Jeremy Schurke

On our first night in Haiti I had no idea what to expect. Honestly our living quarters were still under construction so it felt like we were a little out of place. However, Jeremy came up to us and introduced himself. He became our group coordinator for the week. Jeremy has been living full time in Haiti since September and has an amazing story I will share later.
Jeremy helped us feel very welcomed that night. He went through an orientation as it poured rain so hard I thought the pavilion was going to cave in. Some of the things he informed us of included parts of Haitian culture. He said that especially since the earthquake unfortunately Haitians have become accustomed to viewing Americans as people who will freely give them things. One english phrase almost ever Haitian knows is “Give me one dollar.” This is why Mission of Hope has adopted the policy that no one is allowed to give anything to the Haitians unless it is approved by a translator or staff member. This was at first hard for me to comprehend. I had brought tons of stickers and treats to give to the kids and my hopes were crushed about giving them away. Then Jeremy said something else that made me understand. “When you give the children something it puts them in danger.” I had never thought of it that way. In my American mind giving a child a present can only make them happy. I had never thought of the danger that a child could be put in if they had a piece of candy that maybe another Haitian adult might want and would do anything to get. He continued by explaining that some Haitians have gotten tired of having their photo taken. He continued to say that we needed to ask by saying “Photo” and showing a thumbs up or a thumb down to get a response if they would like to get their picture taken. This is something that also hadn’t occurred to me when thinking about Haiti. To these people their lives are constantly being put on display with tourists since the earth quake. They aren’t used to that. They also have so little that it is embarrassing for their lack of wealth to be put on display so openly to people who know nothing about their culture.
Every night we would have a staff member go through and do reflections on their experience in Haiti. So far up until Jeremy’s night everyone’s reflections had been pretty somber and sad. I was excited about Jeremy’s because as I got to know his personality I realized he is a very funny guy. I think his strory can only be introduced the way Jeremy himself started his story: “So I guess it all started when i drop kicked my moms uterus”. We laughed hysterically at this comment and then he fast forwarded to his high school years. He wasn’t a christian and he was living his life solely for himself. Partying, and drinking were parts of his daily routine. However, none of these things fully satisfied Jeremy. His best friend Jay told him that he needed to try the church thing out. So Jeremy looked into almost every religion but christianity is the only one that being saved comes through faith and not by works. So Jeremy asked God to come into his heart and be the leader of his life. After this Jeremy started college at University of Central Florida. One year Jeremy decided that he should throw himself a birthday party. So he threw the party and it was a huge hit. Someone suggested that he do another one. Jeremy didn’t need to be asked twice to throw another party so they started planning it. This time they thought that they would try to raise some money for a good organization. Jay knew of a pastor in Haiti, Charles, that could use some money to help build an orphanage. So they decided they would ask for donations at the part and they hoped to maybe break 4 figures. When the party was over they had raised $20,000! Through out the rest of the year they kept raising money but after they donated it they kind of forgot about the cause. In September they realized that the orphanage was about to open so they decided they needed to be there to get it running. Jeremy said this was one of the hardest parts of his life. The conditions they lived in were pretty bad since this place just opened. Also Jeremy wasn’t used to living with out the everyday amenities we take advantage of in America. Jeremy talked about something really cool though. How he had to rely on God. In America we seem to add God to our lives. In reality God should be our lives, not just a part that we fit in when we can. Jeremy explained how without God he wouldn’t have been able to make it. Over Christmas break Jeremy came home for a few weeks but then he went back. When the earthquake hit on the 12th he was just out walking in the village with a few of the boys from the orphanage. At first he thought it was just a big truck about to come down the road but then he realized that it wasn’t when the ground began violently shaking from side to side. He looked up and saw one of the boys standing by a wall that was collapsing around him on both sides. Jeremy yelled out and the boy moved just in time for the wall to miss him as it fell behind him. After the earthquake was over they all went back to the compound and tried to sleep that night. Jeremy explained that it was near impossible to sleep however because of all the after shocks that happened all through the night. They had to leave the building every time for fear that it would collapse on top of them. When morning came so did the survivors of the earth quake. busses and busses of people with severed limbs and blood gushing came into the compound seeking help. Jeremy said that it was one of the worst days of his life. He prayed that God would get him out of there. By some miracle God did get them out of there through the US embassy. Jeremy talked about the extreme sense of patriotism he felt as he was taken by the US military back into the US. When they got to the US they got meals new clothes and a place to stay, but Jeremy knew they had to go back. After several meetings they came back with supplies and money to help with relief. The people in the compound had been running it very well so Jeremy and his friends decided this was a good time to step back and let them take charge. Thats when they started working at Mission of Hope. To a by stander it might not seem like anything good could have come from the earthquake. Jeremy directly saw the good though. He explained that Charles had set up ministry in an area that practiced 80% Haitian voodoo. He did this on purpose so that he could minister to them. However, Charles had had very little success for the 12 years that he had been there. Only 2 people had come to know christ. Immediately after the earthquake Jeremy heard people praising God and singing while buried in the rubble. To the people of that village God had literally just shaken the world so that they would realize the truth that is Jesus Christ.

Scott Smith

One day two years ago my mom, Shelley Smith, as president of my volleyball booster club received a call saying that our volleyball bills weren’t being paid. She was very confused but immediately consulted our treasurer. She said she had paid them. This was a lie however. My mom later discovered that our treasurer, one of her friends, had been embezzling money out of our account for the past two years, almost $17,000. My mom had to deal with this but she needed help. She looked to our brand new vice president Mrs. Cindy Hawks. Through months of meetings, discussions, secrecy, and then publicity this horrible situation was resolved. Through this very stressful awful situation a friendship was also created that otherwise would have never began. My mom and Mrs. Hawks stayed friends outside of volleyball and grew even closer.
5 months ago my mom received a call from Mrs. Hawks, “This might be a long shot but would your husband be interested in going to Haiti?” This was more than a coincidence. My dad had been searching for the past few days for a way to get down to Haiti since the earth quake. He had been to several web sites, called tons of people including the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and everyone said there was no way to get in.
My dad is the ideal guy they needed in Haiti. He loves camping, which means he can live in rough situations with not a lot of food. He is an orthopedic surgeon, which is exactly the type of doctor they needed for all of the fractures caused by the earthquake. He is also in his own practice so he is in charge of his work schedule and he could recruit other doctors to go too.
That night after my mom talked to Mrs. Hawks my dad was at a meeting planning to go to Haiti with a group from Hill Country Bible Church which is the church Mr. Hawks is a pastor for. They had no idea how they were going to get there but they all knew they wanted to go.
The next day Mr. Hawks called my dad with great news. A man from his church had two planes that they could use to get down to Haiti. The man had woken up in the middle of the night and called the Haitian air port to try and find a time that he could land. Another “coincidence” happened. A cargo plane had canceled moments before and there was an hour and a half of open landing time (45 minutes per plane) that they could use.
A few days later my dad was in Haiti with 12 other doctors as well as nurses paramedics etc. When his group arrived the airport was a wreck. They had their 45 minute space to completely unload their plane and get off the tarmac. Getting to the Mission was also hectic because of the huge amount of people now homeless living on the streets.
Once they arrived at the mission they met Dr. Cheryl. She is the medical director at Mission of Hope. The group decided that an operating room was a priority. They converted to clinic’s lab into an operating room because it had tile floors and air conditioning. The most primitive operating room that my dad had ever operated in however one of the best in Haiti at the time. It was so good that the US Navy was sending people in to Mission of Hope to be treated.
My dad and his team treated around 70 patients while there. The story that sticks out to me the most from his this trip is this one:

One day two haitian woman came in needing amputation revisions. After the earth quake traumatic, unsanitary amputations were done all over Port au prince to get people out of the rubble that the city had become. These two woman were both in critical condition so my dad and his partners made a decision to do the surgeries together. Because of the limited resources available these woman had to be totally awake while their surgeries were done with a spinal tap to block the pain. These woman had to listen while their legs were further sawed off after a horrible traumatic experience they already had just had to endure. If I was to have to go through this I wouldn’t know what to do. I would be very upset and feel very alone. However these woman proved to be some of the bravest and most faithful woman my dad had ever come across. As the saws were going they started to sing. In translation they were saying, “Thank you Jesus. I love you Jesus.” The faith they showed in the absolute worst moment of their life was amazing. Faith that is unimaginable to an American.

When my dad came back to the US he had a few things to say. From the Haitians he learned so much. The important things in life aren’t material items. They are your faith and your family. These life lessons are ones I never fully grasped until I got to experienced Haiti for myself, but it was amazing to see how Americans can be helped be Haiti just as much as we can provide help.

Brad and Vanessa Johnson

Mission of Hope seems like a good enough name for a Mission. When I heard it I didn’t think much of it. “Hope” was just a random word like “love” or “faith” to me; just like this was going to be a random trip for me. My perception changed almost immediately however when I made it to Mission of Hope on the night of June 13th.
Brad and Vanessa Johnson created Mission of Hope. In 1998 they moved full time to a piece of land Brad’s parents had bought in Haiti just north of Port au Prince. The government offered to build them a building as long as they used it as a school and that is how it all started. Following this Brad and Vanessa developed their vision: to reach every man woman and child in Haiti with the word of Jesus Christ. This vision seems impossible, but hearing Brad speak with his passion made me believe it is possible. God obviously believes it too because since 1998 he has blessed the mission and expanded it into so much more.
There is now a much larger school which enrolls 1,300 students a year sending them from kindergarden through high school. the school is one of the highest recognized in all of Haiti. In Haiti on average children have only a 60% of starting school and only 15% graduate high school. In the School of Hope they graduate 90% of their students. The School of Hope is not only helping it’s students however. They are developing a christian based, culturally appropriate curriculum that they hope to enact all over Haiti. In the next school year Mission of Hope is going to double enrollment. There will be a session of the regular students in the morning hours, and another session in the afternoon hours for students whose age does not correlate normally with there intellectual level. Each of these sessions will also be served a meal so that at least one meal a day can be secured for these children. School of Hope is also completely funded through a sponsorship program. For $35 a month you can sponsor a child through school as well as feed them their meal every day.
Mission of hope has been expanded much farther than the school however. Mission of hope also has a church, an orphanage (the hope house), a prosthetics lab, a clinic, a hospital still being built, visitors quarters, a meal distribution center which distributes about 50,000 meals a day, and more to come as expansion continues. The Haitian government has seen what amazing things Mission of Hope has done that they have granted them with beach front property that Mission of Hope is planning to expand upon. They are planning to increase the size of their orphanage to hold around 120 orphans. The boys will live on the new property and the girls on the old one. They will also build a hotel for mission families to stay at. This hotel is hoped to help with funding for the new expansion. Keeping their mission statement in mind this new land is going to be used to help the whole nation of Haiti as well. They will develop land with different crops to see what could be grown in Haiti to increase agriculture and ultimately decrease poverty and hunger. As this expansion continues it is easy to see how Haiti will continue to be changed and Brad and Vanessa’s vision and “Hope” can begin to become a reality.