AIS Haiti and YABT Haiti have a new office

Thanks to a project sponsored by a European Foundation, we have a new office with new office equipment.

It is just off of Delmas, one of the main roads in Port-au-Prince. We are sharing the building with a Haitian organization that works with refugee camps and trains youth in English and computers, so we have a lot in common!

Pallets bring strength and security to tent dwellers

As thousands of tons of aid and goods have come into Haiti, so have thousands of wooden pallets.

We are able to get these pallets for free from a Christian ministry and we have been distributing them to our friends who live in tents.

Unfortunately, women who live in tents are very vulnerable to attack and rape since tents have no security.

We encourage our friends to build make-shift walls out of pallets that are not easily broken into and then mount a wooden door to make forced entry more difficult.

So far we have distributed over 20 pallets to 3 different families.

The finals of the Verettes Soccer Tournament

And the winner is... The Kingdom of God! Every time we do an evangelistic soccer tournament there is a physical battle on the field and a spiritual battle in the hearts of those who attend. On the field, the boys play their hearts out and often get bloody cuts because the fields are mostly rocks and sand. Those who do evangelism are cut by the jeers of spectators who do not care about what is being shared. Last time I passed out tracts and talked to spectators, some tossed them back at me and asked for money instead.

One of the Semi-finals was held between a public school and a Christian school. After the game we showed a new evangelistic film in Creole and about 300 people stayed to watch it. Before the film was over, we stopped it and gave an invitation. Although no one indicated they trusted in Christ at that time, the good seed was sown, and we know that God's Word always has an effect on the hearts of men.

A few days later the final was held. The team from a little town of Castra won the match and was very happy to receive a nice trophy. This was an event these boys will remember the rest of their lives. Once again the good seed was sown through handing out tracks and a short message at half-time.

This week there is a final in Leogane, and we are praying that God will touch hearts there as well!

Haiti has a New President!

If a movie star like Ronald Reagan can become President of the USA, and an action film star like Arnold can become governor of California, then why can't the king of Compas, become president of Haiti?

With over 60% of the population of Haiti under the age of 25, it is no wonder that the youth of Haiti voted for their hero.

Here is an AP story on the his victory:

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/04/04/general-cb-haiti-election_8391009.html

Associated Press
Michel 'Sweet Micky' Martelly wins Haiti election
By TRENTON DANIEL , 04.04.11, 07:47 PM EDT

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti -- Musician Michel "Sweet Micky" Martelly scored a come-from-behind victory Monday in Haiti's presidential runoff, according to preliminary results from last month's election in which he easily defeated a former first lady for the leadership of a country facing enormous challenges.

Martelly, who has never held political office, received nearly 68 percent of the vote in the two-way race with Mirlande Manigat, electoral council spokesman Pierre Thibault said in an announcement that was immediately followed by noisy celebration in the Haitian capital.

The popular musician, a star of the Haitian genre known as compas, had trailed Manigat in the crowded first-round election in November. But his campaign gained momentum in the second round and many voters seemed enchanted with his lack of political experience in a country where the government has failed to provide many basic services.

Martelly promised profound change for Haiti, vowing to provide free education in a country where more than half the children can't afford school and to create economic opportunity amid almost universal unemployment.

"I'm going to celebrate with the people, then I'm going home to my kids," Wilson Goren, a 32-year-old street vendor, said as fireworks erupted around him after the results were announced.

Final results are due to be released April 16.