New Friends and Helping Hands!

“My name is Mason Hymer and I went to Haiti in March with JUST MERCY. I was afraid that it was going to be hot, smelly, scary, and very loud. I’m going to tell you to take all that and multiply it by 500 and take the product and cram it into 1 city. That is Port-au-Prince for you. We had to drive through the city going 80 miles per hour stop and go and all the people swarmed the truck. At first it was creepy but then I figured out they were trying to sell you stuff…….”  

So begins 12 year old Mason Hymer’s account of his trip to Haiti with his parents, Aaron and Emily, and his sister Mackenzie in early March.  But there had already been quite a journey before that.  Between flight cancellations due to bad weather, rescheduling, airport changes, additional cancelled flights, more rescheduling, followed by delayed flights and consequentially missed flights, followed by late arrivals of flights… (the words of Chesterton come to mind, “An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered”) … it would seem we might call this trip “Mission trip fraught with inconvenience.” 

Our late arrival in Port Au Prince meant we could not safely travel further before dark.  The Hymer’s called friends they knew, Eric & Jennifer Lotz, who opened their home to accommodate us.  After two grueling days of travel, we were so grateful for a place to stay.  We found ourselves driving down the road to Les Cayes a day later than planned and we passed a bus completely burned out, having apparently been a part of a dangerous riot or manifestation the day before, through which we would have been traveling but for those inconveniences…

We were provided for and kept out of a potentially dangerous situation.

Inconvenience, or Intervention? …..   Romans 8:28 comes to mind.

Aaron & Emily riding on the luggage in the truck

After stopping to buy some rice where they grow it, we met the taxi boat in Les Cayes and motored to Ile a Vache to open up the base and start getting things organized.  The story of building the fishing boat over the next few weeks was in the last update (see link above) but while that was going on, so were many other things.   One of the men working with Bill is Sonet. Last year while visiting with him, we found out that he and Lana had been together for 18 years, had two teenage daughters, but never married. Many couples in Haiti will not marry unless they have “the dress” and the ring and a wedding. That is out of sight financially for most!

Sonet, Lana, and their daughters Rosemelyn and Reachy.

I had asked last year if he and Lana wanted to get married. They said yes so I had been hoping to help that happen. When we met the Hymers and told them about it, they took on the tax of finding a dress, a ring, and other things to bless Sonet and Lana. The Hymer’s daughter-in-law Hannah sent her wedding dress which Sherlie altered to fit Lana. We had found the perfect suit for Sonet at a used clothing store here in the states and had brought it to him. They were set.

On Saturday, Bill and I, Sherlie and Estane took the water taxi to Les Cayes to attend the wedding at Lana’s cousin’s home. The next day we cooked a meal at the base for their family members who had come to be with them for the wedding. After all those years, they were finally married and we rejoiced with them.

Mackenzie and Mason have their own non-profit in the states called Bundles of Hope (check them out on FB). They provide backpacks with pajamas, a toothbrush, other toiletries, and a stuffed animal for foster children taken from bad situations. They had brought about 20 of these bundles to Haiti and had a great time passing them out to the neighboring children who were so excited to get them!

Mackenzie writes, “One of the parts of the trip that really touched my heart was being with the little kids. In Haiti parents don’t love on their kids like in America. It was actually very hard for me at first to see their lack of love because I have grown up in a home with lots of love so of course all the little kids were starved for attention. I had so much fun coloring with them, playing games with them, and loving on the little kiddos!!!!”

On March 11^th, we went to Grande Sab to give Bibles to the children there who had completed The Greatest Journey course since January. We took a wild boat ride around the island to get there. The seas were pretty choppy and it was a little frightening but we landed safely.

We were surprised when the children sang a welcome song for us in English. After Aaron and Emily passed out the Bibles, the children then sang a thank you song in English! What a lot of work went into those songs. It is always a privilege and blessing to get to pass out the Bibles to children who have never owned a book in their lives and we are grateful to Operation Christmas Child for enabling us to do so.

We so enjoyed the Hymer’s time with us in Haiti. They were a huge help and encouragement, not only to us, but to our Haitian neighbors and friends.   When Emily returned home, she wrote the following:

As we prepare for Easter, I am reminded of Jesus’ suffering.  How he came into our broken world, so that we could enter into a relationship with him.  We will never experience the physical pain that Jesus did at the cross.  But just as Jesus did for us, we can build relationships with broken people.  The problems many Haitians face run deeper than any short-term mission trip can solve, but there is hope.  Building relationships, showing the love of Christ, and a consistent involvement will show them there is a different way!  Just one connection with one family member will create a ripple-effect.  Through Just Mercy, Bill and Janet Montgomery are doing just that!  They are cultivating a mission-focused life, by entering into others brokenness.

 During our visit with Just Mercy, we were invited to get a glimpse into others lives and an opportunity to help bring them hope in their brokenness!!  Aaron and I spent some time together most days, just reading our bibles and chatting about our devotionals on the deck of the base. 

Aaron & Emily sharing their faith with Estane

On several occasions, I would look up to find Estane, one of our new friends, sitting nearby.  Estane was hired by Just Mercy to help with cooking and laundry.  She is a single mother of a young daughter, with no consistent source of income. She lives with several other members of her extended family, and the home being built for her and her daughter is at a stand-still.  Estane was becoming more curious about Christ and her own walk!  She doesn’t speak English and I’m sure she didn’t really understand what Aaron and I were talking about on the deck, but the night of her 26th birthday, she was interested!  She saw our Bibles and she was curious.  Language is a huge barrier in sharing the love of Christ, but it isn’t impossible!  Through our actions and our attitudes, people can see the joy!!  That night, we asked Sonel, our translator, to help us share with her some thoughts God was laying on our hearts for her.  I can’t wait to see what God has planned for Estane’s journey…and I am just grateful He used us and gave us the words to help her on her walk!

More pictures of the Hymer’s time in Haiti are below.  (By the way, the end of Mason’s account said, “If Bill and Janet ask us to go again, my bags would be packed in a matter of seconds!” )   Please continue to pray for JUST MERCY and our neighbors in Haiti as we seek to bring the love of Jesus to them. If you can help with a gift at this time, funds are needed to finish the woodshop which will provide employment for men who have little or no income now and to get the rigging done on the wooden fishing boat built in March.  Thank you for your prayers and support. Blessings on you all.

Our neighbor Paulette with two of her children in front of her home. Mackenzie & Mason helped her with a small “loan” to start a little business. We are praying it will be a success to help her feed her family.

Sharing a Bible story on the deck with the children.

Mason helped clean out the water tank.

Sharing a “Bundle of Hope”