Tuesday, February 21, 2012 

Today we arrived safely at our hotel at about 7:30 pm – we thank our God for His protecting mercies, and you for all your prayers for us! 

It was a long day. After opening devotions from Philippians 4:1-8 led by John Feddema, the 19 team members left the church in Strathroy at approximately 1:00 am and enjoyed a quiet day of smooth “sailing.” Our plane left Detroit airport at 6:30 am. We caught a connecting flight in Miami at 2:25 pm and arrived (along with all 36 of our suitcases!) in Port au Prince at about 4:30, 20 minutes behind schedule. The airport is still a zoo with people crowding around trying to help with luggage, and demanding to be paid for it, but it was not as bad as the last two years. Our faithful PMH (Presbyterian Mission in Haiti) busdriver, Peschel, was waiting for us and received us with a broad smile. It was great to see him again. At this time, Nathan Korten left us to begin a month of service with Mission Aviation Fellowship – Haiti.  

The bus trip to our hotel was somewhat harrowing because most of it was travelled in darkness. By the time we cleared customs and boarded our bus, darkness was beginning to creep in. In Haitian traffic this is dangerous. We narrowly missed a calf, but the donkey was not so fortunate. He took out the lights on the front-right of the bus, fell over, and then got up again. (We suspect he spent the evening on someone’s spit.) The trip was filled with the sounds, smells and feel of our previous trips to Haiti. Even at dusk, the road was busy with vendors, foot traffic, motorcycles, tap-taps, busses and trucks. Music blared out from roadside stereos. Signs about God and Jesus are common, even though used out of superstition, it appears. The smell of smoke is still everywhere as people burn their garbage anywhere they please, and the curbs along the streets serve as latrines.  

We were grateful finally to arrive at the gateway of our hotel. Our host had supper ready for us and we enjoyed a tasty meal of fried rice, plantain, crab, and chicken, along with some of that delicious Haitian coffee. It’s a rough life. After a swim we sorted out the contents of the 36 suitcases, and set aside the items we need to take with us to the job site tomorrow morning. Thanks for your donations that filled these suitcases with clothing, children’s toys, medical supplies, and toiletries which we can leave at the PMH compound next week. 

Philippians 2 speaks of the service we may enjoy together as servants of Christ from all walks of life. We pray that the Lord will provide strength, harmony, and joy as we take up our work on the St. Marc church/school building tomorrow, DV. We remember you in our prayers as you serve the Lord diligently on the home front.