On Monday, October 7, Sr. Giovanni arrived in Haiti. She will spend two weeks with us, preparing for the mobile clinic. On Tuesday and Wednesday, we stayed in Port au Prince, purchasing needed items for the clinic and visiting the places where we would be purchasing medications. We are grateful to our friend, Yvon, for his hospitality and help.
We began our celebration for the feast of St. Francis on Thursday, October 3, with the solemn service of Transitus at 7 p.m. We invited some of our young girls with whom we have been working to join us. A few minutes before we began the service, a group of our boys came to the door and they joined us also. It was as though St. Francis himself invited them to be with us. Sr. Inga shared with them very simply in Creole the story of St. Francis and why we celebrate this night. The Gospel that was read, in English and I Creole, was taken from John 13: 1-17, the story of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. This Gospel became alive for us, “I have given you an example that as I have done, you also may do.” We believe we, too, are being asked to wash the feet of those around us here in our little mission in Jacmel.
Today, October 4, we began the day with a solemn Celebration of the Eucharist in our chapel. Happy Feast of St. Francis! Pax et Bonum!
Since the beginning of our stay in our home in Jacmel, Lebrun, with his wife, Lelun, and their children, Cassandra and Maria, have become a part of our lives. They have worked here for seven years, living in very simple conditions. We helped each other a lot. Since the pre-school has been relocated, our friends have been asked to leave. At first they had no place to go, but nothing is impossible for God. Right now they have a piece of land on which to build, but it will be a great challenge for them to build a simple house out of plywood.
This past Sunday, the neighborhood gathered to help Lebrun take down their simple house of plywood to be reused for their new home. We are trying to help them as much as we can.
Please join us in praying for Lebrun and Lelun and their family.
St. Jude Primary School, which used to be on the same property where we live, has moved to a new location. We will no longer have 3-5 year olds running around at 7 a.m. 😊 The pictures you see are teachers preparing their new classrooms.
Sister Angela had the opportunity to visit with her friends, the Sisters of St. Joseph of CLUNY in Port au Prince. She worked with the Sisters in their clinics in 2011 and 2012 for a month each year.
On October 1, the new school year begins in Haiti. Through your generosity, the school supplies that were sent in our container in January have been distributed to our kids. Sisters Angela and Janet were a great help in preparing the items for each child.
Our kids wear their sandals until they are unrecognizable. Flip flops are a welcomed gift to our Haitian brothers and sisters.
We thank Sacred Heart School, Troy, NY, for their generous donation of flip flops!
Sisters Angela and Janet are feeling more and more comfortable as they share daily life here in Jacmel. The ministry of presence is powerful as the sisters accompany our kids in the simplest way. Sr. Angela has been tutoring and having conversations with our students in French. Sr. Janet enjoys helping and watching our kids do puzzles and color.
Our teens gather for some conversation in English before they work on the computers. Thank you all for your prayers and support! All the good you have done is living on in our students who have such a desire to learn!
This morning some of our teens stopped by for an hour of English conversation. They are so eager to learn.
In the afternoon, it was time for some fun. A friend of ours donated a volleyball net and some volleyballs for our kids. Our boys helped us find a good place for the net, and the games began. At first one of the boys hit the ball so hard it landed on our neighbor’s roof, but this did not stop us. We got another ball, and the whole neighborhood was sharing in the fun. Right after we finished our game, the dark clouds rolled in; and we had a bad rain. We were flooded, as was as everyone else.
As night falls, we do not have any electricity. Maybe lightening struck something. Here we are, in the dark again. Christ be our Light!
