2014 | craving a life

Look how awesome my sister is? I only had to badger her for a few week and she got me her Haiti thoughts and pictures! Now that’s a rockstar. I sure do have some good-hearted family members and I am proud of them all for serving in such a way. The following is in Lindsay’s words.

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This trip was much needed and I am so grateful for the opportunity which we had. I was very nervous to go and often times felt hesitant to do it. But truth be told, I was too busy prior to really do anything about it so when the day came we jumped on a plane and headed. That’s the only way to do it. Don’t think about it just do it!

People ask how come we decided to go to Haiti, here is how it came to be. We decided to book a trip for Christmas instead of giving Christmas presents. We decided to go to an all inclusive resort in Mexico and as we were booking and getting flights I couldn’t believe how much it cost! I was mortified! I couldn’t get over the fact that we would pay that much money to just eat ourselves into sickness and sit around the ocean all day feeling glutenous and selfish! I felt we could do so much more with that amount of money. So I talked to my mom & dad (Dessa and Rex Wade) and they had gone to Haiti a few years back so we decided to just go for it! So we decided to do a humanitarian mission trip and serve ourselves silly!

BEST DECISION OF MY LIFE…… EVER!

It was a life changing experience. One I will never forget. The experiences we had, the things we saw, and the feelings we felt will always be with me. They have made a permanent mark on my heart and now it is contagious. We are booking a trip next year to another country to do the same thing.

We took my step-boys, Christian who is 17 years old and Ethan who is 13 years old. We were slightly nervous about taking a 13 year old due to the unsettlement in that country, but like I mentioned earlier, we didn’t think much about it and just went. It is very hard work in horrifying HEAT, and I wouldn’t bring anyone any younger. Ethan worked hard and was a HUGE hit with the kids. They clung to Ethan and Ethan loved on everyone of them. Christian was the same. I was very proud of Christian and Ethan and their strong work ethic they had. Christian said, “You never had time to realize how hard you were working because we were always having fun while serving.” THey would work in the heat all day long, then at the end of the night we would play, love, hug, and kiss these beautiful children! They were starving for affection, attention, and love.

Ethan chose to do his Eagle Scout project and collect donations with his scout troop to take with us to Haiti. We successfully ended up packing over 25 plus bags on the plane with diapers, formula, baby wipes, baby clothes, baby food, baby wipes, baby wipes, oh and yes, more baby wipes. You never can have enough of those in Haiti! In addition to his Eagle, my company, Encompass Home Health & Hospice has a foundation called Encompass Cares, and they donated about $2,500.00. So, the orphanage was very grateful when we arrived! My best advice……. if you ever travel to an orphanage, DO NOT COME WITHOUT DONATIONS! They need donations and some things you can only get in the United States! It is so needed. Find a way to get them there.

During our stay, in the day time we worked from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. doing the following: We organized & unpacked donations, made commerce bags for women to sell on streets, put together food boxes for anyone that came begging for food or for ladies that had given up their children, cooked meals, organized a medical clinic and medications, built shacks to cook under, wired electricity into a new sewing building, built shelves, painted, and watched over the children and looked after their health. After 6 p.m. we had dinner and we grabbed any of the babies or kids lying in the streets and loved on them and tried to bring some happiness in their lives.

It was very sad and horrifying to see the living conditions they are able to survive in. We had NO running water and electricity sparingly with a generator (which was a luxury). Luckily, the orphanage we stayed in had a water filter (also a luxury) donated by NASA and we were able to drink the smelly water with floaties in it. You just can’t think about it. You had to have water, so you just plug your nose and drink (with a prayer that you don’t get sick).

It was the most rewarding feeling I have ever had. Coming home was hard. Nothing else you do feels as purposeful and meaningful as what you can do for others. I work in a service industry, so that I was grateful to know that in some small way I get to serve others in my job. I look forward to the next time I can be with these children and provide safety, joy, and love to them. The question we all asked ourselves when we arrived back in the United States, “Why were we so lucky to be able to be born where we were?”

How were we so lucky to be so blessed?

I am grateful for a belief in a loving compassionate and forgiving God who will grant these children the lives they deserve hereafter. Their suffering will be no more.

I leave you with a scripture:

“Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.” – Matthew 18:10-11