Baby Anjelique and her Mommy and Daddy  (please see our video of Anjelique!)

Debbie and Bill,

I’m honored to know you both and humbled by the commitment to God’s work that you are doing. 

Please NEVER hesitate to call on us for anything you may need.  We are committed to doing a fundraiser for Helping Haitian Angels and being there when your dream orphanage comes true.  It is the least we can do. 

Tom and Traci

 

 

 

Dear Friends and Family,          

haiti collage from Ray and Melissa

 We can not thank you enough for supporting our trip Cap Haitien, Haiti. We truly appreciate your prayers, donations, and financial contributions. As expected, our trip to Haiti was a life changing experience for us.

 We were not prepared for the level of poverty and unbelievable living conditions, the widespread corruption, or how the 40 children at the Kai Anj orphanage would steal our hearts. We did not speak the same language but instantly we all communicated with our hearts. We came home humbled and grateful for all that we have and ready to return again one day to continue to serve others as God calls us to do!

 There were so many incredible moments working with Helping Haitian Angels, but here are a few highlights!

 ▪ We sang and danced with the kids, taught them about Jesus, played basketball, colored, made bead necklaces, handed out tootsie pops and lemonade—such a treat—and gave them the love and attention they deserve!

▪ Took the kids to the beach—most have never been! They stripped down to their underwear and raced in the water! We treated them to fries and cokes—another first!

▪ Worked in a medical clinic—giving out meds, vitamins, formula and food.

â–ª Ray taught a group of Haitian teens to play baseball!

â–ª Helped build homes for the elderly and dug ditches for water pipes for fresh drinking water.

▪ Organized a soccer game for the boys—someone donated amazing uniforms for them!

â–ª Witnessed a two month old meet her new adoptive parents. To watch this couple bond with their baby girl for the first time was nothing short of miraculous!

▪ Welcomed a 12 year boy into the orphanage who had been physically abused by his uncle and living on the streets for the past month. To see him smile was something we’ll never forget! 

â–ª Played Santa Clause! We gave out jump ropes, stuffed animals, soccer balls, and baby dolls to kids in the community.

 Finally, the trip was an exciting milestone for HHA. They purchased two acres of land out in the country to build a new orphanage so the kids can have a safe place to grow and play. We are excited to be a part of this organization, its future and to see these kids grow up with love and care. We bonded closely with 7-year old Cedeline who we have decided to sponsor financially.

 Again, we can’t express how much we appreciate your financial support, prayers, and donations. We saw first hand how little it takes to make a big impact.

 Sincerely,

 Ray and Melissa

We just returned home after 8 days in Cap Haitien with an amazing group of volunteers that Bill and I now call family.

Most had never been to Haiti.  They were touched by the culture, the gracious people and our Kay Anj kids.  They are keeping their bags packed for a quick trip in October!  Speaking of our trip in October….We are in awe of Gods direction for us…..

We at HHA and the kids of Kay Anj have some very exciting news….WE PURCHASED 2 ACRES OF LAND!!

We are building our very own home for our kids of Kay Anj Orphange.  All things are possible with God.  We like to say that we don’t just pray, we pray BIG!  He answered big!  We looked at two of the most beautiful acres of land in the town of Limonade.  Limonade is a suburb of Cap Haitien.  There is no school, medical clinic, church or orphanage.  We will start with the orphanage then move on to building the church and school.  We’re hoping to find a Doctor to build a medical clinic.  The people of Limonade have graciously ‘invited’ us to their town.  We are a team…the Americans and the Haitians.  We won’t be finished anytime soon but when we are finished there will be a spectacular celebration!

 

There were so many God moments last week.  We met baby Bienci’s new adoptive parents, Traci and Tom.  They flew in from California to meet, for the first time, their beautiful baby girl.  Bienci is 2 months old and looks like an angel.

Traci leaned over the crib to look at her for the first time and Bienci looked up, grinned and cooed.  It was as if she’d been waiting for Traci!  There were tears everywhere!  Pastor Dennis from Sudley United Methodist Church blessed and baptized baby Bienci at our hotel with all of her new friends and family lifting her up.  A moment we will never forget.  Traci and Tom decided to name their new daughter Anjelique Bienci.  Please pray that the adoption process goes smoothly and quickly.  Congratulations Tom, Traci and Anjelique!

As precious Anjelique leaves us for her new family, a twelve year old boy named Victor joined our Kay Anj family.

Victor was living with his Uncle who was physically abusing him.  He’d been living on the streets for the past month.  He is very quiet, shy and has a smile that will melt your heart.  He was excited to have a new home, a bed, food, and be able to go to church.  He joined right in with the boys playing basketball. 

Thanks to All Star Sports we dressed our boys in brand new soccer uniforms!  The boys felt special…they are now a team.   This is new to them.

Our first day at the Kay Anj the kids asked us if we would be taking them to the beach again this year.  We took all of them last year and for most it was their first time ever being in the Ocean.  We told them “La Plage Jeudi”.  The beach Thursday!  They would grin from ear to ear then wrap their arms around our waste and jump up and down! 

When we got to the beach on Thursday the kids stripped down to their underwear, rolled in the sand then jumped in the water!  We got them french fries (for most it was their first time eating fries!) and a coke! 

What a miracle our sewing program is.  Yolande, Luciana and Tanise made their very own skirts last week.  Amazing!  It’s an incredible blessing that the girls will be able to support themselves by sewing when they leave Kay Anj.  Another God moment.

The kids loved the toys, letters, jump ropes, hakki sacks and especially their very own little chalkboards.  Thank you to all who sent these gifts!  You put smiles on the faces of children that don’t have much to smile about.

Bill and the volunteers helped our friend Dr. Ray build an elderly home that will house 8 homeless older adults. 

Bill and MaryLu Hertz were very excited to give away 5 micro loans to groups of women!  MaryLu’s organization is called Empowering Haitians.  

Thank you all for your support of our work in Haiti.  Please take a look at our web album below.  http://picasaweb.google.com/myboywill/KayAnjOrphanageJuly2010?feat=email#

Today we mark six months since the 7.0  earthquake hit Haiti and devastated the capital, Port-au-Prince. It left more than 300,000 people dead and destroyed 280,000 homes and businesses.  Millions continue to struggle today. Recovery efforts continue in Haiti exactly six months after a devastating earthquake that struck the island.  The Aid groups and the Haitian government provide relief, but mountains of rubble remain to be removed.   An estimated 1.5 million Haitians are still homeless, and the arrival of hurricane season raises deep concerns about what might happen in the squalid tent cities of Port-au-Prince.  Please continue to pray for this beautiful country and it’s people.

We are blessed to be leaving early Sunday morning for Cap Haitien, Haiti.  We have a team of 30 wonderful, excited volunteers joining us!  Thank YOU to all who have taken the time to clean out closets, toy rooms, storage rooms etc.

The donations have been overwhelming to say the least.   A box of brand new toys arrived this morning from California, vitamins, letters to our kids at Kay Anj, clothes, fabric for our sewing project, medical supplies and so much more.  We just can’t thank you all enough!!  You are putting smiles on the faces of children that don’t have much to smile about. 

Our plans next week include fixing our solar panel that supplies clean water to our kids at Kay Anj, teaching the kids to sew and knit, teaching the boys basic carpentry, working at the medical clinic, finishing our sister church “Calvary Baptiste” construction, starting a micro loan program with Empowering Haitians, building a home for 4 homeless elderly Haitians.  It’s going to be a busy, wonderful week for all!

Please keep our team in your prayers as we travel to Haiti, share Gods love with the people of Haiti.

We thank you all for all you’re doing to make it possible for us to go and love on our kids at Kay Anj.

We are teaching our Kay Anj kids to sew!  Thanks to Denise for donating 3 treadle sewing machines in her mothers name.  In Haiti when girls are old enough to leave an orphanage they typically have not learned a trade.  As a result, sadly, the girls have to prostitute to earn a living, feed their children etc.  We want our girls (and boys) to learn to sew so that they will not be forced to prostitute to survive.  We have hired 2 Haitian seamstresses who will come to our orphanage twice a week for 3-4 hours each visit.  The kids will learn to make drawstring pajama pants and trendy scarves.

Here’s where you come in…we are upcycling our kids (and adults) “designer” t-shirts!  The kids will make the pajama pants and scarves out of these t-shirts!  We will then sell them on our website, churches, Ebay, Etsy etc…anywhere we can!  When the girls are old enough to leave Kay Anj we will give them the money they’ve earned so that they can begin their new life!  We are investing in our kids so that they can invest in Haiti.

Please email, FB, call us and we’ll come get your t-shirts!  Thank you so very much!  You will be changing the lives of these beautiful kids in Haiti!  debbie@helpinghaitianangels.org .

P.S. we leave for Haiti on July 16th and are in need of some items for our kids…if you can donate any of these please email, call etc.  Debbie@helpinghaitianangels.org .

1. Frisbees (we’re making tambourines out of them)
2. Costume jewlery
3. Decks of cards, or card games.
4. Markers, crayons and colored pencils (we’re going to get a big locking tub to keep them in at the orphanage!)
5. coloring books
6. Bags of candy
7. Jump ropes
8. Bandana’s
9. Hakky Saks
10. baby dolls
11. any kind of balls
12. Legos (used in ziploc bags is great!)
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Please feel free to forward this email to friends and family, thanks!!

Thank you all for your thoughtfulness and generosity.

 

                                                                                        

  Kay Anj Kids We Are the World

 

What an amazing trip we had.  It started with a short drive to Charlotte, NC to get on a Hendrick Motorsports private plane.  The Hendrick staff treated us like family.  We loaded our supplies, met the team of Doctors including Will Conner and his wife Natalie who invited us to join them on this trip.   We did not tell our kids at Kay Anj Orphanage that we were coming.  We pulled up to the gate and Luciana saw us from the second floor balcony.  She began screaming to the other kids that “they’re here!”  We could hear the screams of the kids all the way out in the van!  We had to hold back the tears.  We brought the kids soccer balls and cleats..they were beyond thrilled!  We brought a basketball backstop, hoop and balls…again screams and hugs.  They all got their very first pillow! 

My daughter Becca, my niece Lauren and Ashley Ellington were wonderful with the kids.  They held them, danced with them, colored with them, played duck duck chicken with them, taught them songs, and loved on them.  It was heartwarming. 

On Saturday we met with Pastor Eustache and Archibal to look at the list of applications from families who wanted their children to move into Kay Anj.  We took in 14 new kids including an 18 month old boy named Emli and a 14 month old girl named Bilande.  We met with the director of the Elim school that the kids will attend in September.  It will cost approximately $200 per child for tuition, uniform and books. 

We had a very successful meeting with Dr. Eugene (our pediatrician) and his wife Lidwine.  Lidwine manages seamstresses that will teach our kids how to sew this summer.  We’re very excited about this “program for their future”.  The kids will learn to sew two items (pajama pants and tshirt scarves), and get really proficient at those two items.  We will bring them back to the U.S. and sell them on our website,  to friends, family, church etc.  We will keep the money earned for each child until they are old enough to leave Kay Anj.  We will then give them the money they earned with the items we sold for them.  It will be a wonderful start to their future!  Our goal is to invest in our kids so that they can invest in their country.

We left late Monday.  The kids sang a song to us…this time we could not hold back the tears.  We cried, they cried.  We told them we’d be back in July.  It can’t come soon enough!

Thanks to all of you who donated your soccer balls, cleats, vitamins, first aid supplies, clothes, games, coloring books, pillows and candy.  Please know that the kids get ALL of it!

What a gift!  10 days ago I got a call from Natalie (she found HHA in March on Google and needed an orphanage for 6 siblings to live after the quake) in Charlotte, NC.  She said Hendrick Motosports offered to fly her, her Doctor husband Will Conner and a team of Doctors to Cap Haitien for 5 days on the Hendrick private plane.  Then she asked the most wonderful question….”Debbie, do you want to go with us?”  I didn’t need to think about it for a second…”of course I want to go!”  What are the dates, from where, etc…

Tomorrow my 13 year old daughter, Becca,  will make her first trip to Haiti with me.  I’m thrilled for both of us.  Leila, Lisa, my sister, Laurie, her daughter Lauren (best cousins with my daughter) and my Aunt Robyn will also be going.  We are all beyond excited!  We will be joining Natalie and her team in Charlotte tomorrow and heading to Haiti early Friday morning. 

We told Pastor Eustache and Archibal we  that we would be arriving Friday afternoon at Kay Anj.  We asked him not to tell the kids at the orphanage, that we wanted to surprise them.  When we left in March we told them we’d be back in July and they were so sad.  It will be priceless to see there faces when we arrive!

We would not be having this amazing experience if it weren’t for the generous people at Hendrick Motosports.  Thank you so much Hendrick  Motosports for making this trip possible for us!  We are incredibly grateful and appreciative.

Our goal was five thousand dollars….we made….drum roll please…..NINE thousand dollars!!

What a blessing for our beautiful kids in Kay Anj orphanage.  Please read the email that was sent to the HHA Yard Sale volunteers… There are many more pictures in on our Gallery page.

 

Hello everyone,
When we brought up the idea of a yard sale for HHA about 6 months ago we never imagined it would all come together as beautifully as it did this weekend.  YOU are all HHA BLESSINGS!  We’re in AWE of every one of you.  You all gave up your time, sweat, energy,sleep, love,..you got dirty, sweaty, sticky,….all for HHA and our kids at Kay Anj.  Leila, Lisa, Bill and I are “supposed” to do this…it’s our job and we love it but you all gave you so much to help us for two LONG days.  We LOVE you for it.  Leila, Lisa and I were in tears last night (as we got ready for bed on the church floor with our BB gun!) as we tried to come up with a way to thank you.  I’m not sure we could ever come up with a way to thank you that would express how we feel deep in our hearts for you and all you gave for us.  THANK YOU from the bottom of our hearts.  The bible says that we should SERVE others before ourselves…you all did exactly that…for two days straight!
Thank you Tony for the awesome BBQ and for donating the proceeds to us…so very generous of you!  Michelle P…you let us borrow tables, made price stickers, gave us furniture and then came at the crack of dawn, not to shop but to give us a generous donation.  Deb and Mark…your drinks kept us alive!  Thanks so much for bringing dinner last night to the church and for just being so committed to HHA!  Scott…you are the man!!  actually for a long time on Friday…you were the ONLY man!!  What would we have done without you?  Thank you!  Linda, you are the yard sale machine!  “that’ll be $8, oh you only have $10 well sorry we don’t have $2, just go pick something out worth $2!”  Love it…and you!!  Thank you to all your kids too for helping!  Hannah Y and Will thank you so much for your help!  Schloss family….you win the’ whole entire family award’!  Barry W. thanks for the containers.  and to think we thought we’d only need one or two!! Emily Duvall..the queen of the bake sale!  Thanks for helping both days…all day!  we love you!  That’s actually pretty funny…..
I could go on and on and mention each one of you but you’d all be reading for days…please just know that we will be
forever grateful for all you did for us and HHA this weekend.

Congratulations it’s a boy and a girl and boys and girls!  8 of James’ brothers, sisters and cousins arrived safely from Port au Prince yesterday. You may remember that these are the children who lost their parents in the earthquake.   The two oldest siblings will stay in PaP to finish school for the year.  We will meet them at Kay Anj in June.  The kids were met by Nathanael (our friend who stayed in Haiti for a couple weeks), Pastor Eustache, Archibal and 25 new brothers and sisters!  They each got a kiss on the cheek from all of our Kay Anj kids.  They were given blow pops and coloring books and a tour of their new home.  Nathanael and Archibal said they looked happy, content.  They’ve been through so much in their short lives.  We can’t wait to meet them!  We’ll see them all in July.   Nathanael took lots of pictures but the internet is horrible and he can’t get them to me until he gets home.  I’ll post them when I get them. 

James is trying to figure out what he wants to do and where he wants to go.  He’s afraid to go back to Port au Prince.  He says “the earthquake will find me”.  He would love to come to the U.S. and go to college/university.  We’re looking into that for him.  He’s living with Pastor Eustache for the time being….keeping a close eye on his brothers and sisters.

Thank you all for prayers for this precious family.

James, Bill, Leila, Ashley and Nathanael

Ashley, me and the Kids!

Good Morning everyone,
We just wanted to give you a quick update on our whirlwind trip to Haiti last weekend.
We were apprehensive about what we’d find…skinny kids, their things “missing”, no shoes, no one going to school..
We were overjoyed to find the complete opposite! Bill, Leila and Lisa put Pastor Eustache in charge in January and he is running a wonderful, tight, happy ship!
Adeline, our new head manma from Calvary church, LOVES each of the kids and they love her! We walked in and found them happy (so happy!), healthy, clean and especially…not skinny. They even planted bean seeds and now have beans! Their uniforms had been cleaned and were drying on the railing. Their church shoes were lined up and not to be touched until Sunday. There was a list of chores written and taped to the wall. The food looked so good we thought we might join them…we didn’t!
They were so sad when they heard we were only there for a couple days. We kept telling them Juyet (july).
We met James at the Sacre Couer Hospital in Milot. He has 6 brothers and sisters from age 6 to 16. They lost their father 6 years ago and their mother in the earthquake. His cousin died next to him in the quake and left 4 children ages 6-12. Archibal and James are picking up all 10 children in Port au Prince on Sunday/Monday. Lori, 10, had to have his arm amputated from the quake. James is petrified to go back to PaP. He says “the earthquake will find me”. He also told us to thank everyone who has helped him and his family (all of you) and tell them that “they are of God”. He’s incredibly thankful, grateful that his family will be taken care of.
We talked to all of the manmas, children, Pastor Eustache about welcoming these children as God welcomes all children. told them that at Kay Anj were are all one big happy family and we take care of each other.
They understood.
We now have 35 kids. We were given 12 military cots from another orphanage. We left money to buy mattresses and sheets for the cots. eryone will have a bed!
Dr. Maklin, our Pediatrician, will examine each of the new kids. They will have an HIV test, TB test etc.
We are all very excited about going back in July. Our main focus is going to be on education and teaching the kids a trade so that when they leave Kay Anj they will be able to go out and find employment. We want to love and invest in the kids so that they invest in Haiti’s future.

Thank you all for blessing us so that we can go to Haiti and bless these special kids.

Debbie, Bill and HHA