Hi All:
While I will not leave for Haiti til next weekend, I wanted to give you 3 quick updates/requests:

1. Rod Wray informed us that the police allow no vehicular traffic to be on the roads for the elections, so we will just stay at the hospital (the Wrays won’t even have the Sunday School/Feeding Program as not allowed to travel except on foot to the voting places). However, what that means for our patients who need to come to be seen and scheduled for/have surgery is an item of prayer please. Some may leave before the restrictions apply, but, given the violence that often accompanies activities in Haiti, the clamp down is reasonable but difficult for our patients. When one thinks of all the people in Haiti who try to go to school to better themselves, often at great expenses for the family, as “working your way through school” doesn’t seem to be a principle practiced, and there really are very few jobs available, it sets the stage for the “entitlement mentality” that makes it easy for those who seem to enjoy stirring up trouble to find people eager to join them for a time and cripple an already struggling economy. I suppose we have some of the same even in the US, it isn’t as widespread yet, at least.

2. Although the insurance again sent me a bill for expenses they feel I owe for chemotherapy and TPN of a bit over $16,000, my determined and helpful friend and coworker, Jory, at least has been able to get the agency to resubmit the bills with the promise that more should be reimbursed to them, again, like the doctors training in Haiti, we are thankful for the encouraging promises but would love to see the final decisions in writing.

3. This is one that I will just send on the request as informational technology was not a class offered in “Donkey School,” for me. With Drs. William and Adulte leaving the compound, John Vrooman, who is a long time missionary friend in Haiti who helps others with communication needs, asked me to see if I could get an “Old AT&T IPhone4S or I Phone 5 from someone that they no longer use and would be willing to contribute to the cause, he could hook that up so they can communicate with me through the Haitian Natcom and Digicel system” He just stressed that it has to be from AT&T as that is compatible with the Haitian systems. This would allow them to contact me if they had questions or problems (as we do with the internet phone we have at the hospital, doesn’t always work, but when available, helps with communication and resolution of problems). This also would allow me to arrange times with them when I could connect with them on my trips to or from the hospital through Port, as we can give them the finances we are supplementing their meager government salary ($140/month IF they get it and often not on time) so they can support their families, etc, plus other supplies for their work, etc, without disrupting their duties at the hospital. So, if that makes sense to you who are less IT challenged than I and you have an outdated phone and charger, we would gladly try to let John set this up for them.

Thanks in advance for all you all do to support, encourage and help us as we serve Him in Haiti.

In His Service,

Bill, Brianna, Butch, Dan, Dave, Margie, Paul, Tabitha, Teri and Tia