Getting ready...

... for another trip to Haiti and getting excited to go!  This trip does not have many participants but they are a dynamic and excited group and you can't beat that!  :)  This trip will be a split trip- some of the time in Carrefour and at the orphanage and some of the time in Chaveneau working with the school children and community there. We are working out the details and budget still but it sounds like we have a good trip planned!  Please remember to follow our daily trip reports.  We will do our best to get them done if/when internet is available but with the new internet service we should have a better ability to update.  It's always exciting for me to see what people write and to hear how God is impacting them on the trip.

This is "Doctor Moses" who works in a tent in the market.  He has no supplies except a blood pressure cuff and stethoscope but he opens up his tent every day to see those in the community who are in need.  He charges very little to diagnose, write prescriptions and order bloodwork for his patients.  We hope to help him a bit on our April trip.

There is still time to sign up for the April trip (April 21 to 29- primarily a medical group) which will be serving in Carrefour and Port au Prince area.  So far it looks like we have six people pretty sure they are coming which is great but the more people the better the trip!  So spread the word- let us know.  This trip is only $350.00 which includes EVERYTHING once you are in Haiti-  translators, food, transportation, lodging, supplies, etc...  People have until March 20th to commit.  Exciting stuff!  We plan to work some in a clinic, help a doctor in the marketplace, and possibly volunteer at the local hospital/medical center.  It's up to God but these all look like good possibilities for this team!

Thanks again for all your prayers and support.  If you would ever like to contribute toward our trips even if you are not going, we guarantee that we will use your donations wisely- to help people like the man above and others God leads us to.  We can always give you an accounting of how your money has helped in Haiti.  Send donations to Hearts United with Haiti  PO Box 55, Morgantown, PA 19543 or donate online on our website via PayPal (secure online donation).  ALL donations are tax deductible too!  God bless!  -Crystal

Sponsors needed

Here are some more girls in need of sponsors at Life is Wealth Orphanage in Port au Prince and a little about them.  There are still MANY who need your support.  I will be heading down to Haiti in early March and would LOVE to tell as many girls as possible that they have a sponsor.  Will you help us by spreading the word??  If you do not see one here that you would like to sponsor please remember that there are about 60 still in need of sponsorship so there are PLENTY to choose from!  Contact us at huwh.orphansponsorship@gmail.com  and we will work closely with you to partner you with a child that you can form a long term relationship with.  Thank you in advance!  :)  -Crystal

Berlandia- very quiet, does not go to school (ashamed cause she can not read or write), sweet little smile but she does have a mischievous side.  

Jennie-  was being abused by her family members so she ran away and WALKED all the way to Port au Prince from a town that is at least an hour DRIVE away!  She is new to Life is Wealth and very sweet but having trouble finding a group of girls to "connect" with- this little one has been through a LOT- you can see it in her eyes.  

Ketzia-  Another new girl- she came from an orphanage that was closed down recently (not Son of God) and is very quiet but sweet.  She LOVES to have her photo taken and is often lurking and ready to jump into the photos I take.  

Nailanda-  This one is an absolute physical beauty yet very very quiet and shy.  She is always playing with dolls and smiling when I see her.  She loves school and is often to the side looking at books in her free time.

THANK YOU

We had the Valentine's Day fund raiser.... to raise money to ship our donated truck to Haiti.  In spite of snow (so low turnout and TONS of food left over) we were able to raise almost $1200 so far.  This is almost 1/3 of what we anticipate it costing us to ship the truck and to get it from the port in Haiti and onto the road.  :)  We are so excited and encouraged by this and want to THANK everyone who prayed for us, donated food, came out to cook and/or eat, donated online, etc....  You have blessed us and will bless the people of Haiti as well.

We are still accepting donations toward shipping the truck and will send it off as soon as we have enough raised.  We pray we can get it shipped by early April to have it in Haiti for our upcoming spring trips.  If you would like to donate online visit our website (www.heartsunitedwithhaiti.org) and look on the "donate" page for more instructions.  You can also send a check/money order to Hearts United with Haiti  PO Box 55  Morgantown, PA 19543.  All donations are tax deductible!  :)

Praise God for all His blessings!  -Crystal

Christelle

OK... so here's the first of our "orphans needing sponsors" updates. We are planning to put up photos of some of the girls who are yet to be sponsored in hopes that those of you visiting this site will see them and decide to step up and partner with our organization and sponsor one (or more) of them.  And of course who better to start with than the sweetie who shares my name:  Christelle!  Christelle is 10 years old and according to her interview ended up at Son of God Orphanage in Carrefour in a typical way- her grandmother dropped her off and never came back. She thinks she has 2 sisters and a brother living with her mother but is not sure of that.  She loves the color white, rice with ground meat and chickens are her favorite animals.  Christelle goes to school and is in first grade which she LOVES- especially when getting good grades. In her free time she likes to play with dolls or her best friend Ketia Belony.  When she grows up she would love to drive a car and she would love to have more toys to play with.
    If you visit Life is Wealth you may not even notice Christelle.  She is often lurking in the periphery- watching what is happening with a huge smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye.  She isn't one to fight to be first for vitamins or attention- in fact we usually have to track her down to get her to participate in things.  She is very shy but you can just see that desire to "fit in" and be part of the activities when they are going on.  She and I (since we share a name perhaps) have bonded and when I am sitting alone or with very few orphans around me it is not long until I feel a little body pressed up against me from behind or little hands playing with my hair and I know she is near.  She longs to feel loved, needed, wanted and would LOVE to know that she has someone out there praying for her, thinking about her, loving her when they are apart.  I guarantee she will do the same for you.  Christelle is loved by all the other girls- she is a peacekeeper for sure.
    Won't you consider sponsoring this beautiful little girl?  If not her, there are 60 others still available that our coordinators can match you with.  Your monthly donation of $32 will help feed, clothe, educate, provide clean water and personal items for your sponsored child.  You can also correspond and encourage one another.  James 1:27 is the perfect verse for this aspect of our ministry.  God will use your prayers and provision in the lives of these orphans for His glory.  Your part is to be obedient to His call.  :)

"I Am Free" (part 2)

http://youtu.be/WfizilObkCU

Here's the video I tried to post a few weeks ago from Haiti but the internet was not fast enough.  So, I tried to do it now.  Not for me (I can watch it on my computer any time) but to show YOU the joy and the happiness the girls now have at this new orphanage.  These are four of our little ones (Sophia, Lorvencia, Lovely and Betina) singing "I am Free" (worship song by Newsboys) to me after school one day.  I got out the camera for a photo of them and they just broke into song.  Through the tears I shot this quick video.  I hope you can view it and rejoice with me that they are indeed FREE from some of the horrors they were exposed to prior to coming to Life is Wealth.  How I miss these little ones and all the girls at the orphanage.  Please remember to pray for them!  Thank you!!  

note:  I am pleased to say too that this scene is very common.  The girls at the orphanage LOVE to sing, dance, laugh and play now.  It warms my heart like you can not imagine.  :)

501c3

PRAISE GOD!  Went to the post office box yesterday and was THRILLED to get the letter from the Internal Revenue Service stating that Hearts United with Haiti is now officially a 501c3 organization!  What does this mean??  It means that ALL donations (retroactive to March 24, 2011) are tax deductible.  We understand that people give for many reasons to different organizations and we fully understand that being able to deduct those donations is beneficial- especially in the tough economic times in which we live.  Any way to save money on your federal taxes is a bonus!  We pray that this will help more people be willing to support our ministry financially.

Having our 501c3 will also benefit us in other ways.  Now we can finally work to obtain the papers needed to be a registered organization in Haiti, we have more "credibility" (we are "recognized" by the federal government of the USA), etc...  

Thank you for ALL your prayers as we worked through this process!  We learned a lot and are blessed that we have finally achieved this status!  Can't wait to see what else God has as we move forward!  :)

FUND RAISER

OK guys- it's time to be honest.  Yes, God has been showing us all kinds of things that He has for the future of Hearts United and how we can best serve the people of Haiti as well as those who come to serve in Haiti.  The picture of what our ministry will look like is getting more and more clear.  BUT as with anything else, we need financial support to make this all happen.  So, we have decided to hold a fund raising event.  Here are SOME of the details but they are still being worked out.  We are having a breakfast buffet near Valentine's day (HEARTS United with Haiti??  get the connection??) and our goal is to raise $10,000!

 I know!  I almost can't type it- that sounds like such a great big amount.  But, when calculating an amount we realized we need about $4000 to $5000 just to send the truck to Haiti and get it on the road there.  We also know God would like us to finish the outhouses in Chaveneau (we need to buy the building materials), drill a well at the orphanage in Port au Prince, install a clean water system in both locations, and possibly rent a "base" somewhere in Haiti that we can use for teams and keep our truck, supplies, etc... (right now we have three crates of things at the orphanage and a suitcase, three suitcases in Carrefour at the Arris house and four suitcases in Chaveneau).

The thought for our breakfast is to have a time when people can "drop in" and eat (we will have a variety of foods- traditional Haitian foods as well as American.  We will also periodically have some time to share the ministry with those who attend. (just a few min. presentation/slide show).  This event will be held on Feb. 11th (Sat) from 7 to 10 am. at Shoup's gym just outside Morgantown (2593 Main St.  Morgantown, PA 19543- google it for directions).

We know we may not meet our goal with one dinner here in Lancaster County, PA.  If you are local, will you consider attending the dinner and inviting others/spreading the word?  BUT you do not have to be local to help with this event!  If you are not local you can do one of he following:

1.  You can personally contribute to our organization- just designate it to this fund raiser- send in your donation of ANY size (together they will add up- if everyone we "invited" on facebook only gave $10 we would have $3500 ).  Send donations to:  Hearts United with Haiti  PO Box 55  Morgantown, PA 19543  or call us to see how else you can help out.  1-888-286-5537

2.  You can have a "sister event" in your home town, at your church, in your community and donate the money raised. Be creative- sell heart shaped cookies, host a dinner, babysit some children so people can go out for Valentine's Day, sell flowers (paper or real), etc....

We will add everything together for one grand total and let you know how much we raise!  We truly believe that TOGETHER we can raise enough to meet our goal (or even exceed it).... let's give this "project" to God and see what He does!  :)  :)

Blessings-  Crystal