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| Edna (right) and Friends |
I recently received notice about the dates and costs for the trip to Haiti for this coming year. Like last year, there are two weeks planned - the first is a week of construction, the second is a week of medical clinics. Unlike last year, the trips are back to back so that people that wish to participate in both trips, of which I count myself, only have to pay for a single airfare. This is a great blessing as it will significantly reduce the cost of participating both weeks.
The cost of the trip (for both weeks) is $2100 + airfare, which brings the total to about $3000. This covers room, board, local hires (translators, helpers, etc), materials, and medicines, and a portion is used to continue to help fund work even after we have departed the island.
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| Evan |
As many of you know, I have been traveling to Haiti every year since shortly after the earthquake on January 12, 2010. While there I have met some amazing people that have taught me much as I strived to provide what little help and support I could. I constantly remember the names, particularly, of the children. Evan, who put the other children first while making kites. Helping them (and me) make them correctly and even giving his kite to a smaller child when the child's kite broke. Edna, who I have seen almost every time I have been to Haiti. Watching her grow from a shy girl, new to the orphanage to someone that is learning to be herself. The adults who help run the orphanages and schools. I can't imagine the difficult times with which they must contend. The Pastor of one orphanage who had to turn children out at night because if he didn't the government would shutdown the orphanage for housing too many children. (That orphanage has new buildings now and was flourishing the last I saw it). And there is Pastor Renol who works to manage multiple churches, a school, an orphanage, and probably many other things as well. He has dreams of improving Haiti and making the flock God has blessed him with faithful, strong, vibrant, and bless; and has had threats against himself and his family as a result.
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| Chickens & Eggs |
Over the past years in Haiti the group I travel with has provided medical care to thousands of Haitian who might otherwise not have been seen by a physician, helped with re-construction of a school that had to be torn down because of the damage it received during the quake, built a chicken coop used to provide eggs and extra funds for the orphanage, and came along side others, including the children of the orphanage, just to pray and share God's love.
This year we are planning an exciting new addition to the work. That is the introduction of a micro-finance capability. Through this effort it is hoped that God will work to allow Haitians to help Haitians as they save money, loan money, and work together to create a healthy, self-sustaining economy.
It has always been critical to the work that we have supported in Haiti that it starts and ends with a situation where Haitians take the lead and where we play as small as role as possible and only provide help when the Haitians need that help and we serve them.
And now the hard part ...
I need your help. While $3000 may not seem like a lot of money in the abstract it is a sum in which I
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| Singing with Children |
need help to achieve. I was in complete awe last year as God, through friends and family, helped fund both my trips. Without this intervention it just would not have been possible.
Part of the work when doing mission work is to show complete reliance on God. To do that we must reach out to others and humble ourselves by asking for help, else we will feel it is all our doing when the reality is that without God it is a pointless endeavor. And so I now humbly ask for your help.
I would greatly appreciate anything you might be able to donate towards this mission trip. If you are not able to donate a dollar amount I would appreciate any prayers for this trip; both for myself and my family as they will have to be sustained while I am away. Any and all monetary donations are helpful as even pennies can add up to do amazing things.
If you are able to donate to help fund this trip, the tax deductible donations can be sent to:
Union Church
C/O Jonathan Wright-Gray,
PO Box 7028
Ocean Park Maine, 04063
To make sure the funds are credited toward my trip please put "Haiti Mission - David Bainbridge" in the memo of the check.
If you would rather send a donation directly to me, please let me know and I can send you my contact information.
Lastly, if you have any questions please contact me. I would be happy to discuss the work that has been done in the past, this trip, or really anything else you would like to talk about.
