Monday, December 31, 2007
Soccer Match
In spite of some logistical difficulties, the soccer match went well. Richard was busy today with the showing of the Jesus Film, but he'll post as soon as he can. What I know so far is that several people were interested in what they heard and indicated a desire to trust in Christ. Richard prayed with one person who received Christ.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Evangelistic Soccer Match & Jesus Film
Please pray for the evangelistic soccer match tomorrow that is part of the training for the future leaders of soccer ministries. The game will be tomorrow (Saturday) and everyone will be invited to come back to see the Jesus Film on Sunday afternoon.
Pray for the logistics, for those who ccould and those who will attend. Pray for the particpants to catch a vision for this type of outreach in their areas.
Pray for the logistics, for those who ccould and those who will attend. Pray for the particpants to catch a vision for this type of outreach in their areas.
Good start to Soccer Ministry Training
Thanks for your prayers. The soccer ministry training got off to a good start yesterday. Almost 50 participants arrived by Wednesday night and got settled at Ormiso, a conference center in Carrefour. Although we were disappointed that it didn't work out to have the training at Titayen, it's been good to have it closer to home. Richard has come back home yesterday and today to get more cleats, sneakers, socks, shorts and balls. The kids and I are at home, though so we don't have a lot of details, but here's a little about what's been happening.
For the first two days we were able to use the National Stadium from 8-10 am. (Originally we were to use the stadium everyday, but the Federation changed their plans and decided they needed to close the stadium for the rest of the holidays.) After that, they've had sessions on "Methods of Evangelism," "Role of the Coach."
Hopefully we'll have pictures up tomorrow night.
For the first two days we were able to use the National Stadium from 8-10 am. (Originally we were to use the stadium everyday, but the Federation changed their plans and decided they needed to close the stadium for the rest of the holidays.) After that, they've had sessions on "Methods of Evangelism," "Role of the Coach."
Hopefully we'll have pictures up tomorrow night.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Getting Ready for TREC
Last minute preparations being done in our dining room for the TREC soccer training. Thanks to Leah and Sarah, we got the notebooks done on time. 
Joyeux Noel!
Merry Christmas '07 !
It's a busy season with the training going on, but we're enjoying it, especially having Grace here with us from college.
We hope you are all enjoying the season too.
On December 23rd, Richard and the kids led worship in the English church near us.
We managed to get a family picture at the candlelight service on Christmas Eve.
Joy's friend, Leah, is here with us again (from Canada) and this time she brought her friend Sarah with her. It's fun having a full house for Christmas!
(That's Joy's friend Ari in the matching red & black dress).
Monday, December 3, 2007
God thinks of everything before we even know there’s a problem
Thanksgiving weekend we decided to go and look at the campus where we had made reservations for TREC, the soccer training we are planning for Dec. 26th to Jan 5th, 2008.
Carol and I thought the facilities looked great – very plain but neat and clean with lots of space for our 50 participants. We also went and visited the full-size soccer field that we had seen from the road as we drove in. Unfortunately, it was full of tractor-tire ruts and was very uneven. It looked like it hadn’t been played on for a long time, and was in bad shape, but nothing a small bull-dozer couldn’t fix in a few hours. The person who gave us the tour said that the field was technically in a restricted part of campus, so the next day we called up the person responsible for the camp grounds to ask if he would make an exception to the rules and let us use the soccer field.
Unfortunately, the director said “No” which means we now had to find another place to hold the first week of the TREC training which is only a few weeks away.
I called up Ernest Sauvignon, my Haitian friend who works with the Haitian Soccer Federation and has lots of contacts and set a date to try and resolve our logistical problems.
We started out the day by asking God to help us figure out all the options. First we talked to the director of the guest house in Port-au-Prince where we had reservations for the second week of training. He was very gracious and flexible and said that he would help us fit everyone, in spite of the fact that some rooms were already taken.
Then we visited the National Stadium and found the Director right away. He said that we could probably use the stadium for the first week of training as well as the second week, but he would have to check.
Then we went to a sports center in Carrefour, about 20 minutes from the guest house we would be staying at. This sports center was built in the 80’s and in its heyday was magnificent. It had a wood-floor gym, an Olympic- size swimming pool, a stadium with a track and a soccer field in the middle, and several basketball courts. Unfortunately, nothing has been maintained and the once beautiful swimming pool is full of stagnant water and is now a mosquito factory.
The soccer field has not fared much better and is full of holes which have been filled with sand. Wasps have made their home in this sand and besides the possibility of getting stung; you can also twist your ankle when you go from hard dirt to soft sand suddenly.
We decided that this was not the best field to train on.
Then we went to our third option. A field at a Haitian Coast Guard outpost within walking distance of the guest house. We had sent them a letter back in October requesting the use of the field, but had not heard from them. So we stopped by and took a quick look at the field, which was in much better condition than the one at the sports center.
After about a 30 minute wait, we were taken to the commandant’s office who refused to see us, but ordered the personnel office to look into our request. To our great surprise, after about another 30 minutes, we walked out with a signed copy of our letter giving us the right to use the field in the morning from Dec. 27th to Dec 31st. This is a miracle because in government circles in Haiti it can take months to get permission to do anything!
So because God knew we would have this problem, he arranged for us to resolve it in a short time as we prayed in faith and trusted him to work. This doesn’t always happen. Sometimes God wants to teach us patience. But God’s hand was so evident that day that we just rejoice in his power on behalf of those who trust in Him!
Carol and I thought the facilities looked great – very plain but neat and clean with lots of space for our 50 participants. We also went and visited the full-size soccer field that we had seen from the road as we drove in. Unfortunately, it was full of tractor-tire ruts and was very uneven. It looked like it hadn’t been played on for a long time, and was in bad shape, but nothing a small bull-dozer couldn’t fix in a few hours. The person who gave us the tour said that the field was technically in a restricted part of campus, so the next day we called up the person responsible for the camp grounds to ask if he would make an exception to the rules and let us use the soccer field.
Unfortunately, the director said “No” which means we now had to find another place to hold the first week of the TREC training which is only a few weeks away.
I called up Ernest Sauvignon, my Haitian friend who works with the Haitian Soccer Federation and has lots of contacts and set a date to try and resolve our logistical problems.
We started out the day by asking God to help us figure out all the options. First we talked to the director of the guest house in Port-au-Prince where we had reservations for the second week of training. He was very gracious and flexible and said that he would help us fit everyone, in spite of the fact that some rooms were already taken.
Then we visited the National Stadium and found the Director right away. He said that we could probably use the stadium for the first week of training as well as the second week, but he would have to check.
Then we went to a sports center in Carrefour, about 20 minutes from the guest house we would be staying at. This sports center was built in the 80’s and in its heyday was magnificent. It had a wood-floor gym, an Olympic- size swimming pool, a stadium with a track and a soccer field in the middle, and several basketball courts. Unfortunately, nothing has been maintained and the once beautiful swimming pool is full of stagnant water and is now a mosquito factory.
The soccer field has not fared much better and is full of holes which have been filled with sand. Wasps have made their home in this sand and besides the possibility of getting stung; you can also twist your ankle when you go from hard dirt to soft sand suddenly.
We decided that this was not the best field to train on.
Then we went to our third option. A field at a Haitian Coast Guard outpost within walking distance of the guest house. We had sent them a letter back in October requesting the use of the field, but had not heard from them. So we stopped by and took a quick look at the field, which was in much better condition than the one at the sports center.
After about a 30 minute wait, we were taken to the commandant’s office who refused to see us, but ordered the personnel office to look into our request. To our great surprise, after about another 30 minutes, we walked out with a signed copy of our letter giving us the right to use the field in the morning from Dec. 27th to Dec 31st. This is a miracle because in government circles in Haiti it can take months to get permission to do anything!
So because God knew we would have this problem, he arranged for us to resolve it in a short time as we prayed in faith and trusted him to work. This doesn’t always happen. Sometimes God wants to teach us patience. But God’s hand was so evident that day that we just rejoice in his power on behalf of those who trust in Him!
Downsizing the Haitian way
There’s a record number of foreclosures in the US forcing many to “downsize”. This usually means a family in the US has to move to a smaller house or apartment because of economic difficulties.
Our neighbors are also being forced to downsize. Before there were up to 15 people living in a three room block house with no toilet or bathroom and an outdoor kitchen.
Our neighbors were “guarding” the land for the property owner in exchange for the right to live there. Now the owner has sold the land and the new owners have given the family notice that they have to move. The Father of the family has no steady job and frankly, I don’t know how they feed everyone in their household on a daily basis. So in the past we have helped them by giving them food and buying miscellaneous things from them.
In the short-run, the owners of the adjacent property have allowed them to build a one room house, but even then they can only stay 6 months until May, 2008.
Unfortunately, these kinds of things happen all the time in Haiti (and in the US, too, where there are many who are homeless). The difference is that in the US there are shelters, Food stamps, job-placement centers that work because there is not 80% unemployment, and a host of other “Human Services”.
In Haiti there is no safety net, and unless God does a miracle, this family will be homeless. Even now, some of the 10 people who are living there are going to have to find another place to live. Among them are our houseboy’s brother, Jean, and his cousin who works for us part-time in the Cyber café. These two young men in their 20’s have found a 1 room apartment to share for about $500 US a year, but have no money to pay the rent since in Haiti you have to pay the rent all in advance.
We would like to help these young men get into this apartment and also help their family in general this Christmas. But we need your help!
If you feel led to help this family in need this Christmas, please mail your gift directly to us at Rich Mears; Unit 2109 – UEBH; 3170 Airman’s Drive, Fort Pierce, FL 34946. This gift will not be tax-deductible, but in God’s economy, you’ll receive much more than a tax-break!
Because of the urgency of the situation, please e-mail us the amount of your gift so we can make it immediately available to the family. THANKS
Our neighbors are also being forced to downsize. Before there were up to 15 people living in a three room block house with no toilet or bathroom and an outdoor kitchen.
Our neighbors were “guarding” the land for the property owner in exchange for the right to live there. Now the owner has sold the land and the new owners have given the family notice that they have to move. The Father of the family has no steady job and frankly, I don’t know how they feed everyone in their household on a daily basis. So in the past we have helped them by giving them food and buying miscellaneous things from them.
In the short-run, the owners of the adjacent property have allowed them to build a one room house, but even then they can only stay 6 months until May, 2008.
Unfortunately, these kinds of things happen all the time in Haiti (and in the US, too, where there are many who are homeless). The difference is that in the US there are shelters, Food stamps, job-placement centers that work because there is not 80% unemployment, and a host of other “Human Services”.
In Haiti there is no safety net, and unless God does a miracle, this family will be homeless. Even now, some of the 10 people who are living there are going to have to find another place to live. Among them are our houseboy’s brother, Jean, and his cousin who works for us part-time in the Cyber café. These two young men in their 20’s have found a 1 room apartment to share for about $500 US a year, but have no money to pay the rent since in Haiti you have to pay the rent all in advance.
We would like to help these young men get into this apartment and also help their family in general this Christmas. But we need your help!
If you feel led to help this family in need this Christmas, please mail your gift directly to us at Rich Mears; Unit 2109 – UEBH; 3170 Airman’s Drive, Fort Pierce, FL 34946. This gift will not be tax-deductible, but in God’s economy, you’ll receive much more than a tax-break!
Because of the urgency of the situation, please e-mail us the amount of your gift so we can make it immediately available to the family. THANKS
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
We Thank God everytime we think of you!
Dear friends, family and supporters who view our blog. We are very thankful for you and appreciate your love and support. We especially appreciate it when you remember to pray for us!
We wish you all a blessed Thanksgiving with your loved ones. We will be celebrating tomorrow with another Haitian/American family at 4:30PM and hope to play some games after dinner.
Thanksgiving at Quisqueya Christian School
Every year at QCS, everyone at the school chips in and buys food to put together food baskets for the Haitian workers that keep the school going such as the maintenance staff, cleaning staff, etc. This year we all got involved as Joy is on the student council that organized this event and the rest of us spent a few hours packing the food up into individual boxes for each family.
In addition, Joy came up with the idea of buying "Atomic clocks" for each classroom in the school so that every classroom would have the same time (Several times last year she got into trouble for being "late" because the clocks in each class were different!"). The studen council adopted this idea and raised funds to purchase the clocks, which will be installed in the classrooms this week!
Also, Joy played the bass and Ricky played the drums in chapel this morning at QCS, using ther musical talents to praise the Lord.
Dear friends, family and supporters who view our blog. We are very thankful for you and appreciate your love and support. We especially appreciate it when you remember to pray for us!
We wish you all a blessed Thanksgiving with your loved ones. We will be celebrating tomorrow with another Haitian/American family at 4:30PM and hope to play some games after dinner.
Thanksgiving at Quisqueya Christian School
Every year at QCS, everyone at the school chips in and buys food to put together food baskets for the Haitian workers that keep the school going such as the maintenance staff, cleaning staff, etc. This year we all got involved as Joy is on the student council that organized this event and the rest of us spent a few hours packing the food up into individual boxes for each family.
In addition, Joy came up with the idea of buying "Atomic clocks" for each classroom in the school so that every classroom would have the same time (Several times last year she got into trouble for being "late" because the clocks in each class were different!"). The studen council adopted this idea and raised funds to purchase the clocks, which will be installed in the classrooms this week!
Also, Joy played the bass and Ricky played the drums in chapel this morning at QCS, using ther musical talents to praise the Lord.
This week
Richard has had a cold this week, but has still kept going most of the time, with a few naps squeezed in.
TREC
The planning for the Christmas time TREC has been coming along. Three different committees are working on different aspects of it. The "curriculum" is being worked on.
Cybercafe
The cybercafe is getting more customers everyday. Richard has an intern working with him, Lucas, who helped with appointments with local schools. Students from these schools tend to come in and use the cybercafe, so they are trying to set up special arrangements as well as computer classes.
Thanksgiving
We are sad that we won't be able to get together with our CrossWorld co-workers this Thanksgiving, but we will be sharing it with some American teachers, and one of them even has an imported turkey through the Agape Ministry!
And...only 26 days 'til Grace comes here for Christmas!
(PS, please pray that she gets her renewed passport in time!)
TREC
The planning for the Christmas time TREC has been coming along. Three different committees are working on different aspects of it. The "curriculum" is being worked on.
Cybercafe
The cybercafe is getting more customers everyday. Richard has an intern working with him, Lucas, who helped with appointments with local schools. Students from these schools tend to come in and use the cybercafe, so they are trying to set up special arrangements as well as computer classes.
Thanksgiving
We are sad that we won't be able to get together with our CrossWorld co-workers this Thanksgiving, but we will be sharing it with some American teachers, and one of them even has an imported turkey through the Agape Ministry!
And...only 26 days 'til Grace comes here for Christmas!
(PS, please pray that she gets her renewed passport in time!)
Friday, November 2, 2007
Praise the Lord - We got paid for the truck
Today I feel as though a great burden was lifted off my back - a burden as heavy as a box truck!
We got paid for the truck today and will transfer the title to the new owners on Monday.
A big thanks to everyone who helped with the project, especially Gerhard and those who donated equipment and helped pack the truck.
The computers are being used in Haitian schools, the laptops are being used in a cybercafé, and much soccer equipment has been distributed, and many Haitians are thanking God because of the sacrifice of many at Crossing Community Church and other churches and individuals! To God be the Glory!
We got paid for the truck today and will transfer the title to the new owners on Monday.
A big thanks to everyone who helped with the project, especially Gerhard and those who donated equipment and helped pack the truck.
The computers are being used in Haitian schools, the laptops are being used in a cybercafé, and much soccer equipment has been distributed, and many Haitians are thanking God because of the sacrifice of many at Crossing Community Church and other churches and individuals! To God be the Glory!
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
A challenge
It's been rainy since Katie died. Strange for Haiti. A high school student asked me if I thought it was because of her death. Another one said "Yeah, like God's crying." I said I thought maybe one reason it's raining is because God knows we need to cry, it's part of grieving. This weather does make this time seem sadder. We can't know all God's reasons, not now anyway.
I titled this "A challenge" because one of the reasons I am sad about losing Katie is that she seemed really good for Quisqueya Christian School and it's students. What I heard at the memorial service today made me realize even more how subtle, yet effective her testimony and influence were here. So, I'm wondering...is there anybody out there who thinks God may be calling them to come to Haiti? Would you like to continue the work and fill in the hole left by Katie?
Think about it. Pray about it.
I titled this "A challenge" because one of the reasons I am sad about losing Katie is that she seemed really good for Quisqueya Christian School and it's students. What I heard at the memorial service today made me realize even more how subtle, yet effective her testimony and influence were here. So, I'm wondering...is there anybody out there who thinks God may be calling them to come to Haiti? Would you like to continue the work and fill in the hole left by Katie?
Think about it. Pray about it.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
A death in the QCS family
(Saturday) Today we lost a lovely friend and colleague, Katie Broecker. And our loss is heaven's gain...and Katie's, too. She's with Jesus now.
It was a terrible shock to hear that she was found in her bed this morning, having died in her sleep. She was only in her twenties. Some are guessing that it may have been an aneuryism. She had a good Christian life testimony and was loved by students as well as staff.
She gave a great chapel talk last year about the work of God in her life, encouraging the students to follow Jesus. Joy was close to Miss Broecker through her involvement in student council, soccer and volleyball, all of which Miss Broecker led.
Please pray for Katie's parents, sisters, grandmother and the many close friends she leaves behind in Ohio, Indiana and in Haiti. Also, pray for the students at QCS--some are wondering if something else may have happened to cause her death. Hopefully this will get cleared up. We will need to help the students grieve, too.
Today in Psalm 27 (because it's Oct. 27) I read :
The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?
...
One thing I ask of the Lord,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple.
It was a terrible shock to hear that she was found in her bed this morning, having died in her sleep. She was only in her twenties. Some are guessing that it may have been an aneuryism. She had a good Christian life testimony and was loved by students as well as staff.
She gave a great chapel talk last year about the work of God in her life, encouraging the students to follow Jesus. Joy was close to Miss Broecker through her involvement in student council, soccer and volleyball, all of which Miss Broecker led.
Please pray for Katie's parents, sisters, grandmother and the many close friends she leaves behind in Ohio, Indiana and in Haiti. Also, pray for the students at QCS--some are wondering if something else may have happened to cause her death. Hopefully this will get cleared up. We will need to help the students grieve, too.
Today in Psalm 27 (because it's Oct. 27) I read :
The Lord is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear?
...
One thing I ask of the Lord,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
and to seek him in his temple.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
TREC 07-08: A trip to visit the school Directors and tell them about the training
This past Saturday Rich drove to Verettes, a small town in the middle of Haiti with two other Haitian colleagues to speak with the Directors of 7 Haitian primary schools in the area about TREC 07-08, a training we are planning for Dec. 26, 2007 to Jan. 5th, 2008. The purpose of the training will be to help these schools start evangelistic soccer teams.
We are very excited about this training because about 8 highly qualified soccer coaches are coming from the US for 10 days to help us.
All the school directors were very excited about the idea of having teams at their schools, and were motivated to pick 3 teachers from each school to attend the training.
Now we're waiting to get the applications back so we can see who can come!
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Box Truck - pray a little longer :)
It looks like we have a buyer for the Box Truck. Richard has been working with a lady here in Haiti and her uncle in the States. We have a deposit and the transaction should be complete on Wednesday, but it's still a matter of prayer....Thanks for your prayers to this point.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
From US Prison to Haitian Praise - A love Story about Valentine
From Prison to Praise – Mr. Valentine finds true love in Haiti
It started out as a simple argument with his live-in girlfriend, but things got loud and violent so someone called the police. Next thing Patrick Valentine knew, he was in prison awaiting trial. The verdict was “Guilty”, but Patrick wasn’t worried – he thought he would just spend a few months in jail – free food, time to exercise, and time to reflect on his behavior. But he had forgotten about his Haitian heritage, and he definitely didn’t realize that anybody born in Haiti that is convicted of a serious crime is automatically deported to Haiti and can never return to the US.
One night of out-of-control behavior had sentenced Patrick to the rest of his life in a country he didn’t even know about where people looked like him, but spoke an entirely different language. That’s because Patrick was adopted as an infant, and his adoptive parents didn’t tell him that he was Haitian and had a Haitian birth certificate. He didn’t know a word of Creole when the US marshal turned him over to the Haitian prison authorities on December 4, 2003. If it wasn’t for another Haitian who was being deported, Patrick might still be locked up in Haitian prison because he knew none of his family in Haiti, or any other Haitian for that matter. Normally, if you don’t have family or friends to help you get out of prison, you stay there. But his new-found friend that he met on the plane on the way over told the authorities that Patrick was a distant relative and got him out of prison. They went to the friend’s home town of Arcahaie, a town right on the coast about an hour north of Port-au-Prince.
Christmas, 2003 was very lonely and hard for Patrick. He was far from his family, had no money, no car, no electricity, and no Christmas tree or decorations, and no “White Christmas” like his native Minnesota, It was hot and sticky and just didn’t seem like Christmas at all, But he did have new friends, and like Joseph in the Bible, he had no choice but to learn the language and start a new life in a strange land.
Patrick learned a bit of carpentry and tried to find work, but the going was tough and he could only find odd jobs. He taught English part-time at a school, but that didn’t pay very well either. But life was bearable because he met a girl named Marise. They fell in love and started living together and before they knew it Marise was pregnant. Their little girl, Taisha just celebrated her first birthday on September 6th.
Now with a family to support, Patrick needed to find steady work. But how do you find steady work when you don’t know anyone and live in a country with 80% unemployment? Patrick was getting desperate, but decided to try and take a break from his problems by going to watch the local team – Flora – play a game against a team from the US – The Cleveland City Stars Reserve Team on June 4th, 2007. It was there that someone introduced me to Patrick and told me he could translate when one of the Cleveland City Stars players gave their testimony at Half-time. Patrick also had a Haitian driver’s license and since I was exhausted by this time after all the excitement of the team arriving and playing 3 games in 3 days, I asked him to drive for us the next day.
Sometime during the time Patrick started working with us and the morning of June 6th, the Holy Spirit did his work of convicting Patrick of sin and Patrick asked Christ to forgive his sin and make him a new creation. So when Patrick found out that some of the Cleveland City Starts players were going to be baptized in the ocean on June 6th, he talked to Pastor Ted, the team’s chaplain, and confessed his new-found faith. Patrick and 7 others (including Jordan, the son of some missionary friends who had been putting off being baptized for a year!) were baptized on that beautiful morning surrounded by 22 singing soccer players and leaders. Jordan was so excited for Patrick that he gave him his personal Bible in English as a present.
I lost touch with Patrick for a while after the tour, but one day he called me and said he had found work in the Dominican Republic ( D.R.) and needed some financial help to get there. So I invited him for lunch and listened with great joy as he told me what God had been doing in his life after the tour.
Patrick said that after he was baptized he started to go to the Nazarene Church in Arcahaie along with Marise. Marise trusted in Christ as well. Now they want to get married in the church, but have no money for the wedding. Carol and I told them we will lend them a wedding dress and help them with the decorations.
So now Patrick is working in the D.R. and hopes to earn enough money to have the wedding in about 6 months. I lent him an English/Spanish parallel New Testament so he can share his new-found faith with his Dominican friends!
It started out as a simple argument with his live-in girlfriend, but things got loud and violent so someone called the police. Next thing Patrick Valentine knew, he was in prison awaiting trial. The verdict was “Guilty”, but Patrick wasn’t worried – he thought he would just spend a few months in jail – free food, time to exercise, and time to reflect on his behavior. But he had forgotten about his Haitian heritage, and he definitely didn’t realize that anybody born in Haiti that is convicted of a serious crime is automatically deported to Haiti and can never return to the US.
One night of out-of-control behavior had sentenced Patrick to the rest of his life in a country he didn’t even know about where people looked like him, but spoke an entirely different language. That’s because Patrick was adopted as an infant, and his adoptive parents didn’t tell him that he was Haitian and had a Haitian birth certificate. He didn’t know a word of Creole when the US marshal turned him over to the Haitian prison authorities on December 4, 2003. If it wasn’t for another Haitian who was being deported, Patrick might still be locked up in Haitian prison because he knew none of his family in Haiti, or any other Haitian for that matter. Normally, if you don’t have family or friends to help you get out of prison, you stay there. But his new-found friend that he met on the plane on the way over told the authorities that Patrick was a distant relative and got him out of prison. They went to the friend’s home town of Arcahaie, a town right on the coast about an hour north of Port-au-Prince.
Christmas, 2003 was very lonely and hard for Patrick. He was far from his family, had no money, no car, no electricity, and no Christmas tree or decorations, and no “White Christmas” like his native Minnesota, It was hot and sticky and just didn’t seem like Christmas at all, But he did have new friends, and like Joseph in the Bible, he had no choice but to learn the language and start a new life in a strange land.
Patrick learned a bit of carpentry and tried to find work, but the going was tough and he could only find odd jobs. He taught English part-time at a school, but that didn’t pay very well either. But life was bearable because he met a girl named Marise. They fell in love and started living together and before they knew it Marise was pregnant. Their little girl, Taisha just celebrated her first birthday on September 6th.
Now with a family to support, Patrick needed to find steady work. But how do you find steady work when you don’t know anyone and live in a country with 80% unemployment? Patrick was getting desperate, but decided to try and take a break from his problems by going to watch the local team – Flora – play a game against a team from the US – The Cleveland City Stars Reserve Team on June 4th, 2007. It was there that someone introduced me to Patrick and told me he could translate when one of the Cleveland City Stars players gave their testimony at Half-time. Patrick also had a Haitian driver’s license and since I was exhausted by this time after all the excitement of the team arriving and playing 3 games in 3 days, I asked him to drive for us the next day.
Sometime during the time Patrick started working with us and the morning of June 6th, the Holy Spirit did his work of convicting Patrick of sin and Patrick asked Christ to forgive his sin and make him a new creation. So when Patrick found out that some of the Cleveland City Starts players were going to be baptized in the ocean on June 6th, he talked to Pastor Ted, the team’s chaplain, and confessed his new-found faith. Patrick and 7 others (including Jordan, the son of some missionary friends who had been putting off being baptized for a year!) were baptized on that beautiful morning surrounded by 22 singing soccer players and leaders. Jordan was so excited for Patrick that he gave him his personal Bible in English as a present.
I lost touch with Patrick for a while after the tour, but one day he called me and said he had found work in the Dominican Republic ( D.R.) and needed some financial help to get there. So I invited him for lunch and listened with great joy as he told me what God had been doing in his life after the tour.
Patrick said that after he was baptized he started to go to the Nazarene Church in Arcahaie along with Marise. Marise trusted in Christ as well. Now they want to get married in the church, but have no money for the wedding. Carol and I told them we will lend them a wedding dress and help them with the decorations.
So now Patrick is working in the D.R. and hopes to earn enough money to have the wedding in about 6 months. I lent him an English/Spanish parallel New Testament so he can share his new-found faith with his Dominican friends!
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Potential Partnership with another Soccer Ministry in Haiti
We have just found out about another exciting soccer ministry in Haiti called "The Alliance of Christian Athletics of Haiti" They specialize in organizing evangelistic soccer tournaments in many areas of Haiti during the summer. This week, Rich met with Daniel Jean Louis, the organization's representative in Haiti to discuss how the two organizations can work together to reach Haitian youth with the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Our first joint project will probably be a training of coaches and administrators of our soccer programs to be held over Christmas vacation in Port-au-Prince.
Have you ever just "clicked" with someone because you have so many things in common? Well, that is the way I felt when I met Daniel. Not only does he love the Lord, Soccer and the youth of Haiti, he also has a degree in economics and wants to help develop small businesses in Haiti. We are looking forward to working together in the next few months to see how we can work together in the areas of soccer ministry and entrepreneurial training.
Computers for Christian Schools in Haiti
Thanks to the generous contribution of computers from Philadelphia Biblical University last year, 4 Christian schools in Haiti now have more powerful computers to use at their schools. All of these computers were shipped over on the truck, but some of them needed repair once they got here.
"Mèt Fedner", the administrator of the Oberlin School (one of the UEBH schools), helped to repair the computers and loaded software to put them in working order. His school received 5 computers for their elementary computer program. Maranatha Evangelical High School received 15 computers to replace their older generation machines and 2 other primary schools will also receive computers.
It was a thrill to deliver these machines before school started and know that they will be put to immediate use! Thank you to all who helped load them on the truck and to PBU who gave us computers, monitors, and even spare parts.
"Mèt Fedner", the administrator of the Oberlin School (one of the UEBH schools), helped to repair the computers and loaded software to put them in working order. His school received 5 computers for their elementary computer program. Maranatha Evangelical High School received 15 computers to replace their older generation machines and 2 other primary schools will also receive computers.
It was a thrill to deliver these machines before school started and know that they will be put to immediate use! Thank you to all who helped load them on the truck and to PBU who gave us computers, monitors, and even spare parts.
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Visit to Verrettes
Yesterday, Richard went to visit one of the schools where the pilot project will take place if the Lord wills (Verrettes). This is one of the schools we’re inviting to the soccer ministry training program in December.He went with two Haitian brothers who are on the UEBH School Committee to evaluate the status of the school. They met with the Director, the Assistant Director and the Accountant of the school. The school has about 300 students, about half of which are partially subsidized by Compassion International. Even with this help, the school is in financial difficulty because most parents cannot afford to send their children to school. The tuition is very low—the equivalent of about $20 US/ month or less, plus the cost of uniforms and supplies. We asked this school to communicate to the other four schools that they should begin the selection process to decide which four representatives they will send from their schools to the training in December.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Sunday's final game
Sunday night Rich's neighborhood team played a "friendly" match against the organizers of the tournament. It turned out to be a high scoring game and we tied at 7 to 7 (Rich scored a goal). But unfortunately the evangelism did not go as well as on Friday night. The spiritual atmosphere was completely different for one thing. Whereas on Friday night people were appluading Jesus' miracles as portrayed in the "Jesus film", on Sunday night a voodoo "RARA" band paraded past the field twice while we were playing and many people were drinking heavily. For some reason, the man who was supposed to do a Gospel presentation at half-time did not show up and so nothing was presented. Nevertheless, there were some evangelistic counselors in the crowd who got some people to fill out response cards so we could do a drawing and so I did get to say a few words between games and give out Bibles to the organizers.
The results from Friday night were very encouraging, however with 43 people trusting in Christ and over 328 people filling out response cards.
Please continue to pray as we follow up.
Saturday, August 25, 2007
My faith was small, but my God is big
My faith was small, but my God is big.
Weather in Haiti can change very quickly. The rain clouds can come rolling down the mountains surrounding Port-au-Prince and turn a sunny day into a cloudy one in 15 minutes. As I was loading the equipment to show the Jesus film I was rejoicing that there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Less than 30 minutes later as I pulled up to the spot where we were going to show the Jesus film, it was overcast and spitting rain – and then the thunder and lightning started and I was beginning to lose hope. Lord, I cried, you know how we’ve been praying that it would not rain!
But the light rain turned out to be the least of our problems. After the technician had announced to the whole neighborhood over the loudspeakers that we were going to show the film and rolled the tape, the old 8mm projector with the big film rolls started to skip and the picture was all blurry. It was like watching modern art while listening to the Christmas story (all in Creole of course).
So I started to pray again asking God to intercede and then went back home to get my TV and video player in case we could not get the projector going. (I also had the Jesus film on video cassette). By the time I got back, the film was running normally and people were really starting to gather in spite of the rain.
Watching the Jesus film in Haiti is very interesting because you feel like the people surrounding you could actually have been extras in the film except for their dark skin. In our neighborhood there are still many who don’t get enough to eat everyday, we see farmers taking their cows to pasture and the crow of roosters still wake us up in the morning. Then there was the young man who climbed a dead tree and perched in its y shaped branches to watch the film, just like Zacheus did to see Jesus!
It was also interesting because the technician that helped me with the film was also part preacher and cheer leader. He got the crowd really excited about watching the film and then did a running commentary throughout. For instance, he encouraged people to cheer when Jesus did a miracle (which they did enthusiastically). He also added drama by stopping the film just before the crucifixion to remind people of its significance for them. Plus, the thunder and lightning also added special effects while the rain clouds blew by as the film came to a close.
At the end of the movie, we had counselors from a local church distribute response cards and lots of people filled them out because we also used the cards for a drawing where they could win a soccer ball or a Bible. In total we got 358 responses and 43 trusted in Christ, 88 asked for more information, and 134 want to study the Bible! So you see, God did answer
Please pray for the follow-up of these new believers and seekers by the church in our neighborhood!
After the movie, the people watched the semi-final of the soccer tournament. We are also going to do an evangelistic presentation tomorrow night just before the final game, so please pray for that as well!
Weather in Haiti can change very quickly. The rain clouds can come rolling down the mountains surrounding Port-au-Prince and turn a sunny day into a cloudy one in 15 minutes. As I was loading the equipment to show the Jesus film I was rejoicing that there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Less than 30 minutes later as I pulled up to the spot where we were going to show the Jesus film, it was overcast and spitting rain – and then the thunder and lightning started and I was beginning to lose hope. Lord, I cried, you know how we’ve been praying that it would not rain!
But the light rain turned out to be the least of our problems. After the technician had announced to the whole neighborhood over the loudspeakers that we were going to show the film and rolled the tape, the old 8mm projector with the big film rolls started to skip and the picture was all blurry. It was like watching modern art while listening to the Christmas story (all in Creole of course).
So I started to pray again asking God to intercede and then went back home to get my TV and video player in case we could not get the projector going. (I also had the Jesus film on video cassette). By the time I got back, the film was running normally and people were really starting to gather in spite of the rain.
Watching the Jesus film in Haiti is very interesting because you feel like the people surrounding you could actually have been extras in the film except for their dark skin. In our neighborhood there are still many who don’t get enough to eat everyday, we see farmers taking their cows to pasture and the crow of roosters still wake us up in the morning. Then there was the young man who climbed a dead tree and perched in its y shaped branches to watch the film, just like Zacheus did to see Jesus!
It was also interesting because the technician that helped me with the film was also part preacher and cheer leader. He got the crowd really excited about watching the film and then did a running commentary throughout. For instance, he encouraged people to cheer when Jesus did a miracle (which they did enthusiastically). He also added drama by stopping the film just before the crucifixion to remind people of its significance for them. Plus, the thunder and lightning also added special effects while the rain clouds blew by as the film came to a close.
At the end of the movie, we had counselors from a local church distribute response cards and lots of people filled them out because we also used the cards for a drawing where they could win a soccer ball or a Bible. In total we got 358 responses and 43 trusted in Christ, 88 asked for more information, and 134 want to study the Bible! So you see, God did answer
Please pray for the follow-up of these new believers and seekers by the church in our neighborhood!
After the movie, the people watched the semi-final of the soccer tournament. We are also going to do an evangelistic presentation tomorrow night just before the final game, so please pray for that as well!
Friday, August 24, 2007
Neighborhood Soccer Outreach tonight!
In many neighborhoods in Haiti they hold "Ti Kan"(small goal - about 2ft by 1 ft) 3 on 3 soccer tournaments during the summer to provide some healthy activities for youth. They hold these tournaments around 10 PM because they block off the streets to have a place to play.
When I (Rich) got back to Haiti at the end of July our neighborhood was making preparations to hold one of these tournaments so I prayed about how we could use this event for evangelism and I talked to some of the young men who play "ti Kan" with Ricky and I in our driveway most evenings. We decided to enter the tournament and also got the idea of partnering with Campus Crusade for Christ and a local church to show the "Jesus Film" before the semi-final games tonight. We will then do clear presentation of the Gospel at halftime and invite people to trust in Christ.
Please pray that it does not rain and that lots of people will come before the games to watch the movie. Pray also that the Holy Spirit touches the hearts of many people and opens their eyes to their need of salvation. Thanks!
When I (Rich) got back to Haiti at the end of July our neighborhood was making preparations to hold one of these tournaments so I prayed about how we could use this event for evangelism and I talked to some of the young men who play "ti Kan" with Ricky and I in our driveway most evenings. We decided to enter the tournament and also got the idea of partnering with Campus Crusade for Christ and a local church to show the "Jesus Film" before the semi-final games tonight. We will then do clear presentation of the Gospel at halftime and invite people to trust in Christ.
Please pray that it does not rain and that lots of people will come before the games to watch the movie. Pray also that the Holy Spirit touches the hearts of many people and opens their eyes to their need of salvation. Thanks!
Friday, August 17, 2007
Changed lives
(Carol has been writing most of our blog entries, but this time it's Richard.)
Today I met with one of the 8 supervisors of the evangelistic counselors for follow-up of the soccer outreach in Port-au-Prince. His name is Yves.
I asked him how the calls were going and he said he made 7 calls and got 2 appointments with people who wanted to study the Bible with him.
Then I asked him if he had called any of those who had indicated they had trusted Christ during the game in Port-au-Prince. He said he had contacted 2 and then told me their stories.
The first was named Bernard. He had heard about the game over the radio and had come just to watch his favorite team play. When he got there he was surprised to see that it was something “Protestant”. He said he would never have come if he had known that. When the message was given he listened, and filled out the response card saying that he had accepted Christ so that he could have a chance at winning a laptop computer. But then during the second half of the game, the Holy Spirit touched his heart and he saw his need for salvation.
Even though it has taken us 2 months to follow up with some people like Bernard, they are still happy to hear from us. In Bernard’s case, Yves suggested they meet for 30 minutes, but he was so interested in what Yves was showing him from the Bible, that Yves spend two hours with him – and he wants to meet with Yves again. Yves is convinced that Bernard’s conversion is sincere and praises God that he has the opportunity to feed one of His lambs.
As Yves was telling me this story I was overcome with emotion and started to cry. Through my tears of joy I explained to Yves that even if Bernard were the only person who trusted in Christ as a result of the soccer tour, it was worth all the investment of time and money and heartaches that made the tour possible. Changed lives are the reason we’re here.
The second person Yves met with said he understood the plan of salvation at the stadium, but did not make a decision to accept Christ until the following week when he attended an evangelistic crusade near his house. Then he went home and promptly forgot about his commitment. If it wasn’t for Yves being faithful to follow up, this person could have been like the seed sown along the path that withered for lack of water. But now Yves has met with him and he wants to continue to study the Bible with Yves and grow in Christ.
Thanks to our friends at Blue Ridge Ministries, we were able to get over 2,700 New Testaments and Psalms to give to people like Bernard who is eager to study God’s Word. They also gave us several hundred Bible study books called “Beginning the Christian life”, also in Creole. Having these books to offer makes the job of those doing follow up a lot easier since most people are eager to receive them.
Please pray that we will hear many more encouraging stories about how God worked through the soccer tour!
Today I met with one of the 8 supervisors of the evangelistic counselors for follow-up of the soccer outreach in Port-au-Prince. His name is Yves.
I asked him how the calls were going and he said he made 7 calls and got 2 appointments with people who wanted to study the Bible with him.
Then I asked him if he had called any of those who had indicated they had trusted Christ during the game in Port-au-Prince. He said he had contacted 2 and then told me their stories.
The first was named Bernard. He had heard about the game over the radio and had come just to watch his favorite team play. When he got there he was surprised to see that it was something “Protestant”. He said he would never have come if he had known that. When the message was given he listened, and filled out the response card saying that he had accepted Christ so that he could have a chance at winning a laptop computer. But then during the second half of the game, the Holy Spirit touched his heart and he saw his need for salvation.
Even though it has taken us 2 months to follow up with some people like Bernard, they are still happy to hear from us. In Bernard’s case, Yves suggested they meet for 30 minutes, but he was so interested in what Yves was showing him from the Bible, that Yves spend two hours with him – and he wants to meet with Yves again. Yves is convinced that Bernard’s conversion is sincere and praises God that he has the opportunity to feed one of His lambs.
As Yves was telling me this story I was overcome with emotion and started to cry. Through my tears of joy I explained to Yves that even if Bernard were the only person who trusted in Christ as a result of the soccer tour, it was worth all the investment of time and money and heartaches that made the tour possible. Changed lives are the reason we’re here.
The second person Yves met with said he understood the plan of salvation at the stadium, but did not make a decision to accept Christ until the following week when he attended an evangelistic crusade near his house. Then he went home and promptly forgot about his commitment. If it wasn’t for Yves being faithful to follow up, this person could have been like the seed sown along the path that withered for lack of water. But now Yves has met with him and he wants to continue to study the Bible with Yves and grow in Christ.
Thanks to our friends at Blue Ridge Ministries, we were able to get over 2,700 New Testaments and Psalms to give to people like Bernard who is eager to study God’s Word. They also gave us several hundred Bible study books called “Beginning the Christian life”, also in Creole. Having these books to offer makes the job of those doing follow up a lot easier since most people are eager to receive them.
Please pray that we will hear many more encouraging stories about how God worked through the soccer tour!
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Pray for Joy - at a medical clinc
Our daughter, Joy, left yesterday to go to Seguin, up in the mountains, to help out in a medical clinic and learn more about what it's like to work in one. Teresa Murphy, who works in the Haitian Christian Outreach, often has college interns come and work with her, and we were really happy that she was willing to have Joy even though she's still in high school.
You can check out the website of this ministry at: wwww.haitianchristian.org look at the medical clinic page or the picture page.
You can check out the website of this ministry at: wwww.haitianchristian.org look at the medical clinic page or the picture page.
Good Results - Training & Follow-Up
Left: Sylvain Nelson, our intern from the seminary leading a sessionBelow: the coordinators of the volunteers at the training session
The training session went well. There were coordinators from each of the 8 sections of the city plus some from Arcahaie and Saint Marc. We were really glad that Richard made the trip to Blue Ridge Ministries in Croix-des-Bouquets for the New Testaments and booklets because the volunteers really appreciated them. One said that he thinks it will be much nicer to make the follow-up visits since they will be giving something to the people. Things like that are much more appreciated in general because people have hardly any reading material (and you can imagine they don't get any junk mail!).
(Richard loading up the pick-up with all the stuff for the training session.)
Most of the Bibles and booklets were taken home by the coordinators and phone cards were given out as well.
Stories from Follow-up
It was good to hear a few stories from the follow-up that has already started. Our friend, Jaclyn in Arcahaie, told about a lady who was surprisingly the daughter of a Deacon of a another church, but indicated desire for spiritual help. She is now attending a Bible study.
The Bibles from Blue Ridge being delivered to the training site-Campus Pour Christ.
Saturday, August 11, 2007
Update on Tomorrow's training session
The exciting thing that happened today is that we got 2700 New Testaments (with Psalms) for free--provided by Blue Ridge Ministries. Not only that, but they are the updated version of Creole. We also have 960 booklets for new believers (also from Blue Ridge) and booklets that Ligue Biblique uses on the third follow-up visit. They will be given to the volunteers at the training for use in follow-up.
Please pray that those who are leading the sessions will communicate well--that will be Richard, Sylvain Neslon (intern from STEP) and Pastor Elyson from Ligue Biblique. And pray for the participants--that they will find motivation and practical help; and for the logistics of getting the New Testaments and booklets to their areas, since most of them come by public transportation. We are expecting 50 people to come; please pray their safety in travel, too.
Thanks again for your prayers.
Please pray that those who are leading the sessions will communicate well--that will be Richard, Sylvain Neslon (intern from STEP) and Pastor Elyson from Ligue Biblique. And pray for the participants--that they will find motivation and practical help; and for the logistics of getting the New Testaments and booklets to their areas, since most of them come by public transportation. We are expecting 50 people to come; please pray their safety in travel, too.
Thanks again for your prayers.
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Anybody want to come visit us? Spirit Airlines flies from Fort Lauderdale to Port-au-Prince. They have specials from time to time with really low fares on certain days. Here's what they're showing this week:
Ft. Lauderdale - Port-au-Prince, Haiti: $55 each way. These fares must be purchased by 11:59 PM ET on August 10, 2007 for travel on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays between August 21, 2007 and February 13, 2008.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida - Port Au Prince, Haiti $13* Each Way 10/1, 10/19, 10/22, 10/26
And it's really crazy because you have to buy the tickets by tomorrow at midnight.
Ft. Lauderdale - Port-au-Prince, Haiti: $55 each way. These fares must be purchased by 11:59 PM ET on August 10, 2007 for travel on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays between August 21, 2007 and February 13, 2008.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida - Port Au Prince, Haiti $13* Each Way 10/1, 10/19, 10/22, 10/26
And it's really crazy because you have to buy the tickets by tomorrow at midnight.
Prayer needed for a friend
Please pray for a friend of ours, Pierre (yes, that's a very common name here...a little anonimity is good...and God will know who it is). Let me tell it this way...
Church on Sunday started out very differently at the English church. The person leading worship for this week just started talking about how there had been some problems between church members during the week. She openly confessed a sin of her own and then asked forgiveness of the church. She suggested that all of us examine our hearts and get up to go ask forgiveness of anyone we had problem with. Then she excused herself to go ask forgiveness of an individual in the church.
All of this had a big effect on this friend of ours. As soon as church was over, he told Richard that he had been doing some confessing himself of some sins that have had a big impact on his life, and in fact he had been hiding it. He is involved with a woman, has had a child with her and they are having a lot of conflict. There have been other consequences, too. We've always known him to be a very humble person with a big heart who is always ready to help with ministry. We prayed with him right then and are trying to stay in close touch with him to help them in any way we can. We appreciate your prayers.
Church on Sunday started out very differently at the English church. The person leading worship for this week just started talking about how there had been some problems between church members during the week. She openly confessed a sin of her own and then asked forgiveness of the church. She suggested that all of us examine our hearts and get up to go ask forgiveness of anyone we had problem with. Then she excused herself to go ask forgiveness of an individual in the church.
All of this had a big effect on this friend of ours. As soon as church was over, he told Richard that he had been doing some confessing himself of some sins that have had a big impact on his life, and in fact he had been hiding it. He is involved with a woman, has had a child with her and they are having a lot of conflict. There have been other consequences, too. We've always known him to be a very humble person with a big heart who is always ready to help with ministry. We prayed with him right then and are trying to stay in close touch with him to help them in any way we can. We appreciate your prayers.
Monday, August 6, 2007
Pray for training this Saturday
We're back in country. Sorry for the long delay in posting. We had a nice time visiting family, friends and churches. I took a course in curriculum design and assessment at PBU which turned out to be very interesting and very practical.
Please pray with us for a mobilization training session for follow-up in Port-au-Prince.
This Saturday we are hosting a mobilization training session for the area leaders of those who are doing the follow-up on those who responded during the Cleveland City Stars tour. Instead of working directly with 200 or so volunteers, Richard and Pastor Bilda (Director of the Bible League in Haiti) chose leaders in 8 different areas of the city. These leaders plus an assistant will be at the training. It's great to have these people to work with since Pastor Bilda has been working with them on a discipleship project (Project Philippe). Also, leaders from churches in each area are invited as well. Some leaders from Arcahaie and Saint Marc will be there, too.
Follow-up in Cap Haitien is being done independently. We’ll update you when we get news of how that’s going.
So, this week is busy already with preparation for the session, advertising the truck for sale (no, the truck still has not sold), and I’m finishing my paper for the class I took in July.
Please pray with us for a mobilization training session for follow-up in Port-au-Prince.
This Saturday we are hosting a mobilization training session for the area leaders of those who are doing the follow-up on those who responded during the Cleveland City Stars tour. Instead of working directly with 200 or so volunteers, Richard and Pastor Bilda (Director of the Bible League in Haiti) chose leaders in 8 different areas of the city. These leaders plus an assistant will be at the training. It's great to have these people to work with since Pastor Bilda has been working with them on a discipleship project (Project Philippe). Also, leaders from churches in each area are invited as well. Some leaders from Arcahaie and Saint Marc will be there, too.
Follow-up in Cap Haitien is being done independently. We’ll update you when we get news of how that’s going.
So, this week is busy already with preparation for the session, advertising the truck for sale (no, the truck still has not sold), and I’m finishing my paper for the class I took in July.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
Meeting With School Leaders in Verrettes
Here are Richard and Tim Ferri meeting with some of the school leaders in Verrettes. We had some problems getting everyone together at the same time, but we met with leaders from two schools on Tuesday.We were happily surprised to find that one of the schools is still using soccer equipment we gave them 5 years ago! Richard talked about our vision for a pilot project in the area, starting about 5 soccer programs and having the teams play each other. The leaders from the Verrettes school told us they had participated in a local tournament and that they were only able to do that because Richard had given them equipment 5 years ago and they took care of it by collecting the cleats and everything after every use.
We went to visit one of the schools in the area and found that it had several pressing needs. The roof is rusted and leaking in a lot of places, the school started building new latrines but was never able to finish, they need new benches and don't have enough space for the students. It was somewhat overwhelming, but it seemed like a good thing that we could only visit one school. It seemed like God was having us focus on this one school instead of being overwhelmed by several with all these problems. 
Here's Richard talking to Emmanulie, the Director of the Orem (Sp?) School that we visited.
Tim is hoping to bring a work team to do a project like this. One work project that seems logical to do first, would be to finish the latrines.
As for starting the pilot project...Richard asked the schools to select 3 or 4 teachers to come to the TREC training (AIS's training for coaches doing soccer ministry) that will be held in December. We talked about the dates and a few more details. It was a good first visit for the project.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Soccer Contest with Compassion Kids
Sunday afternoon we had the rescheduled contest for the Compassion kids that was supposed to take place at the national stadium before the big game between the Cleveland City Stars and the Haitian National U-17 team.
Eleven boys were able to come and about as many adults came with them. Although it was a shame we couldn't do it at the stadium with all the kids, this was much less crazy. At the stadium there were too many problems to deal with before the game. We had the rescheduled contest at Quisqueya Chapel which worked out great. They seemed to have a good time. There was even a short rain storm in the middle of the event, but we got the kids under the gazebo and did one of the contests there. Then they were back outside. We gave them hotdogs, chips and juice and then handed out prizes for the winners. All the kids got a book about the Bible, and the winners got a pair of cleats, a new soccer ball and a T-shirt.
It was great having Tim Ferri here visiting us from our home church. He helped out and really seemed to enjoy the kids. Later, at home, Tim hung out with some of the guys from the neighborhood. Unfortunately, most of them wanted to play only soccer. Even though basketball is really Tim's game, he played soccer. He hasn't been intimidated by not knowing the language--he's been learning a couple words each day, noticing which ones are similar to Spanish. He learned "zanmi" (friend):
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Tim got here safely
Tim arrived safely today. He was held in immigration for a little while because we forgot that he would need to have our address to fill out his immigration form. After a little while, they let him go.
This afternoon he and Richard held the soccer contest with the Compassion kids who were supposed to have this the day of the big match in the stadium, but the timing didn't work out.
The kids had a great time in the soccer competition. And we provided hot dogs, plantain chips and juice for them afterward.
This afternoon he and Richard held the soccer contest with the Compassion kids who were supposed to have this the day of the big match in the stadium, but the timing didn't work out.
The kids had a great time in the soccer competition. And we provided hot dogs, plantain chips and juice for them afterward.
Thursday, June 21, 2007
A Visitor!
Tim Ferri, a friend from our home church, Crossing Community Church is coming to visit us. He will arrive on Saturday and stay for a week. Tim has been a faithful member of Crossing, and we appreciate the influence he has had on our kids in Crossing's youth ministry. We've worked with him at an outreach in the Kensington section of Philadelphia, too.
Tim's goals are basically to enlarge his mission vision, to check out the possiblity of bringing a work team to Haiti in the future and to see how God may use his skills in basketball to reach Haitian youth. We have a couple of basketball clinics planned for next week and Tim will join us on our trip to Verrettes next week to see the needs of the schools out there. He will also be helping us with other ministry activities during the week.
We've really been looking forward to his visit...he's been a great encouragement to us, espcially of the past year or so, in our efforts to get back to Haiti, and get the new ministry going. Please pray for the basketball clinics and that God will use this week according to His will in all of our lives.
Tim's goals are basically to enlarge his mission vision, to check out the possiblity of bringing a work team to Haiti in the future and to see how God may use his skills in basketball to reach Haitian youth. We have a couple of basketball clinics planned for next week and Tim will join us on our trip to Verrettes next week to see the needs of the schools out there. He will also be helping us with other ministry activities during the week.
We've really been looking forward to his visit...he's been a great encouragement to us, espcially of the past year or so, in our efforts to get back to Haiti, and get the new ministry going. Please pray for the basketball clinics and that God will use this week according to His will in all of our lives.
Pilot Project
We have chosen 5 UEBH schools to work with for a pilot project for the soccer ministry. These schools are fairly close to each other in the Verrettes area, which is about 2 1/2 hours away from Port-au-Prince. We chose schools with students supported by Compassion, Int'l. because Compassion strongly encourages the schools they assist to have a sports programs. This is often very difficult for schools in these poor areas to provide.
Tuesday morning we will be going out there to meet with the leaders from these 5 schools. Please pray that God will direct us in this.
Tuesday morning we will be going out there to meet with the leaders from these 5 schools. Please pray that God will direct us in this.
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Haitian National Under 17 team Defects in New York
We were so sad to read the news that 13 out of the 18 players on the national Under 17 team defected in New York on Wednesday during a layover on their way to the Under 17 World Cup in South Korea...and relieved to find that they have been located and 11 have come back to the squad. Two players have been sent back to Haiti as a punishment and were replaced by alternates.
We've heard about players using overseas matches as a way to leave Haiti, but this was shocking, not only because it was 13 players, but also because they were on their way to the World Cup and so many people in Haiti were excited and proud of this accomplishement.
It seems no one, except those involved, really knows why this happened. Although these young players probably had some desire to find a panacea in the US, did that alone cause them to forsake their country’s dreams of being well represented in a World Cup tournament? There were probably other factors involved since someone had to arrange the van to pick them up and whisk them away. Some suspect political motives (people trying to make the current government look bad) and maybe these guys had to deal with too much corruption and there was some anger about that. One thing we’re sure of, a lot fans in Haiti will be thrilled to see their team playing in this World Cup.
As you know, our goal in Haiti is to use soccer to develop Christian character and teamwork among Haitian school children, and this incident shows that it is not enough to develop soccer talent in Haiti. Character training must also be included if these young men are going to lead successful and fulfilling lives after their soccer careers are over and make a lasting contribution to Haiti.
You can read more about it at http://www.haitiwebs.com/ in the sports section.
We've heard about players using overseas matches as a way to leave Haiti, but this was shocking, not only because it was 13 players, but also because they were on their way to the World Cup and so many people in Haiti were excited and proud of this accomplishement.
It seems no one, except those involved, really knows why this happened. Although these young players probably had some desire to find a panacea in the US, did that alone cause them to forsake their country’s dreams of being well represented in a World Cup tournament? There were probably other factors involved since someone had to arrange the van to pick them up and whisk them away. Some suspect political motives (people trying to make the current government look bad) and maybe these guys had to deal with too much corruption and there was some anger about that. One thing we’re sure of, a lot fans in Haiti will be thrilled to see their team playing in this World Cup.
As you know, our goal in Haiti is to use soccer to develop Christian character and teamwork among Haitian school children, and this incident shows that it is not enough to develop soccer talent in Haiti. Character training must also be included if these young men are going to lead successful and fulfilling lives after their soccer careers are over and make a lasting contribution to Haiti.
You can read more about it at http://www.haitiwebs.com/ in the sports section.
Prayer request - betrayal
Please pray for Richard. He has been betrayed by a friend, someone we have helped a lot has been stealing from us and selling the stuff he steals. He has also given in to temptation on other serious issues. Please pray for him and his wife and two young children. The reason I ask for prayer for Richard, is that he really enjoyed their friendship. Since we've been back in Haiti we've tried to deal with him in gentle ways, but now it's obvious we have to "cut him off" ie. not hire him for anything anymore and not lend him money even for necesseties. After having several things confirmed by several people, we see that we would only aggravate the problem by trying to help out. There are good pastors and other Christian people he can go to for help, but Richard will miss his friendship. We pray that this young man will be honest and be willing to change so that the friendship can be restored someday.
Joy, the courageous
On Tuesday we drove Joy out to Cazale to work at a medical clinic. Wow, we were overwhelmed by the place. They do 3 clinic days a week and see about 250-300 people each of those days. The rescue mission there cares for a lot of kids. In fact, they hire about 65 Haitian people to take care of them 24 hours a day. We were amazed and impressed with the work that Lori Moise, her sister, Licia, their Dad and their husbands, along with all the Haitian workers do in that relatively small space, 11 kilometers away from civilization :).
We were a little queasy seeing the children with severe malnutrition and just being in the crowded, warm clinic. And of course, we've all been sick lately, so we weren't surprised when we called Joy on Wednesday morning and found out she had passed out. She said she was OK, though, and wanted to stay. The next day she felt sick, but she still wanted to stay to learn something and hopefully help out.
Yesterday she talked about witnessing stitches and putting an IV in a baby's arm. For those of you who don't know, Joy has wanted to help Haitian kids in some medical capacity, but she's never been anxious to deal with blood. But, I guess, she can't avoid some of that, and now she's got the opportunity to see what goes on first hand. Pray for her...that God would use this to give her direction...and for her protection.
Sorry, no pictures, yet, until she comes back, or puts some on facebook. But you can check out Lori's and Licia's blogs.
xanga.com/haitinurse4life
xanga.com/no_I'm_not_a_nurse
We were a little queasy seeing the children with severe malnutrition and just being in the crowded, warm clinic. And of course, we've all been sick lately, so we weren't surprised when we called Joy on Wednesday morning and found out she had passed out. She said she was OK, though, and wanted to stay. The next day she felt sick, but she still wanted to stay to learn something and hopefully help out.
Yesterday she talked about witnessing stitches and putting an IV in a baby's arm. For those of you who don't know, Joy has wanted to help Haitian kids in some medical capacity, but she's never been anxious to deal with blood. But, I guess, she can't avoid some of that, and now she's got the opportunity to see what goes on first hand. Pray for her...that God would use this to give her direction...and for her protection.
Sorry, no pictures, yet, until she comes back, or puts some on facebook. But you can check out Lori's and Licia's blogs.
xanga.com/haitinurse4life
xanga.com/no_I'm_not_a_nurse
Saturday, June 9, 2007
Captain of the Flora team
The captain of the Flora team shared about his relationship with Jesus and
how much that has meant in his life.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Tour Results so far: Cleveland City Stars 2-2-0, 6 points
The Cleveland City Stars beat Haiti's ACS professional team in Cap Haitien (3-1) putting the results for the Tour so far at 2 wins, 2 losses, no ties and 6 points scored. Several of our players have been dealing with some traveller's diarrhea and dehydration. So, unfortunately, not all of them could go up to Cap Haitien. Goals at that game were scored by James Jaggard, Alec Lemmon and Carlos Calderson...Hope I got the names right, I'll have Rich check them when he gets home :).
Tomorrow is the last match of the Tour, the Futsal match against the Haitian National Futsal team in Port-au-Prince. This morning the team was headed out from Cap Haitien to see the Citadel, the most famous historic site in Haiti.
I'm sorry I'm not able to post the news and pictures on this blog sooner. More details and pictures will be added as soon as possible.
Tomorrow is the last match of the Tour, the Futsal match against the Haitian National Futsal team in Port-au-Prince. This morning the team was headed out from Cap Haitien to see the Citadel, the most famous historic site in Haiti.
I'm sorry I'm not able to post the news and pictures on this blog sooner. More details and pictures will be added as soon as possible.
Carlos Calderson, Kent and Aaron Tredway in Port-au-Prince
Carlos Calderson, CCS Reserve Team Coach, Kent Manson, leader of the tour and Aaron Tredway, Executive Director of CCS at the Sylvio Cator Stadium in Port-au-Prince.Pics at the big stadium in Port-au-Prince
Pastor Pierre of Campus Pour Christ speaking at Hafltime.
Pastor Bildaspeaking during the second half of the game...doing what the Haitians call 'chofe' - warming up the crowd and making sure everyone knew about the door prizes.
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
Update on St. Marc
I’m sorry the news is a bit slow in coming, I haven’t always been able to reach Rich on his cell phone up north. Finally, here’s an update of the past couple of days. (And I still can’t upload pictures until Rich comes home tomorrow afternoon.)
On Monday and Tuesday, the team played two games, one against Flora, in Arcahaie and one in St. Marc against Tempete, a professional team in that city. In the game in Arcahaie, Flora won 2-0. In the game in St. Marc the Cleveland City Stars won 2-1.
Even though they didn’t win the Arcahaie game, Richard said that the team captain of the Flora team, who is a Christian, shared about his life with the spectators at halftime, and then went out to score a goal right away. In St. Marc, kids could come on to the field after the game to play and hangout with the CCS players. They really like the interaction with the kids…that’s what it’s all about.
At each game, door prizes have been given out and at the Flora game, we gave the Flora team some equipment, as well. The way this has been organized is that the spectators fill out a card with their name and address and they can indicate if they received Christ as their Savior, or if they would like more information, or have a prayer request they would like to share. The counselors at each game give out and collect the cards, then there is the drawing, and finally they sort the cards to see what follow up should be done. At Port-au-Prince 629 checked that they had received Christ as their Savior, At Arcahaie, 55.
In each town we visit there are really two teams that are involved in the game. The Cleveland City Stars, of course who play on the physical soccer field, and the team of counselors who are in the stands talking with people and distributing the response cards. This team is working in the spiritual realm where hearts are changed and life-changing decisions are made.
In St. Marc we were blessed to have a particularly well-trained and enthusiastic team of counselors working with us, and out of the several thousand people that were there, 170 indicated that they had come to know Christ personally.
Tomorrow the team gets a break and then they come back to Port-au-Prince in the afternoon. They leave for Cap Haitien on Thursday morning to play ACS Thursday afternoon. The old “Montezuma’s revenge” has hit a few of the players and one leader, so pray that they feel better soon, and that no one else has health problems.
On Monday and Tuesday, the team played two games, one against Flora, in Arcahaie and one in St. Marc against Tempete, a professional team in that city. In the game in Arcahaie, Flora won 2-0. In the game in St. Marc the Cleveland City Stars won 2-1.
Even though they didn’t win the Arcahaie game, Richard said that the team captain of the Flora team, who is a Christian, shared about his life with the spectators at halftime, and then went out to score a goal right away. In St. Marc, kids could come on to the field after the game to play and hangout with the CCS players. They really like the interaction with the kids…that’s what it’s all about.
At each game, door prizes have been given out and at the Flora game, we gave the Flora team some equipment, as well. The way this has been organized is that the spectators fill out a card with their name and address and they can indicate if they received Christ as their Savior, or if they would like more information, or have a prayer request they would like to share. The counselors at each game give out and collect the cards, then there is the drawing, and finally they sort the cards to see what follow up should be done. At Port-au-Prince 629 checked that they had received Christ as their Savior, At Arcahaie, 55.
In each town we visit there are really two teams that are involved in the game. The Cleveland City Stars, of course who play on the physical soccer field, and the team of counselors who are in the stands talking with people and distributing the response cards. This team is working in the spiritual realm where hearts are changed and life-changing decisions are made.
In St. Marc we were blessed to have a particularly well-trained and enthusiastic team of counselors working with us, and out of the several thousand people that were there, 170 indicated that they had come to know Christ personally.
Tomorrow the team gets a break and then they come back to Port-au-Prince in the afternoon. They leave for Cap Haitien on Thursday morning to play ACS Thursday afternoon. The old “Montezuma’s revenge” has hit a few of the players and one leader, so pray that they feel better soon, and that no one else has health problems.
Monday, June 4, 2007
The big match in the stadium
Thank you for praying for the big match at the stadium
First, some answers to prayer:
· The weather was good for the game – a light drizzle while it was starting and then it cleared up.
· None of the players were sick.
· No one was seriously injured.
· Pastor Pierre did a good job presenting the gospel.
· The turn out was pretty good
· Our STEP (seminary) intern has been doing a great job
As for the game…Haiti won 2 to 1. The Stars are a team of very good individual players, but this team has not played together for very long—only about 3 weeks. I’m sure that being in a third-world country for the first time (for most of the players) had an effect. Also, the locker room was very hot before the game, but the air conditioning was finally turned on.
Forgive me for writing this post so late, and with no pictures, I caught a nasty cold/flu that's been going around. All day yesterday I had a sore throat and headache and last night I had a fever.
More about the Port-au-Prince match
It was a very difficult day for Richard and me. At 7:00 am we went to pick up “pates” (pronounced pah-tay) to be sold at concession stands at the game. Since the Federation was getting all the money from the ticket sales, we were looking for a way to recoup expenses and we were told we could do the concessions. But when we were told by the Federation that they would not take any percentage of that, we thought we would have all the profits. But later we found out that the Stadium was taking 60%. That’s why we were trying the sale of “pates”. But in retrospect, it added an extra stress that we did not need. And not many were sold because there are vendors who carry baskets around in the stands and there was no announcement that these pates were on sale at the concession stands.
After picking up other things and taking them all to the stadium, we went to church. One of the players, Elijah, did a great job giving his testimony. After church we all went back to the hotel for the brunch there, but it was served an hour late. We wished we hadn’t waited for it because when we got to the stadium there were more problems. First, we had a problem at the gate. The counselors were supposed to meet in the conference room, but they were not allowed in the gate that would give them access to it because most of them had the lower priced tickets. Then we were told we could not use the conference room. So we had the counselors split up, some in the cheaper section, some in the higher priced section. This made the organization of the counselors difficult.
We had heard from our announcer, via phone, that there was no sound system yet. (Their’s had broken and they had agreed to rent one). Then as soon as we got in, the Federation people called us into their office. They were upset because they heard Richard “talking” on the radio & other announcements of the game that gave the ticket price as 50 gourdes, when it had been changed to 100 gourdes. (see previous post ). They also told us that they would lose money on this match and they asked Richard what they should do about that. Richard showed them where he had taken notes in his notebook about the President of the Federation approving the 50g ticket price and reminded them that they had changed the ticket price only a week before the game. Radio spots and interviews had already been taped. After this, we didn’t know if they would have a sound system or not, but they did. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t let our announcer emcee the game, even though they had agreed to this before. We were supposed to have players give their testimony before the game, but that didn’t happen—I’m still not exactly sure why.
Another issue that complicated halftime was that the Federation’s sponsor, Digicel, decided to do a presentation of cell phones to a few of their players at that time. And people did not stop talking while Pastor Pierre made his presentation. We thank the Lord that you could still hear him over the talking, but most likely some people were not paying attention. We did get a lot of decision cards handed out, filled in and collected. Of course, it will take time to sort them out and set up the follow-up. One reason people filled them out was that we gave away door prizes. There was a sticky situation for a few minutes when two people showed up to collect the first prize of a laptop. But Pastor Pierre and Pastor Bilda handled it really well, calmly and with smiles. It turned out that these men had names that sounded almost exactly the same.
After picking up other things and taking them all to the stadium, we went to church. One of the players, Elijah, did a great job giving his testimony. After church we all went back to the hotel for the brunch there, but it was served an hour late. We wished we hadn’t waited for it because when we got to the stadium there were more problems. First, we had a problem at the gate. The counselors were supposed to meet in the conference room, but they were not allowed in the gate that would give them access to it because most of them had the lower priced tickets. Then we were told we could not use the conference room. So we had the counselors split up, some in the cheaper section, some in the higher priced section. This made the organization of the counselors difficult.
We had heard from our announcer, via phone, that there was no sound system yet. (Their’s had broken and they had agreed to rent one). Then as soon as we got in, the Federation people called us into their office. They were upset because they heard Richard “talking” on the radio & other announcements of the game that gave the ticket price as 50 gourdes, when it had been changed to 100 gourdes. (see previous post ). They also told us that they would lose money on this match and they asked Richard what they should do about that. Richard showed them where he had taken notes in his notebook about the President of the Federation approving the 50g ticket price and reminded them that they had changed the ticket price only a week before the game. Radio spots and interviews had already been taped. After this, we didn’t know if they would have a sound system or not, but they did. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t let our announcer emcee the game, even though they had agreed to this before. We were supposed to have players give their testimony before the game, but that didn’t happen—I’m still not exactly sure why.
Another issue that complicated halftime was that the Federation’s sponsor, Digicel, decided to do a presentation of cell phones to a few of their players at that time. And people did not stop talking while Pastor Pierre made his presentation. We thank the Lord that you could still hear him over the talking, but most likely some people were not paying attention. We did get a lot of decision cards handed out, filled in and collected. Of course, it will take time to sort them out and set up the follow-up. One reason people filled them out was that we gave away door prizes. There was a sticky situation for a few minutes when two people showed up to collect the first prize of a laptop. But Pastor Pierre and Pastor Bilda handled it really well, calmly and with smiles. It turned out that these men had names that sounded almost exactly the same.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Cleveland City Stars Arrive!
Finally...here's a picture of the players on the Federation bus at the airport with their Haitian flags. Sorry this is out of order, more recent pics below.
At the orphanage yesterday
Yesterday some of the players went to the Servants in Haiti orphanage and had a good time playing basketball and soccer.Haitian National Under 17 team & coach
This was an interview with Richard and the coach of the Haitian National U17 Team and a picture of the whole team, during a recent game in the national stadium.
Friday, June 1, 2007
Surprising welcoming party, police escort, a good beginning
They're here!
Yesterday afternoon the Cleveland City Stars reserve team arrived in Port-au-Prince for their goodwill tour. Richard went to the airport in the driving rain to pick them up, but by the time all the players and luggage got through, the rain had stopped. Richard was not the only one to greet them. It seems that the Federation (Haitian Soccer Federation) sent not only the bus and security escort, but several "Digicel girls" as well. Digicel, a cell phone company, is an/the official sponsor the Federation. When I heard that, I was worried that they might be dressed like Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders, but they were dressed normally, wearing bright red Digicel T-shirts.
The police escort was pretty exciting. Two policemen on motorcycle led the bus through the crowded rush hour streets to make it to the hotel in record time. The Federation really came through. The bus was not only air-conditioned, but actually cold.
The players got into their rooms, had dinner and then we had a time of worship and orientation.
Several of the players expressed their eagerness to jump into this cross-cultural experience--they loved the Chips Bananes (Plantain chips) and wanted to learn some phrases in Creole.
Of course, God is doing little special things all along the way and we want to share them with you. One of them was that Rod Meadth (Math teacher at QCS who leads the QCS Chapel worship band & does worship at this church) came to lead the worship and did a great job as usual. Also, it worked out to bring Joy and Ricky to help lead worship. Ricky played his Haitian drum and Joy sang. The kids and I can't participate in a lot of the activities because it's the end of the school year and we have final exams & projects (and grading). Another blessing was the room we got to meet in. We had been disappointed that El Rancho, the hotel, could not provide a free room for us to meet in. We were going to walk up to a nearby restaurant because the owner had said he would give us a room for free for the evening. But a couple things changed, Richard met a "brother" who worked and a group who was using a large meeting room finished their seminar for the day, so we got to meet in there. We really appreciated that.
So it was a good beginning.
Today, the team went down to the stadium for a practice and some were going to do a Coaches Clinic and to visit the Servants of Haiti orphanage in Cite Militaire.
trying to keep you posted....
Carol
Yesterday afternoon the Cleveland City Stars reserve team arrived in Port-au-Prince for their goodwill tour. Richard went to the airport in the driving rain to pick them up, but by the time all the players and luggage got through, the rain had stopped. Richard was not the only one to greet them. It seems that the Federation (Haitian Soccer Federation) sent not only the bus and security escort, but several "Digicel girls" as well. Digicel, a cell phone company, is an/the official sponsor the Federation. When I heard that, I was worried that they might be dressed like Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders, but they were dressed normally, wearing bright red Digicel T-shirts.
The police escort was pretty exciting. Two policemen on motorcycle led the bus through the crowded rush hour streets to make it to the hotel in record time. The Federation really came through. The bus was not only air-conditioned, but actually cold.
The players got into their rooms, had dinner and then we had a time of worship and orientation.
Several of the players expressed their eagerness to jump into this cross-cultural experience--they loved the Chips Bananes (Plantain chips) and wanted to learn some phrases in Creole.
Of course, God is doing little special things all along the way and we want to share them with you. One of them was that Rod Meadth (Math teacher at QCS who leads the QCS Chapel worship band & does worship at this church) came to lead the worship and did a great job as usual. Also, it worked out to bring Joy and Ricky to help lead worship. Ricky played his Haitian drum and Joy sang. The kids and I can't participate in a lot of the activities because it's the end of the school year and we have final exams & projects (and grading). Another blessing was the room we got to meet in. We had been disappointed that El Rancho, the hotel, could not provide a free room for us to meet in. We were going to walk up to a nearby restaurant because the owner had said he would give us a room for free for the evening. But a couple things changed, Richard met a "brother" who worked and a group who was using a large meeting room finished their seminar for the day, so we got to meet in there. We really appreciated that.
So it was a good beginning.
Today, the team went down to the stadium for a practice and some were going to do a Coaches Clinic and to visit the Servants of Haiti orphanage in Cite Militaire.
trying to keep you posted....
Carol
SCHEDULE OF MATCHES - Cleveland City Stars
It just occured to me that some people here in Haiti might be looking on this blog for the schedule of matches. Here it is:
DATE & TIME : GAME (TICKET PRICE)
Sun. June 3rd at 5 pm: vs. Haitian National U17 team in the Sylvio Cator Stadium (100 gdes.)
Mon. June 4th at 4 pm: vs. Flora in Arcahaie (100 gdes.)
Tues. June 5th at 4 pm: vs. Tempete in Saint Marc (100 gdes.)
Thurs. June 7th at 4 pm: vs. ASC in Cap Haitien (100 gdes.)
Sat. June 9th at 4 pm: Futsal Match against Haitian National Futsal team at Place Jeremie (free)
Tickets must be bought at the gate, we don't have them ahead of time.
There will be Christian music playing and a halftime presentation with interviews of a few players.
Hope to see you there!
DATE & TIME : GAME (TICKET PRICE)
Sun. June 3rd at 5 pm: vs. Haitian National U17 team in the Sylvio Cator Stadium (100 gdes.)
Mon. June 4th at 4 pm: vs. Flora in Arcahaie (100 gdes.)
Tues. June 5th at 4 pm: vs. Tempete in Saint Marc (100 gdes.)
Thurs. June 7th at 4 pm: vs. ASC in Cap Haitien (100 gdes.)
Sat. June 9th at 4 pm: Futsal Match against Haitian National Futsal team at Place Jeremie (free)
Tickets must be bought at the gate, we don't have them ahead of time.
There will be Christian music playing and a halftime presentation with interviews of a few players.
Hope to see you there!
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Today's the Day - The Cleveland City Stars are coming!
The day has finally come! The Cleveland City Stars reserve team goodwill tour will arrive today at 3:30, Lord willing.
Of course, we're up to our ears in printing out schedules, name tags, and vouchers; making lists, gathering stuff. The past few days have been crazy and stressful with late nights and early mornings. With tough decisions, like whether or not an orphanage or school is in a safe enough area to take the team, and changes, changes, changes!
But lots of people have been encouraging us, in person, on the phone and through email. Thank you, all of you. Keep praying, especially for Richard--so much rests on his shoulders. He knows it's truly the Lord's work. We keep having to give all of it back to him.
Of course, we're up to our ears in printing out schedules, name tags, and vouchers; making lists, gathering stuff. The past few days have been crazy and stressful with late nights and early mornings. With tough decisions, like whether or not an orphanage or school is in a safe enough area to take the team, and changes, changes, changes!
But lots of people have been encouraging us, in person, on the phone and through email. Thank you, all of you. Keep praying, especially for Richard--so much rests on his shoulders. He knows it's truly the Lord's work. We keep having to give all of it back to him.
A first - checking weather for Haiti online
This morning I did something for the first time. I checked the weather forecast for Haiti online. I never checked before because the weather's pretty predictable, and you just don't think that stuff like that will be available online for Haiti. The reason I looked was because I've been praying about the weather for the upcoming matches - especially the big one in Port-au-Prince. It has been raining a lot, especially late afternoon (when the matches are played).
At first I laughed because everyday looked the same: Scattered thunderstorms. Duh, it's rainy season. :) But I looked closer and actually they predict a certain percentage of precipitation. Many of the days say 60%.........but Sunday's is only 30%........reason to hope? well, God's will be done. :)
At first I laughed because everyday looked the same: Scattered thunderstorms. Duh, it's rainy season. :) But I looked closer and actually they predict a certain percentage of precipitation. Many of the days say 60%.........but Sunday's is only 30%........reason to hope? well, God's will be done. :)
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
midday update :)
I just called Richard while I'm between classes....
he did get on TV! He was in another meeting so he didn't have time to tell me any details, but that's kind of exciting. It could really help more people to be at the games.
More later....
Thanks for praying!
he did get on TV! He was in another meeting so he didn't have time to tell me any details, but that's kind of exciting. It could really help more people to be at the games.
More later....
Thanks for praying!
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Richard on TV?!
Richard was invited to be interviewed on a live TV show tomorrow morning. The show is from 9 - 10 tomorrow morning. This of course adds a new element of excitement and stress! Pray for him, he's got so much on his mind.
Prayer
Here are some of our latest prayer requests:
- Pray that people will find hope through the presentation at halftime this Sunday
- Pray for safety for the Cleveland City Stars team arriving Thursday.
- Pray that the CCS team will be able to visit the orphanage they had planned to visit and Athletique d'Haiti which are in areas considered off-limits...for wisdom...these kids could really use a visit, but there are complications
- Pray for Richard dealing with the last minute changes that keep popping up -- like not being able to use the stadium on Saturday for a clinic, etc.
Thank you for your prayers
Cleveland City Stars Reserve Team
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Here's the CCS Reserve team. Previously we had posted the CCS regular team, but the tour coming to Haiti is actually from this Reserve team.%5B1%5D.JPG){kind=link}
Saturday, May 26, 2007
So much going on!
Lately, there is so much going on, we can't keep up with putting everything on the blog.
But, I'll try to fill you all in on a fewthings.
This morning Richard had to be in 2 places at one time. He had planned a run-through for next week's game at the big stadium with about 200 people at 8 AM in the stadium so that they could figure out all the little details of what will happen. Then, this week he needed to see the (I think) General Director of the Soccer Federation who was supposedly in his office this week and Richard was at the Federation offices 4 times this week, but finally he was told that the meeting would have to be "tomorrow morning" (Sat. morning) at 7:30 am.
So, he rushed getting all his stuff together this morning (mostly to give the people something to eat & drink) left at 7 am, went to the stadium first to drop stuff off and speak to a few people quickly, then rushed over to the Federation office only to be told that "the matches are all called off." ??!!!!
Well, after some discussion it ended up that the Federation is going to double the price for all the games. We're sad about that, because for some people that may be too much. I guess we just need to pray double!
Now he's at the run-through, I'll hear about that when he gets home.
But, I'll try to fill you all in on a fewthings.
This morning Richard had to be in 2 places at one time. He had planned a run-through for next week's game at the big stadium with about 200 people at 8 AM in the stadium so that they could figure out all the little details of what will happen. Then, this week he needed to see the (I think) General Director of the Soccer Federation who was supposedly in his office this week and Richard was at the Federation offices 4 times this week, but finally he was told that the meeting would have to be "tomorrow morning" (Sat. morning) at 7:30 am.
So, he rushed getting all his stuff together this morning (mostly to give the people something to eat & drink) left at 7 am, went to the stadium first to drop stuff off and speak to a few people quickly, then rushed over to the Federation office only to be told that "the matches are all called off." ??!!!!
Well, after some discussion it ended up that the Federation is going to double the price for all the games. We're sad about that, because for some people that may be too much. I guess we just need to pray double!
Now he's at the run-through, I'll hear about that when he gets home.
Girls Soccer Team Party
We hosted the QCS girls' soccer team party at our house yesterday. The girls had fun swimming, playing soccer, making up awards for each other (commemorating things like noses that attract soccer balls). Richard was the coach at the beginning of the season, then, Katie Broecker took over when Basketball was done. Joy's too modest to tell people that she was the captain, and that she scored several goals. I don't remember how many, but at least one in each of the last three games. They didn't win much, but they played some exciting games, improved their skills and mostly had fun. 
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
More help, more encouragement
God has provided a way for us to cover some of the expenses of the soccer match at the big stadium in Port-au-Prince. The Federation is allowing us to handle the concession stands and keep the profits from it to defray costs of the game. This is great, but of course, it's another thing that Richard doesn't have time for! But God has his ways....
Last night Richard was supposed to go meet with some people from a nearby church where several friends and acquaintances of ours attend. It started to pour and I suggested he not go because of the condition of the roads around our house, but he felt it was OK. He was glad he went becauset the church has taken on the responsibility of providing volunteers for the concessions stands!
Last night Richard was supposed to go meet with some people from a nearby church where several friends and acquaintances of ours attend. It started to pour and I suggested he not go because of the condition of the roads around our house, but he felt it was OK. He was glad he went becauset the church has taken on the responsibility of providing volunteers for the concessions stands!
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Haitian U-17 National Team
Rich and Ricky went to watch the Haitian U-17 National Team play against the Peruvian U-17 team. After Peru scored 2 quick goals, the Haitians came back and tied the score 2-2. This is the team the Cleveland City Stars will play on June 3rd. (Hard to believe these guys are 16, isn't it?).
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Street Banner
So far we have 3 of these banners up in the streets of Port-au-Prince and 2 more are coming. This is a very popular way of advertising in Haiti.
GETTING THE WORD OUT
One of Richard's main occupations lately has been to get the word out about the games scheduled for the Cleveland City Stars, especially the one at Haiti's national stadium which holds 15,000 people. (We don't have that many friends yet.)
One way to do that is to advertise in the stadium at the game tonight (Sunday night) of the Haitian National U17 team against Peru.
That is our friend Charles up in the sky tying the tarp/banner he painted above the stands in the stadium. The pole the ladder was against was leaning back. We're thankful it got up safely!
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