Another Day gone!

Another day gone in Haiti! It was a long day today, starting the day at around 5:30, where we attended the sunrise mass at Church on the Rock. We walked home and ate breakfast, before a 45-minute ride to Grace Village. We took a tour of a bakery and restaurant called Fleri. Then we went up the hill to play and love the kids. We took a tour of the Grace village Orphanage. The next thing we did was visit the elders. We visited three homes, and met Edmund, Volcy and Elitane, and Maricia Victor. We washed their feet, prayed with them about their needs, gave them massages, and sang songs. After that we ate dinner at Fleri and enjoyed cold drinks and pizza while playing bags. When we left Fleri, we went to a memorial called mass graves, a place where bodies were placed after the earthquake in January 12, 2010. Some 300,000 unidentified bodies were laying under our feet where we were standing. Once we got home, we played soccer with the neighborhood boys. Finally, we had team time and reviewed the pictures.

Ryan and Isaiah

Team # 2 Nokken Parent/Child Day # 3 (posted a day late)

Hey Everybody,

Today is Lydia and Natalie’s day to blog, so we’re going to use teamwork and share our perspectives as one. We started off the day with a delicious breakfast, thanks to our wonderful staff. We got ready for the day and headed off to LaPhare. This orphanage was full of joyful children and lots of fun. We spent most of our time painting little girl’s nails. What we discovered was that the girls especially liked the silver glittery nail polish. Not on their nails but spread on the top of their hands. That little bit of glitter worked wonders for us. At the end, everyone gathered together and sang songs. The children sang beautifully, it was such a moving experience. We then drove to Papillon and got a tour of the workshop, ate delicious food, and shopped ‘til we dropped. Then it was back to the guesthouse to regroup and get ready for the afternoon. Half of us went to the Home for the Sick and Dying, while the other half went to an orphanage called For His Glory. Lydia and I went to For His Glory. We pulled up and the kids were overwhelmingly welcoming. We painted the girl’s nails, the crowd of them was never ending! We officially became professional nail painters today. After the crowd died down, our half of the group put on a skit about David and Goliath. Lydia and I were the sheep. The interpreter did a fantastic job; the kids were engaged and loved it. Then as a thank you, some of the children sang to us. The first girl who came up had an amazing voice. We all were in awe as we watched her sing without any music, not even a guitar, it was amazing! A few other girls came up and performed for us, all were so fun to watch. Then out of nowhere, one of our leaders named Smith, said, “next up to sing is you young lady,” and pointed to me (Natalie). Now, I belt it out in the shower and in the car, but in public it’s a different story. Saying I was speechless is an understatement. I had a little boy on my lap and Smith took him off of me and pulled me up. Lydia volunteered to sing with me, and I was extremely grateful for her in that moment. I knew I had met a best friend for life. We sang 10,000 Reasons with the soundtrack playing in the background. It wasn’t until later that I found out Lydia told Smith to pick me instead of her, and then felt guilty so she sang with me hahahaha. However, I’m extremely thankful Lydia and Smith pushed me out of my comfort zone because I wouldn’t have done it without them. After we were done, Natalie led the group in a closing prayer, thanking the Lord for all of the unbreakable bonds made today. We headed back to the guesthouse and hung out with the neighborhood boys, watched them play soccer, and blew bubbles with the little girls. Overall, today was, as Scott said, “imperfectly perfect in its own way.” That’s it from us for the night.

Xoxo,

Natalie and Lydia

Nokken Parent Child Team #2 Day 4

Some photos to be posted soon! Another team member will also update the blog.

Blessings as this has been another amazing day!

I have never had my birthday in Haiti. Today I celebrated my birthday.  I have been so blessed to be a part of this team and be surrounded by kids, parents and my two other co-leads!  I also have had the opportunity to be here with my son Isaiah on his first missions trip.  I knew this was going to be great. I just did not expect to see him, love, learn, grow, share and teach me along the way.

This amazing group surprised me with a cake, card and an awesome gift of prayer paper.  Dinner was one of my favorite Haitian meals! I can't wait for you to read more and learn more about the experiences our team has had over the past few days and excited for the days ahead.

Check back soon. We hope to have things uploaded soon

-Kari