Safe and Sound!

Dear friends and family,

We have arrived safely in Haiti.  Our flights yesterday went very smoothly.  We spent the afternoon traveling up to St. Joseph's Home in Petionville for a welcome from the home's founder, Michael Geilenfeld.  We then rode up the mountains into a small town called

 Fermanthe, which is where Wings of Hope is located.  After a very dusty and bumpy ride up, it was wonderful to be greeted with open arms and cool glasses of water.  

The children here, who all have mental or physical disabilities, are lively and loving and full of laughter.  Here is a picture of me with Steve, my prayer partner (and such a hoot!)  The staff at Wings like to say that Steve doesn't know how to follow directions.  In the States, we'd say that "he marches to the beat of his own drum."  He kept me on my toes and always laughing!

Wings of Hope is located on the side of a beautiful mountain overlooking a long valley which leads into the ocean.   This is the view from the balcony of the dormitory.

This will be short as I am writing on the home director's computer (very graciously!) But, since we're not sure whether we'll have internet access anywhere else, wanted to let you know we're doing great.

Tomorrow morning we leave at 6am to go into Cite Soleil, one of the largest slums in the world, located near the water in Port-au-Prince.  We'll be attending church where Leon and Jacky Dorleans serve as pastors and run a school and clinic.  In the afternoon we'll head back to St. Joseph's for instruction with Michael and evening worship.

Haiti is full of colors, sights, and sounds. With big open windows and few walls, we hear the dogs barking, roosters crowing, and pigs snorting in the valleys outside.  We slept great last night but I'm sure will be grateful to have earplugs with us!

Love to you all, and thanks for your prayers....

Katherine & Bart