(September 28, 2011)
- We have a new family member at the Gift of God Orphanage!
His name is Moses Joey. He is 6 years-old and came to the
orphanage on Friday, September 16th. He goes by his middle name, and
Joey is the first new child that has joined the FMI orphanage in nearly 3
years. Our doors have been “closed” to taking any more children, as
feeding and caring for some 50 children month-in and month-out requires a
substantial amount of financial resources and only 20 of our children
currently have sponsors.
Joey’s birth mother did not want him when he was born and she
left him in a garbage heap to die. A Haitian couple found the infant and
took him into their home, but did not adopt him as their own. They were
recently granted visas to the United States, but because Joey was not
their legal child, they could not get a passport and visa for him. They
elected to leave Joey behind in Haiti and ventured off to the US without
him.
Our hearts were broken for Joey, and although we have had to
turn away countless numbers of children in the past three years, many
with life stories just as tragic as Joey’s, we were compelled to take
him into our orphanage family.
God has a plan for Joey. A very significant part of that plan is
that Joey never before heard about Jesus. He is already learning about
God’s great love for him and of the Savior Jesus Christ.
Our ministry is Faith Missions. Our name is our reminder that we are called to walk by faith and not by sight. Sight would tell us that we do not have the financial resources to take him in. Sight would tell us to wait until we do, but faith is leaning on God for provision for Joey, and every single child in our care.
Can you help care for Joey? Can you sponsor one of our children? Visit the Child Sponsorship page to learn more about our children and how you can help meet their needs.
(August 14, 2011) - A mission team from the Atlanta area just spent an amazing week ministering to the children in the orphanage. When you minister to the needs of orphans in their distress, according to James 1:27, it is important to take note of the plight of the fatherless. One might look at our children and see that they are not starving, they have clothes on their backs, they smile and laugh and they have a place to stay. But there is another level of distress in the life of an orphan, that in which the child must be built up in the knowledge of who they are in Christ. The enemy of our souls will always try to tear down and destroy, he will assault at the emotional level as well as the spiritual and physical. It is important that our children know that they are children of the KING!
This team
spent the week ministering the truth of Zephaniah 3:17 to our children.
Through teaching, memorization, object lessons and crafts, the children
received encouragement in the fact that the Lord takes great delight in
them.
The
team put a fresh coat of paint on the outside of the orphanage
buildings, build a front porch for Smith & Katias’ little wooden
house, ran water & electrical lines to install a washing machine for
Katia, and hosted a “movie night” for our kids complete with popcorn, a
projector and videos of “Tom & Jerry.” It was the first time our
kids have had a movie night like that!
A trip to the Historic National Park and lunch one
day; a “beach day” complete with 2 small inflatable pools, beach balls,
decorations, tons of water balloons and a bowl of fresh fruit for every
child; and the teams blessing to our children with ice cream were just
some of the things the kids will never forget! Ice cream by the way, is
an extremely rare treat for our kids, this was just the 3rd time they’ve
had it in nearly 3 years.
These are some of the types of ministry mission
teams can share with our children. The ministry to the orphan includes
the vital element of demonstrating the love of God to them through
people just like you – of building them up so that they know they are
children of the King of Kings!
(June 28, 2011) - A graduation ceremony was held at the orphanage for six graduating kindergarten students. Click here to see photos.
(June 27, 2011)
- So much is happening in our ministry that at times these web-based
updates fall to the back-burner, and rarely make it to the front burner!
We want you to know that your partnership in this ministry to the
orphan is deeply appreciated. For more timely updates on our work in
Haiti please drop us an email with your contact information and we will
include you on our monthly e-newsletter or paper version via the US
postal service, whichever you prefer!
The children are doing well. The school year just
finished up and the kids are looking forward to a break from their
studies. There is not much for children to do in Haiti, so treks
outside the orphanage compound are rare. This month a short-term
mission team took the children on an outing one day to the National
Historic Park where they enjoyed a lunch and a soda! The short-term
mission team component to the ministries of FMI is vital in the lives of
our children. Teams this summer are teaching the older children how to
build bunk beds, how to sew, and next month a welding instructor from
Nebraska will begin to teach the older boys how to weld.
The children are growing up and it is so critical
that we have a plan in place for their futures. RIght now the next phase
in that plan is to build a second story on one of our buildings. This
will create 3 mini-apartments, one for our young men, one for the young
women, and one in the middle for our full-time house parents.
Transitioning in life and equipping these children for their futures
is all a part of our ministry to the orphan...children who may have lost
one or both parents in the natural realm, but who do have a heavenly
Father who calls them His own!
Our greatest need right now is the second story
addition. We are frugal with the resources entrusted to us and
incorporate volunteer help as much as possible. The project will
encompass 648 square feet at a cost of just $16.98 per square foot.
Please click the "Donate" button on the right side of this page and
sponsor one square foot in this project. Thank you so much!
Fundraiser for Haiti Orphanage -
Join us on Sunday, April 17, 2011 for "Laps 4 Haiti" from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. at Concordia Jr./Sr. High School Football Field, 156th & Fort Streets, Omaha.
The students from the marketing class at Concordia High have organized a fundraising event for the Gift of God Orphanage in Haiti.
Participants will walk or run around the football field. After each lap, a donation will be collected. There will be lots of great family activities: face painting, yard golf, horse shoes, pie eating contest, bounce houses and much more.
The first 50 people to register receive a free t-shirt.
The students have built a great website for the event: laps4haiti.org
(March 27, 2011)
- Have you ever been to Haiti?
One of the largest parts of the ministries of Faith Missions International is leading short-term mission teams to our orphanage in Haiti. Just a little more than 90 minutes from Florida and you’re on the runway in Port au Prince! From there, once you clear immigration and customs it’s just 30 minutes or so to our orphanage and guesthouse. The children in the Gift of God Orphanage love to meet new missionaries and are in need of the ministry that short-term mission teams bring to them.
We lead and host teams from individual churches, and we welcome people to join our open teams which generally go for a week-end overview trip departing the states on a Friday and returning on Monday. We also host week-long mission trips; generally departing the states on a Saturday and returning the following Friday.
There is always work to be done from cleaning, to painting, to building benches and bunk-beds, to more in depth building programs. Teams can help prepare meals and help with clean-up. The children love for people to come and teach them English, to bring crafts and games, to play sports, to teach new songs, dance, all the fun kind of stuff that kids everywhere enjoy. These are the orphaned, the fatherless – children in need of not only projects, but of the real life connection with those who will go to bless and encourage them!
Contact our office at 402-391-0657 or email dan@fmisent.org for more information on our mission trips and how you might go to HAITI!
(February 28, 2011)
- Have you ever met someone who you can just tell by listening to them that their hearts are real and their lives are committed to Jesus Christ no matter what? The Haitian director at the orphanage and his wife are like that. They're the kind of people that you meet and you like right off the bat!
This precious couple have been sleeping in a tent since the earthquake last year. They have been so committed to first and foremost seeing to the needs of the children in their care that even now — 6 months after the children moved into new permanent housing — they continue to sleep outside their home, in a tattered tent.
They have been patient. They have not asked for a decent place to sleep, and they have even expressed how thankful they are to have a tent to sleep in. While they do have a house that withstood the earthquake, it is a typical Haitian city -type dwelling with a concrete roof. The directors, like thousands of other Haitian people, find it impossible to try and sleep in that kind of structure.
After witnessing firsthand the loss of life and limb, the thousands of people trapped inside those kinds of structures when the earthquake hit, and the delay of rescue operations for those people, it is no wonder one couldn't sleep at night.
Next month we will embark on a building project for the directors. A small room will be built in their backyard to provide sleeping quarters for them. Finally, more than a year after the earthquake, they too will have a permanent structure in which to sleep, free from the relentless mosquitoes of the night and maybe even with a window air-conditioner.
We need help with funding this project. Please click on the "Donate" button to the right and help us bless the directors who so sacrificially bless the children in the Gift of God Orphanage!
(February 16, 2011)
- We are in desperate need of a new vehicle for the ministry work in Haiti. Road conditions are rough and they take their toll. We have been bandaging our little passenger van and replacing parts to the point that it no longer is safe for us to maintain any longer.
An anonymous donor has generously committed to helping us purchase a new vehicle with matching funds. We are looking at a truck that will serve as transportation not only for teams and the children in the orphanage, but is also built strong enough to transport the large bags of rice, beans and flour that are needed at the orphanage.
Right now your gift will be doubled by this grant. Please consider a gift to help meet this need.
(February 3, 2011)
- What happens when the children grow up? Haiti is a nation with very little hope for kids as they move into adulthood. With 80% unemployment, a 50% literacy rate and a country that produces very few exports, the future seems quite bleak for many young people.
However, the children in the Gift of God Orphanage are a family and as we consider that eleven of our children will turn eighteen within the next three years, our thoughts and planning are at the forefront in these days as we think about their futures. Several of the older boys are already learning how to bake bread in the bakery. It is a simple part of their after school chores, but it is equipping them with skills for some for their futures.
The older girls are learning the finer art of cake decorating, baking and cooking as part of our vision in days ahead is to build a small café.
Some of our kids dream of becoming pastors, engineers, nurses and construction workers. Our considerations and planning will be for their higher education. We will continue to explore and create future job opportunities for our family of kids in Haiti. It is a vital part of raising them up to become vibrant and valuable members of their society throughout their lives. And, we will be planning for their future living quarters as they move into early adulthood.
Please contact us if the future of these children is on your heart and you may have the means to help us build for their tomorrows.
(January 23, 2011)
- A wonderful team of 8 people from Colorado just spent an entire week with the children at the orphanage. A daily VBS with a main Bible lesson, crafts, projects, activities, songs and English lessons brought great joy to the children as the team ministered to them each day.
On Saturday the 51 children and the staff were blessed with an outing to a local restaurant. It was the first time in the childrens' lives that they have ever eaten in a restaurant - and the first time they ever had a hamburger! You had to be there to see how well behaved all of the children were - it was a very big deal to go out to eat and everyone of them were perfect ladies and gentlemen, even our 3 year olds!
We are deeply grateful for the ministry this team brought to our children - their mission was a profound "success" as they encouraged the children and the staff at the orphanage. (Go to our News/Photos page to see photos of the children in the restaurant)
(January 4, 2011)
- Classes resume at the orphanage this week and the children have had a great Christmas break.
The New Year was celebrated with a feast for the children as they all gathered around the big "family" table under the atrium and welcomed in the new year.
Little Mackenter, now 4 years old, took a tumble after the dinner celebration and ended up with a gash above his left eye. There is no 911 service in Haiti, much less anything that resembles the magnificent emergency rooms in hospitals in the US. And, at 5:00 p.m. on a Sunday there is very little medical help to be found. The orphanage directors were very blessed to be able to take Mackenter to a military base with its' own clinic near the orphanage. The medical team at the base took this little guy into their care and quickly cleaned and sutured the wound and sent them back on their way with an otherwise clean bill of health. Mackenter then got to spend the night at the directors home and our brave little guy is now doing well!
(December 29, 2010) - "Mami" Katia has just returned to Haiti after a much needed break. Recharged, refreshed and ready to jump right back into work. She wanted to get to the orphanage first thing upon her return and hug her kids!
The children, delighted to have mami Katia back at home, ran and gave her big hugs and asked, "where's the presents mami?" So this evening, the Gift of God family is having a second little Christmas celebration complete with a second little Christmas gift from "mom." Like kids and moms everywhere Christmas needs to be celebrated together!
It reminds me of my very first trip to Haiti back in January '96. We volunteered at another Haitian orphanage and worked hard plastering walls and helping with a second story addition. We spent short break times with some of the children in that orphanage, many of whom had learned very strategically over the years "how to work a missionary..." you know, like wrapping someone around your little finger? Those kids were great and they had picked up enough English to show you they could count to 10 and then to say, "I love you, can I have your watch?"
Kids are kids and are the same everywhere! It doesn't take long to learn what works and what doesn't, and Mami Katias heart strings are being tugged today as she shops for 51 little gifts that remind the children how much she loves them.
(December 21, 2010) - Four more days till Christmas! The children are on Christmas break from classes and are enjoying the beautiful December weather … mid to upper 80’s during the day. The nights drop to 70 degrees and while it is only 29 degrees in Omaha this morning, 70 feels quite cold to the children in Haiti. They are however, each blessed with 2 blankets to keep warm during the night.
On Christmas Eve the children will celebrate with a special service, lots of singing and praying, which will then be followed with a special evening snack, including sprite and coke. Very rarely do they ever experience the fizz and bubbly effect of soda pop!
On Christmas day each child will receive one small gift and the Gift of God family will then enjoy a big Christmas dinner complete with a Haitian favorite – cabrit’ – which is goat meat. While it is a favorite Haitian food, most people could never afford to eat it, and then if they do, like the children in our orphanage, it might only be provided as a part of a big celebration like Christmas or New Years.
The Bakery at the orphanage is open. Now, while on Christmas break, the older boys are learning how to bake bread. It is a vocational training opportunity for the boys and they are having a blast doing it and really like having such a responsibility.
Our older girls have been busy this month with several “cake contracts.” They are learning the finer “art” of cake baking and decorating and, like the bread sales, the cake sales help support the orphanage.
(November 8, 2010) - Hurricane Tomas has passed through and thankfully the children, the staff and the new orphanage site were all spared any harm/damage! Praise the Lord.
Thank you to all who prayed and interceded on behalf of these children - and a special thank you to all who gave of their financial resources, time and prayers for the construction of our new facilities this past summer!
God's timing is always perfect and had the construction not been completed and the children moved they would have had to try to survive this storm in tents.
(November 4, 2010) - Hurricane Tomas is moving ever closer to the island. The Haitian people are being warned to flee the tent cities and seek refuge in churches and schools or with friends/relatives who may have solid dwelling structures.
The directors and staff at our orphanage have been getting ready all week, stocking extra food and purified water, instructing the children, and praying at all hours of the day and night.
Please pray fervently for the Haitian people, especially the children, the orphans and those who have already endured so much this year. The Lord is Sovereign and He is in control - and we pray and intercede for Haiti, for the staff and children in the orphanage, as we cry out to the Lord for protection from this coming storm, we pray as Jesus instructed in the Lord's Prayer, "Thy will be done."
We have just returned from another very busy week in Haiti - working hard on the Bakery construction project, and it is now nearly finished! Carpentry projects including tables, a sorting bin, shelves and a secure cashier booth were all completed last week. A tremendous amount of plumbing, including the completion of another one of the bathrooms, and all of the wiring the Bakery building is complete. Now, we are waiting for the completion of some equipment from a machine shop in Haiti and as soon as it is delivered the Bakery will be ready to open.
Opening Day will include free bread samples, a t-shirt giveaway, and various other "Grand Opening" promotional elements to give the business a strong kick- start.
The children in the orphanage are all doing very well. We are deeply grateful for your prayers for them! School is in session Monday - Friday from 8 a.m. till 1 p.m. Four teachers are now on staff at the Gift of God Orphanage and classes are held outside under the atrium!
(October 4, 2010) - Moving day finally arrived! Late into the evening on September 3rd as the sun had set and rain began to fall the children climbed aboard the tiny mission van for the short trek to their new home. It was an adventure as the kids explored their new dormitories and facilities and listened intently for their bunk assignments. Each child received two brand new blankets and a tiny new stuffed animal.
The older boys and girls worked hard packing and moving kitchen pots, pans and dishes, everything from the pantry and the large dining table and benches. By the end of the evening everyone was exhausted. They were treated to a bowl of corn flakes, and then ventured off to their bunks for their first real nights sleep since the January 12th earthquake.
There are still finishing touches and small projects to finish at the orphanage, but the majority of the electrical, plumbing and the painting was finished just in time for the September 3rd move.
The construction of a Bakery at our new orphanage site is now well under way. While we still need to raise funds for the project, we are moving full-steam ahead. It is going to be a vital part of the overall mission at the orphanage as it will ultimately provide jobs for some of the children, and will most immediately provide fresh daily bread and serve as a means to help with some of the operating costs at the orphanage through bread sales to the local community.
Please continue to pray for the children in the Gift of God Orphanage. And, as you are able, prayerfully consider a financial gift for the construction projects.
We are blessed with a MATCHING GRANT Opportunity for the Bakery and are looking forward to its' completion in the very near future. Contact our office for more information on how your support for this project can be doubled!
(July 30, 2010) - The work on the new facility has progressed with incredible speed. A mission team worked very hard last week to build the roof truss systems, all of which are now in place and covered with new roofing panels.
Three dormitory buildings and two bath houses are now nearly complete as our Haitian contractor friend begins the interior plaster work this week. A septic system will be installed within the next two weeks, and another mission team will return the end of August to finish the electrical work, plumbing systems, and painting.
The children in the orphanage are so excited about their new home and can hardly wait for moving day! The heat in the tents they sleep in now is nearly unbearable, but when they move to the new facility they are going to be blessed with “whole house attic fans” that have been installed in their new dorms. We are deeply grateful for the donations that made these air moving systems possible – we’re deeply grateful for all of your prayers and support - and for the missionaries who have gone and given so much of themselves to make the dream of a new home for our children a reality. (To see photos of the progress of the construction project, click on the "News/Photos" button above.)
(June 15, 2010) A short-term mission team returned to the Heartland last week after going to Haiti to begin building the new FMI Gift of God Orphanage in Port au Prince.
When finished the new facilities will include four dormitory buildings, four bathrooms, a kitchen with space to ultimately operate a bakery, and a small one-room building for the house parents. The design concept for the new site includes a completely covered central courtyard area between all of the buildings. This area will provide shelter from the intense rays of the tropical sun, and from the torrential rains. All buildings will be one-story with metal roofing panels
During the week from June 2 thru June 9, the team from the metro area was able to plot out the new site and lay four foundations – 2 for dorms and 2 for the restroom facilities. By the end of the week all of the walls for one of the dorms were already in place and construction had begun on the second dorm. Haitian workers have been employed to continue the work, and the Heartland team, along with several other hard working volunteers, will return again in Mid-July to build the roof truss systems and install the roofing panels. Our goal is to have the site ready for the children to move into their new home by mid-September!
Financial assistance continues to be needed to complete the facility. See some of the individual costs in the May 19 entry below.
(May 19, 2010) The children are enjoying attending classes again, even if it is not in an official school building. The three teachers that were hired to come to the orphanage and teach the children are doing a wonderful job.
Work on the new piece of land has begun. Phase I of the construction project includes two dormitory buildings, (one for boys, one for girls) and one bathroom building with 6 toilets, 6 showers and 4 sinks.
To date, 35 truckloads of gravel have been delivered and heavy equipment hired to level the site in preparation for the building to begin. A 150-foot deep well has been completed and will provide water for cleaning, bathing, laundry, etc. Drinking water will still have to be purchased but having a well on-site will save $250/mo. compared to what we have been paying to have water delivered to the temporary location where the children are currently living.
A team is preparing to go to Haiti soon to plot out the new land, dig footings, and start construction on Phase I of the new facilities in order to give the children a safe and secure home.
We do not to take out mortgages in Haiti, so everything must be paid for in advance. If you would like to help with the building project, following are some of the needs and costs associated with Phase I:
• $8 will buy a bag of cement (100 bags needed for this first phase)
• $1.75 will buy one cement block for the dormitory buildings (We estimate needing 4,000 blocks)
• $12,000 will buy a water filtration system which will provide clean drinking water on-site
• $125 will buy one truckload of sand (estimate needing 6 truckloads for the initial project.)
Additional materials needed include re-bar, 2 by 4s, sheet metal, electrical supplies, plumbing (6 toilets, 6 showers, 4 sinks), nails, screws, etc.
Target date to complete Phase I is September 1st.
Please continue to lift the children, this project and the nation of Haiti before the Lord.
(May 9, 2010) Life at the Gift of God Orphanage in Haiti has been busy and challenging the past couple of months. Some of the markets have reopened making it easier to find and purchase food and water for the children. However, prices have skyrocketed for everything. Rats have been over-populating for obvious reasons, and now that the rainy season has begun, mosquitoes are more of a problem than usual. Schools have not reopened and it looks as if they will not open for quite some time.
Through all the trials and difficulties endured by the staff and children at the Orphanage, they continue to say, "With Jesus, we're okay."
In March, Dan Jensen, president of Faith Missions International, Inc., traveled to Haiti to assess the situation, minister to the orphanage directors, staff and children, and to determine what steps need to be taken to bring some 'normalcy' back into the lives of the children. Toward that goal, three teachers have been hired to come to the Orphanage and teach the children on-site. They will attend classes from 8-1 each day throughout the summer in hopes of catching up on the studies they have missed in the last four months.
This adds a substantial load to our monthly budget, but the children need an education and we are committed to their future. Please contact us if you can give financially for the salaries of the teachers. We need to raise $275 per month for each teacher.
The lease on the property where the Orphanage is currently located runs out in September. Last summer, a piece of land was purchased in a neighborhood very near where the Orphanage is now housed. Plans are being made for construction on the new land in hopes of completing enough of the project for the Orphanage to be moved by the time the lease runs out. The plans call for one-story buildings with corrugated metal roofs rather than the typical concrete roofs which are very common in the larger cities Haiti and part of the reason so many people died in the earthquake.
This is a huge undertaking and requires much prayer and financial assistance.
You can help the children by making a donation for this project. Please pray for the building program, and check for updates in the coming days regarding specific needs and costs.
(February 14) The crisis in Haiti begins to drop out of the news, yet the aftermath from this horrific event continues to wreak havoc in the lives of these precious Haitian people. The orphanage director came down with Typhoid last week and had to be rushed to a medical center. He was put on IV’s and sent home with antibiotics. The fever broke and he is recovering. Little 3-year-old Merline is having a great deal of difficulty with asthma. The directors have not been able to get medicine for her over the weekend. We pray that medicine can be obtained for her soon.
As in most of Port au Prince, there is no sanitation at the orphanage. The toilets don’t work and with 51 children and staff of 11, plus people from the surrounding community all crowded into the small compound at the orphanage, flies are now an overwhelming nightmare. In addition to everything else they have been through, the suffering only intensifies. It is raining tonight, and while they have received tents, the tents don’t hold back the waters from the rain, and the children are confined to the open “car-port” for cover. Basic and minimal supplies of food and water are on hand, yet necessities like Pampers and even toilet paper are not available – making sanitation a major concern.
(February 2) The children in the orphanage have been blessed with food and water! A small reserve of rice, beans, spaghetti and bottled water has arrived. The orphanage directors were able to buy some chicken so that the children had meat in one of their meals. The directors found cooking charcoal so the children could have hot meals.
The situation in Haiti is still critical as resources are very limited in the country. We will very quickly run out of food and water once again. The children and staff continue to sleep outside for fear the house will crumble in an aftershock. Tents are desperately needed for shelter during the night.
Please continue to pray for the children; more food and water to arrive quickly, tents, and even basic day to day provisions like diapers, tooth paste, soap and bathroom tissue is desperately needed.
(January 26) A medical team made it to the orphanage today and examined all of the children. Dehydration, swollen bellies, thirst and hunger are all major problems. One child with flu like symptoms and one with eye problems were taken to the hospital. The medical team was able to provide a meal for the children today, and leave a few food supplies which will hopefully last the next 2 days. The medical team said the situation is desperate.
The children prayed for the medical team, sang songs for them and recited scripture verses. Smith (the orphanage Director) said many on the team were brought to tears.
(January 23) Yesterday the children had their first real meal in 10 days. A supply of rice was located at a local warehouse which enabled the directors to provide the children with enough food to finally fill their empty stomachs with a healthy meal. Resources are still extremely limited and aftershocks continue to shake the city. A make-shift tent covers the children and staff as they continue to sleep outside, knowing the orphanage building may be unsafe and could yet crumble in an aftershock.
Please continue to lift children and staff in prayer. The local ministries of FMI continue to research and network with government channels and connections for a release for orphans in Haiti. God can make a way.
(January 19, 2010) The situation in Haiti grows more critical as the food supply at the orphanage is nearly depleted. No relief supplies have come yet to the area of the city where the orphanage is located and the children are very hungry.
The orphanage directors continue to pray and trust in the Lord as their providers. We need your prayers and your support.
We are doing everything we can now to try and get the children out of Haiti and into Omaha. The coming days are life or death moments in Haiti and it is imperative that our children be rescued – by the Hand of God, working through His people, to bring them to a safe place.
Our vision is to bring the children and the 2 orphanage directors to Omaha and to keep them together – they are a family and these children have already experienced tremendous losses in their lives.
Just imagine … 51 Haitian children arriving in Omaha – because the people of this region stepped up to bat for them!
Please pray for their rescue.
(January 15, 2010—4:30 p.m.) Our ministry partner at the Orphanage in Haiti, Smith, was able to make phone contact with us once again. We continue to thank the Lord for sparing the lives of the children and staff in the Gift of God Orphanage.
This situation, however, is becoming critical as the food supply is quickly depleted. The staff is rationing in extreme measures and the children are very hungry. Smith and Katia know that it will be some time before supply lines open up and that they have to try and make the food last as long as they can. They have run out of rice and have only a little bit of spaghetti, beans, flour and oil on hand.
Please continue to pray for their safety. Desperation is setting in on the Haitian people as they have now endured four days in this horrific nightmare. Security is a huge issue if people think that there might be food and water at the orphanage site.
Please pray for food and water distribution sites to be set up quickly for the Haitian people.
We are in need of financial support for the orphanage and ask for your help. Contact Faith Missions International/The Heartland Gatekeeper for information on how to give. 391-0657 or 926-2633.
CONTACT!!!
OMAHA, NE (January 14, 2010) — 12:27 p.m. We just received a call from our ministry partner in Haiti. Smith, his wife, Katia, their son Djelot and the 51 children and staff of the Don de Dieu Orphelinat (Gift of God Orphanage) are all alive and healthy...Praise God!
The rental house they live in is still standing but Smith reports that it shakes every night so they are 'living' outside. They are rationing the food and water they have knowing it could be quite some time before more supplies are available.
Smith said that some of the homes in their neighborhood have collapsed but he believes their neighbors escaped injury.
STILL WAITING...
OMAHA, NE (January 13, 2010) — As images from Haiti come through the television, newspapers and the Internet, the scope of the devastation continues to stun the senses. At this point, estimates of the dead and injured are just that...estimates. Until some type of infrastructure can be established, the enormity of this disaster will not be known.
We are still awaiting contact with our ministry partners at the orphanage in Haiti. Please continue to pray.
Check out article on CROSSWALK
EARTHQUAKE IN HAITI
OMAHA, NE (January 12, 2010) — Faith Missions International, the parent organization of The Heartland Gatekeeper, has an orphanage with 51 children plus staff in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. A 7.0 earthquake hit the nation of Haiti just 10 miles from Port-au-Prince. From all reports we are seeing, there is much destruction including the collapse of a hospital.
We are unable to make contact with our ministry friends in Haiti. It appears that phone systems are down and there is no way to get in touch with them.
Please pray for Smith & Katia, the staff and the children in the orphanage.
Psalm 20:7 says, "Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God.
We will post information as soon as communication with Haiti is restored.