Hello All:
We are back in warm Michigan, having had a pretty uneventful trip home except that we were delayed a while in Port au Prince as the police and the newly organized army are working on cutting down on crime by stopping vehicles, checking paperwork and things transported and generally making their presence known. A good idea, but it totally stopped traffic on our way into Port, so that we moved 2 miles in as many hours, often not creeping forward for a while as motorcycles weaved their way through the stopped traffic and several vehicles went on the opposite side of the barrier (a common practice even the police can be guilty of) but this time, they did stop at least one that we saw, so maybe there is hope for a wee bit more orderly driving practices). They don’t seem to crack down on other violations, such as running lights, headlights, blinkers, brake lights or any such nonessential accessories, so it will be a while before we come up to US standards of driving. We also were hung up for a while in Chicago as they didn’t load us with enough fuel to get home, so had to wait quite a while to have more added. That, too, I suppose, would be a desirable goal to be achieved for safe travel.

So, I am thankful to be back home, able to work today around a trip to the oncology office. By God’s grace, we were able to undergo the next (6th) round of immunotherapy. I think I am tolerating it well, just spending more time in my favorite little office of rest, so glad that I can squeeze the rest visits between patients in the larger office scene. I think the routine has been established and I only have to get blood drawn 2 out of 3 Mondays now, so hoping my blood counts will recover and creep back up to more close to normal, along with more energy? Maybe wishful thinking but keep trying to be positive. In a few weeks, we will repeat the CT scan and get an idea if the therapy is doing anything to the cancer. So, praying for a positive result from Dr. Bartlett, whose reading is the most reliable in my opinion, as he knows what he left behind inside and has done over 1,000 of these operations over the years.

Dr. William couldn’t connect up with us, but we did visit with his wife and the 5 sons as I passed over the 18 pounds of surgical text to her to give to him (I did buy the 2 volume set as lugging 18 pounds of book around could get a bit tiring). He soon will start the 3rd year, should give him more free time and a chance to see the kids, etc. They do farm the surgical residents off to various destinations for further training, hopefully it will be close to home, in country and affordable. Dr. Moise seems to be doing well, he is looking into trying to obtain a vehicle and we appreciated the advice of Mike VerKaik as to how to look into a used vehicle’s condition when purchasing them. The hospital itself is running well, thankfully, and so starting to work on rebuilding the physical therapy department, then need to find a Christian dentist who would be willing to do something similar to what I do for the hospital for the dental department, help establish good practices, find and train Christian staff and help us obtain reasonable used equipment.  We are open to any willing and suitable candidates.

Am looking into tickets for future trips but it appears that the airlines are considering Haiti an “unprofitable destination” and reducing availability of flights there, a bummer, as I need to fly straight through with my cold packed TPN and other fluids to get to the hospital before they get too warm to remain safe for infusion. So, appreciate prayer as buying tickets for September, October and December at this point.

As always, many thanks for your prayers, support and encouragement.

In His Service,

Ben, Dave, Duane, Josh, Kurt, Mike, MIchael and Bill