Day Four at Leogane

Day 4 greeted us with clouds which was not bad. Temperatures were in the low 90s instead of the high 90s. Nice!! We arrived at the clinic and were greeted by 132 friends! Young, old, women, children, men shouted hello, waved and welcomed us. What a wonderful way to come to work!!

I worked intake and did vitals today. It is a joyous experience because you get to meet and talk to almost every person who comes to the clinic. Our Haitian brothers and sisters come and wait with patience, kindness and humor. Their composure and easy going nature is something to behold. In the 90s and in very close quarters, perspiration is constant... nonstop. I knelt to do a blood pressure with sweat rolling off my face and forehead. As I put the cuff on this gracious, older Haitian woman, she took her white cloth and wiped my forehead and face and thanked me for being in Haiti. As I finished her vitals, she wiped my face again, patted my hand and again thanked me.

This wonderful woman caused me to pause, look and reflect. Nineteen of us had spent 3+ days together with the purpose of providing healthcare to the Haitian people. Many from NC, some from RI, one from MA, one from NY had come together with purpose. As I glanced around, I saw my wife Melissa and Jan doing more vitals, greeting mothers, babies, older folks, all. Meredith was doing triage with Johanna and translators... though he did not need the translators as his Creole is "li bon." Dale was fitting his umpteenth pair of glasses reaching a total for the day of 51 pair!!! He also helped with vitals for Dr. Delson Mersier's patients.

Continuing my glance around the clinic I saw Nancy and Wally working in the pharmacy. Susan, Cathie and Brian were part of the pharmacy team as well. Denise single handedly ran the laboratory. While I could not see the providers, Dr. Lisa, Dr. Andrea, Dr. Jeff, Dr. Jim and Dr. Nicole all provided excellent healthcare to our 132 guests. Nicole and Missy, with Family Health Ministries, provided wonderful guidance and coordination during the trip. The sights, the sounds, the pace, the essence of the clinic was overwhelming in the very best of ways.

The apostle Paul wrote many wonderful letters. A favorite of mine is Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth, the 13th chapter. Paul speaks of the gifts of faith, hope and love. This wonderful group of people has been privileged to see, feel and experience the faith, the hope and especially the love that Haiti gives to the world. Faith, hope and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.