Amidst the chaos, fractured housing and penetrating unknowns, St. Damien Children�s Hospital is an oasis...

Angelo Rose is an attorney and musician from Rochester, NY. Following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, he wrote a song to raise funds for St. Damien Hospital there. He released a second song last year in response to Hurricane Matthew: www.haitisrain.org. He recently visited St. Damien in January 2017, and below is his reflection. Click here to make a gift and support the life-saving work of St. Damien Hospital today!

 

 

Le gen lanmou, gen doule'

 

Somewhat ironically, I will start this brief reflection where physically my journey to Haiti ended�

 

Dazed and tired, I shuffled into my Ft. Lauderdale hotel and took my first shower in days. There, under the warm embrace of pulsing jets, I was overcome: The thundering guilt of having a home, a bed, clean water to bathe in and my God, the seemingly infinite power to turn the faucet to quench my thirst were collectively just too much to own. Haiti suffers at the most base levels of existence and until I experienced it first hand, its devastation remained an abstract truth. Now, there is not a day I don�t recall a face, or silently chant, �Thank you� when I drink a glass of water or sit down for dinner. It is the difference between watching a video clip of someone on a roller coaster and actually sitting in the first car of an old, wooden Skyliner as it claps along tired rails. I knew, however, that ride was going to end for me, that I would fly out and leave behind the countless children I met, the selfless people giving so much to change the norm there. They remain, twisting and turning in markedly inadequate shelter and structure, exposed to the raging elements of nature and consequence of desperation. Children and adults alike are in critical need of nutrition, education and water. The country as a whole flounders in political corruption, unknowns and hypocrisies. The weight of it all was too much and I collapsed to the perfectly tiled shower floor. Sobbing and shaking, I tried to make sense of it all�

 

Le gen lanmou, gen doule�

 

When our small group landed in Port au Prince, it was readily apparent that Haiti was strung together by the thinnest of threads. Amidst the chaos, fractured housing and penetrating unknowns, St. Damien Children�s Hospital is an oasis. The doctors, nurses, employees, volunteers and Fathers Rick Frechette and Enzo Del Brocco, tirelessly devote each day to saving lives. The hospital is a clean, incredibly well run sanctuary for an endless sea of children in dire need of medical care. Father Rick and Phadool, the Human Resources Director at St. Damien, provided a vast amount of information during daily visits to the hospital.  Clean, potable water is infinitely sparse. Quality medicines are desperately needed at St. Damien, as are funds to acquire vital medical equipment.  

 

I was awed by doctors and nurses who repeatedly, selflessly and unconditionally gave all they had. Each morning, mothers line up outside the gates to seek ambulatory medical care for their babies. As this group patiently waits to be seen, the more serious cases are evaluated and treated on the other side of St. Damien. Mothers of children who are required to have lengthy stays are relegated to sleeping in upright metal chairs or on a concrete floor underneath their cribs. Jacqueline Gautier, National Director of St. Damien, confirmed that hospital grade reclining chairs are among the vital equipment needed. The children I met radiated with love, for in the arms of St. Damien they were fed, given medicine and genuine opportunity to heal. Though I am now several weeks removed from my trip, the penetrating eyes of hope travel thousands of miles daily to visit me. A musician often moonlighting as a trial attorney, admittedly I had limited medical skills to offer. This glaring deficiency seemed to matter very little at St. Damien. What the children sought from me, I could aptly provide. Often it was simply a smile, or a hug, or a fingertip-to-fingertip touch that calmed and soothed. The doctors superbly managed the medical needs and I was at-home simply being there for anything else. My ego was consumed. Gone were daily worries about email and developing trends in recent case law. The next life-or-death argument concerning which divorcee would get the engraved soap dish took its proper place in oblivion.  

 

Le gen lanmou, gen doule'  

 

Adjacent to the hospital is the beautiful and rustic Chapel of St. Philomena, where a daily morning mass is assembled. I discovered that most of these early masses are tragically, in fact, vigils for children who died in the preceding days. The first such mass I attended was before the bodies of seven children, wrapped in light-blue paper and gently placed in reusable cardboard coffins. Of the four caskets laid before us, three contained not one, but two tiny bodies. I was overcome. Life and death in Haiti are perpetually at odds and sometimes there is simply nothing that can be done. That reality, amidst some of the finest medical professionals the world has to offer, was immeasurably painful. And yet, as mass concluded, the small congregation (often comprised of the aforementioned doctors, nurses, employees, volunteers and Phadool) breathed life into an old Creole Hymn and ferried the coffins from the Chapel to an awaiting flatbed. The bodies were then transported to a spot beyond the hospital for cremation. No family members were there to say goodbye, but there was little doubt about the reverberating weight of each loss. These daily masses are a divine opportunity to reflect upon the immense need in Haiti, the tragedy of such profound poverty and the senseless deaths of innocent children. I saw no greater demonstration of love than during the masses, where the forgotten are remembered and hearts are torn open in the remembrance of the gift and fragility of life.  

 

Le gen lanmou, gen doule�    

 

When there is love, there is pain.  

 

 

The Promise of Honduras...

Below is a blog post by Dr. Jim Bruckner, a dedicated NPH USA supporter from the Northwest.  Thanks to Jim for sharing his experience visiting Rancho Santa Fe with his family last year!

 

I had the opportunity to visit the NPH Ranch outside of Tegucigulpa, Honduras in October 2016 with my family. The thing that struck me immediately about Honduras was the extreme poverty. Based on many previous conversations with young Hondurans I had the sense that the Honduran people are almost resigned to living that way because of the corrupt government that is in their way.  But after a few days I had the sense that Hondurans wanted something different.

 

NPH has clearly established strong and stable roots in Honduras and in my opinion it is doing something almost unprecedented.   NPH provides for orphans, abandoned, and abused children a stable home and a strong family.  NPH provides a promise that no matter what the hardship, there will always be a family for the children in their care. And through this promise, Honduran children are thriving and becoming doctors, nurses, teachers, plumbers, electricians and most importantly, leaders who return to NPH to fulfill the promise for the next generation of Hondurans.

 

At the NPH Ranch, I had the opportunity to have long conversations with three bright and capable young men, all part of the NPH family, one a teenager in high school; one a young adult and college student; and one a physician, now married raising his own a family. My godsons, Vilches and Nelson, and Dr. Merlin Ant?nez, MD, were all raised at NPH-Honduras. They shared with me their care and compassion for their NPH brothers and sisters and their desire to give back to their family � in fact they all felt there was no other choice for them than to continue to build a better life in Honduras.  They believed in the future in Honduras.

 

Vilches, the teenager, is concentrating on high school, figuring out how to live more independently in the city, and chart his own path for the future. Nelson, now a young adult, has narrowed his academic focus, and is dedicated to completing his college degree and becoming a social worker. He has fully embraced service to others, and as part of his degree, has undertaken a fundraising effort for school supplies for needy children in his rural hometown.

 

Dr. Merlin, one of the first pequenos at NPH to go to college, became a physician, was subspecialty trained as an orthopaedic surgeon, and returned to NPH as the surgery center director. Dr. Merlin is a remarkable example of the NPH promise. The reputation of the surgery center speaks for itself. It is one of the finest in Honduras. Through Dr. Merlin�s leadership at surgery center, many Hondurans have experienced a level of healthcare that has never been available to them. Community members are beginning to learn that there is a better way to live. That sort of cultural change takes time to produce meaningful impact, but I heard in the words from Vilches, Nelson, Dr. Merlin, they all believe change is happening.

 

As the father of three sons, I know the dedication and challenge it takes to raise boys to become good men and to instill in them the commitment to family, to community, and ultimately to country. I am proud to say that because of the dedication of so many in the NPH-Honduras family, together, we have raised Vilches, Nelson, and Dr. Merlin to be good men who are committed to family, to community and to their country. They are the promise of Honduras.


- James D. Bruckner, MD

 

 

 

 

The people I met and the things I saw will forever be ingrained in my mind�

Below is a reflection by Franki Mullen of Saint Anselm College who went on a Mission Trip to NPH Dominican Republic.

When someone says an experience changed their life, it is easy to be skeptical how true that statement is. However, after spending only one week at NPH I cannot imagine saying anything other than, �That experience changed my life.� The people I met and the things I saw will forever be ingrained in my mind. I will never forget dancing on the roof under the Dominican night sky, holding a little girl in my arms while her light lit up her whole face, looking through pictures one of the pequenos had of her Quincenera, or eating sugar cane in the back of a truck while speeding through the towns. However, the trip was not just about getting some sun and eating sugar cane. The poverty seen was so eye opening and heartbreaking, but it was the Dominican people�s attitudes in the face of adversity that moved me the most. They were always smiling, laughing, and making the most of any situation. They welcomed us in with open hearts and made us feel at home. Even though we were there to help them, instead we felt equal, making it so that we were always motivated to do our absolute best job at whatever task was at hand. I am so thankful to those who reached out and held my hand while on the trip, and I can hope that I had one tenth of the impact that they all had on me. 

 

 

 

The most valuable thing I learned throughout my week there was the universality of love and compassion�

Below is a reflection by Allie Finlay of Saint Anselm College who went on a Mission Trip to NPH Dominican Republic.

My experience at Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos was one that I will never forget. I was really anxious about going at first because I had never traveled outside the United States, and I did not speak much Spanish. Once we were in the Dominican Republic all of that anxiety went away. The most valuable thing I learned throughout my week there was the universality of love and compassion. Although I struggled with the language, I was able to connect with the children through play and through non communication. I connected with a group of boys throughout the week at their lunchtime and each day we ate with them I would be called or dragged over to sit with them. The boys noticed after the second day that I was not able to speak much Spanish but we connected over thumb wars and arm wrestling and they even taught me the word for champion in Spanish!

As the week progressed I was able to connect with girls over snapchat and hair and makeup and with the younger kids through play and just hugging them and caring for them. Although I was able to connect without using communication I was able to also connect by communicating to the older boys and girls because they were able to speak English. They were very understanding and helped me as much as possible with my Spanish with the younger kids who would become frustrated easily at my inability to communicate. One of the boys was actually able to hold a full conversation in English and when I would become frustrated he would communicate with me in English to ease my anxiety. I would really like to return in the future to the NPH home once I have improved my Spanish to be a volunteer for at least six months and be able to work in the clinic as a nurse. These kids really impacted my life and the people I met and served will always have a special place in my heart. I am so grateful to have been given this opportunity to serve at this wonderful organization and I really hope I can return in the future!

 

 

I am so blessed to have met such incredible children, and be part of such a positive and giving community�

Below is a reflection by Amy Vachon of Saint Anselm College who went on a Mission Trip to NPH Dominican Republic.

My trip to the Dominican Republic through Saint Anselm College to Nuestros Peque?os Hermanos was a life-changing experience that I am so grateful for. The organization impressed me so much as it clearly has a tremendous impact on the surrounding San Pedro/San Maricos area. Having traveled outside of the site � it is evident that NPH offers a fantastic home for kids that might otherwise not have one. It also is a site that offers schooling to outside students that might otherwise not get to go to school. I am amazed at the selflessness of the t?as (caretakers) who run the various casas there. These women have their own families outside of the site and yet they are able to take the time to serve a population that needs them so much. I am also so impressed by the volunteers at the site who help us as visitors to have the best experience. 

Most importantly however, I am amazed by the children at NPH. The young and the old alike are so caring and patient, especially with our group who did not speak Spanish very well. I connected with so many children specifically one girl. Even though she would joke sometimes that I did not speak great Spanish, she would help me frequently to learn more. By the end of the trip I definitely had a very hard time saying goodbye.

As I sit and write this, I frankly find it extremely difficult to put into words how I feel about this trip. It is an experience that will be burned into my memory for the rest of my life. I even now feel compelled to change my post-grad plans as a second semester senior after taking this trip. It opened my eyes to a whole new world of possibility as far as years of service are concerned. Many in my group hope to partake in that, or at least go back to the site over the summer if possible. I am so blessed to have met such incredible children, and be part of such a positive and giving community for a week. Thank you for allowing me to do this � you�ve truly changed so much for me in such a positive way.

 

 

Throughout my time at NPH, I learned more about myself, my faith, and the world around me�

Below is a reflection by Heather Sullivan of Saint Anselm College who went on a Mission Trip to NPH Dominican Republic.

 

Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos is an incredible organization. This program provides children from various unfortunate situations with abundant love, education, and opportunities that would not otherwise be possible. The most significant aspect of NPH is how profoundly enriched the lives of these children are in faith. Upon visiting, I was overwhelmed by the feeling of God's presence everywhere I turned. I experienced indescribable kindness and love in every single child, staff, and volunteer that I interacted with. I have never felt happier or so close to God in my life as I did at Nuestros Pequenos Hermanos. Throughout my time at NPH, I learned more about myself, my faith, and the world around me than I ever imagined I would. This unforgettable experience has inspired me to do a year of service after I graduate and to become a missionary nurse in the future. I look forward to continue learning through the service of others and enjoy a new outlook on life.

 

 

I was so happy to be part of it...

Below is a testimonial from Joanna, a Northwest regional Board member who has visited NPH Honduras several times and participates actively in supporting the work and events of the Northwest region!

When the plane hits the tarmac in Tegucigalpa airport I can't wait to get to the ranch to find my godson. I drop my bags off at San Cristobal, the visitors' house, and hit the gravel path headed towards Buen Pastor, the Boys' Side of Rancho Santa Fe. I can't help it. I tend to spend most of my time over there since I have been watching the "boys" grow up over the years. Many of them don't remember me at first, but it doesn't matter if they do or don't because after the first couple of days I'm friends with everyone. That's just how it is. Visitors, no matter how many times they've been, or not been, are welcomed into the family. As soon as they know your name you hear it being called wherever you go.

This year was especially great because my godson was celebrating his Quincea?era. The whole day was full of festivities. The girls started with hair and make-up around 10am and about 20 minutes before the 5pm mass the boys went to hogares to get changed. All of the dresses and suits were made at the Ranch, all the way down to the boys' shoes. 

Wind blew the pelting rain through the church during mass and we lost power for about 20 minutes at the reception, but it didn't get in the way of the celebration. All the 15 year olds looked so grown up and I got a little misty-eyed during the waltz. It was such a fun night and I was so happy to be part of it.