Back in Grand Goave after a good trip to Arcahaie. Travis and I were able to figure out the main issue with the welder up there, and now know what parts we need to be able to get it up and running again. It was a great weekend. More details to come, but just wanted to give you guys a quick update about where I was in the world. :)
To Him be the Glory!
1.30.2012
28 January 2012
I think if I ever end up on a construction site in the US, I'm probably going to start speaking Creole just out of habit.
One of the best things about this trip so far is that my creole (while still not good), is continuing to improve to the point that I can normally get the point across. I'm sure I don't sound as good as I think I do, but it is exciting to be at the point where I can actually use full sentences some of the time at least. :)
Most of this week has been spent helping with the Mission of Hope school project, generally getting up around 5am to get to the work site by 6am right as the sun comes up, working all day, and getting back to the Militone property by about 6pm, right as it's getting dark. Yesterday was a treat, because I finished when the workers all left at 4pm, and got back to Kay Militone in time to go for a quick swim and wash some laundry. The last ten minutes or so of laundry was done via headlamp because it got dark, but it got finished nonetheless. Laundry lessons: 1) wash the cleaner clothes first, then the really dirty ones last, otherwise they all end up still slightly dirty in the end. 2) detergent for a high-efficiency washing machine is potent stuff, which is great because you get really dirty working in dirt and concrete all day and 3) Haitian women will always be way better at washing things by hand than I will ever be.
Today, Travis and I left Grand Goave mid-morning and 4 or 5 hours later ended up at Children's Lifeline in Arcahaie, northwest of Port-Au-Prince near the coast. The goal is here is to try to repair a large Lincoln Electric generator/welder that hasn't worked since the earthquake. They have two, one that works, and one that doesn't. We took panels off and started both of them up tonight. The engine on the broken one seems to run okay, but there's no power output to run the welder part. One troubleshooting issue that we did get taken care of tonight: there may or may not have been a chicken sitting on eggs she had laid in the bottom part of the generator compartment. Turns out the chicken actually belongs to the neighbors, so it got returned tonight. We'll see what adventures await us tomorrow!
One of the best things about this trip so far is that my creole (while still not good), is continuing to improve to the point that I can normally get the point across. I'm sure I don't sound as good as I think I do, but it is exciting to be at the point where I can actually use full sentences some of the time at least. :)
Most of this week has been spent helping with the Mission of Hope school project, generally getting up around 5am to get to the work site by 6am right as the sun comes up, working all day, and getting back to the Militone property by about 6pm, right as it's getting dark. Yesterday was a treat, because I finished when the workers all left at 4pm, and got back to Kay Militone in time to go for a quick swim and wash some laundry. The last ten minutes or so of laundry was done via headlamp because it got dark, but it got finished nonetheless. Laundry lessons: 1) wash the cleaner clothes first, then the really dirty ones last, otherwise they all end up still slightly dirty in the end. 2) detergent for a high-efficiency washing machine is potent stuff, which is great because you get really dirty working in dirt and concrete all day and 3) Haitian women will always be way better at washing things by hand than I will ever be.
Today, Travis and I left Grand Goave mid-morning and 4 or 5 hours later ended up at Children's Lifeline in Arcahaie, northwest of Port-Au-Prince near the coast. The goal is here is to try to repair a large Lincoln Electric generator/welder that hasn't worked since the earthquake. They have two, one that works, and one that doesn't. We took panels off and started both of them up tonight. The engine on the broken one seems to run okay, but there's no power output to run the welder part. One troubleshooting issue that we did get taken care of tonight: there may or may not have been a chicken sitting on eggs she had laid in the bottom part of the generator compartment. Turns out the chicken actually belongs to the neighbors, so it got returned tonight. We'll see what adventures await us tomorrow!
1.24.2012
25 January 2012
The school construction project at Mission of Hope is in full swing. John and Lisa Armour are here from Jacksonville, and Daniel Paajanen is here all the way from Alaska. They are all construction masterminds who really know what's going on, and are making sure this building is being built right. There have been more than a few conversations like "in America, we'd have four guys and heavy equipment doing this job, and here in Haiti, we have no heavy equipment, but 30 Haitian guys doing the same job". We've been averaging 35-50 guys on the site each day, and they all work so hard. Friday was a big concrete pour day, meaning there was a cement mixer (not a truck, just a mixer about 8ft in diameter), a big square vat (about 10ft x 10ft) it dumped the cement in, and about 40 five gallon buckets. Talk about a bucket brigade: you've never seen this many guys having this much fun on a construction site. They would throw the buckets (full of wet concrete) to each other pretty much as fast as they could, and would all be laughing and jumping around, especially when someone dropped one. It was quite a riot.
The last three days I've been in charge of the 'dirt crew'. There's lots of different things happening simultaneously on the job site - carpenters working on concrete forms, Boss Leon and his guys working on rebar layout and tying, the masons building interior block walls on one side of the building, and my crew moving dirt. Lots and lots of dirt. The problem is that there's not a lot of extra room really anywhere, so when they excavated a while ago to pour some of the footers, all the dirt ended up actually inside the building perimeter, meaning we now have to move it again to be able to set the forms for the floor cross-beam footers. So the last two days have been spent moving dirt from here to there by about 10 guys using pickaxes and shovels and wheelbarrows and a super great laser level thing that sends out a signal from a tripod that goes to a sensor on a long vertical yardstick so you can tell if this thing way over here is exactly where it's supposed to be. Yesterday they dug out two big trenches through a huge dirt mound so the rebar can be laid for the rest of the footer, and today they dug a third trench and moved another big chunk of the huge pile to backfill around some of the foundation that's been poured.
More to come tonight (and hopefully a few pictures tomorrow), but that's the short version for now.
To Him be the Glory!
The last three days I've been in charge of the 'dirt crew'. There's lots of different things happening simultaneously on the job site - carpenters working on concrete forms, Boss Leon and his guys working on rebar layout and tying, the masons building interior block walls on one side of the building, and my crew moving dirt. Lots and lots of dirt. The problem is that there's not a lot of extra room really anywhere, so when they excavated a while ago to pour some of the footers, all the dirt ended up actually inside the building perimeter, meaning we now have to move it again to be able to set the forms for the floor cross-beam footers. So the last two days have been spent moving dirt from here to there by about 10 guys using pickaxes and shovels and wheelbarrows and a super great laser level thing that sends out a signal from a tripod that goes to a sensor on a long vertical yardstick so you can tell if this thing way over here is exactly where it's supposed to be. Yesterday they dug out two big trenches through a huge dirt mound so the rebar can be laid for the rest of the footer, and today they dug a third trench and moved another big chunk of the huge pile to backfill around some of the foundation that's been poured.
More to come tonight (and hopefully a few pictures tomorrow), but that's the short version for now.
To Him be the Glory!
24 January 2012
been a good last couple of days. most of last week, yesterday and today have been spent working on the school project.
short version: big three story concrete building with offices downstairs, classrooms on the second floor, and a big multi-purpose room for church upstairs. the foundation has been poured already, and we poured a second round of the back wall (4-8 foot high section) last week. it's been quite an education, seeing how large-scale concrete construction happens in Haiti. time to get back to work for now, but i'll most a more detailed write-up soon.
To Him be the Glory!
short version: big three story concrete building with offices downstairs, classrooms on the second floor, and a big multi-purpose room for church upstairs. the foundation has been poured already, and we poured a second round of the back wall (4-8 foot high section) last week. it's been quite an education, seeing how large-scale concrete construction happens in Haiti. time to get back to work for now, but i'll most a more detailed write-up soon.
To Him be the Glory!
1.17.2012
off on another Haitian adventure! 17 January 2012
Hi Friends!
I know it's been a REALLY long time since I posted an update, and I apologize for that. Things have been pretty crazy this fall between finishing up school, working, looking for a 'real' job, and planning for time in Haiti . More the rest of that later.
Here's the highlights:
-graduated from A&P (Airframe and Powerplant) Mechanic School in December
-leaving today for Haiti until the end of March (2.5 months total trip)
-mainly working with Mission of Hope in Grand Goave, Haiti. http://www.mohintl.org
-also doing some projects with F1 Engineering / Travis Knipple. http://www.f1engineering.org
I'm also now 'officially' the short-term teams coordinator for Mission of Hope, helping coordinate logistics of the different groups that come to help out. Amongst other teams, there's currently three in the works that are going to be led by people connected with Campus Focus that have been on previous trips with me. Exciting stuff.
Please be praying for Haiti, for all of the different missionaries and mission teams doing so many great things in the name of Christ. One of my goals for this trip is to more finely tune what it looks like for me personally to be in the mission field longer-term, and learning from those who are already on similar adventures is a huge asset of being part of the body of Christ. Each group has a niche and a way that they uniquely contribute to the greater cause, and that's what makes the body function together as a whole. Please be praying for discernment and wisdom as I move forward over these next few months.
Also, I am still in need of a few hundred dollars more to cover the remaining living expenses for this trip, including this like health insurance and return plane tickets. Please contact my parents if you'd like to assist with this [2753 Eight Mile Road, Cincinnati, OH 45244], as they are handling finances for me stateside while I'm gone.
Thanks so much friends!
To Him be the Glory!
I know it's been a REALLY long time since I posted an update, and I apologize for that. Things have been pretty crazy this fall between finishing up school, working, looking for a 'real' job, and planning for time in Haiti . More the rest of that later.
Here's the highlights:
-graduated from A&P (Airframe and Powerplant) Mechanic School in December
-leaving today for Haiti until the end of March (2.5 months total trip)
-mainly working with Mission of Hope in Grand Goave, Haiti. http://www.mohintl.org
-also doing some projects with F1 Engineering / Travis Knipple. http://www.f1engineering.org
I'm also now 'officially' the short-term teams coordinator for Mission of Hope, helping coordinate logistics of the different groups that come to help out. Amongst other teams, there's currently three in the works that are going to be led by people connected with Campus Focus that have been on previous trips with me. Exciting stuff.
Please be praying for Haiti, for all of the different missionaries and mission teams doing so many great things in the name of Christ. One of my goals for this trip is to more finely tune what it looks like for me personally to be in the mission field longer-term, and learning from those who are already on similar adventures is a huge asset of being part of the body of Christ. Each group has a niche and a way that they uniquely contribute to the greater cause, and that's what makes the body function together as a whole. Please be praying for discernment and wisdom as I move forward over these next few months.
Also, I am still in need of a few hundred dollars more to cover the remaining living expenses for this trip, including this like health insurance and return plane tickets. Please contact my parents if you'd like to assist with this [2753 Eight Mile Road, Cincinnati, OH 45244], as they are handling finances for me stateside while I'm gone.
Thanks so much friends!
To Him be the Glory!
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