So Much More

The beauty of Haiti amazes me. We are loving every moment of our trip.

We were busy today, some of us spending time in the Pharmacy, some of us painting, some of us doing therapy, some feeding babies, some of us making a meal and watching kids so house parents can go out on a date, all of us trying to bless the staff and the Haitian people, and some working extra hard in the Haitian sun to dig a drainage ditch. We are learning and soaking in Haiti.

Children of the Promise All Rights Reserved

Children of the Promise All Rights Reserved

  Mike comes all the way to Haiti to play with toys.

A highlight of today was meeting nannies who took care of Reese. This is Rosemae. I took a book of pictures of Reese to see if anyone recognized him. She jumped up and down and shrieked and yelled when I showed him her picture. We hugged several times. We both said, "Mesi" (thank you) back and forth over and over again. She let me take her picture so I could show Reese. Then tonight we all sang hymns together in English and Kreyol and ended with Reese's favorite hymn, "It is Well with My Soul."

I had visions of writing eloquent, beautiful posts (as if I've done that before) to share with you my heart about Haiti. Truthfully, it's all so overwhelming and there is so much I want to share with you that I'm having a hard time forming coherent thoughts. I'm going to give it my best fragmented shot and pray that God will do the rest.

Children of the Promise (COTP) does so much more than caring for kids before they go home to adoptive families. The rest of the week, I want to share with you everything else they are doing. Because at the end of the day, I want less orphans. I want more Haitians to be able to parent their children. I don't want moms and dads to have to give up their babies because they aren't able to feed them. 

COTP is doing this! They have less babies in their care than they have had for a very long time. A large reason that this is happening is because of their Formula and Medika Mamba programs. Today I want to tell you about the Medika Mamba Program.

Medika Mamba is an amazing nutritional product that is made right in Haiti (jobs for Haitians, yay!). It is fortified peanut butter that has many essential nutrients and vitamins. Each package is 500 calories. Children in the program are given 3packages to eat per day. When they are admitted into the program, they are also given a round of antibiotics and a de-wormer to make sure there isn't any other reason they aren't gaining weight. They have anywhere from 40-50 children on this program at any time.

Children have to be significantly below their recommended weight for their height to be admitted to the program. They receive Medika Mamba until they are within a healthy weight range. Then when they reach that weight, the staff works with them to transition them into not needing the assistance any more.

These little cuties are on Medika Mamba and came in for a check up today. They are four years old. You might not be able to tell that they are very small, but they looked like two year olds.

Another little boy with special needs came in for a check up. I didn't take his picture. It's hard. I want to share with you, but I also didn't want to share a picture of him just for shock value. His mom brought him in and he was all smiles. He couldn't walk. His mom carried him here. We put him on the scale and he weighed 25 pounds. Ten years old. 25 pounds. Most American babies weigh that around their first birthday. I have a ten year old. He weighs 80 pounds and he is strong and lean. I don't know what to do with that paradox. But, I have to do something.

And friends, you could tell by interacting with him, he was LOVED. His family just needed help. He has already gained five pounds on Medika Mamba since starting the program in the fall. Since COTP is moving to family based homes, like The Grace and Joy Houses (read yesterday's post), they are remodeling their big building which used to house 60-70 babies at a time into a space that is going to be more community driven. Read a detailed post about the remodel here.

Part of the remodel is making the space for serving children receiving Medika Mamba bigger, making their medical space bigger. When kids are in the Mamba program, they also receive health care from COTP.

Now comes the ask: will you partner with COTP to prevent orphans? That is the best orphan care possible: to prevent them in the first place. They need to raise a little under $30,000 to complete their remodel. The amount sounds large, but we are talking about completely changed lives. Ten year old boys who weigh 25 pounds getting the food and nutrients they need.

I usually hate asking for money. I'm too Minnesota-nice and don't want to come off as pushy, but when it comes to the widow, the orphan, and the oppresssed, and a 25 pound ten year old boy, I'm going to ask.

Here is where the starfish story comes in: this blog is being shared a lot (thank you). If everyone gave a little bit, we can make a big dent in this number. When talking with the directors about this fundraising effort, they asked, "How much money do you think you'd be able to raise?" I wasn't sure what to say, but I told them I have some pretty amazing friends.

Hey, if you want to give your tax return or a big gift, we'll take that too! Here is the link to give online If you want to send a check, please send it to:
Children of the Promise
PO Box 123
Prinsburg, MN 56281

Online or by check, please write: Baby House Remodel, Fergus Falls Team. We would like to report back to you how much money our family and friends help raise.

Will you also help by sharing this blog?

Correction: Landon would like to correct his weight: he weighs 84.5 pounds just after eating Dairyland with clothes on.

Disclaimer: Children of the Promise has given explicit permission for the posting of photos on this site.  Photos taken of children in the care of Children of the Promise are not to be posted publicly without explicit permission given by Children of the Promise.