Expect the Unexpected

Two weeks before we returned to Haiti, everyone was asking me if it was hurricaine season and if that affected us. We usually get extra rain and maybe some wind but they haven't been as devastating to us as the places around us.....until now. There seemed to have been a tropical depreesion that dropped a lot of rain on Carries in a very short amount of time. This in turn caused a mud slide/rock avalanche. We have the property where the church is and about two miles away where we stay and house our guests. This devastation happened in the two mile radius between our two properties.



Four people were killed, three of them being young children. Several houses were totally demolished. The water carried all kinds of furniture and personal belongings from their homes. Our preacher at Carries, Pasteur Audal, escaped the flood waters and deluge with his wife but his home was flooded washing away all his belongings. He had a small shed beside his house called a depot. Besides preaching and teaching school, he would fill this little depot with things like rice, beans, oil, tomatoe paste, butter, spaghetti and spices. His wife would sell these things to bring in some extra income. All of it completely gone but their lives were spared.

Jocelyn, one of the boys we raised at Berea, was around the night of the flooding to help those who were trapped or who lost their home or everything in it. He took pictures on his phone. He showed me the children's bodies they retrieved from under the mud. He showed me a woman who was seven months pregnant who was buried alive, up to her armpits while holding her two year old baby above her head, saving the babies life.

Sunday we went to see the devastation. I was amazed at the enormously wide path the rocks and mud had taken, leveling houses to the ground. I mentioned as I looked around that I had seen pictures of the pregnant woman that they had dug out of the mud and pulled to safety. They said she's standing right over there. I got out of the truck and went over to meet her and hear her story. I asked her if she had accepted Christ as her Lord and Savior. She said, "No". I asked her what she was waiting for, that there might not be a next time. She said she would have plenty of time to take care of that. I invited her to church anyway and said we would be waiting for her.

I got home from church and stuck my head out the gate to call someone. It was just enough time to let Locksen call me. He asked if he could come and talk to me and I said yes. He said that I had almost lost him because the flood/mudslide came so quickly that he was almost washed away. It took all of his belongings but not him personally and he was very thankful for that. Then he showed me his one pair of shoes he had left that weren't washed away. They were in shreds and he needed a pair and could I please help him. I asked how much some new ones would cost. He said he needed forty bucks to get the new ones and he reminded me that he had never asked me for money before. He said, by the way, I almost lost my sister too and she was seven months pregnant. She was buried in the mud, alive. I couldn't believe it was his sister that I had just talked to. Small world. I gave him the forty dollars to go buy his shoes and man was he ever grateful.

Came home realizing what an amazing life I have, thankful to be alive and praying for wisdom to somehow be able to dispense what things we have to those in need. Please pray for us, for God to bless us with a new source of food that will increase our ability to correspond with the need at hand.

Dee

Sunday at Carries

We were all up and around pretty early on Sunday. I, especially, couldn't wait to be at church. There is a song I heard a long time ago, "I was so incredibly happy, when someone said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord!" This song was running through my mind as we went to services on Sunday morning to worship Haitian style. No offense to all of you in the States but to tell the truth, You know nothing about worship! If most of you were present on Sunday you would have been laughing or putting your hands over your ears or making fun of it in some way. Imagine the service beginning and the people are singing acapella. My husband pulls out his new accordian and starts to play along. He hasn't played or practiced for quite some time so needless to say, there was a noisy accordian and some people trying to sing around it. Then Jhemson decided to be the drummer for the day but Bioude thought she could do it better so she took over the big green and white drum. All the while I am singing and trying to carry some kind of tune I am chuckling to myself and thinking, I know God is being worshipped here this morning because that is all we wanted to do was to bring praise and honor and glory to Him. All of a sudden as we were singing, a more experienced accordian player came up unannounced and took the accordian from Wilckly and began playing it beautifully. Now I don't mean that "get down polka music" that you are thinking of. I mean beautiful hymns. Sounds that you wouldn't even believe could come out of an accordian. I let myself be lost in worship, as tears came to my eyes as they usually do, when I finally find myself back in Haiti and realize how much I wanted to ber right here where I am. It is in that moment I realize how much I love living in Haiti and serving here with the Haitian people. It is then that I realize how God allows me to block it out of my mind, the fact that I would really rather be here, for a few months to drive around doing camps and VBS so that I can return to the place that I love so much. Those of you who support our ministry I humbly thank you for letting us be your hands and feet here in Haiti. "I worship You Lord, I worship You. The reason I live is to worship You!
Dee

Just like riding a bike....

Returning to Haiti is just like riding a bike.....you never forget how, you just have to get back on. There is no slow and easy transition into Haiti. It's all or nothing so I say bring it on. There is so much to catch up on.

Part of it has been really fun to catch up on and others not so much. They sometimes don't tell us things that we need to know over the phone because they are afraid of our reaction. The good news is that this time, although some of it was not pleasing, there didn't seem to be one huge major thing that happened.

It is really a blessing already to have Crash and Shaina along. Sometimes it gets crazy around here, just receiving people. Although Bioude is amazing with my children, she still has other things to take care of. Crash and Shaina have been great already helping with that.

Kelsey sticks like glue to Shaina. She's always has a million questions for anyone that will listen. It is great to have someone else to help answer or wonder about all of them.

Two days past before Wilckly, Crash, Shaina and I could actually sit and talk about our plan of action. Please pray for unity among us and with our Haitian workers so that we can accomplish the most for His glory.

Have a great day worshipping and praising our risen Lord and Saviour. He is amazing, mighty, all-powerful, all-knowing and He loves us all very much and in detail. My prayer is that we all seek to know him more. DEE

Headed Home

Counting down the final hours at last. We leave this morning, Wednesday, Sept. 23 at 6:20 heading back home to Haiti at last. I used to be the expert packer. I find that now I don't really care if I pack or if we take anything with us but the children. Raising support in the summer is an amazing adventure that is very rewarding and very tiring. I just want to go home at this point, home to Haiti. I know you are questioning my sanity at this point and well you should. Who in their right mind would be excited to go from 24 hour electricity to trying to find just one match box that even has a match AND a candle to light or some kerosine for the lamp? Who wouldn't jump at the chance to go from living out of the van for the summer to staying at the compound indefinitely without transportation? Oh yes, and water, forget turning the faucet on. Hopefully, Bioude and Marc have thought far enough ahead to have at least a few buckets of water on hand so we can "shower" when we get there.

I guess the amazing thing I always look forward to in this transition is somehow they will have made every attempt to welcome us home. Will it be hot? Yes. Will it be hard in some ways? Yes. Is that still where the Dorce Family wants to be? Yes. We count on your prayers for our health. We ask for prayer for Christine Stevens who will be returning with us. We also ask for prayer for Shaina Ascone who will be coming with us to teach Ashley (10) and Kelsey(4). Pray for unity for us and unity with our Haitian workers as well that we would continue to serve the Haitian people. Pray for the light of the gospel to shine in our lives as we live out Christ daily among the Haitian people. I encourage each of you as you face another day in your "busy" lives, to define where your mission field is. Who are the people you are ministering to? Pray for them daily and specifically. Challenge the Lord to give you an opportunity to be the example of His love for them. Believe me! It will be anything but boring. Have a great day for His glory. See ya in Haiti!

Dee

Hi

On the Move

There's been no time to let the grass grow under our feet, we are on the move. We returned to Haiti in March with our group of ladies from Hannibal LaGrange College in Hannibal, Missouri. We had been gone from Haiti for nine months at that point. I have never been gone from Haiti that long in the sixteen years I have been in Haiti.


We took care of a few things. Lonia had four successful surgeries. Ashley completed fourth grade. Kelsey turned four and had a great birthday party. Josiah was born. Wilckly was in jail on false charges,for thirteen days, in Port-au-Prince, before finally being released. Crash "survived" in Haiti until our return. She is amazing! Wow! We finally arrived in Haiti but we had trouble with our vehicles on the way home. The hour and half drive from the airport to Carries turned into a miserably tiring voyage BUT, when we finally arrived, what a reunion for everyone! Another typical day in Haiti...anything that can go wrong probably will at the least desirable moment.


Returning to Haiti, Lonia was able to meet her new brother Ezekiel. We were able to return to the mountains where she is from so that all of her grandparents, aunts and uncles could see her. They were all amazed and thrilled to see her alive. Thrilled enough to cook a special meal for us. Give us gifts such as produce from their garden and livestock on foot such as roosters and goats for us to eat.




Wilckly hired Lonia's dad to work for us when we left Haiti for all of Lonia's surgeries. He moved Lonia's mom and dad to Carries and gave them a house to live in. Wilckly knew that it was too complicated and delicate to just come back to Haiti and hand Lonia to her parents but he wanted to make sure they were near us so that I could continue to care for her. Indeed the situation was delicate. Her colostomy had been reversed and she had a new bottom but the heat didn't do us any favors. Her parents soon understood after seeing the amount of care that was needed and constant attention to keep her bottom from getting so irritated or getting infected.




Lonia's mom and dad are thrilled that she is alive. They are so thankful to see her walking and playing. They are even happy that she speaks English and doesn't really understand their Creole.





We don't know what the future holds for Lonia but we do know that God went out of His way to make a special plan for her life. We are thrilled to know that we could play a small part in that plan. We now have a three year multiple entry visa for Lonia. She has already traveled to a couple of camps with the kids and I this summer. Please keep her in your prayers. Lonia's birthday is coming up soon. She will be two years old on July 29th, 2009. Praise the Lord for our miracle girl! Praise Him that her parents didn't listen when they were told to leave their new born daughter by the steps on the way out because she was going to die! Praise you oh Lord, for our sweet little Lonia.

We continue to travel doing camps, VBS and speaking at our supporting churches and updating them on the work going on in Haiti.





June 28 - July 3 Dee at church camp at Shelby County, Clarence, MO


Crash in VBS at High Hill, MO





July 5 - July10 Dee at church camp at Shelby County, Clarence, MO


Crash at church camp at High Hill, MO



Charlie at VBS at New Market Church of Christ

July 11 - 18 Dee in Haiti, Bioude's daughter Tika getting married

July 18 Crash day camp at Lamoine

July 19 - 24 Dee at VBS at Palmyra, MO

Crash at VBS at Montezuma, IA

July 26 - 31 Dee at VBS at Liberal, MO

August 23 Dee at Oak Hill Christian Church, Houston, MO

Dee and Crash open in August to speak before returning to Haiti Sept. 2, 2009

If you would like to contact us call:

Dee 573-324-4040

Crash 660-341-1519

We would love to meet with you. Maybe it's been awhile since you've been supporting us and you want to send a team to see what is happening in Haiti. We're waiting to hear from you so give us a call.

Dee

This Is Crash's Face...This Is Crash's Face on Mango Milk

The thing about Haiti is... well...you just never know what's going to happen next. For instance when Crash helped harvest the mangoes by being the mango catcher on the ground. The boys threw them from the tree and she caught them and put them in the box so we could put them in the depot to ripen. If we leave them on the tree, little animals make holes in them and they rot or two legged animals take them and we never get to eat them. Crash, being the helpful person that she is, was trying to help save the mangoes and feed people. She had the best of intentions. She has eaten mango many times and she has never been allergic to anything in her life, except mango milk, which unfortunately she did not know about. Mango milk is the sap that comes out of the end of the mango where it was hooked to a long string like stem, hanging from the tree. None of us thought about this until she got up in the morning and her face was bright, shiny, and red. Her eyes were swollen and she was looking out through little slits in her face. I guess she was surprised herself at how she must look when she asked if it looked like there was anything wrong with her face. She didn't even get the sentence out and she saw the look on my face. I said, "What in the world happened to you?" She had a red rash all over her chest and arms which itched like crazy. We found some Benedryl and sent Mdme Marc for some calimine lotion and more allergy medicine because we only had a couple Benedryl pills. Crash tried all of these but found no relief. Monday called for new and drastic measures because it was only getting worse. There is nothing like the heat of Haiti to cool your itching skin when you have a horrible reaction like this. We had to ride close together in the front of the big, blue, faithful, mission machine with the windows down trying to keep cool in the breeze since there is no air condition. The temperature in the shade lately has been 90, so use your imagination. Needless to say it was very uncomfortable for someone in Crash's condition. She was a trooper. It was kind of un-nerving though, this sealed look on her face that just said, "Yes, I am really annoyed and sick of it all and want to go home now!" I felt pretty helpless not to be able to accomadate. We arrived at the clinic and got in quickly. The doctor looked at our sack of meds and said we were giving her all the right things we just needed to wait. Then he must have saw me flinch as I almost lunged at him and he quickly recovered saying that there was a shot of a medication called promethizine that would help calm it all down. He asked me if I could give the shot. I said no. He said he had an American nurse who could help us. I thought he meant at the clinic, of course. All of the sudden he handed me the phone and I am talking to this lady. She doesn't know why she's talking to me and I don't know why I am talking to her but I explain our situation to her. She went off on this whole thing about having had a similar reaction recently and that there is no epinephrine available in this country but that all missionaries should have some on hand. She prayed with me right there on the phone to be able to find the promethizine. We exchanged phone numbers and headed for the clinic pharmacy which did not have promethizine. I then went across the road to the hospital and asked for it at their pharmacy. Well of course they didn't have change for my Haitian $50 bill, which is not unusual. I sent the man with me to buy a coke so I could have the change to pay for the medicine. In the mean time, I chatted with the nurse asking her about the hospital and telling her about Lonia. The man returned with my coke and change. As I was chugging it down, I heard the nurse say, "Oh no, I don't even have PROMETHIZINE!!!" I couldn't believe it but managed not to shower everyone with my mouthful of coke. Before I could respond, the nurse said, "However, I know we do have some in the operating room but I can't charge you for it." She took off after it when I gave her the "Mdme Kiki" look. She came back with it and I thanked her for it and paid her $2 Haitian for a syringe and I was on my way to give Crash relief. Unfortunately she had to wait until we got back home and Monique came to give her the shot. She was pretty stir crazy at that point. She took the shot and kept rubbing on the Calamine. By evening she felt no relief. When Pasteur Quene called I asked him to buy another shot to give her that evening. It was late and most pharmacies were closed. The only promethizine they had was in a huge bottle. The took a sryinge, filled it with the correct dose and placed the syringe back in its original paper and Pasteur Quene took careful pre-cautions to bring it to Carries on a tap-tap. It cost $25 Haitian. We then had to wait for Monique to call the nurse at the pharmacy and confirm that we really had a shot of promethizine. She finally received the shot but the next morning she didn't feel like there was much success. We sent for more promethizine which was delivered in the same manner BUT there was a new pharmacist and she doubled the price to $50 Haitian. What a country! Well, we know that many of you were praying for us and that is the only reason our story has a good ending. Crash's face has since cleared up. We no longer call her monster face and children do not run when they see her. Thank you so much for praying. The moral to this story is: Beware and don't touch the mangoes, especially the sap because you are probably allergic to them. WE HAVE DECIDED THAT THIS ADVICE WILL BE STRESSED OVER AND OVER TO ANYONE WHO COMES TO VISIT US ESPECIALLY IF YOU'VE NEVER BEEN ALLERGIC TO ANYTHING BEFORE!