Funding Needed Part II

Hi Everyone:

Here is an update on our need that I wrote you about, below:

Veronica spoke to Caleb on the phone yesterday and got the good news that $800 was donated to get the first container free.  Johan was sharing our dilemma with a missionary in Port a Prince and she handed over $800!  Thank the Lord for that!

And just this morning, we heard from the NE District of the Wesleyan church and some money has come in from the actuallyhelpinghaiti blog.  That, coupled with an additional amount from District will give us almost enough for two more containers!  Praise the Lord!

So our new total need to get the remaining 3 containers released is $800 - $1,000.  

If the Lord is leading you to help get this food released, please donate as specified in my email below on how to do so.  This needs to be done quickly so the food can be distributed: pray the Lord protects it from getting moldy and going bad (it's very hot and rainy there).  

If more donations come in than are needed for container release, they will be used for the needs of La Gonave including transportation costs to distribute this food.

Thank you all!

Funding Needed

Hi everyone:

As you know the four containers of 180,000# food, tarps (specially donated for use on the mainland) and a few tools for the W.I.S.H. program (again, specially donated) finally got shipped to St. Marc. The containers have sat there under lock and key while being processed by Haitian customs. Youth with a Mission (YWAM) staff in St. Marc, Haiti has graciously been helping with this processing and we just got word from them yesterday that each container will cost $800, for a total of $3,200. At present, we know of no money available to put towards these fees.

If anyone would like to help with these costs, we - or rather - the hungry poor and needy on La Gonave - would greatly appreciate the help in getting these containers freed up so the contents can be distributed.

If you are led to give, our daughter Veronica is the contact/go between with the YWAM base personnel in St. Marc so her organization is the best one to send donations to for this purpose as she will wire it to YWAM St. Marc and the personnel there will give it to Haitian customs.

You can make your donations payable to “YWAM” with ‘Help Haiti’ on the memo line and send to:

Accounting Office
501 Blacktail Rd.
Lakeside, MT 59922

or you could go to http://www.ywammontana.org/helphaiti where you have the opportunity to donate via credit card.

Caleb’s Update 14 April 2010

I think I begin every update by apologizing for not writing sooner and giving my excuse why.  This time the satellite we point our dish at for internet was shut down and we had to point at a new one.  We aren’t even supposed to do this, a technician is because he’s got the necessary equipment and training.  The nearest guy is in Miami so we did it ourselves by old fashioned trial and error.  It’s a big sky.  (Just kidding about searching the whole sky.  The real reason it took so long is we gave up for days at a time.)

Now being back in touch let me give a brief synopsis of where we’re at.  Since last writing Ywam Montana sent down another guy, Johan Bester, a South African, to help with the four containers of food.  You guessed it, they will probably clear customs the day he leaves and it looks like I’ll be doing it by myself. However, the mean time has not been wasted.  

Johan and I have spent a good deal of our energy gathering and processing recon for Ywam and others, who will hopefully transition into development work. Again, when I say recon I often mean developing or transferring relationships.   Ywam has spent a lot of time on this and I think they will be rewarded if they do end up sending teams to work here.  

We spent much of last week in Port au Prince because we needed to get a report to the World Food Program asking for help with school feeding here since donations for food have sharply declined.  You don’t just go to Port au Prince, do your business, and come back.   Somehow you always get stuck there for days running errands and touring needs.  I’m not complaining, though, because I think if what we saw, all the destroyed churches and schools, gets into the right ears, God may do something good with our information.  

We did get our report to “the right people” at the WFP.  Don’t call them, they’ll call us.  This morning, though, our job was to link up with a UN helicopter, drive the delegates to a meeting with Anse Galets leaders, and participate in the meeting ourselves.  They were here to do a need survey.  Coincidence?  I don’t know.  I’m not saying I want to be the liaison to the UN, I don’t, but I do hope they’d like to give us thousands of pounds of food for our hungry kids.  And as you know, school feeding increases enrollment and in church schools especially, I think that’s a very good thing.  It’s considered one of the only ways to distribute food without creating a dependency.  That’s what we want, to feed the hungry without perpetuating their hunger.

Tomorrow we’re hoping to leave for Gran Vide on the South West coast of La Gonave, about 6-8 hours from here, and spend the next three days travelling the Western end.  The only other time I was close to there, in the town of Lanternierre, I was really impressed by how little people have in almost every sense.  I want to go back out and learn more – maybe make some more contacts for those who will later go and help or partner.  This trip, however, is only to be if Johan gets better from his stomach pain.  Whether we travel or not, please pray that he does and stays that way.

Actually, I would ask you to please pray for the health of all of the workers and missionaries here.  It is true that Western hygiene and good diet help protect us but we need more than that.  I don’t intend to be dramatic but this place is full of sickness and death, before and after the earthquake.  I hear the death wails from the hospital so frequently I almost don’t notice them.  Same with the stories, “oh so and so’s son died last night of an asthma attack.”  “Oh him? Yes, his family was all killed.”  “No, no, this was a different 3 year old who died of malnutrition.”  I could write on and on, pages maybe, but my point is just that one gets used to this stuff it’s so common.  And we who work here are only protected by the grace of God.  It’s not that we deserve more protection than our brothers here, it’s that if we are to help them we have to be healthy and strong enough.  God please give us that grace.

I hope I’m not ending on a low note but end I must.  There’s so much to pray about, think about, so much we’ve all experienced down here that I could write until not one person was still reading.  For those of you who know me, I hope to share much more in person than I will have written in my clumsy updates.  I do want to say to all of you who pray for us, for me, that I consider you absolutely as team members and that you deserve much more than what I give in writing.  I guess what I’m trying to say is that I covet your prayers and am grateful for your friendship.

HS.
Caleb

Update from Veronica

The ship finally departed Florida with the 4 containers! (2 from YWAM Montana and 2 from a mix of Calvary Spokane and NY Wesleyan District funding.) The Monarch Empress left on saturday afternoon and is scheduled to arrive at the port in St. Marc tomorrow (tues.) afternoon. It was beginning to feel like the ship would never leave. However, I know our vision is limited and God may be doing something very necessary through this delay.

YWAM Montana had sent 2 guys down, Chris and JD, who you heard from a few times while they were in Haiti. They have since returned to Montana and will be sharing with our base all that they saw and learned. One of their main purposes in going to La Gonave was to scout out possible long term opportunities our YWAM Montana base could partner with. So, Chris, JD & myself will be discussing these options with the base leadership to see if we can move forward with more development oriented work.

We sent down another staff guy from our base, Johan, this past wednesday. He will be working with Caleb on La Gonave for 3 weeks, returning on April 21st. He is helping Caleb prepare a system to receive the 4 containers worth of food (185,000 lbs). This is a large task since we haven't received such a large amount all at once before. And, God willing, the containers will make it through customs quickly so that Johan will be able to help transport the food. Since Johan is there for 3 full weeks, he has a little more time to build relationships and test avenues for long term development.

I spoke with Caleb and Johan on the phone this morning and it sounds like they are both doing well, considering the circumstances. The internet is down at the Wesleyan Mission and it doesn't sound promising that it will be working again anytime soon. So, I may be reporting for them in the mean time. Sadly, no internet also means no current pictures. I will post some soon from Chris & JD's trip, though.

Caleb & Johan said they were taking a trip soon to visit the most remote communities on La Gonave on the opposite end of the island. Caleb hasn't been to this area yet and wants to scout the need, hoping to bring some food there from the 4 containers. He was saying that the need for food across the island hasn't changed (it's still desperate).

We need some serious prayer for the containers to make it through customs without any tariffs being put on each container (this could be thousands of dollars per container). I do not believe customs tariffs have been imposed officially, but there are threats of starting tariffs again soon. And, please pray that the containers make it through customs in record time so that Caleb will have Johan's help and so we can get food to those who need it faster. According to YWAM St. Marc (who has been processing our containers), recent shipments have been taking 2 to 3 weeks to get through customs. But, I know God can change this.

Thank you so much for all of your prayers; they are so needed.

For His Glory,
Veronica

Eli update

This post was written by Eli Thede, fourteen-year-old son of missionaries Cory and Chris Thede. Eli has spent most of his life Haiti.

The earthquake that hit Haiti was caused by the movement of the geological plates. One plate goes under another and causes pressure that is released by an earthquake.

In Haiti the earthquake caused a lot of damage. When it struck buildings collapsed, and the walls of other buildings rocked so that they flung heavy bricks at anyone that was in the buildings.

Many people were doing normal day things one-second, and were in heaven, or hell the next. People that weren’t killed, but trapped were found and saved, or died of starvation and thirst. Others that were safe lost family, friends, limbs, homes, and dreams.

They had food shortages. A jail fell freeing 2,000 killers. For a month or two help will come, but then people will hear less about it, and then they will forget about it, and the proud country of Haiti will be broken and alone.

It will take years for the people to recover, and will this help the people? Some people have come to Christ and know about the hope, this is the good thing. People will be more for a God that will help them, I hope that we can help more people think that going to Jesus is the best way out, not demons, and spirits. We can help them, or we can make them feel bad about it all.

Eli