When it comes to blogging, we never like to be too far behind each other.  Yesterday morning I attempted to write an entry but the internet was not co-operating, so I went down to the property to do some painting, last night I checked Randy and Karen's blog and they had two new entries!  This morning I checked again and they had another one!  Now I'm three entries behind, I thought about doing three small entries this morning just to keep the number even, but decided instead to just have one great big one:)   So here goes:
We have a new team here right now from Ontario.   Martin, Rick, Howard, Harry, Dave and Dave.  They are a pretty energetic bunch and are eager to knock a few items off Randy's to-do list.  They have only been working two days and along with their Haitian co-workers they have accomplished A LOT.

My new office is starting to look pretty good.This is a pre-fab home that we will be using for the medical clinic. Dr. Ed is eager to start up his clinic again, and we are thrilled that he'll be returning to work with us.This is the future kitchen, there is an overhang to keep the sun out and a nice new stove.  Manman Manise and Molina will enjoy this new location.Here is a picture of the yard.  On the far left is the medical clinic, the white building in the middle are the offices and on the far right are the classrooms.

Karen had an opportunity to meet with some of the sponsored secondary students this week.  Their schools have been functioning for a little while already, so we wanted to meet and review our expectations for them.  Many of them have been volunteering at the yard in the afternoons, which we really appreciate.  As we are hoping the school will re-open in one week, they will be responsible for coming by each week to help keep the school clean.

Overwhelming blessings

Teams are a blessing to our work in many ways, one of those ways is with all the wonderful donations they bring to us!  When I am back in Canada people are always asking me what our needs are, I'm always hesitant to reply because it is difficult and costly to send things to Haiti and whenever possible we like to buy local and support the economy.  However, we are still Dutch and have a hard time saying "no" to FREE stuff:)  Therefore, when teams come they often get donated school supplies and tools that are often hard to find here and expensive to ship.  The last two teams brought us a tonne of great school supplies, so much in fact I only have to buy a few things before school re-opens!!  So if you gave any school donations to either the Manitoba or Ontario team, I'd like to say a HUGE Thank you to you!  Your donations will be well used, I'll upload some proof once school starts.  As you can see from these pictures, my assistant Maia and I have been quite busy sorting through all the supplies and getting them ready for the teachers and students to use!

Teacher Meeting

I've never been so excited about a teaching meeting as I was today!  Today marks the beginning of a new stage, at least for me.  Next week the teachers will be working at the new school every day, preparing lesson plans, setting up their classrooms, buying textbooks and generally getting ready for the re-opening of the school.  Today's meeting went well, we discussed many things and made an action plan for next week.  It was also a good time of fellowship, catching up on each others' news and enjoying each others' company once again.

To get them back into the swing of things, I even gave them a homework assignment!  I guess I'm still a teacher at heart:)

Before and After Pics - Go Team Manitoba/Port-au-Prince!