New Report from Haiti

From the Estes, TN church (where we sent our contributions):

Things are very hard in Haiti. Those that had jobs have lost them. Those that are working are not getting paid. Medical needs are growing as infections and sickness grow from overcrowded tent camps. Aftershocks have been hitting pretty regularly the last 24 hours. The kids are having a difficult time sleeping. We continue to pray and reassure.
But...we have been able to share over 100,000 lbs of food with 11 churches of Christ and many other local groups. We have received 48 tents and a handful of tarps that were also shared. We have been able to help hundreds in mini medical clinics that have been held by the groups from Estes. We are expecting two containers this week with food and supplies. We have 5000-6400 tents coming in Fri. or Sat. This is a joint effort with CRF, Harding University and Manna Global. To date since the earthquake we have had 21 baptisms. Last Sunday night we had 300+ folks attend service.

February 21 Notes

Prayer Requests Submitted Sunday Morning:

• "Please keep in mind all the people of Haiti as they need help and prayers"  ...Olivia Blunt
• "I would like prayers for Candy on her job interview that she may have the Lord's blessing" ... Jud Hobbs
• "Please pray for my friend Chelsie's 9 year-old cousin who got ran over by a truck last Friday" ... Jenn Hill
• "Please pray for those who are sick and/or traveling and are not with us."
• "Please remember Jean Gullick, who is hospitalized with an infection in her mouth."

Announcements:

• You still have time to donate to Pregnancy Choices and the Food Bank before we deliver what we've collected. We still need more baby wipes and canned goods to meet our goal.
• Please turn in your Secret Sister questionnaire today to Becca Burke or Trish Gaines. There are extra forms in the foyer. We will let you know next Sunday who your Secret Sister will be. (Wednesday night is the absolute final deadline. One more person is needed since we have an odd number of participants presently.)

Update about Haiti

This report was sent out recently by the Estes church in Tennessee concerning their efforts in Haiti. This is the work Skagit Valley supported with its recent contribution:

Today Team 4 is on its way to Port au Prince. Roberta reports that she has already distributed about 50,000 lbs of food, and has several more tons at her house waiting to be packaged for families. The security walls have been closed to a height of about six feet, and gates have been installed at the group house. The church is receiving compliments on its show of Christian generosity, and worship is standing room only. For the next few weeks we will focus on keeping some helpers on hand to facilitate food distribution.

Haitian Update - February 1

This report was sent out this morning by the Estes Church of Christ in Tennessee:

The Santo Church of Christ met yesterday on the grounds of the Sonlight Children’s Home. There were 6 baptisms and the members handed out 200 family packs of food after worship.

The wall rebuilding project at the group home and at the children’s home continues. Two walls are up at the group house and the walls at the children’s home are well on their way.

Here’s a note from Roberta describing some of their work: 

“Members of Son Light Children's Home, Santo Nutrition Center, Santo Church of Christ, and Aiport Church of Christ in Cap Haitien, work the assembly line making family relief bags to be handed out to refugees and needy persons in and around Port au Prince. The contents of the bags include: 5 lbs of rice, 2 lbs of beans, two cans of fish, 1 can of tomato paste, 1 bar of soap, a washcloth, salt, 16 oz bottle of oil, matches and two lbs of spaghetti.

We have had success distributing bags to tent cities around the Santo area. Over two hundred bags were distributed after worship on Sunday evening. Area congregations have received bags to share with members and neighbors in need. During a recent distribution from Son Light Children's Home, the crowd became rowdy and actually pushed our gate off of its hinges. It is repaired and our next distribution went without a hitch. The crowd was very sorry for the destructive behavior and showed that in the when we handed out over 200 bags from our home a few days later.”

Another truckload of food will be delivered to Roberta today. Relief team 2 is there in Haiti – they are keeping busy! The medical personnel with them set up a mini-clinic and treated 100 patients. Others are helping with the wall re-building, transport, and the food distribution.