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Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ, Tent city across from the Good Sheherd compound in Milot.
STATUS REPORT #8 - Feb 15 11:00 am est: Between the hospital in Milot, and the hospital at Quartier Moran, GSM is now providing housing for 44 doctors and nurses. We are feeding, housing, and providing transportation for the 29 who are working in Quartier Moran. For the 15 who are working in Milot, we are only providing housing. Bill reports that last week, helicopters were coming in about every 30 minutes dropping injured Haitians. It is not that Milot necessarily has the capacity to care for all of these injured refugees, but the idea is to just get them out of Port-au-Prince, where they have no chance for medical help. Bill reports that the chapel building on our Milot compound is filled around the clock with Christians praying, fasting, and singing hymns. They are praying for the spiritual redemption of their nation. STATUS REPORT #7 - Feb 11 1:00 pm est: Bill and Sandy are safely back in Haiti. They have spent the first few days trying to understand the situation in Milot, and how GSM may be able to respond. As we mentioned before, the exodus of refugees from Port-au-Prince is significantly impacting northern Haiti. There is a large tent city in Milot. These people have nothing. No home. No food. No money. There are a couple of things GSM is already becoming involved with. We will be working with Pastor Blaise, a wonderful Haitian pastor of a good Haitian church, to help feed the refugees in Milot. We have a substantial feeding center at Milot. We will make our facility available for this purpose. Pastor Blaise has been buying cows as he is able, slaughtering them, and mixing the meat in with beans and rice to provide more substance to the meals. However, Pastor Blaise is out of "cow money". GSM may try to help in that regard as funds become available. The media reports about the movie stars and the rock stars. But I will tell you that out in the countryside, in the trenches, beyond the range of the cameras, what we are seeing is the Haitian Christians helping their countrymen. Haitians helping Haitians. It is very encouraging to see people who have very little digging deeper to help their countrymen who have lost everything - Haitians sharing their meager homes and food with those in need. GSM's plan is to come alongside the Haitian Christians as they assist their countrymen. What an opportunity for the gospel witness! Haitians being helped by Haitian Christians and churches! Another very different involvement for GSM will be a partnership with the Haitian Baptist Mission in Quartier Moran. This is a village not far from us, near Limonade. They have a hospital there. There are 26 doctors and nurses coming in who have no place to stay and no food to eat. GSM is planning to house these medical people in our Milot compound. We will feed, shelter, and provide transportation to and from Quartier Moran for these workers. Beyond the range of what the media can see, there is a beautiful picture unfolding all across the nation of Haiti - brothers and sisters in Christ, sharing with "the least of these". In addition to these things, Bill & Sandy have been able to take some of our food stocks out to some of the people we know who are without food. One of these is Joselyn. He is a brother in Christ and one of our long-time workers at GSM. His family lost everything in Port-au-Prince. Now they are all with him in Milot. Joselyn does not have enough food for them, so we are helping. Be in prayer with Bill & Sandy and GSM in the days to come. Pray for wisdom on how to involve GSM in the work, and pray for physical stamina and good health for Bill & Sandy. RELIEF EFFORTS: We know that many people want to give to support the relief and recovery efforts in Haiti. Good Shepherd Ministries is a permanent, ongoing work of Jesus Christ in Haiti. If you want to entrust Good Shepherd Ministries to administer your charitable giving in this crisis, we appreciate your trust, and will be able to use the gifts shared with us. We will do so in this way ... We have set up a designated account for any Earthquake Relief Funds we receive, and will administer these gifts at our discretion in any of the three ways as listed below: a) we have many wonderful Haitian Christians on our staff at Good Shepherd Ministries. A large number of them have family members in Port-au-Prince. As we see opportunity, Bill will assist individuals by providing relief and recovery resources and support for family members. b) if we discover further earthquake related damage to our facilities, we may use funds to make needed repairs. c) Missionary Flights International, based in Ft. Pierce, FL, is a wonderful Christian organization dedicated to servicing the missionary needs of Haiti. They normally fly missionary personnel and cargo, but will be using their planes to fly relief supplies directly into Haiti during this crisis. We trust them completely. They need our support. And they offer a direct relief vehicle. This disaster will dramatically increase the prices GSM pays for food and fuel in Haiti for months, and likely years to come. We are thankful for your ongoing support of GSM. Please find a contribution button located on our web site, or send gifts to our Melbourne office. Be sure and designate your gift for "Earthquake Relief" if that is your intention. Don't designate it if you want your gift to be for the needs of GSM. In Christ, Good Shepherd Ministries Earlier Haiti Updates STATUS REPORT #1 - Jan 13 4:15 est: At this time, Bill & Sandy are in Melbourne for Christmas furlough and various meetings, so they were not in the country when the earthquake struck. Bill has been unable to contact any of our GSM people in Milot because the telephone circuits are busy or inoperable. The epicenter of the quake was about 10 miles SW of Port-au-Prince in the south of Haiti. GSM's compounds are about 9 miles inland on the northern coast. That places GSM's compounds 80 miles north of the epicenter. The news reports have indicated that people in the north did experience some movement. But the most damage was in the south around the epicenter, so we are hoping to have escaped any damage to our facilities. However, we can make no damage reports at this time. STATUS REPORT #2 - Jan 14 11:40 est: We finally made contact with one of our people in Milot, Christian Laveaux. He says that the only damage he has found at the GSM compound so far is that the cistern for the children's bath house is cracked. But more significantly, he also said that people in Milot are already having serious concerns about food availability. While the physical damage from the earthquake is concentrated around Port-au-Prince, the collateral effects will be tremendous for the entire country. Already short food supplies are tightening very quickly, escalating prices, and placing a tremendous burden on the entire country. Fuel, if it can be found at all, will be extremely expensive, perhaps $14.00 gal U.S. This pressure on the people will persist for a very long time. In addition, Christian says it has been raining everyday. I don't know if that is true for Port-au-Prince, but it is certainly a discouragement for the people in Milot who are trying to work out ways to help family members in Port-au-Prince. Bill is already working to get back to Milot as soon as possible to help our people in their efforts to assist their loved ones. STATUS REPORT #3 - Jan 16 8:30 am est: We have heard nothing else from Milot. There is nothing new to report. STATUS REPORT #4 - Jan 18 5:30 pm est: Today Bill finally made a cell phone contact with one of our people in Milot, Christian Laveaux. Christian reports that it is already difficult to find food, even in northern Haiti. Prices have gone up accordingly. Although it doesn't appear that rain has been a problem for Port-au-Prince, Christian says that it has been raining for days in Milot, making it very difficult for the markets to open in order to trade what food supplies they do have. Also, gasoline and diesel fuel are virtually impossible to find. We expect that if any can be found, it will be in the neighborhood of $15-$20 U.S. per gal. This is a national crisis. Can you imagine what the U.S. would be like if in one day, 1/3 of our population (100 million Americans) suddenly became homeless, and food and fuel supplies evaporated? Christian also reports that people in the north are still unable to make any communication with Port-au-Prince. Given that nearly 1 in 3 Haitians live in the Port-au-Prince area, this means that nearly all Haitians have loved ones in Port-au-Prince from whom they have heard nothing. For those of you who know Joselyn, his wife and 2 children were in Port-au-Prince at the time of the quake. Upon news of the quake, he immediately left for Port-au-Prince to find his family. No one has heard from him since then. For those of you who know Yvon Selin, he and his wife are safe, although we have no report as to the status of their home. On a strange note, Christian reports that all government offices in Cap Haitien have been closed since the quake. On another note, for those of you who have given earthquake relief funds through GSM, your charity is not idle, it is already hard at work in a wonderful way. Bill went to the Missionary Flights International (MFI) hangar today and delivered a very good gift to them. In spite of what you may hear on the news about the airports being closed, MFI's World War 2 cargo planes are making multiple flights each day, delivering relief supplies and equipment of all kinds directly into Port-au-Prince and to outlying grass strips on which the larger planes cannot land . Bill said that MFI's operation was an amazing thing to see during this crisis. Very busy. And those of you who have given through GSM are helping put those planes in the air. We are not sure exactly when Bill and Sandy will go back in. We will let you know. Finally, at GSM, we believe that this earthquake event will generate fields that are truly white unto harvest. We and the Haitian Christians believe that this may be the spiritual turning point in the 206 year history of this oppressed country. We are praying that God will now take this country and demonstrate His saving power and grace to a watching world as a nation turns from Satan to Christ. Six months from now, after things have settled down, the work of rebuilding, and the need, will only be beginning, and then continue on for years to come. Unfortunately, well before then, the media and most people will have moved past Haiti and forgotten about them again. But that is when the work will be most needed. After the emotions have passed, please don’t forget Haiti, and don't forget GSM. The real work of redemption is just beginning. STATUS REPORT #5 - Jan 23 11:30 am est: We heard from Joselyn. His family is safe. We are not sure about the condition of the home they were living in. But he is hoping to bring them back to Milot. There is a huge migration of refugees moving northward. Many have already arrived in the Milot area. Floods of medical patients are also arriving in the north, with medical personnel searching for any available facilities. The reports we are hearing from our Haitian friends in the north is that amputation is the most common procedure taking place, due to infections, and the lack of necessary medical supplies to save life and limb. Doctors have no other recourse. Already strained pre-quake food and fuel supplies are now being taxed severely. Already high prices have spiked accordingly. Bill and Sandy are scheduled to return on Feb 9. They will be assisting people we know in resettling their families to the north, around Milot. We will also make our extensive facilities available, as we are able, for both medical and temporary housing needs. It will be very challenging and expensive for GSM to find the food and fuel we need for our daily operations. Gifts designated according to the information given below remain welcome and needed. But please don't forget that undesignated gifts are much needed and appreciated in order to keep our ministry alive and well in Haiti. We can't help the earthquake victims if we are not there. Finally, to re-emphasize the closing comments of our last update, we, and the Haitian believers, pray that this catastrophe will be the turning point in the 206 year history of this tortured people, as Haiti turns away at last from their demonic worship, and turns to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The fields are truly white unto harvest. The media and most people will soon move on to something new, and forget about Haiti once again. But that is when the work will be most needed. After the emotions have passed, please don't forget Haiti, and don't forget GSM. The real work of redemption is just beginning. STATUS REPORT #6 - Tue Feb 9 1:30 pm est: The next few days will be very enlightening for GSM. Bill and Sandy are flying back in today, and should be on the ground in Haiti by the posting time of this update. They will spend a few days assessing the situation in the Milot area, after which we will have a clearer picture of how GSM is affected, and how GSM may need to put our resources to work. There are large numbers of earthquake refugees migrating northward seeking food and shelter. We already know that 3000+ earthquake refugees have now flooded into the Milot area. It has taken this long for the exodus of refugees to reach the north. Some are coming, looking for help from family, some are simply wandering and homeless, and some are looking for medical help. The numbers of earthquake refugees will continue to grow. Normally tight food supplies are strained. There are food supplies becoming available for these refugees, but transportation for these supplies is inadequate. So, GSM has already made our truck available to deliver food where it is needed, even before Bill and Sandy's return. GSM has a wonderful heavy duty diesel truck with a large dump bed. We are thankful to the churches that provided this truck for us two years ago. As you can imagine, our expenses are climbing significantly. Our diesel generator and truck will be working overtime. We will need financial help keeping our fuel and food supplies replenished. Please be sure and check back in with our update over the course of the next week. As Bill & Sandy communicate, we will post the news of how GSM is affected and responding, and what you can do to help. This crisis will endure for a long time. After the emotions ebb, and the media moves on, please don't forget Haiti and the work of GSM. |
