Amidst the Turmoil

I got this message from Tim DeYoung, the Haiti director for MMI: (his blog is insightful about what's really happening there)
Chris,
I just got a chance to read your blog. Had looked forward to meeting you and having you get to know a bit about what life is like here in Haiti. Based on what i saw today and the talk on the streets, there are protests planned for Monday, but now that the PM resigned an hour or so ago, who knows. At the airport dropping a friend off who was here for a "vacation" I met up with a number of missionary groups who are trying to get their volunteers out. It was a bi t chaotic. I am glad i am not in their shoes.
I spoke with Leanne the other day about trying to run the project later in May. She has some conflicts, but I think by then this will have quieted down. Gas and Diesel are now a shortage and we are all waiting to see what happens next. Embassys continue to send out warnings and travel info. I really feel bad about this whole thing. At times its just out of my hands. This came out of no where. In the past days friends and i have been talking about how rare that this flared up with no warning and how fast things got so bad. It was really a shocker. Every one was caught off guard.
I will keep you informed about future info if you would like.
The struggle i face now is how non-productive i am. This would have been our first project of the year. Things were really planned out well for this one. Partners were all looking forward to our visit and new partnerships were formed only now to be put on hold. Well take care and look forward to reading more about Catalyst F.

Sincerely,

Timothy DeYoung
MMI Haiti Director
deyountp@yahoo.com
t.deyoung@mmint.org
Visit my blog site for photos and stories: http://mmi-haiti.spaces.live.com/

Haiti Update

The situation in Haiti continues to be unstable as the government's proclamations and pledges to support further indigenous agriculture are not satifying a populace who are needing food now.
MMI's Haiti director Tim DeYoung has decided against bringing our team in at this point because our security can's be reasonable certain. So we're not going.
I have mixed feelings. After reading Stu's comments on the last post (see below) I was more open and interested in going if Tim said it was okay; but still I am somewhat relieved to have the decision taken out of my hands.
I'll be working with Leanne Graham (MMI Canada director) to figure out if we will arrange another trip later this spring to another location or something else.
Please pray for Haiti. These people are the poorest people in the Americas and their suffering is very real. Pray for the leaders, there are no easy solutions after decades of uncertainty. Pray for Tim DeYoung and his wife who are in the midst of this turmoil.

Brave or Foolish?

I came home from a meeting about 2pm yesterday to have my neighbour tell me their dog had fallen into the creek and been swept over Webster's Falls. Miraculously, the dog has survived the fall (absolutely astonishing!), but was now stranded on an inaccessible ledge just below the falls with the current surging by. After a few hours some bystanders risked their own safety to climb their way to him and eventually got Murphy out. I suppose they were heroes, but from where I watched I was truly fearful that one of them would slip into the creek and be in more danger than the dog was. So were they brave or foolish? It's sometimes a fine line.

How does this relate to the Catalyst Foundation?

This Sunday I'm supposed to be travelling to Haiti to participate in a dental project with MMI. The issue is that the last couple days there have been violent protests there, in the city where we're going to be based. The project director, Tim DeYoung,let us know that things are pretty dangerous right now. He thinks things might very well be settled by the time we're to arrive, but he wants to see what happens in the next day or so. When they called me with the news they asked my thoughts.

Haiti is always somewhat volatile. Being the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and having food prices increase by 40% in less than a year makes that inescapable. Political stability has really never been part of the picture.

So, what should I do? If Tim (who knows Haiti intimately as a resident there) says he thinks it will be safe should I trust that judgment? I'm hesitant. I know that I can reschedule for another trip later this year, to another place where the need is enormous. I don't believe Haiti in particular is somewhere I'm supposed to be. So would going there next week be an act of courageous faith, or one of unnecessary risk? And how do we distinguish the difference?

I'd love to hear thoughts from some who have more international experience than I do...