The end of this week brought us a number of things to pray for and we are asking for you to join us in prayer for some very precious peope in our lives...
On Thursday morning, Vonel, one of RMI’s mechanics was in a motorcycle accident while doing some work for RMI. From what we have been told, there was a man carrying a plank on the road ahead of Vonel and when he heard Vonel’s motorcycle approaching, he turned to see what was coming behind him. As he did this, it did not occur to him that the plank would follow his turn. Although, Vonel was able to swerve and miss hitting the plank completely, it caught and broke his upper arm. Amazingly, in spite of the pain in his arm, Vonel was able to steer his cycle with his one good arm and come to a safe stop without hurting himself or anyone else. That is a praise. Last that we heard, Vonel was at the hospital and was likely waiting for surgery on Monday when American orthopedic surgeons will be available. In addition to this crisis in Vonel’s life, his home was badly damaged, or destroyed in the hurricane and requires a lot of work. His father has also been sick and fell down the hill by his house the night before Vonel’s accident and had moved to Vonel's house for more help.
Then, Thursday afternoon, our housekeeper, Emilye, shared that her mother’s health is declining in addition to the loss of her home which is in an area that was much harder hit by the hurricane than we were here in Les Cayes. Emilye had planned to leave Friday morning to visit her mother, however, while she was at church Thursday evening her seven year old daughter, Mikensia, was playing with a small kerosene lamp at home. Unfortunately, Mikensia’s clothes caught fire and she was rushed to the hospital with second degree burns to her left arm, side, abdomen, pelvic area, and upper left leg. Needless to say, Emilye’s trip to see her mother has been put on hold until Mikensia is doing better. It appears that she will be hospitalized for a while.
Late Friday afternoon, we then recieved a call from one of our teammates, Laura Sutton, to let us know that she had just received word that her 91 year old mother was admitted to ICU following two heart events that day. Therefore, Laura and her husband, Joel, will be leaving to spend time with her family in PA on Monday morning.
Please lift all of these individuals in prayer. Pray for complete healing for Vonel and for wisdom for the doctors as they care for his arm. Pray against infection for little Mikensia as she has a long road of recovery ahead of her and her family. Pray for strength for Emilye and her five other children as they care for her. Pray, as well, for Joel and Laura as they prepare and travel this weekend to spend time with her Mom. Pray for wisdom for her mother's doctors as they continue to care for her. In addition to all of this, continue to pray for the needs of the Haitian communities around us.
No words can begin to express our appreciation of each and every one of you as you pray for us, support us, and support the community in which we live.
We also realize that you are all anxious to see some of the pictures and stories that we have from our experiences over the last month. We plan to get them out to you as soon as we have a reliable enough connection to the internet. Thank you for your patience and support as we try to keep you updated.
