Update on Construction at Anija

Here's a couple of pictures of Anija's campus.

Our new soccer field (almost)! Lots of progress has been made but there's still a few more things to do before the kids can start playing on it.

This is where the ABC house was located. It was one of our oldest building at Anija and was used for classes with the Haitian kids. This year the space will be used as a volleyball court but our future goal is to build a gymnasium in the next couple of years.

The two classrooms upstairs were finished this summer by work teams and a crew of Dominicans. The seventh and eighth graders are using these classrooms.

A random cockroach I drowned with bug spray. I accidentally grabbed the bug spray for 'flying insects' instead of cockroaches. It was a foam spray so one squirt didn't do anything, hence I sprayed a whole bunch.

My New Motorcycle!

I BOUGHT A MOTORCYCLE!

I had originally raised support to buy a motorcycle but ended up borrowing a pasola for the last year. Finally, I decided to upgrade from a pasola (which is more like a scooter) and buy a motorcycle of my own. One big reason for buying a new motorcycle was that I didn't have the title for the pasola I was driving as the owner now lives in the States, and not having the title has turned out to be a big problem. Also, pasolas aren't very strong. I always felt bad when a passenger had to get off and walk up a hill because the pasola didn't have enough power. My motorcycle now has gears but not a clutch. Finally, a new KAI missionary arrived about 2 weeks ago and needs a form of transportation. I remember how hot it was to walk everywhere (especially to Spanish tutoring which is a mile and a half away) in the hottest months of the year, August and September. So now that I bought a motorcycle, she can use the pasola until she feels ready to buy her own. I'm so thankful I had funds to purchase a motorcycle although it was a little more expensive than I anticipated. It really is a blessing to have transportation. :)

And when you think of me, please pray for safety!

Delivering the Backpacks

After spending the day with some of the new kids on site, we loaded up about 40 backpacks and set off to three of the Children's Homes. These were the homes that have already been established for about six years. We let the kids choose a backpack and watched them open them. They were so excited as they pulled out toys, school stuff, and clothes! Thank you to everyone who gives donations to organizations like Kids Alive! You ARE making a difference and blessing many peoples' lives. :)

Kids Alive Haiti

Here are some pictures of our current Kids Alive site in Haiti.

This is the school where all of our kids that are living in our Children's Homes as well as some community kids go to school.

The bottom level was the house of the last missionary family that was here but is now used for offices and guests (where we stayed). The top floor is the team house where work teams stay. The 8 or 9 kids that hadn't been moved into the Residential homes yet have been staying in the team house.

These are a few of the tents that were built about a month after the earthquake. We've received so many kids and for the long term that we decided to rent houses instead of have them sleep in the tents. The tents will be used as school rooms as we now need more space for school.

PRAISE GOD FOR PROVIDING!

Spending a Day with the New Kids

Friday was pretty low-key as Jenilea and I stayed at the Kids Alive site while Jeff went looking for land to buy.During the the day I really enjoyed playing with the 8 or 9 kids that hadn't been placed in homes yet. We spent an hour just taking pictures in the morning. In the afternoon I pushed some of the kids on the swings, played games, and did handstands with them. Other than spending time with the kids, Jenilea and I unpacked and sorted 13 huge duffel bags that were full of donations. International Order of the Kings Daughters and Sons donated over 150 backpacks packed with school supplies, toys, clothes, and a personal note. They also donated tons of shirts and pants for school uniforms.

As I mentioned earlier, Jeff went to look at a new and bigger property to buy in hopes of building a residential site (like the Ark here in Jarbacoa) to move all the kids to. Praise the Lord, Jeff was able to purchase the land! As of now, we have four work teams scheduled to help with construction, two teams in the fall and two more in January.

Love this picture!

Playing on the swings- I think some of the kids had never been on a swing before.

They loved playing soccer...

and playing with my hair. :)

The first few bags had tons of shirts and pants for school uniforms for the new kids.

Here's all the backpacks!

All these things were in one of the backpacks. It was amazing to see how much was donated.

A view of the new Kids Alive property!!

Still taking pictures :)

Prayers Please!

Yesterday I woke up feeling a little overwhelmed. There are many things on my mind. Two more friends have gotten engaged this week (congrats Elise and Ashleigh!) and I've missed at least 4 more other weddings of friends in the last month or so. I miss my friends. As for work, Anija started today and I'm definitely not ready in the library. I helped with English classes today but found out that I might be co-teaching English for the whole year instead of being a helper for the first month or so. I don't see how I'll have time to co-teach English and be the librarian, the Sponsorship Coordinator, help with Awana, organize and go on home visits, tutor 7th grade math one afternoon a week, and help with volleyball. And as most of you know I went to Haiti recently for two nights and had a great experience loving on the kids there. I must have been thinking I didn't really need time to process and reflect on the trip seeing how it was only for two nights but I've found myself more emotional and thinking about the kids there and the country in general. On another note, my mom called me a couple days ago and said she has reservations to come visit me in one week from today! What a surprise! I will be so happy to get some good "Momma Bailey hugs." They are the best. So I ask for your prayers this week, that I may bring these things to the Lord instead of dwell on them and that I may have joy in all that I do this coming year.

Meeting the New Haitian Kids!

We finally arrived at the Kids Alive site and only 24 hours earlier 33 new Haitian kids from Port-a-Prince had also arrived. Most of these kids had been living at an orphanage down in Port-a-Prince before the earthquake and all of them had been living in a tent city or refugee camp since the earthquake happened and as the orphanage and other homes weren't stable or safe enough to sleep in. The food supply from relief efforts had stopped after about 3 months and sadly, the director/financial donor of the orphanage died in the earthquake so the kids had no where to go and no direction in how to make things better.

That's when God gave Kids Alive an opportunity to help. In June we started receiving these kids little by little and now have about 60 new kids in our care. We are renting houses and hired 4 more sets of Christian house parents. Watching the kids disperse into their new families was one of the coolest things I've witnessed. It was such a special night of sitting with the kids and slowly breaking the ice and communication barrier by smiling at them, sitting next to them, and of course taking pictures with them. As you'll see in a couple of the pictures, each kid had a black bag with some donated clothes that they got to pick out earlier in the day. That was LITERALLY all they had as they entered their new home (which is probably the nicest home they'll ever live in).

This is one of the KAI Children's Homes.

Playing Silent Soccer

The first thing we did was stop by one of the Children's Homes that new kids would be living in. As Jeff and some others talked, Jenilea and I were outside playing with the house parents two kids. It was the funniest and most awkward soccer 'game' I've played. We literally did not say one word the whole time. Initially I would start to say something in Spanish (my "go to" language when someone doesn't understand English) but then I rememebered that they don't speak Spanish, only Creole. So we simply communicated by smiling, laughing, and throwing our hands up in the air when we missed the ball. Therefore, I though "Silent Soccer" was a good phrase to describe our soccer game.

(Almost) Stolen Camera

After we arrived in Cap Haitian, we loaded up about 16 huge duffel bags of donations in a Kids Alive truck and headed to the KAI site. The truck was a 1975 army truck. The bags were loaded on top of a rack and we sat on a bench in the back of it. The town was very crowded, and unlike the DR there weren't very many motorcycles whizzing by. The buildings were all crammed together and there was quite a bit of trash on the ground. As I looked at the buildings I couldn't help but image how they could have easily crumbled just like the buildings in Port-a-Prince did from the earthquake.

We made our way through the town and just as Jeff (the KAI Field Director) was telling us that we need to be more discrete about taking pictures here than in the DR, a man hopped off a motorcycle and as we slowed down he run up and grabbed for Jenilea's camera but caught her arm instead! Jeff jumped towards him and yelled, "NO!" as we sped off. Let's just say we were a little more careful (and a little paranoid) after that.

The sweet truck we got to ride in although it wasn't sweet to have a man grab Jenilea's arm!

Jenilea and Mano (he works with Kids Alive in Haiti) with all the bags and boxes of donations.

Part of Cap Haitian.

Another view of Cap Haitian.

Poop in the River

Wow. What an experience it's been so far after only one day. The drive over went well. I got a little nervous once we crossed the border as I saw all these Haitian boys already eying us on the bus (we were the only Americans or white people on the bus). But when we stepped out, they actually didn't bother us very much, I was surprised! We filled out a form, turned it in, and we were on our way. Okay, so here goes story number one.

Poop in the River

As we were waiting to get off the bus at the border, I was looking out the bus window and I saw a little boy squatting next to the river. As I continued to watch I noticed that the little boys pants were pulled down, that there was a pile of something underneath him, and there was a woman (mom?) standing near by. Jenilea and I sat there and watched as we hoped it wasn't what we thought it was. The little boy had indeed gone poop in the open public as we watched the mom wipe him (he looked about 4 years old) with who knows what and then continue by tearing a paper plate in half, scooping up the little boys poop, and tossing it in the river where I had just taken pictures of people bathing and doing their laundry.

These are the people who might have seen what was thrown into the river as I described earlier.

There was just a little bit of trash...

everywhere!

The river marks the border between the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Back From Haiti!

We are back from Haiti, safe and very tired! The trip to Cap Haitien took about 8 hours both ways. We took Caribe Tours on the way there (kind of like a Grey Hound bus) and took our own transportation on the way back. I journaled during my time in Haiti so I'll start from the beginning and add in pictures where they fit. Thanks for your prayers always!

Remember to post your comments, I love hearing from you!

I'm Going to Haiti!

I'm so excited to tell you that I am heading to Cap Haitian, Haiti tomorrow at 10am. I'll be going with our Field Director, his son, and my roommate Jenilea for two nights. I have wanted to go to Haiti since coming to the DR and my desire to go has grown since meeting the Haitian boys we've received because of the earthquake back in January. As many of you know, after the earthquake Kids Alive built a Tent City (enough for 50 kids and house parents) where our ministries are located in Cap Haitian and although it has been ready to receive kids since March we just started receiving kids in June and July. As of now we have 44 kids who came from Port-a-Prince and apparently we are receiving 30 new kids from Port-a-Prince a couple hours before we arrive tomorrow! Seeing as we have so many kids, the kids are actually living in rented houses with house parents and we are planning on opening up the Tent City we built as a school for these kids.

We will be bringing lots of bags of donations with us tomorrow and Jenilea and I will help sort through stuff on Friday. Jeff (the Field Director) is hoping to buy land on Friday where we are planning to build a residential site (like the Ark here in Jarabacoa) for these kids. I'm not sure of many more details other than that but I'm hoping to love on all the kids I meet. I think it will be good to see where our Haitian kids and families that we work with came from and help me understand the things I've heard about Haiti.

We will be staying at our team house there so I know we will be taken care of. Please pray for safe travels as we cross the border, for the new kids to arrive safely from Port-a-Prince, and that my eyes and heart will be open to the things God wants to show me during this experience.

May God bless you this week!

Julie-Anne

James 1:27 " Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Today marks ONE YEAR since I moved to the Dominican Republic!

Here are some ways I’ve changed during my first year in the DR-

~ I am more adventurous

~ I am more independent

~ I am more grateful

~ I am more of a traveler

~ I am more flexible, although not quite a ‘go with the flow’ type of person yet

~ I am more open to following where God wants to take me

~ I am a Spanish-speaker!

Some things I’d like to do in the next year-

* Visit our Kids Alive site in Haiti

* Share my testimony in Spanish

* Find more sponsors for the kids at Anija and the Ark

* Spend more time with my students outside of Anija

* Have more family and friends visit me

* Have clarity on where God wants in the future

* Continue encouraging fellow missionaries and Dominican friends to be active and healthy!

Here are some pictures from the last year:

Jarabacoa

Anija students

Two of my closest friends in the DR, Loida and Michel.

Visiting two of our students' house.

Constanza

Tubing down the river in Jarabacoa with the summer interns.

English class with 4th grade!

The Little Things

Sometimes I don't realize how little things build up stress in my life. I wish I was more of a "go with the flow" kind of person than I am. I know that things like being pulled over by the AMED (the police who took my pasola) are going to happen and I can't spend my time fearing what could happen but i think it's good to recognize the little things that make me tired/stressed.

Since my motorcycle was taken away I've had one close call with the AMED, even though i was wearing my helmet and doing nothing wrong (they tried to flag me down but i didn't make eye contact and just kept driving, which is what I've been told to do). One of my roommates has even been pulled over in her car at least twice since being here, and all the police officer wanted was to know if she had a boyfriend and if she would go out with him.

I also found out that it's not uncommon for motorcycles and pasolas to have the same key ignition. My friend and I exchanged keys and we were both able to start each others motorcycle/pasola (I have even changed my keys since I started driving my pasola). And as you can imagine driving in general here is kind of insane (there are basically no rules, at least none that Dominicans follow). I get anxious just going to the store or the bank as I anticipate how many guys are going to make "gringa," "dame una VISA," "I love you" comments, and kissing sounds (that's the worst). These are the things that make me tired at the end of the day and things that I would like a vacation from.

I'm so glad that God knows my thoughts and anxieties and that I can find rest and peace in Him throughout my day. Even if I get pulled over just because I'm American or get my pasola taken away again, I know God is right there beside me. Amen to that!

Psalm 56:3 "When I am afraid, I will trust in You."

Psalm 62:5 "Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from Him."

Matthew 11:28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest."

Isaiah 41:10 "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

I know there are many verses that talk about finding rest in God and not being fearful but trusting in God, so please feel free to make a comment with any verses that come to mind!

Praying for Effective Communication

As most of you know, communicating in Spanish has been one of the biggest challenges for me since living in the Dominican Republic. For the past couple of weeks I've been thinking and praying about taking an intensive Spanish course through an organization called Students International. Each fall, SI offers a 5 week, 5 days a week, 3 hours a day course for their semester students along with a few other random people. I am hoping (and praying) that I get to be one of these random people starting in September.

I've always known that my Spanish isn't quite at the level it needs to be at but over the past couple of weeks God has really bought to my attention, that my lack of Spanish is slowing down the ministries I'm involved with and the reasons I came here. A couple weeks ago I went with Emily, a summer intern, to visit one of our Anija students and at the end of our visit, Emily was asked to pray for the family- in Spanish. This made me think about how I've never actually prayed in Spanish before (other than, "Gracias a Dios por esta comida"- Thank You God for this food!). I want to have the courage and the right words to pray with my students and for the families I visit.

About a week ago I was talking with another friend about the outreach to La Lomita he went on with our church and as he was telling me how awesome it was to share the gospel, worship together, and pray for the people, I thought to myself, "I would be so intimidated to go on an outreach because I would have to speak Spanish!" I know that God can still work through me no matter how much Spanish I may or may not know but I want to be as prepared as I can be for praying, encouraging, and sharing God's love with my students and any others God places in my life here. That is the reason I'm here.

So, I ask that you pray with me for these things:

1. Students International says it's alright for me to take their course starting in September.

2. My bosses at Anija give me permission to leave Anija a little early for those 5 weeks.

3. Funding for the course would be donated as I've heard it's about $300.

4. God's grace and motivation to learn, and courage to communicate more in Spanish!

Volleyball Outreach

Last Friday I got to spend the day with our Anija volleyball team at a tournament put on by my friend and fellow missionary Jessica. Jessica has been doing a great job reaching out and ministering to girls through volleyball over the past year. During the month of August, Jessica put together a volleyball tournament for two of the teams she's been coaching in Barrio Blanco and Pinar Quemado and invited Anija to also be apart of the tournament. I was so impressed with the whole event and it was awesome to see how excited the girls were. The first game started with all the girls coming together to pray. Throughout the game the girls were singing and dancing to Christian worship music, and in between games a short Biblical based message was given to the girls and any family or friends that came to watch. Friday's message was about saving money and each girl received their own little piggy bank. After the games, all the girls went to Jessica's house to hang out and eat homemade pizza. Then we went to the river to cool off. It was so neat to see all these girls sharing together and I'm so glad and blessed that I got to bond with the Anija girls and the girls from the other barrios. I'm looking forward to seeing them at games during the fall!

Jessica has been practicing with each team once a week and wow! has she been doing a great job. The Anija girls even stretched before their game!

Anija won their game and will be playing in the finals next Friday.

At Jessica's house enjoying homemade pizza with all the girls!