Well, how can I possibly put this trip into words. Today was our final outreach and in my opinion the most difficult of this trip. We went out to the Good Samaritan Orphanage and I speak for the entire team when I say that it was a very difficult thing to experience. These children are not only starving, but broken down both spiritually and physically. When we walked into the place, these kids poured out of the door latching onto one of us with raised arms which means “pick me up.” We were told to not give anything material to these kids because the “mother” would just take it and sell it for her own profit. These children have just fallen into the wrong hands and its just upsetting to see because you know that there are many more places just as bad if not worse here in Haiti. We fed these kids all we had left from the food we brought. Meal bars, granola bars, anything we had along with a bottle of water. Most all of these kids ate more than what we could have in one sitting. While we were there it was their meal time and each child is given an HUGE pile of rice with beans and most of them ate their whole plate as well as what we had given them. It truly was a trying time for me. Once we came back to MOH and inhaled the food we headed up to Pastor Andre’s church where the guys had been doing construction all week. The drive up was a thrill for me personally but others found it extremely unsettling. There were times where this truck was driving, fast, on the edge of this cliff that is just a straight shot all the way down. It’s difficult to look out of the truck but one of the few times I stood up and looked, what I saw was something that I doubt I’ll ever see again unless I return here to Haiti. A green mountainside, with these small houses and villages placed ever so carefully all along the way. Beautiful. The road is rock, unpaved and bumpy. When we got up to the church, we did another outreach and layed hands on people there too. The view there was amazing also. Something not even a photograph could completely describe. This trip has been an expeirence I will never forget. God healed people through my hands, I’ve seen things I never thought I would see, and most importantly, I grew so much spiritually. The people here worship as if they had all the riches in the world and when you get to know a family, or a child here, their sorrows become yours and I began to wonder how I would be given the situation these people have been faced with. When you see the people in their village, in their homes after seeing them dressed in their Sunday’s best, its something that breaks your heart. This truly has been a humbling experience and completely unlike what I had imagined Haiti would be like. Leaving is bittersweet because being out of your comfort zone makes you crave for the luxuries I have back at home but leaving Haiti means I’m leaving the people I have encountered and the people who remember me by name. May God continue the works we have started in peoples lives here and I hope to see Haiti once again. Jenna




Today was a very difficult day. All the days until today felt long but today flew by and the feeling of hopelessness was overwhelming. At the orphanage we witnessed a lot of opression, pain, corruption and injustice. It was very difficult but we were chosen to come into this place to break those exact chains in the name of Jesus. The children in the orphanage were so excited to see us and were so hungry. We took a lot of snacks and fed them to the children. The desperation in their chewing and drinking was shocking. One child that I will never forget ate, but was so malnutritioned that she fell asleep in Monique’s arms. She didn’t have the strength to even hold herself without going limb. The worst part was that we couldn’t provide them with anything that would last longer than the 2-3 hours that we spent there because we knew that the “mother” was going to sell it for her own gain. It hurt. We prayed for them, and for the “mother”. We were pleading for these children and we were praying for conviction in the “mother’s” life. The beauty in this situation was that since we weren’t able to provide in the physical, it forced us to have even more than double the faith that God would come through. It broke our hearts to leave the orphanage and I witnessed almost the whole team in tears. Later we went to Pastor Andre’s church and did an outreach. We got to experience God’s healing power and the truth of His word in the flesh. The freedom that these people experienced I believe can never be described by people who have unlimited freedom like us. It was a tremendous blessing and God showed up. We also returned to the tent city on the way home and experience a little girl who looked completely different than when we first met her due to God’ healing hand. It was so encouraging, but at the same time it required for us to take responsibility for being God’s hands and feet. The God we have encountered here is the same that we have in our everyday walk and have tried to limit in so many ways. Lastly, this trip has been one of being broken for the things that break Gods heart. I feel that God has shown us a lot of Him and placed it in our hearts for us to have a glimpse of reality. One thing I will say, is that we definetly have made a difference in this country and this will not be the last time New Life Ministries will impact the Haitian people. Andrea Marrugo