From Lynsi: first off, how old is the puppy? second, WHY was it on my pillow? i miss you guys soooo much :) see you sunday, but we will call you Saturday around 8:00 p.m. when we get into Fort Lauderdale.
We can't believe that today is our last day. We spent every second we could with the boys this afternoon just trying to soak up every second. We did have a secret meeting in one of our rooms. We think we will need to tie up Jim and Gayle tomorrow morning and sneak the boys out. The tremendous 10 seemed okay with this :) But, we wouldn't get down the road before they would miss their mommy and poppy.
After the teacher seminar today we presented each of the teacher with a certificate that Lisa made on the computer. Paster Andre laminated them. As each teacher's name was called we hummed Pomp and Circumstance (isn't that the graduation song?) You would have thought we were handing them a million dollars.
We went to each of the classrooms today and gave each of the children some candy. When we walk into the room every tiny little person in the classroom stands up and says "Bonjour Madame Sam" or whoever comes into the room. Words can not describe how precious they are. Just wait until Sunday until we get some pictures up.
We will be leaving the compound at noon tomorrow (Saturday) and hope to be at the airport in Port by 2:00 and our flight leaves at 4:20. We should land in Ft. Lauderdale around 7:30 and will be calling our families.
This is our last post. We won't check it tomorrow.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Thursday
Once again God blessed us with a great day in Haiti. Sam and Cody finished painting the balcony of the church and did some small maintenance around the compound. We had another great day with the teachers. They can not believe we would come back and teach them again. They want to learn and be able to go out and train other teachers in Haiti! Wow! We are talking about how tomorrow is our last day and we are very sad about that. But, we miss our families and look forward to seeing them.
Lynsi said I could write "mushy, gushy" stuff----so there you go!
Sam says hi to everyone.
Lynsi and Gina have both had their hair braided. They look great!
Cody found a guitar to play. He is in his room right now playing. He sang me a song while I waited for the computer to come on. I am not use to waiting this long on a computer. Boy, do we take a lot of things for granted in the U.S.
Lynsi said I could write "mushy, gushy" stuff----so there you go!
Sam says hi to everyone.
Lynsi and Gina have both had their hair braided. They look great!
Cody found a guitar to play. He is in his room right now playing. He sang me a song while I waited for the computer to come on. I am not use to waiting this long on a computer. Boy, do we take a lot of things for granted in the U.S.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Wednesday
We are writing this a little early today because there is some lightning in the distance. It isn't stormy here at all. I know it sounds that way, but the weather has been beautiful. Very, very hot and humid though :) As soon as you get out of the shower, your body is coated in a film of sweat.
The lessons went very well and the teachers are so enthusiastic. They absorb everything Lisa and Gina have to say. They are so excited about all the teaching strategies and come back the next day and tell us how they have implemented it into their class the next day. Lisa has already told them she plans to come back over spring break or next summer. I can only bring 5 other teachers with me --First Come First Served :) There should be a line of you waiting to do this. Nothing has made me more excited to be a teacher and to be able to work with other teachers!
The first grade class today sang a Welcome song to us in English when we walked into their class. It was so precious.
From Cody: Braden and Cooper: I am having a very good time. It is very hot here and we are just now getting some rain. That really cools things off. The Tremendous 10 are a blast to play with. They remind me of you guys, full of energy and they have such a good time together. I miss you. Brittney: Make sure and tell my "fan club" at Smith's hi. I miss you too!
God bless all of you who think of us and pray for us.
The lessons went very well and the teachers are so enthusiastic. They absorb everything Lisa and Gina have to say. They are so excited about all the teaching strategies and come back the next day and tell us how they have implemented it into their class the next day. Lisa has already told them she plans to come back over spring break or next summer. I can only bring 5 other teachers with me --First Come First Served :) There should be a line of you waiting to do this. Nothing has made me more excited to be a teacher and to be able to work with other teachers!
The first grade class today sang a Welcome song to us in English when we walked into their class. It was so precious.
From Cody: Braden and Cooper: I am having a very good time. It is very hot here and we are just now getting some rain. That really cools things off. The Tremendous 10 are a blast to play with. They remind me of you guys, full of energy and they have such a good time together. I miss you. Brittney: Make sure and tell my "fan club" at Smith's hi. I miss you too!
God bless all of you who think of us and pray for us.
Tuesday
This post is being done Wednesday morning. Due to lightning last night, the computer had to be unplugged. We will post again this afternoon to tell you what we did today.
From Lynsi and Tami:
Lynsi and I have had another blessed day here in Haiti. Tami woke up not feeling so well with a soar throat and sinus problems, but she had Kilton, who is their family's prayer warrior (one of the Tremendous 10) pray for her. By the end of the day today she is feeling much better. Praise the Lard! Als, we were able to take a short walk to the beach with Mr. Bernadel (the Tremendous 10's teacher) who shared with us along the way different things about Haiti and its culture. We have almost finished painting the church and think we will have it all done tomorrow. Praise the Lord, we are eager to see the fruit of our labor! God is good! We are so happy to be a part of this team and to see what else He has planned for us the rest of the week. The highlight of our day, though was getting to share with Mr. Bernadel and his love of praising the Lord and spending one-on-one time with God. His most favorite thing to do is to worship Him. I praise Him that His sweet spirit is the same everywhere in the world and that no one and nothing can touch the heart of a man like that of the Holy Spirit.
Personal Note: Tami and Lynsi would really like a personal message from their family members. (Hint: Steve and Broc :)
From Gina: Today's classes were awesome! The kids in the morning were very receptive to (and quicker to pick up) the activities. Still, we see a log of the rote repetition as the main method of teaching. Therefore they leave a few of the kids in the process. It's so nice to see that kids are kids, no matter their skin color, language, economic status or lot in life.
The afternoon meeting with the teachers was absolutely full of excitement. The teachers asked numerous questions and were quite eager to listen and learn. Amazing to me that the learning processes we take for granted----the research and techniques we have been drilled with all our teacher lives---are new information to them.
Personal Note: Abbi and Alex--I don't know if you're reading this, but if so, PLEASE write a comment. I want to know about Ab's bb tourney. Erik--Love and miss you. Thank you for the message on the the blog. How's my garden? :)
From Sam, Lisa and Cody,
We have mentions several times our names, an interesting thing is all the students here (125 of them) say, "blanc" pronounce (blah) as we all walk by. That means "white person" or "foreigner". But meant in a welcoming way.
From Lisa: After the training (seminar is what they call it) with the teachers on Monday, I just felt something was wrong. They were very positive, but it just wasn't right. So, God and I talked most of the night. I kept trying in my own mind figure out what to do and finally God said "Why don't you let me help you and just be quiet for awile." I know many of you know how God feels and would like to say that too me also. About 4:00 in the morning I was thinking that the teachers don't seem to get this because they don't know the basics and God brought to my mind that one of the first things I learned in college about teaching was Bloom's taxonomy and how our intellect works. So, the next morning I got online, printed out Bloom's. My plan was to spend the first 30 minutes reviewing that.
The next thing Gina and I know, it is 2 hours later and the teachers are eating it up. Teaching above knowledge and comprehension was not something they had considered. I wish I could take their enthusiasm and wonder and put it in every teacher I know. Luckily, I do know Someone who can. Let's pray this for all teachers around the world. Thank you God for teaching me to listen to you!
From Sam: Brittney, Braden and Cooper: I miss you. Hope your games and work went well. Help Granpa and Grandma Berg get settled in. Mom loves you very much! We are having an incredible time.
Our team loves you all and thank you for your prayers.
From Lynsi and Tami:
Lynsi and I have had another blessed day here in Haiti. Tami woke up not feeling so well with a soar throat and sinus problems, but she had Kilton, who is their family's prayer warrior (one of the Tremendous 10) pray for her. By the end of the day today she is feeling much better. Praise the Lard! Als, we were able to take a short walk to the beach with Mr. Bernadel (the Tremendous 10's teacher) who shared with us along the way different things about Haiti and its culture. We have almost finished painting the church and think we will have it all done tomorrow. Praise the Lord, we are eager to see the fruit of our labor! God is good! We are so happy to be a part of this team and to see what else He has planned for us the rest of the week. The highlight of our day, though was getting to share with Mr. Bernadel and his love of praising the Lord and spending one-on-one time with God. His most favorite thing to do is to worship Him. I praise Him that His sweet spirit is the same everywhere in the world and that no one and nothing can touch the heart of a man like that of the Holy Spirit.
Personal Note: Tami and Lynsi would really like a personal message from their family members. (Hint: Steve and Broc :)
From Gina: Today's classes were awesome! The kids in the morning were very receptive to (and quicker to pick up) the activities. Still, we see a log of the rote repetition as the main method of teaching. Therefore they leave a few of the kids in the process. It's so nice to see that kids are kids, no matter their skin color, language, economic status or lot in life.
The afternoon meeting with the teachers was absolutely full of excitement. The teachers asked numerous questions and were quite eager to listen and learn. Amazing to me that the learning processes we take for granted----the research and techniques we have been drilled with all our teacher lives---are new information to them.
Personal Note: Abbi and Alex--I don't know if you're reading this, but if so, PLEASE write a comment. I want to know about Ab's bb tourney. Erik--Love and miss you. Thank you for the message on the the blog. How's my garden? :)
From Sam, Lisa and Cody,
We have mentions several times our names, an interesting thing is all the students here (125 of them) say, "blanc" pronounce (blah) as we all walk by. That means "white person" or "foreigner". But meant in a welcoming way.
From Lisa: After the training (seminar is what they call it) with the teachers on Monday, I just felt something was wrong. They were very positive, but it just wasn't right. So, God and I talked most of the night. I kept trying in my own mind figure out what to do and finally God said "Why don't you let me help you and just be quiet for awile." I know many of you know how God feels and would like to say that too me also. About 4:00 in the morning I was thinking that the teachers don't seem to get this because they don't know the basics and God brought to my mind that one of the first things I learned in college about teaching was Bloom's taxonomy and how our intellect works. So, the next morning I got online, printed out Bloom's. My plan was to spend the first 30 minutes reviewing that.
The next thing Gina and I know, it is 2 hours later and the teachers are eating it up. Teaching above knowledge and comprehension was not something they had considered. I wish I could take their enthusiasm and wonder and put it in every teacher I know. Luckily, I do know Someone who can. Let's pray this for all teachers around the world. Thank you God for teaching me to listen to you!
From Sam: Brittney, Braden and Cooper: I miss you. Hope your games and work went well. Help Granpa and Grandma Berg get settled in. Mom loves you very much! We are having an incredible time.
Our team loves you all and thank you for your prayers.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Monday
From Lisa:
Today I saw the most beautiful sight. Fifty 3 and 4 year olds all dressed in pink running to Lynsi, Gina and Tammie and climbing all over them to get hugs and some loving. The girls and boys all wear pink uniforms. The girls in little matching dresses and several wear pink ruffled socks and all of them have pink or white bows in their hair. We just couldn't get enough of them!
Gina and I taught in 2 classes today. One class had 40+ three year olds and the other had 40+ four year olds! The classroom is about 1/2 the size of our classrooms. Desks and a chalkboard were the main teaching tools. The temperature was 90 degrees---no fan or airconditioning. But they were happy kids and learning a lot.
Sam., Cody, Tammie and Lynsi had the task of getting almost 100 three and 4 year olds to line up and play games they have never played before.
In the afternoon Gina and I worked with the 6 teachers from this school and about 4 teachers from other schools. We say a sentence and someone interprets. I really need to brush up on my French. That is what most speak in this school.
In the afternoon a Haitian man brought his handmade ware for us to look at and make purchases. Some of you are getting some cool things :)
Thank you for your continued prayers. I can tell we are going to be very tired by Friday, but Saturday morning will still be very difficult for us. Leaving these people will be hard.
Personal Note: Braden, dad wants you to do this instead of what he told you to do on Tuesday. Put 4 oz of the algaecide, 4 oz of the pool clear, 3 cups of the Phos-free (in skimmer) and spread about 10 cups of the chlorine granules in the deep end of the pool. Hopefully it will clear up. I love you and miss you guys. It is very hot. Do good in your games tomorrow.
From Gina:
School was interesting! 50-60 preschool kids with one teacher?! Amazing! The kids all word beautiful pink uniforms and all of them were neatly tucked in, ribbons in girls hair, matching socks, etc. Lisa did a great job at our teacher "workshop" As a high school, specific content techer, I had a hard time giving much help, but I really enjoyed listening. The more I hear Creole, the more I think I understand it. As we went on, the teachers became much more involved in talking and asking questions, etc.
Personal Note--Erik: Do me a favor and call Alex to remind her about her Wed. Eye appt! Love and miss!
Today I saw the most beautiful sight. Fifty 3 and 4 year olds all dressed in pink running to Lynsi, Gina and Tammie and climbing all over them to get hugs and some loving. The girls and boys all wear pink uniforms. The girls in little matching dresses and several wear pink ruffled socks and all of them have pink or white bows in their hair. We just couldn't get enough of them!
Gina and I taught in 2 classes today. One class had 40+ three year olds and the other had 40+ four year olds! The classroom is about 1/2 the size of our classrooms. Desks and a chalkboard were the main teaching tools. The temperature was 90 degrees---no fan or airconditioning. But they were happy kids and learning a lot.
Sam., Cody, Tammie and Lynsi had the task of getting almost 100 three and 4 year olds to line up and play games they have never played before.
In the afternoon Gina and I worked with the 6 teachers from this school and about 4 teachers from other schools. We say a sentence and someone interprets. I really need to brush up on my French. That is what most speak in this school.
In the afternoon a Haitian man brought his handmade ware for us to look at and make purchases. Some of you are getting some cool things :)
Thank you for your continued prayers. I can tell we are going to be very tired by Friday, but Saturday morning will still be very difficult for us. Leaving these people will be hard.
Personal Note: Braden, dad wants you to do this instead of what he told you to do on Tuesday. Put 4 oz of the algaecide, 4 oz of the pool clear, 3 cups of the Phos-free (in skimmer) and spread about 10 cups of the chlorine granules in the deep end of the pool. Hopefully it will clear up. I love you and miss you guys. It is very hot. Do good in your games tomorrow.
From Gina:
School was interesting! 50-60 preschool kids with one teacher?! Amazing! The kids all word beautiful pink uniforms and all of them were neatly tucked in, ribbons in girls hair, matching socks, etc. Lisa did a great job at our teacher "workshop" As a high school, specific content techer, I had a hard time giving much help, but I really enjoyed listening. The more I hear Creole, the more I think I understand it. As we went on, the teachers became much more involved in talking and asking questions, etc.
Personal Note--Erik: Do me a favor and call Alex to remind her about her Wed. Eye appt! Love and miss!
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Sunday
From Tammie and Lynsi:
Hello everyone! We are enjoying our time in Haiti very much. Lynsi has already siad she doesn't want to leave. We have especially enjoyed meeing the Tremendous 10 and getting to know each of them. They each have assigned themselves "new names" and are in the process of assigning us new names as well. They now think Cody should be Poncho. Tammie is Sunshine. They are a great bunch of boys and we have been so blessed to meet them. I praise the Lord for Jim and Gayle and their hearts to serve these yound men and their commitment to follow through to completion of that.
From Gina:
Our 1st full day here was full of interesting events. The church we went to was right across the steet and the congregation was already singing when we got there (time is more of a relative concept here) The singing of course was Haitian and it was BEAUTIFUL--deep, rich timbre of voices accoumpanied by an accordion. The sermon was James 1:19-27 and one of the local pastors translated into English as the pastor spoke (which certainly helped).
For lunch, we went to Club Indigo. The ocean was clear and amazing. We forgot we were in desperate Haiti. Well, we forgot, that is, until we got 20 yard out the gate to where everyone is living in whatever put-together hovels they can create. The "have's" and the "have-nots" is amazing.
Tomorrow, we begin work with the school. Pray for us because we don't have a 100% understanding of what to teach or what they need.
Personal Note: Erik- Please attempt to send me a comment on the blog so I know that you are getting these messages. Also, tell all 4 girls I love and appreciate them. I send my love.
From Mister Sam, Madam Sam and Poncho (aka Cisco Kid),
We miss everyone, but we are having an amazing time. I, Lisa, especially enjoy watching Cody and Lynsi with the children. They are amazing. We are already so attached to these boys. I laughed until my stomach hurt today at them. Tomorrow Gina and I will work with 3 and 4 year olds. We really aren't sure what to do, but thankfully God does.
Our rooms and shower area are very nice. Much better than I expected. If it wasn't for the heat I could stay here. I haven't been able to get pictures on the blog, but I will try to tomorrow. Thank you all for the comments. It really blesses us to hear from you---keeps the homesick away!
Personal Note: Braden, I will talk to dad about this, but try calling Joe Follis, or Scott. Do that first thing tomorrow before the pool gets bad.
We will post again tomorrow evening.
Hello everyone! We are enjoying our time in Haiti very much. Lynsi has already siad she doesn't want to leave. We have especially enjoyed meeing the Tremendous 10 and getting to know each of them. They each have assigned themselves "new names" and are in the process of assigning us new names as well. They now think Cody should be Poncho. Tammie is Sunshine. They are a great bunch of boys and we have been so blessed to meet them. I praise the Lord for Jim and Gayle and their hearts to serve these yound men and their commitment to follow through to completion of that.
From Gina:
Our 1st full day here was full of interesting events. The church we went to was right across the steet and the congregation was already singing when we got there (time is more of a relative concept here) The singing of course was Haitian and it was BEAUTIFUL--deep, rich timbre of voices accoumpanied by an accordion. The sermon was James 1:19-27 and one of the local pastors translated into English as the pastor spoke (which certainly helped).
For lunch, we went to Club Indigo. The ocean was clear and amazing. We forgot we were in desperate Haiti. Well, we forgot, that is, until we got 20 yard out the gate to where everyone is living in whatever put-together hovels they can create. The "have's" and the "have-nots" is amazing.
Tomorrow, we begin work with the school. Pray for us because we don't have a 100% understanding of what to teach or what they need.
Personal Note: Erik- Please attempt to send me a comment on the blog so I know that you are getting these messages. Also, tell all 4 girls I love and appreciate them. I send my love.
From Mister Sam, Madam Sam and Poncho (aka Cisco Kid),
We miss everyone, but we are having an amazing time. I, Lisa, especially enjoy watching Cody and Lynsi with the children. They are amazing. We are already so attached to these boys. I laughed until my stomach hurt today at them. Tomorrow Gina and I will work with 3 and 4 year olds. We really aren't sure what to do, but thankfully God does.
Our rooms and shower area are very nice. Much better than I expected. If it wasn't for the heat I could stay here. I haven't been able to get pictures on the blog, but I will try to tomorrow. Thank you all for the comments. It really blesses us to hear from you---keeps the homesick away!
Personal Note: Braden, I will talk to dad about this, but try calling Joe Follis, or Scott. Do that first thing tomorrow before the pool gets bad.
We will post again tomorrow evening.
Saturday, June 5, 2010
We are in Haiti
We made it to Haiti just fine. Every flight was on time and there were no problems. We spent the night in the Miami airport so we are really tired. Thank you God that Gayle and Jimmy were at the airport to meet us. That was quite the experience! Words just won't do it justice right now.
In Port au Prince and for 40-50 miles as we drove out of town the devastation is unbelievable. There are tents EVERYWHERE. We took pictures of colonies of hundreds of tents. But our God is an awesome God---on one side of the road is miles of tents and rubble and the other side is the ocean was a man standing waist deep baptizing a brother in Christ!
We had a blast with the Tremendous 10 at dinner. That have all given themselves "new" names. Tamie, Cody and Lisa ate at the table with Obe 1 Kenobie (sp), Mikey (who likes everything) and Jeremiah Johnson! We can't wait to find out the rest of their names :) They have decided to give Cody the new name "Cisco Kid". Any idea what videos they have been watching?
We love all of our family and friends. Keep the people of Haiti in your prayers.
In Port au Prince and for 40-50 miles as we drove out of town the devastation is unbelievable. There are tents EVERYWHERE. We took pictures of colonies of hundreds of tents. But our God is an awesome God---on one side of the road is miles of tents and rubble and the other side is the ocean was a man standing waist deep baptizing a brother in Christ!
We had a blast with the Tremendous 10 at dinner. That have all given themselves "new" names. Tamie, Cody and Lisa ate at the table with Obe 1 Kenobie (sp), Mikey (who likes everything) and Jeremiah Johnson! We can't wait to find out the rest of their names :) They have decided to give Cody the new name "Cisco Kid". Any idea what videos they have been watching?
We love all of our family and friends. Keep the people of Haiti in your prayers.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Leaving
We leave June 4th at 6:30 p.m. from Kansas City and arrive June 5th at 7:30 a.m. in Haiti. Jim Durham will be picking us up at the airport. The airport is still very damaged and so I think we have to walk a bit to get to Jim.
Jim has warned us that it will be HOT! Pray that the heat doesn't bother us too much.
--Lisa, Sam, Cody, Tami, Lynsi and Gina
Jim has warned us that it will be HOT! Pray that the heat doesn't bother us too much.
--Lisa, Sam, Cody, Tami, Lynsi and Gina
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