#fermathe

Les bandits armés continuent de semer le deuil au sein des communautés, notamment à Fermathe, Kenscoff. Des individus circulant à moto ont ouvert le feu et abattu au moins trois citoyens, dont un commerçant et un avocat. La fusillade, survenue mardi soir dans la localité de Fermathe, a été confirmée par le CASEC de la 1ère section de Nouvelle Touraine, Alté Adrien, qui précise que les assaillants…

La rareté de carburant que connait le pays depuis quelques temps prend la planification de la population en otage. Cette situation affecte énormément les gens qui habitent à Laboule, à Thomassin, à Fermathe ou encore un peu plus haut, qui sont obligés d’emprunter la route de Kenscoff pour se rendre au moins à Pétion-ville. Ce vendredi matin, une nouvelle fois, il y a eu un embouteillage…

Cette foule immense qui déferle sur la route de Delmas actuellement est innombrable. Ici le macadam est multicolore.

Des manifestants de différents âges et catégories mettant le cap sur Pétion-Ville réclament à cor et à cri la démission d’un Jovenel Moïse en chute libre depuis des mois pour ses promesses non tenues, son implication présumée dans des actes de corruption dont le vaste stratagème de…

Today’s post is a 2nd installment in my blogs chronicling my recent trip to Haiti through the Haitian Timoun Foundation. 

The first stop on our Haitian adventure was to the Wings of Hope ministry in Fermathe, Haiti. Fermathe is a town in the mountains overlooking Port-au-Prince, the capital city. The temperature was around 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and the views of the city and the Port were breathtaking.

Wings of Hope is a part of the St. Joseph Family, which celebrated its 30th anniversary on the day of our arrival.  St. Joseph Family was started as a home for boys without a proper home. They grew into a family with chores, education, life skills, and love. Each night the family ends the day with affirmations of each other. The story goes that one night the boys learned of a ministry for disabled children that was going to close their doors. The St. Joseph Family (and many other ministries in Haiti) were each asked to take in 1 or 2 children from this ministry. The boys of St. Joseph understood the value of family, and they couldn’t bear to think of these children being separated. The boys of St. Joe’s voted to take on this ministry, which is Wings of Hope.

Sunday Worship and 30th Anniversary Celebration with Wings of Hope and the St. Joseph’s Family.

Wings of Hope had a facility in Fermathe which was destroyed by the Earthquake in 2010. For a week all of the children and adults in the St. Joe’s family, almost 80 in all, lived in the 2 small rooms that survived. The leadership at Wings of Hope worked quickly to find a suitable new home for their family, and 2 houses appeared less than a 1/2 mile away.

The new home of Wings of Hope is a multi-layer house that is hardly acceptable for a family with 50% of the members in wheelchairs. The ramps that were built on top of the stairs were difficult for me to navigate as a 33 year old with good legs. However, the staff are dedicated to giving the children education, physical therapy, and time together, so they maneuver the children and their wheelchairs up and down the stairs (ramps) every day.

It is important to note why these children are living at Wings of Hope. Ancient voodoo culture says that different abilities are a manifestation of evil (not too different from thinking in 1st century Israel. See Jesus’ response in John 9.). So when a child is born with an exceptionality families may hide the child and not seek resources, may give them to the State or seek another person to care for them. In a country with 80% unemployment, having a child who can not ever care for themselves or contribute financially is an excruciating hardship on families. Some of the children have been left outside of the Wings of Hope grounds because it is known to be a safe place for children with differing abilities. I spent the morning holding the hand of a young man named BJ. BJ stands for Baby Jesus, because he was left at Wings of Hope at Christmastime, and the Family saw BJ as their Christmas gift.

BJ – “Baby Jesus”

Some of the staff members at Wings of Hope were once family members who have grown up and are now employed there, like Vivian who is deaf but provides excellent care for the children. The staff do a tremendous job with these children. Not only do they provide for their basic needs like food, water, and cleanliness, but everyone at Wings of Hope knows that they are a part of a family. Each day the children are separated into groups where they rotate through physical therapy, school, and 2 other stations.(It’s been a week and my memory is going already!) The children have responsibilities, too. See the picture below and meet Carline. Carline’s job was to take all of the plates and spoons down to be washed. She was frustrated at Pastor Nathan who was taking too long as he fed Delhom. :)

Nicole and Carline

After breakfast on Sunday morning we were able to go to the house and help to feed breakfast, talk with the children, and assist wherever needed. But soon we were all joining together outside for a very special 30th anniversary worship celebration! More about worship in my next post…