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White Stone Church Office
1719 East Emory Rd
Knoxville, TN 37918
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White Stone Worship Location
Brickey Elementary School
1810 Dry Gap Pike
Knoxville, TN 37918
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865-687-4223
office@whitestonechurch.org
Sunday Schedule - 10:00 am
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Haiti Updates
February 17, 2010 - 12:29 am
Hey everybody . . . Just wanted to bring everyone up to speed on the latest with “our girls” and the work in Haiti. Sorry it’s been so long since the last update . . . Here goes
TRANSITIONING THE GIRLS TO CAMATIN:
We can finally report that all 12 of the remaining girls have safely been relocated to Camatin. Camatin is the facility where our mission teams stay, only a few miles from Coq Chante – a beautiful church and school facility built by Pastor Nicolas. It sustained only minor damage in the quake. We had Larry King (not the TV/radio guy, but a structural engineer here in Knoxville -- also the father of Kelly Johnston) do an inspection of the building. His professional opinion was that the building was the “best built building he had ever seen in Haiti” and that the building was a safe alternative for housing the girls. It took a week of intense prayer and conversations with many Haitian families (thanks for all that you invested in those conversations Kevin Rudd), but Madestine and Christiani were the last two girls to finally make the trip over on Monday night. We are very relieved that this stage of the transition is now complete. Here is a little more background on what necessitated the move:
We weren’t very popular for a while with many of the families in Coq Chante because of our desire to relocate the girls to Camatin. This move was necessary to provide a more controlled and protective environment for all the girls. As more people continue to leave the devastated cities and return to the mountain communities, the basic safety of the girls at Coq Chante was becoming more of a concern. There is a building next to the orphanage property that has become a local hangout for a large group of men and boys – who basically sit there all day playing dominos and listening to music. Some of them have begun to take notice of the girls, particularly the older ones. This has created a very dangerous situation for the girls, given there is no longer a safe structure at Coq Chante where gates can be closed and doors locked. While our team was still in Haiti following the quake, the caregivers at the orphanage found evidence (i.e., love notes) that a few of the older girls had “boyfriends”. The girls were confronted about it – as these relationships are strictly forbidden at the orphanage and are seen as very dangerous. In spite of the caregivers’ attempts to discourage these relationships, we were getting reports that the situation was worsening after our return to the States. It became clear to us that the girls needed to be moved to a safer environment . . . Camatin. However . . .
. . . The girls’ families did not agree. The Haitian people are understandably still very afraid of going inside big concrete structures, as CNN is still reporting the possibility of more earthquakes in the future – making the Haitians think that another quake is eminent. With the recent loss of Atanie in the quake, the families of the girls were very leery of sending the girls back into another big concrete building. Many of them refused and instead chose to keep their girls with them rather than send them to Camatin with the caregivers. Although we didn’t like this option, in our minds it was a safer option than leaving the girls where they were – unprotected from all the men and boys who were merely a stone’s throw away. Praise God that over the course of the past week, the families have one-by-one, begun to bring their girls to Camatin as they have come to peace with the idea. Long story short – All the girls are together again! Hallelujah!
HUMANITARIAN PAROLE UPDATE FOR THE REMAINING 12 GIRLS:
Not too much new to report on this front. We continue to talk with representatives from Bob Corker’s office to monitor the situation. All the necessary paperwork is already in their hands, simply waiting for a process to be defined and implemented. This we do know from a consultation with an immigration attorney in Memphis . . . in order to better position the girls for the humanitarian parole process, we need to get official abandonment papers from the birth parents of all the remaining girls. This is part of the Haitian legal process – it gives legal custody of the girls to the orphanage. This will become a standard procedure from this point forward for any girls taken in to the orphanage. In order to get this process moving, Kevin Rudd and I will travel to Haiti the first week of March for the purpose of trying to get verbal consent from each of the families. Then, with the help of a Haitian attorney, try to start the official process in the Haiti court system in Jacmel. Please keep praying that God will work out all the details in a very complicated process. Pray that He work it all out for good of “our girls” and for the glory of His Name!
TEAM ON THE GROUND IN HAITI RIGHT NOW:
We have three men on the ground in Haiti right now – Brian Lloyd (who is all over Port au Prince and the surrounding areas visiting more sites devastated by the quake) and Kurt Rudd and Mark Johnston (who are moving the solar panel system from Coq Chante and making repairs at Camatin to better accommodate the girls and future mission teams). Their trip has not been without incident, as they have gotten to witness first-hand some of the frustration and sensitivity over moving the girls out of Coq Chante. Please pray for their continued safety and God’s provision for their work over the coming days. They are planning on returning to the States on Friday.
THOUSANDS OF POUNDS OF SUPPLIES ON THEIR WAY TO COQ CHANTE:
A very special “thank you” to everyone who helped gather supplies, food and water for our Haitian friends in the weeks since the quake. Those supplies are now on their way to Haiti! Special thanks go out to the two dozen people who spent a rainy, cold Friday afternoon loading all those supplies into a tractor-trailer rig that has since been delivered to Huntsville, AL and then transported to a ship bound for the Dominican Republic. It will take several weeks to get there, but eventually we will be able to start trucking all those beans and rice and other provisions across the Dominican border and put them in the hands of the people that so desperately need them. By the way, there is already another empty trailer behind the church office just waiting to be filled up – keep those supplies coming and we will keep shipping them down to Haiti!
That’s all for now. I'll keep you posted as things continue to develop. Blessings. MZ
Thanks,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 23, 2010 - 11:42 am
OUR SWEET GIRLS AND WOUSAMMY HAVE LANDED SAFELY IN FT. LAUDERDALE!!!
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January 22, 2010 - 10:19 pm
WOUSAMMY, BENITA, ODETTE, VALENCIA, DIEULA (JAYLA), AND ISLANDE ARE OUT OF HAITI !!! The will spend the night with Kevin Rudd and Brian Lloyd tonight in the Turks! They are excited and happy and ready to be HOME! They will fly to Ft. Lauderdale in the morning to meet up with one of their parents to be processed into the US. Once that process is complete, they will all fly home together. We do not have an exact time because we do not know how long their processing will take.
JOIN US AT THE AIRPORT TO CELEBRATE THEIR ARRIVAL! We are estimating their arrival to be around 3pm. Watch your email tomorrow. They are going to contact us when they board the plane. The flight will take 2 1/2 hours. We can give you a more exact time. Big thank you to Channel 10 for coordinating efforts with the Haslam Family and Pilot to donate the additional charter flight to bring them all home! They will land at Tac Air (formerly Cherokee Aviation). It is just to the right of McGhee Tyson airport. There is an entrance to their area off of Alcoa Hwy.
THE PARENTS WHO ARE GOING TO MEET THEM WILL BOARD A PLANE IN ATLANTA AT 10:15pm. They will spend the night in Ft Lauderdale ready to greet their children
MISSION TEAM IN COQ CHANTE is good. The doctors have all been working for the last few days in Lagoine. If you have been to Haiti before, this is the city that you go through just before you go up into the mountains. The news has reported it as being the hardest hit area. Everything there is flattened and other relief has been very slow to get there. Our big white truck has been being used as the ambulance to bring in patients!
PRAY for the processing to go smoothly tomorrow in Ft Lauderdale
PRAY for the girls as they make this crazy & potentially overwhelming transition
PRAY for bonding to take place in these homes.
PRAY for American siblings as they adapt to having a new brother / sister in their home
PRAY for the girls as they process all that's happened to them in the last 10 days
PRAY for the girls and caregivers who are still in Coq Chante. While I know they are very excited for the ones that left today, that doesn't mean they don't feel saddness that they are no longer with them. SPECIFICALLY: Merline, Guerline, Malange, Marie Michelle, Yolanda, Onise, Linia, Madestine, Samantha, Christianie, Saintemone, Gladys, and Madame & Pastor Gaspard (who have cared for some of these girls for at least 7 years, maybe longer).
PRAY for the families they are leaving behind there.
PRAY for the processing that needs to happen to be able to bring the remaining 12 home.
PRAY for the team that continues to serve in Haiti.
PRAISE GOD FOR MOVING IN SUCH AN INCREDIBLE WAY! IT'S A PICTURE THAT WE COULD HAVE NEVER PAINTED OURSELVES!
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January 22, 2010 - 4:09 pm
Things have been very crazy. The children in the adoption process are on their way home. The parents are getting to the airport to fly out tonight.
Please keep praying for those we still have on the ground in Haiti and those that are making plans right now to go down.
will post more later....
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January 19, 2010 - 11:42 pm
Don't have much time this morning, but wanted to bring everyone up to speed with a few exciting developments . . .
- WE HAD OVER 35 FAMILIES COMPLETE PAPERWORK VOLUNTEERING TO BRING ONE OF "OUR GIRLS" INTO THEIR HOME!! - Thank you White Stone family and friends of Haiti! What an overwhelming blessing! Thanks to all of you. We don't know any details yet . . . but keep reading!
- HUMANITARIAN PAROLE APPROVED CHILDREN ALREADY IN ADOPTION PROCESS: This is great news for ours girls. It is the first obstacle that had to to overcome to start the process. It has an immediate impact on the 6 children who were already in the process of being adopted. The US government is now working out the details to get them out of Haiti as quickly as possible. We don't know an exact time frame, but we are very encouraged that this will happen quickly. A very special "thank you" is in order to all who have helped work within the TN political machine to get this thing moving.
WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER GIRLS? Once the process for the adoptive children is handled, the other children in crisis will be addressed. All of our paperwork on the other girls is already in the hands of the appropriate parties. No promises are being made but we are "very encouraged". Keep praying!!!
FIRST RELIEF TEAM LEAVES TODAY- Our first 6-man team is heading to Miami this evening, and then into Jacmel tomorrow, landing at noon. Our 3 doctors will begin giving medical aid immediately and I will be working with Brian to develop a plan for making the best use of subsequent flights over the coming days. We have a tentative plan in place to bring in more people and supplies, but it is all subject to change. We will keep you posted.
CONTRIBUTIONS POURING IN - Over $30,000 was given toward the work in Haiti on Sunday and Monday alone, with many others saying more is on the way! The White Stone house is overflowing with cots, tarps, medical supplies, food, etc. that we will be sending to Haiti over to coming weeks. Thanks to everyone for your immediate, generous response! It is a beautiful thing to see the "Body" at work!!
NICOLE, NIDDY, AND NICKI COMING TO KNOXVILLE - The Haitian population in Knoxville continues to grow as Pastor Nicolas' daughter Nicole (Eddy's wife) and their two children will be joining the White Stone family in the coming days. We can't wait for the opportunity to be a blessing to these precious people.
Gotta go for now. Keep praying.
.
Blesings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 16, 2010 - 11:42 pm
We received more good news today on several fronts.
Here's the latest:
- WOUSAMI IS SAFE!!! - Brian finally made it to Belloc today and verified that Wousami and his family are all fine, including Samuel who we finally got to talk to today. All the homes in Belloc are destroyed, but the people we know the best are all fine. (You can now exhale finally Bates family). Hallelujah!!
- BRIAN MADE IT TO COQ CHANTE AND SAW "OUR GIRLS" WITH HIS OWN EYES: They are doing well, although their food supply will only last for one more week. Water is scarce, but they have been drinking juice from chadeks (grapefruits) growing around the orphanage.
- ROAD TO JACMEL REPORTEDLY CLEAR: This is great news for our mission team scheduled to leave on Tuesday -- It makes ground transportation and safety much less of a concern. Brian and a few Haitian friends were taking the truck to Jacmel this afternoon to see for themselves. As of now, I haven't gotten any confirmation about what they saw.
It's late. More to come tomorrow. Good night.
Blessings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 16, 2010 - 9:57 am
Things continue to change and evolve. Here's the latest:
- ODETTE BACK AT COQ CHANTE: We just got word that Odette is back with the other girls. She was at "City of God" when the quake hit -- a church that completely collapsed. It is a miracle that she survived. Only the hand of God could have protected her. We dn't know how she was able to ke it back to the mountains -- but she did! Praise God!!
- SAMUEL TRYING TO CONTACT US: This is great news! Samuel is Wousami's older brother. We have had no contact from him or anyone from Belloc. We haven't been able to talk to him yet, but at least we know he is alive! Brian will stop by Belloc today on his way to Coq Chante. Pray for a good report on Wousami's family today!
- NO WATER AT THE ORPHANAGE: We have just learned that all the cisterns collapsed at Coq Chante and they lost all of their water supply. They haven't had water in several days. Their spirits are good, but the situation is very serious. Brian is trying to make his way up the mountain today -- he will try to find water on the way -- no easy task. Pray! PS (The girls could be heard singing in the background when Brian talked to them on the phone -- some things haven't changed!)
- BRINGING THE GIRLS HOME: We continue to work with political leaders to facilitate getting all the girls here as soon as possible. It looks like the best opportunity is to bring them through a process called "Humanitarian Parole". It is by no means a done deal. Much work to do. Need favor with some people in high position. Pray that God would allow this to happen quickly!
JACMEL AIRPORT OPENED: This is a huge answer to prayer. We are still not sure our team can land there on Tuesday -- but at least it is progress.
WE NEED A HELICOPTER: We are doing everything we know to do to find a helicopter that can bring us from an airstrip in the Dominican, Jacmel, or wherever we end up landing. The US government is likely our best chance. We are contacting everyone we know who may be able to call in a favor for us. If you know of anyone who can help ... make the call!
ROAD FROM JACMEL TO COQCHANTE REPAIRED: This means there may be a chance to get our White Truck to Jacmel to pick up our Team, but more importantly, to bring in supplies.
INFORMATION MEETING TOMORROW AFTER WORSHIP: Things are changing so quickly, I am planning a meeting after worship tomorrow to talk specifically about the details of bringing the girls to Knoxville. Anyone interested is welcome to stay.
THANK YOU FOR OVERWHELMING RESPONSE TO HOUSING GIRLS: At this point we have no idea who will be staying where, but we needed to be able to show the government that there is broad scale support for caring for these girls in Knoxville. I'll share more information about this at tomorrow's meeting.
- MONA, RICAYINA, AND RYAN COMING TO KNOXVILLE TOMORROW: Mona is Pastor Nicolas' wife, Ricayina and Ryan are Ricot's children (anyone who has met these two has immediately fallen in love with them). Ricot is afraid for their safety, so he is sending them to Knoxville to join thr mother tomorrow.
That's all for now. More to come shortly
Blessings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 15, 2010 - 10:40 pm
A couple of items to update:
I just got off the phone with Agathe, the head caretaker for the Coq Chante girls orphanage. I told her that me and Ricot and Hippolite would be hiking in to them tomorrow (unless god gives us a helicopter) and asked what she needs and she said blankets and pants because they are all cold at night. And water because the cisterns are totally destroyed so they don't have anything to drink.
She said there is still part of the building standing but it is "only hanging in the air so we can't go in to get our clothes or blankets".
I asked Agathe if she needed anything for herself and she just said "please come and help these little girls".
Please pray for god to keep these girls warm and to quench their thirst til we can get to them.
Also Bebe, one of our workers (and Ricot's cousin) was in the same school collapse that killed Beremy Valme. Bebe survived but had serious injuries to both her legs. Ricot can't find her; he is praying someone took her to a hospital.
Keep praying,
Brian
www.harvestfieldhaiti.org
PS while I was talking to Agathe I could hear the orphans singing in the background...
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January 15, 2010 - 7:22 pm - SOME OF THIS IS A GRAPHIC
Ok here is update. Gotta type quick bc low battery and signal may leave again
This morning helped for a while with jimani clinic. Then crossed border with chris Greg jemps and grant. They took me to ricots house. House has some pretty severe damage. I experienced my first aftershock today. Can't believe small ones are still happening.
Struck out on choppers to camatin/jacmel.
Me and ricot visited many places in city:
Nicoles store - rubble.
Church and school and elderly housing at savan pistach - rubble. At least 2 children were in bldg and dead but can't get to bodies yet.
Church and school and clinic and elderly housing at city of god - rubble. We think only one girl dead there but again, impossible to get to body.
Visited pastor ronnigues house got there as they were removing body. Dear god help me. I can't explain the horror. Me and his sons could only stand and weep together as they took the horrible corpses of Ronnigue and his wife out from the rubble. Can't explain in words how horrible it was. Trying to find solice for now in god sparing my friend from having to see his people suffer like they are.
Visited Menes. He needs his insulin. Whitestone team nneds to bring all his meds next week. Rachel has the list.
Tnroughtout city of god savane pistache petionville downtown airport road everywhere decaying bodies along the road. Some have sheets over them others a piece of cardboard. Thousands more still trapped in the rubble. A Haitian looking for his dad today in a heap of rubble and I asked how he k ew to dig where he was at and he answered because this is where all the flies are going. The stench in the city is unexainable. Everyone wearing bandannas or rubbing mentholiptus under nose because of stench of death.
Pastor beaullire At Belloc we THINK is ok through 4th hand info.
David our translator is okay.
Pastor Evans (Mary flos husband) is missing and presuming the worst.
Pastor Ernst and his mon a d dad are okay.
Ricot trying to get mona and his kids out thru Dom rep tomorow or Saturday so he can focus on relief.
Ricot and I will travel as close as we can to coq chante/Belloc tomorow then walk or ride motorcycles from there so we can get to orphans at coq chante.
More reports are camatin is not safe and damage worse than initially thought. Not sure where well take orphans when we get to them.
As relief people coming in it's just getting crazier and busier and tensions getting high. People getting hungrier and more frustrated. I just can't explain what pap is like. Will try to send some photos and video later if I can find a functioning computer.
Keep praying,
Brian
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January 15, 2010 - 2:59 pm
Here’s the latest . . .
• BRIAN SAFELY IN THE D.R.: Brian made it safely to Jimani, a hospital at the Domincan/Haiti border. He is gathering information as to the best way to proceed from there in order to make it to Coq Chante – all land access is impassable. He is exploring other means of air transport. His goal – make it to Coq Chante as quickly as possible
• BELLOC: Still no contact with Wousami’s family or anyone else at Belloc. Keep praying for Mike and Karen.
• CAMATIN STARTING TO CRUMBLE: Pastor Moises said that the structure at Camatin is starting to crumble in some areas. Not safe for the girls at this time. We will keep the girls at Coq Chante until we can access further.
• “GOOD MORNING AMERICA” PIECE CANCELLED: Darrell and Lorie learned late yesterday that ABC news had decided to go a different direction with their broadcast, deciding to shoot “live from Haiti” instead. They did do a phone interview with Lorie that is supposed to be on their website. Oh well, God knows what He is doing.
• PLANS UNDERWAY FOR WHITE STONE RELIEF TEAM(S) TO START LEAVING FOR HAITI ON TUESDAY (1/19): All of the relief efforts you see on television are focused on the city of Port au Prince. The quake totally shut off ground access to the southern part of the island, where Coq Chante, Belloc, Camatin, and Jacmel are. Therefore, there is no immediate help on the way for this region -- we need to get there as quickly as poosible. We are currently researching options that will get us to the southern coast of Haiti.
I am organizing a team of 14 men to begin going to Haiti next week, likely on Tuesday. This will be a trip like none we’ve ever taken. The goal is simply to get to “our girls” and then do whatever is necessary to care for them. I have 3 doctors and an EMT among the 14 men. Due to all the unknowns, and the conditions we will be facing, I am not comfortable taking any ladies at this time (Ladies, I hope you understand – there will be a time for you to go very soon, but this is not it). A ministry associated with ProVision, is providing an airplane for our use – a 7-passenger plane that will shuttle our people in and out. They are currently looking for an additional plane, but as of now we will be sending people down in groups of seven.
I know many others have a desire to go and serve, but here is the team for next week as it now stands. If your name is not on this list and you desire to go, let me know, as I will build a waiting list, in case any of these people drop off. We will likely have a steady stream of relief teams going down over the coming weeks, with ample opportunities for everyone to serve. All that said, here’s the team:
1. Mark Zimmerman
2. Cullen Copeland, EMT
3. Greg Blackmon, MD
4. Caleb Warren, MD
5. Preston Smith, MD
6. Kevin Rudd
7. Kurt Rudd
8. Jacob Stout
9. Greg Keck
10. Spidey Brewton
11. Mark Johnston
12. Mark Keefer
13. Ben Warwick
14. Jason Frizell
• WE ARE PRAYING THAT GOD WILL ALLOW US TO START BRINGING ALL OF THE GIRLS HOME NEXT WEEK: Continue to pray to God’s favor with US politicians as we lobby for approval to bring “our girls” to Knoxville so we can care for them here – Not just the 5 girls currently being adopted, but ALL THE GIRLS (and yes, Wousami too!) These are doors that only God can open! Pray that He will!!!
• I NEED A LIST OF FAMILIES WHO WOULD BE WILLING TO PROVIDE A HOME FOR ONE OF THE GIRLS IF WE CAN GET THEM HERE: This is just a temporary arrangement, and I am not looking to start a tug-o-war for who gets which girl – I just need a list of families who would be willing to house an orphan short-term just so we can get them here. We will work through long-term issues once we get them on US soil.
If you would be willing to take short-term responsibility for one of the girls, please indicate so by responding to this email. I will need full names of all the adults in the home and complete contact information (address, phone #’s, email). If you would like to request a particular child, feel free to indicate (although there are no guarantees) – OUR GOAL IS SIMPLE – GET THE GIRLS HERE SO WE CAN MAKE SURE THEY ARE CARED FOR.
That’s all for now. Keep praying that God would use all this for His glory and for the good Haiti.
Blessings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 15, 2010 - 12:08 pm
Below is from Brian Lloyd:
It is Friday, 2 ish AM...Thursday at 4 AM (when I woke up last) seems like an awfully long time ago. Here is a recap of the events of the day.
An extremely rough start to find out at 6 am that Pastor Ronnigue Guiellere, my friend, my brother, and a man I respect like no other, is dead. His small concrete home collapsed in the quake crushing him. Pastor Ronnigue was the leader of the churches I work with. He was a man full of wisdom, grace, discernment, and compassion. Everything he said oozed Jesus - when he spoke he made me feel like a kindergarten kid sitting on the floor in front of their teacher while they were being read a good story. Ronnigue shared and lived the gospel with tremendous passion - he lived out what he preached. Ronnigue led many many people to know the Lord. I've spent much of the day weeping uncontrollably as images of pastor Ronnigue come to my mind. I love you brother...I miss you so much already.
The good news that came with the same call at 6 am was to learn that the Camatin church, school, mission house is still standing and only sustained minimal damage. Unfortunately we also learned that the mountain road leading there is completely destroyed in several places and covered with rock and dirt from retaining wall collapses, making it impossible to pass. This means impossible for the 1000's of relief workers soon heading into pap wont be able to reach this area by vehicle. This area, as well as Jacmel which was very hard hit is completely shut off because this is the only road in or out.
It was confirmed that both buildings of our Belloc church, school, and orphanage (no orphans were living there) are complete losses. We still do not know about the status of pastor Jocelyn Beaulliere, his wife, and 4 children, who all lived in an upstairs room of the church.
Mid morning brought more upsetting news that Beremy Valme, the youngest daughter of pastor Menes Valme, was confirmed dead. She was in school when the quake hit, and the entire building became rubble. Pastor Menes is heartbroken over the loss of his little girl, who made straight A's and wanted to study medicine after she graduated high school.
Mid morning did however bring us some glorious news about Odette Coleman. Odette is being adopted by my good friends Andy and Allyson Coleman. She was in PaP for an appointment for the final stages of the adoption when the quake hit. No one had been able to reach her birth father who she was with so we had no idea if she was okay...until this morning we learned they are safe and were meeting up with Ricot to stay in his home for now.
We also received joyous news that many of our workers, including Hippolite, Estimine, Mary Flo, Lozama, Jabet, and Santela are safe and uninjured. For some of you, these are just names - for others of you these are very special people you know and love so we celebrate that they were spared.
I arrived in the Dominican border town of Jimani to the Jimani Project Hospital at about 11 pm and wow...I'm not a military guy but it is what I'd assume a battle field hospital looks like. Lots of blood, cuts, broken bones, crying, and a team of almost 40 doctors, nurses, and medical professionals frantically working to care for the hurting people. Dom Republic and US military helicopters are bringing some of the worst wounded from pap to this clinic to be cared for. A recently finished orphanage next door to the hospital is being turned into the hospital annex. Daylight will bring hundreds more coming to be treated for horrible wounds.
What tomorrow might bring for me: I feel it is important to get to the Camatin area to:
1 - assess what "minor damage" to the Camatin facility really is
2 - to determine if we can safely move the Coq Chante orphans to Camatin (about a 3 hr walk between the 2 places)
3 - find out firsthand about friends at Belloc (about a 3 hr walk from Coq Chante) including pastor Beaulliere, Wousami bates, a little boy being adopted by our friends Mike and Karen Bates, and many others we know and love in Belloc
4 - determine if Camatin can be used as a hub to bring aid into from Jacmel so we can minister to these hard hit areas that are not accessible due to the damaged roads.
Since the roads are not passable, the only way I can get there is in the air. I had a couple leads on small charter planes and helicopters out of the DR but they have not worked out. But a couple hours ago I spoke with a guy who thinks he can work with the US military (who are carrying the wounded to the Jimani hospital) to allow me to hitch a ride to Camatin. If this is God's plan, please pray that the Lord works it out for me to be on one of those helicopters.
The letters are running together, my thumbs are tired (from typing) and 5 AM is only a few hours away so that's all for now.
Keep praying,
Brian
www.harvestfieldhaiti.org
Bondye bon tout tan!
God is good all the time!
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January 14, 2010 - 12:38 pm
God is moving in a mighty way today! Here's latest . . .
- ODETTE IS SAFE: Praise God! She is with her birth mother in Port au Prince. Ricot can't get to her right away, but she is safe!!!
- HIPPOLITE IS SAFE! Hippolite, a former orphan who grew up in Pastor Nicolas' house, is the ultimate servant. He's been involved in every trip I've ever taken to Haiti.
- ESTEMINE IS SAFE! Estemine is the female version of Hippolite -- an orphan that Pastor Nicolas took in -- now the ultimate picture of beauty and grace
- EVELYN IS SAFE! Many of you know Evelyn from her time in the States.
- AGATHE'S FAMILY IS SAFE! Agathe is overseeing the girls at the orphanage, but her family was in Port au Prince -- they are all good, including her own little adoptive daughter, Garthland.
- LOZAMA IS SAFE! Lozama cooks for us on every trip.
- JABAY IS SAFE! Jabay is an incredible young man with a million dollar smile and a heart to match.
- MARY FLO IS SAFE! Mary Flo is another beautiful soul that helps serve us often.
- SANTELAH IS SAFE! Santelah is Mary Flo's mother, and she helps in the kitchen for all our trips.
- ALFRED IS SAFE! Alfred is Evelyn's husband, and he is also our driver. He is actually at Coq Chante with the girls and THE WHITE TRUCK! That's right . . . our truck is safe too!
- THE GIRLS HAVE ACCESS TO THEIR FOOD SUPPLY: The month's supply of food that we just left for the orphanage was not destroyed. The girl's are eating well and are sleeping in the back of the big truck.
- MEDIA PUBLICITY IS SPREADING: Another local newscast will report tonight (WVLT) and tomorrow morning "Good Morning America" will interview Lorie Johnson live!!!! Atanie's life is already having a huge impact in getting the story of all the girls out all across America. Pray that God would use it all for His Glory!
- SAMARITAN'S PURSE TO DO HELICOPTER DROP OF FOOD AND SUPPLIES AT COQ CHANTE AND CAMATIN: Through the efforts of two very distracted 5th grade teachers at Copper Ridge Elementary, and a very sweet lady from the Samaritan's Purse, God is making a way to do a helicopter drop of food and supplies to our friends at Coq Chante and Camitin. God continues to amaze me at how intentional HE is!!!!
WHITE STONE EMERENCY RELIEF TRIP IN THE WORKS: God is continuing to work out the details to get a team a 5-6 men from White Stone on the ground in Haiti in the coming days. Pray that God continue to knock down every barrier that stands between us and the work Hehas called us to do.
ONE VERY SAD NOTE -- PASTOR MENES DAUGHTER, BEREMY, IS DEAD: Please pray for Pastor Menes -- this was his "baby girl" and he adored her. Beremy died when her school collapsed.
More details as I get them. Keep praying. God continues to answer prayer!
Blessings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 14, 2010 - 10:18 am
Blessings White Stone family. Yesterday was a very long day, with many tears for lives lost, but with much hope as we hear stories of God's deliverance.
Thanks to all who joined the incredible turnout to pray last night for our friends and family in Haiti.
Here are the latest things we know:
- PASTOR RONNIGUE IS DEAD: Pastor Ronnigue was the spritual leader of the 25 churches that Pastor Nicolas started in Haiti. After Pastor Nicolas' death last year, Pastor Ronnigue's role became even more vital. He was Brian Lloyd's primary partner in reaching out to all these churches in Haiti. He was the man who gave spiritual leadership to all the churches, and trained and equipped the pastors. This loss is devestating. He was an incredible man of God
- BELLOC DESTROYED: Belloc was the first church, school, and orphanage that we ever worked in. At the time it housed an orphanage for boys. When Pastor Nicolas got sick, they had to close the orphanage and send the boys away, however the school and church were still operating. No word on any human casualties, but both buildings at Belloc were totally flattened. No word on Wousamy and his family yet.
- CAMATIN SAFE: Praise God for this!!!! This is the place where our mission teams stay. It is an incredible facility. Big enough and close enough to house all the girls from Coq Chante. Pastor Moises is doing well, although he has many dead in his community. He is taking care of many people at Camatin. He will try to send a person on motorcycle to Coq Chante today to tell the girls to walk to Camatin.
- ODETTE: Still no word on Odette. Keep praying for her safety.
- BRIAN LLOYD ON HIS WAY TO DOMINCAN REPUBLIC: Brian is in the air as I type this. He will try to work his way across the border into Haiti tomorrow. Pray!
- OTHER BIG STUFF IN THE WORKS: Pray for several meetings today with political leaders here in TN that could make a way to bring "our girls" home. I'll pass on more details later -- just pray for God's favor on these meetings. Pray for big things, huge miracles!
That's all for now. I love you. Blessings
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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January 13, 2010 - 8:20 am
It has been a very long and deadly night for our friends and family in Haiti.
We have now spoken to the leaders at the Coq Chante Orphanage and this is what we know:
- A large portion (up to 1/2 or more) of the building structure at Coq Chante collapsed during the quake.
- ATANIE: the youngest of "our girls", did not make it out of the building. She was coming down the steps at the front of the orphanage when the front end of the building collapsed. They have now recovered her body.
- ODETTE: the adoptive daughter of Andy and Allyson Coleman, is presently unaccounted for. Odette was not at Coq Chante at the time of the quake. She was in Port au Prince with her birth parents for medical tests yesterday. Eddy knows where her family was supposed to be staying last night in Port aP, and is currently on his way to try to find her. We have been unable to make contact with her or her family to this point.
THE REST OF "OUR GIRLS" - The remaining 16 girls made it out with only some minor injuries. They are very frightened. The remaining structure is unsafe and they cannot go back inside at this point. The girls spent the night outside, in the courtyard of the orphanage. All the caregivers who presently live at the orphanage (Agathe, Edwin, Pastor and Madam Gaspard, Jean Luke and Magrela) are all safe and are caring for the girls.
- RICOT LOUIS JUSTE AND FAMILY: Ricot (Pastor Nicolas' son), Mona (Pastor Nicolas' widow), and their immediate family are all safe. Their house in Delmas sustained major damage but they all managed to make it out. They spent the night in the courtyard outside their home. Ricot's wife, Christina, is here in Knoxville with us.
- EDDY JEUNE AND FAMILY: Eddy, Nicole, and their children are all safe and their house came through the quake ok.
- PASTOR MENES: He is safe and his house still standing, but his youngest daughter, Beremy, is unaccounted for. She was at school in the city at the time of the quake, and Pastor Menes is getting reports that the school building collapsed. He hasn't been able to make contact with her.
We haven't been able to make contact with anyone else at this point, or confirm the condition of other facilities (ie, Camatin, Belloc). The epicenter of the quake was located in an area very close to the homes of many of our other friends (Hippolite, Estemine, Evelyne, Jabey, among others). We continue to try to make contact constantly.
At first light this morning Ricot will be trying to make the journey to Coq Chante to try to get to the girls. Reports are that Port au Prince is virtually destroyed, and the road up the mountain sustained much damage -- so travel may prove impossible.
WHITE STONE FAMILY: PLEASE PRAY! We will be monitoring the developments throughout the day - trying to formulate a plan on what our next-steps will be.
We covet your prayers. Pray for everyone involved. Pray for God's mercy. Pray for provision and safety for those unaccounted for. Pray for miracles. JUST PRAY.
We will pass on more information as we get it.
Blessings,
Mark Zimmerman
White Stone Church
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