“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.” Revelation 1:7

On behalf of our brothers and sisters from Bethanie Mission of Haiti, I want to thank all of you for your love and support. I truly thank God for those who remain faithful in helping us win souls to Christ in Haiti.

The Bible says, “Know this, that in the last days, perilous times will come.” (2 Tim 3:1) I believe that we are living in the last days and that the perilous times have already begun. Many of our brothers and sisters have lost their jobs and some of them have even lost their homes. Despite this, we continue to do the work the Lord has called us to do.

Bethanie Mission is still active in evangelism and church planting. Last January, we had a great convention in the district of Port-a- Piment. Twenty-five new Christians got baptized by water. In March, we had a conference in that same district and 51 people gave their lives to our Savior Jesus Christ.

We had another conference in the district of Flamand and 20 people gave their lives to Jesus Christ. Last January as well, we had our first Church Member Seminar in the Flamand district. On April 13, we held the second seminar in the district of Port-a-Piment.

We should also note that Bethanie Mission, with your support, currently has more than 65 churches that are divided into seven districts. The Lord impressed upon us to seek Him diligently in prayer. On Monday and Tuesday, the 9th and 10th of April, all the pastors of Bethanie Mission got together at our headquarters in Bergeaud for two days of prayer and sanctification.

I want to thank those of you who supported the church building project in Port-au-Prince. Our work there is making progress and we hope to have it completed very soon. The medical clinic project in Maniche is going very well also.

At Bethanie Mission, we still have a tremendous work to do. There are many places we would like to preach and plant churches. To do this, we need more pastors and additional financial support.

Brothers and sisters, the Great Commission is still relevant because Christ has not yet returned. Jesus said, “This Gospel of the Kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a witness to all nations. Then the end shall come.” (Matthew 24:14) Haiti needs your prayers and Bethanie Mission needs your partnership to continue the work God has called us to do.

I ask for your prayer concerning these needs:

1. Pray for support for our teachers and our pastors and their families.
2. Pray for $40,000 to purchase land for the church of Les Anglais.
3. Pray for additional support for the orphanage.

Thank you so much for the investments that you are making into the Kingdom of God. Your reward is in heaven.

Pastor Ignace

“And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the Word by the signs that followed.”

Mark 16:20

We are very grateful to God, to all our friends, supporters, partners, and to all our board members. We also want to mention that we are appreciative for Mike & Jean Fisher’s long time commitment to Bethanie Evangelical Mission of Haiti. Spiritually speaking, it's been a year of great harvest and great blessings. We have seen 1,205 souls added to the Kingdom of God, 489 new Christians receive water baptism, 32 students graduate from Bible/Vocational School and 200 children graduate from kindergarten. To God belongs the glory!

Financially speaking, this year has been a difficult one. We’re sorry to hear that some of our donors are struggling financially and have had to cut back or eliminate their support. We pray that God will help them through their difficulties. However, because of that, we are unable to give as much aid to our pastors and teachers as we would like to. We realize the bad economy has hurt everyone but we are so thankful that we have partners who are still able to keep their commitment to Bethanie Mission. For that we are very grateful to God and thank all of you for your faithfulness.

In term of projects, last February we broke ground for the church of Port-au-Prince. We had a team come to help. Mike, Vasco, Dave, Gary, Mick, Wayne, Steve and Amy and their son worked alongside the construction workers. Albert Allen and Dr. Phillip Lucas also gave us a lending hand. We had to stop construction on the church for quite a long time because of the heavy rain last October. But we recently completed the third phase of the building which is the roof.

The construction of Maniche Medical Clinic began last August. Again, due to bad weather conditions, we had to stop construction for over a month. However, we thank God that the first phase of this project is now completed.

The coming of the Lord is getting closer and closer and we still have lots to do for Him. We have many places we would like to plant more churches. There are two important factors that need to occur for us to achieve this. First, we need to have an increase of support to train pastors for the ministry and second, we need to have more funds to support those pastors. Please pray that God will continue to answer our prayers so that there will be enough financial support. We would like to see the lives of our pastors and teachers improved. We ask God to bring them out of poverty.

Once again, thank you very much for all you do and may God continue to bless you all.

 Here are our prayer requests:

1. Pray for a spiritual awakening for our nation.
2. Pray for more financial support for Bethanie Mission.
3. Pray for $8,000 to buy land for the church of Les Anglais.  

Together in the Lord’s Harvest,

Ignace & Franchette Augustin

May grace and peace be multiplied to each of you today and every day. As you know on January 12, 2010, the Island nation of Haiti was hit by a severe earthquake, damaging and destroying thousands of homes and buildings. Of the more than two million affected survivors, 1.3 million are still displaced and living in settlement sites.

Soon after the earthquake, I was contacted by numerous people who were aware of my missions work to Haiti over the past 23 years, asking what they could do to help. Since that time, I have focused nearly 100 percent of my time to bringing much needed aid to the people of Haiti. I honestly believe this is my assignment and I am humbled that God has chosen to use me in this capacity.

On Feb 28^th, I departed from Norfolk, VA to Port-Au-Prince, Haiti, along with Dr. Phillip Lucas, Pastor of Greater Bethlehem Christian Assembly (Hampton, VA), and Bro. Wayne Steiner of Warwick River Mennonite Church, (Newport News, VA), for 10 days with lots of donated items: clothing, care packages, school supplies, and work gloves from ABC Supply, a computer and printer for the Baptist Mission Hospital, where Sis La Shawn Clark was treated, on our last mission trip to Haiti (See enclosure by Dr Phillip Lucas), after being found in a coma around 2:00 AM two days before our return trip back to the states in October, 2010. We spent four entire days waiting for her to recover enough to fly home. God in His great mercy gave La Shawn renewal of life and the team an experience we will never forget as long as we live. Praise God for His love.

This was the second mission trip in five months that Dr. Phil, Bro Wayne and I have taken together. We participated with a team of 14 people made up of churches in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida led by Michael Fisher, President of Bethanie Mission of Haiti, Inc, to begin the first phase of the 1^st Church Port-Au-Prince building project. We met up with Albert Allen of International Cooperating Ministries, (Hampton, VA) in Miami, FL, who went to Haiti for 4 days to see the temporary construction sites for families needing shelters, and dedicated a school building for children 1^st thru 6^th grades. ICM has been faithfully financing and supporting the ministry through Pastor Ignace Augustin for Bethanie Evangelical Mission of Haiti, Inc. Albert also introduced about 16 pastors to the Mini Bible College curriculum. I am especially thankful to God for the evidence of the missionary work of translating English to Creole, so pastors can teach the gospel to “whosoever will come” to Jesus. A few days later, Pastor Ignace, Dr Phil, Bro Wayne and I went back to the school area and repaired the roof of Pastor Clarence’s home and church which had been leaking since the earthquake. Dr. Philip taught pastors for 5 days at the Bible College in Les Cayes, Haiti and also preached two services on Sunday.

The rest of the team began building the new facility, 1st church of Port-.Au-Prince (a congregation of over 250 members, led by Pastor Livard Altema), to replace the former facility, which was greatly damaged during the earthquake. The new building will be built a few blocks away from the downtown area, located in the heart of the city. Plans for the existing building consist of repairing and using it as a guest house for missionaries and other guests.

The first project challenge came at the beginning, in which the engineer of construction stated, the footing needed to be 8 ft. deep. Of my 45 years in construction, I have never participated in digging that deep for a footing and foundation. The new earthquake codes require it because of the soil. Praise God for new codes, because if we had built it before 1/12/2011, there probably would be nothing but a pile of rubbish now.

Building a church in Haiti is a unique experience in and of itself. We personally make many of the materials needed for the building on the job site, because they are not readily available, as in America. For example, we first built a gate to close the construction site. We rented a backhoe and operator, squared walls of footing, cleaned out excess soil, carried rocks to be placed in footing, built forms for concrete, placed re-bar, and manually made the concrete by mixing gravel, sand, cement and water. We then formed a bucket brigade line (a line of people passing 5 gallon buckets of concrete) to the footing, placed large rocks, and poured concrete to build foundation (see pictures). We also made all building blocks for walls by mixing cement, lime, and water, which is poured into a mold and allowed to cure. We returned home on March 10, 2011 after completing approximately 75% of the footing and foundation. Many of the members of the congregation and the pastor worked along with the team. It was a delightful time giving our labor of love. It was a special joy to witness one of the church leaders, a woman who is a community organizer, lead the congregational members in removing debris and garbage from streets and ditches. It was truly a congregational team effort and we were honored to be a part of the team.

I am especially excited about this project because it has a two-fold meaning for me. We are building a facility that will be dedicated as a memorial in honor of my beloved wife, Tina, who went home to be with the Lord on August 8, 2009. Tina had a special love for the people of Haiti. From the beginning, she supported me in whatever the Lord directed me to do, whether building churches, furniture, or digging wells to provide clean water. Tina and I participated in numerous mission trips together including Africa (Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Ghana), Jamaica, and Haiti. She was known for her love of God, His people, and her passion for teaching His Word. She was a leader and role model who touched and brought positive change to the lives of so many people. Therefore, your generous gifts of support for this project will not only bring great relief to the people of Haiti, but also will serve as a memorial to the life of a woman who was truly a servant of God. The building dedication will be held in late summer or early fall 2011.

We may not all be able to go to Haiti to work on site, however, those who are unable to go, have just as great an opportunity to support those of us who are willing and able to go, through your generous financial support. The total cost for this project is roughly $66,000. I am asking that you consider making a tax deductible contribution to this worthy cause. Thank you in advance for partnering with us in this endeavor. All checks should be made payable to: ICM (International Cooperating Ministries), with whom I have worked for the past 10 years building churches in China and Haiti. Also, please document on the bottom left corner of your check, C/O 1^st Church Port-au-Prince. Thank you in advance for your generous gift, it is much needed and greatly appreciated. I will update you regarding the progress of the Port-au-Prince church in the near future.

Serving with joy and gladness,

Vasco D. Boyd
BEMH Missions Coordinator

Before we left for Haiti, I told my wife that I wanted to find those who have overcome the disaster; those who are strong; the survivors.

The city of Port-au-Prince was very much alive. People were everywhere. Little stands setup along every street.

Buying and selling. It was like the worlds largest flea market! Everything they did was done the old-fashioned way – by hand. They put in a lot of hours and work very hard for very little. They have many obstacles but continue to live their lives.

I met the survivors - especially the ones who put their trust in the Lord. He is their provision. He is their source. He is their hope. These people were not shaken. They have overcome the earthquake and the rainy season. They will overcome the cholera outbreak and an unstable government.

Wealth should not be measured by a dollar amount or a comfort level. It should be measured by the resolve of the people; a determination to not let any trial or tribulation break their spirit; the strength to move past a time of hopelessness and chaos into a period of peace and faithfulness. Haiti may continue to be the poorest country in the western hemisphere but there is a move for Christ that is again shaking this small island!

What really touched my heart, were the children at the job site. I am so thankful for the opportunity to spend a few days with them. They helped out at the site, kept us entertained, and could only give us their smiles. I hope they grow up in the church they helped to build and will remember their time with us.

I pray that the Lord will continue to move mightily through Pastor Ignace, Bethanie Missions, ICM, and other groups who are giving time and monies to support the Haitian people. There is hope for Haiti!

I left my two traveling companions, Vasco Boyd and Wayne Steiner in Port-Au-Prince as I waited for a driver to take me on the next leg of the journey to Les Cayes. My driver finally arrived at the guest house saying, “I am your driver, Claudius” with a strong Creole accent that made me listen attentively. He wore no uniform, only jeans and a short plaid shirt as he began to load my luggage into his black four wheel vehicle. He spoke enough English to be friendly and understood, but not enough to be conversant. For hours we traversed the winding road toward our destination when Claudius interrupted, “Have you been here before?” I quickly responded, “I was here four months ago, prior to the cholera outbreak”.

Four months ago didn’t seem that long. It was during that trip when one of our team members almost died. My two travel companions in Port-Au-Prince and I were a part of a 10 member team. My roommate during the last visit was Vasco, a bubbly black man with a Hispanic appearance who mourned his wife’s recent passing, and Wayne, a self-employed carpenter who remained behind with us to care for our sick team member, LaSaun, who experienced an unexplained illness two days before our scheduled departure. We watched as seven team members headed to the airport to go home, while the three of us and Mike Fisher, Bethanie Mission Board Chairman, reassured them of our intent to join them within two days in the States.

On the second night of our stay over, Vasco checked on LaSaun after midnight, only to find her comatose. After repeated failed attempts to revive her, Vasco immediately woke everyone in the guest house. Hastily dressing, we ran to LaSaun’s room. Within a few minutes of prayer and observation, we quickly realized that our efforts to revive her were insufficient. Instinctively, I ran to our room to get a blanket and quickly returned commanding, “Roll her in the blanket and let’s carry her to the hospital.”

Four of us each gathered a corner of the blanket to carry our friend down two flights of steps into the waiting van, praying all of the way. We sped down the unpaved rocky road as fast as we could, praying, and occasionally stopping just enough to catch ourselves from being tossed like rag dolls throughout the van. Afterwards, I thought about the four friends mentioned in the second chapter of Mark, who committed to get their palsied friend to Jesus, even if it meant coming through the roof.

As we sped seemingly across every pothole in the city to get to our destintion, we entered the dimly lit hospital in Luminere, past people who were asleep outside on the pavement, covered only with white sheets. First thinking them to be dead as we approached with intent stares in the dark of night, we soon realized they were asleep. My heart sank as I realized that our hope had to be in God, because from the appearance of the hospital our situation may have gone from bad to worst. We deposited LaSaun on a gurney made of PCV pipe beside the nursing station, as Pastor Augustin and his wife, Franchette, spoke for us in Creole. We stood watching and praying, “God, we need a miracle.”

A young Haitian physician, who I later came to know as Dr. Morise, was on duty clad in a white polo shirt and jeans. With each passing minute, LaSaun’s condition worsened as her sugar count exceeded the limits on the outdated monitor. She arrived with no pulse and her veins had but all collapsed. We were desperate. Excusing myself for a moment, I went outside and prayed repeatedly, “God, you did not bring her here to go home in a box”.

Dr. Morise and two nurses worked feverishly to finally locate an operative vein in the neck. We watched as Dr. Morise literally squeezed the first IV bag with his hands to rush the fluid into LaSaun’s motionless body. Three additional bags of fluid were injected into LaSaun’s motionless body before getting a response. By this time the entire open 48 bed hospital was abuzz with news about our dilemma, as they observed the medical team’s attempt to revive LaSuan as she lay in a coma at the nurse station in open view for everyone to see.

The night passed slowly as we held LaSaun’s neck in a stable position to maintain a continuous IV flow. Several hours after daybreak, Dr. Morise spoke in Creole, “I think she will make it. She’s not out of danger yet, but it’s beginning to look hopeful.” Almost immediately we established bedside shifts to insure that LaSaun, though still unconscious on the gurney beside the nurse station, would receive the best possible treatment that the hospital could provide.

The next day LaSaun was moved to the first bed in the hospital, nearest to the nurse station. As I sat beside her bed noticing ants crawling on the wall and shortly thereafter saw a cat enter the front door uninterrupted, I prayed, “Lord please let LaSaun walk out of here on her own strength.

LaSaun’s condition remained unstable, causing Vasco and I to seek help from the United Nations to transport her out of the country. We left the hospital headed to the UN headquarters. After presenting ourselves as United States citizens, showing passports and Virginia licenses, we gained access to the UN Medical Emergency Response Unit to no avail. We were escorted from one office to another, and lastly informed, “come back tomorrow” by an official from Ecuador. We were dismayed as we returned to the hospital. Upon our arrival, Dr. Morise greeted us in English that LaSaun’s condition had progressively improved, as he said, “She will be fine” with a smile. I instinctively hugged and squeezed him as I thanked him repeatedly.

The word of a miracle began to circulate throughout the city. Visitors left carrying eye witness reports from hospital patients about what they saw God do. The news had traveled so much that days later, as we visited a travel agent to get airline tickets from Les Cayes to Port-Au-Prince, that he stated, “I heard that God performed a miracle at the hospital. Everyone is talking about it”, he said.

Prior to exiting the hospital Vasco asked Dr. Morise, “what does the hospital need?” On the evening of LaSaun’s release, Dr. Morise presented me with a hospital needs list and I assured him that we would attempt to meet the needs of the hospital. The list included the following: 1) computer, 2) printer, 3) copier, 4) ultrasound machine, and 5) much, much prayer.

By the end of the week we emerged from the hospital as all the patients watched in awe. LaSaun, clad in a pink robe, steadied herself upon my arm as we walked to the parked car. With each step I thanked God for answering my prayer and for showing His mighty power in the least of all places, a run-down, hole in the wall, hospital. But isn’t that how the savior came into the world, born in the least of all places, because there was no room in the inn?

On this four month return trip to Haiti, God arranged that the three of us would return to the guest house together. Mike Fisher met us in Port-Au-Prince with another group, and together with Vasco and Wayne, they came to support the new church project in Port-Au-Prince, while I came to teach at the seminary in Les Cayes.

A week later Vasco and Wayne met me in Les Cayes. Excited to see each other again, we sat at the dining table for dinner with Pastor Augustin and Franchette, remembering our last time together, and our friend, LaSaun. We came for different reasons, but most of all, we came to make a deposit on our promise to the hospital, bringing a computer. As we sat at the dining table excitedly making plans to carry the computer to the hospital as our first gift installment, we reflected on the lesson that God taught us, namely that He is an ever present help, especially when all hope is lost.

Our next planned trip to Haiti is June 2011. Our desire is to make a greater installment to the hospital and to the ministry of Bethanie Mission of Haiti. We need your help to make it happen. Tax-exempt donations to the ministry may be forwarded via the ministry website at www.bethaniemission.org. To this end, we remain grateful.

Looking at the pictures we had taken while in Haiti, I felt I wanted to write what was on my heart. In Port au Prince, it was a horrible mess. I couldn’t believe how much trash there was. Every waterway I saw was filled with junk and trash.

I thought, “How could these people get clean water?” If they drink the dirty water, they could get cholera. It’s frightening to think that people have died from this. And then for me to be in Haiti and see them drinking it firsthand. Lord, I pray they don’t get sick.

Then to think the food could get flies or insects on it also. I saw some of the food lying on the ground and thought about the germs getting on that also. To me it is a disaster. I wish there would be no problems in Haiti. But there is.

I know that God can make it all better. I felt the Lord made me strive to work hard down there. And I hope that when I was with all the kids there, that they felt Jesus through me. And when the church is done, they will come and believe in Him. Hallelujah!

Now that I’m home, and back to our American ways of hustle, busyness and craziness, I sit and reflect on my experience in Haiti. I ask for God’s thoughts to pour into my heart.

I have been to Haiti before. Yet this trip had a totally different effect on my heart. Because this was my family’s first trip to Haiti, I so wanted to share with them what was on my heart ever since my first visit to this country.

We have so much here in the United States. Sometimes everything can be right at our beck and call – food, car, clothes, house, and family. I know I have taken a lot of these things for granted. I always ask God to give me something new on these trips so that I can discover Him on a deeper level. Thank God! He answers our prayers and knows what we need even before we ask.

Midway through the trip, my son got sick. So he and I stayed at the guesthouse for one day while the team went to the worksite. We were praying and knew that God, with His favor and in His timing, had allowed us to go to Haiti. Giving God my desire for Him to heal my son, I knew He would. I knew the blood of Christ was covering him.

As Adlynn was sleeping, my thoughts went back to the children at the orphanage. We had spent time with them just a few days ago. I thought about the love of a parent for their children. I thought of how God so loved Jesus that He was willing to sacrifice Him for us sinners. What true love! Those children at the orphanage have no parents but in Jesus, they do have all they need!

I remembered how they were all so happy, bubbly, full of smiles and laughter. We spent time with them playing soccer, jumping rope, reading letters, holding them, loving on them and letting them play with our hair. What joy it is to see a child’s heart.

Isn’t that what God is telling us to have – a child-like heart. I pray that we all will look into our hearts and see that we need Jesus to be first and foremost in our lives. I long for the day I will see my King. But for now, all I want to do is serve Him whenever and wherever He calls me.

Bethanie Mission was having a week-long revival meeting at the church in Les Cayes. The message was being broadcast over Radio Renaissance each evening. On Tuesday evening, the speaker was sharing the good news about Jesus and how you can have a new life filled with hope and experience the love of Jesus by having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He shared how you can know for sure that you will have a place in heaven. He explained how to accept Jesus as your personal Savior.

That night, in his home, Raymond prayed the prayer of salvation. He asked the Lord to forgive him of his sins and come into his heart to live. He committed his life to Jesus Christ. Praise God! Raymond now has the Holy Spirit living within the “new heart” that the Lord gave him. He was born again.

In his excitement, he then called the church phone number that was given out during the broadcast. He told Pastor Ignace that he wanted to come to the church the next day and talk with him. So, the next day he came to the 6AM prayer meeting. The believers at the church prayed for him and gave him a Bible.

The Lord is continually seeking out and saving the lost. He is not willing that any person should perish. We thank the Lord for the opportunity we have to broadcast the Gospel of Jesus Christ each day to over two million people in Haiti.

I recall how Franchette and I and some people from our Les Cayes church drove into Port au Prince just four days after the earthquake with supplies of large amounts of food like beans, rice, spaghetti, bread and water. When we arrived there, we realized the situation was much more serious than we had thought. We saw many dead bodies in the streets. Yet despite our hearts being full of grief, we visited refugee camps and distributed the items to thousands of people.

As well, we were truly overwhelmed with gratitude over the great outpouring of financial gifts that flooded into our ministry from the United States and Canada. We even received money from a small church in Europe. Our country’s needs were not overlooked by God’s people. With those monies, we were able to continue our mission of getting supplies to the needy.

Then I became concerned about the onset of rainy season and the over one million people living in tiny tents. In May, we began to build temporary shelters for people. In fact, we are still building shelters. Primarily, this is because we have been receiving generous support on a continuous basis from an organization in Hampton, Virginia called International Cooperating Ministries.

Despite the disaster, the Kingdom of God has been moving forward in Haiti. In April of last year, we dedicated the church in Begon, in May we dedicated the church in Coteaux, and in July we dedicated the church in Dejoie. On August 8^th, the church in Solon was dedicated. At our annual convention in June of 2010, four hundred new converts were water baptized.

Last summer, the Bethanie churches conducted evangelistic campaigns. In the Grand-Ance area, we started a new church in a village called St. Martin after holding a crusade there. During the crusade, 50 people received Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. After a crusade was held in the town of Jeremie, 400 people received Christ as their Savior. This January 2011, we held a city-wide crusade in Les Cayes. There were 711 people that gave their lives to Jesus Christ. To God be the glory!

In October, when news broke that three persons were diagnosed with cholera, we had no idea of the magnitude of people that would be affected. Today the cholera epidemic has killed more than four thousand people and there are hundreds that still need treatment. I feel that Bethanie Mission must do something more than educate the sick and help supply clean water.

I would like to convert our former seminary and vocational school headquarters into a hospital. People have been asking me to do this. Let me explain. Last year we had many of our students complain that it was too far to travel to the school in Berjeaud. In response to their need, we moved the school to Les Cayes. As a result, we have an open facility that is sectioned off into rooms. It would be perfect to set-up as a hospital.

I feel I must do something as quickly as possible. Please pray about this. We need 50 hospital beds, we need lab equipment, an x-ray machine and sonography equipment. We do have dentistry chairs. We have the medical doctors but we will need a good part-time surgeon.

May God continue to bless all of you for the love you show through your support of this ministry. We are deeply grateful.

Ignace and Franchette Augustin

Dear Friends in Christ,

I just want to give you a brief report of what is going on in Haiti. Last October, they diagnosed in a laboratory one case of the strange disease called cholera. After a few days, the doctors reported that the person died. Now, in a space of two months, that disease has almost covered the whole country. Two thousand have died and there are 14,000 infected. The situation is very scary. In the Les Cayes area, where we are located, 200 deaths have been reported.

Bethanie Mission, with the financial aid from International Cooperating Ministries, is participating in the global effort to fight against this deadly disease. A few days ago, a medical team from the Bethanie Clinic went to Port au Prince with our van full of oral serum, Clorox, soap, and food to distribute to the people. A most important thing is to educate the people about the disease. So we are also working in the area of education and instructing the people how to prevent getting infected with cholera.

As a church, we are also praying against the epidemic. We are praying the Scripture in 1 Chronicles 7:14: "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

We will be returning to Port au Prince soon to continue to work with the people in the tent city and in other areas where there is great need including here in Les Cayes.

I want to thank so very much International Cooperating Ministries and all the individuals who are joining with us and giving us the means to be effective in reaching out with the love of Jesus.

Keep us in your prayers.

Pastor Ignace

In October, I returned from a trip to Haiti. A group of ten people from four different churches in the Hampton, VA area were there also. They accomplished building 94 church benches, 12 school desks, and 8 chests of drawers for the orphanage kids. Despite rain every day, they got all of this done as they were able to work under the porch at the guesthouse. Many thanks to Vasco, Coleman, and the other eight members of the team for their hard work! To God be the glory for the craftsmanship abilities He gives them!

While I was there, we visited the church home in Port au Prince that was damaged during the January earthquake. In December, there are plans to build a new church near this location on land that was purchased a few years ago. The home that the church was meeting in will be repaired also. There are three different church groups from Virginia and New York that are working together on this project. Vasco is organizing the effort as he wanted to do this in memory of his wife, Tina.

While in Port au Prince, we drove around the city and it was sad to see how little has been done to remove the rubble and help people rebuild their homes. The only new construction I noticed were about four pre-fab buildings for the government workers. All of the refugee camps are still there and health problems as well. As you’ve heard, cholera is now being diagnosed.

I did get to have lunch in one of the camps across from the Palace. I had some rice and beans and chicken. That is my favorite Haitian meal next to goat stew! What I ate for lunch would be more than a family of four would have for their one meal of the day. What I was given was comparable to the size of one of our take-out containers. Despite these peoples’ hardships, they were very gracious and welcoming to me.

That day as well, we spent a few hours of our time in one of the government buildings as Pastor Ignace is working on getting non-governmental organization status. We are doing this so Bethanie Mission can be exempted from paying custom duty fees. Pastor has been working on this for years.

As some of you know, we have a container of goods sitting in the port that has been there for a few months. They are asking for thousands of dollars to get it out. We shouldn’t have to pay these fees for humanitarian aid. Anyways, Pastor Ignace has decided that this is the time to really push the effort to get this exemption status.

Pastor Ignace and Franchette and the Bethanie church members have been working on building shelters with the monies from International Cooperating Ministries. This month, he wants to help send 120 camp children to school in Port au Prince. They have also recently completed an evangelistic outreach in the city of Jeremie. Around 400 people gave their hearts to the Lord. Praise God!

We now have 62 churches and 32 schools. As well, we have four high schools. Bethanie Mission has over 4,000 children attending school. The orphanage is going well. Each child has their own bed now thanks to friends of ours from Virginia! Before the purchase of the new beds, the children were sleeping two to a twin bed.

The city of Les Cayes has really grown – especially since the earthquake. It is difficult driving anywhere downtown. Gas is now almost $5.00 U.S. dollars per gallon and it is hard to find. There are 19 people running for the Presidential Office in the election to be held on November 28th. Pray that the next leader will take control of the recovery situation and make decisions for the good of the people.

I want to thank all of you for your prayers and financial support. May the Lord bless you and your families and supply all of your needs.

Since January 12th through October of this year, many things have happened at Bethanie Mission. Four days after the earthquake, we put ourselves to work to help the victims. We fed thousands of people from many different refugee camps in Port au Prince and Leogane. In the beginning of May, we began to build temporary shelters to help give the people a better covering against the rain and hurricane winds. 
 
We have constructed eight permanent shelters in the Port au Prince area and two shelters in the locality of Flamant. These shelters house 38 families and are made of wood with a tin roof.  In addition, we have helped more than 300 families who could not afford to send their children to school. We gave them books, notebooks, and other school materials as well as food.
 
Last summer, Bethanie Mission was very busy with evangelizing by conducting crusades in many areas. We had a crusade in Jeremie where 412 people came to know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. In the Les Cayes church, we had a conference from September 19th through the 26th where several people gave their lives to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. In September, in the church of CeMatin we had a conference where 55 people gave their lives to Jesus Christ. In the church of St. Louis, we had 18 people give their lives to Jesus Christ.
 
This year we also dedicated five churches that were funded by International Cooperating Ministries. These churches are located in Bourjolly, Begon, Dejoie, Coteaux, and in Solon.

Hurricane Tomas caused less damage than was expected. Yet 20 people died and a great amount of homes were destroyed especially in the state of Grand-Ance. The ocean waves came ashore and destroyed many homes. We are okay but some of our Bethanie churches were badly damaged. The church of Ano was destroyed by a big tree and the home of one of our pastors was completely destroyed. He now has to sleep at the church with his family.

I ask you to pray for Haiti as we have a serious problem with cholera. The people are very concerned about this as everyday we hear news of a new city or village that is affected. We don’t have too much of a problem in Les Cayes but in St. Louis last week they had four people brought up to the hospital to be treated. One of them died.
 
We praise God for how He has prospered us during the year 2010.  One of our burdens is to continue to help more children attend school.  I also would like to share that we figured out that a family of five could buy enough food for one month for $180 U.S. dollars. This would give them 165 pounds of rice and beans, cooking oil, ten boxes of spaghetti and twelve cans of milk.

We always are grateful for your prayers and offerings of money that enable us to further God's work in Haiti.  May the Lord bless you as you serve Him. 

I had no idea how to go about finding a church or a place to build a church. But, the Lord took care of all that. Later in December, a leader from International Cooperating Ministries (ICM) visited our church and spoke about church-building/planting and, upon further investigation, I realized they even built churches in Haiti. This started the ball rolling for finding Solon Church in Les Cayes, Haiti. Because of the earthquake in Port-au-Prince in January, 2010, I was not able to visit the area until early June. It was amazing how God led me to Mike Fisher and then to Pastor Augustin of Bethanie Evangelical Missions (BEM). Mike helped out significantly in guiding me through travel arrangements and preparations for my trip. Because I had never been to Haiti before, his directions and instructions were tremendously valuable and appreciated.

Arriving in Haiti, (although I had tried to prepare myself for anything and everything), I was still not ready for what I witnessed: poverty beyond anything I’d ever seen; enormous mounds of devastation and rubble; despair and destruction; needs so great that even global intervention seemed minuscule. And yet, in the midst of all the hardships, I discovered a people who stole my heart. Despite living in abject depravity, the Haitians are strong, determined and hopeful. Little did I know how much they would teach me. Pastor Augustin and his wife have a thriving and effective ministry there in this southwest Haitian city. The BEM compound in Les Cayes is beautiful and comfortable, providing safety and refuge from days that often prove to be exhausting and stressful. The Pastor and his family have sacrificed much in their lives for God and His work. Their devotion and commitment to God and fellow Haitians is inspiring and challenging.

Throughout the past summer months, we have been able to stay connected to the ongoing process of the church construction in the Solon area, and on September 12, 2010, were thrilled to attend the dedication of the newly-completed Bethanie Evangelical Church of Solon. What joy filled our hearts as we witnessed the people in their new building! And what peace we felt knowing Matt was honored! It is our sincere desire that many will come to know our Lord and experience the Kingdom of heaven through this little church in southwest Haiti that now shines for God’s glory.

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The first time I had opportunity to just play with people and make them laugh was while taking blood pressure. It became more and more evident to me how important greetings are to the Haitians. They won’t talk or look at you until you greet them. I didn’t want to just relate to them like a doctor taking their blood pressure but also as someone who seemed to care. So, I made sure to say, “Hello, how are you?” and “God bless you” in the best Creole I could manage to each person. But then still, it felt like they are patients and I’m a doctor (which I am not J). I then started making a fool of myself to make them laugh. I wanted to make it clear that I wasn’t so high and mighty that I couldn’t be laughed at. I would make weird faces and make-pretend different things for the kids. Needless to say, they would smile. 

In most of the clinics there were plenty of kids to try and entertain. One time, when we had enough people passing out clothes, I started a short soccer game with maybe six kids and soon attracted a crowd; few of which I could persuade to join us. They could all whip me, of course, but it was still fun. In another clinic, Martha (our physical therapist) and I made balloons out of rubber gloves and handed them out. This started some balloon passing games and somehow kids started multiplying. I got them doing imitation games, which consisted of dancing, clapping, running around, falling over, and making funny noises. 

One of the most amazing things about being on the mission field is the complete reliance on God. In everything that I did while in Haiti, I was forced to rely on God and that is really quite a treat. Sometimes at home, I get into the easiness of life. Stuff is always handed to me, and I try to think that I can live for God in my own strength. But in Haiti, it was just awesome to be surrounded by so many spiritual warriors and mature, passionate believers. Everything we did, we knew it was only by God’s grace.  

I also found that even though so many of the Haitians were so clearly devastated and had lost all hope, so many more had found hope, and were praising God. It was such a blessing when I encountered these people. They just had such a tangible joy about them, such a peace. It was most amazing when I was able to pray with them. They would really enter into prayer with me, praising God in Creole, and blessing me in the meantime. Their faith is so strong, and their love and hope and joy and peace are an encouragement to me.

Bigger

Situational sadness feels like a waste
Chaos and circumstance are hard to face
Pressures increase and present their case
As God steps in and redeems the chase

God in his mercy and grace on the move
More than one can imagine or simply remove 
Job and our suffering are BIGGER than we
God is the ruler over earth, man and sea

Job’s story unfolds as trial takes a hold
Trusting in God’s glory yet standing so bold 
Seeking refuge a trust in God’s BIGGER plan
This ruler of creation is in absolute command

Every good perfect gift comes from above
Remembering all things as a labor of love
Sensing my need and with so many questions
Resting in silence what appears from Heaven

Every loss and grief as reality pounds within
Immense sovereign God takes a walk to begin
Job honored by God speaks out from the storm
Redemption flows in as love heals and restores

Job replied to the LORD said thanks evermore
No plan is a thwart praise to You all the more
Good things come from You though Satan is mighty
No need to demand answers for You are the ALMIGHTY

Job 42:3 (Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version)

“You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things too wonderful for me to know.”

Trials and adversity have a way of reminding us that we are not the center of the universe. Pain has the power to point out our insufficiency. It reminds us of our naked insecurity that comes in this fallen world and the vast dependency upon the God of the universe. It forces us to depend on others, walk in humility and turn to the LORD. When suffering, sorrow and pain has thrown us a strong curve and we have nowhere to look but up, then it is in that moment that we truly see God!

Composed by Nancy Clone (Faris) Byrne on January 28, 2010 as a reflection on the purpose of suffering and to trust in the fact that God knows the BIGGER plan in our own personal lives as well as Haiti.

This poem is currently in the process of submission to the Library of Congress, therefore do not print, use and/or copy without permission. Thank you.

Video shown at the opening of the 6 o'clock news (2:24)

Andia Augustin's interview (10:24)

Andia Augustin's Skype call with Pastor Augustin and Franchette (12:46)

Even when I attended college here, all the books that I read about Haiti only talked about the constant unrest and their voodoo practice. I have met very few Christian Haitians. Most of the Haitians that I met had a very strong belief in witchcraft and voodoo. When I first heard about the earthquake, my first biased remark was "God is trying to speak to that country.” After that, I thought no more about it. I saw a couple of the pictures, heard bits and pieces on the news and left it at that. Then you had all the negative behavior that was on the news.

One day, I thought about if I should go there for relief effort. I convinced myself, “No, I would not.” One night, while at home, I received a call from Robert Rose. All he said was, "Sheena, we are going on a medical mission to Haiti and I would like you to join the team.”  I cannot express how I felt. There were no words to describe my elation!

I emailed my supervisor that night about 9:30 PM and told him that I needed to meet with him first thing the next morning. Bright and early at 7:00 AM, I was at work. All I said to him was, “Sir, I have been called and I am going.” I did not need to give him any more information. He knew right away that I was referring to Haiti. I had no reservations or fears about what I would do if another earthquake occurred while I was there. People whom I told about my upcoming trip had reservations and some tried to persuade me not to go. My answer was, “If I am called, I obey.” 

The 10 days that I spent there working with the Haitian people and seeing other parts of the country have totally changed my opinion and how I will view that country and the people. I stand guilty of accusing everyone who lives in that nation of being voodoo worshipers.  I can now say that I am wrong. I met some beautiful people there who are Christians and are willing to stand for Christ. I prayed with some of the patients I worked with and others I sent to the prayer station.

However, I will not forget one patient, Kadet Fausher, who escaped the earthquake. I saw him and when I asked if he knew the Lord, he said he no longer believed because of the earthquake. I then asked, “Who do you think protected you that you are here today?” He looked me in the eye and mumbled something that was not pleasant. I knew this because my translator became very upset. I told my translator not to worry but tell him, “that even if he did not love my God now, my God still loved and cares for him.” I looked him in the eyes and smiled.
 
With tears rolling down his face, he told my translator that he wanted me to pray for him and that he wanted to accept the Lord right there at my station. I was lost for words. I had prayed for people before and sometimes wondered if my prayer made sense.  Just looking at his face and the feeling that I had after we prayed is an experience I will never forget.

Since I have been back, I have been telling people about the Haiti that I saw, the people that I had met, and what I have learned about that country. I no longer judge them and have no reservations about joining another team on a trip there.

Initially, I left my backpack with passport and camera at the airport in the Dominican Republic. We had to return to the airport at 11:30 PM to pick up three ladies that had missed their flights. I was wiped out as it was!  Anyways, after arriving, I began to help them load their luggage onto the cart to head out to the truck.  We were twenty minutes into our drive back to our hotel when I realized I left it there.  What a shocker!  But it ended up a security guard had found it and nothing was missing. So for the whole trip one of the gals reminded me constantly to make sure I had my backpack.

I also got a burn on my forearm when the radiator reservoir blew up on the pickup truck.  As well, I got my leg scraped up when a heavy bag fell out the back door of the school bus onto it.  I had plenty of doctors and nurses to take care of me! So the Lord had everything figured out for me ahead of time!  I sure appreciated everyone’s prayers for us!  God is good.

Our team of 28 doctors, nurses and helpers arrived in the Dominican on the 14th.  We spent the night there and left the next morning at 5AM to head across country to Port au Prince.  It was a seven hour trip by bus.  We spent our first few days in Port au Prince.  The team brought lots of medicine and was able to help everyone that came through the clinics.

So, on Tuesday, we did our first medical clinic at a refugee camp in Port au Prince. The camp we set-up a clinic in is located where the epicenter of the earthquake was. The team ministered to 350 people that day.  Some of the problems included cuts, children with scabies, dehydration, mental stress from loss of family, coughs and congestion from dust inhaled, children with high fever and diarrhea.  One lady had a foot injury with open wounds and infection was setting in.

One man at the clinic had had a stroke and his left side was paralyzed.  He came to the clinic in a wheelchair.  He could just barely move with help.  Martha, a physical therapist there, took off her shoes and gave them to the man to see if that would help him walk better.  After working with him, she asked Reese, an 85 year old prayer warrior on the team, to pray for him to be healed.  After he was prayed for, he stood up and walked with a cane out of the clinic with Martha's shoes on!  Praise God!

Altogether, 1,600 some people received medical help at the five clinics we held during our week spent in Port au Prince and in the Les Cayes area.  We saw many miracles of healing take place. We saw backs healed, eyesight restored, and fevers leave children.  I, along with Reese and some others on the team, prayed for everyone that was seen in the clinics.  We would pray with them after they received the medical help.  God met us there and confirmed His word with signs and wonders!  After this, Pastor Ignace would talk with each person and ask them if they knew the Lord.  Most everyone that wasn't a Christian accepted the Lord.  282 persons accepted Jesus Christ as personal Savior!  Pastor Ignace told me that since the earthquake there have been thousands coming to the Lord through churches across Haiti. They are seeing a great revival.

We are so grateful for the hard work and dedication of all the members of the medical team.  This team of medical missionaries led by Doctor Joe Cacioppo is under the covering of International Christian Resources.  These teams travel worldwide offering their assistance.  I considered it a real privilege to be able to work alongside them.  May the Lord continue to prosper this ministry.  In the coming days, I feel they will be needed more and more.

Pastor Ignace is concerned about the needs of the people.  Rainy season is coming in April and sturdy shelters are needed as well as improved sanitation facilities.  Of course, the need to provide food and water will always be heavy on the hearts of God's people.  As you know, this situation will continue for years to come.  The media may have left the country but we cannot leave them.  I pray the Lord will always keep these people's needs foremost in our prayers. 

We arrived in Port au Prince in the afternoon somewhat late due to a student demonstration in the Dominican Republic. It was done by some students that were unhappy with the school that the government had built. We pulled up to the Presidential Palace in Haiti to see the devastation caused by the earthquake. The palace was almost totally destroyed. As we looked around the surrounding area we could see that some structures were seemingly untouched by the quake while others were in total ruins.

We were met by Pastor Ignace and taken to the OMS Guesthouse in Carfou. There was some damage by the quake there too but it did not seem to be as severe as in Port au Prince. We were given room assignments and took our bags to our rooms. Then we went to have supper. The food was very good. It consisted of beans and rice with a Creole dish with vegetables and a sauce that was mildly spicy and was very good. After supper we sang some songs and had a short briefing on what tomorrow would bring; then off to bed.

We drove through the areas affected hardest and the devastation of the downtown Port au Prince area was the worst. There was block after block of collapsed buildings. Yet every once in a while there was a lone structure that was hardly touched by the quake.

We spent two days in Port au Prince doing medical clinics and then we went to Les Cayes to do some more clinics. The farther we went from Port au Prince the less damage there was but it was apparent that a major earthquake had taken place. The roads had cracks in some places that were big enough to damage cars and trucks if they were not careful.

As we traveled to Les Cayes, I was amazed at what I was seeing. I had been led to believe that Haiti was a wasteland but what I was seeing totally contradicted what I had been led to believe. Everything I saw was green and lush. There were banana, mango, breadfruit and other fruit trees all over the countryside. We passed farms and gardens with crops in them. There were people in these fields working them and tending to them. It was obvious to me that there were many hard working people in Haiti that had an abundance of pride and were very industrious. Not only will these people overcome the earthquake but they will rise above it and rebuild Haiti into a country they can be proud of.

We arrived in Les Cayes and went about getting ready for the clinics. On the first day of clinic we went to Ducis. People were already waiting when we arrived. We treated 362 people that day and 46 of them came to JESUS. Praise GOD!! There were some people from Port au Prince in this village and some of them had suffered injuries in the quake. Our medical team may have been the only source of medical care these people would ever receive! It is so remote here that it is doubtful that anyone from the big city even knows they exist!

The people of Haiti have been neglected for decades and yet they are resilient and a hard working people. Governments come and go but the Haitian people will remain and flourish. But now they need some help and encouragement and most of all they need JESUS CHRIST!!

It’s Dr. Michael Ashby’s first day back to work at Martha Jefferson Hospital after spending 10 days treating patients in Haiti. As an emergency room doctor, he’s seen a lot, but he said he’s never seen conditions like he saw there.

“You see patients, you do what you have to do to take care of people, but afterward, it’s pretty intense,” Ashby said.

He’s had a chance to reflect on his experiences in Haiti since being back. Despite packing plenty of supplies, Dr. Ashby’s team still ran out because of all the patients that needed treatment.

“We ran out of antibiotics,” he said. “We ran out of vitamins.”

Part of the reason Haiti needs outside medical help is because their major hospitals collapsed. It hits close to home for Ashby. Many medical students died, including one who stayed with Ashby’s friend.

“One of the physicians was supporting the medical student that he lost, so that city has one fewer doctor than they would have had,” he said.

There are fewer doctors to treat the many infections associated with living in close quarters. Since the earthquake, tent cities have sprouted up, which have become breeding grounds for certain diseases.

“We saw scabies, which is a skin mite. We saw lots of diarrhea. If one person got a cold, it would spread through the community, so we were seeing lots of things with infections.” Ashby said.

He took thousands of pictures to better remember the hundreds of patients he treated. Ashby treated an elderly woman who needed care for her infected foot. It was a painful operation, but it was successful. Despite the suffering, she still managed to smile, and Dr. Ashby has a picture of the two embracing in a hug. It’s clear that neither doctor nor patient will soon forget the other.

Ashby is the vice president of medical affairs at MJH. He traveled to Haiti with a team of two dozen doctors and nurses through International Christian Resources charity out of Blacksburg.