I really do know the real Jack Bauer!  Two years ago, I went on my very first mission trip with Bauer’s team (aka Steve Ijames) and ministered in Haiti.  This trip changed my life and ultimately God has opened the door for me to lead mission with Visiting Orphans! He’s a fantastic leader, and it only took me begging him one time to convince him to lead with me again to Haiti January 20th- 27th 2012!!  Take a peek at a short clip of us a year ago, planning our 2nd trip back to Haiti to bring formula post-earthquake with my church family.  (He’s a hoot!)

I have 6 spots open for “Simply Love Haiti” 2012 Mission Trip!!

Apply here- Visiting Orphans

Do you know the #1 reason why people are not serving in Haiti?  The F.E.A.R. of earthquakes, violence, and disease are keeping the numbers down low for Haiti Mission Trips.  Well, I want to break the mold and DO IT AFRAID!!!!!  I’m bringing a co-leader who has traveled extensively throughout Haiti and has built a relationship with the police in Port-au-Prince… they trust this guy!  We will travel through Haiti with the best of the best!!  My new Visiting Orphans “Hope for Haiti” mission trip in 2012 will change your life- I promise!

Tell me what your thinking?

Jack Bauer’s Bio:

Major has been a police officer for the past 29 years, and recently retired as an assistant chief with the Springfield, Missouri Police Department.  Ijames is a graduate of the 186th FBI National Academy, and has a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice, and a master’s degree in Public Administration. During his law enforcement tenure Ijames served in, supervised, and commanded a variety of assignments including uniformed patrol, investigations, undercover narcotics, and Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT).  Ijames created the less lethal force (impact projectiles, chemical munitions, noise flash diversionary devices, TASER) instructor/trainer programs for the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), and is the author of their model policies and position papers involving these technologies. Ijames has offered related training on behalf of the IACP and the U.S. Department of State across the United States, Canada, and in 33 other countries including such places as Tanzania, Bosnia, Somalia, Haiti, El Salvador, Yemen, Pakistan, and East Timor. Ijames has served on a number of post event use of force investigative commissions, most recently in New York City and Boston, has reviewed approximately 1,500 police use of force cases for agencies of varied size including the Los Angeles and Chicago police departments, and provides police litigation consulting in a wide variety of resistance control and related areas.

My husband and I live in Pignon, Haiti, and run an orphanage, Haiti Home of Hope. We have a biological son who just graduated high school. We have two Haitian daughters who we are in the process of adopting. And we have 22 boys and 23 girls in the orphanage. We also direct a feeding center for children suffering from malnutrition.

10 years ago, my husband and I were just your average American couple. Bill was working, I was a stay at home mom homeschooling our son. We as a family that year had committed to ministering wherever God led us. We had no clue that God was going to call us to Haiti, and in a short time we would be there serving orphan children. We had not been to Bible school, and were not looking or desiring to be on the mission field.

We arrived in Haiti January 21, 2003. We proceeded to get the building and property ready to start accepting children. Our plan was to open an all boys orphanage, with no babies. In May we had a 4 pound, 4 day old baby girl, brought to us. Our very first orphan! She was sick with typhoid, the doctors here said not to even try and save her, that she probably wouldn’t make it. I worked with her anyway. We fed her around the clock with an eyedropper, she could only take a couple of drops at a time. And we prayed so much, that God would save her.  God was gracious and saved her life. She is now 7 years old and the picture of health. She tells me that she wants to grow up and help sick babies, just like her mommy!! She has such a sensitive heart, we thank God everyday for her We now have 47 children here, and life gets crazy sometimes.

I would like to share some of my everyday craziness with you. I like to get out into the countryside and visit children that are on our feeding program. I just never know what I am going to find when I go out. The physical and spiritual needs are so great. Last Saturday I had gone to visit a really poor family. There are 5 children, all suffering malnutrition. When I arrived at the hut, there were no adults around. The door was hanging open, and the 1 year old twins were laying on the floor. They are only 8 pounds each, and can’t sit up or crawl around. They were both covered in dried feces and crying pitifully. I found an old rag to wipe them off with, and a couple of blankets, and wrapped them up. We gave them what little water we had, and some cream cheese in my bag, that I let them suck off of my finger. When I asked the older kids, they said they had not eaten in 2 days. I passed out all of our crackers and cheese, and water. We were anxiously awaiting the mom’s return, but after an hour when no one came, we had no choice but to lay the babies down and walk away. I felt so defeated, I was in tears that there was nothing more I could do. There was no food for them to cook in the house. I prayed that I could come back soon and bring some food.

It was Monday before I had another another opportunity to go out that way. When we got within a mile, the road was impassable, because of deep mud. So we made the decision to walk in. Just as we arrived at the hut, we were hit with a huge thunderstorm. The mom was gone again, door left open, babies on the dirt floor, and the other 3 kids running around naked. We gave them all cheese and crackers, and water, again. The mom finally showed up, so we were able to leave rice packets, specially formulated for malnourished children.

Mission accomplished, we then started the walk back in the thunderstorm. The water in the road was rushing, about a foot deep. In some places, the mud was a foot deep. I fell twice, and was covered in mud, head to toe when I got home. But I was so happy, because I knew those kids would have a meal that day. But more important than that, I hope and pray that the mom saw the love of Christ thru us, as we ministered to her and her babies.  I pray that she will see the harm that voodoo does to her children. I pray that  one day she will come to accept Christ in her heart.

Please pray for these families that are so caught up in voodoo, that they don’t see the damage being done to their children. Pray for the poor children of Haiti. The only hope for them is Jesus. Pray that we will continue to have love and compassion, so that they will see Jesus shining thru us.

{wife, mom to 48- Jennifer Campbell}

A note from Kari:  I met Jennifer on my 2nd trip to Haiti.  She is my hero (even though she would hate me saying that!)  She and her hubby serve God with all their hearts and are making a huge difference with the families in the village of Pignon.  She explained to me that when a family is practicing voodoo, their children are born with red tipped hair.  It is NOT hair dye… she has witnessed a family that after accepting Jesus in their lives, shaved their children’s hair, despite the witch doctor’s evil warnings of death.  When their hair grew back, it was black.  God healed this family from the inside out.  Roger will travel to Pignon, Haiti to work with the Campbells in August.

This team will be following up on the work done by our assessment team which returned from Haiti in June. God is already stirring hearts and using it to do big things. The team in October will be working primarily with Foyer des Enfants de Demain orphanage (Children’s Home of Tomorrow).

This orphanage remained standing after the earthquake when every building around them crumbled to the ground, killing many. God saved the orphanage director Edrins Jean, his wife Claujine, and all the orphans they care for! Since the earthquake, this orphanage has received even more orphans who were displaced and they are in great need of help. Our teams will be working to purchase or donate new mattresses(see below photo which shows the mattresses and beds where the orphans currently sleep), bedding, clothing & shoes for the children, and toiletry items as well. They are living in tents and a shed outside of their main building because of the uncertainty of the safety of their building and the fear of possible aftershocks. Our ultimate goal is to find a church who is willing to partner with them long term to provide for their every day needs like food, as they have very little to sustain them.

As you can see – the needs are many. We’d love to find a construction team who could go and help assess their building and work to make it structurally sound. We also hope to provide more trauma counseling so that once the building is sound, they will not fear living in it again.

If you know a church that may be seriously interested in partnering with this orphanage through Visiting Orphans or a team of contractors who could help with their orphanage building, please let us know at

here.
And last, but certainly not least in God’s eyes,if you’d like to donate to this mission, please do so here.

Celebrate Haiti with me today – enjoy some of my photos and song “Follow You” performed by Leeland.  If you have traveled to Haiti pre or post-earthquake, please share with me your experience and why you went to Haiti.  Please feel free to use any of my videos to help advocate for adoption and caring for orphans!

Bloggy Friends… thank you for joining me on my Haiti mission trip adventure this week!!  I’m heading out of town (again!) so I hope you spend some time reading older posts you might have missed – blast to the past!!  If you have any questions or comments about mommyhood, adoption or advocating for orphans email me.

My Journal Today:

(sitting on the airplane flying home)

Our group plans were changed so drastically every day that we knew it was God inspired.  God can set us up for great things if we don’t miss the blessings He provides.  All 14 of us NEVER wavered or complained.. but continued to thank God for the changes, re-direction and roadblocks.  We held on with flexibility and trusted God to be our fearless leader through Haiti.  He was our guide, security, protector, and adventure host on a Wild Goose Chase!  I prayed our team would be able to minister to orphans everyday and despite all the craziness – He did it!  The road blocks and detours opened doors for orphan ministry, food distribution, street ministry, 5 hour border ministry, road side guard silliness (guard + machine gun + rooster!)

The precious boy at the border crossing recognized our bus and new friends and ran toward us SMILING… something clicked in my heart.  This boy experienced love from our team – mother’s care and hugs from dads and a little spoiling too.  As we hung out the windows of the bus to say good-bye, he proudly held up his 2 day old flip flops, despite being back in his torn, filthy rags, but this time he smiled.  That’s what love is all about.

I wept after leaving the orphanage at Dos Dane.  I knew exactly why I was weeping and it overwhelmed my heart.  I clearly had a visual picture of Zoie living a life without us… this could have been my daughter had we not obeyed God’s calling and adopted.  Zoie had two very different life paths and I am now realizing how easily it could have gone the other way.  We would have missed the greatest blessings and opportunity to give the gift of a mommy and daddy’s love.  Peeking out the bus window, I cried tears of gratefulness and appreciation that God picked us.  My Zoie will never know what it feels like to sleep in a cold, dark room alone and scared without a mommy’s touch, nurture, comfort, and love.

We are going home changed.

I’m Your Billboard Today:

1.  Paige Alleca (Haiti team) is selling her T shirts for their Ethiopia Adoption.  You can click HERE if you are interested in supporting her project!

2.  The Jewett Family- your T shirt didn’t make it to me in time to take to Haiti, but my hubby loves it!!

3.  Shabby Chic Jewelry with a purpose… my friend JUNKPOSSE.  Hannah fell in love with the necklace – Speak Out. Speak Out for those who do not have a voice. Prov. 31:8.

My Journal Today:

How is it possible that this is our last day in Haiti.  We were up at 4am hoping it was too early in the morning for roadblocks and road rage.  We had our 3 Haitian policemen escorting us all the way to the border.  Our own entourage of the toughest looking men I have ever met.  Lucien and his friends rode with us, helped us interpret, and gave us the gift of their friendship.

The roadblock was torn down and removed – crazy traffic was back to normal frenzy pace on main road.  I greeted our 3 new passengers feeling safe and courageous to face our day and any “detours” that came our way.  As I looked at each man I wondered their story.  I was visiting a week.. they had lived in Cap Haitien all their lives.  They lived the daily struggles and heartaches and poverty and conditions day after day.  This was their life we were visiting and I wanted to honor their kindness and respect they gave us today.  I was able to give them each a T shirt donated by my bloggy friends and church.  They were happy and grateful.  Lucien wore “Love and Respect with Africa.  I was moved He was so proud and looked so striking- he helped save our lives the day before and came back again to help us, serve us and love his people.

Sharing time alone with Lucien the night before, touched my heart deeply as he proudly held his baby girl and showed me the three most important papers he owned.  At first I was a little confused why he was showing me the baby’s birth certificate, his certification as the father, and the name of Casually’s Godfather.  I realized later, that he “claimed” his daughter, breaking the culture bonds that destroys family in Haiti.  He showed surrender to his family and ownership of his children.  I asked him if he knew Jesus and he looked at me and said hes.  I touched his heart and again asked… have you asked him in your heart?  He said, Oh yes!

I feel a strong new bond to Haiti, a new sense of friendship with the people that I did not experience on my last trip.  God allowed an open door for us to slow down, interact, minister, encourage, bless, and love the people of Haiti.  Going back to the church that protected our food and asking the Pastor, “What needs have you been praying for?”  Alicia asked him if we could pray over him… he fell down on his knees in the dirt and cried as we prayed for his ministry.  We were sisters praying for our brother.

The photograph below captured the moment of my trip I will hold deepest in my heart.  We passed by this room at the orphanage and I felt an overwhelming sense of emotion I couldn’t express.  The room made me sad, it made me weep.  When the Pastor took my hand standing next to the “room” he was humbled and I sensed immediately that he was embarrassed.  He needed to explain to me the situation. Pastor and his wife lived here at the orphanage, so they are responsible for 46 orphans 24/7.  I held his hand and simply said – you have done the best that you can do with what you have.  I am proud of you and want to pray that you can continue to help your children and community grow healthy and strong together.  The children are loved and that is making the real difference.  I soon learned the “room” was where the toddlers slept – the two year old orphans.

I don’t want any two year old to sleep in a room that has 1 filthy torn mat in a corner.  That was the best that Pastor could offer.  I can’t imagine my Zoie sleeping alone in a dark room and not doing something to help.  I stood there crying, but envisioned bright yellow paint on the walls, with toddler beds, light, and items like blankets and toys and comfort filling it with love.  I saw what I saw and can’t ignore the desperation of an orphanage that needs help.  Isn’t that what hope and love is all about.

Video #1 – My interview with Pastor concerning the needs of his orphanage.  It was a moment we could pray for him and celebrate all the work he does for his orphans!  He is my hero!

How in the world did we make it to Danita’s Orphanage for a surprise visit?  She is the super hero of Haiti!  I have watched her videos and website over the past year and could not believe God allowed us to drive in unannounced and tour her facility.  Drew’s wife, Robyn worked at the orphanage a few months ago, and encouraged him to try and visit.  Unfortunately, that was not on our itinerary, but it was definitely on God’s agenda.

My Journal at Danitas:

Touring Danita’s Orphanage and knowing one woman made a miracle happen next to the border – an oasis of Hope in Haiti.  This inspires me to press on and help others build their dreams too!  11 years ago, Danita moved to Haiti and started a church and orphanage.  Her story is remarkable and you can read more about her orphanage and children at her website, Danita’s Children.

Today we met a little hero named Johnny.  He was living in Port Au Prince with his family when he narrowly survived the horrific earthquake.  He managed to crawl to a hospital with a broken femur and severe injuries.  He did not know where his family was or unable to communicate his full name.  All he knew was his name … Johnny. He was brought via helicopter to Danita’s Orphanage and started the fight of his life.  Danita shared with us that all the children from PAP have been identified, but 3.  Johnny has not yet been identified.  He loves bananas “figs” and that was all he asked for to eat when he arrived at the orphanage.  The staff affectionately gave him the name Johnny Fig.  He was interviewed by Anderson Cooper on CNN.  He’s quite a celebrity with his big gorgeous smile!

“Anderson Cooper again spent time at General Hospital, this time in the pediatric ward. An 11-year-old with broken legs continuously screams. It’s pretty horrific. There Anderson also meets a little boy named Johnny, one of Haiti’s newest orphans. They don’t even know his last name. Unlike the children who had adoptive parents waiting for them in the states, orphans like Johnny have no one and nothing. What will become of him and others is anybody’s guess..”  Anderson Cooper 360 Review

Look at the miraculous transformation of Johnny now… 3 months later!!

We made it back over the border without a hitch.  None of us had the opportunity to drink coffee that morning due to the early get away out of Cap Haitien.  I guzzled down an espresso and 2 cappuccinos… I had a serious bouncy buzz the rest of the day!

Danita’s Orphanage-

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Today is the day we tackle the rest of the food for distribution.  We have a ton of boxes totaling about 150,000 meals.  We had some down time to take a few fun pics of our group.

I love my team: Leader- Steve Ijames aka: Jack Bauer, Co-Leader- Don Fuhr aka: Jason Bourne, Becky, Chris, Bayli, Ed, Drew, Dennis, Paige, Jody, Kathi, Alicia, Ali and me!

I encourage you to find a mission team to join… you will not regret the decision!  If you want adventure and the opportunity to simply love… you will find both on a mission trip.

My Journal Today:

We are up early.  We got all 150,000 meals packed on the truck.  We had our agenda that day- visiting 3 projects with hundreds of children and families waiting for food and fun!  Dennis led our group in prayer before we headed out asking God for protection and direction.  So far, our plans had been redirected and we were so excited to see if God had a new plan for us today!  Less than 5 miles driving in the bus, we knew that our plans had been dramatically changed.  This was the moment our group had been warned about- the other side of Haiti, the violence.  We were driving on the only road with access to cross the bridge to travel to the 2 projects in Cap Haitien.  I was sitting in the front of the bus and saw several men to my right screaming at our window.  I remember thinking, wow, they are really angry… is that directed at us?

As we turned the corner, I immediately sensed danger when a man in the middle of the street picked up a glass coke bottle and throw it at our window.  He missed, but picked up another bottle and hurled it at our bus.  Two men were now running toward us, throwing glass bottles one after the other.  Inside the bus, our fearless leaders were barking out instructions and the bus started backing up quickly.  Behind us was the truck of food and behind him was an UN vehicle.  They tucked their tail and pulled an U turn and took off leaving us to fend for ourselves.  The men running at us were now screaming and waving their arms and throwing bottles at us.  The road was blocked by a structure of metal to keep cars from driving through.  I accidentally took a photo of the street and men running at us.  In fear, my finger clicked!  It’s probably not the best idea to take pics during a riot.

The man in black ran aggressively toward our bus and kept throwing bottles at us narrowly missing our vehicle, but when he reached close enough to our bus, he moved his hand to his back pants and my heart froze.  His face was escalated to violent anger.  I felt instant terror throughout my entire body – was he reaching for a gun?  At that moment, our guard, Lucien (who was a French speaking local Haitian) jumped out of our bus and yelled, “Stop, these are American Christian missionaries here to help us, don’t harm them!”  The man in black looked through the glass and I locked eyes watching to see what he was going to do next.  He bowed slightly and backed away from our bus, like he was apologizing to us.  He reached down and picked up bottles and walked away calmly.  By this time, we had backed away from the street and driving away from the roadblock.

We were told later that the city had been without electricity for a week due to not getting the vital shipment of oil.  Unfortunately, a few thugs decided to riot and cause injury to many Haitian’s that day.  Cars were attacked and people were hurt in the chaos.  At the police station, we noticed a mob of people waiting there to report the incident.  The two men were arrested later that day.  God protected us from danger and we were able to deliver all the food to 1 of the 3 church projects.  In fact, the church we were re-directed to was where my family’s sponsored child, Rose was waiting for me.  I was thrilled that I could see Rose again, and that she brought her father for me to meet.

Video #1 – Roadblock Craziness!!

When we returned from delivering the meals, we headed to a sea side market to shop.  It’s crazy fun bartering for the prices and making new Haitian friends along the way.  I found a beautiful carving of a mother and her child that would be perfect for Zoie’s room.  I watched him chipping away at it, but through our interpreter asked him if I could buy it.  He insisted on finishing it for me and delivering it to our hotel.  Lucien agreed to help, but asked us if we would like to meet his 4 month old baby girl while he retrieved my new statue.  All the women went ga ga over baby Casually.  She was the most casual, easy going baby I have ever met.  She let us kiss and hold her for hours!  Her mother, Dadu came to the hotel and found her daughter drenched in cuddles… what a sweet way to end the day!

My special carving of Mother and Child.  Wait till you see the finished product:)

Baby Casually stole all our hearts!

I’m Your Billboard Today:

My bloggy friends fundraising for their adoptions sent me their T shirts to wear in Haiti.  You can click on their links to purchase their projects!!

1. Faith Hope Love Grace- I gave this T shirts Stacey sent me.  I loved how excited our Mission of Mercy host, Dimas was when I gave him the shirt!

2.  Seek, Defend, Plead and Encourage – Africa adoption bloggy friend.  Our body guard and new friend, Lucien (who saved our lives!) loved wearing his T shirt.