Haiti Mission Trip 2018
Aside from just spreading the word & getting to visit our friends & kiddos at the orphanage, one of our goals was to convert a 40ft long shipping container into a computer lab for the on-site primary school. The container had been previously shipped down full of supplies and had sat basically empty at the orphanage for over a year.
At the end of our stay, we had the classroom pretty much finished up. A team going down next month in May will hopefully finish it up.
DAY 6
Before Ryan, Nelson, Richard & I put on one of the final pieces of wall, we signed it.
DAY 5
Nelson supervising the partition wall installation.
DAY 6
Part of our team visiting Ne-Ne's orphanage.
Stevens and Luke
*Photo credit:
DAY 6
Part of our team visiting Ne-Ne's orphanage.
Hailey with one of Ne-Ne's kids.
*The roof seen in the background was installed by a Park Christian team back in 2016.
*Photo credit:
DAY 6
While part of our team went to visit another orphanage, Ramona and I started cutting out all of the pieces for the computer desks. Ramona was a great help in cutting out all of the component parts for the desks.
This left the inside empty for our kids to stain the plywood walls.
Hailey, Emma, Lexi, Adele, Stevens, Dustin, Lynlea & Sam, supervised by Audrey, did a great job.
In this picture, we did a test fit of two of the desks that Romona, Ryan and I got together before the end of the day.
DAY 6
Looking through the rear cargo doors and through the partition wall into the classroom.
DAY 6
End of the work day for Friday.
There's an interesting, and slightly terrifying, part of the story to insert here.
Prior to leaving for the day Ryan & I secured the entry door from the inside, put plastic over the windows to keep the rain out and shut & locked the rear cargo doors. Little did we know that there was a pile of rags used by the kids as part of the staining process left inside. They are actually between the plastic storage tub & cluster of power tool batteries on charge in this picture.
When we stopped at the orphanage the next day to take some quick measurements & check to see if rain had gotten in before we went on another supply run, we noticed a haze filling the entire container and I could smell an odd burning odor. Ryan couldn't really smell anything due to his sinuses and we couldn't see any visible flame, so we thought maybe a metal screw was hot during installation the previous day and had smoldered inside overnight.
We opened the cargo doors and the smell was obvious. As we entered the container and looked around for any signs of heat or hot plywood panels. Towards the middle of the container the smell was almost overpowering and would actually make your eyes water. I noticed a small smoldering pile of debris near the plastic container/tub and noticed that the side of the tub was melted and partially liquified. The 4" chuck of styrofoam that the batteries had been sitting on was partially melted also. It appeared the the rags had spontaneously combusted overnight & probably almost caught fire. When I gathered up the debris I noticed that there were still hot embers in the pile and that it had actually started to burn it's way through the floor. At some point, there was so much smoke in the container that it had actually "stained" the walls and left a "clean" impression anywhere anything had been sitting. Everything that had been inside reeked of a strong chemical odor for days afterwards.
Ryan and i were both relieved that the entire thing did not catch fire.
We'd both heard stories of spontaneous combustion, but had never talked to anyone who'd actually seen it for themselves.
We did....
DAY 6
End of the work day
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
Remains of the rag fire the night prior.
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
Remains of the rag fire the night prior.
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
*Video-Click to play*
Remains of the rag fire the night prior.
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
Damage to the floor from the rag fire the night prior.
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
Breakfast Saturday.
Day 7
Marvens eating breakfast at the team house.
DAY 7
Scot leading a pastor's conference on Saturday at the orphanage church.
DAY 7
Pascal, Ryan & I went to get metal panels and lumber for the roof. Instead of running all the way over to MSC again, we stopped along the road at a little supply place.
Here, Pascal is negotiating a better price on materials.
Ryan can be seen praying that Pascal can pull it off.
DAY 7
Obtaining materials for our shipping container transformation project, from a shipping container lumber yard.... Coincidence?
DAY 7
Ryan and his crew installing the metal roof panels.
Ryan was worried the entire week about simply leaving the roof flat styrofoam covered in cement. The other container/office was done this way and further inspection proved that the roof was likely leaking and seeping water down the walls and into the windows.
After much deliberation, and after a phone call to Melissa, we went with a metal roof to shed water.
DAY 7
Ryan, in his element, with a roofing crew.
Ryan has a family roofing business here in Ohio and is most definitely a roofing expert, and likely teaching the tricks of the trade to our Haitian friends.
For any random internet hits on this picture, and if you happen to see this project in person, this is NOT a Hicks Roofing job... Just saying.
*Photo credit: Ryan Hicks
DAY 7
End of the day Saturday.
Ryan and Pascal's crew got all of the roof panels on but one (we were short one) and Ramona and i got the rest of the desks put together.
DAY 7
End of the day. Roof installed, final styrofoam and mesh wrap installed. Exterior is ready for cement!
DAY 7
DAY 8
*Video-Click to play*
Sunday morning church service at the orphanage
DAY 8
*video-click to play*
Sam, letting the music and lord move him...
DAY 8
Emma, Becky and Lynlea were invited to sing during the church service.
DAY 8
Imigaine Missions family picture after church.
*Taken from the balcony of the new school
DAY 8
Hailey & Little Son-Son
DAY 8
Since it was Sunday, the day of rest, it was ordered that it was a "no work" day. Some of us decided to take a ride to the metal village about 20 minutes from the team house.
DAY 8
Metal village
Each little shop has a sign similar to this marking the individual "stores."
DAY 8
Metal village
Older gentleman pounding out metal serving trays.
A piece of metal from an old barrel, a ball peen hammer and a chunk of railroad rail are his tools.
DAY 8
Metal village
Day 8
Kids hard at work in the metal village.
DAY 8
Metal village
DAY 8
Metal village
DAY 8
Metal village
DAY 9
Monday at school
Lovelie
Day 9
Monday at school
IsMylo
DAY 9
Monday at school
IsMylo and Lovelie
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class. Three suitcases of supplies were raised by Ashley Miller's first grade class at Trenton Ave.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
Hailey, Lexi, Derrick and I worked with Berline to hand out school supplies to the first grade class.
DAY 9
Monday at school.
The 1st grade class was happy and thankful for the school supplies.