A new Haiti

Sunday Feb 14

The trip to Haiti has doubled in length.  On February 13, we flew to Santo Domingo and were met by a delegation from The Federation of Youth for Development (FNJD) who helped us with our 10 bags of supplies including medications and tents.  It took 4 cars to carry all of our things.  On Sunday morning we repacked the cars and drove 7 hours to Port-au-Prince. We took a brief tour of the city driving through areas with many buildings pancaked and others totally off-kilter and destroyed.  We saw a dozen or more tent encampments where people have constructed any kind of shelter to protect themselves.  Yet despite this we saw people on the street, walking and working, and we stopped in a restaurant and found a good meal. Tonight we will stay at the home and school of the family of my good friend, Tipan Verella.  Tipan and his wife, Sameena, were visiting his family for the Christmas and New Year’s holiday when the earthquake struck.  Fortunately, their house and school are untouched. And they have opened their home graciously to us for the few days we will stay in PAP.