Wednesday, January 13, 2010

My heart is breaking for my Haitian friends


During the time that Trevor and I worked at Sunset Market Ranch at Disney World, we met several amazing people. Many of the people that worked in QSR(Quick Service Food and Beverage) and ODF(Outdoor Food) for Sunset were from Haiti. Since I heard about the disastrous earthquake in Haiti my heart has been aching for these dear, sweet people.
So much devastation. So many lives lost.
I wish we were already on our Disney trip just so I could be there to hug them.
I feel like I have been in an almost constant state of prayer since I found out. If you have the time, please take the time to pray for the people of Haiti. I have also been specifically praying for our Haitian Disney Family: Bernela, Celianese, Saintvil, Viadly, Gerald, Pierre, and Maurice. They are all from Port au Prince and the reports for that area are not very positive.


This is my sweet friend, Viadly. She was striking a pose on the last day with the old Sunset costumes.


This is Bernela. She adopted me while I was at Disney. Side story: She is the person who introduced me to the wonder of putting a tomato on a burn. Honestly, it was one of the weirdest things I had ever heard and, having a major dislike of tomatoes, thought the idea of rubbing a tomato on a burn was disgusting. But tomatoes stay cold internally for a long time and the acids in them take away the sting of a burn in the same fashion that aloe vera does. The moisture from the tomato also reduces the likelihood of scarring. I am now a firm believer in the power of the tomato and introduce the concept at Chickfila when necessary. ;o)

I cried after taking this last picture. It was my last night of work at Sunset, December 31st, 2008.
I can still hear Bernela and Celianese singing hymns/gospels in Creole. It is absolutely one of the sweetest, most beautiful sounds I have ever heard. All day today, I have been hearing that sound. When one of their friends back home died, they literally spent the entire day singing in the kitchen. Bernela told me, "We mourn but our songs are of praise."
One know that most likely at least one of these dear people have lost friends and family members due to this awful earthquake. My prayer is that, though they are mourning, their songs are of praise.

If you can, please make a donation. There are so many different organizations taking donations. Here are a few super easy ways to donate:
Text "Haiti" to 90999 to give $10 to the Red Cross. It will be on your next phone bill.
Text "disaster" to 90999 to give $10 to Compassion's disaster relief program.
I also found out through Kelly's Korner that there is a blog setup in support: Hope for Haiti - they are going to be doing giveaways to raise money to support the people of Haiti.
If you DO make a donation, leave a comment on Kelly's blog. She and her husband are donating $1 for every comment on the post, indicating which organization you donated to, up to $1000.

4 comments:

JG said...

Thanks for sharing those numbers. I just texted the Red Cross. Will definitely be passing it along. Praying for your friends!

Crazy Shenanigans-JMO said...

It's such a sad story. I really hope that your friends and their families in Haiti are ok!

. said...

Thanks for sharing those numbers,Ash. I just texted the Red Cross and sent a mass email and text to everyone on my list. Will definitely be passing it along to everyone I talk to. Praying for your friends!

Brittany said...

"We mourn but our songs are of praise." is a wonderful sentiment. I will hold on to that quote-thank you.