Haiti--Bayonnais

At the end of January, I returned to Haiti! I was there for 2 weeks. The first was spent in Bayonnais with a group from Montreat and Charlotte, NC. The second was back in Port-au-Prince with Haiti Outreach Ministries.

Not much had changed at the airport. There is a new $10 fee to enter the country but that isn't much compared to many places. All of our bags came through though it did take some time. Another mission group had used the same bright green duct tape on their bags which was a little confusing. Got out to the school bus that would take us the 3+hours north to Bayonnais to find the reverse beep was broken and now ON all the time that the bus is on. Not a bad rode though the last hour is off the highway and very bumpy (I'm used to off roading). We were even more relieved than normal to get off the beeping bus!

The US organization that helps in Bayonnais is Friends of OFCB. The Haitian organization is OFCB. Operation Force Christ of Bayonnais. It is now headed by Pastor Actionnel Fleurisma. In 1993 he helped to start a school in his home village of Bayonnais with 105 students and 3 teachers. Now there are more than 1,700 students in kindergarten thru 13th grade. And they have started 2 satellite schools for the children who have been walking for 2 hours to get to school! Want to sponsor a student?

There is also a church there that has grown from a small cinder block church to a larger space used for education classes and community meetings. Along with a clinic for healthcare, and agriculture program, a local bank with a micro-credit loan facility many great things are going on in Bayonnais. Graduates are returning from university to work in Bayonnais at the school and in the clinic.

It is a very friendly area and there is always someone aaround who would live to practice their English, share ideas and ask and answer questions. I visited briefly in 2013 when mom was down with FOFCB and am glad I had the opportunity to return.