Third day of treatment in the dental clinic

The crowds keep increasing every day in the dental clinic at Lamothe. Today 24 patients received treatment. Once again many extractions. One person had 23 teeth removed! We also treated a 10 year old boy with cerebral palsy who needed six teeth removed.

The walls have started going up on the addition to the school building. Renovation of the school office is almost complete.

Two team members spent the day at the House of Children of Faith orphanage in Carrefour. The orphanage is being forced to move from its current location of 37 years. Our two team members also visited the land where the new orphanage.

Second day of treatment in the dental clinic

Today was the second day for the dental clinic. The patients were much braver today! About 20 more patients were treated today. We were experiencing issues with patients having no place to rest their heads. We creatively rigged up headrests for the three chairs out of crutches, duct tape and tee shirts. Problem solved!

Most patients today required extractions but several patients were provided with hygienic and restorative services.

Excavation work progressed quickly today for an expansion of two classrooms for the elementary school building.

In the classrooms today we celebrated Valentines Day with Valentines cards and snacks. Haiti does celebrate Valentines Day like we do in America.

We also provided dental hygiene education to the students and applied fluoride treatments to prevent tooth decay.

There are almost 60 children in the school and a very high percentage of them have never had the opportunity to attend school before. As a result some of the students are as young as 15 or 16 years old and are at an elementary level of education.

Tomorrow is Day 3 of the dental clinic. Additional work will be made on the school construction project. A couple team members will be travelling to an orphanage in Carrefour.

First day of treatment in the dental clinic

Today was the first day of treatment in the dental clinic. Roughly 15 patients received treatment. Most patients had never seen a dentist before and as a result things were pretty bad. Many of the patients required multiple extractions, including one woman who needed 6 teeth pulled.

One of the more serious cases involved a woman who had an infected wisdom tooth which affected rhe jaw muscle and joint. Her condition had become so severe that she was barely able to open her mouth to eat. After providing an anesthetic, the tooth was extracted and the woman was able to open her mouth again. Antibiotics were also prescribed to battle the infection.

We also made progress on the elementary school construction project. Supplies were purchased and renovation of the school office was started.

Today’s activity with the children in the school was arts and crafts projects.

We are amazed and truly thankful for the team that is volunteering in Lamothe this week. Each team member brings unique giftings and experiences that are perfectly suited to the multiple purposes of this mission.

Please continue to pray for our work. We need more word of mouth promotion of the dental clinic and prayer for the kids who need teeth extraction. One young boy was so frightened by his experience that he sobbed that he thought he was going to die!

Dental Clinic Comes to Haiti

Sunday, February 12, 2012

This week a team of 7 people from Chicago, IL and Nashville, TN are volunteering their time and talents in Lamothe, Haiti. The focus of the team is to have a dental clinic, construction projects for the elementary school building and outreach programs to the children in the village of Lamothe.

Today the team visited Lamothe to prepare for the week ahead and to develop relationships with the people of Lamothe.

Hope Outreach International is excited to offer much needed dental care to the people of Lamothe for the very first time. The team of dentists very quickly discovered the reality of dental health in this community when they encountered two boys roughtly age 8 or 9 who were in major need of dental care for infected teeth.

We are very pleased to have Gary, owner of a home construction business, as part of the team. Gary is heading up the construction projects for the elementary school building. By the end of the day today, Gary completed a rough schematic of the drawings for the project.

Much of our day today was also spent on interacting with the children and adults in the village. Please pray for the team, that we may express the love of Jesus in both practical and spiritual ways this week to the people of Lamothe.

Day Four!

We had a great day at Lamothe. I love the spirit of the team. Everyone was ready to work. In addition to the team members, we had the HOI clinic staff and four interpreters. If you can imagine a puzzle with many pieces, each with different shapes, that is the equivalence of the team as a whole.

The crowd was not large yet the service was unbelievable. After a day of clinic and great Haitian Creole food, some of the team members decided to get a head start down the mountain. If you’ve ever been on the JAC truck in the mountains, walking can be a real treat. Then again it can go both ways. You will know exactly what I mean once you join us here in Haiti.

It’s a wonderful feeling to have like-minded people who catch the vision. It becomes clearer and doable by the minute. Chatting with the team leader today Dr. M. Phillip today made me feel that if I continue to share the vision and shoot for it, God will make the connection with the right people. It happened with Mat! We are now working on the next level of the medical clinic, the LAB. The lab plays an essential role in the development of the clinic. Two microscopes were donated. They will arrive with Julio tomorrow. HOORAY!!!

School and most businesses were closed Monday and Tuesday due to the carnival. Traffic was not as bad. We just found out in order to run the mobile clinic in St. Marc all of the doctors who expect to have patient contact must have their credentials with them. This information was never communicated in this manner but we are working hard to have all the paperwork in place so we can move forward with our plans on Thursday.

Please continue to pray for the team!

Thanks,

Suzette Volcy

Executive Director

www.reachwithhope.org

Day Three!

Hello all,

Today was a great day! We had a lot accomplished. A team of 8 arrived from Chicago. Unfortunately one of the doctors became ill and he was unable to make it. They are all excited about being here.

It’s always fun to witness the missionaries on the JAC truck going up the mountain. What an adventure? We had an awesome welcome meal prepared by our state of the art cook Florence. Dinner was awesome! The team received a quick tour of the water reservoir and the clinic. Then we went back on our ride down the mountain to the hotel and HOI’s missionary compound.

We are looking forward to an early day tomorrow. Please continue to pray for the team.

Serving together,

Suzette Volcy

Executive Director

www.reachwithhope.org

Day Two!

I woke up this morning being thankful for all that I have. I am also thankful for those who worked so hard to contribute to our work in Haiti even when they are no longer here.  I say this because when I see the condition that people are living in, in Haiti it makes me wonder, WHAT IF? What if I didn’t have the opportunity as a Haitian born to migrate to the US would I be in this condition? Only God knows. I am grateful for a clean place to stay, access to clean water and if I were to get sick, a doctor to call and a clinic to go to.

The JAC truck went for tires and break work, but received more than we expected. What should have taken an hour to be fixed, took a whole day. If this didn’t teach me some patience, wait till you hear this.  As our Haiti staff was running around preparing to receive the team of 9 from Chicago tomorrow, our driver locked the key in the truck. It took about 2 hours before we were able to get a spare. Here goes the day.

In the midst of it all, God was still in control and all that needed to be done were accomplished. I met with Dr. Ductan and we are excited to see what God is going to do this week in Lamothe, St. Marc, and possibly Route des Frères. Please continue to pray for the team.  We want to see God’s presence manifest in Haiti.

Thank you for your support!

Suzette Volcy

Executive Director

www.reachwithhope.org

Day One!

I started my journey this morning at 4 a.m. I had a safe a flight. I arrived in Haiti safely. The trip started out great! As I was boarding the Miami plane to Haiti, I received a phone call from someone seeking information on how to get her job to partner with HOI. The conversation definitely put a smile on my face. Go God!!!

A few hours after my arrival in Haiti, I received phone calls from family members and friends of the Hope Community Church extended family in Haiti seeking, how they can be part of what God is doing through HOI. These acts of kindness encourage us and help us feel that we are not in this great work alone. Again it is a privilege to be part of this great puzzle. Together we love God, Care for others and are building a community of believers.

We initially envisioned this medical team serving 2 sites. However the need is great but we are blessed to have highly needed specialists including: Neurologist, Ophthalmologist, Pulmonary specialist etc… We are considering extending the mobile clinic to an additional community.

So far we have been successful at completing some necessary logistical tasks pertaining to the trip. The truck will get new tires and break done tomorrow.  HOI’s hospitality staff will do some shopping and prepare to receive the team on Sunday.

Partners, I really want to thank you for your continuous prayer and support. Please continue to pray for God’s favor as we seek to serve as His Hands and Feet in the lives of Haitians in Haiti.

Serving together,

Suzette Volcy

Executive Director

www.reachwithhope.org