As I quite often do, when I’m in my office, I’ll have my iTunes collection playing on my computer on “shuffle.”    It always tends to remind me of the varied assortment of music that I enjoy.

Today, the video for We are the World – 25 came on.   I stopped and listened to it and watched the faces on it and a couple of things struck me:

• So many of the “issues” that are talked about in that video are still prevalent in Haiti.   Obviously the situation is dramatically different, but the issues of human value and worth and the need and desire to help those who are less fortunate than us are still there.
• So many of the artists who performed have, as has much of the world, lost interest in Haiti.

Can you do the kids and struggling families in Haiti two favors?

1. Watch the video and really listen to the words.
2. Pray about your involvement in making a difference and that others would be involved as well.

Thanks, see below for the video.

Tom

 

 

At this time last week, I wrote you and told you that we’d topped an important “marker” in that we had over $40,000 raised through TeamGLA and TeamLen (more on them later). I was hoping we could maybe generate another $5,000 so that we’d be over $45,000 by the time of the race and be able to say that we’ve raised the money to build half of the school.

Boy was I wrong…….

Let me paint a couple of snapshots of this week:

The week was full of text messages, FB messages, rooming arrangements (for the out of town runners), food arrangements, “last minute” donations and all kinds of details. Throughout it all, more and more people heard the story and more and more people said things like, “that’s awesome, I want to help.” And the balances kept climbing…….

The generosity of people who aren’t immediately connected to GLA was truly astounding. From Kelly (a friend of one of the runners) who is a professional chef and prepared and donated a lot of the food for the team dinner (and then promptly left as soon as she delivered it – because it was “not about her,” to Shannon who came and worked in the kitchen the whole evening to make sure the event went well, to John, my favorite pig roaster who was up several times Thursday night to make sure the pig was being done “right.”

And the balances kept climbing

One of the more unique things that I’ve done recently happened Thursday night. A local butcher donated a pig for the team dinner for Friday night. For it to stay as “cold” as possible until it was on the heat, it had to be picked up at 9:00 at night.

So, picture me pulling up to an almost completely dark butcher shop. Only one light was on.

The butcher and I walk back into the meat locker and examine a number of pigs and select the “one.” 109 lbs of dead pig………

And as I drove away with a dead, bagged and donated pig in the back of a borrowed pick up, in the dark, the balances kept climbing.

As John and I got the pig “going” on the roaster at 11:00 that night (17 to 18 hours to do it well), the balances kept climbing. Oh and did I mention that John was out there at least three times during the night, in the rain, to make sure that it was being “done” right?

And the whole time, the balances kept climbing.

Friday morning, a check of the online donations show that throughout the night, the balances kept climbing. By now, we were up over $50,000!

There were friends and supporters who helped set up the church for the team dinner throughout the day. And the balances kept climbing.

A trip downtown Grand Rapids to pick up registration packets for the Ann Arbor folks gave multiple opportunities to tell the GLA story as someone carrying 22 registration packets attracts a good bit of attention.

Friday night, we had close to 100 people join us for dinner. One of the things that really amazed me about the group is what a diverse and ordinary group it was. There were people of all ages and all sizes. There were at least 4 Haitians taking part in it. Everyone was just an ordinary someone and together we made a big difference.

I got home Friday night and checked the online balances at www.teamgla.org and saw that the balances kept climbing.

Saturday was the big day of the race – it dawned way after we had all gotten up and it was cold and dreary. But our spirits weren’t (at least not most of us). We were being used to make a difference.

And as we’re getting ready to head down to the starting line, a couple of team members said, “Hey, I have some more money for you!”

That always helps warm the heart on a cold morning.

All together, there were over 80 of us who walked, ran or limped various distances over the course of the morning. Some of us went 5K (3.1) miles (like me) and some went the distance 25K (15.5 miles). All of us had the same goal in mind:

We were doing this so the kids at GLA could have a better place to live while they waited for their forever family.

And the balances kept climbing.

As of early on Monday afternoon, we are up over $55,000 (that’s right, $15,000 in the last 8 days) and the balance is continuing to climb.

We’re just a bunch of normal people who care about the kids in Haiti and wanted to do something for them. We thought it would be a small thing, but building almost 3/4 of the school is more than a small thing.

God has done great things through the efforts of ordinary people.

A couple of other details:

• It’s not too late to donate. The www.teamgla.org page will be kept up until it has been a week and no one has used it. Then we’ll put it “in storage” until next year’s run.
• We need about $27,000 yet to finish the school and a LOT more than that to finish the entire project. So we’ll take any help we can get.
• If you’d like to take part next year, mark the 2nd Saturday in May for the running of the 2nd Annual TeamGLA event.

Below this post, you’ll see a random assortment of pictures from the Friday night dinner and the Saturday race. I’ve tried to label them well enough so as to make them understandable. Enjoy and thank you again for your support of the kids!

Tom

I got this in an e-mail this morning:

Hi, Tom – the Sunday school students are our church did a fundraising event for GLA two weeks ago. The church will be sending a check for $437.00 for the building fund. We also have a few people who have signed up to sponsor via the website and many are bring in donations for us to take to GLA when we travel. It will take a few weeks to get the check approved and sent off, but it will be coming as soon as we are able.

The kids worked in teams:

• One team make posters about Haiti (pictures and facts), had Haiti products and food for people to try.
• A second team did a poster about GLA, including the current buildings and programs.
• A third team did a poster on how you can help, including child and school sponsorship, as well as items most needed at GLA to donate.
• And the fourth team did a poster and information on Fort Jacques.

We showed the GLA video as well. They even gave up time over spring break to work on the posters. For a small Sunday school group (approximately 10, ages 4-14) and a church of mostly those living on fixed incomes, I think these kids were pretty successful!

God has truly made places in their hearts for orphans, and I look forward to bringing our daughter into such a loving church community. Many blessings on raising the rest of the funds for Fort Jacques!

I have to admit, I don’t know Mona or Maudeline personally that well. Given the language barrier and the fact that I’m not in Haiti that much, that’s not an uncommon thing.

But I share in the pain and the loss that they both feel. I can’t imagine losing a child (or in Maudeline’s case – two) and having two young children missing their mother. The pain that all of them feel is probably indescribable. The pain that our staff in Haiti is feeling – well, imagine what you’d feel like if a close friend of yours lost a family member.

Since both of these terrible events happened, I’ve had a number of people raise a couple of questions to me (not that they expect me to answer them but just part of processing the pain):

• Why? Why did God call these two mothers home at a time when their children and families needed them?
• Why? Why is medical care in Haiti so much below the standards of the first world that what might have been just a serious medical condition became a fatality? (Please note, I do NOT know any details but I believe it is safe to say that both of them had a better chance at survival if they had the caliber of medical care that is available in the 1st world)
• So, what do we do? Well, I know that at times like this prayer seems so little but talking to God on behalf of those who mourn and who have to pick up the pieces of life is very important.

But let me throw out another analogy that can hopefully shed some light on the “why?” of it all. I’ve told a number of our supporters before that we are, I believe, living in a time that can best be compared to living in Europe between June 6, 1945 and the end of the war. We know who is going to eventually win the war, but there is an awful lot of fighting going on yet. The battles are far from over and the enemy is going to fight with every single weapon that he has. He won’t win the ultimate war, but in the last week, he has won a couple of battles.

With that in mind, can I ask you to:

• Pray for the families of those who passed away. Pray especially for the children and the mothers whose lives are now radically different than they were. Pray for Joanne’s husband.
• Pray for the GLA staff. Pray that they would have the strength to carry on and would be able to grieve in appropriate ways and at appropriate times.
• Continue to support our staff in Haiti by making sure that they have the resources to do what they need to do to not only care for the kids but also fend off the attack of the devil as he is obviously making it harder for us to do what we need to do.

Thank you for sharing in the grief of so many. Thank you for remaining strong in your commitment to care for the kids in Haiti – even in spite of these obstacles…….

God is at work – we don’t see His plan but we know He’s fighting the forces of evil.

Tom

So, we’re down to 6 days until most of TeamGLA is out pounding the pavement to help the big kids at GLA get a new home. How are we doing at raising the funds? Well, if you go to www.teamgla.org, you’ll see that we’re up over $20,000 in online donations.

That in itself is a cause for celebration! It is truly wonderful to see so many people wanting to do their part for the kids at GLA.

But it gets better! Tomorrow I’ll share with you the story of one very special man and the difference that he is making, but over the weekend we received a couple of substantial donations toward the efforts of TeamGLA and I’m pleased to let you know that we are 1/2 way to the goal of finishing the school building. That’s right, over $40,000 has been raised toward the cost of building the school!

Can you help us finish the school? If everyone does a little, we can accomplish a lot. If everyone asks 10 friends to donate $5, that would multiply the benefit even more.

Go to www.teamgla.org and pick one of the runners to donate to – or just donate to the Team.

Can we raise the rest of the $82,500 it’s going to take to build the school yet?

No, we can’t, but God can.

Will you allow Him to use you to do that?

Pray about what He wants you to do for the kids at GLA who need to move to Ft. Jacques.

Tom

Yesterday, I had the difficult job of bringing you, our supporters, the news that one of our staff had suffered an unbelievable tragedy. To lose two children in 3 years time is too hard to imagine.

While sharing the news and asking for prayer, I also asked for assistance with covering the costs of Maudeline’s daughter’s funeral. In Haiti, the cost of a funeral in relation to someone’s annual income is well beyond what most people can afford. To say that it was a pending financial hardship for Maudeline was an understatement.

While we could have helped with the cost without asking for additional support, it was decided to ask you for a couple of reasons:

• We wanted you to know and be able to pray for Maudeline and the rest of her children and her grand children as they deal with this tragedy.
• Maudeline has made a difference in so many lives – the lives of the kids at GLA but the lives of many of the parents as well. We felt that it was important to give people, people like you and me, the opportunity to support Maudeline and say thank you in this way.

Could we have come up with the $1,300 out of the general operating funds, yes we could. God supplies our every need when we need it. So I have no doubt that the funds would be there because they were needed.

But by doing it the way we did, a couple of things happened:

• Maudeline was able to see God moving through the hearts and wallets of people all over the world. It was truly a blessing and a relief to her in this difficult time.
• Many of you who donated wrote me and thanked us for allowing them to “give back” to someone in need who has made a difference for so many. I saw God in the generosity of so many of you and in your thanking me for the chance to help.
• Our ongoing costs of maintaining the orphanage have not been impacted.

We promise that we will not bring every “little” need that is part of running the orphanage to you. Opportunities to pull one of our own back from the brink of disaster is a good thing and we greatly appreciate your willingness to help Maudeline in her time of need.

Thank you for caring and for helping,

Tom Vanderwell

E-mail us

Many of my fellow GLA staff and others I know in Haiti often comment on how fine a line it is between poverty and disaster in Haiti. So many people in Haiti live day to day, some times hour to hour and it takes very little to push them “over” the edge and into disaster.

One of our own fell over that edge today. Many of you know Maudeline, a long time part of the GLA family. Maudeline’s life has not been easy. In 2010 in the earthquake, one of her sons died when his high school fell on him. His body was never recovered.

This morning, another one of Maudeline’s children passed away. Her daughter, age 31, passed away from complications from TB. She left behind a 3 year old and a 6 year old. Maudeline left this morning to go work on making arrangements.

I can’t fathom the grief of losing one son in the earthquake and now to lose another child from TB. Please pray for Maudeline as she attempts to deal with the grief and struggles that this means.

But there are a couple of realities that we need your help with – and we need that help today:

• The funeral arrangements are going to cost approximately $1,300. Now that doesn’t seem like a lot, until you look at the average income in Haiti. That puts the relative cost of this funeral up in the $40,000 plus range in “US” costs. They are hoping to bury her Monday but can’t do that without the costs being covered. Can you click on the US Paypal link (directly to the right) and make a donation to cover part of that?
  
• In order to plan the funeral for Monday, we really need to know the money is going to be there by 5:00 PM today. Yes, that’s right, we need to raise $1,300 to help one of our own bury her daughter and we need to do it in the next 5 hours.

Once again, on the right side of this page, you’ll see two PayPal buttons – click on the one that’s right for where you live and let’s show Maudeline that we’re there for her in her grief.

That’s part 1 of what we need to help Maudeline with. Part 2 is the new reality that she’s facing. Suddenly Grandma has two new mouths to feed, two new responsibilities, two kids who depend on her for everything while they grieve the loss of their mother.

We would like to be able to give Maudeline a “boost” with that new reality. We’d like to be able to help her with those costs and take the financial stress out of this time period. Would you commit to supporting Maudeline for 12 months with a monthly donation to GLA? This would go a long ways in terms of helping with the extras that she’s now facing. How much are we thinking? Well, let’s put it this way, $100 a month would go a LONG ways towards helping her through this rough period.

Step 1 – go to http://godslittlestangelsinhaiti.org/ and click on the paypal button on the right side and do what you can to help with Maudeline’s funeral expenses. Then, click on gla-usa@glahaiti.org and e-mail us to let us know how much you donated so we can make sure it gets used for the right thing.

Step 2 – if you are so inclined, go to http://glahaiti.org/credit_card_donations and set up a monthly donation and then e-mail us at gla-usa@glahaiti.org so that we know and can use the funds for the right things.

Thank you in advance for helping one of our staff in a time of severe need. Thank you for supporting her and all of our staff in prayer.

Tom

So, today, May 2, is the National Day of Prayer in the United States. I was thinking about what to write about with it (given that I talk about prayer a good bit) and then I came across this article:

http://www.lauraleighparker.com/2012/03/stress-missionary/

I’ll give you a quick overview:

• Normal stress levels are under 200 (on some scale, I don’t remember it)
• A study of missionaries showed their stress levels at well over 600. Keep in mind, 200 is the level where your doctor sits you down and gives you the “if you don’t…….” speech.

In other words, missionaries typically have average stress levels that are 3 times what is considered potentially a significant health hazard.

So, with that being said, please join me in:

• Pray for our staff at GLA in Haiti, Dixie, John, Molly, Joyce (and the list goes on) as they deal with the stress that they face on a daily basis.
• Pray for the missionaries around the world who are caring for the least of the least
• I’ve talked to a couple of people with other organizations who have said that three years later they are still facing emotional challenges from the earthquake. Pray for all who deal with the after effects of that.
• Pray for all of us, outside of places like Haiti, so that we might have an extra measure of patience, support and encouragement for those on the front lines. Pray also that we would be generous in ways that would help and reduce stress levels and not increase them.

Thanks for praying for our staff and our kids. We appreciate and covet the support.

Tom

Okay, I have a confession to make. As a dad with a busy schedule, I do not do nearly as well as I should showing my wife how grateful I am for what she does for our family and especially our kids.

Well, for all of you who haven’t done that as well as you should, here’s an opportunity to change that……

Jenna has made some Mother’s Day cards where the front pictures are drawn by our kids at the Toddler House. They would be great cards for mothers, grandmas etc. But you have to act fast…….

Go to http://godslittlestangelsstore.com/ and order Mother’s Day cards by Monday morning, May 6, and Jenna will do her absolute best to get them out in time that you can use them for this year.

Mother’s day is coming – wouldn’t this be a great way to show your Mom you care but also help the kids at GLA?

Thanks for caring!

Tom

What numbers?

5, 2, 22, 83, 6,150, 983, 2, 4, at least 30, 1 and Countless

What do they mean?

5 – the number of classrooms full (stacked 6 to 7 ft. tall) of furniture that a local school system donated to GLA.

2 – the number of semi trailers we have that are full of furniture that either we can’t use in Haiti or would be too expensive to send down on a container. Do you know anyone setting up or needing to furnish a school?

22 – the number of people who volunteered their time to help sort, stack, disassemble and pack furniture

83 – the number of kids who came to the US immediately after the earthquake.

6,150 – the number of pounds of scrap metal we hauled away of furniture that had “outlived” its useful life.

983 – the number of pieces of useful furniture that were donated

2 – the number of basketball backboards that are on their way to Haiti

4 – the number of really big lunch room tables that will be wonderful in the new school house

at least 30 – the number of times that I’ve been at the school working at organizing, loading and coordinating this donation.

1 – the number of Aunts of one of our “Haiti 80” (actually 83) who asked the school system, “So what are you going to do with the furniture in that school?

Countless – the value of the furniture that GLA will be using in Haiti that vastly exceeds the cost of getting it there.

These are a lot of numbers. The numbers don’t tell the whole story – but they tell part of the story.

God is in these numbers – because He urged an Aunt of one of the Haiti 80 to ask a question, GLA will benefit.

So, when can you ask a question that will help the kids?

Tom

P.S. The pictures below are of the truck leaving for Colorado with the furniture that will end up in Haiti.