A Day in English Camp

     The Tlucek family have been serving in Haiti for 10 years and it has been a wonderful privilege to be a part of their ministry. During the school year they run a preschool and an after school program, and during the summer they host English Camp. This has been a part of their ministry for at least 7 years and from what I have heard it has grown a lot. After the many years of directing and hosting English Camp, the Tluceks have made it a well oiled machine. A lot of work happens in many different places and we all work hard so that everything can run smoothly. Along with the people working together, all the supplies have to come together. Things are not as easy to get or as cheap as in the States, so a lot of prayer goes into everything getting here. Sometimes it is just a matter of having bread for sandwiches, or bananas for breakfast. Other times it is praying someone from the States will come and bring supplies for all the backpacks we give to the kids, or even the backpacks themselves. We completed English Camp by being flexible on what we could be, and God answering our prayers.
      A day of English Camp starts for the employees at 7 am. We gather around the pool to hear a Haitian hymn that the employees sing, have devotions, pray, and discuss what needs to be done. There are probably around 50 of us gathered each morning. Then I would always head to the kitchen to help peel boiled eggs or cut bananas, while others would set up tables and sweep. Usually around 10 of us were in the kitchen so we could get all 300-400 peeled and cut within 30 ish minutes. Then at 8 they would open the gate for the kids to come in. From 8-8:55 they hand out (ideally) a banana, an egg, and a bag of water to each child. This time I was either outside greeting kids or handing out food, or preparing things I needed for my lesson that day. After the kids get their food, they sit down with their group around the pool, which is marked by tape on the ground. Their group leader will then put their name tag on their back (so they do not pick at it) and they will eat their breakfast.
     After breakfast is done and all the trash is picked up, assembly starts at 9. It begins with calisthenics, which are just stretches and movements to get blood flowing, singing, both in English and Creole, and a Bible story, which the staff helps act out. At 9:45 they head to their first class which is a rotation of English, Bible, PE, and Science. Each class is 40 minutes. They have two classes in the morning, a break for lunch and activity time, and two classes in the afternoon, ending with a final assembly and dismissal at 2 pm. All the kids go into the carport and wait either for their parents or a younger sibling so they can go home. During this time the employees get to hang out with the kids. At around 2:30 the employees have a meeting to go over how we did that day and what we could do better. We pray and that wraps up a day of camp.
     On Fridays we have what is called Friday Funday. It is a normal rotation of classes but instead of class there are different games at each station. So for the Science classes which are outside there are running games like soccer or tag. In the Bible classes they have Bible trivia reviewing the week. At the PE classes it was either water games or dancing. And in the English classrooms which are more contained, there were games like heads up 7-up, tick tock, and poison dart frog. At each station there is a teacher leading it.
     Throughout the week, the kids are competing for a pool party on Friday. The way they win is by getting points which are rewarded by group leaders, teachers, and Andrew Tlucek. They got points for good behavior, participation, and obeying. After the camp day on Friday, the winning team will have their pool party complete with hot dogs and koolaid.
     The kids are split into two main groups: older and younger. From there they are split by specific age and gender. The groups are:
Orange- 5-7 boys               Yellow- 5-7 girls
Green- 8-9 boys                 Pink- 8-9 girls
Blue- 10-12 boys               Purple- 10-12 girls
Guitar- 13-14 boys          Rainbow- 13-14 girls

      Each group has a group leader and a handful of junior counselors to help. Yellow group only had one junior counselor this year, whereas green had four. So it varies based on who the group leader is and the age group of the kids. Along with this, there are translators for all the American teachers. We all work together to help teach the kids and help them behave.
      Every day is full and feels long, but at the end of the week it feels like it flew by. I cannot believe how quickly 6 weeks went by, and yet it feels like I have been here a long time . Thank you everyone for your continued prayer and support. I look forward to seeing many of you soon!

Haiti from a Foreigner's Eyes

     I want to start by apologizing for not posting more often. To say that it has been a busy five weeks is an understatement. This blog will be in many parts, so please bear with me. I want to paint a mental picture of what the city of Port-Au-Prince looks like, what a day of English Camp entails, and talk about my experience. But to include all that in one post would be a small book so I am going to split it up.
      Haiti is extremely different than America, which is of course common knowledge. But one does not really realize just how different they are until it becomes your reality. First of all, in the city many things are in a compound. Cement walls often lined with barbed wire or broken glass, completed with a large metal gate greet you pretty much everywhere you go. The distinct pang of someone knocking on the metal with a stone is a sound I have become familiar with. There is not much grass, it is mostly rocks, dirt, trash, and trees.    
      The streets are busy and traffic laws are non existent. If someone is going slower than you, simply pass them, who cares what the yellow lines say. Intersections? Just keep going and pray for the best. Motorcycles are weaving in and out of traffic, people are walking in between cars, and tap taps are stopping on the side of the road. The only reason the vehicle stops moving is because of traffic, not because of stop signs or lights. Tap taps are kind of like a bus, except it is just in the back of a truck. A person will flag the driver down and hop in. Their siding is metal painted in bright colors often with people painted on the side, common ones are Rihanna, Jesus, and Legolas. Also phrases like “merci Jesus”, “maranatha”, or different Bible verse references are common.
      You pull on to the main road and see people just walking on the side of the road, often carrying large things on their head. There are sidewalks but many of them are populated by street vendors. What they sell is various, like food, clothing, and hygiene products. They are usually under sheets of metal or umbrellas to keep them from the sun. Buying things from street venders includes bartering which I am not good at. The places we have gone that have street vendors start off expensive and you have to be insistent on your price. It is not a talent I have possessed. Luckily, there are people here who are good at that to help me.
       Along with the many people are skinny little dogs and goats, which are scrounging around the trash for food. The buildings that are not in compounds are generally colorful cement and different businesses like pharmacies and barbers. The streets have trash in the gutters and occasionally you will see a large trash pile by the road. Much of the trash here is burned because there is nowhere else really to put it.
       Going outside of the compound is one of my favorite things. Even though we get stared at because we are white, I really enjoy being able to see the culture. I have not been incredibly immersed in the culture because I am living with Americans, but a few things have been different. Firstly, there is no privacy. Kids change for water games right where they are. People just pee on the side of the road. Also their way of greeting is different. Instead of “hello” you say “good morning” or “good afternoon”. Every morning as kids walk in we get kisses on our cheeks, which I really appreciate because it is really sweet.
       I am sure there much more to paint for this picture, but I hope that helps a bit to have an image. It really is a lot different, though personally I did not experience a huge culture shock. I believe having friends come before me and seeing pictures helped me prepare mentally.
      As always thank you all for your prayers and support. I cannot say how much I appreciate you all.