It was 5:45 pm on January 12, 2010 that we received a phone call that glued us to the T.V. for hours. We watched the news unfold of the massive earthquake in Haiti knowing that our oldest son, Benjamin, was there on a mission’s trip with three other young men from Lancaster. We watched the devastation and prayed. Finally after what seemed like an eternity (4 hours), one of the parents got a text message that simply said “We are all okay.”
The next 10 days became quite an experience for them. They developed a deep bond of friendship among themselves and the people that they were there to serve. Their primary purpose in Haiti was to make a landscape nursery and set up an irrigation system to adequately water the young plants until they reach a point that they can be transplanted and survive on their own. The next phase was to educate the Haitians in an effort to turn back all the years of deforestation of the mountains as well as to begin to grow charcoal to use as firewood for cooking. They are planning another trip this coming January. (Due to all the political unrest in Haiti, the trip is postponed until Spring 2011.)
I have never done this before, but after reading that there is over a billion dollars of U.S. earthquake aid still being held up because of fears of corruption within the Haitian government, I decided to add this tab. The recent flooding of Haiti and the Cholera outbreak only added more reason to my decision.
One fear that most of us have of donating money and resources is “Will it get to the intended recipients?” We have personal experience with “Feed My Sheep” ministry because of our son’s trip to Haiti. We had the privilege of meeting with the head of that Haitian ministry when they came to Lancaster this past summer. There is a local doctor and his wife who have been heavily involved with that organization for many years.
I will never know “who” but if you feel the desire to help a people devastated by an earthquake, flooding and now Cholera, checks can be made out and sent to “Feed My Sheep Ministries” (water project on the memo line) c/o Dr. & Mrs. William Longenecker, 811 Lincoln Road, Lititz, PA 17543. They will send you a receipt for tax purposes.
There is absolutely no pressure with this tab, only information. If you would like more information, go to :
www.feedmysheep-ministries.org
Thanks,
Royce Wingert
