I’m going to go out on a bit of a limb….
by Tom on September 9, 2008
in Uncategorized
But there are people who mean a lot to me who need help. Let me explain:
Four years ago, my wife and I adopted 2 of our children from God’s Littlest Angels Orphanage in Petionville Haiti. Isaac is now in the 2nd grade and will be 8 in December, Abby is in the 1st grade and she’ll be 7 next month. 
Needless to say, our lives have been very blessed by these two kids and the entire process and we also feel very close to the country of Haiti and many of the people there. I’m on the board for the orphanage, my 18 year old has volunteered there several times, our church has done mission trips there (and are planning more).
Haiti is a country of intense poverty but yet intense beauty as well. The people truly live what Paul says in the New Testament, “I’ve learned to be content whatever my circumstances.” They live in abject poverty but yet every time you talk to them, they appear to be as content and happy as middle class Americans (in many cases more so.)
But that’s why I’m doing this right now. Haiti has received glancing blows from four hurricanes and tropical storms in the last month. Each one has made things progressively worse and the conditions are truly awful right now. Dixie is the orphanage director at God’s Littlest Angels and she was telling me that conditions are the worst she’s seen and she has been in Haiti for 17 years.
When I think about what we have and how blessed we are and how much we complain about the mess in the mortgage and housing markets, and then I look at the pictures below and it makes me realize how good we’ve got it.
The people in Haiti need our help and until Thursday morning, this blog is going to remain silent and instead I’m going to leave this post, with pictures and stories about the people in Haiti who have seen their lives ruined and family members killed up for you to read.
Two of the nannies who work at GLA and took care of my children before we brought them home lost everything in the flooding. These are people who are very close to our family and who mean a lot to us.
I ask that you would do me two favors:
1. Read through the rest of this post and take the time to look at the photos and at the video that the Miami Herald did.
2. If you are able, click HERE to take you the spot on God’s Littlest Angels website where you can make a credit card donation to their Emergency Fund so that they can help their neighbors.
God’s Littlest Angels did sustain damage in the hurricanes, but nothing nearly like many of their neighbors did. They are up in the mountains and it’s fairly rocky there (so the water just runs off). The people down in the plains are the ones who have gotten devastated by the floods.
I would feel humbled and very grateful for anything you can do to help Dixie and the staff at GLA help those in Haiti who are in need.
I’ll resume talking about the mortgage world on Thursday, but I want to keep this front page until then.
Thanks,
Tom Vanderwell
|
Dear friend,
Ike rained and blew all night on poor Haiti. This morning it is still raining and blowing. While we are safe on a mountain in Port au Prince, the northwest of Haiti is experiencing a natural disaster of unimaginable proportions.
Tropical Storm Hanna flooded Gonaives and claimed more than 500 lives in the past week. Now Hurrican Ike is dumping more wind and rain on the battered region. This morning we received a first hand report of a missionary there who said, “Forty children in the orphanage are eating flour, because they have not had food for five days.” This same missionary is using bleach to purify contaminated well water for drinking. While human and animal cadavers float in the flood waters surrounding the facility. They have no other choice though as the UN is NOT DISTRIBUTING RELIEF.
The UN received 33 tons of relief for the region yesterday and it is warehoused in Gonaives, to date they have not distributed any of it. We received a message from a Haitian pastor in Gonaives who said his wife walked 18 hours through mud and flood waters to get food for her family.
She returned empty handed, even with cash she could not find food; BECAUSE THE UN IS HOLDING THE FOOD BACK IN THE WAREHOUSES. It is rumored they will sell the relief after the storm. This same family said, they “are waiting for death.” This is not an overstatement of the situation in Haiti. We need your help now. You can go on line and find the name of your Congress men and you United States Senators with their phone numbers. Call them today and tell them that the UN is NOT DISTRIBUTING RELIEF IN HAITI. That you know the situation is worsening by the minute and thousands are at risk, in fact 600,000 Haitians have been displaced without food and water for days now.
As of Sunday morning, aid had arrived in Gonaive but due to fear of rioting, it had not been distributed according to missionaries in Gonaive. People have been without food AND water for 6 days now. Orphanages in the area have children without food and water.
The UN that is suppose to distribute the food and water. The US, Canada, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain, The Netherlands, and other countries supporting the UN should demand that this food be distributed!
Another missionary, Licia Zachary Betor with Real Hope for Haiti, in the village of Cazele said that at 3 AM on Sunday morning, a wall of water swept through the village of Cazele. There is a small, shallow river that runs through the middle of the village. They are assuming that a mud slide in the mountains caused the wall of water to sweep down and flood the village. It took out the foot bridge over the river and swept people away. Licia heard that the road to the village was cut in half by the fast moving water and so the village is isolated, but she did not know for certain yesterday afternoon if that was true. Go to her blog at: http://haitirescuecenter.wordpress.com/ to read more about the flood.
Please be praying for Haiti. Due to the flooding and devastation, schools will not open until October 6. Your help is needed more than ever to help the Haitian children.
And life in Haiti goes on…
|
http://www.miamiherald.com/multimedia/slideshows/090808_haiti_floods/Watch this short video from the Miami Herald. It shows the flooding especially in Cabaret/Cazele area that took place on Sunday.We are now getting reports of many people also killed from mudslides and drowning in the mountains outside of Kenscoff in Nouvelle Terrain. The Civil Officer in kenscoff said many people have come for death certificates for their family members that have drowned. There are many more that nobody will get a death certificate for them.We have 2 families of adopted children, Ketley and Fedianie, who have come today and told us that their homes were destroyed from the wind and rain. The Papa of Fedianie said his house was lifted up by the water and completely destroyed. He is now staying with some neighbors. Mama Ketley said that the wind blew her house and tore off the roof and then water came through and filled the house and destroyed everything she had.Please pray for these 2 families. I am sure that we will hear from more in the days to come. If you would like to donate into our Emergency Disaster fund to help some of the victims of the storms, you can make a donation via PAYPAL with a credit card. USA PAYPAL CANADA PAYPAL Be sure and click either the USA PayPal or the Canadian PayPal buttons when you arrive on the web site.Or send a check to:AMERICAN AND FOREIGN DONORSGod’s Littlest Angels2085 Crystal River DrColorado Springs, CO 80915 USAOrCANADIAN DONORSGod’s Littlest Angels CanadaPO Box 984Okotoks, Alberta T1S 1B1CanadaAnd Life in Haiti goes on… |
Comments
4 Responses to “I’m going to go out on a bit of a limb….”