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Peter being carried across the river
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Crossroads Baptist Church mission team
The following was written by Rich Schweissing of Crossroads Baptist Church in Colorado. Rich is passionate about missions, a long time supporter of mission work and the father of former missionaries to the Bahamas, Dan and Estela Schweissing. In the group photo above, Rich is one wearing glasses (third from the left), and his daughter-in-law Estela is on the far right.
“Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” – Matthew 25:40
On July 6th nine team members from Crossroads American Baptist Church met at Denver International Airport to begin a 9 day journey into the devastation left by the 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12th. Our 2½ hour ride through Port-au-Prince to our work site in Grand Goave some 40 miles away, impressed on us the scenes we all have seen on television. Debris and rubble lies everywhere. The stench of garbage, sewer, and smoke fills the air. There are tents everywhere including on the 8-10 foot median strip of a busy street. The number of victims -- over 230,000 dead, over 300,000 injured, well over a million homeless -- are numbers that are impossible to grasp until one begins to put real faces on the survivors, and hear the personal stories of how lives have changed.
The team went to work on construction projects designed and planned in cooperation with American Baptist International Ministries (IM), the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF), and the Haitian Baptist Convention (HCB). And work we did - - completing the demolition of a second floor of a building in 95+ degree heat and equal humidity. This will become the staff house for three families who will live on site directing future work. We also painted and completed the plumbing so a volunteer house is now ready for the next team—much better than the tents where we stayed that reached 116 degrees in midday. While the work was hard and the conditions (heat and humidity) not the best, the team left with a sense of real accomplishment that we had made one step, however small, toward the work that is necessary to rebuild Haiti.
Much more important than the work we did, were the relationships we established, the people we met, working with the Haitian men and boys who were assigned to work with us and playing with the children before and after the long hot hours of work.
There was Jeanson who met us at the airport. He continues to teach “because there are children who need to learn” despite the fact he hasn’t been paid since November. He earns money working on projects in the afternoons. On Sundays he plays the keyboard for church. Jeanson is a man of many talents who believes God still loves the Haitian people.
There was Peter, a six year old who would barely come up to my granddaughter’s shoulder (she starts kindergarten next year). He came walking through our base camp every morning carrying his heavy book bag with a smile and a shy wave to anyone who acknowledged him. Peter lives on the other side of a river that he crosses each day on the back of a friend/brother (see attached picture) who is barely a head taller than Peter. The resident missionary says it’s not as developed across the river. Not as developed! The people on our side of the river were living in tents, gutted houses covered with tarps, and carrying water from hand pumps sometimes for several blocks. What is less developed???? Peter’s smile never faded.
At 4:30am on the day we left Haiti, several of the teenage boys who had worked with us were up to say goodbye. They were the same boys who sat and watched until late the night before as we sorted and packed what we would take home and what we could leave for the people—clothes, medicine, etc. As I headed back to my tent for my water bottle and hat they met me with my bottle and hat in hand. They knew I would need them for the long ride and didn’t want them forgotten.
“You’re leaving,” one said. “Yes,” I replied. “I’m sad.” Today, a week later as I write, the tears still come as I think about what the future holds for these children.
Haiti won’t change because of the 3 year plan currently mapped out by International Ministries, the Cooperative Baptists, and the Haitian Baptists. It won’t change in 10 years, maybe 20 years. Yet these are people of God with incredible faith. Because of that, and particularly because of the children whose future is in our hands, it’s imperative that we do our part, however small, to make life better for them.
There is much work to be done and teams can be accommodated on a year round basis. Churches of the ABC Rocky Mountain region should be sending teams, either as a church or cluster of churches. Please contact me for more information. I will be available to assist in training teams so that they can be best prepared for what they will face. I can be reached at RSchweissing@msn.com or 303-428-5856.
“Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” – Matthew 25:40
On July 6th nine team members from Crossroads American Baptist Church met at Denver International Airport to begin a 9 day journey into the devastation left by the 7.0 earthquake that hit Haiti on January 12th. Our 2½ hour ride through Port-au-Prince to our work site in Grand Goave some 40 miles away, impressed on us the scenes we all have seen on television. Debris and rubble lies everywhere. The stench of garbage, sewer, and smoke fills the air. There are tents everywhere including on the 8-10 foot median strip of a busy street. The number of victims -- over 230,000 dead, over 300,000 injured, well over a million homeless -- are numbers that are impossible to grasp until one begins to put real faces on the survivors, and hear the personal stories of how lives have changed.
The team went to work on construction projects designed and planned in cooperation with American Baptist International Ministries (IM), the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship (CBF), and the Haitian Baptist Convention (HCB). And work we did - - completing the demolition of a second floor of a building in 95+ degree heat and equal humidity. This will become the staff house for three families who will live on site directing future work. We also painted and completed the plumbing so a volunteer house is now ready for the next team—much better than the tents where we stayed that reached 116 degrees in midday. While the work was hard and the conditions (heat and humidity) not the best, the team left with a sense of real accomplishment that we had made one step, however small, toward the work that is necessary to rebuild Haiti.
Much more important than the work we did, were the relationships we established, the people we met, working with the Haitian men and boys who were assigned to work with us and playing with the children before and after the long hot hours of work.
There was Jeanson who met us at the airport. He continues to teach “because there are children who need to learn” despite the fact he hasn’t been paid since November. He earns money working on projects in the afternoons. On Sundays he plays the keyboard for church. Jeanson is a man of many talents who believes God still loves the Haitian people.
There was Peter, a six year old who would barely come up to my granddaughter’s shoulder (she starts kindergarten next year). He came walking through our base camp every morning carrying his heavy book bag with a smile and a shy wave to anyone who acknowledged him. Peter lives on the other side of a river that he crosses each day on the back of a friend/brother (see attached picture) who is barely a head taller than Peter. The resident missionary says it’s not as developed across the river. Not as developed! The people on our side of the river were living in tents, gutted houses covered with tarps, and carrying water from hand pumps sometimes for several blocks. What is less developed???? Peter’s smile never faded.
At 4:30am on the day we left Haiti, several of the teenage boys who had worked with us were up to say goodbye. They were the same boys who sat and watched until late the night before as we sorted and packed what we would take home and what we could leave for the people—clothes, medicine, etc. As I headed back to my tent for my water bottle and hat they met me with my bottle and hat in hand. They knew I would need them for the long ride and didn’t want them forgotten.
“You’re leaving,” one said. “Yes,” I replied. “I’m sad.” Today, a week later as I write, the tears still come as I think about what the future holds for these children.
Haiti won’t change because of the 3 year plan currently mapped out by International Ministries, the Cooperative Baptists, and the Haitian Baptists. It won’t change in 10 years, maybe 20 years. Yet these are people of God with incredible faith. Because of that, and particularly because of the children whose future is in our hands, it’s imperative that we do our part, however small, to make life better for them.
There is much work to be done and teams can be accommodated on a year round basis. Churches of the ABC Rocky Mountain region should be sending teams, either as a church or cluster of churches. Please contact me for more information. I will be available to assist in training teams so that they can be best prepared for what they will face. I can be reached at RSchweissing@msn.com or 303-428-5856.