"When a woman feels good about herself, everyone around her benefits"

4.1.10

With the help of over 300 of our friends and family we held a very successful and fun benefit on February 20th at the Fox Events Centre in Redlands. Thanks go to: Vicki,who did the lion’s share of organizing ,  my kids, who sold lemonade, put up posters, made cards for Haitien kids, The Billy Webb Band, 80’s Rewind, Ryan Christopher and the Hosers,eh?, Cody Christiansen, The Cool Cactus, The Fox Events Center, Amy Vasquez and all those other arms we twisted to donate and volunteer their time and money. I am proud to say we raised over $5000.00 that was used to buy skin grafting equipment for l’Hopitale Adventiste d’Haiti.

Check out Ryan Christopher, Cody Christiansen and a couple of old hosers in action! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUSawnkPEi0&feature=PlayList&p=B306AC0B2A6FF788&playnext_from=PL&index=3&playnext=3

Drs. Matt Hiersche, Jason Mussman and myself left for Port au Prince on March 7 and returned on the 14th. We arrived at the hospital at 2:00 pm Monday and were operating by 3:30 that day. After our last operation on Saturday we had done 26 cases ranging from skin grafting and amputations to mastectomies and laporotomies. We had treated 2 month olds to 95 year-olds and two american physicians.

We saw some horrnedous wounds and heard heartbraking stories yet saw triumph in the face of adversity. We met a man who had a head injury during the earthquake who recovered after 24 hours and realized his sister was missing. He recruited friends, found her in the rubble and dug her out a day later. She lost her left hand but survived.  Seven weeks later he was still at her bedside.

We were told of a man who brought his twelve year-old daughter to the hospital to have her femur fracture fixed so he could sell her in the sex trade. We saw mothers with newborns begging for  tents as they had no place to sleep. We saw a mother arrive at the hospital carrying her son  on her back. He was waisting away from an unknown disease. She’d been carrying him for weeks looking for someone to help them. We saw children flying kites made out of garbage bags and playing with cars made out of gatorade bottles.

We met Haitians and volunteers from all over the globe working side by side:  feeding the hungry, fixing the plumbing, donating supplies, organizing volunteers, caring for the sick, cleaning the hospital, sterilizing instruments, providing a power supply,  providing pastoral care and providing shelter.

I was humbled by the generosity of spirit and endurance of those who provided services.  I met some who had been tirelessly working since the quake. I was equally amazed by Haitians’ will to survive and  their drive to rebuild their lives and communities. Some lost entire families.

Duncan