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2010 Planned Tours

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LA Romana Dreamin

Wallingford DR Team

Circle of 12

HAITIAN EARTHQUAKE RECOVERY

Reflections

By Laura Savery

          "Mother Teresa once remarked that Christ comes to us today in disguise: in the person of the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger dressed in rags, the homeless, and the prisoner.  There is another person to add to the list: the Haitian sugarcane cutter in the Dominican Republic.

          Two and a half centuries ago, the French and Spanish brought African slave to the island called Hispanola.  These slaves planted and harvested sugarcane.  Today, the French have long disappeared, but laborers recruited from Haiti work in the fields and live under conditions many have called oppressive.

          Sugarcane covers hundreds of thousands of acres in the Dominican Republic.  The sugar industry is operated by the government or the Central Romana Corporation.  Plantation settlements called bateys are nestled amid the cane along dirt roads.  Workers living in the Central Romana bateys fare better than those living in government settlements, but they  are all very, very poor.

          The pay for a fourteen hour day is figured by the amount of cane cut that day- it is weighed and paid by the number of tons cut. If the weigh master is honest, the worker can expect an accurate and fair report, however, this is not always the case.  There are many, many workers who do not receive fair wages and cannot pay for food and other necessities without putting themselves in debt to the company provision stores" (excerpt from "Let My Soul Make You Strong" by Jude Baptist and Dee DeMusis)

          On September 23, 1998  Hurricane George arrived in the southeast section of the Dominican Republic.  In the wake of destruction there was hope and miracles.  Hope and faith that God would not fail his servants and  miracles in that only a handful of people died  and  that all was not totally destroyed.

          It is this spirit of faith and hope that I again witnessed, this being my third trip to this country since 1995. This time was different than the last two trips in that we worked side by side with the Haitians, in their bateys, rebuilding their churches.  The importance of these churches is more than that of spiritual worship-these buildings also serve as sites for medical clinics, schools and refuges during a severe storm.  The following are just a few of the  poignant memories I would like to share with you about this mission trip.

          In  the batey of Guacuma, a woman came up to us and asked us what we were doing.  A team member said, "We are rebuilding the church."  The woman then said, "You are rebuilding our church," and then she left.  She returned shortly  with about two dozen children with the intention of helping us.  You see she was a member of the church and the children were students  in the Sunday school.  You should have seen the children scurrying around like ants helping us clean and remove the rubble.  What a wonderful sight!

          In the batey of Magdalena, we had a Sunday service in the remains of their church-there was no roof, no louvered windows, the back wall was gone and rubble was strewn on the cement floor.  We celebrated God's presence  just as if the church were physically whole.  People prayed and sang praises to His name while tears of joy streamed down their faces.  During the sermon, the head deacon commented on the fact that his church did not know we were coming that day and reminded all that were present of the importance of "being ready"- for no one knows when Christ will come again.  The most memorable part of the service was when we sang "Amazing Grace" and our brothers and sisters in Christ sang along in Creole.  Two cultures joined together in Christ to honor and praise Him!

          In the batey of Lima, we had another Sunday service in the remains of their church-again there was no roof and no windows and rubble littered the floor.  We  celebrated the joy of the Holy Spirit amongst us during the sacrament of Communion.  In order for our group to participate, bottled grape juice, a box of crackers and small plastic cups had to be purchased by the church.  This probably cost the church at least a Haitian cane cutters wage for one day!  I hadn't even thought of this until an eighteen year old boy from New York commented on how much this must have cost the church.  This so touched me that I started to cry.  I did so again, when I remembered this event, during the communion service at our church when I first returned home in March.  For  I was part of a group of total strangers to these Haitian people and they went out of their way for us.  True Christian love and hospitality in action just as it is written in 1Peter 4:8-11.

          In conclusion, there are many reasons why I return to the Dominican Republic- to make me feel good about myself  by helping others less fortunate,  to meet old friends, to share the intense faith and hope that these people have in the Lord and to remind me about all the blessings that God bestows on me each and every day. Thank you for the  memories, the prayers and the support that you have given me.

          Dieu vous benise! (God bless you)         

Laura Savery                  

Reflections              

B y Laura  Savery