Today around noon I got a call from a Pastor who just came back from Haiti. He was there during the storm and he lived the experience. As a matter of fact, he was in Port-de Paix. So I asked him to share with me what he had seen ask him for a hurricane update.
One of things that surprised me is that he explained that at least 800 boats in La Tortue were destroyed, and the people of La Tortue were desperate and hungry.
In all the media coverage thoughout this ordeal I never really heard anything mentioned about La Tortue (which is an island located accross from Port-de-Paix). He explained that he went there to provide what he could, and most of all pray with, and for them.
He said the poverty and hungry faces he saw there were unbearable.
Right after I hang up the phone with him today, my mother called to tell me “guess what, you should see on channel 6, they just had a report that a huge boat carrying 154 people coming from La Tortue was just intercepeted and returned back to Haiti.” So his report was confirmed and accurate, what he saw there in La Tortue was despair, hunger and poverty.
He went on to ask me how I can help. He said they need food, but the problem is that the food does not reach the needy. He explained that he personally witnessed the food containers that were supposed to be for the victims being sold, and taken away to private warehouses by people with big guns. This is not the first time that I have heard this kind of report since the 4 hurricanes ravaged Haiti, but this time it was from an eyewitness that I personally know.
He asked me to find a way to help not only La Tortue, but Port-de-Paix as well. A huge part of Port-de. Paix was under water. The other information he shared with me is that a lot of the people lost their lifes through the deadly mudslides, the water, mud and everything washed donwn from the mountain carrying the people. It took 4-5 days to find dead people, attached to young trees or branches.
I promised him that I will do what I can, but I know I cannot do it without help. So visit www.oglhaiti.com today to donate and share the information with your friends & colleagues.
Other desparate calls and e-mails I am getting are from Arcahaie, and Cabaret.
First they are in need of food and water. They lost all their crops. All the banana plantations and other crops are under water. They need to be able to replant. We need to be a able to support these communities by providing food and water and their basic needs while they replant their crops.
Operation Green Leaves will provide the seeds and the support but we cannot do it with your assistance. So please visit our site at www.oglhaiti.com and make your tax deductible donation TODAY.
If you don’t like to donate online, you can mail your donation to Operation Green Leaves Inc. P.O.box 5254, Coral Gables, Florida 33114. We will have a report with pictures of the assistance provided in our next newsletter.
