Haiti

A woman in our ward is on the board of directors at an orphanage in Haiti.  Alyssa had the privilege of going down with her on a humanitarian trip in April of this year.  It was an eye-opening experience for all of us.  I was surprised at how poor so much of our world still is.  There are 140 kids in the orphanage, with 5 nannies who take care of all of them.  They didn't have washing machines until this last trip they took money down and bought them.  I can't even imagine doing laundry for that many people by hand.  They only feed the kids once a day.  That has been such a disturbing thought for me.  How can there be children who are hungry all the time when we have so much?  A lot of them don't have shoes.  But they are happy.  Alyssa said they share everything and take care of each other.  I hope all my children, and myself, can have this experience and be able to help them.  I told her she better take a lot of pictures, and she did.  Here are just a few of my favorites.  There aren't a lot of the kids because of security issues.

 Isn't she cute?

 Alyssa and her bestie, I can't remember her name.  But each of the youth had a kid that would find them every day and cling to them.

 Just to show the scope of how many children they are.  They are handing out treats. 

 The orphanage

Riding in the vans.

 Alyssa sucking on sugar cane.

 Church in Haiti.

The guest house they all stayed in.  There were 5 guards and a couple people who cooked and cleaned for them.  I was glad they were safe and taken care of, but at the same time know how different their life is from everyone else there.