United Methodist Volunteers in Mission
Indian Run UMC, Dublin, Ohio
Lévêque, Haiti
Nov-Dec 2012

Front row: Jim, Michelle, Dinah, Peggy, Cheryl, Rose-Brunn, Ronald, Wilson, Jonas.
Back row: Carine, John, Chad, Larry, Todd, Greg, Howard.

Click on a date below to see the photos from that day. From there, photos may be advanced by playing the slideshow, or single clicking to the left or right of the displayed photo. Hover your mouse over the thumbnail "film strip" on either end to scroll the thumbnails.

• 11/30/2012 - The team gathers at 5:30am at the Indian Run UMC parking lot for a send-off from family and church friends. The flights to Port-au-Prince go as scheduled, and the team is picked up by one of the Haiti VIM drivers to be taken to the Methodist Guest House in Petionville for the evening.
• 12/1/2012 - We are taken by Methodist Guest House staff from Petionville to our project site, Lévêque. The team settles into their "new home" by noon on Saturday, have a light snack and join the Haitian workers at the church they are building. We participate in bucket lines for sand, rock and concrete beam pours. The shower area has room for only one person at a time, so we stopped working a little after three to start showers. We are extremely grateful to have our interpreter and head cook from last year, Carine and Dinah with us as we adjust to the new surroundings.
• 12/2/2012 - We attend an inspiring worship service this morning with some beautiful Haitian singing. At the end of the service, our group close with singing the Irish Blessing. In the afternoon, we visit Wahoo Bay for lunch and a swim. Now very refreshed and rested, the group starts back to work in the morning at 8am on the church...all ready to take on those 95 degree temperatures!
• 12/3/2012 - We work a long, hot day with the Haitians helping with the church walls. Many form boards are put in place by the Haitian workers, so our team fills the gas concrete mixer with cement, water, sand and rocks multiple times and formed bucket lines to pour concrete into formed sections. Showers are most welcome following that work! School is in session today. We enjoy the opening ceremonies and having the children around at recess, lunch and after school.
• 12/4/2012 - On the church site, we mainly move a great deal of sand and rock to be used in pouring a concrete ceiling for the sacristy and an office behind the sanctuary. In school, a portion of the team have crafts with children in all six classrooms. Each class sings for us as well. Everyone enjoys cookies, and many photos were taken with our new friends. Carine leaves us this afternoon to go home for the evening, so that she can make a most important appointment tomorrow morning to be interviewed for a college scholarship.
• 12/5/2012 - Carine tells us that her interview for the college scholarship this morning went very well. On the church site today is another hot but productive day. The team moves rocks, sand and clay and remove rubble from the side property adjacent to the new church. We take an hour-and-a-half tour of Lévêque in the afternoon, including a visit to a 300-family deaf community relocated from Port-au-Prince following the earthquake.
• 12/6/2012 - What a glorious day to serve! We continue to be amazed by the beauty of Haiti -- the contrast between the deep blue sky and the lush green tropical trees; at night, the sky surely has more stars in Haiti! Once again, we are blessed to share crafts, cookies and song with each class in the school. On the church site we finished moving all sand and rocks to the sanctuary floor in the morning and worked the concrete bucket lines in the afternoon to bring the church walls to their intended 3.5 meter height. In the evening many of the Haitian worksers bring their families to fellowship with us and others in the community.
• 12/7/2012 - We leave Lévêque this morning and travel back to Petionville to the Methodist Guest House. On the way to Petionville, we visit the mass grave where over 100,000 dead from the Port-au-Prince, Petionville and Carrefour areas were buried after the earthquake. The inscription at the gravesite reads: "We will never forget."
• 12/8/2012 - We are transported to the airport for our return flights to Columbus, Ohio. Bondye bon! Tout tan! Tout tan! Bondye bon!

Read what our team members had to say about this mission:

Team Leader Howard Baulch: It was wonderful how we were welcomed so immediately into the community. From the youngest child to the oldest adult, we were given the utmost hospitality. I wish we could capture this loving spirit for our own community in the States. It was obvious that much work had already transpired to rebuild the school in Lévêque, and it was gratifying to part of the rebuilding of their church. All praise to God!!!

Peggy Bohn: Working together building the church made us friends and almost family by the end of the week. I feel so peaceful; God is in control. It is a peace beyond understanding or explanation to have just given and received the love we just shared with our new Haitian brothers and sisters in Christ.

Larry Hutchison: I enjoyed serving in a new community. The smaller Haitian workforce at the site meant getting closer to them. We had a great interaction with the workers and the community.

Greg Liening: Even with a language barrier, I appreciate being able to communicate with a smile with our fellow Haitian workers. I have many feelings to absorb over the coming weeks and am thankful for the many pictures that will facilitate that process. I look forward to sharing my experiences once I get back.

Michelle Liening: I love coming to Haiti and get very sad when it is time to go home. I feel very happy for all the good we could do while we were here, but feel sad to leave the relationships. I also feel like I have too much "stuff." It is amazing how little the Haitians have but are so happy and love God.

Jim Weaver: The poverty appeared even worse than I had imagined. The people appeared to have a greater love for us than an envy. When the people you interact with light up, it lights your light!

Tod Powers: The Haitian people have not lost hope. I was touched by the tremendous hard work put out by the community, including children, whether they were paid or were volunteers.

John Strand: The children have an immediate liking to us and have the biggest smiles in spite of the lives they live. Haitians seem like such resilient people. Every year when I return from the site, I feel like I should be doing more to help these people.

Chad Weinman: The people of Haiti have so much happiness. I appreciate helping those in need and by so doing so getting 150% back as far as love is concerned.

Cheryl Worley: I feel very blessed by these people. Their faith in God, their love of Jesus and the joy they show to us and each other are so inspiring to me. I pray that I would be able to be more spiritually rich as they are.

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