Real Hope for Haiti Update- Week One (and a half)

Real Hope for Haiti is located in Cazele. Everyone asks where that is so I say about an hour from PAP, the opposite direction from Jacmel,along the coast (ish). I am very directionally challenged so that is as good as it will get. It is very, very hot. To quote the Wicked Witch: "I'm melting!"

Real Hope is a very cool ORG and I love it here. I met Zach 2 weekends ago at a gas station by the airport to come here. Zach is hilarious and gets his kicks out of telling stories or things to freak out the new volunteers. Before I had even spoken with him Lori apologized for him and told me they only let him drive. We went to bring Lori some supplies to the Doctors without Boarders France, where she was staying with her husband who'd been in a Moto accident. On the way there Zach told me how he had been stopped by 3 guys earlier that week on the "Death Road" and held at gunpoint. After Doctors without Boarders we picked up Lori's Mother-in-law and I sat in the back. Then we proceeded to take that road- with instructions for me "If I bang on the window that means there's trouble and you need to lay down, but I will just drive really fast!" And so he did. Their link is posted on the right. 

There was a group here when I arrived, as well as 2 other more long term volunteers. One was actually from Alberta Canada! The other, Carly is still here. We helped the group out with some seemingly simple, but never the less important, such s counting pills and pulling gloves. I also spent quite a bit of my time with Alex. (Who has improved a lot already to say the least). He is also a main reason my blog has not yet been posted! Ha.

On Friday I went and stayed at Heartline and met up with Michelle! Who is finally in Haiti! I was so excited to see her, and so glad that her trip worked out that we could be here at the same time. I got sick Friday night and Saturday which cancelled my plans for Lamentine, but I will get down there soon! I am also going to be meeting up with her in about 2 weeks time and heading back up to Seguin with her group to run a VBS. It will be great fun!

On Monday there was a serious Moto accident on our road and 4 victims showed up just after lunch. All were injured. Two of the four had abraisions and lacerations on there faces, and gashes on there eyes. Honestly the gravel tore up some of the wounds so badly that it looked like the flesh had been through a meat grinder. The only way we could tell where to give one women stitches was becuase she still had her lower lashes. The drivers knee was tore up right down to the knee-cap, he was only 17. A very lucky 19y/o girl was 3 months pregnant and only had some scraped and bruising on one of her sides. Licia had to call in some of her night staff to come and help. They all got cleaned up, stitched up, splinted and sent home for the night to come back Tuesday and get checked on. We told them all once they could travel to go to a hospital in Port for X-rays. By the time it was all done it was after 6p.m.

Also, guess who showed up here yesterday? Any guesses? Anna! I was looking forward to the fact that we are actually in Haiti, at the same place, in the same time!  We met at GLA 4 years ago and when it was my (and her) first trip to Haiti! We managed to stay in contact via Facebook since then! How cool is that? 

Today was spent at the Cholera House. Changing IV bags, and when finished that putting down vinyl flooring with Gorilla tape into 2 of the rooms. Real hope is just temporarily using someone's vacation home until January as the Cholera house- so it has to be kept in tip-top shape. I think we are going to finish off the other rooms this week.

So Once again, sorry for my delayed blog updates- As you can tell I have been busy and have my hands full. Literally!

Lovelove