Picking up the Pieces

Twelve years ago today, January 13, 2010, was a day that tens of thousands of people in Port-au-Prince, Haiti had to begin to pick up the pieces of their lives.  At 4:53 the afternoon before, the ground shook and life was never the same again.  Although the real toll will never be known, some estimates are that 300,000+ people died.  Many more were left jobless and homeless.  The Haitian White House and many other government buildings were destroyed.  Schools and businesses were also destroyed.  The devastation was beyond comprehension.  Yet one night following the earthquake, as reporters were making their nightly on-air updates, the sound of thousands of voices could be heard singing hymns.  God's people thanked Him for sparing their lives.  With an unknown future in front of them, they praised God for His blessings.  What a testimony!

We at RMI will not forget that day in history.  Many of the pieces have been picked up.  Most of the debris has been removed.  Some people rebuilt, some returned to their hometowns in the country.  Emotionally they are picking up the pieces.  

Even though they were shaken to the core, many give praise to God for His provision, His graciousness, and goodness.  May we learn from their example. 

A Challenging Dilemma

RMI faces a challenging dilemma.  The August 14, 2021 earthquake damaged the RMI office in Cayes and destroyed the main building of the Zanglais Ministry Center.  The RMI office is the nerve center of all our ministries in Haiti.  The partnership facilitators, Hope for Kidz team, Field Leader, Director of Operations, and missionaries all work out of this office.  The many other programs (water filters, food aid, goats, SunTech, home building, and agriculture) are administered from there, as well.  Many cracks and signs of structural stress showed up because of the earthquake and the many aftershocks.  The staff was afraid to work inside the building until a structural engineer inspected the building.  As a result of his findings, 40 metal braces are now stationed throughout the building in strategic locations, giving the staff confidence that they are safe working there.  Quite a bit of repair is needed to restore it.

Cracks on the outside of the Minister Center 
kitchen door.  This damage is on every 
door and window.

The main building at the Zanglais Ministry Center was built in 1980.  It houses a large kitchen, 2 dorm rooms (a capacity of 12 for each room) each with a bathroom and 2 showers, a master bedroom, and a large wrap-around covered porch where the meals were served.  For many years, this building stood alone (with the large gazebo) as team after team used it when they arrived and after their Sister Church visit before they went home.  The hotel rooms on the hillside were added in the 1990s.  Currently, it is the hospitality center for our teams.  Teams are received there before they leave for their Sister Church visit. 
When they return, they spend time at the Ministry Center for debriefing, rest, and reflection before they head home.  Retreats for mission groups are hosted there as well as RMI sponsored pastor, couples, and youth retreats.  It was just a few miles from the epicenter of the earthquake.  Large cracks and fissures are now visible along the rooflines, the support pillars, and around each window and doorway (inside and outside).  Due to the extensive damage to the building, it has been deemed unusable and will have to be torn down and completely rebuilt.  

Every air block at the top of the kitchen has
cracks or have already fallen out.

Our dilemma is how to pay for the complete rebuilding of the Ministry Center building and the office repairs.  Both buildings are the core of RMI’s ministry in southern Haiti.  We can’t emphasize enough how essential they are to the ministry!  We NEED these buildings.  Complete estimates of the cost of each building haven’t come in yet, but at the very least, we are looking at $150,000.  To date, we have $70,000 raised.  You can see we still need a significant amount of funding.  

Would you consider making a special gift toward this rebuilding?  Go to www.rmibridge.org and click on the Earthquake Care and Recovery Fund Donate Now button or mail a check to RMI, 5475 Lee St. Suite 301, Lehigh Acres, FL  33971.