“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
Hi! This week Tim and Bill were here to help with some repairs and spend some time with the children. It was great that the drainage problem was fixed and also that the pick-up truck got serviced. The horn got altered and the truck now has a more unique sound to it! The wheels don’t squeak anymore and the air conditioner is working better too. Tim and Bill returned to Canada this morning and within two hours the kids broke the handle on the toilet so now we will have to fix some things before the arrival of more visitors. Next week we will be getting some more visitors helping out here. My sister Tanya, nephew Matthew, cousin Jeff and his daughter Katrina will be helping to fix the side wall and to reinforce the front wall. They are going to help make the property more “thief proof”.
Haitian Karnaval was this week. It started on Sunday and ended early Wednesday morning. Everything was shut down from Monday to Wednesday as people in Port-au-Prince participated in the festivities.
We brought Paulna to her village, Bonnette, this week so that she could spend some time at home with her family. She was excited to go home and we’ll pick her up again on Sunday afternoon. Tim and Bill also were able to see her village as well. We spent some time visiting some of the families there that we have come into contact with. They enjoyed having some visitors.
In the Ti Ayiti section of Cite Soleil we met an elderly woman who is going blind. We explained to her about the hospital downtown where Cuban eye doctors treat people for free. Hopefully she will go there next week with someone from her family to find out why she is going blind. Because the schools were also closed this week we got a chance to meet with a lot of the children who live in the Ti Ayiti area.
Shleudny Nicolas is a 12-year-old girl who came to the house this week with her father. She has a cancerous tumor growing on the left side of her face. Pray for the ongoing medical search to find treatment in the United States. She will most likely need surgery and radiation therapy.
A young man by the name of Luc Wisly Eustache came by the house with his father as well. He is 24 years old and has been diagnosed with Muscular Dystrophy. He has really wasted away and is very frail. The family are strong Christians and understand now that this disease currently has no cure. The father is doing his best to look after his son and for him to survive this long shows how well the family is looking after Luc. Pray for ongoing research on this disease and that doctors may one day be able to halt the progression of this disease.
Angelo Lafortune and his mother came by for a visit and he is doing well. He looks healthy and happy and enjoys going to school.
The theme of Karnaval this year was an environmental one – working for a green Haiti. The people of Haiti need to be more environmental. The forest cover used to be 60% in 1923. By 1952 the forest cover shrank to 18% and now is at the 1% level. 90% of the Haitian population uses wood as an energy source for cooking (charcoal/wood). It is estimated that 53,300 trees are cut down each year. 84.6% of this fuel is used in Port-au-Prince. 98.1% of the rural population uses wood/charcoal for cooking. One alternative energy source that can be used for cooking is Lignite. This natural resource is found in the Maissade area of Haiti. Deposits of lignite are estimated to be 9 million tons. Lignite is composed of 70% carbon, which would make it a good cooking fuel.
Another part of the environment that scientists are examining is the rising lake levels of Lac Azuei, which is located by the Malpasse/Jimani border crossing. The lake level has increased to the point where it is leaving its bed and starting to cover the road. Right now vehicles traveling between Haiti and the Dominican Republic at the Malpasse/Jimani border crossing have to go through water. The salinity of the lake has increased as well since the rainy season. Right now it is the dry season and people don’t understand how the lake levels can rise. One theory is that somehow seawater is infiltrating into these lakes. The area is about 120 meters above sea level. Another theory is that the mining of sand is causing this problem. If the lake levels continue to increase the road will need to be constructed in another area in order to keep this major border crossing open.
Another area where Haiti can improve is in the fishing industry. Currently Haitian fishermen haul in 4 – 5 metric tonnes of fish each year. The potential is 14,000 tonnes. Haiti currently imports 16 million dollars of fish each year.
The people of Haiti need to work together to be able to solve the environmental problems and also to develop the economy. Pray for improvements in both these areas.
That is all the news for today. Have a good weekend!
Karen Bultje
Friday, February 8, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
photos - visitors - paulna's village - bonnette
This morning we brought Paulna to stay with her family for a few days. Her brother Paulno went with us to show the visitors from Canada their village. This is the "kay loa" (spirit house). The villagers built this house for the spirits to live in with the hope of keeping the spirits happy and content. It is one of the biggest and best built houses in the entire village!
The village is in an arid area and there are a lot of cactus growing around the village. From left to right are Bill, Paulno and Tim.
When we got back to Paulna's house she was already hard at work pounding rice to loosen the chaff.
Tim wanted to help and he got some lessons from the children.
Once Tim knew what he was doing Bill helped out as well.They were the entertainment for the children of the village!
Saturday, February 2, 2008
photos - babies
This is the woman who Pastor Octoave asked that we take to the Medecins Sans Frontiers Hospital. She was sent back home because it wasn't her time to deliver. When her contractions started again the family waited to make sure it was full labor before taking her back to the hospital but waited too long and the baby was born at home. Mother and baby girl are doing well.
This is Judnel Vincent's baby sister. Judnel is the boy with a heart problem . The doctor examined the boy and then the pregant mother. He then told us to get the mother to a hospital. Mother and baby are doing well.
Jamson is the 1-month-old baby whose mother wasn't able to breastfeed. Dorothy is looking after him. Pray for her efforts.
Dieuna Philippe is next on the surgical list of hydrocephalus children. We are scrambling to get her paperwork done so she can travel to the United States as soon as possible. Pray for the paperwork process. Her mother lost her identification and birth certificate in flooding last October so it will be a little more difficult to get paperwork done.
Jonas Gue was a down syndrome baby who also had a heart problem. He died on Sunday, the same week this photo was taken. Down syndrome and heart problems go together sometimes. It is common for children with down syndrome to also have a heart problem. The Lord has a plan for everyone.
haiti update - february 1, 2008
“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.”
Psalm 68:19
Hi! This week was busy getting paperwork ready for 4 children with hydrocephalus. The children we are working on are Chrisno Jeudi, Nephtalie Bazile, John Charles and Dieuna Philippe. Vanessa spoke with the doctor this week and he wants to plan to do Dieuna Philippes’s surgery next. Dieuna is a 5-month-old baby with a rapidly growing head. Her family lives in Cite Soleil in the Soleil 17 area and there are 2 children in this family. Wolgine is 11 years old and she is very responsible for her age. When families are in extreme poverty children don’t get to be children for long. They need to help the family to survive. This week we needed to get a cat scan done for Dieuna. Her mother was sick and Wolgine came by herself from Cite Soleil to the house carrying her baby sister. She didn’t complain even though it must have been difficult for her. Hydrocephalus babies with larger than normal heads put a lot of weight on the arms of those carrying them especially if that person is a child. Later in the week when I found out what was wrong with the mother Wolgine came again to pick up medicine for her mother. Keep this family in prayer as they work together in looking after Dieuna.
Pharah Simeon arrived in Pennsylvania and is settling in with her host family. Early in the week she had her appointment with the doctor. He took one look at her head and decided to up the surgical date to Thursday. We give the Lord thanks for this surgery and that her head can now finally stop getting larger. Pray that there will be no post-surgical complications. Her mother has returned back to the countryside to her other children. The grandmother was looking after all 7 children while she was here in Port-au-Prince all this time with Pharah.
A mother from the Bois Neuf area of Cite Soleil came by the house this week with her 1-month old baby. The mother hasn’t had good nutrition and for some reason she wasn’t able to breastfeed. She had been giving the baby sugar water because she wasn’t able to buy formula to feed her child. The baby was born at a normal weight but had lost a little since. It was good that the mother sought out care right away. Dorothy is taking in the baby and will help Jamson through the formula stage and then he can return to his mothers care. The mother is able to visit with her baby.
Jonas Gue was a 4-month old baby with down syndrome and a heart problem. Last week his mother came to the house asking for help for him. I took the information down and told her we would start searching for medical care for him. The Lord called him home on Sunday morning.
Food prices are continuing to rise and people are asking the Haitian government to help bring food prices down. There is not much the government can do to control the inflation. It is difficult for parents to hear hungry children crying so they give them “dirt cookies”. This dirt comes from the Central Plateau region in Haiti from Hinche. Water, salt, and vegetable shortening are mixed together and these “cookies” are left to dry in the sun. These are then eaten and fill the stomach for awhile although it is not very nutritious. I have seen them being sold in the neighborhood here.
There are still import restrictions in place of poultry products from the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic sent some representatives to Haiti this week to request the Haitian government to lift restrictions. The Dominicans are getting frustrated and are retaliating as well. Market sellers in the Dajabon border area are being urged not to sell to Haitians on Monday as a form of protest. An energy drink that is bottled in Haiti called “Toro” has been seized by Dominican authorities concerned about its ingredients. We haven’t bought eggs from Mdm. Elie the last couple of weeks. She said it is too difficult to get them from the border area. She did tell us though of one vendor who has managed to get eggs by mixing them in with a shipment of charcoal to get past the eyes of authorities.
In a news story this week it was reported that there are oil deposits in Haiti. These results were based on tests performed by foreign companies. Testing was done in the areas of Plaine Cul-de-Sac, L’Artibonite, Plateau Centrale, Thomonde area and the bay of Port-au-Prince. Most of this testing was done in the 1968-1977 time period. It is estimated that the petroleum reserves are larger than those of Venezuela. The story says that the petroleum reserves in Haiti are an Olympic sized swimming pool as compared to the glass of water in Venezuela. Sometimes news reports are not very accurate and maybe the petroleum reserves are only an empty bucket but time will tell.
Organizing elections in Haiti is very difficult. Now that there is a new electoral council in place the director of this council quit this week. Jacque Bernard didn’t like the new procedures that are in place.
That’s all the news for today. Have a good day!
Karen Bultje
Psalm 68:19
Hi! This week was busy getting paperwork ready for 4 children with hydrocephalus. The children we are working on are Chrisno Jeudi, Nephtalie Bazile, John Charles and Dieuna Philippe. Vanessa spoke with the doctor this week and he wants to plan to do Dieuna Philippes’s surgery next. Dieuna is a 5-month-old baby with a rapidly growing head. Her family lives in Cite Soleil in the Soleil 17 area and there are 2 children in this family. Wolgine is 11 years old and she is very responsible for her age. When families are in extreme poverty children don’t get to be children for long. They need to help the family to survive. This week we needed to get a cat scan done for Dieuna. Her mother was sick and Wolgine came by herself from Cite Soleil to the house carrying her baby sister. She didn’t complain even though it must have been difficult for her. Hydrocephalus babies with larger than normal heads put a lot of weight on the arms of those carrying them especially if that person is a child. Later in the week when I found out what was wrong with the mother Wolgine came again to pick up medicine for her mother. Keep this family in prayer as they work together in looking after Dieuna.
Pharah Simeon arrived in Pennsylvania and is settling in with her host family. Early in the week she had her appointment with the doctor. He took one look at her head and decided to up the surgical date to Thursday. We give the Lord thanks for this surgery and that her head can now finally stop getting larger. Pray that there will be no post-surgical complications. Her mother has returned back to the countryside to her other children. The grandmother was looking after all 7 children while she was here in Port-au-Prince all this time with Pharah.
A mother from the Bois Neuf area of Cite Soleil came by the house this week with her 1-month old baby. The mother hasn’t had good nutrition and for some reason she wasn’t able to breastfeed. She had been giving the baby sugar water because she wasn’t able to buy formula to feed her child. The baby was born at a normal weight but had lost a little since. It was good that the mother sought out care right away. Dorothy is taking in the baby and will help Jamson through the formula stage and then he can return to his mothers care. The mother is able to visit with her baby.
Jonas Gue was a 4-month old baby with down syndrome and a heart problem. Last week his mother came to the house asking for help for him. I took the information down and told her we would start searching for medical care for him. The Lord called him home on Sunday morning.
Food prices are continuing to rise and people are asking the Haitian government to help bring food prices down. There is not much the government can do to control the inflation. It is difficult for parents to hear hungry children crying so they give them “dirt cookies”. This dirt comes from the Central Plateau region in Haiti from Hinche. Water, salt, and vegetable shortening are mixed together and these “cookies” are left to dry in the sun. These are then eaten and fill the stomach for awhile although it is not very nutritious. I have seen them being sold in the neighborhood here.
There are still import restrictions in place of poultry products from the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic sent some representatives to Haiti this week to request the Haitian government to lift restrictions. The Dominicans are getting frustrated and are retaliating as well. Market sellers in the Dajabon border area are being urged not to sell to Haitians on Monday as a form of protest. An energy drink that is bottled in Haiti called “Toro” has been seized by Dominican authorities concerned about its ingredients. We haven’t bought eggs from Mdm. Elie the last couple of weeks. She said it is too difficult to get them from the border area. She did tell us though of one vendor who has managed to get eggs by mixing them in with a shipment of charcoal to get past the eyes of authorities.
In a news story this week it was reported that there are oil deposits in Haiti. These results were based on tests performed by foreign companies. Testing was done in the areas of Plaine Cul-de-Sac, L’Artibonite, Plateau Centrale, Thomonde area and the bay of Port-au-Prince. Most of this testing was done in the 1968-1977 time period. It is estimated that the petroleum reserves are larger than those of Venezuela. The story says that the petroleum reserves in Haiti are an Olympic sized swimming pool as compared to the glass of water in Venezuela. Sometimes news reports are not very accurate and maybe the petroleum reserves are only an empty bucket but time will tell.
Organizing elections in Haiti is very difficult. Now that there is a new electoral council in place the director of this council quit this week. Jacque Bernard didn’t like the new procedures that are in place.
That’s all the news for today. Have a good day!
Karen Bultje
Sunday, January 27, 2008
photos - children
We rejoice that Pharah Simeon is now in the United States to get medical treatment.
John Charles is from Bombardopolis. Hopefully he will be able to travel to the United States as well.
This is Lourdie Aldor standing on 2 legs again. Her right leg was amputated above the knee a couple years ago because of a tumor. She will be getting used to her new leg walking around in our yard.
Chrisno Jeudi is another hydrocephalus child we hope will be able to travel to the United States as well.
These are some of the children from Paulna's village holding their faith bracelets and card.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
haiti update - january 26, 2008
“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17
Hi! This week was a very busy week with the medical program. We finished the paperwork for Pharah Simeon and she is traveling to the United States today. Keep her in prayer as she undergoes surgery for her hydrocephalus. Her head is very large, around 83 cm but she is very active neurologically. Recently her eyes started “sun downing” (the pressure on the brain forces the eyes downward). To compensate she pulls down her eyelid with her finger to see better. This is the first time I have seen a child do this. Her mother never gave up hope and I promised her mother that I would never give up looking for help for her child. We are thankful to the Lord for the opportunity for her to travel for medical care. A doctor and his wife will be accompanying her on the plane. We are also scrambling to complete paperwork for other children who are in the same situation as Pharah. Chrisno Jeudi is a 16-month-old boy with a head circumference of 72 cm. John Wilson Charles is a baby from Bombardopolis (north-west part of Haiti) and he is staying at our home with his parents while we complete paperwork for him as well. Today we are bringing another 3 hydrocephalus children to be evaluated with the hopes of doors opening for them as well. Keep all these children and plans in prayer.
Lourdie Aldor is a teenager who had her leg amputated above the knee almost 2 years ago. She received her artificial leg on Friday and now is able to walk again. She will be coming to the house a few days a week to practice walking. Where she lives it is difficult because the roads are uneven and rocky. She will gradually keep her prosthesis on for longer periods of time. Once she is fully used to using her artificial leg she can think of going to school again. She is deaf as well.
The lady who we brought to the hospital last week had her baby but not in the hospital. After I had dropped her off at the Doctors Beyond Borders maternity hospital they sent her home, as she was not yet ready to deliver. The family brought her home and the next day she started labor again. This time the family intended to wait longer before going to the hospital but ended up waiting too long and the baby was delivered at home. Both mother and baby are doing well.
Judnel Vincent is a boy who has a mitral valve heart problem. We brought him over to see Vanessa and a visiting doctor (the same one who is traveling with Pharah). After examining Judnel he said that he would examine the mother as well as she was pregnant. It was then that Judnel’s mother said that her water had broken the prior evening. She also had high blood pressure and was starting to have swelling in her legs. The doctor told us to take her to the maternity hospital and we ended up making a night run to the hospital. At three in the morning her labor pains started and she had a baby girl at 7:00am Thursday morning. We picked up the mother and child from the hospital later in the afternoon and brought them both home. Mother and child are doing well. Haiti is full of surprises! What started out as a heart exam turned into helping a pregnant woman get to the hospital.
There were also several other people with medical problems who we brought to see a doctor.
On Sunday afternoon we went to see Paulna’s village so that her family could see her leg without the pins in it. At the same time we handed out “faith bracelets” that some visitors had given to us to hand out to children. They come with a card explaining what each color bead means. (Clear stands for God, gold = heaven, black=sin, red=sacrifice of Christ, White = purity, Blue = Holy Spirit). The children came running to us to get the bracelets and several tried to get more than one. The children here at Coram Deo enjoy visiting Paulna’s village. Her father sent back with her some fresh milk and also sugar cane for the people at the house.
The pick-up truck needs some fixing. It is starting to sound very squeaky. I found that out when the air conditioner stopped working and I started driving around with the windows open. I make sure to turn the radio on loud to drown out the squeaks. For the last few months there has been an exclamation mark trouble light on the instrument panel and I couldn’t figure out what caused it. The fluid levels were normal. This week I decided to top up the brake fluid to the maximum level and sure enough the exclamation mark on the instrument panel disappeared! In the next couple of weeks I am going to get the truck serviced. The children also want to change the name of the truck from Old Yeller to Herbie.
Haitian government representatives visited the Dominican Republic to see the control methods used for controlling the spread of bird flu (H5N2 strain). They decided to maintain import restrictions on poultry products from the Dominican Republic. In their 2-day visit they concluded that there was a weakness in the application of control procedures by the Dominican authorities.
The port is not functioning very well right now. It is taking people longer to get containers released from customs. Changes were made to the customs system in order to try and control corruption. The delays are frustrating for businesses and missions alike. By the DGI on Delmas 19 this past week one of the workers there was trying to prevent racketeers from having access. The end result for him was getting stabbed in the neck. Fortunately for him he was near the Doctors Beyond Borders Hospital and no major vein was hit. Corruption will be a long, difficult road to change in Haiti.
That’s all the news for today. Have a good evening!
Karen Bultje
Hi! This week was a very busy week with the medical program. We finished the paperwork for Pharah Simeon and she is traveling to the United States today. Keep her in prayer as she undergoes surgery for her hydrocephalus. Her head is very large, around 83 cm but she is very active neurologically. Recently her eyes started “sun downing” (the pressure on the brain forces the eyes downward). To compensate she pulls down her eyelid with her finger to see better. This is the first time I have seen a child do this. Her mother never gave up hope and I promised her mother that I would never give up looking for help for her child. We are thankful to the Lord for the opportunity for her to travel for medical care. A doctor and his wife will be accompanying her on the plane. We are also scrambling to complete paperwork for other children who are in the same situation as Pharah. Chrisno Jeudi is a 16-month-old boy with a head circumference of 72 cm. John Wilson Charles is a baby from Bombardopolis (north-west part of Haiti) and he is staying at our home with his parents while we complete paperwork for him as well. Today we are bringing another 3 hydrocephalus children to be evaluated with the hopes of doors opening for them as well. Keep all these children and plans in prayer.
Lourdie Aldor is a teenager who had her leg amputated above the knee almost 2 years ago. She received her artificial leg on Friday and now is able to walk again. She will be coming to the house a few days a week to practice walking. Where she lives it is difficult because the roads are uneven and rocky. She will gradually keep her prosthesis on for longer periods of time. Once she is fully used to using her artificial leg she can think of going to school again. She is deaf as well.
The lady who we brought to the hospital last week had her baby but not in the hospital. After I had dropped her off at the Doctors Beyond Borders maternity hospital they sent her home, as she was not yet ready to deliver. The family brought her home and the next day she started labor again. This time the family intended to wait longer before going to the hospital but ended up waiting too long and the baby was delivered at home. Both mother and baby are doing well.
Judnel Vincent is a boy who has a mitral valve heart problem. We brought him over to see Vanessa and a visiting doctor (the same one who is traveling with Pharah). After examining Judnel he said that he would examine the mother as well as she was pregnant. It was then that Judnel’s mother said that her water had broken the prior evening. She also had high blood pressure and was starting to have swelling in her legs. The doctor told us to take her to the maternity hospital and we ended up making a night run to the hospital. At three in the morning her labor pains started and she had a baby girl at 7:00am Thursday morning. We picked up the mother and child from the hospital later in the afternoon and brought them both home. Mother and child are doing well. Haiti is full of surprises! What started out as a heart exam turned into helping a pregnant woman get to the hospital.
There were also several other people with medical problems who we brought to see a doctor.
On Sunday afternoon we went to see Paulna’s village so that her family could see her leg without the pins in it. At the same time we handed out “faith bracelets” that some visitors had given to us to hand out to children. They come with a card explaining what each color bead means. (Clear stands for God, gold = heaven, black=sin, red=sacrifice of Christ, White = purity, Blue = Holy Spirit). The children came running to us to get the bracelets and several tried to get more than one. The children here at Coram Deo enjoy visiting Paulna’s village. Her father sent back with her some fresh milk and also sugar cane for the people at the house.
The pick-up truck needs some fixing. It is starting to sound very squeaky. I found that out when the air conditioner stopped working and I started driving around with the windows open. I make sure to turn the radio on loud to drown out the squeaks. For the last few months there has been an exclamation mark trouble light on the instrument panel and I couldn’t figure out what caused it. The fluid levels were normal. This week I decided to top up the brake fluid to the maximum level and sure enough the exclamation mark on the instrument panel disappeared! In the next couple of weeks I am going to get the truck serviced. The children also want to change the name of the truck from Old Yeller to Herbie.
Haitian government representatives visited the Dominican Republic to see the control methods used for controlling the spread of bird flu (H5N2 strain). They decided to maintain import restrictions on poultry products from the Dominican Republic. In their 2-day visit they concluded that there was a weakness in the application of control procedures by the Dominican authorities.
The port is not functioning very well right now. It is taking people longer to get containers released from customs. Changes were made to the customs system in order to try and control corruption. The delays are frustrating for businesses and missions alike. By the DGI on Delmas 19 this past week one of the workers there was trying to prevent racketeers from having access. The end result for him was getting stabbed in the neck. Fortunately for him he was near the Doctors Beyond Borders Hospital and no major vein was hit. Corruption will be a long, difficult road to change in Haiti.
That’s all the news for today. Have a good evening!
Karen Bultje
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Photos - Paulna's Village - Bonnette
A couple of weeks ago we tried to make it to Paulna's village with the pickup truck but got stuck in the mud (that's when we found out that the 4wheel drive switch on the wheel was stuck). After a bunch of pushing by the guys and spinning tires we eventually got out. This time we parked by the watering hole and walked in. The boys tried to hitch a ride on this donkey but the answer was no.
Near Paulna's home there is a large tree and Manu and Benson climbed up onto a large branch.
Near Paulna's house there were some donkeys. The guys wanted their picture taken with them but they didn't want to stand too close to the donkeys. City boys!
Voodoo plays a large role in this village. Here we walked past the "Voodoo Swamp". Offerings to the spirits are placed in these containers. You can see some sort of container on several of the trees in this area.
Here is a close up of a couple of these containers. Pray for this village and that the voodoo influence will be overthrown.
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