Going back a few hours: after our 3 hour bus ride we were dropped us off at Hotel Masacre in Dajabon and after a bit of confusion - as we knew we were not staying at a hotel here, we found someone that spoke English. She explained that we needed to walk to the border crossing. She instructed us to put he required money in a passports - $25 for DR and $1 for Haiti and then have one person carry them. Then some Haitian men loaded our luggage into makeshift 2 carts and pushed them down the pushed the road. We walked about 5 or 6 blocks and came upon the border crossing. There we waited for about an hour to get everyone processed and then we continued our trek over the River Masacre - named for the bloody battle between the French and Spanish during the colonial years. As we travelled you could see the stark contrast between the countries. From painted plaster and bricks to desolate wasteland. People bathing in the river. You'd think we were in Africa. We continued on, brief stop at the police station/border house and then on into the village, probably a 15 min walk total.
The orphanage compound was just inside the village, at the top of the hill, behind a metal gate, the sliding wall type. As soon as it opened we were greeted by the excited children, 78 of whom were the "old" ones, the ones who have been there since age 4, the ones that Danita and her staff have taught English, the ones who are used to receiving all the attention.
The new ones only speak Creole however were getting the attention now. Though they had late night, most were excited and playful, though some were still napping. It was lunch time and after a few introductions were settled down for lunch.
Lunch was salad (lettuce that had been washed in clean water as you can't drink the tap water) and chicken in tomato and curry sauce with rice. Quite a good meal as they have an excellent cooking staff, for not only is this an orphanage it is a school for all the children in the village and they serve lunch to all the children that attend. For many children outside the orphanage, this is the only meal may get.
After lunch, Robin and I went to the make-shift clinic -- the library/computer room that as been re-arranged. We worked on getting the supplies organized as the supplies our crew brought more than doubled what was already there: wound care, iv catheters and fluids, syringes, needles, medicines.
After getting most of that done, Danita came out from her meeting with Aussie and Texas team and we got to chat with her a bit. Then one of the other staff members, Brenda, took us on a tour of the village. We first stopped at the Girls' Dormitory, a 2 story building that was surprisingly furnished with a tv and sofas and wifi. Then we went the "Little Boys" house, where the ones under 12 stay. The older boys live on campus. We made quick stop at the hospital, which was not much more than a what we would consider a shed. One elderly woman from the church was being treated for a "sick heart." Since the earthquake she has been unable to stand and now has a pressure wound. It seems she must have heart failure. We prayed for here and they asked if we could get her transferred to the Dominican Republic. Brenda said she would discuss it with the pastor.
We headed to the missionary house, just down the street from the Little Boys house, where our luggage was and then settled into our rooms. Cliff and I got a room back at the little boys house. It was nearly 6 pm by then and time to head back to the orphanage for dinner and them a meeting for all of the volunteers with Danita and her 2 assistants, Brenda and Karris.
Dinner was also excellent, baked ziti with beef and fresh pineapple and papaya. During the meeting afterwards we all got to introduce ourselves and explain briefly how we ended up here. It was amazing to hear how we all decided to come here over the course of just 2 days.
Also during the meeting Dr Robbie explained how the children being rescued are going to need to form attachments with the new environment and staff and how the recovery process will need to be approached. You can read more about him at thefrontline.org.au (He's an Aussie)
After that 4 of us were asked to spend the night in the church to watch over the new children as they may wake up crying or need to go to the bathroom. So Amanda, Lecrecia, Nathan and I volunteered. So now I'm on my mat and will get a little sleep. When we got here I had to put one child in a bed as he was laying on floor under the bed of another. We figure they must have been sharing a bed and he got kicked out. Hopefully I get a little sleep now.
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