More and More Shelter from the Storm

Thursday, 04 March 2010 05:50

By Mark Ottenweller, M.D.

"You have been a refuge for the poor, a refuge for the needy in his distress, a shelter from the storm."
~ Isaiah 25:4

Malaria, dengue, encephalitis, and other diseases are coming. Cholera, typhoid, dysentery, and other diseases are coming. The rainy season is coming.

All these plagues will soon fall on a million young children and families living out in the open in Haiti.

Over a million people lost their homes, most of their possessions, and many of their friends. Many are now living in massive tent cities around Port-au-Prince. The biggest public health problems will now come from the tent cities.

However, on the church property at Canapé Vert, things are looking up. We now have water delivered every day, food bought in the city, and medical treatment for the families there. During our last trip to Haiti we met with staff from the Shelter Box Foundation at the United Nations compound. They are a dynamic Rotary initiative from the UK that provides a large box containing an 8-10 man tent, household supplies, school supplies, and other basic necessities for families that have been displaced. They gave us 50 tents and boxes which would house and supply over 400 people. For our families affected by the earthquake, these Rotarians and their tents were like angels and manna from heaven. When we delivered the tents and supplies to the property, everyone went wild! We were celebrating these “shelter(s) from the storm”. And that is what all of us are really doing in Haiti. We are all “shelters from the storm(s)” that they face every day.

Jorel and Junie and their team have done a fantastic job there in Canapé Vert. We have also delivered tents and supplies to sites in Carrefour, at the airport, and around the city. God has chosen us to shelter young children and families in Haiti from pain, and sorrow, and heartache, and hunger, and disease, and despair. We cannot stop the storms but we can build bigger and better shelters.

Find out what you can do
to help Haiti

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Read 4284 times Last modified on Thursday, 04 March 2010 06:04