BIG CHANGES AHEAD (but exciting ones!)

“Maybe you had to leave in order to really miss a place; maybe you had to travel to figure out how beloved your starting point was.”

— Jodi Picoult

Well in case you haven't noticed, I failed TERRIBLY at posting an update once a month. Somehow I posted 1 month into being here and now here I am a week over 5 months being back in Haiti. Let me try and briefly summarize the past 4 months.


August: experienced my first heart-wrenching death at the malnutrition center. bought a full sized bed. made new friends. found a new house.

September: moved into a new house. traveled to Oregon.  traveled back to Haiti. very close friend visited for 2 weeks. settled into a new routine.

Yep got pretty burnt at the beach. 

October: set up cable. watched a lot of college football. set up internet. worked a lot of hours. changed job roles at Espwa Berlancia. found a wonderful nail salon.

November: traveled to Arizona for Night of Hope with Chances for Children. traveled back to Haiti. worked a lot. slept a little. met new friends. celebrated thanksgiving (Johnny's first Thanksgiving!). got very burnt at the beach.

December: bought a Christmas tree. listened to Christmas music. had a sleepover. put up Christmas lights. got offered a full time job at C4C. accepted said full time position. mentally prepped for the cold when I return to Oregon.
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I got to take a few of the older kids from the crèche on a special outing.

If you are paying attention to what you are reading, you read that right. I was offered a full time position in Kenscoff at Chances 4 Children which means that there will be some adjustments to be had. I will continue to volunteer my time at Espwa Berlancia one day a week - as I fully believe in what they stand for and do, but I will be at the creche (orphanage) much more than I have been the past 5 months. I am so incredibly excited about this opportunity that I have been given. I will continue doing the role I was doing previously with C4C - help with managing adoptions but I will take on added responsibilities such as managing adoption invoices, paperwork and helping the staff at the creche.

Because little nuggets in rain jackets are way too cute! 

I have been blessed to be receiving a small pay for my work at Chances 4 Children that will help with my expenses and finances extensively. I know I have many supporters who have donated money and continue to donate monthly. As I will now be paid a stipend by Chances 4 Children, I will have my basic necessities covered. If you are monthly donor and choose to discontinue your monthly donation, I completely understand. However - if you feel so called to continue your monthly donation, I would greatly appreciate it as I would like to be making larger payments on my student loans so maybe someday they will go away! Also I will have some added expenses in the next year (to be announced - but I'm sure you all can imagine!) so any extra dollar counts. PS. For all of you who are wondering, Johnny and I are doing great. We are learning and growing together - learning to love one another through a new season in our lives.

I have had amazing support over the past 5 months and I could not have survived without the financial support of some very special people. I am extremely grateful for the paid role at C4C starting in January and I look forward to continue to volunteer a little bit of my time at Espwa Berlancia.

Johnny and I posing at a friend's wedding. 

On an added bonus, I'm headed home in just about a week - to spend the holidays with my family. If you have any housesitting, babysitting or random odds and end jobs that you need help with, send me a message! I am looking for added work! :)

I love my community and I could not be doing this without everyone.

1 Month

{The view of the sunset from the balcony off my apartment}

Somehow it has been a month since I arrived in Haiti for this new adventure. I had hoped that I would have updated all my friends and family sooner than 1 month, but alas life has been crazy and busy and so here we are August 3rd finally getting an update. Let me just say, it has been quite the whirlwind and I cannot believe it has been a month already. 

I will try and capture what has taken place this last month, without boring you all. I arrived and celebrated the 4th of July with a big cookout and fireworks with some other American missionaries. Starting the 5th, it was full force work. I was staying in a spare bedroom in a friend's house while my apartment was being finished. I have since moved into a room in the malnutrition center and while it has been wonderful to have a place to live while I wait for my apartment, I am very ready to move into my apartment and off-site. 

Work has been a balance of working at the malnutrition center and at Chances 4 Children - managing adoptions. Both have been great, but boy it's been an adjustment trying to find the right balance on how often I drive to Kenscoff (or take a moto) and how often I stay in Thomassin and do my work here. I've basically settled on one day in Kenscoff for work and 4 days in Thomassin and then the weekends I often spend Saturdays here and Sundays in Kenscoff for Church and lunch with Johnny. Johnny and I have had to find a balance as well of how often he comes here and how often I go there to see him. He has started a pre-class for medical school which he will start in the fall, but it means he he leaves Kenscoff at 6am to go to PAP and then leaves PAP at 6pm to return home. It is just a busy season in our lives but we are learning how to communicate through that and appreciate the time we do get together (because regardless it's far more time than we were getting when I was in the US). The goal, hope and prayer is that Johnny will apply for another US visa (4th time) to come home with me around Christmas time. He will likely start this application process in October after he starts school. Please keep us in your prayers during this process as it is taxing on both of us and something we really want. 

The Lord is definitely at work here. I have seen children come into the malnutrition center, very very sick - 12 year olds that weighs 35 pounds, 9 month olds that weighs 10 pounds, 6 month old weighs 6 pounds. The Lord has stood by them - He has healed them. He has restored their joy. As I write this, we are waiting on two very sick little babies to arrive via ambulance transport - I don' t know what the Lord has in store for their little lives, but I know that He has big plans. 

I have also seen families reunited forever. Last week, we had 4 families united forever and they got to come and pick up their children from the creche in Kenscoff. The Lord hand selected these families for these children. He has opened doors, provided comfort in periods that felt like they went on forever and gave them the strength to welcome new family members into their home. 

I do not have the words to express how honored I feel to have been chosen to do this work. This work is not about me, it is about His Kingdom. It is about His people. It is about His work.

It is not too late to sign up to sponsor me monthly, or even with a one-time gift. After having been here a month, I see that this work will be emotionally exhausting. I would love to be able to get away 1-night a month to a hotel or something for some rest and relaxation. I cannot do this unless I have more monthly sponsors. Please consider giving. Here is the link: http://www.chances4children.org/c4c/donate/contribute/

Just remember to put my name in the "in honor of" line. 

{This little one has gained weight and regained her smile. She is about ready to go home to her family, whom have learned how, when and what to feed her to keep her healthy}

July 3rd.

July 3rd. That is the big day that I pack up all my belongings (well ideally they will all be packed up prior to July 3rd) and move to Haiti for this next season of life. As promised, I want to share more details about this new adventure. It is certainly new and slightly scary but also very exciting. This new adventure requires a lot of trust in the Lord - but I have faith that He will provide in all ways.

For those that don't know, in just 5 weeks, I will be moving to live in Thomassin, Kenscoff. I have previously lived in Kenscoff, Haiti inside the Chances 4 Children compound. I will be about a 20 minute drive from this site. While in Haiti, I will be a full time missionary, sharing my time between two different organizations. I will be volunteering part-time with Chances 4 Children (http://www.chances4children.org/)  and part time with Espwa Berlancia (http://www.espwaberlancia.org/).

My responsibilities with Chances 4 Children, will be a continuation of the work I have been doing since the end of September. I will continue to manage the communications with the adoption agencies on the children at the orphanage, all of whom are somewhere in the adoption process. I have met so many wonderful people through this work and I love seeing families united. Chances 4 Children's belief is that the answer to Haiti's orphan epidemic can be found by strengthening communities and their families. Chances 4 Children is a well-rounded organization that reaches many corners of Haiti through a variety of programs.

Espwa Berlancia is a new organization name for many of my followers and friends. Espwa (meaning hope in creole) is an inpatient malnutrition clinic for children who are severely malnourished in Haiti. Espwa Berlancia focuses on malnutrition care and family preservation. Espwa Berlancia's mission is to provide Haitian parents with the knowledge and the empowerment to take hold of their future and their children's health, and walking with them on their journey. They assure each one that they are worth and capable of caring for their children. My big responsibilities will be to oversee the staff of the clinic - setting them up with savings programs and doing home visits to get a better picture of their lives. The second part is a little more complicated as families must do follow up visits at the clinic after the child is discharged. Once the family can prove they are involved and committed to changing their child's future, they are then invited to a business program. This intensive program teaches them how to run a business and allows them to create a full business plan to change their future. If they can prove this successful, they will be granted a business loan. My fellow missionary, Keely, runs this program currently and I will be helping with this.

Part of being a full-time missionary means that I don't have a company or organization that is paying me. I am raising my full support so that I can pay rent, buy food, buy water, pay for electricity, etc. I have budgeted my monthly costs to be about $1200/month.

That money will cover:

$450 - rent

$300 - tap water (to fill the tank on top of the apartment)

$200 - food

$100 - electricity

$150 - clean drinking water (tap water is NOT clean water)

I need people to partner WITH me!! If I can find 12 families who are willing to sponsor me at $100/month, I would be fully covered. Now I realize that is not realistic for a lot of families or individuals. I've got quite a few friends who are recent graduates and not making the million dollars (yet). If you are one of those people (or just someone who cannot financially give $100/month), and you feel called to give, you can put in the amount that you would like to give each month. 

Any amount is helpful, even $5 a month, but if I could find 6 people willing to give $100/month and 12 people willing to give $50/month, I would be fully covered for my monthly expenses. I also have moving expenses, such as for flights and furniture items for my apartment. If you are unable to commit monthly but are willing to donate a one-time amount, that is helpful as well. Please prayerfully consider how you would be willing to support me during this big change in my life —either through prayer, financial support or both.

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If you are interested in donating money, here are more detailed instructions for how to do that. I have made an agreement with Chances 4 Children to filter all my donations through them so that those who are donating can have a tax break for their donations. If you are willing to donate financially to support me on the mission field, please follow these instructions:

1.      Go to: http://www.chances4children.org/c4c/donate/contribute/

2.     On the left-hand side of the page there are two places to donate. For 1-time donations you can give in the first box. Please make sure to select “In honor of:” and write “Alison”.

3.     For reoccurring monthly donations, please use the second box. Please put in the amount you would like to give monthly and write “Alison” in the second box.

4.    Once you’ve clicked “donate”, it will take you to Paypal’s page. If you have a pre-existing paypal account, then you just need to log in. This will set up reoccurring payments to be taken out each month so you don’t have to remember to send money every month J

5.     If you do not already have a paypal account, you will have to create an account, which is secure and safe. All you need is your credit card and billing information. It’s very quick and simple.

6.     At the beginning of each month when the money is received, Chances 4 Children will give me the money so that I can pay rent, food, etc. Though the money is going through Chances 4 Children, it will cover my work at both organizations. At the end of the year, Chances 4 Children will send you a statement will your donations from the year.