October 2009 Newsletter

Welcome to Fall!

Since we say spring has Sprung early in the year, do we get to say fall has Fallen? Just doesn't have same impact does it? Anyway, fall is here, and for those further north, the air should be getting a bit cooler, the leaves maybe just beginning to turn, and apples ready to pick! And for those of you with children (young enough) who dress up for Halloween, you are probably starting to think about costumes. As for Haiti and Florida, about the only thing that the beginning of fall means to us is we are that much closer to the end of hurricane season. And we are praising God that we have not had a year like last year. The cleanup and rebuilding are still going on in Haiti, and we are doing what we can to help.

As some of you may know, even though we have not had to deal with a hurricane this year, we did have a massive lightning strike in Bell Aire on September 1. It knocked out the inverter, blew all the light bulbs in the headquarters, the power supply in the computer, and our Internet. Luckily, when we bought the inverter this year, the company recommended a spare part to have in stock that was the most likely thing to go bad. Guess what, that is the part we needed to replace, so that is fixed. Roseline took down a bunch of light bulbs to replace the ones that were blown. Now we just have to work on replacing wiring that got fried in the HQ.  Our electrician is working on that, but he has also been hired by the American Embassy, so he is working on the HQ on the weekends. Until then, they are running lights, fans, etc. using extension cords. We are going to wait in the Internet to see what happens. It may just be the tower that was installed up the hill for the Bishop, and will be repaired when that is fixed. Christian Flights International has donated a new computer for us to take down to replace the one that got hit by lightning.

TRUCK!

Well, you all know that our prayers were answered and we now have taken delivery of our 40^th anniversary truck, and here it is!

Of course, as with anything, we now have to re-pave that driveway where it is parked. It was only designed for foot traffic, not the weight of the truck. Good thing we have lots of experience pouring concrete!

Clinic Update

Here are the numbers of people that the clinic has treated this year, with comparisons to 2008 and 2007. You can see the dramatic increase in the number of people who are coming to get treated:

                        2007          2008         2009

January              382              334          592

February            279              800       1,072

March                328              355       1,368

April                   357              526       1,182

May                    487              520          725

June                  470                456       2,059

July                   286              707       2,420

August          no report          371       2,245

 

We are obviously running through many more medical supplies than in the past, so need you to continue to send in your donations. Every little bit helps, and we just want to be able to continue to help the people in Haiti.

Cargo

Well, beginning with the closing of CASCO as a shipping company, we continue to see major. We currently are in a joint effort with Feed My Starving Children (donating food that will be shipped in mid-October), Kids Against Hunger (donating food that is being picked up as I write this), and another non-profit. This non-profit is working with us to coordinate shipping, and partnering with FHL to handle the clearing of customs in Port Au Prince. Then they will deliver the shipment directly to the front gates of the HQ in Cap Haitien. Wow, God is good!

And there have been other changes, specifically with Lynx, the charter airline we use to fly to Cap. Lynx has larger planes and is now flying under a different name. This has meant we need to make some adjustments in the air cargo arrangements because we can no longer ship down 500lbs. of cargo with Roseline or whoever is traveling. The larger plane is a different configuration so passengers are limited to 50lbs. each.

Even with all of these major changes in every aspect of the mission work - the services to the poor have not lagged or stopped. The food has been there, the clinic is stocked with needed supplies, and Pilgrim House #19 is finished.

Pilgrim House #19

Yes, it is done. We are waiting on photos from Présumé, but with the Internet out at the HQ, he has to go someplace to send them. We will get you pictures as soon as we can. Now, on to Pilgrim House # 20!

 FHL is 40 years old this year!!!

Yes, I am going to remind you of that every month! And even though we have our anniversary truck, we still need your support. The economy has affected everybody's finances, and we need you to keep up your giving. We ask that you continue your giving, but also let others know about the work God has asked us to do in Haiti and support it. If you have the ability to give more, that would be awesome, but the best way for us to grow this ministry is to get others involved. We have a 40 year legacy of serving those in Haiti and I think it is something wonderful to celebrate and praise God for His support and guidance in serving the people of Haiti. Let us pray that He will continue this work He has called us to do.

And since we are barreling down on the end of the first decade of the new century, it is time for us to branch out to improve, and increase, our communications and the ways we interact with all of you. We are now on both FaceBook and Twitter. On FaceBook we have a group called For Haiti with Love, and on Twitter, we are ForHaiti. If you are on either of those Internet sites, stop in and say Hello. We will be working to provide timely and on-going updates through these channels. Hopefully it will help more people know about us and get more help for FHL. If you have suggestions about what you would like to see communicated in these channels, let us know.

Blessings!

Well, summer is over, and we will be looking forward to some cooler weather, maybe by November! Keep in your prayers that we do not have any hurricanes this year. We need a year off after last year. Our girls have settled into their school routine, and I pray that all the parents and children out there have done the same. Keep the kids in Haiti in your prayers, that they get the chance to go to school and give them a chance at a better life. We wish you showers of blessings and thanks to all of you for your support of FHL. Don said that if this was the Lord's work, it would continue without him, and if not it would die with him. Does anybody have any question at this time if this is the Lord's work? We keep all of you in our prayers and ask for you to do the same for us.

God Bless,

Rob