MY MISSION TO HAITI

I head for Haiti tomorrow morning. I have a 9 AM flight out of JFK. It lands in Port-au-Prince at 12:30. I can write it and I can say it easily, without any gut-feeling telling me I am doing anything other than exactly what I’m supposed to do. Hours after the earthquake I felt compelled to go. But every time I attempted to make plans, I got anxious or The Universe would put a big road block in front of me. Over the past few days, my nervousness has disappeared and the road blocks have been replaced by confidence in knowing it is where I'm suppose to be. That’s all I needed to get my ticket and pack my backpack (a backpack…I know..ca-ra-zy!). THAT and this email:

Things have been very sad here. The rain storm this week washed away our school tent, medical tent and supplies. We were up to 350 kid enrollment, and planning to expand...the school tent is at the Petionville club, where there is an IDP camp of over 45,000 refugees :(

Good news is that yesterday I was able to replace the school (and medical clinic) tents and even scrounge $4,500 worth of flooring wood! I was told flat out that it was impossible to get these things, but I prayed and went back an hour later to the same people and we ended up with twice what we asked for. We salvaged the desks and chairs and some supplies...but basically everything else was destroyed or looted. The rain here caused an absolute desperate chaos, and the desperation has shifted to a pure empty feeling...nowhere to turn, nowhere to hide, no one coming to help...the people are finally accepting the reality that they will be in these tarp and stick shacks (if they are lucky to have a tarp) for the rest of the rainy season and hurricane season....possibly next year and beyond as well. All of our fighting and endless days and sleepless nights trying to help these people has been reduced to us just standing under leaky tarps and sheets all night long just to help hold up babies and sick people over the mud. Arms shaking and weak we stand and sing while we pass babies around so that they don't touch the ground. That's it, that's all we can do now.

This is a dangerous time, the people seem to go a bit mad when the rain drags on for hours...one woman tried to poison her baby (who was delivered at our clinic) with soap and bleach to save her the agony of this life, luckily we got to her in time and the baby is stable...it is only a matter of time before some turn on us. I will be here and fight alongside them even then.

We need school supplies, everything from A to Z. I don’t even know now how to get it here; I guess you'd have to raise money to ship. I can't, not from here. We have nothing left, and I just spent my last $4 on gas for my motorcycle. We need medicines too. I can get you a list.

This needs to be seen as a war now. Maybe the enemy is not human and maybe we are going into battle.., but the weather and earth has strategically attacked P-au-P exactly how the military would if they were trying to take down a country. Destroy the infrastructure/economy, disarm the police and military, freeze finances of the government, turn the people against the leader, cut off food water and medicine, destroy the ports, and displace the people....test faith. We are at war, and we will lose. The worst has yet to come. The last food drop has been made, no more distribution, no more tarps, nothing really coming in anymore. Within 2 weeks the people will be back to square one like after the quake, starving and rioting in the streets, but this time no airport filled with rescue team’s food water and hope....Haiti has been abandoned.

It is becoming longer and longer between electricity and internet availability. Please let me know soon if you are still able to help round up school supplies and medicines, and the means to ship.
Thank You
SB

I was trying to figure out how to edit the letter - to make it shorter and less graphic - but why? It is what it is. I’ve sent tons of medications and medical supplies. Miraculously (and with lots of Holy intervention), everything I sent got into the right hands. 'Thank You' to everybody who made that possible . Now, I am going there to help out. I’m not sure what that means, but you will be the first to know. I’ll keep you all posted. If you want to know why I am going, it’s simple: because I can. Haiti is hurting and it needs all the help it can get. Pray for everybody and pray for the rain to hold off!
I love you all very much.