Days 34 & 35 (10/18 – 10/19)

Tuesday – At 8:00 AM we loaded up the Kia tap-tap with all of our luggage and equipment and piled into the Nissan van. There are 10 of us headed to Thomas – 8 team members, our interpreter, Mark- Anny and our head cook Lou Lou. The main roads were very crowded so Danielle, the van driver, took us on one of his famous short cuts. The vans shock absorbers and our bodies took a beating, but the scenery was extraordinary. We finally reconnected with Highway 1and the traffic near the airport. The remainder of the 40 km trip took us by several tent city camps and through the towns of Cabaret and Archaie – sights that that the team was seeing for the first time.

An hour and a half later we arrived in Thomas to find that the contractor had repaired the flood damaged walkway to the school and church. We now had a very nice concrete walk from the road to the gate. After unloading all of our gear, we set up our cots and mosquito nets in the 2 class rooms they gave us as dorms and went out to meet the site boss. I discovered that the site boss was Gabriel, the same boss that was here in February. I also saw Stephen and Noel and Ginette and James and Lazarr and many others that I recognized but could not remember names. They greeted me like a long lost brother and I was glad to be back.

Our work project for this week was to put the second story on the Kitchen/ Dining room building that our teams built earlier this year. The second story would become 2 sleeping rooms, a bathroom and a storage room. So – we put on our work shoes and gloves and went to work. Our first task was to move the huge pile of sand and several hundred cement blocks from the road to the work site behind the school. The team soon discovered the joys of manual labor in the tropics. It wasn’t long before everyone was soaking wet. Shovels and wheelbarrows were flying until about 4:00 PM when we mutually agreed that it was time to quit. We were pleased to see that we had made a pretty good dent in the sand and block pile.

The first people in the shower line were surprised to find that the showers actually worked and that water was actually coming out of pipe on the wall.  But, since the water level in the gravity tanks was low, those of us in the end of the line had to revert to “bucket showers” - dipping a cup in the bucket and pouring it over our heads. Regardless of the method, we were all glad to be clean and were more than ready for the first of many wonderful “Lou Lou” meals.

After dinner Pastor Allen led is in a devotional. Then Director Lazarr joined us and officially welcomed us to Thomas. All of the Haitians were very curious about the fact that we had two African American men on our team and when Lazarr discovered that Joel also spoke fluent French, he found a brother for life. We chatted with Lazarr for quite a while, but by 9:00 everyone was on their cots and fast asleep.

Wednesday – The days start early in Haiti and the sounds of Thomas waking up start about 4:30 AM. Everyone woke at different intervals, but everyone was up and ready for some of Lou Lou’s coffee by 6:00. Breakfast was at 7:00 and the school children started arriving soon after that. They had their flag raising ceremony and sang the national anthem at 8:00. Then they started school and we started work.

Our morning was a continuation of material moving from road to work site interrupted by intervals of “conga line” moving of blocks and mortar from the ground to the 2^nd story and a 10:30 recess of the school. The children are beautiful and very excited to have us in their midst. So – we had to take a break and spend some time with them. I think that was the best part of everyone’s day. After recess it was back to work until lunch and naps for some. I was totally amazed that people could fall dead asleep in the midst of 150 noisy school kids.

The afternoon work routine was pretty much the same as the morning. The team is really working well together and sharing the work load. They are giving each other constant reminders to hydrate and rest in the shade. I’m very pleased to see that some of the construction techniques are improving – the mortar is much better quality and the rebar work has improved. But, there is still much improvement to be made. However, there is only so much I can suggest without becoming the “Ugly American”. The change has to come from within. That’s why I’m working with the Engineers in Port Au Prince.

Lou Lou’s dinner was wonderful, as usual and Lazarr, James, Noel, Gabriel, Lou Lou and Ginette joined us in a lengthy discussion of how things were progressing in Thomas and what other things needed to be done and what the UMVIM/UMCOR role might be. With Mark-Anny, James and Joel interpreting it went very smoothly and a lot of insight was gained on both sides. It was fun to watch Lazarr with Joel – he was constantly putting his hand on his shoulder and rubbing his head. A real bond has developed here. 9:00 PM – generator off –lights out.

After dinner we all shared our experiences of the day and talked about how it was affecting us. The team is beginning to understand what I meant when I told them this experience could be life changing. Lazarr, Madam Lazarr, Lou Lou, Stephen, Noel and Ginette joined us for a while and – with Lou Lou around, song broke out. Lou Lou taught us several verses of “We are Marching in the Light of God” in Creole and we decided we had to sing it at church on Sunday. Another end to a perfect day.