Day 14 - Home away from Home

I've been here for two weeks now, and it's beginning to feel like home already. My cares and worries of everyday life from back in the States have dissolved into oblivion and have been replaced with the constant flow of logistical operations and new way of life on base. It's going to be weird, I believe, getting back to normal life in Charlotte.

We got a torrential downpour on Sunday night, and when we woke up Monday we had no power in our office buildings (which meant the internet was out as well). It took the electricians well into the early evening to repair all the damage. In the meantime, I drove a couple guys down to the port, and did some maintenance on some of the vehicles at the compound. I've been doing a lot of driving lately, and unfortunately most of it has been in Cité Soleil. I guess they feel pretty confident in my abilities already since they had me haul a 2 ton $40,000 generator through the slum back to the compound Monday afternoon. We also had a lot more trucks full of supplies released from customs, so we can construct more shelters. We are on schedule this week to have 250 more shelters built, and we also have food distributions set up for every day except Friday of this week! So it's been a crazy but productive week thus far.

Tuesday was interesting as the day started off with no power again. After lunch I took our Grand Goave base director to the U.N. for a meeting with Michelle Obama and Jill Biden. It was a small meeting of only a 100 or so people, and Michelle pretty much just thanked all the NGOs for their efforts and promised the U.S. would be here for the long haul. She also mentioned that she learned a Haitian proverb about how the bird builds its nest one branch at a time, and Haiti will do the same (paraphrased). After that, we went to downtown Port-au-Prince looking for Digicel (Haiti's main cell provider). I had a 4"x4" google map printout and that was it. Needless to say, we did not find it. In the entire city, I saw 2 street signs. Driving in third world countries is certainly in art and skill and requires much concentration - especially after an earthquake. I felt even though we did not find Digicel, that the trip was successful because I did not get a scratch on the vehicle or blow a tire or get lost in the confusing maze of 'roads'. It's difficult driving through Port-au-Prince and looking at all the destruction and damage and the diminished quality of life. Even through all the things we are doing down here, you still feel helpless - knowing you can't help everyone. It's going to take at least 10 years to clear out and rebuild this nation...at least.

This week, we are getting in several long term team members, which is a huge answer to prayer; thanks to all who have been lifting that up. Our new fleet manager just arrived which will free me up from some of the vehicular duties. I hope to be a part of the food distribution in Titanyen tomorrow and maybe some shelter building. Most of my work thus far has been behind the scenes, and it would be nice to get out and see some happy, smiling faces in the community as we deliver food and homes in the name of Jesus.