Interview about her work in Haiti (my mom)

Click on the video link on this page:

http://www.wfmz.com/news/22251408/detail.html

Another article:

http://www.thereporteronline.com/articles/2010/01/29/news/srv0000007458319.txt

fashion show to benefit Haiti

Faith and Love in Action blog

http://faithandloveinaction.posterous.com/

More photos from Carrefour & Grace International Compound

Photos of Jacmel (First set)

All the kiddos at the Faith and Love in Action orphanage in Jacmel!!

Streets of Jacmel


Transporting supplies from the ship. (see Marlaine's e-mail below for full story.
Unloading supplies from the Navy ship to take to Jacmel.

Latest e-mail from Marlaine. (1-26-10)

To follow Faith Love and Action happenings: http://www.faithandloveinaction.org/

1.26.10

Good Morning!

First, thank you so much for your prayers as I traveled the past few days to the Dominican Republic and Jacmel, Haiti! I could not have done it without those words of safety and encouragement!

On Wednesday afternoon, I flew from Ft Lauderdale to Santo Domingo. Sebastian Velez, a new and amazing friend, had arranged transportation from the airport to a hotel for the night. Early the next morning, we drove for 6 hours to Pedernales, Dominican Republic where the navy ship was. I had wired money before leaving the US and this made it possible to purchase the supplies in Pedernales before racing to the port. It was amazing to witness the work the ship crew, Red Cross and other volunteers put in to load the ship with supplies in Pedernales and unload the ship in Jacmel. After hours of loading, we left around midnight and made it to Jacmel at 7 AM Friday. I felt so much joy to find all the boys from the Home at the port waiting to come onboard and help with the unloading of supplies and putting them in trucks. Some Haitian policemen were there as well to make sure we got all our supplies home without incident.

We are so grateful to every one that responded so quickly with their donations to help us to purchase the supplies! Your contribution allowed for the purchase of about 20,000 lbs in foods, hygiene/sanitation products, cleaning supplies and tents that have either already made it to Jacmel or is leaving for Jacmel in the next couple of days. Daniel is leaving tomorrow morning on a flight to Jacmel with more supplies. We are blessed with a good staff that continues to work hard to make sure that the children stay well and they have food. They have also started distributing food to people in the surrounding neighborhood through a make-shift feeding program. For those able to find somewhere to cook and something to cook in, they have started passing out 3-5 days worth of food. It was heartbreaking to leave the kids and staff during such a difficult time, but I had decided to return with the ship to Pedernales as families in the adoption process were waiting to get their written proposals so their children could come home. There is no gasoline, electricity, or systems in place where I would be able to complete their paperwork while in Haiti.

I am so grateful to the Lord to have found everyone safe and to hear the testimony of the children. Renel was on the 4th floor when his school building collapsed, and he is one of three students alive today. Both Homes have some minor damages but everyone is still outside because aftershocks are still strong and houses just keep falling suddenly. The retaining wall withstood the earthquake, so praises for that!

In Marbial, it has been reported that both buildings collapsed and help has yet to arrive to the people up at such remote areas. People there are hopeless for food, medical supplies and potable water. I did not have a chance to see the kids at the two orphanages that we support in Port au Prince, but was able to speak to the staff there: everyone is alive, the building is damaged, and the kids are sleeping outside as well. The roads from Jacmel to PAP are not completely cleared and so I sent money for them to try and buy food/supplies. What few stores and warehouses that still remain have raised their prices exponentially.

What to do next:

The needs are overwhelming. We need to continue providing food to the people. The staff at the Home says that even throughout the night, more people come knocking at the gate in search of a meal. I always try and see things in a positive way but it is very hard to do that right now. Families who survived do not know what they are going to do with their children. People are sleeping on the dirt streets without even a sheet and with no hope to have a place again to stay.

We need to get more tents, sleeping bags, blankets and sheets on the ground. Instead of bringing bottled water, we need a water purification plant right away. We have one well working and we need a generator that will enable the second well to function. And medical supplies are a big need at the clinic working in Jacmel --- they are doing surgery without anesthesia. There are medical groups on the ground but they can’t bring with them enough supplies to respond to the needs. It is awful.

Our children have food now, but until we can move them inside the house, we need more tents as temporary shelter. And this applies to all of Jacmel, and the entire country! One policeman came to me at the port to explain how hard it is for him and his family to survive. He said I know that you could help me with some food but what I need the most is a tent: we are all sleeping on the dirt.

There is no propane yet in Jacmel, I have to make another arrangement to provide that from DR. We are blessed that the children are all accounted for and currently have food but the same cannot be said for the rest of Jacmel, Marbial, Les Cayes, or Carrefour! I am back to work again on a second load of specific supplies, and I pray that you will be able to continue the support that has been saving lives!

Please continue to pray for all those in Haiti who lost friends, family, homes, and everything they own.

Marlaine

Photos from Hotel Cyvadier in Jacmel

My friend Christophe- Hotel owner


This was a 3+ story part of the hotel, where all the nicest rooms were, right above the kitchen. I'm going to post video clips of our December 2008 trip to Haiti. The room I stayed in with my mom and friend Lauren was in this part of the hotel. To the left you see where the outdoor dining area/ bar was, overlooking the ocean... now all completely destroyed.

Another view of the collapsed building.

Again, this is where we usually stay when we're in Haiti. This is hotel Cyvadier in Jacmel. Here is a link to their website: http://www.hotelcyvadier.com/page7.html.

From Marc: Heading back to Haiti Feb 3

Marc... Waiting for his flight to leave Haiti. Now he's going back. Read this excerpt from the e-mail he sent to get a sense of what it was like to be there during the earthquake and why he has decided to return.

"It's been the most bizarre and awful 10 days of my life. The earthquake has hit me and my friends and family really hard. Our house may no longer be livable. It has a few cracks here and there, but the strong aftershocks keep happening and I'm sure they weaken the house in some degree every time. Some of my friends have died. One student of mine died. Her house collapsed on her and her mother. Dead bodies lined the streets, so many people had broken bones and smashed skulls. But the worst thing might have been the smell. You can literally smell the death in the streets and among the hurting...

But God is providing, protecting, and helping though. He has performed so many miracles. Well, miracles to us, but miracles are very natural for Him. I'll tell you one quickly. A friend's mission was giving out water from their cistern to whomever needed it. They gave all they could and in a few days it was gone. We all have cisterns to hold our only water in Haiti, it's not like the US. So they went to sleep that night with an empty cistern. The next morning they woke up and checked their cistern and it was full to the brim! Awesome =) Check out Isaiah 33:15-16 to see God's promise on that.
...
I'm in the US right now temporarily. I plan on returning to Haiti in the coming weeks if at all possible. I'm honestly using this time to prepare spiritually to go back...and I need the Faith that God will catch me, and use in the most beneficial ways...When I go back to Haiti, I want to go to everyone that I know and see how I can meet their need. I am going to see how they can at least function during day to day life and get back to some level of normalcy. But most of all, I want to do what I can to make sure that their focus is on the Kingdom that cannot be shaken. That their hope is in Jesus more than the ground beneath their feet. I know God can meet their needs in incredible ways..."

Snow!

From Vanessa

1/22/10 12:34pm

Good Morning!

I spoke with my mother an hour ago and she made it to Jacmel safely! They had already unloaded supplies and brought it to the orphanages and she had the opportunity to check on everyone and make sure they were okay. When I spoke with her, she was back at the port waiting to board to return to the DR. Please keep her in your prayers for this return voyage! She will be returning soon to Jacmel now that she had the time to visit and assess the needs.

God Bless,

~Vanessa

From Marlaine (Faith & Love in Action)

1/19/10 10:49pm

Good news: Marlaine will be leaving for the Dominican Republic tomorrow afternoon! From there, arrangements have been made to get her and supplies to Jacmel via a ship. The funds that have been raised will be used to purchase more food, tents, and supplies for the people of Jacmel. More people from the community are coming to the compound asking for help and it is a paramount that we have enough supplies to answer their needs as well as the needs of the kids. Please pray for safety for Marlaine as she gets supplies to Jacmel! And praises for the friends who have contributed and enabled us to get supplies to Jacmel!

Vanessa will maintain regular contact with Marlaine and continue to send out updates. We have attached some pictures below that we received from Sebastian, who made it possible for the kids to get food from the navy ship.

Marlaine

Another huge aftershock this am in Haiti

I just got word from a friend of mine and confirmed that there was another huge aftershock in Haiti this morning. Waiting for more news.

Photos from Marc (Port au Prince)

Orphanage Marc works at (www.childhope.org) turned makeshift medical center












Caribbean Market (above) - large grocery store in Port au Prince - many people trapped inside

Free Creole Medical Guide

Light Messages has a free download for medical personal not who do not speak Creole. It is an English to Creole guide of Medical Terms including Triage information, common phrases, and vocabulary. Go to www.lightmessages.com and click on Free Medical Creole Guide.

Boys Home in Carrefour

boys home in Carrefour, from beside the carport in the courtyard looking toward the church.

Quisqueya

In February I also stayed a few days with some friends at Quisqueya in Port au Prince. All the teachers I know there are safe, praise God! Here are the updates from that area.

[from another teacher]
1/15/10 12:45pm

We have internet connection for now. There are so many needs and so many people here who need help. There is clearly the immediate need of seeing if people are still alive. There are thousands who have urgent medical needs and can not get treatment. There will also be many weeks of people without much food, water and now places to stay. At Quisqueya all the teachers are safe although we have lost some of our students. I know there are many sad stories to come.
My school is going to be used as a hub-center for 2 relief groups that are setting up camp here. We hope to be able to help as many people as possible.
As Dave Mann mentioned I would encourage you to go through an established organization for relief aid. If you are interested in donating please check out:
quisqueya.org

Thank you all.

1/15/10 7:37am


"there's are pictures of the orphanage that i work at every week. they have opened their place up and made it into a makeshift medical center. supplies are running out though and person after person keeps coming. and only a few of them have any real medical knowledge and are getting overwhelmed a little bit.

http://www.childhope.org/about/earthquake.html
Child Hope International
www.childhope.org
Child Hope International is a charity working with orphans in Port-au-Prince, Haiti.

1/13/10 11:37am

"i've never been so overwhelmed in my life. so much has collapsed. so many things are absolutely crushed. there's dead people all through the streets, some covered with sheets and some not covered. buildings that i would pass by every day, or even go to, are gone. our biggest grocery store Caribbean market is completely gone. it's unbelievable. People were trapped inside. And i've never been to that store without knowing at least one person there. i'm sure someone was inside that i know. there's TONS of people in the streets. so many people crowding, it was hard to walk through the streets. there's also a lot of people just sitting in the middle of off-streets. nowhere for them to go. another tremor just hit. the ground definitely does not feel stable. we all are really starting feel overwhelmed by what's going on. walking out in the streets was the hardest thing i've ever done in my life just because of everything i saw. the people aren't hungry yet, but once time goes on, looting could start up. hopefully all of the aid coming in will cancel that out. thanks for all your prayers =)"

1/12/10 9:25pm

From a friend and teacher at Quisqueya, an international school in Port au Prince:

hey friends,
there was this HUGE 7.0 earthquake a couple of hours ago here. it was the craziest thing i've ever experienced. and it went on forever!! at least that's what it felt like. a good 15 or 20 seconds. gosh. some walls cracked and fell in our neighborhood. our house is good. lots of broken glass and water everywhere, but nothing big. actually i just noticed i have broken glass on my computer and i'm getting cuts on my hands...mom still wants to record american idol, LOLOL. oh man there goes another HUGE aftershock. it's been hours of aftershocks, they're getting SOO annoying. we won't be sleeping tonite....or very lightly if we do. i'm not going in our house for a LONG time, these aftershocks are freaking me out a little bit. Haiti is an adventure. we heard there is some looting on the streets and stuff. a hospital collapsed. a restaurant collapsed. and a big grocery store. it's a little crazy. but we're doing good enough.

Ouanaminthe

Just February last year, I traveled to a part of Haiti that I had never been before, Ouanaminthe, which is in the north. I just wanted to post a couple of updates that I received from that part of the country.

1/17/10 12:39am

" Just a quick report concerning the return of our relief team...

The relief team from Institution Univers returned early this morning (Sunday) around 2:00 a.m. Hugues Bastien’s verbal report can be summed up in the word which was reiterated in virtually every one of his sentences – awful.

The capital city is destroyed. There is no food, clean water, or sanitation. The few remaining medical facilities are absolutely overwhelmed. All of Port-au-Prince is in ruins.

The relief team distributed their supply of food and water, and were almost overtaken by the push of bodies to get the supplies. They witnessed helicopters dropping bundles of food and water from the air. You can imagine the mayhem as survivors scrambled to get at the packages. Our team treated some of the worst victims and then contributed their remaining medical supplies to an established medical center in Leogane.

In terms of percentage of physical devastation, Hugues thought that Leogane, a town about one hour west of Port-au-Prince , was hit worse than the capital. He estimated that 80% of Leogane’s buildings were lying in ruins. The nursing school, where four of our grads were studying, is still standing, but unsafe with major cracks in the walls. Nonetheless, the population of the capital city suffered worse because of the density of population and closely built structures of multiple floors.

Our team left Ouanaminthe Friday morning before dawn with one of our I.U. buses, our pick-up, and a rented bus. Once in the capital, through a miscommunication with the driver of the pick-up, the fuel which the team had taken with them was given away before filling up our vehicle rather than after. So they drove north with just a bit of fuel in the tank, and finally found fuel for sale at an exorbitant price, but considered it a bargain considering the horrible state of affairs.

They brought back over 100 people to Ouanaminthe. The pick-up was stuffed inside and out. The bus was full both inside and on the roof. Many other vehicles were headed north with similar overloading.

our high school assistant principal, discovered that his wife is okay, but his 15-year old daughter along with many other students in her school died... A former employee of UMC, and his mother died in the quake.


The government’s Northeast Department director of education died. Several senators, other top governmental officials, heads of police stations, and many U.N. personnel died – and untold tens of thousands more. I don’t know if we ever will have an accurate count of the dead. Estimates range from 50,000 to 500,000. Some bodies have already been covered in mass graves and many are uncounted under the rubble. But still many, many corpses are lying exposed, bloated, and stinking. People are becoming accustomed to them, sitting next to them, sleeping next to them, for lack of any place else to go.

...

On the way to the capital, our I.U. bus broke down on the way to Port-au-Prince and was left in Terrier Rouge, a northern city. The pick-up developed steering and brake problems but managed to complete the trip. So our means of making a quick second trip to the capital is handicapped.

The President has declared the nation in mourning for a month. Therefore all schools will be closed nationwide at least for that time period. We’ll see if schools are permitted to reopen after that.

The good news, if there is any, is that the team witnessed no gang activity or looting, but people are desperate for water and food.

Hugues concluded with, “Awful, awful, awful. No sanitation, no clean water, no food, no medicine. Everyone wants to leave the city. Port-au-Prince is no more.”

Lamentations"

1/13/09 3:28pm


"However, I just got out of an administrators meeting for Univers. It is the opinion of the group that the situation is so catastrophic that everyone that can do something must do something, and the sooner the better. So.... tomorrow morning Hugues, with one of our doctors and a couple of our nurses with fill up our bus with food, bottled water, TP, basic medicines, dressings and fuel – and they will make the 10-15 hour trip to Port-au-Prince. They will treat the wounded and sick, and give away the supplies. They will also bring back to Ouanaminthe, residents of Ouanaminthe who want to return. They will also search for four of our recent graduates who were enrolled in a nursing school in Leogane about 50 miles west of the capital. We have not heard from them since the quake. (Note: the epicenter was about 10 miles west of the capital, so the quake likely hit Leogane with virtually the same force that it hit P-au-P.)

We have heard that the price of bottled water and food has risen ten-fold since the quake. With the banks closed, it means there is less money to buy more expensive essentials.

So, please, if you are so inclined you can send your “earthquake relief” contributions to www.haiticocina.org.

Coveting your prayers for the safety of the team led by Hugues to the capital, on the road, for the bus, in the capital, for our four missing students, for a broken nation"

Free emergency health materials in Haitian Kreyol

The Hesperian Foundation is trying to get their excellent materials out ASAP to people who could use them. Please pass this along.

-------
To view this email online, paste this link into your browser:
http://e2ma.net/map/view=CampaignPublic/id=35444.6579256175/rid=878648ecbe6abfb8327d555aca46a76e
___________________________________


In the face of the devastating earthquake <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1242885/Haiti-earthquake-Victims-forced-dig-rubble-bare-hands-free-surivors.html> in Haiti, we urge everyone to forward and distribute the following health materials in Haitian Creole and English to every relief worker, resident, and traveler already in or leaving for Haiti.

*Materials available in Haitian Creole:*

Here is a link to a pdf of the the Haitian Creole edition of _Where There is No Doctor_:
http://www.hesperian.info/assets/Where_There_is_no_Doctor_Creole.pdf
Also available as a printed book from 4 The World Resource Distributers
www.4WRD.org
Tel: 417-862-4448
Fax: 417-863-9994
orders@4wrd.org orders@4wrd.org>

Link to a pdf of the Haitian Creole edition of _Where Women Have No Doctor_:
http://www.hesperian.info/assets/hesperian_wwhnd_haitian%20creole_2000.pdf

Link to a pdf of the Haitian Creole edition of Sanitation and Cleanliness booklet:
http://www.hesperian.info/assets/PDF%20Kreyol%20sanitation%20book-1.pdf
produced by our partners _SOIL (Sustainable Organic Integrated Livelihoods)
www.oursoil.org

Link to a pdf of a cholera fact sheet in English:
http://www.hesperian.info/assets/environmental/Cholera_EN.pdf

All of the above and other health materials in English and Spanish can be downloaded here:
http://www.hesperian.org/publications_download.php

The Road to Fondwa.... See what Haiti was like before the earthquake

Also during the first couple of months I spent in Haiti, I met a couple of guys filming a documentary to bring money into the Fondwa community, which is where I was living. I would like to post an e-mail that one of these guys sent out. Please check out this website in order to see what Haiti was like even before the earthquake:

From Justin:

Friends,

I wanted to share the one update I have gotten from Fondwa since the earthquake, via our facebook page:

Hello everyone fondwa university is gone apf is gone everyone is well....Send me an email
asap if you need more info....pere joseph is well orphelina is broken and a church phyladelphy
has 60 people that died.... The catholic church is gone n...o one was inside...the
sisters in the church are outside.... APF school is down and 2 boss died.
but all the children are safe.
KEEP US IN PRAYERS... WE NEED LOTS OF HELP ESPECIALLY IN FONDWA.
i WILL GIVE YOU MORE INFO HAVE FAITH AND GOD bLESS

As many of you know, I spent several weeks in the area of Fondwa, Haiti in the summer of 2006 shooting the documentary film The Road to Fondwa. Since the beginning of this project we, the filmmakers, have operated in a spirit of solidarity with the people of Fondwa as we have worked to increase collaboration between communities in the United States and those in Fondwa. NOW IS THE TIME when this collaboration is needed the MOST.

The people of Fondwa are completely devastated by this earthquake that killed many of their residents and completely wiped out two decades of infrastructure projects in a matter of minutes.

We, the filmmakers of The Road to Fondwa (Dan Schnorr, Brian McElroy, and myself) are working to leverage all of our resources and contacts in order to support relief on the ground in Haiti. We have decided that the best way we can do this is to stream the full version of our film at http://www.fondwa.org to encourage support of organizations working on the ground and to show people the bittersweet beauty of life in Haiti before the earthquake. All proceeds from sales of the DVD and CD Soundtrack will go to relief efforts in Fondwa once the area is accessible to outside aid. On our site we are also link directly to the organizations "Partners in Health" and "Yele Haiti" where you can make an immediate, tax-deductible donation to their ongoing relief work throughout Haiti.

Please help us to spread the word about this initiative by: forwarding this e-mail; posting on facebook; tweeting on twitter (@RoadToFondwa); blogging; and sharing with the press as you see fit.

http://www.Fondwa.org

Thank you for helping Haiti in this time of intense need!!

- Justin Brandon

----
Co-Director/Producer
The Road to Fondwa
http://www.Fondwa.org

Family Health Ministries updates

I first went to Haiti during the summer after my first year of medical school, in 2006 and it was through Family Health Ministries in Durham, NC. They are posting updates regularly on their website as well: http://www.familyhm.org/. Here is a direct link to updates:
http://www.familyhm.org/whatweknow.html#unconfirmed" Many of these people are ones that I have worked with directly during the two months that I spent in Haiti through this organization.

I received this today from David Walmer (he and his wife run this organization):

Friends,

There has been a clamoring for people who want to help. We now have an opportunity but need to move quickly.

The CDC is going to coordinate the public health response & FHM is working with them & other groups in the area. We are all concerned that the efforts are all directed at Port-au-Prince and other affected areas are being neglected. Leogane is a much smaller community and as you can see from the article has huge needs (5,000-10,000 dead and 90% of the town destroyed. (http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/World/Story/STIStory_478230.html) This is the community where we are planning to build our hospital so we have many friends and are vested in helping them respond. The bypass is OK & we have had planes donated to us to fly medical supplies in and land on the bypass. Leogane is in a perfect location to serve as a staging place for points west of PaP. We are working on putting together a medical team on the ground (available Haitians) but if there are US professionals with special skills (anesthesia, orthopedic, trauma, emergency, etc.) we can use you.

We are planning to gather supplies from REMEDY tomorrow but may be able to use more than they can provide and we need medications.

What we need:

1. medical supplies gathered quickly (by Tuesday)
2. a volunteer to drive them to Fort Lauderdale to meet the plane (Wednesday)
   

Supplies:

1. antibiotics
2. analgesics
3. sedatives
4. orthopedic supplies (casting, etc.)
5. surgical supplies (gloves, gowns, masks, scrub brushes, suture, etc.)
6. anything for anesthesia
7. water treatment materials
8. IV fluids, dressing materials, betadine, etc.
9. tents
10. anything else useful for trauma
    

Please spread the word to anyone who might be able to help.
Wave two of support will include food & water. Stay tuned...

David Walmer

1/12/10 9:38pm

Dear Friends,

We are having tremendous difficulty getting information out of Haiti regarding today’s events. We have been notified that contact has been made with Leon Dorleans and they are safe. Unfortunately, as we go south toward the epicenter and nearer to our Leogane community we are unable to get through. Please keep all of Haiti in your prayers, but selfishly we ask for prayers for our partners Leon and Jackie Dorlean’s, the community of Blanchard, the Blanchard staff...Megan our US volunteer in Leogane, Jamalyn...our Fondwa project coordinator and the team she took to Haiti on Monday, The Sisters of Fondwa, all the children in the Fondwa school and orphanage. We have so many friends and family…please keep them in your prayers.

Feel free to give me a call or send me an email. We are happy to let you know what we know which unfortunately at this point is not much more than what you can watch on CNN.

Please pray for the people of Haiti"

How to donate to Faith & Love in Action relief efforts

Mom, Henri and I at the Star of Hope compound in Haiti. (Henri works with Faith and Love in Action and is a dear friend. We recently found out that he and his family are safe!!!)

As I stated previously, the work I typically do in Haiti is through Branch Creek Community Church (where my mom is the director of the missions program)and they work most closely with Faith & Love in Action. You can donate to the Faith and Love in Action relief efforts (Marlaine should be headed down to Haiti by tomorrow after much effort to find her a flight) on their website: (http://www.faithandloveinaction.org/) or through the Branch Creek Church website set up specifically for earthquake relief. This site is: http://www.branchcreek.org/helphaiti/. This money will get put directly into an account managed by Marlaine and people that I know, love and trust to distribute the funds effectively and efficiently.

More from Carrefour and Lametein

Hospital referred to on the compound (photo taken on our trip December 2008)


1/16/10 12:28pm

(This is an update from Star of Hope International in regard to the Carrefour orphanages.)

UPDATE!! On Thursday, we learned that the guest home next to the Girl's home has collapsed and that half of the church on the compound has collapsed as well. The church was emergency shelter for many in the neighborhood. The boys home building has suffered structural failure and is now beginning to collapse.


1/14 10:00pm

(letter from Pastor Joel Jeune's wife Doris Jeune - referencing Carrefour orphanage)
"The lates news is that all the boys are fine, but the Boys Home is crack and kind of leaning and the boys are all sleeping out side on the ground, many houses oround are gone and many people died, what is sade the road to carrefour are in bad shape make it very difficult for help to come. We still not able to communicate direcly to the children, Please keep us in prayer."

Yours

Sister Jeune


(letter from Regina Minnucci)

I was just watching CNN, they were interviewing a man who runs an orphanage in Jacmel. He told them the road from Port au Prince to Jacmel has crumbled and it is impassable.
Thought you would want to know.

CURE International

I haven't worked with CURE specifically in the DR but I can tell you that that knowing the work that this organization does was part of what pushed me toward a career in medicine. If you don't know about CURE, you should. Their website is: http://www.cureinternational.org. At any rate, they are really involved with disaster relief efforts in Haiti at the moment and they have the ability to get into the country through the Dominican Republic. Here are the updates that I've received regarding their work and how you can help:

1/14/10 12:43am

CURE doctors in the Dominican Republic are rushing to help the people of Haiti after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck Port-au-Prince yesterday.

Next to search and rescue teams, the biggest need will be for surgeons and skilled medical professionals to treat the injured. CURE has already sent doctors from the CURE Dominican Republic hospital to the border to help and we are coordinating with other organizations on the ground to provide our medical expertise.

The effects of such a huge earthquake on Haiti, already one of the world’s poorest countries, are catastrophic. The people of Haiti need your help. Consider donating today to support CURE’s emergency response.

Please also pray for those affected by this disaster and for the safety of our staff as they respond.

1/17/10 2:03am

We received an update this morning from the team on the ground in Port au Prince, Haiti and wanted to pass it along to you.

As you can imagine, the conditions are extremely difficult. Our team of 5 arrived in Port au Prince on Thursday. Dr. Scott Nelson who is leading the team reported that he had to “sweet talk” the air controller to let their plane land. Things continue to be very chaotic at the airport.

The team was able to set up a base of operations at a local community hospital that is still functioning. They immediately began working to triage patients and began operating last night.

We learned today that our partner, MedShare, is sending 600 cases of basic supplies and all of the orthopedic items off of their shelves. This will be incredibly helpful as the team continues to provide care to the critically injured.

We just heard that a large team from Dallas including 9 doctors and 9 nurses along with much needed supplies landed a few hours ago. CURE now has two functioning surgical centers operating around the clock in Port au Prince.

Our CURE team is being well taken care of by the family of our Haitian pediatrician that works at CURE Dominican Republic. They have provided a place for the team to stay as well as making sure the team has the security it needs. The outpouring of gratitude from the Haitian people that they are seeing is overwhelming.

CURE is coordinating additional teams for next week along with the desperately needed supplies. We intend to remain in Port au Prince even after the immediate crisis phase has past. There will be continue to be a huge medical need for many months.

Follow the team's work at http://blog.helpcurenow.org.

To make a donation to support CURE's relief efforts in Haiti, go to www.helpcurenow.org/haitirelief.

Thank you for your continued prayers.

The Team at CURE

Star of Hope International

Also through Branch Creek Community Church, I work with orphanages in Carrefour and Lametain. Many of the members of this church, located in PA, have supported children in the orphanage in Carrefour for years, including my parents. I have personally spent time at the compound referred to in these e-mails and consider the boy that my parents sponsor my adopted brother. This is a photo of the two of us. Star of Hope International is an organization that supports the work related to the church in this area and the work of the Juenes. I have received various updates from them as well, which I will post here. Their website is: http://www.starofhopeusa.org/.

1/13/10 9:11am

Bill called with some news from Rev. Joel Juene. From the reports Joel has received, no one has been injured at the Boys or Girls Home. We have no reports of damage at this point.

1/13/10 9:54am

Hi All, I talked to Doris this morning. As of about 6PM last night the boys home was still standing and there were no reports of injuries at that time. She was talking to an assistant pastor who said most of Carrefour was leveled. She has not been able to get in touch with anyone on the ground near the boys home since then and according to CNN there has been about 30 aftershocks since. . She has been in touch with someone at the girls home. They are safe and the building is standing and people are going there for safety. She told me that she would contact me if they hear anything. I am hoping that if Fenelon can get through to her he will also try to contact us. I will let you know the second I hear anything. Keep praying!

1/13/10 4:03pm

As you all have probably heard by now – there has been a massive earthquake in Haiti. The epicenter of the quake has hit one of the country’s poorest and condensed suburbs. We need your help!

On Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at 4:53pm, a catastrophic 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti. The epicenter of this major quake was just 10 miles west of Porte-au-Prince and its 2 million inhabitants and sent 33 aftershocks ranging in magnitude from 4.2 to 5.9. Over 3 million people are in need of emergency aid after major earthquake.

I am working with Grace International who runs a hospital, a medical clinic, 3 orphanages, and feeding programs. I spoke to them earlier this morning and their campus has become the refuge for all in the area. They said they have over 3000 people who have been displaced and looking to them for help.

There are many ways you can help. Please visit www.victoryatl.com. Below is a list of supplies you may donate to the cause at: Victory World Church, 5905 Brook Hollow Parkway, Norcross, GA 30071, (770) 849-9400 or to make monetary donations you can either make checks out to Grace International, PO Box 115236, Atlanta Georgia 30310, or online at: http://giinc.org/donationproject-restart.asp

Items Needed:

· Medical Supplies, including: vitamins, pain medicines, bandages

· Non-Perishable Food Items, including: bottled water, vitamin water, rice, beans, canned/non-perishable foods (meats, fruit, vegetables)

· Clothing of all sizes, including: undergarments, socks, shoes

· Other items, such as: toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, towels, sheets, washcloths

Cosmic shocks are still being felt today – so it is not yet over. A big tsunami threat remains. Please open your hearts to offer whatever you can.. We are also in need of humanitarian professionals and volunteers. If you are interested in coming to work please email me and I will arrange. Thank you.

Feel free to pass and share with your associates.

1/13/10 8:38 pm

All the buildings on our compound have been saved. Praise God!!! The surrounding neighborhood though not doing too well. So we have become the center with everyone coming to the compound for refuge. We are hosting an estimated 2500 people on our grounds. Some sleeping on in the church, school building, and the unused portion of the hospital building. The clinic and the hospital has been providing care non-stop for those injured.

In Atlanta i have reached out to my local church and friends and are raising support. Donations have been pouring in and we are praying. I will be going down to Haiti on Sunday and invite you guys to take part. If you want to have people help out please share with them. Our church has set up a page to help - www.victoryatlanta.com

MJ

Latest update from Faith and Love in Action (1/17)

1/17/10 7:34am

Good Morning everyone,

I was on the phone at 5:AM with Jacmel. Everything is well. The oldest kids were already on their feet to get ready to go on the streets for evangelism and to pray for people. They plan to do so every day. Yesterday they went out to pray for many people on the streets and at St Michel Hospital they prayed and encouraged the ones suffering. Edese and Elise are the ones going to Nursing school this year, they took with them at our home pharmacy anything they think that could help others and they distributed them to the people in needs. Yesterday, Ellen our friend from ORA International visited Faith & Love In Action and brought them some foods for the day which was a big relief for us here. She reported that the kids are well, they were singing, laughing and playing. My sister finds a place where she can purchase foods and we can pay after. She also arranged and sheltered about 10 other people going without food and no place to stay. The kids are so happy and so strong in their faith.

Kathy and other friends in PA are looking for possibility to see how they could arranging with some charter plane from Florida to Jacmel directly. I am tempted as well to fly through DR but the road has blocked from Port au Prince to Jacmel. Will keep you inform of any possibility in the next hours. Just want to let you know that God is control and we are so thankful for your prayer.


Marlaine

Faith and Love in Action Updates

Faith and Love in Action is the organization that runs the orphanages that I typically work with when I'm in Haiti. Their website is: http://www.faithandloveinaction.org/. In addition to working in the orphanages (doing construction and running children's programs etc), we take teams down through Branch Creek Community Church to run mobile medical clinics in a couple of different rural locations. Here are all of the e-mail updates that we have received thus far regarding the orphanages (which are located in Jacmel) and Marbielle, one of the areas in which we hold the mobile clinics.

1/12/10 6:40pm

Dear Friends and Families,

I get inform that a major earthquake struck just off the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince this afternoon. I have little information about the extent of damage from the quake, which had a reported magnitude of 7.0. I have told that houses had crumbled both sides of the streets. It seems that the suffering inflicted on the nation is likely to be "catastrophic. The only thing we can do now is pray and believe God for His help.

Thanks for your urgent prayer!

Marlaine

1/12/10 10:56pm

I just hear that Jacmel was hit, just like everywhere else. There is no electricity, no communication, so we are still trying to get in touch with everyone. We are trying to see what we can do. Please continue to keep us in your prayers.

Thank you,

Marlaine

1/13/09 8:19am

Good morning Family & Friends,

Daniel was finally able to reach an Assistant Pastor in Les Cayes who then contacted Jacmel. Our kids in the Homes are safe and uninjured, except for Renel Juste who was injured when the college he is attending collapsed. We are not sure of the extent of his injuries, but pray that we will be able to get to him in time. We continue to call in hopes of speaking to one of the house-mothers or staff members as soon as possible to get directly informed about the state of the children and the Homes. What the assistant pastor was able to share with us is that the part of the walls for the 2^nd floor of the Girl’s Home crumbled, there is no electricity, and the kids are scared. But by the Grace of God, they are safe.

We have heard that Jacmel was hit very hard. Many buildings have collapsed and many lives have been lost. We continue to hear of the screaming and crying for help that continued throughout the night and until now. Vanessa has been in touch with one of her old teachers currently in Petion-Ville (a few miles outside of Port-au-Prince) and she reports aftershocks until 3am, continued screaming and crying, complete power outage, and more buildings collapsing.

The situation will intensify the needs for food, medical care, and shelter. We invite our friends to please stand with us to bring assistance to a people already in extreme suffering. If you are able to donate any amount to help provide food, medical care, and other immediate needs, please do so as soon as possible. We do not have details on the extent of damages throughout the country, but Daniel and I are flying back as soon as air travel is cleared.

Opportunities to help:

· Teams: If you are interested in being part of a team to go down immediately, please let us know!!! We will need the manpower to reach as many people as possible.

· Materials: If you can raise funds for the purchase of food, medicine, shelter---please do so! This will be crucial to relief efforts.

I will continue to send updates as we get them but ask everyone to please please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers.

Through Christ who Strengthens us,

Marlaine

1/13/10 10:53am

We are putting together as many containers as possible to have sent to Haiti. I am in contact with some shipping services and will have more information soon on the first date we will be able to ship out materials. We have started to buy what we can and encourage everyone to help us by donating or sending supplies to the address below, as soon as possible.

Based on news reports and contact with some in Haiti, these are some of the immediate needs:

· Water

· Food

· Medical Supplies

· Clothes

Address:

1299 SW Kalevala Dr

Port St Lucie, FL 34953

We plan to bring teams in as soon as possible, but we cannot send teams down until we have more information and know people can get in. Right now the focus is getting supplies and immediate aid to the people. We don't have details yet on transportation (air or road), but we will keep anyone interested in going down updated.

We are purchasing as much supplies as quickly as possible and if you can help immediately, please contact me for Direct Transfer information.

We continue to call Haiti constantly and will let you know as soon as we've gotten through to the people in Jacmel, Carrefour and other cities.

Please keep praying,


Marlaine

1/13/10 9:47 pm

We spent the day trying and still cannot communicate with anyone at the children's homes, but we continue to rely on the information that Daniel got last night from Pastor Quenolt. We want so much to thank all our friends for their love and prayers and for standing with us. We have started getting news of really close friends that have lost their homes, family members, and even their lives. A longtime pastor friend in Carrefour whose wife used to be my prayer partner died in his house along with 5 family members. We don't know if his wife was there. We have heard of other ministers, like Pastor Benite Jeune, who have lost their churches and school buildings, but thankfully made it out alive.

I have attached a few pictures of Jacmel (taken earlier today) that Laura Griffies led us to.

I am flying out this Saturday to Haiti. I do not know what I will see or if I will be able to get through Port-au-Prince to visit Carrefour and then Jacmel, but please keep me in your prayers.

God Bless,

Marlaine

This is what we have just received from a friend in Jacmel.

Things are bad in Jacmel. Hospital fell. Three hotels have fallen. Many schools, churches and businesses. Many dead. One of our Nannies mom lost her house. Jacmel airport is closed. UN has set up temporary shelter for 1,000's of people. PAP is closed to commercial traffic. The airport terminal was damage. The control tower is inoperational. It's really bad. The new hotel by the airport fell in. It was called "Peace of Mind". Jo and I ate at the Montana at 7:00 AM the day of the quake. The road to Jacmel is crashed in at least one place. Just tell everyone to keep Haiti in their prayers!

1/15/10 12:36am

Daniel was able to speak to Jacmel and confirm that the kids and staff are okay!!! They have been camping outside for the past few days and are running low on food and water. Daniel and I have also heard from most of our brothers and sisters and they are also alive and well! In need of supplies but safe! We were able to speak to Ernst's family and they are safe as well! So is Jean Baptiste Meme and his family!
Please continue to keep Henri and his family in your prayers. We have not been able to reach him but will continue to call!

Praying,

Marlaine

1/15/10 3:15pm

It was a time of Praise to the Lord this morning when I was able to speak with the children in Jacmel. Despite living and sleeping outside the buildings, they have found refuge in prayer and are safe. They need food and many other conditions need to be improved right away, but they tell me they have not lost hope.

Renel was in school downtown when the building collapsed. He is one of the 3 students who made it out alive. He is injured, but doing much better now. Fafane, our niece that we have raised as our own child, is a student at a university in Port au Prince that collapsed. She is alive, she was able to borrow a phone and call us this morning. We are still praying and waiting to hear from Henry and his family.

In addition to the damage to the Girl’s Home in Jacmel, we just got news through the school principal that the church and school building in Marbial collapsed. We haven’t heard anything yet of the 340 school children and the rest of the school staff. We have not heard from the other schools or churches either.

Please continue to pray!!!

Marlaine

Tuesday January 12, 2010: 7.0 Earthquake in Haiti

For a little while at least, I have decided to use this site to post regular updates on the situation in Haiti. Pretty soon, I'm sure the media will grow tired of covering this story and of course, there is a lot that is being missed right now. I consider Haiti my second home and my heart is obviously there during all of this. I'm going post e-mails that I've received from my friends who are there and updates from various people that I've worked with over the years so anyone who wants to can follow what is going on. I will also continue to send out condensed updates to my "Haiti update" e-mail list regarding specific needs. Thank you for all of your prayers and support!

With love,
Jen

11:11

For some reason, I would say on average 15 times a week, I look at the clock at 11:11. It may be am or pm or both throughout the course of the day but it happens and its been happening since I was in high school. Its strange. In fact, it is 11:11pm now, which is why I started typing this. That and, although I wouldn't say that it is a new year's resolution to write in this blog more, I would say that it is in my mind to write more in general. This seems as good a place as any to do it. I don't think that many people read this, which is good, but it also will force me to choose my words more carefully. I love putting sentences together and trying to practice articulating myself well but I get lazy with it though so it will be fun to have some accountability in a sense. Maybe it will force me to be a better writer, a good skill to have I suppose. Maybe someday I'll be published in some scientific/medical journal. Not exactly an aspiration of mine or anything but you never know. Its possible that some day I'll discover something important that I should be able to write about I suppose. For now though, I think I'm going to go to bed. There is nothing else I have left that I really want to do today other than sleep. Goodnight!