Hello everyone. I figured it was time for a wee update.

Less shooting, better nights

Here we are all doing well, thank God. It’s really a case of taking it day by day, night by night. We now describe our days and nights in relation to shooting – a good day is when we have no shooting, we can move freely on the grounds, and our family can be outside. A good night is when we don’t hear any shooting and we all sleep. The last few weeks have been great, as we have not had any night shooting and very little during the days, so we are all happy out.

New arrivals

Our big news is that on March 12th we welcomed two new children into our home. Both were abandoned in St. Damien’s hospital and were badly needing a home! They have settled in well and are already blossoming. Both bring a lot of joy to the family! In general, our children and young adults are all adapting well to life in the heat and while we adults moan about the heat, the flies and the mosquitoes, they never complain. They are amazing.

Physio and stroke patients

Our other programs are also going well. We have a steady flow of children coming for physio every day and an equally steady flow of adults- mainly stroke patients – coming. So many people under 50 having strokes. Tis scary. The other night, I had pins and needles in my hand, and I thought, Oh God, I hope I am not going to have a stroke.

A challenge doubled through disability

These patients and their families give us a real insight into life in Haiti and all the struggles. Many of the stories are heart breaking, others are outright terrifying. Just watching a stroke patient, or a mother with a severely disabled child, get on a motor bike terrifies me, not to mention the fact that many are living in areas surrounded by gangs. Bear in mind that there is no social welfare in Haiti, and access to health care is very difficult. If you have no money, you are left to suffer. You can imagine how hard it is when someone gets sick or has an accident. When you have a child with disabilities, everything becomes more challenging.

Joy through our school

Our school is going well – as long as our school buses are on the road, the parents are happy to send their children. Without the buses, it would be too difficult for them- remember hardly anyone has a car here and public transport is painful – to put it mildly. It is so wonderful to see the students coming in every morning and the joy they bring with them makes everyone feel good. Their parents are very proud of their achievements and always so appreciative of our efforts.

Support for the most vulnerable

Apart from our regular work we continue to give support to very vulnerable cases. Remember the mother that gave her children sleeping tablets? We paid for basic living accommodation for them plus we give the mom some money for food every month. The little one with disabilities is very fragile so we have been paying medical bills for him also. One day the mam asked me when I was next going to Ireland. She wanted to give me her baby- the one that does not have disabilities! In her mind, the baby would have a better future out of Haiti!

A woman came two weeks ago – she had a pin/rod in her leg- after a break and now had no money for the operation to take it out. The same woman has a son who had a stroke and lost the use of his arm. He used to come for physiotherapy. Somehow, she is managing to send him to college. Can’t be easy. Anyway, we sent her off with a check (1000 Euro) and tears of gratitude in her eyes.

Food distribution for 175 families

We organized a food distribution for over 175 families – all families that used to live up in the mountains close to where we were. Rice beans and cooking oil. Nothing fancy, BUT a massive contribution to people that have lost everything. Sadly, lots of people are hungry every day. People that have been displaced due to gangs are really struggling. We also gave a small food kit to our employees for Easter. Many of them are also displaced and have lost their livelihoods. Many are sleeping on the floor in small rooms and trying to keep going.

Never under-estimate the value of every euro ye send our way. €3 will buy a decent meal – rice bean soup and vegetables. With €6 we can buy rice and beans that will feed 8-10 people.

There is no sign of an end to all the violence. We have a new, transitional government and they promise elections this year. They also promise to end the reign of the gangs. Promises and promises. We wait and see.

Keep us in your prayers…

Probably this is long enough. Thanks to all of you for all your prayers, and please do continue to pray for us. Those of us that were kid experience, working away as always and doing well. We frequently talk about our experience and we continue to pray for those that we met during that whole long month of August. It seems a lifetime away now- sadly, the gangs are still up in the hills, still burning homes and killing innocent peasants. Will spare ye the details. Daily we hear of new areas that have been attacked by the gangs. We don’t find the words to express the horrors.

… and keep smiling

We have to keep doing good whenever and wherever we can. We must keep smiling and keep spreading kindness. The good fight is always a worthy fight, and kindness and goodness are always key elements in the good fight.

All the best to you all.

Gena