An Embarrassed Pastor!

Dear Friends,

Two weeks ago, Jim McDaniel and I led a group of 23 parishioners and friends to Haiti. This mission trip was perhaps the most memorable of all the trips we have made over the past 15 years. It was different for a number of reasons: it was the largest group – we even had to split up between two aircraft in Haiti; and it was the youngest group – more than half were under 30. There was also a moment of deep embarrassment for me, which I will come back to later in this message.

You know I am fond of saying, “Our tomorrows must not only be different, they must be better because we were there.” Every “tomorrow” on this trip was indeed better; better for those we encountered, and better for ourselves as well.

Tomorrow is better for the teachers and students in our new school at Nativity Village at Madras – better because Alex Altobelli brought school supplies, Lisa O’Donnell at Nativity School and Jill McDaniel at Orange Hunt Elementary sent classroom decorations. Karen Kershenstein, Jill Chastain and Mary Ellen Smith also brought classroom materials and decorated the walls of the new school.

Tomorrow is better for the children in Nativity Village at Prolonge because Isabela Silva brought toothpaste, toothbrushes and floss for Dr. Maklin to hand out at St. Anthony Clinic.

Tomorrow is better everywhere we went because Pamela Villar, Minh Wilson and Linnette Lam took hundreds of Polaroid snapshots and handed them out, along with bracelets and soccer balls.

Tomorrow is better for the residents of Perest because Tu Le and Vin Lam took the lead in building Fish4Hope Village, with 15 houses and 4 tilapia ponds.

Tomorrow is better for the last resident of Fish4Hope Village because Mark Altobelli, David Lam and Rebeca Garcia painted her house.

Tomorrow is better for the children at Little Children of Jesus Home because they have memories of the dancing and the smiles and hugs left behind by Michael Wallace.

Tomorrow is better for the Mom at Bernard Mevs Hospital because she and her dying baby received Deacon Dick Kelly’s heartfelt blessing.

Tomorrow is better for all of us and for those who follow us because Steve Saldana, Zander Taketomo and Ryan Hansen professionally documented our journey.

We left a large legacy on this trip. We left pieces of our hearts behind, and we took the hearts of the poor home with us. As I look back on 15 years of Operation Starfish, I sense a transition coming. Some of the people on this trip were children when I baptized and confirmed them. They are now the leaders – the ones who will carry on this ministry of service to the poor. And they are doing a wonderful job of it.

And after 15 years of travelling to Haiti, there are still experiences to have and lessons to learn. On this trip, as we descended into the depths of the Shada Slum, I learned a profound life lesson. We were deep in the maze of alleyways and shacks of Shada; some pathways were less than 2 feet wide. Thousands live here without clean drinking water or sanitation. Raw sewage flows in trenches like the one in the picture.

I lost my footing for a split second. Before I knew what was happening, I lay sprawled out in the middle of the sewage trench. I was covered from head to toe in filth. Just as quickly as I fell, I felt myself being pulled out by many hands. I was embarrassed, humiliated, and I smelled worse than your worse nightmare. I wanted nothing more than to be hit with a hose full of water. Of course there are no water connections in Shada, but the people quickly formed a bucket brigade, pulled off all my filthy clothing and doused me until the filth was gone. Someone took off their pants and handed them to me; someone else gave me their shirt. They don’t know me but they were filled with love and concern for me. Bishop Beauvoir loaded me into his car and took me back to the hotel, where Dr. Eugene Maklin was waiting to check me over.

This is an experience I would not wish on anyone. Thank God, I didn’t hit my head, break a bone, or land on something sharp. Dr. Maklin cleaned the only cut – a small one on my hand, and gave me antibiotics.

This deep embarrassment for me taught me many lessons. First and foremost, while I fell into filth momentarily, the people of Shada live in it every day of their lives. While I came to Haiti to clothe the poor, it was the poor who clothed me in my time of need. In my humiliation and nakedness, I realized ever so much more the plight of the poor. While I smelled of human waste for a couple of hours, the poor live with that smell 24 hours a day. I was able to clean up and leave the filth behind. The only time the people of Shada can see a bird or smell fresh air is when we move them into a house in one of our Nativity Villages.

As Lent approaches and we again focus on Operation Starfish, I am even more committed than ever to build houses for the poor. We will build another Nativity Village in 2014 and in so doing, we will rescue many more families from the indignity and danger of living in a slum like Shada.