"I thank you for what I have received"

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti

Marie Sylsalve receives a layette from LWR for her newborn son McAnley.

I am sitting in the Port-au-Prince airport, just an hour and a half away from boarding a flight back to the U.S. I'm coming home a few days later than I had planned, due to a canceled flight. But the extra time here meant that yesterday, I witnessed a special gift of being present when new mothers received LWR layettes in one of the displacement camps here.

Marie Sylsalve gave birth to her son McAnley in a tent camp, just twelve days after the earthquake. She and the newborn, plus her three older children, ages 3, 4 and 7, are still living in a tent. She hasn't seen her husband since the earthquake.

Opening the kit while McAnley napped on the matress next to her, she held up each item as we explained that the kits were made by Lutherans in the U.S. who want to make sure that she and other mothers like her have the things they need to take care of their babies.

"I thank you for what I have received," she said. She didn't have any clothes for the baby, so someone in the camp gave her a baby blanket and a few outfits. She was glad to have things of her own to help her care for McAnley.

Marie has a lot of challenges ahead of her, figuring out what will be next for her young family and how she will support them. Recovery is a long way off for thousands of families like hers who, right now, are just trying to survive. But a gift of love from so far away served as a reminder that Marie is not alone.

As my time in Haiti comes to an end for now, I, too, am thankful for the gift I have received: the gift of witnessing firsthand the difference that LWR's generous supporters are making in the lives of people here, and the gift of being able to share just a few of their stories with you. 

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti 

Feb. 28 - Yesterday morning, as we were preparing to head out into the countryside for a day with one of LWR's local partner organizations, we learned of the 8.8 earthquake that had struck Chile in the early morning hours. After witnessing here the devastation that a powerful earthquake can bring, my heart goes out to the people of Chile, and they are in my prayers.

Chile is Latin America's most developed country, with a mature and highly capable civil-defense and social-service infrastructure. Haiti, on the other hand, is the least developed and poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Thus, LWR is keeping Haiti our top priority. I'm glad to know that my LWR colleagues in Latin America have already reached out to friends and colleagues in Chile to offer prayers and solidarity, and to know that we stand ready to send quilts and kits if they are needed.

Here in Haiti, the whole country is still feeling the effects of last month's earthquake, and our day yesterday out in the countryside really brought that point home. Nearly a three-hour drive away from Port-au-Prince, in a remote and hard-to-reach farming village in the mountains, we talked with families who have taken in loved ones and willingly shared what little they had, even resorting to eating the seeds they had set aside for the upcoming planting season.

We met a young man, Anice St. George, who had been a medical student in Port-au-Prince, who said he lost everything in the earthquake. "My books, all my money, even my ID card that certifies that I am a student. Everything." He made his way back home to Ivoire, where his parents are subsistence farmers struggling to live on what they can coax from the earth.

"I cried when I saw him," his father, Odige, told me. "It was like a gift from God." With no way to communicate immediately after the earthquake, they had feared the worst and imagined their son was dead. So when he walked up the mountain to his childhood home on January 13, they felt unimaginable relief.

But as happy as they were to see Anice and to welcome him back into their household, along with a nephew who was also displaced, they now worry about having enough to go around.

"It's very difficult to have enough to eat," Odige said. "We eat what we grow, because we don't have money to buy food. I'm very worried."

It's good to know that LWR's work will help families like the St. Georges -- in addition to our emergency response in the immediate wake of the earthquake, we'll be providing rural communities with seeds and tools, training them in soil and water conservation, and working with them to increase agricultural yields ... helping them cope with the immediate need of extra mouths to feed, as well as making them stronger and more resilient for the long term.

Helping Haitian Children Heal

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti.

Rosedaline Revolis, 8. (Photos by Jonathan Ernst/LWR)

She’s small, but her smile easily lights up a room. Eight-year-old Rosedaline Revolis grins as she plays the tambourine for capoeira, a martial-arts inspired dance native to Brazil that is now helping Haitian children cope with the changes in their lives since the January 12 earthquake.

The capoeira training is part of a comprehensive psychosocial program by Viva Rio, a partner organization of ACT Alliance. Kay Nou, the space formerly used as Viva Rio’s community center in Port-au-Prince’s downtrodden Bel Air neighborhood, is now a tent encampment housing about 1600 people. Children living in Kay Nou are benefiting from daily opportunities to learn creative endeavors like art, music and dancing, helping them deal with the stress of being displaced.

Following the Water

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti.

Trucks from NCA local partner Viva Rio load up with water and deliver it to residents of the Kay Nou tent encampment in the Bel Air neighborhood of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. (Photos by Jonathan Ernst/LWR/ACT Alliance)

Last week, we had the chance to spend some time with one of LWR's local partners who is delivering clean drinking water to several of the camps here in Port-au-Prince. With support from LWR through the ACT Alliance, Viva Rio, a Brazilian nonprofit that has worked in Haiti since 2006, is providing 180,000 liters of water per day to thousands of displaced people in camps in and around Port-au-Prince.

Our day started before dawn, when we met the driver of the water truck to follow him out on his first run of the day. He and his assistant make up to 7 trips a day, filling their truck's tank with water, then driving to sites where 10,000 liter water bladders have been installed to supply the encampments.

I spent a while chatting with Sainte Philippe, the driver's assistant, while we waited for the truck to fill. The sound was deafening, as dozens of diesel trucks waited their turn underneath the massive overhead spouts. Over the din, he told me that he too had lost his home in the earthquake, and since then had been living in Viva Rio's office. And that he and the other delivery truck drivers and assistants typically work 12 hour days, sunup to sundown, and haven't had a day off since the earthquake. But he said it with a smile - he wasn't complaining, he was proud.

"People need the water so much," he said. "It feels good to do this work. We have jobs, we get paid, and we are helping people."

The Unstable Earth

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti.

February 22 - I woke up early this morning, at 4:36 a.m. to be exact. That was when the earth moved. It was subtle, but enough of a tremor to rouse us from sleep. The U.S. Geological Survey reports that it was a 4.7 magnitutde aftershock, one of dozens of smaller quakes that have continued to rattle Haiti since the big one on January 12. Another tremble came just a few moments ago as I sat at my desk writing.

No damage or injuries have been reported from this morning's quakes, but they underscore one reason why so many Haitians now prefer to sleep outdoors, even if their homes are undamaged. They are afraid.

Though the likelihood of another large quake like the magnitude 7 one that hit last month happening in the coming days is small, it's not impossible. The USGS, in a statement issued last month, said aftershocks in Haiti would continue "for months, if not years," and that while their frequency will diminish over time, "damaging earthquakes will remain a threat."

People who lived through the traumatic events of January 12 and the days and weeks after, who lost friends and family and homes and livelihoods, continue to live with the stress of the unknown. Where will they live? What will they do? Will there be another big earthquake? USGS scientists say it's likely, and that Haiti's rebuilding effort "should take into account the potential for, indeed the inevitability of, future strong earthquakes."

Though the scientific community is fairly certain another big earthquake will hit Haiti, they cannot predict when - it could be soon, or it could be years away, beyond any of our lifetimes. For now, living in Haiti means living with uncertainty.

More Heavy Rains

More from Emily Sollie in Haiti.

Similkar Matilde, 40, who lost both her home and her husband in the earthquake, is now struggling to care for her six children in a makeshift tent in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, February 18, 2010. This week Haitians have experienced their first substantial rains since their January earthquake.  (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/ACT Alliance/LWR)

Feb 18 – Last night and into this morning, Port-au-Prince experienced its heaviest rainfall since the earthquake on January 12. While the rainy season isn’t supposed to start until later next month, it feels like it is getting an early start. In order to respond, ACT Alliance members are prioritizing the delivery of shelter items in hopes of reaching as many people as possible before the rains come.

Similkar Matilde, 40, who lost both her home and her husband in the earthquake, is now struggling to care for her six children. She does not know what she will do when the rainy season comes.

“I don’t have any plans, so I hope maybe I will receive a tent,” she said. “I’m very worried about the rainy season.”

Click here to read the full story.

When the Rains Come

More from Emily Sollie and LWR's assessment team in Haiti.

A woman sweeps the walk outside her residence in a tent community set up by Diakonie in downtown Jacmel, Haiti. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Lutheran World Relief)

Feb. 17 - It's early morning in Port-au-Prince, and things are coming to life here at the Lutheran World Federation office, where we are camped out on the terrace along with colleagues from other ACT member agencies. As we settled into our tents last night, a quick downpour soaked the city, and a soft rain was falling when I woke up this morning. We stayed dry in our tent, but I couldn't help but think of the many thousands of people with no shelter. Where could they go? What would they do?

It was just a foreshadowing of things to come. Quick downpours aside, the true rainy season doesn't start until the end of March. It will be critical to have people in tents or other temporary shelters by then to help maintain health, sanitation and dignity to the displaced.

And in addition to the people living in displacement camps, the rains will also pose a threat to the infrastructure. On the road between Port-au-Prince and Jacmel, there are large piles of dirt that have been pushed aside by bulldozers. After the first heavy rain, these areas will become a mess and possibly make the road impassable again.

It's a problem everyone knows is coming, and it's a race against time to be ready for the rains. To help beat the clock, we are quickly working to provide temporary shelter to those in need.

Moving On

More from Emily Sollie and LWR's assessment team in Haiti.

                  

A sign in English, French and Spanish asks for help for residents at a tent encampment in Gressier, Haiti. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Lutheran World Relief)

Feb 15 - Our time in Jacmel comes to an end today. We'll be on the road to Port-au-Prince shortly, where the two communicators in our assessment team will be working with the Lutheran World Federation and other partners in the Action by Churches Together (ACT) network. Bernard, our program colleague, will be meeting with some of LWR's local partners in Haiti to start the task of mapping out our long-term response here.

We already know that we'll be responding to the needs created by this earthquake for years to come. We know that much of our work will be based in the north, where LWR has worked for nearly 15 years and where families and communities are now struggling to provide for the many thousands of people who have flooded into their homes and their villages from Port-au-Prince and other devastated areas. We know that we will focus on our proven areas of expertise, where we can have the biggest impact: working with small farmers to increase agricultural production; supporting seed banks; ensuring access to clean water by working with communities to install water systems and hygeine facilities. And we'll be doing all of that and more through local groups and community organizations, building their skills to meet their own needs, as well as those of their displaced friends and family members.

A man uses scraps of wire to attach sticks as he builds a shelter at a tent encampment in Gressier, Haiti. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Lutheran World Relief)

I don't know what awaits us in this next phase of our travels here, but I can say that during the last several days in Jacmel, I have been moved by the resilience and positive attitudes of people I have met. The members of the Lutheran church here, many of whom lost their own homes, are working to package bags of emergency food rations to give to those who don't have enough to eat. Visitors to the Mercy Medical Team's clinic, waiting patiently for their turn with the nurses and doctors, sitting on hard chairs in the hot sun without complaint. Children in the tent village flying homemade kites with huge smiles on their faces. A Sunday morning worship service with maybe 300 people, voices raised in jubilant praise. The people here have experienced trauma and tragedy, but they are looking forward, not back.

A Day of Mourning

More from Emily Sollie and LWR's assessment team in Haiti.

A woman cradles her baby at their home in the largest tent encampment for earthquake-affected people in Jacmel, Haiti. The camp houses about 4,000 Haitians on the site of a soccer field, a situation which will become unviable as the rainy season begins at the end of March. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst/Lutheran World Relief)

Feb. 13 - Yesterday, on the one-month anniversary of the devastating earthquake here, Haitians observed a national day of mourning. Churches all over the country held special worship services to mark the day and remember those who lost their lives - some 212,000, according to the latest figures from the Government of Haiti.

At 4:53 p.m., the exact moment the eatth moved on January 12, many in the country paused for a moment of prayer or silent reflection.

Most businesses closed for the day, which threw a wrench into our team's plans for a day trip to Leogane, a town about an hour's drive from Jacmel. There was nowhere to buy gas.

At the Lutheran church here, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti president Rev. Marky Kessa held an evening remembrance service that stretched late into the night.

Though there were plenty of opportunities for Haitians to participate in official observances to mark the somber day, the reminders of what happened on January 12 are everywhere. At the exact moment of the anniversary, we were in the largest tent village here in Jacmel, where they had held a remembrance service earlier in the day. A more pressing concern for the head of the camp's residents committee was finding medical care for the 100+ pregnant women living in the camp. When we identified ourselves as Lutheran World Relief staff, her eyes lit up with recognition — she had heard about the medical clinic at the Lutheran church and hoped we could help her with her dilemma.

We made a call to find out if the Mercy Medical Team knew who she should contact about prenatal care, and soon two of the MMT volunteers showed up on site to give an impromptu lesson in delivering babies. About half a dozen women watched and listened. Although medical care is available at the camp during the day, the midwives are the only ones available to help if a woman goes into labor at night. And with 26 women in their 9th month of pregnancy, it's not unlikely that some of them will give birth in the wee hours during the coming days.
 
It was a day of remembrance that ended as a day of preparation to welcome new life into the world. 

Creating a Home

More from Emily Sollie and LWR's assessment team in Haiti.

Two residents walk through a tent community set up by Diakonie in downtown Jacmel. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst for LWR)

Feb. 11 - Today we visited with one of LWR's sister organizations in the ACT alliance, Diakonie. ACT is a global alliance of Christian aid agencies; Diakonie is an ACT member from Germany. The response to this earthquake is most certainly a global effort.

Diakonie is focusing on providing shelter, and the sea of their crisp white and blue tents looked like a kind of oasis in the midst of the destruction here in Jacmel. On the grounds of an elementary school, 113 tents are providing shelter for 226 families - two per tent. Another school site not far away houses a second, smaller encampment of 36 tents.

A boy flies a kite over the residences at a tent community set up by Diakonie in downtown Jacmel, Haiti. (Photo by Jonathan Ernst for LWR)

"The schools were a good location for us because they already had working latrines," said Teodoro Anicceto,  Diakonie's emergency coordinator in Jacmel. Diakonie is making sure the latrines stay sanitary.

For now, these tents are home for these 300 families, and all throughout the camp we saw little personal touches that show people are making the best of the situation and doing what they can to create a homey atmosphere. Some people have arranged small pebbles in a half-moon shape outside their tent's zipper, creating a little patio. Others have put plants in the ground in front of their tents. Mosten Louis, who's house was "flattened" in the quake, was able to salvage a welcome mat, which now sits outside his tent.

Little touches like this indicate the hope and resilience of people here, showing that even though they may be homeless, for now, they are not without dignity. They may not know what comes next, but for now they are creating a home where they can.

Haiti: Observations on the Ground

Emily Sollie, LWR's director for communications, arrived in Haiti Tuesday as part of a 3-person LWR team, and offers these initial observations.

Our LWR team arrived in Haiti this week, to observe and assess the situation one month after the devastating earthquake and lay the groundwork for a long term response.

Currently we are in Jacmel, on the southern coast, along with a Mercy Medical Team from the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. What a great example of the reach and scope of the Lutheran response to this disaster. While the dedicated doctors and nurses are tending to people here in the south, LWR's partners are already doing assessments in the north, where hundreds of thousands who have fled the devastation in Port-au-Prince are now settling and will continue to need assistance. A colleague from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America was here in January, working with the Lutheran World Federation and other partners in the Action by Churches Together (ACT) Alliance. The Lutherans are covering a lot of ground in Haiti.

Here in Jacmel, approximately half the buildings were damaged or destroyed, according to the Rev. Marky Kessa, president of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Haiti. People are sleeping in tents even if their homes are still standing, he said, out of fear another earthquake could strike.

Yesterday afternoon, Rev. Kessa took us downtown in Jacmel. Homes, hotels, restaurants, offices, churches - many are now reduced to piles of rubble. A school downtown collapsed in the quake, killing 120 children. Many of the buildings that remain standing now have gaping cracks and remain unsafe. 

It will be a long road to recovery here. With the miracles of modern technology, as we were driving through the ruined streets, my cell phone began to buzz. It was a message from a colleague back in Baltimore about Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' member match. Through a 50% match for members' contributions to Lutheran World Relief and the three Lutheran church body relief organizations, $3 million dollars has been raised for Haiti from Thrivent and its members. Those donations are already providing food, shelter and water to meet immediate needs, and are equipping LWR to prepare for the road ahead. What a heartening message to receive as I stood before a crumbled home, talking to its owner about how he and his family are coping. Lutheran generosity is already making a difference here in Haiti, and will be for a long time to come.

Photos by Jonathan Ernst for LWR.

Good News for Haiti

A post from LWR’s Annalise Romoser, Acting Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, on advocacy efforts that bring greater hope for Haiti’s future.

 

A camp for homeless families set up on a golf course in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, which was ravaged by a January 12 earthquake. Photo by Paul Jeffrey/ACT Alliance.

This past weekend, seven of the most powerful nations in the world made an unprecedented decision to help Haiti rebuild, not repay over $1 billon in crippling debt owed to the international community.

At a meeting on January 6, in the small arctic town of Iqaluit, leaders of what are known as the G-7 countries (Japan, Italy, Germany, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and France) announced they would lift all debt owed them by Haiti and work with multilateral institutions to ensure they also cancel Haiti’s debt. U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner played a critical role in helping the G-7 make this wise decision.

The announced debt cancellation frees millions of dollars for Haiti to use on reconstruction and long-term development of critical public services and institutions. The G-7’s decision is one of the most promising moves made toward recovery in Haiti since the January 12 earthquake, and Lutheran World Relief‘s supporters helped make this happen!

A petition addressed to Secretary Geithner was circulated prior to the G-7 meeting calling on him to push for a complete cancellation of Haiti’s onerous debt. Over 400,000 people signed this petition including hundreds of LWR supporters who responded to an LWR action alert. The magnitude of public support for debt relief in Haiti played a major role in the G-7 decision. Melinda St. Louis, Deputy Director of Jubilee USA, a faith-based coalition working for debt relief in Latin America, Asia and Africa, explains, “We are glad that global leaders responded to the sensible and caring call of the grassroots. Thousands upon thousands of people agree that at this critical time all available resources should be used for reconstruction in Haiti and not to repay international financial institutions.”

The G-7 decision means that bi-lateral debt between Haiti and the G-7 nations will be lifted. More significantly, it means G-7 leaders with crucial influence over international financial institutions will work to cancel debt owed to these institutions. This is yet to be achieved, but we are confident the G-7 leaders will make this happen.

In addition to LWR constituent pressure on the U.S. Treasury Secretary, other effective advocacy efforts are taking place to free Haiti from Debt. In January, LWR and 80 other organizations sent a letter to Geithner asking that the U.S. government support the cancellation of Haiti’s debt and work to ensure that any disaster relief assistance be provided as grants, not loans to be re-paid. And members of Congress responded to their constituents’ call by pushing for debt relief. On February 4, for example, 94 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives led by Democrat Maxine Waters and Republican Ileana Ros Lehtinen sent a strong letter to Geithner calling for “the complete cancellation of debts owed by Haiti to multilateral financial institutions…and the provision of assistance to Haiti in the form of grants so that the country does not accumulate additional debt.” Senate initiatives to ensure Haiti’s debt cancellation were also gaining momentum and creating pressure on Geithner when the G-7 announcement was made.

Powerful global leaders made a compassionate and wise decision this weekend. It is clear they did so because they heard the voice of caring Americans, responded to the pressure of committed politicians and heeded the advice of experienced relief and advocacy organizations. Amidst the unimaginable destruction and sorrow experienced by Haitians, it is difficult to know how best to help from afar. But LWR supporters have not been paralyzed by a sense of inadequacy. On the contrary, you have offered critical financial support and volunteer efforts making quilts and kits to bring comfort to the people of Haiti and to help them recover. And through your advocacy actions this past week, you have helped the country break free from crushing debt. Your advocacy means that Haiti will be better poised to care for its people — to build new schools, educate medical doctors, plant more crops, strengthen local economies and develop with an independence and dignity that burdensome debt simply would never allow for. YOU are helping Haiti rebuild and not repay.

More on Haiti’s debt history and cancellation:

Haiti is the most impoverished nation in the Western Hemisphere, with 80% of its citizens living in abject poverty. When the January 12 earthquake hit, Haiti was saddled with a $1.051 billion dollar debt. On average, the Haitian government was spending $58 million a year in debt payment, diverting precious funds away from fighting poverty. Over half of the country’s debt was owed to multi-lateral banks such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and Inter-American Development Bank. The rest consisted of bi-lateral debt owed to other countries such as Venezuela and Taiwan. Prior to January 12, it was projected that over the next decade, Haiti would pay $100 million to the IMF and World Bank alone.

Most disturbing about Haiti’s crippling debt is that 45% of it was incurred under the Duvalier dictatorships — a time when the Haitian people had almost no say in government decisions or control over how national resources were spent. Decades after the dictatorships, it is the Haitian people still paying for the damaging decisions of an undemocratic regime. In addition, Haiti’s original debt has largely been repaid. The $58 million Haiti now pays each year, represents debt service payments —essentially high interest rates that make complete debt repayment illusive.

Soon after the earthquake, Venezuela promised to forgive a considerable portion of Haiti’s debt, and in the last weeks of January advocacy efforts with Congress, the Administration and U.S. Treasury lead to a government announcement that the U.S. would work to cancel Haiti’s bi-lateral and multi-lateral debt.

Debt forgiveness means that Haiti’s own resources and contributions by foreign governments can now be used to re-build, develop and sustain a stronger, more independent Haiti. In the midst of destruction and despair, the decision of G-7 leaders to cancel Haiti’s over $1 billion debt, represents new hope for Haiti’s future.

More from Rev. Harrison

LWR's board member Matthew Harrison, Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care, returns to Haiti

Today (February 1) we made our way slowly through the refugee camp at Jacmel, south of Port-au-Prince. An area some 175 yards square, encompassed by a high concrete wall, surrounds perhaps a thousand makeshift tent shelters. At one end of the camp, smiling ten-year-old boys fly kites made from garbage (soaring to amazing heights), indicative of the resilience of the human spirit in dire crisis. All around the camp in the heart of the city, home after home is collapsed. The rubble has been pushed and swept aside so that cars can pass. Tents (Coleman is a very popular brand) pop up everywhere and fill the streets to impassibility in the evening. Most feel unsafe sleeping inside buildings, even three weeks out. A great many of the buildings left standing are not safe.

Pastor Markie Kessa’s eyes betray fatigue. “All this happened in 28 seconds…” He shakes his head as tears well. The LCMS Mercy Medical Team commenced a clinic this morning and treated some 150 patients by afternoon. We had been alerted to critical need at a local hospital and diverted our orthopedic surgeon, one emergency doctor, and a nurse to assist. There were 300 there today, including an infant with head injuries who had survived three days buried in the rubble. While her mother clutched her, not 25 yards away another large family was on death watch for their beloved mother. Children and the elderly, and all in between, occupied makeshift beds outside under tarps. There was deep appreciation for our prayers and pastoral care.

What strikes me most about today is that the Haitians here south of Port-au-Prince are overwhelmingly alone. The Canadians occupy the small airstrip and were certainly cordial and supportive of our presence. The soldiers we spoke to in the refugee camp looked exhausted. I asked, “What’s the most significant need you are dealing with?” One quipped, “The need for a shower.” They’d been on the ground nearly from the beginning of this three-week marathon. Everything about them longed for home--or at least longed for anything but this muddy, noisy, foul-smelling, makeshift camp.

We drove through the traumatized streets of Jacmel. We saw no police, no military, and no heavy equipment to remove rubble--no government presence whatsoever. A few NGO vehicles passed by now and again. As far as Jacmel is concerned, what struck me was that the Haitians are handling this virtually alone. Passing by block after demolished block, I was struck by the massive nature of this problem. If this had occurred in the U.S., the entire area would be cordoned off, surrounded by military. Building by building would be demolished. But I saw nothing of that. Individuals digging in mountains of concrete stared blankly as we passed, gloved hand hanging in fatigue by their numbed sides. Still the streets in places are bustling with activity--makeshift shelters, street carts, shops, and the omnipresent Coleman pup tents.

It’s rather obvious to me that there will be no grand solution to Haiti’s ills. There will be pockets and places that receive attention and a lot of it. There will be fantastic aid given and capacity increased. There will be confusion and chaos. There will be hundreds of thousands, yes millions, who go about their lives “falling between the cracks,” as it were, with homes neither totally leveled nor safe for continued dwelling. They’ll patch the cracks as best they can and turn to the future. In other words, Haiti will be Haiti.

I am struck again by the kindness of the Haitians--their ready greetings, their deep appreciation for a word of love, a touch, and a prayer, a blessing in Christ’s name. This graciousness has been universal thus far. I’ve seen thousands upon thousands of traumatized people. I’ve spoken to hundreds and not been put off, not sneered at, not jeered once--not a single time.

Everyone has a story. Every story is filled with significance and meaning and pain and death and lives spared. The most significant factor here in Haiti is a people who--in the midst the greatest chaos, corruption, and government dereliction in the hemisphere--manage to rise each day to a new task, a new opportunity, a new hope. And the majority of those I’ve met are Christians, know they are baptized, and say things like, “Pastor, I don’t know… I just trust in God.” Or, “I know Jesus.”

Honestly, I feel exhausted and empty tonight. We will be able, are able to help such a relatively small number of those affected. For some reason, Jesus’ parable of the shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine to seek the one, turns in my mind and has been doing so all day today. Our vocation is not to save the ninety-nine, but to seek the one. One at a time. One here and one there. One child cared for. One person nursed to health. One life saved. One hurting soul comforted with the name of Jesus. One man loved. Our vocation is not to change Haiti, or to change the whole world, or to change the economic realities with which Haitians wrestle. Our vocation is to act and make a life-changing difference one at a time. And acting one at a time, we find that over some hours, over a few days, and over a couple of weeks, the flock of those helped in the name of Jesus has grown to be surprisingly large.

Pastor Matthew Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care
Board Member, Lutheran World Relief

Some Updates

Just over two weeks after the earthquake in Haiti and our relief efforts  are in full swing.

This morning I was pleased to receive word that LWR’s second shipment of material aid will soon be on its way to Haiti. In partnership with International Relief and Development, we are sending 11,550 quilts and 1,675 health kits. These will be distributed in Leogane, a town southwest of Port-au-Prince that was badly damaged by the earthquake. Our first shipment—containing 1,500 layettes and 650 health kits—arrived safely earlier this week and is being distributed in the Port-au-Prince area.

We’ve received a great response to our call for more health kits and quilts. Our headquarters staff has spoken to many people wanting to know how to start a ministry and how to get things to us fast. All I can say is…thank you and keep it up! We still need very much need your help to meet the needs in Haiti and around the world. 

We also ask you to continue to keep Haiti in your thoughts and prayers. The media attention is quickly turning elsewhere, but LWR is not. We are planning a long-term response aimed at building better lives for people in Haiti. I cannot stress this enough—we cannot do this work without your support.

I invite you to take a moment to visit our “Prayers for Haiti”  page. There you can share a prayer for the people of Haiti or simply read the prayers of others.

Thank you for all that you are doing to support this life-saving relief effort.

Critical Issues in Haiti

More from Rev. Matthew Harrison

It's Tuesday afternoon, the 26th of January and I'm somewhere over the Caribbean en route to Miami. I'm tired. I'm filled with anxiousness as we move toward the next phase of disaster relief for Haiti. The assessment team was present with the Haitian Lutherans. The team listened. The team saw what needed to be seen. Those of us who remained working in Jimani at the hospital have a very clear understanding of the medical issues which will be faced as we move to establish a temporary hospital in Jacmel, which is the heart of the Lutheran areas in Haiti, and the heart of an area underserved.

Working with the Dominican World Mission team, we have a boat contracted to bring tents specifically requested by the partner church, including larger tents for a hospital, examination rooms, etc. A second Medical Mercy Team will hit the ground in Jacmel on Sunday. They will immediately begin treating wounds related to trauma, especially orthopedic issues. We know from our medical teams, and from the consultation provided by Jimani MMT member, Dr. William Maloney (from whose report I am borrowing liberally), that there is a four to six week period to properly treat broken bones, reset poorly treated breaks and treat infections and infected amputations in order to avoid longer term complications.

Childhood mortality from infectious disease will be on the increase do to the weakened state of many children who were already in a situation of compromised health before the quake. This will require an immediate vaccination effort. A mortality rate of as much as 30% can result in such situations. There is an immediate need for vitamin supplementation for at- risk children. Cholera, measles and meningitis outbreaks are likely and will need to be treated immediately. Acute malnutrition is likely for many, particularly due to the rapid increase in the number of orphans, loss of income, families, etc. LCMS World Relief will assist the local church in establishing food distribution in cooperation and coordination with the local church, and in proximity to the clinic(s). By the way, from all indications there is an abundance of available food in the Dominican, and every dollar saved on shipping costs buys another dollar of rice or beans while contributing to the local economies of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. And at the suggestion of President Kessa, and with the help of Ted Krey, we have secured a boat for regular food shipment from Santiago to Jacmel.

Over the period of 2-6 months there will be an overwhelming need for physical therapy, pastoral care and counseling, prosthetics, rehab, etc. The high number of amputations will require an aggressive prosthetics program. Traveling to developing countries (and this especially true of Haiti) one notices many individuals who have been handicapped by injury or birth defect, who live life begging and in squalor having little or usually no access to prosthetics and other treatment we take for granted in the U.S. Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder counseling and training will be broadly needed, particularly for Haitian Lutheran clergy, health workers, aid workers and others.

Vocational assistance and housing will be long-term issues. It remains to be seen whether and what housing solutions come to the fore. There will no doubt be a large hodgepodge of housing solutions, most driven by the ingenuity and need of locals, but likely with relatively few dwellings being built with materials and methods meant to withstand future quakes. I well recall tent cities in many areas affected by the great Asian Tsunami, lasted for years. Micro-loan programs have been operated by LWR, LCMS World Relief and many partners for decades, and will be especially necessary in this situation. We must make every effort to train, serve and encourage talented and eager Haitians (of which, there is no shortage). They themselves are now, and will be the key force behind this effort at recovery. And these very talented individuals will arise from unlikely and very surprising places. It is they who hold the key to the future recovery and long-term improvement in their own country. LWR health kits and quilts, and later, school kits, will be vital treasures for months and months to come.

I noticed something while studying Jesus' actions to assist those in need. When the text uses the great word for "compassion" (splachnizesthai) of Jesus, his concern for the needy never stops at mere empathy. Jesus always acts. He never fails to act. So shall American Lutherans. Help us come alongside our old and soon to be new Haitian friends. Thrivent is offering matching dollars for gifts to LCMS World Relief, and to LWR. The Lutheran Foundation in St. Louis is now matching gifts to LCMS World Relief up to a total of $750,000!

Pastor Matthew Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care
Board Member, LWR

Let us Pray

Along with your gifts and requests to help the people of Haiti, many of you have sent along beautiful prayers. I’m pleased to announce that LWR has created a forum for you and others to share your prayers for the people of Haiti.

Take a moment to post a prayer if you feel so moved or read the prayers that others have posted.

I cannot say this enough (so I will say it again)—thank you, thank you, thank you for your overwhelming support, generosity and compassion in the face of this devastating disaster.

Leave it to the New Yorker

In an earlier post I described briefly the chaos that ensued on I believe, the 23rd of January at the hospital compound in Jimani, when a significant tremor struck the area. 1500 patients and family members, doctors, nurses, children, locals, expatriates all ran for their lives and out of the buildings. One poor man jumped from the second story of the large orphanage turned to hospital. His leg had been amputated, but now his pelvis was fractured.

Rev. Ted Krey, who had been ministering to these people one by one for days (along with his incredibly capable team), said, "Just walk among the people and calm them." We went about praying, sitting, talking, singing, reassuring ­ being present. After about 20 minutes a man stood up and began to lead the people in Creole hymns. The African style singing was a stark faith-filled contrast and antidote to the terror, weeping and fright now ebbing. Another fifteen minute or so later, a man stood from the second floor balcony with a bullhorn. He began shouting, telling the people to have courage, it is the end of the world. While I'd be hard pressed to reject the content of his eschatology ("When all these things begin to take place, look up for your redemption draweth nigh."), his preaching did anything but calm the crowd. And calm was what was needed as all the patients now needed to be re-triaged, having pulled loose bandages, I.V.s, damaged treated wounds, etc., scrambling out of the building.

Pastor Ted immediately suggested we begin handing out the meals to calm the crowd. It worked. One of the first one to whom I offered the Styrofoam container was an older Haitian man, stout with a majestic countenance. He sat next to his relatives more seriously hurt than himself, head in hand, weeping. As I extended the tray to him, he shook his head, "no." The crowd was completely calm again when a man (whether the same as the earlier one I do not know) climbed on top of a trailer, bullhorn in hand and began to try to stir up the crowd again. Neither do I know if he was intent on the same eschatological rant. In any case, the wheel-chaired Haitian immediately shouted to the young stirrer in Creole. Not knowing a lick of Creole, I'll offer a conjectured translation: "Sit down and shut up you fool! These people don't need this now!" His deep authoritative voice immediately accomplished its goal.

After all the meals had gone out, and the truck had run to get more, I sat on the sand in front of his wheel chair. I apologized, speaking only the few words of Spanish and French I know (If only I'd paid more attention to my French speaking Grandmother when she was alive), telling him I could not converse in those languages (much less Creole). He responded in crystal clear English. "No problem, we can speak in English." My eyes opened wide and a smile marked my face.

"Where did you learn such good English?"

"I live in New York, I was just down here vacationing, visiting my relatives."

"Some vacation," I responded! We had a nice chat about life, about God, about family. He hoped he and his injured wife (I believe) would leave for home (Long Island) the next day.

Even in the chaos of international disaster, it takes a New Yorker to get the job done. "Now shut up and sit down!"

The larger point is that the Haitians themselves and their Dominican neighbors will be the most significant leaders in responding to this disaster. And any long term and lasting improvement of lives which happen from the capacity built by accompanying, by coming along side the thousands upon thousands of still healthy, bright, effective Haitians who know their culture, and will be the key to a better future.

That's what LWR is about.

Pastor Matthew Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care Board Member, LWR

Thank You

More from the Rev. Matthew Harrison in the Dominican Republic

Monday, January 25 -- The team of LCMS docs just debriefed, packed themselves into two vans here in Jimani, Dominican Republic, and headed off on the six hour trip to the capital and back home. What an amazing group!

Not a half hour ago, we were all together on the back porch of the large home, which has been the erstwhile dorm for medical teams. The stories of who was with us, how they were assembled within hours, and then put on the ground is amazing. The docs and nurses where high-level professionals, university instructors, emergency room doctors, and nurses--experts in numerous disciplines. As we talked, they were thankful, traumatized, joyous, exhausted, and emotional. They expressed profound struggle in dealing with the carnage they had just walked into; and yet at the same time, profound faith in Jesus.

As the first tremor struck last night, and as the LCMS missionaries delivered trucks full of meals, I was asked to guard the load until the word was given to disperse the precious cargo. I leaned against the tailgate, and a tall, mustached gentleman with an easy southern accent struck up a conversation. He was in his scrubs watching the chaos of 1500 Haitians who not ten minutes earlier had scrambled for their lives out of the orphanage converted to a hospital.

"Where ya from?" I asked.

"Georgia."

"Who ya with," I continued.

"I'm with a group called the LCMS. I never even knew they existed, had no idea what they did, but a friend of mine called and asked me to go. I've never been so impressed with a group of people in my life."

"That's great to hear," I said. "I'm with the LCMS too."

One of the seasoned emergency room docs struggled to get hold of what she'd just seen. She wept as she recounted the story of stepping off the bus late at night this past Tuesday and jumping into the operating room. Her first patient was a young woman who lay bleeding to death on the floor. The team worked and tried everything, but life was quickly ebbing. The woman had lost her entire family. "What should I say to her?" the doc asked others in the room? "Tell her it's o.k. . . . to go be with her family." She did so.
"Pastor, I don¹t know how to cope with this," she told me. I helped her begin to process the matter in the context of the cross of Jesus. "Pastor, I¹m going back home now. The people I work with will not understand this. Patients where I work complain about everything. I just treated a woman who had her arm guillotined with nothing but Tylenol as pain reliever, and she was smiling at me, thanking me. I couldn't believe it. These people have lost everything, and they are so thankful."

As I was writing this, a doctor just appeared behind the building where I am sitting, moaning in anguish and pain about what he'd just experienced. One of our pastors was with him. He's just come from Port au Prince, is exhausted, overwhelmed, hasn't slept in days. The volume of trauma is infinite. He feels great need to return.

In the midst of all this, the Haitians have shown amazing faith, regularly singing hymns to Jesus as they huddle with their lone surviving child or a new friend on the ground or in the next bed over.

O blessed Jesus, have mercy upon your people. Cause this affliction to cease. Comfort the dying, the sick, and the traumatized. Uphold the faith, hearts, and hands of all those many who are were unharmed but now are assisting the needy, and also those who have come as angels of mercy. Amen.

No mind can comprehend this. "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!" (Rom. 11:33).

We can only face tomorrow with the knowledge that the outpouring of love and blessing in the wake of this disaster is and will be one of the most phenomenal acts of mercy in our time together on this earth.

Pastor Matthew Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care
Board Member, LWR

Rev. Matthew. Harrison submits his second LWR post.

I’ve never been so proud and humbled to be a member of the LCMS. When the LCMS assessment team arrived in Jimani on the southern Dominican/Haiti border, it was late. It was early morning before we got into bed for a very short night of sleep. Rev. Ted Krey, Rev. Walter, and Danelle Putnam greeted us with joy, laboring under the fatigue masked by adrenalin--just enough to sustain for days on end with little or no sleep. The LCMS WM team in the Dominican is incredible in any case, but in the past week they’ve shone with a compassion and determination under the most severe trials. We are at a hospital, which has performed some 500 major surgeries in the past four days, victims helicoptered in from Haiti. Ted Krey and his team have been a force for mercy and the Gospel, with real compassion.

Ted immediately figured out the logistics and delivery necessities of food and water for all patients and their families--1500 of them at distribution time. (That’s finding a need and filling it!). The Civil Defense Corps (a Dominican, mostly voluntary, organization) quickly assembled cooking facilities in the nearby town. Daily, Pastor Krey personally oversees and himself distributes water to everyone at every meal, and personally assists in the distribution of meals to all. Ready, young Haitians bunch behind the truck to disperse the Styrofoam containers of rice, beans, spaghetti, etc. in stacks of five or six. Between meals, Krey and his staff are tending to a hundred issues, questions, pastoral care concerns. In down time, they are speaking with people about Christ and bearing witness graciously through it all, consoling consciences wounded and sorrowful and hurting over mistakes and tensions and failings and weaknesses so prevalent in time of catastrophe. Make no mistake, food and water to victims of this tragedy are a critical, life-and-death issue. The initial mortality rate was high and fell dramatically when the LCMS medical team hit the ground with Pastor Krey at their side, though pastoral tasks have also included the purchase of caskets and transport of the deceased to the morgue and cemetery.

Ted moves through the crowds, completely understated, black collar with tab. He kneels, converses in fluent Spanish, and consoles, answers questions, finds aid, and solves problems. Last night, when a tremor threw everything into chaos, Ted was on the spot as 1500 patients and their families emptied the buildings. It’s vital for clergy to wear clericals in such times. The cross dangling from my neck has been the source of consolation, grasped in hands by those who do not understand my prayers to Jesus for them, yet understood fully. A protestant pastor in street clothes pulled me aside as I worked through the crowd alongside Ted and Walter. “Hey! I’m a ____ pastor! If you need some help, come and get me.” A well meaning and pious Christian to be sure, and God bless him for coming . . . but he was quickly lost in the crowd, and to me.

This is an amazing example of fidelity in word and deed in the midst of a chaotic, often crazy situation with the broadest representation of faiths--Christians and non-Christians (including the emergency workers). It is once again the strongest affirmation that there is no substitute for Lutheran accompaniment. Be present, act, love, serve. That’s the Jesus route in time of disaster.

Give generously. There is a whole lot of accompaniment coming.

LCMS.org, LWR.org

Matt Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care
LWR Board Member

On the Ground

The Rev. Matthew Harrison, Executive Director of LCMS World Relief and Human Care and a member of LWR's board of directors, is on the ground working with earthquake survivors, and offers this report and his reflections.

John, Friends of LWR, Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Already last Tuesday a team of a dozen triage and emergency medical specialists hit the ground here in Jimani, in the far southwest Dominican. This LCMS World Relief and Human Care medical mercy team arrived late in the evening after a six hour drive from Santa Domingo. A team of helicopters, financed by a generous individual, had been and continues to fly in victims of the quake. Port au Prince is some 50 miles distant, across the Haitian Border.

I write this morning at 8:30 a.m. from the veranda of a large vacant home, which now houses forty or fifty medical professionals, including the LCMS team. The hospital runs on two shifts, and performs about 40 surgeries per shift. About one third of the procedures have been amputations. Large relief agencies are beginning to arrive on the scene from Puerto Rico and other places, and the LCMS team will exit later today. It's amazing how God times things. They came at a moment of burgeoning numbers of casualties arriving, and fatalities taking place at a very high rate. For two critical nights the LCMS team staffed much of and ran the operation.

I am in awe of these faithful folks. As I remained in Jimani, an assessment team from the LCMS entered Haiti with LCMS partners who met us at the border, and proceeded to Jacmel and Port au Prince. Seasoned disaster man Glenn Merritt, in Jacmel as I write, expressed his thoughts briefly but ominously: "I have seen things today that no person should ever have to see."

Last night was traumatic for the 1500 Haitians here at the medical compound. Around 6:00 p.m. a tremor shook the area. Everyone fled for their lives into the yard in front of the buildings. There was widespread mourning and weeping, fear in the eyes of little children, old men looking skyward and shaking their heads. All the patients had to be re-triaged because they had pulled the I.V.s from their arms. Amputees crawled out of a makeshift recovery ward in an open-air chapel. It was pandemonium.

LCMS Missionary Ted Krey (nephew of LWR board member Phil Krey), quickly urged all of us clergy to make our way among the large crowd, comforting and praying with the people. The three languages among the people are Creole, French and Spanish. I came upon a little girl and her mother. The child was but 5 or so, and had a pelvic body cast which extended down both legs, as well as an arm cast. She was terrified. I reached down to touch here and bless her in the name of Jesus (it's so important to have one's clericals and crucifix on), and she grabbed my hand, and pulled on my arm, pleading with me. I sat with her for twenty minutes. I prayed, I tried to speak comfort to her and her mother. I sang 'I am Jesus Little Lamb' and her breathing slowed.

Finally Brazilian Missionary Pastor Walter chanced by in the melee. "Walter, what does she want." "She is asking if you have some way to take her and her mother away from here." I did not. But she had been cared for, her life spared. Many others have not been so fortunate. Thankfully there has as yet been little or no incidence of Typhoid or other infectious diseases. But as I've talked with the surgeons in-between shifts, there has been great concern over secondary infections, particularly with amputees, and the inevitable absence of physical therapy and prosthetics, much less care in the wake of the trauma which will accompany these dear people for the rest of their days.

As I finish the helicopters are up again, there are reports of completely insufficient aid into Jacmal (where most of our Lutherans live). Water of course is a critical issue after just 2 or three days, food after two weeks. Those who have been on the ground here repeatedly express how each day the chaos has become a little more controlled, and that reality is going on throughout Haiti.

It will be vital for LWR for carry out its invaluable mission, particularly in the area of its forte, material goods (school kits, medical kits) as the crisis enters its intermediate phase. And LWR's tremendous capacity for building and assisting communities in obtaining economic capacity and security long term, will be a vital mission for year to come.

Last week Pat Robertson suggested that Haiti had some deep dark sin in its past, which brought this curse. In God's inverted, cruciform economy, where a sinless Son of God suffers for the unrighteous, I rather think this is God's shaking of us sinners in the U.S., for ignoring our impoverished brothers and sisters, also brothers and sisters in the faith in Haiti. Lord have mercy.

Matt Harrison, Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care; Board Member, LWR

No Small Act

Our supporters continue to bless us with prayers and stories about how they are putting their faith into action on behalf of the people of Haiti.

I share the following story as a reminder that there are no “small” acts of compassion. And no small “actors.”

This is Mario Carmona. He’s nine years old and from Minnesota. Being a child (and thus, unemployed, as children tend to be) Mario didn’t have much himself to give to the people of Haiti. But he did have a voice and he decided to use it.

Carrying a simple plastic ice cream bucket, Mario began to go door-to-door, asking his neighbors to give what they could to help the people of Haiti. When he had visited all his neighbors, he decided to talk to people at his church.Once he’d talked to his church, he talked to his school principal about raising money for the people of Haiti. Mario’s bucket filled quickly.

Mario’s story inspires me, but not only because of his apparent compassion and generosity. Instead of feeling disempowered or disconnected, as we can often come to feel in times of crisis, this young man decided to take action, to find his own unique way to help and in doing so he empowered others to join him.

We thank Mario and everyone who has given a gift to Lutheran World Relief in support of the people of Haiti. Please know that your gifts, big and small, are helping to sustain lives and inspire hope through Haiti’s darkest days.

Quilt and Kit Partners Joiningin Support of Haiti

The response to the January 12 earthquake in Haiti has been astonishing, with prayers and gifts reaching LWR and the people in Haiti who face so much suffering. Yesterday, one of Lutheran World Relief’s quilt and kit partners joined this effort as well.

LWR had planned to send $1 million worth of quilts and kits to those in need in Sierra Leone. The materials were to be distributed to people in need in one of the poorest countries in the world.

Following the devastating earthquake in Haiti and the mounting needs there, LWR contacted its partner, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Sierra Leone (ELCSL), and asked to reduce this shipment by half. LWR explained the critical need to provide immediate support to the people of Haiti, and offered to send more materials to ELCSL at a later time, when its stocks are replenished.

While an organization in a similar situation might express reservations – the needs in Sierra Leone are also great – the ELCSL responded with gratitude. The Bishop of the ELCSL, Reverend Thomas J. Barnett, wrote that LWR’s request “creates an opportunity and fulfills for us a burning desire to give a helping hand to the people of Haiti in this, their hour of greatest need.”

ELCSL’s generosity translates to more than 30,000 quilts and 6,500 health kits for people affected by the earthquake. More than 3,000 school kits will also be provided once education is re-established in Haiti.

ELCSL’s act of giving and prayerful support is exemplary of the global Lutheran response to provide comfort and save the lives of the people in Haiti affected by the earthquake.

Experience at the Epicenter

As aftershocks continue to rock the traumatized island-nation of Haiti, LWR continues steadily to coordinate the best and wisest response. We are blessed with 65 years of experience which makes a difference when you’re dealing with a disaster. Our institutional memory, accrued expertise and depth of technical networks have advised us through this utterly devastating crisis.

More and more stories of LWR’s reputation and legacy of putting faith into action come to my attention. Listen to a Jarrod Garland, whom I met while preaching this weekend at a dynamically compassionate congregation, King of Kings Lutheran Church in Omaha, Nebraska.



Every resource we have available to us, including our experience, is being implemented as we channel Lutheran relief efforts to rebuild this desperate place, starting at the epicenter of human suffering.

Reaching Out

Your response to the devastating earthquake in Haiti has been phenomenal. Thank you for the prayers you’ve sent both for those affected and for our staff working on the ground to help. Thank you also for making use of the various ways to give so that we can continue the work to bring water, food, and shelter to the people of Haiti.

Now it is time to reach out. Our partners at Lutheran World Federation (LWF) have been working on the ground to construct a clearer picture of the needs on the ground. What they are seeing is that while things are bad in the city of Port-au-Prince, there is also extensive damage to surrounding rural areas.

Right now most of the relief effort in Haiti is concentrated in Port-au-Prince and few, if any, relief organizations are working to attend to the needs of rural communities in the aftermath of the earthquake. Work with LWF and other partners, LWR will reach out to communities in the surrounding areas, who are just as severely affected as their urban counterparts.

These “last mile” communities were already blighted by poverty, hunger, and lack of opportunity. This disaster makes these communities so much more vulnerable and we are working hard to reach them.

I am also heartened to report that tomorrow, along with our partners at Church World Service, we will be sending a shipment of material aid to Haiti. In this shipment we’re including health kits and layettes, both items that will promote sanitation and good health in the midst of this crisis. The needs on the ground are so great that we’d like to send another shipment of quilts and health kits soon, but to do this we need your help.

Our stock of health kits is critically low. With so many homeless and in need, for every health kit we give, there are many more families who need one. Please consider donating health kits to LWR so that we can continue to meet needs in Haiti and around the world.
Please continue to keep the people of Haiti in your prayers and please continue to support the work of LWR and its partners around the world as we work to reach “the least of these” with your gifts of love and compassion.

Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria, courtesy www.alertnet.org.

Loving Care from Omaha

I had the great fortune to visit the King of Kings congregation in Omaha, Nebraska, this weekend – what a wonderful, globally minded, loving congregation. The visit had been planned for a long while, and, given the events of this week, I frankly wondered if perhaps I ought to cancel. But I’m so glad I went. In the midst of such a difficult time, such a tumultuous and painful week, it did my soul good to witness the loving care and generosity of God’s children in this congregation.




Thank you, King of Kings, for your love offering to help the people of Haiti. Thank you for being among the first to donate through our new text-to-give service. Thank you for ministering to me, even as we at LWR work to minister to those in such desperate need in Haiti.
Soon I’ll be sharing some video clips of a few members of King of Kings that I met and spoke with this weekend. In the meantime, I invite you to follow the link below to listen to the message I shared with them on Sunday morning.

http://www.kingofkingsomaha.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=47824

Prayerful Support

Since LWR began responding to the earthquake in Haiti, we have received an overwhelming number of thoughts and prayers, both for the people of Haiti and for LWR as we work to respond.

This disaster in particular has struck a chord within many hearts, perhaps because the existence of such abject poverty that has persisted in Haiti for centuries is tragic enough. To have such utter and complete destruction heaped on top of it seems unbearable.

I’d like to share just a few of the many thoughts and prayers that our friends are sharing with us. If you have any words to share, please feel free to leave a note in the comments. We thank you for all your prayers. Please know that we are working hard to get to people with life-saving relief.

“For Haiti earthquake - May God move many to help. Lord in your mercy hear our prayers for the people in Haiti and the rescue workers.”

“May God be with all those who are suffering in Haiti and to those who are helping those in need.”

“Thank you LWR for all that you do in Jesus Name to help the souls of Haiti.”

Lutherans Around the World Respond to Haiti

Eberhard Hitzler, Executive Director of LWF's Division for World Service

“You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay O my God.” Psalm 40:11

Thankfully, US Lutherans are not delaying in their concern and care for the people of Haiti. LWR’s phone is ringing, the mailbox is filling and the web site is receiving record hits. Why? Because all of us are a part of the answer to the prayers of millions of Haitians whose needs are so great. We cannot delay our support and action.

I am thrilled to hear that our partners the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS) find themselves in similar situations.

I am thankful that another of our core partners—Lutheran World Federation (LWF) which has not delayed as they begin to stage a massive response to the situation in Haiti. I just got off the phone with Eberhard Hitzler, Lutheran World Federation’s (LWF) Executive Director for World Service. (You might recognize Eberhard’s name because he frequently reads and comments on my blog. He is a dear friend.)

I always come away enriched, challenged and motivated from my conversations with Eberhard, but, today I was particularly struck by one of Eberhard’s comments. He said, “The earthquake in Haiti was a devastating event. But, for many of those living in Haiti the situation before the earthquake was also horrible. Maybe now we can all assist the Haitian people in rebuilding a country that becomes better than it has ever been.”

It is clear that the rescue, recovery and rebuilding efforts in Haiti will be vast. LWF is gearing up for a massive operation that will require significant financial resources. Before we hung up, Eberhard offered one final call to Lutherans around the world: “When it comes to the earthquake in Haiti—think beyond this moment. We must view this and work with the long-term perspective in mind.”

Sobering thoughts of Haiti

Rescuers treat an injured child. REUTERS/Reuters TV, courtesy www.alertnet.org.

You have surely seen the iconic image on the news—the now dilapidated presidential palace in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital city.

If the 7.0 magnitude earthquake destroyed one of the country’s sturdiest buildings, imagine what it has done to the humble homes in which the majority of Haitians reside. Imagine the terror the people must have felt as the earth moved beneath them and kept moving in intervals throughout the night and the next morning. Imagine the suffering this impoverished country must now feel, surrounded by destruction and despair.

Thousands are feared dead, thousands more are injured, and many sleep outside with no food or water because they have no place else to go.

Please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers and help LWR respond with life-saving relief.

Your compassion means so much in these difficult times.