"Baby Belly" is here!

("Baby Belly" is the name Kelsey has affectionately been using for the baby throughout the pregnancy!)

His name is Wilckly Josiah. He arrived at 9:49pm Dec. 20, weighing 7'7" and 20 in. long. Dee tried to coax him into joining the world a little earlier in the week, but Josiah had his own agenda!

Dee and the baby and the proud Daddy and the girls are all doing well ... admiring their new addition.

Please accept our sincere thanks for the host of prayers and well wishes for the health of Dee and the baby! It's great to be on this side of this long wait!

BTW, Lonia is doing beautifully, walking everywhere! I think she may even be getting used to the cold weather ... if anyone ever does!!

We'll post more pics and update with more details soon.

Lonia is home...

SORRY, BUT I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS PICTURE! THIS GIRL HAS SO MUCH SPIRIT AND SPUNK. IT AMAZES EVERYONE......THANKS FOR PRAYING AND PRAYING AND PRAYING!



Dear Friends,
Thank you for praying for Lonia continually. This little ball of fire is an encouragement to us all with her flashing eyes and dashing smile. Her surgery to reverse the colostomy was successful on Thursday and she was able to come home on Sunday.

She was in the same room with a little girl named Brenn who had the same problem as Lonia.
The difference with Brenn is that at two days old she was given her colostomy. Lonia didn't get her life saving colostomy until she was eleven months old. Brenn had her next surgery the same time we brought Lonia in July for her first one. They had this last one at the same time. It was great to meet her family. Brenn has an identical twin sister named Brooke. They are eight months old now and Lonia is fourteen months. It was neat to get to know their family and to swap experiences. Both girls are doing well.

I had never prayed for someone to get their system going in quite this fashion before. It was crazy waiting for both of them to pass something through their new "pipelines and openings"! Sure enough they did. Never thought anyone could get so excited over changing a dirty diaper but we were definitely excited. It is a new experience for both of them and amazing to not be changing those nasty, very potent, colostomy bags anymore. Now they both have very sore bottoms but it doesn't seem to phase them much. Lonia is trying to walk. She is everywhere. She hangs on to whatever she can get a hold of. Please continue to pray for healing of her little body and no infection. I hope many of you will get to see her before we return to Haiti. We will be heading back to Iowa on Nov. 1, Lord willing.

Sorry I couldn't inform you of all of this sooner. We brought Lonia home Sunday night but for the past couple weeks we have all been in limbo as the Gates are purchasing a new home and selling their old home, the one we all live in with them. It has been up and down. First it's going through and then it isn't with the situation everyone has been facing. We got the final on Monday. Mrs. Gates has been boxing things up for a couple weeks but we really poured it on Monday. Tuesday the movers came to load everything in the moving truck. I spent the day at the other house with the little ones, out of everyone's way. We slept here for the last night. This morning they will come get the rest of the stuff and we will be in the other house. It is exciting but I know it has been very stressful to them. They keep apologizing for moving while we are here. I told them they couldn't have chosen better people to move with. My kids and I are used to taking what comes our way and we are used to living out of suitcases. We are just thankful to have a place to stay with such wonderful people and that they didn't leave us behind. Please pray God will continue to bless them for all of their efforts with Lonia and with us. It is quite an undertaking to house a pregnant woman and three small children for an unknown period of time!!!

News from Haiti is that they are opening school and the children are coming. It usually takes them up to a month to come out in full swing. We will keep you updated. Chris is busy helping us put order into chaos and doing a fine job. She would love and email of encouragement from any of you.

She and Wilckly said they have really struggled with the transportation problem. Money has been sent to help get the big truck fixed and we praise the Lord for that. It has been great to receive food from Feed My Starving Children but the cost we've paid to rent a vehicle to go get 25 boxes has been astronomical. They can get around at Carries with the motorcycle and walking. However the opportunity has come up to purchase a pick up. The man asked $5,000.00 as his final price but wanted it all up front. Wilckly said forget it because that's impossible right now. The man came back and Wilckly offered to give him $1,000.00 each month and he said no. He came back and said he would take $2,000.00 up front and we can give him $1,000.00 a month for the next three months. Wilckly told him he would consider it. PLEASE I am asking each of you to consider how you might be able to help with this project at this time. Any of you who have been to Haiti definitely understand the URGENCY of having a vehicle!!! If there is any way you could help with this at all please send funds to Fred as soon as possible. It will definitely be a blessing to us and to the ministry and a wise use of funds. Thanks in advance. Please continue to pray for all of those picking up the pieces after the terrible flooding in Haiti. People continue to come from the mountain churches for help/ Thanks to many of you who sent funds so that we could help them as they come with food, clothes and even helping some of them cover their houses. Pray for Salonique and family as they continue to muddle through and clean up the mess. Pray that the Lord would keep their spirits high as they continue to fight the evil one.
May God bless you.
Dee

Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established

Proverbs 16:3

ReplyReply All

Move...Inbox

Rejoice with Us!!!

Rejoice with us as there is no more colostomy. Dr. Gates is below with Lonia after the surgery. It was successful and we are thankful. This should be the last surgery needed. Pray for that and pray for quick healing and recovery. Pray for God to continue to bless Dr. Gates and his family and the faculty and staff at Sutter Memorial Hospital for the life they have given to this little girl. Praise to the Lord for orchestrating such a beautiful thing and allowing us to be part of it. Pictures are in backwards order but you can see she has gained weight. She has a killer smile that can dazzle anyone. Thanks for your prayers and enjoy the pictures. More later as Kelsey and I are heading to the hospital to spend the day with Lonia.
Dee




She was pretty mad about the NG tube but she got over it pretty quickly. Is that cute or what?


She loves her Elmo. He is her safety blanket.


Have a great day in the Lord. May you bring encouragement and joy to those around you and may it overflow in your life as well that those around you would see Christ in you.
Dee

Surprise! Surprise!

Lonia Ermilus, who would have thought. Definitely not her parents or her friends and neighbors, nor Mdme Kiki would have thought we would have been experiencing everything we have since March 2008. It has been a long, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, sometimes whirlwind ride. I think you all will agree this is not the same sick little girl we brought from Haiti. Airplane rides, carseats, computers, toys and three big sisters, she doesn't miss a thing.
She loves riding in her new carseat beside big sister Anna Lynn Gates.


She is always sporting a fancy new hair style. Her skin is clearing up nicely. Mdme Kiki is a little partial to her.















Big sisters are plentiful and lots of fun! Ashley and Kelsey Dorce and Anna Lynn Gates know how to fit the bill perfectly. If you are thinking there is a dull moment at the Gates house with all these beauty queens you are very wrong. They all love Lonia to death.




























I just wanted you all to see how well she is doing. She is so advanced that we have started her in computer class with Elmo. Miss Beverly is her teacher! And she is doing quite well! Ha Ha Beverly is Dr. Gates wife. She is part of the "Keep Your Sanity " club that the adults have in this house. We do tag team with Lonia between our own girls and homework. Lonia is trying to stand and walk and everything else.

She is healing so well that Dr. Gates has decided to reverse her colostomy tomorrow. I am getting ready to take her to the hospital for prep now. I just wanted all of our prayer warriors to be alert and praying for continued healing. She will be in the hospital until next Monday or Tuesday. Thanks for all your prayers and support!

Dee

Crash makes Mdme Kiki cry...with joy and a homesick heart!

(Left:Christine Stevens & Melissa) (Below:our granddaughter, Alexandra)


Well with all the things going on with Lonia we haven't had the time to properly introduce you to the new help we have these days. Her name is Christine Stevens. She moved to Haiti in August, hook, line and sinker. She has committed to serving at least two years with us. Of course selfishly we are already praying that God has plans for her to stay longer. This is Chris in the red shirt with the blond/brown hair and yes, you guessed it, she's the bleached out one, with Melissa sitting on her lap. Melissa is our grandchild who lives with us she is five. We ask you to pray fervently for Crash, forgive me if I call her that. It is her nick name and it is all I could do to introduce her as Christine Stevens. Now you know from here on out when I am talking about Crash, it's her. Pray for her to have the strength to face each day in Haiti and let God do the rest.

Actually my friend Chris called me and said go check your e-mail and get a tissue but it's a good thing. This is the first time Crash has been able to send pics since she got to Haiti because it is Haiti and as we all know, "everything takes longer than it takes!". I have thought of and talked to Wilckly and Bioude and everyone else on the phone but haven't seen pictures. Obviously I was a lot more homesick than I thought!!!!! Imagine that? Did it help that Ashley screamed and kissed the screen when she saw our little granddaughter Alexandra? She just turned one in September. We can't believe how much she's grown and changed. Ashley couldn't believe how long her hair is now. Then Ashley said, "I can't wait until March so we can go home to Haiti." Kelsey on the other hand, shouted to everyone, "MY DADDY, IT'S MY DADDY". Very humorous since a day hasn't gone by when she hasn't asked to see her daddy or when are we getting on the plane to go see her daddy or when is her daddy coming to see her. At any rate it has been a great Saturday to see pictures of home. To see our family and dear Bioude who always helps balance the boat while others are busy trying to rock it. Thanks Crash! We needed that.

We have finally finished fencing the yard so animals can't come through. We couldn't plant anything because peoples animals walk around freely at Cariess and will devour whatever you have if it isn't fenced in. We have eight goats of our own now. This might not look like the ideal Iowa cornfield but we can find the corn and that is what counts. We have about two hundred banana plants planted. Why so many, you ask? We have a lot of mouths to feed and it looks like no one will be able to buy rice because it will be so expensive because of all the The crops are growing in the yard that we have finally fenced completely, so every one's hurricanes destroying the rice crop in Haiti. Praise God our crops are still standing and growing. We will keep adding goats to our herd. We will have our own meat. Praise God for the property we have and that it is finally fenced in. We spend money every month on continued construction. In Haiti you don't truly own something until you have it fenced in with block or rock walls, have buildings on it and people living on it and still many times it is questionable whether you own it. That's just Haiti. Pray for us as we try to become more self sufficient especially with our food. We are anxious to do a fish pond project which would provide more meat and protein for ourselves and eventually enough for the daily feeding program we plan to have in our school. PLEASE PRAY FOR THIS TO BECOME A REALITY. IT IS MORE IMPORTANT NOW THAN EVER. Haiti has taken a hit from these four hurricanes that could be irreversible. It is going to be very, very important that we are able to produce as much of our own food as possible. Please pray that all of these projects will come together.

Somebody once asked me, "Dee, why don't you and Wilckly just choose one thing to do in Haiti and stick to it instead of going in so many directions?" I said, "You try living in the middle of the people for one week and just choose one ministry to focus on. If they haven't run you out of town by then, we will certainly take your advice!" The question was asked because of the lack of understanding of the Haitian culture we live in. It is a third world or fourth world company depending on where you get your information. Basically means no matter who you are, when you are in the middle of it the only way to survive is to meet as many needs as you can no matter how different and varied they are. It doesn't even matter that it is your area of expertise, it just matters that you attempted to meet the need.

Can you imagine living in the middle of hungry people and trying to tell them you don't help with food, you only do education or medicine. Trust me they will not just give you an understanding look and go away. They will either force you to move your program elsewhere or add a new program like helping to provide food for them. We are so fortunate to receive 25 boxes of rice from Feed My Starving Children and Love A Child. This might not go far but it certainly helps the people, especially the children, know we are trying to meet their need for food. Above and to the right is a picture of Wilckly in the middle of a bunch of school and neighborhood children. He is distributing the rice bag by bag because there was such a great need at this moment. It was impossible to give it to just the school children we usually give it to. We thank the Lord for blessing us with this wonderful, "manna from heaven", if you will. To so many of them it has been just that. Above and to the left is a picture of many of the parents. They need food for their children. They need an education for their children. They need people willing to invest in the future of their children. They need the Lord in their lives.

Please remember all though the flood waters have past, the water has gone down....the real disaster has just begun. If you aren't able to give a monthly gift to help us work in Haiti but continually pray for us and our ministry, we really appreciate that. If you've been thinking you can't really make a monthly commitment but you would like to give a one time gift that would really make an impact, whether it is $5, $50, $500 or even $50,000, the time to make a difference is now! There are so many needs to be met. There are people to
feed, clothe, house, employ, educate, train and basically live out Christ's example before them. There is so much truth in the lyrics of the song that says, you may be the only Jesus some people ever see. If you would like to send your help at this time, make your check payable to :

NORTHEAST EVANGELISM memo: Dorce'
send to: Fred Green
900 South Clark St.
Moberly, MO 65270

Your gift is tax deductible. We thank you in advance. No gift is too small or too large when given to the Lord. He will make all gifts sufficient.


Please continue to lift in prayer all of the people of Haiti as they try to get their bearings, pick up the pieces if they can find them and keep their heads up and keep going. One thing I know is that they are a resilient people. In most cases, like Lonia, absolutely amazing. You can't begin to imagine the hardships those people live through on a daily basis. Pray that many will come to know the Lord personally through all of this devastation. Pray for us and our mission that we will continue to live out Christ before them in a way that would make them hunger and thirst to know the Savior. It is not an easy task but it is the one that is set before us and we know we will reap the harvest if we do not grow weary. It's a promise. The exciting thing is, in spite of the hardships of ministry the Lord is impacting the lives of the Haitian people. People are coming to know Him. This is a baptism by immersion in the ocean near Cariess with fellow believers looking on and encouraging them. Please rejoice with them and pray for these new babes in Christ. Pray for them to remain faithful to Him.

Please pray for wisdom for Wilckly as he and I dream and plan the future of the mission work at Cariess. Pray that we would continue to dream big and dream what God wants to happen there and not what Wilckly and Dee want. Pray that we will continue to grow stronger as a couple whether near or far away as we are right now. Pray for strength for each of us to endure all that we face in this time apart. Pray we, our children and the mission will all be stronger for it. We, as always, thank you as you partner with us in whatever way to help us continue the work in Haiti. Please pray about visiting us in Haiti to actually see the work. May the Lord bless you and yours for a wonderful time of serving Him with everything you have.

In Chist,
Dee

Hello to all,

I have been so busy with traveling, Lonia's surgery and recovery, Ashley's school, Kelsey's being a three year old who needs her mom, flooding in Haiti, Wilckly in Haiti and not with us and a new recruit, Christine Stevens who is on the field without me. Did I mention being pregnant, staying with the Gates family and praying we don't wear out our welcome, school starting in Haiti and I am not there, just to mention a few.

BUT...GOD IS GOOD ALL THE TIME! Praise the Lord He remains faithful even when we are not. He keeps His promises even when we don't. He loves us even when we are not lovable. He is in control even when we can't make sense of things and don't know how to handle it. If we let Him He will take care of things in His own time but if we try to do it our way it will always be a mess.

We are here in California with Lonia for instance. We are convinced that is where God wants us for whatever reason. We are doing our best to enjoy it here and accept the gracious hospitality of the Gates family. They are truly wonderful and a hug right from the Lord. They do everything possible to make our stay enjoyable. We thank God for putting us with them. We thank God for all of the surgeries Dr. Gates has performed and the great Sutter Medical Center for providing all of Lonia's care.

Lonia is doing well. She had her surgery on Aug. 29 on a Friday and came home the following Tuesday which was phenominal. She came home with a sore bottom and a catheter not to mention the wonderful colostomy bag she already had. We had to do two diapers running the catheter through a hole cut in the first diaper so it could drain into the second. It was quite an ordeal just to change a wet diaper and a stinky colostomy bag. She has been healing fairly well for her malnourished condition. She eats like the food is going out of style. We had a busy Wednesday as we got her catheter taken out and we are all much happier for it. She did have a urinary tract infection with some fever off and on and she is cutting more teeth. We can't complain though because she is a very good baby especially for all she has been through. We will stay until the end of October to see how she is healing. We have maneuvers to do with her new parts so that will be another learning adventure. Hopefully we will be able to return to Iowa around the first of November. The colostomy will be reversed at yet a later date. Nobody had any idea what we were getting into when we started this process and it is still a day by day learning. Thank you for all of your prayers and support through all of this.

Many of you know there was no way for me to be out raising support this summer. This has put a real crunch on things. Some things have been put aside and others have been stopped completely. Our truck has been broken down since I left in June and needs some costly repairs. Money from camps and VBS usually give us something to work from for emergencies without making pleas for extra help. Now we have the second emergency with the four storms and all the flooding that has hit Haiti. It is great to say that Wilckly, all of our people and compound are safe at Cariess. It is another to say we are not affected in any way by the situation. There is no way anyone can be working in Haiti or living there and not be affected. People are starting to stream down from the mountains around Cariess where we have 15 churches we are helping. They are coming one by one to tell of the devastating effects of all the flash flooding. They didn't have much to begin with and now even that is gone. They need food, water, shelter, materials to rebuild, something to start over and encouragement. The needs are great and overwhelming. I pray for Wilckly and our staff as they use whatever resources they have to meet the needs of as many as possible. Yesterday we received 25 boxes of rice from Feed My Starving Children which we usually share with our school children. Yesterday, however there were so many in need that we shared it all with the community.

There are five bridges out between PAP and Gonaives alone. There is ONLY ONE ROAD between here and most places. This means even Marcs weekly, sometimes daily trips to PAP will be much more treacherous and tiring. Pray for him and for his safety. We already had food riots before I left in June. Now food prices will sky rocket once again. It is more important now than ever for us to find a source of food to be able to share with the people. Please pray for this. Clothes we have in our depot will be given to those who have come from the mountains. Bioude will be busy cooking and planning for extra people everyday not knowing how many people will show up for a hot meal. The girls will be washing all the extra sheets by hand to be ready for many who will come to share their story and spend the night or the week depending what they have to return home to. Some may call it total chaos, we just call it .....Another Day in Haiti!!! How could I miss something so chaotic and unpredictable so much??? It's just home.

The government has postponed the opening of school from the first week of September to October the 6th. Many will still not be opening at that time. Thank you to all of those already sponsoring kids in our school and that continue to do so. We haven't been able to take care of uniforms yet. When I spoke to Wilckly today they had purchased part of the books needed and they were stamping all of them. More are needed.

There are so many needs. We appreciate each and everyone of you who continues to pray for our ministry and all of you who continue to support us financially. Please prayerfully consider how you could do something this month to help relieve the pressure in Haiti. We would appreciate it whether it is above and beyond what you usually give or just a one time gift because you feel now is when your gift could be used best.

Thank you again. You are a blessing to us, our ministry and the people of Haiti. Keep praying that one more will come to know Christ because of the ministry you help us maintain there.

In Christ,
Wilckly and Dee Dorce'
Please join us in prayer




Commit your works to the Lord and your plans will be established
Proverbs 16:3

How you can help.

Hi,
Many are concerned, have seen the weather, have got bits and pieces and want to know how things really are in Haiti. I am not there, I am here in California but from experience and talking to Wilckly I know this article I have copied to my blog is pretty straight forward and truthful about what is happening.

Yesterday I heard the road was flooded at Cabaret which is our only way to get to PAP where we have to change money and buy food. I tried not to panic thinking they couldn't get through. Then I heard the bridge was out at Montrouis which is the only road in the other direction and possible way to get to another bank at St. Marc for money to buy food. I tried to keep telling myself that everything was okay but it sure was good to finally hear Wilckly's voice this morning as I got through to him.

He said they are safe at Cariess. He said the water went down and our head mason was able to pass at Cabaret to get to Cariess. This is a blessing but still a lot of devastation to the people of that area. We have dear friends there and we haven't heard from them yet.

Wilckly said the people are starting to come to him to ask for food, clothing and help, money and materials to help rebuild their homes and churches. The church where Lonia is from is in shambles as it is made of sticks and wood that could not withstand the pounding rains. This is only one in the story of many that will come before Wilckly in the days to come. People will come from the other churches we help, families will come. All of them are counting on us, Dee and Wilckly as you know us but Pasteur Kiki and Mdme Kiki as the Haitians know us. They are not counting on the UN, the Haitian gov't, or any other organization because it is Pasteur Kiki and Mdme Kiki they know and count on to help them in their time of need. We in turn are counting on you. We know without you giving to help with this situation it will be very difficult to carry this burden. We know that with the Lord's help, through you, we will manage to continue helping them. Wilckly, Christine Stevens, Marc, Bioude they are all there to help those people. I am busy about what God has me doing here with Lonia but my heart is there. I know people will show up daily and unannounced and they will be given food, clothing and a place to sleep and money or food or clothing to take back home.

If you feel you can help us carry this burden as Haiti has been hit hard with four storms in four weeks, please do. God only knows we can use your help.

The best way to help right now is to send money donations to Fred Green.

Fred Green
900 South Clark St.
Moberly, Missouri 65270

Make checks payable to : Northeast Evangelism Memo: Dorce/Disaster aid

Fred will send this all immediately to Wilckly in Haiti where he can buy food, building materials, possibly even send masons to help with some of the rebuilding. The church at Cupois is also used for school. There were 30 students last year. They are anxious to start school this year and they have already come to Wilckly with the news of the devastation. This is again, where Lonia is from.

We appreciate all the prayers, calls, e-mails and contributions to help with the situation in advance. May God continue to bless you richly that you might bless those around you and around the world that one more lost soul would come to Christ.

Dee

Haiti's Plight

ReplyReply All

Move...just one more story from Haiti

To:

mdmekiki@yahoo.com

AP Story posted on Yahoo:


US Navy reaches Haiti as floodwaters recede

By JONATHAN M. KATZ, Associated Press WriterMon Sep 8, 6:29 PM ET

The sun came out in Haiti on Monday as waters from Hurricane Ike receded and a U.S. Navy hospital ship equipped with helicopters and amphibious boats was arriving in the capital to deliver food and water to cities still marooned by flooding.

But Haiti - and the world - still lacks a complete picture of the destruction, and desperation was setting in among people who have spent days in the floodwaters and mud.

Most roads remain impassible, with bridges torn away by overflowing rivers and gaping holes preventing aid from moving by land. Hard-hit Gonaives, north of the capital, remained cut off by land. A Red Cross truck trying to reach Les Cayes on Haiti's southern coast had to turn back, one of many international aid efforts still struggling to leave the capital.

The death toll - which government officials said stood at 312 people in four tropical storms in less than a month - is sure to rise as more bodies surface in the mud.

Two more bodies were found Monday in coastal Cabaret, where 60 people died as mudslides and floods unleashed by a swollen river crushed homes in the middle of the night. Sixteen other people - mostly children reported missing by their parents - were being searched for in the wreckage, Cabaret civil defense director Henri Louis Praviel said.

And there was still no word Monday on Ike's death toll in other cities, let alone more remote areas.

In Gonaives, Police Commissioner Ernst Dorfeuille said his poorly equipped force - 15 officers for the city of 160,000 - has buried dozens of badly decomposed and unidentifiable corpses in graves outside the city.

"After three days, those bodies could not stay," said Dorfeuille, adding he witnessed the burial of five people.

It wasn't clear how these bodies fit with previous tallies of the dead, but Dorfeuille denied reports citing him as giving a death toll of nearly 500 in Gonaives.

Lines of storm refugees trudged down from denuded hills Monday to the wreckage of their homes and stores.

"They told me it was destroyed but I wanted to see for myself," said Evos Chyot, who slogged through water up to her thighs to find her corner shop filled with black mud and debris.

Broken pews were scattered across the mud-smeared floor of the Gonaives cathedral, where about 50 people now live in the choir balcony. They gathered around a small cooking pot, stirring some goat meat and cornmeal to share.

Meanwhile, inmates at the city's jail clamored for deliverance from the overpowering stench of filth and sewage, and supplies for jail staff and U.N. peacekeepers as well as the 224 inmates were perilously low, said Dr. Manvoor Ahmad, a Pakistani member of the U.N. mission.

All across the Western Hemisphere's poorest nation, desperation was evident.

"People are starting to move back because they have nowhere to go," U.N. development official Eric Mouillefarine said Monday. "They want to protect their homes from looters."

The USS Kearsarge was arriving in Port-au-Prince Monday after it was rerouted from a humanitarian mission to Colombia. With eight helicopters and three landing ships, it can deliver cargo and equipment all over Haiti, providing much of the logistical support needed by aid groups that haven't been able to get through on land.

Some of the helicopters flew ahead to find dry places large and secure enough to offload, and the amphibious boats can reach places where even helicopters can't land. The Kearsarge also has four operating rooms and 53 hospital beds, which may come in handy once the ship reaches the hard-hit cities of Saint Marc and Gonaives.

"We can deliver several thousand tons a day. It's not what we can do, it's how it can be done," said the mission's commander, Capt. Fernandez "Frank" Ponds. "We can't just land them anywhere, so we're doing assessments. We have to make sure they can land safely."

One of the helicopters delivered rice, beans and cooking oil from the World Food Program to the town of Jeremie on Haiti's southwest peninsula. A woman who cares for 110 children at the Haiti Gospel orphanage was among about 50 people asking for a share.

"My garden was destroyed," said Yvros Pierre, who had just two bags of spoiled bread mix left. "My food is finished. My boss told me to see if there were any Americans coming and ask them for help."

Aid groups are appealing for donations to sustain a lengthy response, warning of a secondary disaster caused by waterborne illnesses and other problems in the weeks ahead. Even areas not destroyed by the storms need food, and Haiti's main farming area in the Artibonite Valley was threatened again when authorities had to open an overflowing dam on Sunday.

Some Gonaives residents gave up on the city altogether, walking barefoot across mountains to reach Haiti's northern coast, which suffered less damage. Racine Presume in Cap-Haitien said he got a desperate call from a group of a dozen relatives gave up along the way - and he was trying to find fuel for his truck to reach them.

"They are waiting for me. I said, 'Can I bring you a bed?' They said, 'Don't bring a bed because we don't have a house. Bring food, bring clothes, bring shoes, bring lots of water,'" Presume said. "They are dying of hunger."

___

Associated Press Writer Alexandra Olson, with a helicopter crew fro

ReplyReply All

Move...

| Full Headers

on, see our Privacy Polic