The Chair Venture!!

Last January, an amazing thing happened! The Lord allowed JUST MERCY to get a portable sawmill into Haiti on the island of Ile a Vache, a near impossibility under normal circumstances. That story can be read in the Feb. 9, 2014 update using this link, A New Year and a New Venture.

With the arrival of the sawmill on Ile a Vache, jobs and materials are being made.

Cutting out chair pieces with a jig saw

During the year, even as things like the Chikungunya virus, took much time and energy, the blessings of having the sawmill began.   Boards were cut to help island neighbors with repairing their homes, fishing boats, and other things.

Putting a finish on the first chairs.

One of the most exciting ventures was what we believe will be the beginning of a small industry on the island, building Adirondack chairs. We had researched a usable design and brought pattern pieces to Haiti.

The first chairs were made from a salvaged almond log that had lain on the ground for years.   The pieces were hand sanded (which took hours) and assembled into the first Adirondack chairs made on the island! (Considering the fact that for nearly five years we had had only camp chairs and benches to sit on at the base, this was a very exciting development!)

Another set of pieces were cut out of the almond log for another chair and those were brought back to the U.S. in our luggage.  We spent hours putting the chair together here and getting a hand rubbed oil finish on it. It turned out beautifully.

We showed this chair to several friends who have been involved with JUST MERCY to get their opinion on whether or not we might be able to sell them here to help support the chair project in Haiti.   A place to market the chairs in Haiti is also being looked into.

Our friend, Sid, a member of the Rotary Club in Joplin, took up the cause. He took the chair with him to talk to people and raised some money through Rotary to buy tools to help the chair making venture!! It was very difficult to get the pieces in Haiti evenly cut with just a jig saw and even more difficult to get them smooth enough to make a high quality chair which is what we intend to make. Tools have already gone over in luggage and are beginning to be utilized. We are so grateful to Sid for his interest, help, and support for this venture and to Rotary for the funds to buy additional tools.

Bill recently wrote the following:  “The Carpenter Shop project continues. Working with some good guys and hope they can see that light in me and fall in love with Jesus while we build chairs and boats and houses but more importantly, friendships. 

Took some more tools down this time to help us be more productive. Hope to sell some chairs in PAP soon. We don’t quite understand how important a little gainful employment can be.  Hope to have some photos soon of the people working with the new tools. 

For King and Kingdom! – Bill”

Another thing being developed is Bible studies with Proclaimers, audio Creole Bibles. This is our carpenter friend Yvon with a group of neighbors who are using the Proclaimer to study God’s word. Please be in prayer for these people who are seeking to learn more about the Lord.

We are looking for new friends to help support the many things being done in Haiti. If you or someone you know would be able to help us with a monthly donation of $20, $30, or more, please contact us at info@justmercy.org or donate online at www.justmercy.org.  Thank you for your prayers and support. God bless you!