Message from the president

This message was sent to me from Dan Shoemaker and is a solution to the drinking water problems that face Haiti and many other third world countries.

Dear SCP Coordinators,

An opportunity has arisen that I want to share with you.  Many of you have shared your concern for your Haitian brothers and sisters and the situation with their drinking water.  They often drink water that has not been purified thus causing them to have various gastrointestinal diseases, etc. that impact their life and the lives of their children.  This is the main cause of deaths in children in Haiti.

I have sought a good solution for many years.  This past year I have been in touch with a company that produces a product they call LifeStraws.  They have several products but what has most interested me is a product called the Family Life Straw.  It is a simple apparatus that filters water, enough for family use.   It looks very easy to use and filters a lot of water pretty quickly.

This is a product that I would like to try with our Sister Churches.  I feel this is quite possibly the answer I have been looking for to offer as the way to provide safe drinking water for our brethren there in Haiti. 

Here is the website address:  http://www.vestergaard-frandsen.com/lifestraw-f-claims.htm     Please look at this as soon as possible. 

PROBLEM:   We have to purchase them in units of 500.  The cost to order them is $25.00 each.  This does NOT include customs, delivery, etc.  I am estimating the actual cost will be around $35 each.

I would like to have 4 churches commit to 100 units each. I do have one church already that has committed to 100 units.  This would cost $3500 or $35 each unit.    They are shipped to Haiti, then we have to pay to get them out of customs (not sure what that will cost) and then deliver them with some training to the churches.  At this point I don’t think it will cost more than this per unit.  Since this will be the first time we have done this, some of the costs are unknown.   

WOULD YOU COMMITT TO 100 UNITS FOR YOUR CHURCH? The first 4 churches to commit, get them!   I want to place an order this month if possible.  Please let me know if this would be possible for you.  Email me or call me on my cell at 239-222-9793.  Thanks.

Building Forever Relationships together,

Dan Shoemaker

Pastor Jean's Loss

Many of you know Pastor Jean Chery. He has worked for RMI many years as our liaison with the MEBSH organization, the churches, and the pastors. He is also very involved with all the teams that come to Haiti to visit their sister church. We turn to him many times to get his input on Haitian culture and how to proceed with many issues that arise here.

Pastor Jean's father passed away early Thursday morning. He was 92 years old and had been sick for some time. They had to amputate his foot, but infection spread so they went back and amputated part of his leg. That was really painful for him and hard on Pastor Jean. Then to add to that pain, Pastor Jean then lost him. The good news is that he is with the Lord now.

Pastor Jean and family have been out a lot of money through all of this and will have more expense with the funeral. If you would like to contribute to him please send funds to RMI Florida with an explanation that it is for Pastor Jean's father's medical and funeral expenses.

Pastor Jean's Father Passed away last night...

Greeting Everyone,

Pastor Jean Chery just called me this morning at 7:30am to let me know that his father died last night. His father had been sick for sometime now and had been going to the hospitals for help but God had another plan and took him home last night. Please pass this information on to others and keep him and the family in your prayers.

May God Bless You All,

Gary McLaughlin

New Horizon and a Haitian Lumber Mill

If you looked from the North across Cité Lumieré you used to see a large "Christmas Tree" looking tree in the vicinity of our house. Those types of trees are called Norfolk Pine. It is said that the wood is so strong, unlike other types of pine trees that they are used to make masts for large sailboats.

This particular tree has long been a type of landmark for the area. You could see it from the main road that goes into town as well as from other places. On a clear day you could even see it from the mountain with a good pair of binoculars. But no more!

We have long feared that this tree, though beautiful was a danger to our home. In recent years it has begun to lean over towards our house. Now where we come from in Texas this would not be a problem. However, there is one big difference between Dallas, Texas and Les Cayes, Haiti. Hurricanes!!!!!!

About a month ago we decided to see what it would take to bring this tree down. After talking with a local missionary we decided to hire someone to climb the tree and cut the top part off section by section.

It was quite a sight to watch this old Haitian man climb the tree, tie off a section and then cut it and lower it gently to the ground.

 

He did this several times until about half the tree was gone and the pieces got so big that they threatened to pull him from the tree.

Several days later a missionary friend brought his chain saw over. We put ropes around the tree to try to guide it safely down during its dramatic timber. You see our house is on one side, a driveway with a big almond tree on the other side, and an ornate metal fence surrounds it all. The problem was, we could cut out a section of fence, but then the tree would have to fall perfectly to miss the house, driveway, and land between a water hydrant and a cement pole used to wind up and store a garden hose.

As you can see, there was very little margin for error.

We tied the ropes and with several guys pulling to try to guide the tree, we held our breath and prayed as we watched our friend start cutting this monster down.

It started to fall! Timberrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!

It landed with a boom that rattled our teeth and sounded like the Walls of Jericho coming down.

We couldn't believe it. The tree had landed perfectly.

 

It was as if God had grabbed it and lowered it to the ground.

It was no sooner on the ground than the man who did the first cutting up in the tree was stripping it of its bark.

One my way home today I noticed that a scaffolding had been erected to make some planks out of the tree.

Waiting for the saw!

Who needs Home Depot? Welll, I would love a Home Depot here, but the Haitian people somehow come up with a way to do things.

I guess necessity truly is the mother of invention and we have a new look to our horizon!

A Pastor's Letter of Introduction

From: MEBSH Baptist Church at Lievre

To : Lakeline Church, USA

Subject: Introduction letter

Dear Beloved,

I greet you in the precious name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? How are you doing in your church? I hope that everything is going well for you.

It is a pleasure for me to write this letter to you just to present myself and my family to you as the new Pastor of the Lievre Baptist Church. My name is Pastor Onor Toussaint. I am 55 years old, and I have been Pastor for 20 years. I was the Pastor for 3 churches before I came to the Lievre Baptist Church as pastor and also the Director of the District.

My wife's name is Yanique Toussaint and she is 35 years old and a nurse. She is a servant of the Lord working with the ladies in the Ministry that God entrusted us.

God has richly blessed us with 2 beautiful children and their names are:

Bina Toussaint - 10 years old and in the fourth grade (Primary school).

Altama Britney Toussaint - 4 years old and in the second year of Kindergarten.

I bless the name of the Lord for bringing me here. I realize that I have a lot of work to do for him here seeking more souls for him, working with the people in the community, and doing outreach every week. I am very happy to work with Lakeline as my sister church in the US. Since I arrived here, the Christians have told me many good things about you. They told me how you helped our kids with school and supported the churches in the district in many ways. I would like to say thank you for that and I believe that God will bless you.

I am looking forward to meeting you as Brothers and Sisters in Christ. Do you have a trip planned for 2009? I am praying that God will provide a way for me to see you next year.

May God richly bless you and protect you all!

Your Brother in Christ,

Pastor Onor Toussaint

Another type of Project

Many of our groups come to Haiti and do or at least start a variety of projects for their Sister Church. The project can be anything from building a school room, to wiring a church and installing fans, to medical clinics, music clinics, evangelical focus, or maybe just developing the relationship.

Sometimes the project continues after the U.S. Sister Church leaves Haiti. Especially in a construction project.

However sometimes a project begins and ends and the U.S. Sister Church isn't there at all. Such was the case recently with Hope E. Free Church from Illinois whose Sister Church in Bomo, Haiti was badly in need of either repairs on or a new motorcycle. The U.S. church decided to repair the old motorcycle and the pictures below are a description of that process.

The unfinished product.

Start with the "bare" essentials!

At least the motor looks good!

Now that all the pieces look so pretty, can we get it back together? Where do all these extra pieces go?

Almost Done!!!!!!

The finished product!

Two proud mechanics and a job well done!

Baradere Letter to Creekside

From: The MEBSH Church at Baradere

To: Creekside Comm. E. F. Church, USA.

May the Grace and Peace of God be with you all! I am very happy to write you this letter just to inform you how Baradere church is doing. How are you doing in your church? I hope that everything is going well with you.

Praise the Lord our activities are going well. Right after the hurricane season, all the Christians met together to praise and worship God for his mercy and his goodness to us. Our spiritual activities are going very well. We always have services on Sunday morning and Sunday night, Tuesday night we have prayer service and Thursday night we have the Bible study. The youth meet every Wednesday afternoon, and the ladies meet every Friday. This month we are going to have convention for the whole district. This will take place at Baradere church. We still have good teachers that help us with the Sunday school. We had 3 people that accepted Jesus as their savior (2 men and 1 woman).

The school is starting again and this year we have 550 kids already in the school and we still have some missing. We would like to say thank you for your help to us because without your help the kids could not go to school. Once again thank you for the money you have sent recently for the kids this year.

I am continuing the work on the Parsonage and the school now. Praise the Lord we are making progress. Please pray for the town of Baradere because after the Hurricanes the Christians are very needy because they lost so much.

I am looking forward to seeing all of you in January and I look forward to the new people that will come and visit us here in Baradere. I am praying that God will give us a good time together in January.

I'll leave you with this verse from the Book of 1 Corinthians 15:58.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.

Finally I want to wish you a Merry Christmas 2008 and a Happy New Year of 2009.

May God richly bless you and protect you!

Pastor Leon Bonhomme

Suitcases

It seems that a part of a missionary's identity is tied to suitcases. Suitcases mean travel, planes, airports, delays, packing, unpacking, leaving family, seeing old friends and making new ones, meetings, changing climates - the list could go on!

RMI staff have been traveling quite a bit these days.

Dan's suitcases (along with him) went to:

Haiti in September.

Lafayette, LA in October to see Trinity Bible Church as well as another trip to Haiti.

Chicago, IL to visit The Orchard Evangelical Free Church and Village Church of Bartlett. Then to the northeast to speak at Calvary Baptist Church in Pemberton, NJ and to visit with Great Valley Presbyterian in Philadelphia, PA -- all in November. (There was snow!!)

Lakeline and NewChurch Georgetown in Austin, TX will see him in December. Several new churches in that area and the Waco, TX area will be visited as well.

Rob's suitcases (accompanied by him) went to:

Haiti in September.

Chicago, IL to visit The Orchard Evangelical Free Church and his supporters in that area. He took his whole family, so there were quite a number of suitcases.

Billy & Debbie Moses' suitcases, although recently unpacked, went with them to the RMI office for a week in October. They were there for QuickBooks training and administrative meetings.

Pray the RMI staff as they go about the everyday business of operating RMI. Pray for them as they travel, that God will bless their meetings and the contacts they make, that the trips will be successful and profitable.

A new Partnership

We finally received a list of churches from the MEBSH organization here in Haiti. There is a church in Estero, Florida that is eager to start a new relationship with a church in southern Haiti. So eager in fact that they are already on the calendar for early 2009 without knowing who their Sister Church is. So we evaluated the churches on the list and on a bright and sunny Wednesday in late October missionaries Debbie Moses, Gary McLaughlin, and I hit the road with support from two Haitian staff members Jules Gedna and Jean Chery. We were headed for the town of Cherette in the valley before the last mountain on the way to Zanglais.

After driving through a market that was so crowded that we that we drove about 2-3 miles per hour and still ran over a few peoples' veggies for sale, we came to a road so narrow that we had to pull in the outside rearview mirrors in order to pass. At times we were fishtailing back and forth in mud and at others we were driving in a small river.

We finally arrived in Cherette a small village at the foot of a beautiful mountain. About halfway up the mountain you can see a gorgeous waterfall that looks like something out of a T.V. commercial.

The MEBSH Church a Cherette consists of 3 buildings and a school structure. The parsonage is at the front of the area, and off to the left are the school rooms. To say they are rooms is a stretch. Actually there is a foundation and a roof with some wall separating the individual rooms. Behind this area is an old building that used to be the church but has now been divided into a few more rooms for kindergarten. Next to that is a new building that is the church. It is small but in good shape. However the benches inside were in pretty bad shape.

The pastor and his wife were very gracious and happy to see us. After answering all of our questions they insisted that we sit and have some coffee, bread and bananas with them. We had a great time and feel that this is God's choice as our next Sister Church.

It is always exciting when a new Sister Church Partnership gets off the ground. We are looking forward to Estero United Methodist Church's coming visit to the MEBSH Church at Cherette.

At times the road is so narrow we have to fold the rearview mirrors in.

Driving in a river.

Parsonage

School rooms.

Old Church building.

MEBSH Temple of Cherette

Inside the Church building. Most of the benches are being used for school.

This "zoomed in" picture of a waterfall doesn't do justice to God's beauty in the district of Cherette in southern Haiti.

Letter from the MEBSH Church at Ducis

From: MEBSH Church at Ducis

To: Village Church of Bartlett.

Subject: Information.

  Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We are very happy for the opportunity to write this letter. I apologize for taking so long to write you. I greet you in the precious name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. How are your church activities going? I hope that everything is well by the grace of God. When I read your letter, I realized that your country is facing a financial crisis that will probably affect the members of the Village Church of Bartlett. When we heard that, our church became very concerned because we know our country depends on the economy of the United States. We know the Bible says:  all gold and diamonds belong to God. I don't have to worry because I know that God will take care of you in the U.S. and us here in Ducis. We pray the He will fill our needs.

We would like to thank you for your promise to support us through Hope for Kids even though your country is facing financial problems. That's very important to us because without your help many of our children could not go school.

Our Spiritual activities are going well thanks to God. We had some church members that stopped attending, but the church keeps working very well and the rest of the members are very motivated. The ladies in church had a revival and 32 people accepted Jesus as their Savior and some of the members that left us decided to return back to the church. In November we are going to have a Baptismal Service and we are expecting 20 young people to be baptized.

Last April, one of the district church pastors died. So far we don't have a new Pastor to fill that position. I am currently visiting them once a month for bible study as we wait for MEBSH to assign a new pastor in December. This situation touched me deeply as Pastor and director of the district.

Right now we have 80 kids taking part in our Awana program. We are not doing things the same way as the Awana program does in Port-au-Prince. This is because we could not afford to bring people from Port-au-Prince to Ducis for seminar.

Please pray for us that God will send his blessings upon our church and family here. We promise to do the same thing for you because we know that God will answer our prayer and take good care of us all.

May God bless you and your church abundantly!

Your Brother in Christ,

Pastor Anthony Moise

3 Laptops @ $1100 each

I don't really want to ask, but I need to...

RMI is immediately in need of 3 laptops.

1. One for our Hope for Kidz child sponsorship "department" to translate letters and administrate the program.
2. One for a missionary child for schooling.
3. One for our RMI Haitian staff to work on in our Haiti Office to help.

I can't begin to describe your return on investment!

If you would like to make a donation to cover one or all of these, please contact me immediately.

Thank you.

Rob

Memories for NewChurch and Northhill Community Church!

theSlice, October 2008 Posted...

I have just emailed our (Rob and Becky Thompson) latest version of the "theSlice". If you didn't get it, you can see it here.

If you would like to subscribe to future editions, click here.

Rob

Praying for Missionaries @ Starbucks...

Today, I was working on my computer at Starbucks. I had Chris Tomlin's latest piped through my head phones, negating the distractions of my fellow patrons. For whatever reason, my attention was drawn to the title of a novel on the shelf next to me... The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein. I have not read the book and really have no idea what it is about, but it got me thinking... It got me praying, right there in Starbucks...

Missionaries on the field are always "racing in the rain". Everyday.

You may have heard RMI missionary Billy Moses singing the song he wrote upon arriving on the field, "Everything is Broken"... Same idea, "racing in the rain". A perfect metaphor, at least in my mind.

Their experience and existence necessitates our prayers. They are truly on the battlefield, dealing with the stresses of life in a third world context that we in the comforts of our home simply cannot fathom. Lack of finances, both personal and ministry are a constant burden carried. Relational strain, just like we encounter, within the context of team mates and colleagues from other agencies is of constant concern. Lack of spiritual input (church, small group, SS class, friends, even from books) has them weak and weary. Fellowship with others in general is limited at best. The absence of the felicities of life that we all enjoy must be disheartening (consider having no ice cream!). Equipment is always broken and in need of repair, with no Home Depot around the corner. The constant strain from the surrounding pain and despair must be overwhelming. The desire to help others, but a limited capacity to do so must wear them out. Time away from the family while traveling is the norm. This is only the genesis of their struggle.... They are stretched beyond their capacities. They are "racing in the rain".

Will you pray with me for our RMI Missionaries? For Billy and Debbie Moses? For Gary and Marilyn McLaughlin? For Jenn Rogan?

Rob

Video of Haiti Flood Pictures

I just completed this PowerPoint presentation of some Haiti Flood pictures. Thought I would share it with you. Dan is out at Trinity Bible Church in Lafayette Louisiana for their mission's conference. He will also be doing some focused fund raising. He will also be sharing this slide show.

Rob

Introduction letter from Camp-Perrin,

From : Pastor Borgelin Melusme

To : Schuylkill Valley Bible Chapel.

Subject : Introduction letter.

Dear beloved,

I greet you in the name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It is a pleasure for me to write you and introduce myself and my family to you. Once again, in my name and my family’s name I want to greet you in the name of Jesus our savior. I want to thank you the information I received from you in the past few weeks. That shows you are thinking about us here and pray for us.

My name Pastor Borgelin Melusme, I have been Pastor for 40 years. During this time I have led 11 churches and have been the district director two times. As you already know I am the new Pastor of Camp-Perrin Baptist church and I am also the director of the district.

My wife's name is Josette Cherubin, she is working with the ladies ministry and kids ministry in the church. We have been married 32 years and God richly bless us and gave us 4 boys.

Pierre Harry Borgelin is 31 years old, Guedy Borgelin is 30 years old, Arold Borgelin is 28 years old, and Nehemy Borgelin is 27 years old.

I used to be at the MEBSH church at Astruk and was privileged to work with Reciprocal Ministries International in the Sister Church Program there. Now I am getting to know the church members in Camp-Perrin and the community. I see the people in Camp-Perrin are very friendly and I am looking forward serving with them for the glory of the Lord.

Finally, thank you for your prayers. Please pray specifically for those that have been touched by the different Hurricanes that passed through Haiti and for me as their new Pastor in Camp-Perrin.

May God bless you and your church abundantly!

Pastor Borgelin Melusme

Report: MEBSH Church at Camp-Perrin

October 13, 2008

The town of Camp-Perrin has the same problems as the other towns in Haiti. The Hurricanes damaged different places in Camp-Perrin. In our church we had some problems because the town was flooded bringing about six big trucks of gravel in our yard, even inside of the church we had gravel too. Many church members lost their gardens, animals and their homes were damaged by the hurricanes. Praise the Lord, there was no loss of life. Here there are the details for each church in the district.

Camp-Perrin:

· 15 damaged homes

· 58 gardens washed away.

· 26 animals died.

Perenny:

· 5 damaged homes.

· 10 gardens washed away.

· 4 animals died.

Lamonge:

· 15 gardens washed away.

· 7 damaged homes.

· 6 animals died.

Rhe:

· 15 gardens washed away

· 10 damaged homes.

· 3 animals died.

Glay:

· 6 gardens washed away.

· 4 damaged homes.

Archille:

· 20 gardens washed away.

· 7 damaged homes.

· 15 animals died.

Ferme Le Blanc:

· 15 gardens washed away.

· 10 damaged homes.

· 12 animals died.

Moncasse:

· 18 gardens washed away.

· 15 damaged homes.

· 4 animals died.

The main needs we have for Camp-Perrin district is home repairs and food.

Pastor Melusme Borgelin.

Conditions in Southern Haiti

The churches in our area are recovering slowly but better than some of the churches in other area. The difference is that things are more readily available due to being so close to Les Cayes. It is still difficult for them as many church members have lost gardens, animals, etc.

The further west you go the worst it is because the road out that way has been destroyed.

The main problem in our area is that the road to Port-au-Prince is still closed so we are cut off from Port and the goods that normally arrive here from there. For example, there is very little gas or diesel available here. This means that the electric department of Haiti is not running so there is limited power. Also we cannot get any fuel for our generators here on the mission center so what power we have will come to an end in about 2 weeks.

There have been reports that the road to Port is being worked on to allow trucks through but how soon that will happen is still up in the air.

Please pray that the flow from Port will be restored.

Below are some photos of the road west to Port a Piment, Les Anglais and other towns.

Mudslides on the mountainside were not there before the storms.

5 Houses were washed away in this area.

A place where the road is washed out.

A washed out road and a section of bridge that was moved by high water.

Notice the high water mark on the wall at the door of this house.

The original road is on the left where the culvert is  sticking out.

Subscribed to RMI's E-NEWS Update?

We are preparing to periodically send out email updates to the “RMI Family”.

Therefore, earlier today I sent an email out to everyone with an email address in our database.

If you did not receive that email, or would like to subscribe with an alternate address or unsubscribe an address, you can do so by clicking here.

Linking His Church,

Rob

Pray for Church on the Cape and Boyer

Yesterday, a new Sister Church arrived in Haiti for their first visit.  How exciting!  Today, they will be going out to their Sister Church in Boyer, Haiti.  (Pronounced, Bwayay)  Pray for the team from Church on the Cape.  Pray for the church members in Boyer.  Pray for our missionary team as they host and facilitate this visit.

Rob

Report: MEBSH Church at Morency

September 27, 2008

The road is very difficult to get to the village. We had built a new road but now it has been washed away. The front part of Morency church has a section that was damaged also. It was the same for the district churches too. Many church members lost their gardens, houses and animals. Here are the details for each church in the district.

Morency Church:

· 15 damaged homes.

· 12 animals died

· 18 gardens washed away.

Bonodo Church:

· 6 damaged homes.

· 5 animals died

· 9 gardens washed away.

Laurent Church:

· 5 damaged homes.

· 6 animals died.

· 14 gardens washed away.

Bergeaud Church:

· 10 damaged homes.

· 12 animals died.

· 10 gardens washed away.

The main needs we have for the Morency District are home repairs and food.

Pastor Jean Robert Brunache

Report: MEBSH Church at Ducis

September 26, 2008

As is the case of many towns in Haiti the hurricanes caused a lot of damage in Ducis. The river was flooded and no one was able to cross. We had a lot of damage in all the district churches too. The school in Ducis is in very bad shape too. Here are the details for each church:

Ducis Church:

· 2 damaged homes and 4 flooded homes.

· 29 gardens washed away.

· No loss of animals.

Riviere des Mones Church:

· 30 gardens washed away.

· 10 damaged homes.

· The road to that church was totally washed away.

Bouette Church:

· The church had a section that leaked a lot and needs replacing.

· 2 damaged homes.

· 5 animals died.

· 30 gardens washed away.

Leprette Church:

· 1 damaged home.

· 10 gardens washed away.

· 5 animals died.

The main needs we have for the Ducis district are home repairs and food.

Pastor Jacques Anthony Moise

Report MEBSH Church at Corail

September 30, 2008

The road from Cafou Charles to Corail has had a lot of damage because of the different Hurricanes that affected Haiti. At the Corail church we had a section of the new construction on the church building that was totally destroyed by the Hurricane. The town was flooded and many of the church members had a tough time. This is true for all the district churches also. Praise the Lord, there was no loss of life.

Corail Church:

· 3 damaged homes.

· 100 gardens washed away.

· 10 animals died.

Fond Bayard Church:

· The parsonage was severely damaged as well as 3 other church members homes.

· 20 gardens washed away.

· There was no loss of animals.

Timassette Church:

· 10 damaged homes.

· 33 gardens washed away.

· 16 goats died.

Fondicaque Church:

· 2 damaged homes.

· 17 animals died.

· 12 gardens washed away.

Marion Church:

· 2 damaged homes.

· 18 gardens washed away.

· 10 animals died.

The main needs we have for the Corail district are home repairs and food.

Pastor Predelma Dor

Report: MEBSH Church at Aux Coteaux

September 25, 2008

The hurricanes caused many damages in the Coteaux district. Here are the details.

Coteaux Baptist Church:

· 30 damaged homes.

· 40 animals died

· 65 gardens washed away.

Roche a Bateaux Church:

· 20 damaged homes.

· 20 animals died.

· 50 gardens washed away.

Duval Baptist Church:

· 3 damaged homes.

· 20 gardens washed away.

· 15 animals died.

Damassin Baptist Church:

· 17 damaged homes.

· 15 animals died.

· 46 gardens washed away.

Lamarre Baptist Church:

· The parsonage was severely damaged as well as 4 other church members homes.

· 17 animals died.

· 50 gardens washed.

Muyette Baptist Church:

· 50 bags of cement was lost that was bought for construction work for the church.

· 6 animals died.

· 28 gardens washed away.

The main needs for the Coteaux district are home repairs and food.

Pastor Romelus Jean Tatho

Report: MEBSH Church at Cance

September 25, 2008

We had some damage in the district of Cance. Many of the church members lost their gardens and some animals. Praise the Lord there was no loss of life. This a general report of the details:

Cance Baptist Church:

· 5 damaged homes.

· 21 animals died.

· 20 gardens washed away.

Miserne Baptist Church:

· 3 damaged homes.

· 15 gardens washed away.

· 6 animals died.

Foge Baptist Church:

· 5 damaged homes.

· 35 gardens washed away.

· 20 animals died.

Barthe Baptist Church:

· The church was severely damaged by the Hurricanes as well as 6 church member's homes.

· 38 gardens washed away.

· 15 animals died.

The main needs we have in the Cance district are home repair and repair of the church at La Barthe.

Pastor Maxilorme Moise

Report: MEBSH Church at Baradere

September 25, 2008

The town of Baradere was totally flooded during the Hurricanes. We had about 4 feet of water inside the church. We housed many church members in the Parsonage because their homes were severely damaged by the Hurricanes.

Baradere:

· 25 damaged homes.

· 100 gardens washed away.

· 50 animals died.

Pederin:

· 1 church member died as a result of the hurricanes. His brother is a deacon in Baradere church.

· 6 damaged homes.

· 75 gardens washed away.

· 25 animals died.

Grand Boukan:

· 15 damaged homes.

· 15 gardens washed away.

· 20 animals died.

Riviere Salee:

· The church was severely damaged by the Hurricanes.

· 8 damaged homes.

· 13 animals died.

· 63 gardens washed away.

The main needs we have for the Baradere district are home repairs and food. Please pray for us as there is still water in the town.

Pastor Leon Bonhomme.

Report: MEBSH Church at Beaumont

September 25, 2008

We had a lot of damage in Beaumont and the district. Many of the church members lost their homes, gardens and animals. Praise the Lord there was no loss of life. These are details:

Beaumont church:

· 6 damaged homes.

· 8 destroyed homes.

· 100 gardens washed away.

· 8 animals died.

Aucentre Church:

· 25 damaged homes.

· 32 animals died.

· 105 gardens washed away.

Belance Church:

· 19 damaged homes.

· 9 animals died.

· 200 gardens washed away.

Dilagon Church:

· The Parsonage had some damage as well as 4 church member homes.

· 78 gardens washed away.

· 28 animals died.

Debarriere church:

· The church was totally destroyed.

· 55 gardens washed away.

· 20 animals died.

Larrieux Church:

· The church was totally destroyed as well as 3 church member homes.

· 28 gardens washed away.

· 10 animals died.

Chadonnettes Church:

· 15 damaged homes.

· 25 gardens washed away.

· 10 animals died.

The main needs for the Beaumont district are home repairs and medical care. Some people have disease after hurricanes by the water they are drinking.

Pastor Emmanuel Visene

Report MEBSH Church at Picot

We had a lot of damage in Picot and the district churches. We had some damage to the road that goes to the district churches. Here are the details for each church.

Picot Baptist Church:

· 35 damaged homes.

· 57 gardens washed away.

· 17 animals died. Praise the Lord there was no loss of life.

Laroche Baptist church:

· 42 damaged homes.

· 61 gardens washed away.

· About 20 animals died. No loss of life.

Les Rois Baptist church:

· 26 damaged homes,

· 39 gardens washed away and

· About 19 animals died.

Bouffard Baptist church:

· 24 damaged homes.

· 47 gardens washed away and

· 9 animals died. There was no loss of life.

The most important need we have for the district of Picot now is home repairs.

Pastor Calixte Dorval (MEBSH)

Report: MEBSH Church at Astruck

September 21^st, 2008

The hurricanes caused a lot damage on the road to Astruck. Praise the Lord we did not have any loss of life but many of the church members lost their gardens and animals. The details are below.

Astruct Baptist church:

· 8 damaged homes

· 23 gardens washed away.

· 5 animals died.

Morisseau Church:

· 3 damaged homes.

· 3 animals died

· 3 gardens washed away.

Moinson Baptist church:

· 4 animals died.

· Many gardens washed away.

· The road from Astruct to Morne Occo has been damaged.

Clery Baptist church:

· 1 home destroyed and 1 damaged.

· 3 animals died.

· The Church members lost all their gardens.

Ravine Sable Baptist church:

· 13 damaged homes.

· 2 animals died.

· 3 gardens washed away.

The main needs we have for the district now are home repairs and food.

Pastor Romelus Guillaume.

Report: MEBSH Church at Les Anglais

September 20^th, 2008

As you know the road was severely damage by the hurricanes. It is very difficult for a vehicle to get from Port-a-Piment to Tiburon. However we have heard that the company that was paving the roads here in the south are going to repair it. Now we have about 1200 people living in the church.

In the whole district there are:

· 197 damaged homes for the whole district

· 49 homes have been destroyed.

· 600 hundred animals died.

In the Kass district there were 2 kids who were not church members that died.

The most important needs we have for Les Anglais and the district churches are the home repairs.

Pastor Dieusseul Jean Pierre

Report: MEBSH Church at Chambellan

September 19^th, 2008

The town of Chambellan was severely touched by the different Hurricanes that flooded Haiti. Many church members lost their animals and gardens. Five people died in the town. There is a section of the road from Cayes to Jeremie that was washed out by the river water but we think that vehicles can still use it. Below are the details of the affected churches.

Chambellan church:

· 15 damaged houses.

· 2 houses that were destroyed.

· 5 people died in the town of Chambellan but there were no deaths in the church.

· Many church members lost their gardens and animals.

Source Chaude church:

· A section of the church was damaged.

· Two people died but none from the church.

· 5 damaged houses.

· 28 animals died.

· Many church members lost their gardens.

For Chainault church:

· 8 houses damaged.

· 2 houses destroyed.

· 16 animals died.

· The Church members lost all their gardens.

For Julie Church:

· 6 houses damaged.

· 2 houses were destroyed.

· 10 animals died.

· The Church members lost many of their gardens.

The most important needs we have for Chambellan district is food and home repairs.

Pastor Jean Benoit

Report: MEBSH Church at Anse-a-Veaux

September 19^th, 2008

The road from Miragoane to Anse-a-Veau had lot of damage. In the Anse-a-Veau church, we have had some damage in the parsonage. The roof leaked a lot and we need to replace some of the tin.

For the whole district including Anse-a-Veau we have:

· 33 damaged houses in the district, one of them is the parsonage in Perrien church..

· 39 animals died in the district and 11 of them belonged to church members in Anse-a-Veau.

· 36 gardens were washed away in Anse-a-Veau and the district..

The most important needs we have for Anse-a-Veau church now is home repairs and food.

Pastor Dieusseul Malbranche

Report: The MEBSH Church at Abricot

09/18/08

We have had a lot of damage in Abricot and in the district. However, the road from Jeremie to Abricot is still in good condition. We had a lot of water inside the church as a result of the rains. We also lost many gardens and animals in the district.

To summarize:

· 4 damaged houses in the town.

· 3 damaged church member homes.

· 55 gardens were washed away.

· 19 animals died.

The most important needs we have for the church and the district now is home repairs and food.

Pastor Yves Renous Mathurin

Report: MEBSH Church at Lacolline

At the Lacolline church we had a lot of water inside the parsonage.

In Lacolline:

· We have 6 damaged houses.

· 22 animals died

· 3 gardens were washed away.

Labatre Satellite Church:

· 2 damaged houses.

· Many church members lost their gardens and animals.

Mapou Satellite Church:

· 3 damaged houses.

· Loss of many animals and gardens.

Bel-Air Satellite Church:

· Many damaged houses.

· 35 animals died.

· Many church members lost their garden.

The main needs we have now for the Lacolline area is home repairs and food.

Pastor Destin Dorval

Report: MEBSH Church at Tiburon

September 18^th, 2008

The road from Aux Coteaux to Tiburon has a lot of damage and it is very difficult now for vehicles to use. Praise the Lord, the government has a foreign company that is working on road repair. A section of the wall that protects the church from the river has fallen down. Many church members have lost their homes, gardens and animals. Here are the details.

· In the entire district we have had 3 people die. These people were not church members.

· 45 houses were destroyed.

· 59 damaged homes.

· 203 lost animals.

The main needs in the Tiburon district now are home repairs, and food.

Pastor Roland Lundy

Report from the MEBSH Church at Lievre

The road from Vieux Bourge in the Aquin area to Lievre is in very bad shape right now. We have had a lot of damage in the Lievre area. Praise the Lord there was no loss of life but many of the church members lost their gardens and animals. As a general report for the whole district we have:

· 60 damaged homes.

· 70 gardens washed away.

· 65 animals died.

The most important need we have for the District Church and the Satellite churches now is home repairs and food.

Pastor Onor Toussaint

General Report from the MEBSH Church at Les Irois

The road from Les Cayes to Jeremie had some damage because the floods washed it away in some areas.

The MEBSH church at Les Irois has some leaks in the building and the outhouse is almost gone. We had 20 damaged homes. The members lost all their gardens and animals.

In the Mandou area 4 members' homes were damaged, 10 animals died, and all the gardens were washed away. The Parsonage at Mandou is very bad after the hurricanes. Praise the Lord they are working on the new parsonage.

In Kakas there were two members' homes that were destroyed, 5 damaged homes and 8 animals that died. All of their gardens were destroyed.

In the Miyonne area the church and the parsonage were totally destroyed. The floods totally washed the buildings away. The members had 16 damaged homes, 18 animals died, and all the gardens were washed away. Miyonne area is really in bad shape.

In Jorge, there were 19 damaged homes, 6 animals died and the gardens were washed totally away.

The greatest needs in the Les Irois district are home repairs and food.

Pastor Sainprival

General Report from the MEBSH Church at Port-a-Piment

The road from Cayes to Port-a-Piment has a section that was washed out. Praise the Lord, we have a company that is working on the road now to repair it.

This is a general report I have for the whole district:

· 6 church members' homes were destroyed.

· 38 members' homes were damaged.

· 24 member's animals died.

· The Port-a-Piment school had two class rooms that leaked a lot.

· The church of Zoren had a section of the roof that was destroyed during the Hurricanes.

The greatest needs in the Port a Piment Church District are house repairs and food.

Pastor Yvon Vertue.

Haiti Flooding Video

WOW!  One of our missionaries, Jenn, just forwarded this to me.  The video was put together by an orphanage group in Jacmel, Haiti.  I think this will give you some idea as to the destruction that Haiti has experienced recently.

Rob

Introduction of the new Astruk pastor

From:      MEBSH Church at Astruck, Haiti.                                         September 16, 2008

To:          Arlington Heights E. Free Church, USA

Subject:   Introduction.

I greet you in the name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. How are you doing? I hope that everything is going well for you.

I am very happy to write you this letter just to congratulate you for the good work you have done through the MEBSH mission in the Sister Church Program.

My name is Pastor Louinel Guillaume, I was born on the July 24^th, 1970. I have been a Pastor for 10 years. I was Pastor of three churches before coming to . I have been here for about a month. I am also a technician in Agriculture and Veterinary medicine.  My wife's name is Jeanine Orgella. She was born on March 9^th, 1970. She loves the Lord and serves Him here at our church as well as in nursing. God has richly blessed my family and has given us 6 children. Two of our children are adopted.

Our children are:

1- Robert Milord Guillaume was born on August 13^th, 1985 and is in the second year of high school.

2- Eveline Guillaume was born on August 13^th, 1995, and is in the third grade in primary school.

3- Anne Beraca Guillaume was born on September 4^th, 2000 and is in the third grade in primary school.

4- Louis Orphe Guillaume was born on March 14^th, 2002 and is in the first grade in primary school.

5- Louimene Noa Guillaume was born on September 4^th, 2004 and is the second year of kindergarten.

6- Christella Guillaume was born on June 26^th, 2008.

Again, I am very happy that God entrusted me to be the pastor of the MEBSH Church at Astruk because I see that they are very good people there and they have worked well in partnership with you in Arlington Heights. I am looking forward to working with you as my sister church as we seek more people for Jesus.

Pastor Louinel Guillaume

Introducing Pastor Saint Julien Hyppolte

September 15, 2008

From: Pastor Saint Julien Hyppolite

To: Calvary Baptist Church

The new Pastor at Dame-Marie is Pastor Saint Julien Hyppolite. He has been in Ministry for 19 years working with MEBSH churches. His recent church was near Bon Finn at Ka Mark where he spent 4 years. His wife's name is Magda Domnique Hyppolite and she is a servant of the Lord. She likes working with her husband in the Ministry. She teaches students how to cook and also teaches art work. They have eight (8) children, five (5) girls and three (3) boys. Four children are living with them in Dame Marie, three are in the Dominican Republic and one is in Port-au-Prince. They are grandparents to one grandson.

Pastor Saint Julien is very happy for his new assignment in Dame Marie that God has entrusted him. Pastor Saint Julien is happy to be a witness and obey God in whatever is asked of him. He has been at Dame Marie for a short while now and likes the town very much but realizes he has  a lot of work to do in the church. Please pray that he will be guided in how to lead the people of the MEBSH church in Dame Marie.

Pastor Saint Julien knows you are coming with a team in November and it looking forward to meeting you all and sharing a good time with you.

Report prepared by Benjamin Altima

Report from the MEBSH Church at Les Anglais

September 15, 2008

Dear Our Savior’s Lutheran Church,

As a result of the hurricanes that passed through this area we have had a lot of damage in the town of Les Anglais. Part of the church wall was broken. Many of the church members lost their homes, gardens, and animals. Praise the Lord we had no loss of life. We received many people in the church because their houses were totally destroyed by the Hurricanes.

Please pray for the church members in Les Anglais because there are many needs however, we believe that God will provide.

May God bless and protect you!

Pastor Marc Dieuseul Jean Pierre

This is a shot of the broken area of the wall at the back of the church yard.

This is a shot of where the wall is broken up near the little house that the pastor is building for himself.

This is another shot of the broken wall near the pastor's new house.

Report from the MEBSH Church at Beaumont

September 15, 2008

Dear Hope E. Free Church,

As a result of the hurricanes and tropical storms in Haiti we now have many problems in the Beaumont area. Many church members have lost their gardens and animals and some have lost their houses. Praise the Lord we were able to receive some people in the church as well as the Hospital too. We have had many houses destroyed in the district churches too. The two churches at Dilagon and Grand Barriere were destroyed by "Hurricane Hanna" also.

Please pray for us that God will provide our needs here in Beaumont.

May God bless you!

Pastor Emmanuel Visne

Report from the MEBSH church at Dame Marie

September 13, 2008

Dear Calvary Baptist Church,

We have had damage in Dame-Marie and the district churches as a result of the recent hurricanes in that have passed through the northern Caribbean. In Dame-Marie there were 11 houses that were destroyed. Petit Riviere district had 7 houses destroyed by the storms. In Bariadelle another 11 houses were destroyed. Please pray for us because our situation are very difficult.

Please pray for us that God will provide our needs.

May God bless you!

Pastor Hyppolite Saint Julien.

Report from the MEBSH Church at Aux Coteaux

September 13, 2008,

Dear Grace Lutheran Church,

I am Pastor Romelus Jean Tatho, the Pastor of Coteaux Baptist church. I am taking this opportunity to share with you about the damages caused by the different hurricanes that affected Haiti. We have had a lot of damage in Aux Coteaux. The town was flooded and we had about 16 houses that were damaged with two of them being destroyed. Many of the church members lost their gardens and lot of animals. They also lost many of their personal possessions.

Many people are concerned because they don’t know how they will provide for their families and school will star soon to add to their financial burden.

The same thing happened at many of the district churches too. I was talked to several of the pastors by phone and they said that they have suffered a lot of damage as a result of the hurricanes also.

I know there are problems almost everywhere in world, but the situation in Haiti is very difficult. Please lift Aux Coteaux in prayer, not only our church but the whole town. Please pray that God will provide our needs and protect us from any more storms.

May God bless you and protect you.

Pastor Jean Tatho Romelus

Report from the MEBSH Church at Lacolline

September 13, 2008

Dear Drycreek Bible Church,

We have had a lot of damage in Lacolline and the district churches caused by the Hurricanes that have passed through Haiti recently. We have 6 church members’ houses that were destroyed and several more with damage. Many members lost their gardens and animals. We also had some flooding of the church and parsonage. The school toilet was destroyed also. Three classrooms were destroyed too.

The district church at Bazelais was damaged too. Many church members in that area lost their gardens and animals also.

Please, pray for Lacolline district. We are trusting God to provide our needs.

May God bless you and guide you.

Pastor Destin Dorval

Lacolline Baptist Church.

Pastor Gerard Formond

Bazelais Baptist Church.

Report from the MEBSH Church at Morency

September 13^th 2008

Dear Sunrise Community Church

As a result of the Hurricanes that have passed through Haiti this year we have many problems in Morency. The storms destroyed many of the church members’ gardens and killed their animals. Also we have had 35 houses that were destroyed by the Hurricanes. We had made a new road down the mountain for cars and motorcycles but the road was totally destroyed. The front part of the church was damaged too.

Please pray for the Morency Church members as they are in a difficult situation now. We believe God will take care of us and provide our needs.

May God bless you and protect you!

Pastor Jean Robert Brunache.

Report from the MEBSH Church at Port-a-Piment

September 13, 2008

Dear Second Cape May Baptist Church,

I greet you in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Port-a-Piment has a very difficult situation because of the different Hurricanes that have passed by Haiti. The Port-a-Piment church had water all around it. We had 6 church members’ houses that were totally destroyed. We also had some homes in the area that were flooded and everything got wet inside. We now have 5 families living in our school because water destroyed their homes.

In the satellite churches of Zoren, Guillaume and Dolian church there was the same problems. However the Pastors of those churches still cannot cross the river.

Please pray for the Church members who lost their homes that God will provide them a way to rebuild them. We are praying for you that God will bless you and protect you.

Pastor Yvon Vertu.

Report from the MEBSH Church at Tiburon

Dear Crossroad United Methodist Church,

September 12, 2008

As a result of hurricanes that have moved through this area of the Caribbean, Tiburon has received a lot of damage. The storms washed away many of the gardens and many animals have been killed. The people here now have many problems. It is very difficult for the men and women of Tiburon to provide the needs of their families. There have been a total of 45 houses that have been destroyed in the area and another 59 that have had damages. Part of the wall that surrounds the church was broken also. We have had a lot of damage in the district churches too. The road from Port-a-Piment to Tiburon is in bad shape now and is impassable. Praise the Lord the government says they are going to repair the road before you come in October.

Please, pray for us here in Tiburon. We are trusting God to provide our needs and we are praying for your trip and believe that God will give us a good time together again this year.

Pastor Roland Lundy.

Haiti Flood Relief Effort...

As you are well aware, Haiti has undergone the worse flooding probably in its history. The flooding and destruction has been nationwide. I cannot remember this happening before. The reports we are getting from our sister churches are heart wrenching as we hear of the complete destruction of crops and the tremendous loss of livestock in so many areas. Many have lost their homes and belongings. Some have lost loved ones. Thankfully, it seems the loss of life has been minimal in the areas where we minister.

Our team in Haiti has been meeting with as many pastors as they can to get information as well as find out how we can best help them in this time of need. They have also met with the Executive Committee of the MEBSH to gather their input and advice as to how to best help their churches during this very difficult time. As they have gathered this information, one theme has been echoed by many. The pastors have shared that although food is a great need for the people, it can be bought in most every area at this time. Rice, beans, etc are available locally.

The real issue is the funds to purchase the food. Another aspect that many brought out is that many people might have greater needs than food at this time. Many have had their homes damaged or washed away entirely. Many have no problem with their home, but due to water getting into the home have lost many of their possessions, clothes, etc.. Again, funds would be a better solution for them than a bag of rice at this time. Another consideration is that funds can be distributed much more quickly and in a more orderly fashion than can food. Still another consideration has been the local economic benefit that an influx of funds would supply.

After several conference calls between the team in Haiti and Rob and I, we have determined together what we feel is the best course of action.

Therefore, we are now asking our Sister Churches that are desirous and able to help with relief to send funds through RMI to be distributed to each Sister Church. As mentioned before, to help join the relief effort, RMI will not be assessing our typical 10% administrative fee.

The RMI team in Haiti will get the funds exchanged into Haitian currency and then distribute the funds to each Sister Church Pastor. The Pastor will then meet with the church leadership committee to determine how the funds will be divided up depending on where the greatest needs are.

Recipient families will be given money to help them with their specific needs. A report will be given back to RMI from each Sister Church on who the funds were given to and how the funds were used. These reports will then be forwarded back to each donating church. As you can imagine, we are working hard to address the issues of security, transparency and accountability throughout this effort.

How much aid is needed for each church? I am afraid the answer is whatever God provides. One way to present this to your people is for a family to help a family. A 50lb bag of rice, a 20lb bag of beans, and a gallon of cooking oil together would cost about $110 US. So for $110, a family here in the US can potentially help a family in Haiti with food that would last quite a while for them. Again, please be aware that the funds will be divided up on site according to need and situation and not exactly according to the above. The funds could also potentially be used to purchase other food items, clothes, transportation, medical care, agricultural supplies, livestock, roof and house repairs, etc.. Yes, the needs are great! Hopefully this gives you a guideline for you and your congregation as you seek to “do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." ”.

If you are a member of a Sister Church, please contact your church's RMI Sister Church Program Coordinator to find our if your church is collecting funds. If so, you can give through your church.

If you are not able to give through an RMI Sister Church, you can give individually by sending a check to RMI or by giving online. Your funds will be used to provide relief as our RMI team in Haiti deems appropriate.

Dan

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday McKenna Moses!

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to McKenna, Happy Birthday to you!

May the Lord richly bless you this day.

When you think it can't get any worse...

As we move about in Les Cayes today, we see the sun shining, people are going about their business and things seem to have returned to normal. However, this is not the case.

We thought that when it quit raining, the rivers would subside, the roads would dry up, and things would return to normal...well at least normal for Haiti. We received news yesterday that in the town of Miragoane there is a big problem. Miragoane is on the northern coast of the southern penninsula about halfway between Les Cayes and Port-au-Prince. Some of you might remember it as the place where they had a restaurant in the middle of the road. About 2 miles outside of town towards Port there is a river that flows across the road and into a large lake. That river flooded, the lake filled and flooded, and the road has disappeared. For a while people would arrive there and shut down their engines and then pay to have their vehicles pushed across the river so as not to flood out their engines. Then it got too deep for that and the people would ride across in buses. Then it got too deep for that. The next solution was to arrive at the river/lake and pay to be ferried across in a boat where they would then board another bus and continue on. Not too many days ago a boat capsized because there were too many people aboard and two people died. Now the UN has completely shut down the road there, even to the extent of putting up chains to prevent people from trying to cross.

The problem is that the lake has no outflow. There is no drainage for the lake. The water will stay across the road until it evaporates. Unless they come up with some kind of solution it could be a long time until the road opens again.

What does this mean for Les Cayes and southern Haiti? This means that all traffic going out the southern penninsula will shut down. As a result everything in Les Cayes and southern Haiti will be in short supply and more expensive. We tried to fill the tanks of our vehicles today and there is no diesel for sale. We also tried to fill our gas cans with gas and they will not sell gas that way. They will only sell gas if you put it into a motorcycle or car. We are going to town today to try to stock up against shortages. This is the first I've ever heard of stocking up after a hurricane. Please pray for RMI missionaries and staff and for your Sister Churches as we don't know what the next days will bring.

God bless you!

Hurricane Report from the MEBSH Church at Corail

Dear Centerpoint Church,

I am writing to report the situation of the MEBSH Church at Corail. We have had some problems in the town of Corail as a result of the hurricanes and tropical storms that passed through Haiti. The town was flooded and some of the Church members had to stay in the church and in the school. Praise the Lord we had no loss of life. Please, pray for us that God will provide our needs.

May God richly bless you!

Pastor Predelma Dor

Hurricane Report from the MEBSH Church at Les Irois

Dear Harper Church,

We have had many serious problems in the Les Irois district. There were a lot of damages caused by Hurricane Hanna. To begin with the road into Les Irois has suffered a lot of damage. Several of the members of the MEBSH church lost their gardens and their houses. Some of the people in Les Irois died but we don’t know yet how many. We have a report that one member of the Miyonne church died and that the church and parsonage were destroyed. Also the church and parsonage in Galette Potonier were totally destroyed too.

All the people in the Les Irois district are facing difficult times right now. Please pray for us and the district churches that God will provide our needs.

May God bless you and protect you!