A busy week!

Many of you have already seen these articles / shows but some people missed them and are asking for links. There may be more out there... they keep surfacing!!



The Tri-City News - July 22 - Still much work to be done in Haiti.



Link to read: http://www.bclocalnews.com/tri_city_maple_ridge/tricitynews/news/99056439.html



The Province - July 26th - Haiti recovering to a "new normal", Surrey native is home for her first break since devastating quake.

Link to read: http://www.theprovince.com/news/Haiti+recovering+normal/3322960/story.html



CKNW - July 26 - Bill Good Show:

Link to listen: http://emedia.cknw.com/Podcasts/1116/Bill_Good_Show_-_Monday_July_26_-_Hour_3.mp3



City TV - July 27 - Breakfast Television:

Link to watch: http://video.citytv.com/video/detail/275335599001.000000/heart-to-heart-haiti/



CBC - July 27 - On the Coast:

One time Vancouver resident Rebecca Larkin now lives in Haiti where she helps run a school and children's home. She's back in the Lower Mainland for a vist and she related what life's been like in Haiti since the big earthquake in January. (runs 8:04)

Link to listen: http://www.cbc.ca/video/news/audioplayer.html?clipid=1553219547



Peace Arch News - July 29 - Haiti remains a work in progress:

Link to read: http://www.bclocalnews.com/surrey_area/peacearchnews/community/99507094.html

In Canada!

I'm very behind on my blogging (stay tuned for more updates on H2H!) but I wanted to let you know that Renel & I arrived in Canada on July 16th - we're staying at my parents house in Crescent Beach, BC and are planning to be here until mid September. So far we've been staying close to home... trying to get caught up on sleep and introducing Renel to my family.

Renel & I have been going to 'boot camp' every morning with my sister & sister-in-law and I started working at the Wired Monk coffee shop already. It's really great to be home, especially with Renel. This is his first time out of Haiti so it's fun seeing Canada through his eyes. He likes everything so far except 'rare' steak and the hot tub. Why are we doing this? I feel like I'm being cooked! Those were just a few of his comments while we stood in the steaming pool :)

My extended family has been introducing him to their favorite 'Canadian food'... so far he's added slurpees and ketchup chips to his diet! We'd love to see as many of you as possible while we're here so please email me & come down to Crescent Beach for a walk & ice cream!

I've also been busy doing followup interviews - here's an article that just came out in the TriCity Newspaper:

http://www.bclocalnews.com/tri_city_maple_ridge/tricitynews/news/99056439.html

Bringing you up to speed

The men have been working hard on the new guesthouse/kitchen/dining room building and the columns are now finished.



Bruce, Stan & Joanne are working with the H2H teachers & tomorrow is their last seminar day. They have a 5 year professional development program and this week will complete "year 2". The teachers are learning lots and having a lot of fun at the same time. We met with a representative from the Ministry of Education this morning in Ti-Goave and they were very impressed with "The Twins" (that's the nickname the kids have given Bruce & Stan) and they are willing to work along side of us in an attempt to get the program accredited by the Haitian government... no promises but we're definitely on the right path.





Kenzie has been at H2H the past 2 months and left this week - she was sad to leave and the kids are missing her hugs :)

Medical Team in Bouva

We left for Bouva on Friday and had 2 mobile medical clinic there. We returned on Monday - dropped the medical team off in PauP and picked up the "Bruce & Stan Show". Bruce & Stan are retired Teachers/Principals that are doing professional development with the H2H teachers. I'll updated you on their trip shortly... here's an update on the trip to Bouva...

The drive through PauP:





Bouva (my favorite place on earth!!):









Church building / aka Hospital:



Kitchen (this was a busy place as we fed all of Bouva for 2 days!):



Examining Rooms:



The Pharmacy:



The clinics were all day events:



Another house call:







Going home:



Those of you who have been following my blog since "the beginning" already know that Bouva has a special place in my heart... Pastor Luc was born & raised there, the church was built on the foundation of the old voodoo temple, many of our kids came from Bouva... and it seems that every trip there strengthens my connection.

This was the first medical team I have accompanied to Bouva (there was one last year but I couldn't go with them) and it was such a blessing to the people - these people would not have gotten medical care if this team hadn't gone. This is a town where it's common not to name the babies until they're 3 years old, as so many of them die before they reach their 3rd birthday.

Renel is from Bouva & his parents & younger brother still live there and this was the first time we've visited since our wedding. I have always felt welcomed in Bouva but it was different this time - now I was surrounded by family... parents, brothers, cousins, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles... it just kept going! It was truly an honor to go to Bouva with this team - they served the people as if they were serving their own family & friends.

The only downside of this trip was that I was sick with a viral infection that gave me an incredibly sore throat. I kept taking pain killers but continued to talk so it got worse everyday. The final clinic day was the worse and I didn't think I was going to be able to get out of bed... let alone translate... but I realized a great perk of traveling with doctors & ER nurses... they bring drugs and they're not afraid to use them! They "woke me up" with a fist full of T3's and a shot in the bum. I was good to go... I saw more patients within a few hours than I had the previous day :)