We left Port-au-Prince yesterday at 6AM and arrived in Pestel in the dark at 10:30pm. It's supposed to be an 8 hour drive...but we had car trouble. :) The radiator blew a hole in the bottom, and fortunately it happened when we were next to a garage that could repair it.
It made for a very long day.
The training went well today, and the materials I brought and the strategy for the Anemia Campaign seem to be acceptable to everyone so far. Actually, what's really cool is that Dr. Seneque is sending out Vaccinators this week to vaccinate as many kids as possible, and we can give the Vaccinators the child-carried records so that they can start updating them. If the vaccine campaign had happened last week the child-records would not be in Pestel....and the kids would have gotten vaccinated, but then next year no one would know who-received-what.... So some kids get too many vaccinations while others never get any.
I was able to see Anderson for a bit Saturday night and he continues to do well. Nakesha had a graduation party on Sunday and her mom was VERY busy making all sorts of things for the party. BIG three-layer cake...baked goods etc etc.
I spoke more with Dr. Seneque about UNICEF's request that we consider tackling malnutrition, and he thinks it's a very good idea. He is quite eager for it, actually. He had been getting supplies from Medicines for the World but at some point that stopped. So he's very familiar with the protocols etc. This is a HUGE problem with HUGE and complex solutions. I am praying for wisdom.
By the way, not incidentally all of the supplies made it to PAP, and about 1/2 of the supplies made it out to Pestel. I think that's remarkable, especially when you hear about the incredible difficulty I had in the airports (Dulles, then Miami).
The next big question mark is whether the cell phone data entry process will work in Pestel or not. It would be really really nice if it just went smoothly.
It's exciting to tell people about the work going on here. It's really mind-blowing when you sit and add it up quick....all the things that have happened, and are happening....all the people who are participating and organizations that are 'signing on'. It's no small matter, in my mind.
I don't know if it's hot where you are, but it ain't too pleasant here.
One last thing: I received a photo from from one of the workers today. It is a picture of about 5 or 6 kids from up in his section (Section 4). He wanted to give it to me to show me some of the kids that we're helping. This small gift means a great deal to me.
Ben
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