I began planning for a mission trip to Ebenezer Glenn Orphanage (EGO) in Dessalines, Haiti a little over a year ago. The January 12, 2010 earthquake put those plans on hold. After my May trip to Leogane, Haiti, I decided to continue thoughts of going back to EGO.
I made my first trip there in December, 1988. I worked with a team from Cedar Rapids who built a concrete block fish tank and erected a windmill to fill it. It was a good trip. I remember spending a lot of time there, but I also spent a lot of time In Port-au-Prince getting paperwork, passport photos, etc. for Molly. When it came time to return to the states, I had all but the final decree signed. The directors at EGO were working on that while I went to the airport with Molly. Another person from the orphanage was with me while we waited for the signed documents, just in case I had to leave Molly there. I remember that boarding for the flight was called.
And I waited.
Everyone else was through the gate.
And I waited.
At that moment, the directors came running into the area (it was a lot easier then, before the security concerns), yelling that they had the signature. I fell to my knees, with tears of joy streaming down my face.
I boarded the flight and found my seat, with my youngest daughter in my arms. She was 4 months old. It sure was a good thing I brought her back, because I did not take any pictures of her there. OOPS! On the plane, a Haitian gentleman turned to me and said I was saving her life by bringing her out of the country. That was pretty prophetic, because unbeknownst to me, she had a Staph infection in her blood. A month later she was in intensive care, being treated for the problem.
When we got to Miami, I was pulled aside and interrogated for a couple of hours at US Customs, just to make sure I was not a creep. Fortunately I was able to fool them and was sent back to Iowa with my prize.
So, I digressed. My intention for this trip was to return to EGO and help them with whatever projects they had in mind. I made my plans known to friends and at church. Norm Zimmerman—a contractor friend who has been to Haiti once with me, signed on fairly early. Ev Petersen—from my church had expressed interest in going a while back, he signed on early, too. Jay Wiebold—mechanic extraordinaire who has also been to Haiti with me, was on the line for a while, but also signed on. Dave Hagan—another church member with a great heart for the Lord had expressed interest in adopting. I talked him into going to see what Haiti was like. Bob Streeper—an outreach evangelist at our church signed up. Hunter Smith—my 14 year old grandson whose mother went when she was about 14, signed up over Christmas break. Our charge on this trip is to build a concrete block house that the orphanage can use as a rental. Since the earthquake a year ago, there has been a huge influx back to Dessalines to escape some of the destruction and squalor of PAP.
We pray that things will go well for us. That we will stay healthy, that we will build a strong home for the orphanage, and that we will return safely.
Stay in touch with the blog. We will try to update it as we go. Probably will NOT have pictures until we return.
LaMar Grafft
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