June 2007

The busy season has officially begun!


During the month of June we hosted 7 teams in the DR and Haiti. It has been a high concentration of love and ministry! I have been so impressed with the teams and their effort to serve nationals and each other.

First we hosted 3 teams. I had the honor to assist with the team from Moweaqua Ill. Many of the team members have been coming since way before my time. They did construction and children's ministry and of course did an outstanding job, but what I loved was hearing those veteran team members say " I remember when..." and they would talk of GO ministries before there were dormitories or an air conditioned vehicle. There was an easiness to them with the nationals. Being with the team from Moweaqua reminded me of how far GO ministries has come and how many lives are now intertwined by the grace that only comes through giving.


The Moweaqua church has been partnering with the Church in Los Salados for a long time. The Church in los Salados is mostly made up of young people. Dominicans say there are a lot of Tigers in Los Salados. That means it is a rough neighborhood. The youth of the church have been through a lot, but through the continuous encouragement of the Moweaqua church, they have been relentless voices of hope in their neighborhood.

The following week we hosted 2 teams and I worked with the team from Windsor Road Christian Church. They were a blast! They worked super hard constructing a church/nutrition center. Plus they lovingly partner with Pastor Fabio and Antonia who pastor a church in the mountains. One day the team took a bunch of balls and frisbees and went to a field in the community up there and played with the kids all afternoon. They understand partnership.

For the Final week in June there was a team that held basketball camp here in the neighborhood, But I got to tag along with a medical team to the Bateys.

The team was from Pikeville College School of Osteopathic Medicine. The Bateys are the communities of those who work in the sugarcane fields. Everyone is poor in the Bateys. In order to translate for the two day medical clinic that we held, I needed another translator who could speak Haitian Creole. About 40 percent did not speak Spanish. Most of the people in the Bateys are either Haitian or of Haitian decent. They work hard, dangerous jobs for little pay.


It was a little comical though.

The American would say in English "what do you have today"

Then I would say the phrase in Spanish to the translator.

Then the translator would say the same phrase in Creole to the patient.

Then patient would respond in Creole "I have a headache"

Then the translator would then tell me in Spanish that they have a headache.

Then I would tell the American in English "they have a headache"





We worked through colds, diabetes, blood pressure issues, wounds, skin problems.....etc. Miraculously we saw over 800 people in those two days. There were three different cultures, three different shades of skin, three languages speaking the language of the universe... God's great love.





That Sunday we went to Batey Cuchillo where there was a young boy with Cerebral Palsy and a young man who is paraplegic. The Medical Students were able to give advice and hope to the mothers and grandmothers. They shared some exercises that can be done and prayed with them. It is possible that the little boy with CP may walk someday with exercise. Something that doesn't require money, only information.





June has been such an awesome month. God is moving and I am so privileged to be part of it.





"Lord, you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us"

~Isaiah 26:12