Blogs from Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Central America Caribbean - page 4

Murray’s latest round of travels started with a trip to UK, for a series of meetings at head office in London. He then hopped across to Oslo for the Global Water and Sanitation Meeting, where he managed to squeeze in a day snowboarding before the main meeting started. The Global Water and Sanitation Meeting in Norway discussed setting up a global rapid response team funded by the European Commission, so that within 24 hours trained personnel can be on the ground in a disaster zone to coordinate the disaster response. Building on learning from the Haiti response the teams will now include people with information management and geographical information mapping (GIS) skills. The meeting finished with a dinner hosted by the Norwegian government. Norway’s population is similar to New Zealand’s, at 4.5 million people, but its ... read more

Club Indigo is an inviting place. It is located 30 miles north of Port-au-Prince, on the coast of Arcadins. It's a little bit pricy though. You also have the possibility of spending the day for about $30.... read more

There is something uncontrived, something pure and meaningful about reconnecting with people who have made an impact on one’s life. For me, this is often manifested in the notion of “coming back” somewhere – not just to see someone, but to experience some place again and appreciate the changes. The modern Dictionary defines “evolution” as a “process of gradual, peaceful, progressive change or development, as in social or economic structure or institutions.” Given the overwhelming (negative) amount of press that has come out lately with respect to the progress (or in this case, lack thereof) in Haiti, it would seem somewhat illogical to qualify the situation as evolutionary. Well, allow me to humbly demystify this fallacy: THINGS ARE IMPROVING IN HAITI! Of course, I can only confidently speak on behalf of Merlin and, more generally speaking, ... read more

To my husband John - my deep appreciation for your unfailing love and support; for the text messages and emails of encouragement; for keeping the home fires burning; for tending to all the things back home so I could go to Haiti and serve. I know it wasn't easy to assume so much more than your share of responsibility, which you did without complaint. You provided a peace of mind about leaving that was so important for me. You have been and remain my very best friend. Be assured, you were as much a part of the mission to Haiti as I was. To Larry Michael - my love and appreciation for all the help you gave to Grandpa while I was in Haiti. You helped him get through a tough time and I know it ... read more

I rode to DHQ for the last time...said goodbyes to support staff there and waited for Jeannot to arrive to take me to the airport. We have 6 Haitian drivers serving the SA staff (several trucks, one van, 3 cars). Some drive the delivery trucks, one drives the entire team to and from DHQ daily in the old beatup blue van we have. Others drive individuals to and from camp or to various meetings or on errands. We also have one available on Sunday to drive us to and from church services. During the last 4 weeks, I have had an opportunity to ride with each one and have come to know them personally and to have them share their lives, their story with me. Jeannot arrived and carried my baggage down to the car. I ... read more