Haiti

You have seen the news and know that the need in Haiti is overwhelming. So where do you start? You start by following God. Christ Church is supporting a Global Orphan Project village in Haiti.

Haiti Missions Dinner | Wednesday | May 16 | 6pm

Upcoming Mission Trips

Hugh's Story | May 2012

Shortly after the 2010 earthquake that devastated much of Haiti, Christ Church felt called to partner with an organization called the Global Orphan Project to relieve the suffering of the children left orphaned on the streets of Haiti. In the fall of that year, Christ Church announced its first mission trip to Haiti to share the love of Christ with these beautiful children who are considered by many to be the least of the least in the world.

That is when God placed His hand on Hugh Root and called him to serve these children. It would have been so easy for Hugh to find compelling and rational reasons to say, “No, not me, not now.” You see, Hugh is 82 years old and lives comfortably at John Knox Village.  But instead, Hugh stepped out of his comfort zone and said yes to God’s call.

It became apparent on our first day at the orphan village why God had called Hugh for this trip. Hugh’s love for these kids and the joy in his heart came shining though, and the kid’s saw it. Hugh was constantly surrounded by kids. The more kids that surrounded him the happier and brighter he appeared. You would be hard-pressed to find a picture of Hugh from that trip where he is not speaking, playing or reading with a child. Hugh was called to bring love and laughter to these children who had lost so much.

When we announced plans for our second mission trip to Haiti, Hugh was one of the first people to raise his hand to go. God was obviously not done with Hugh in Haiti. During Hugh’s second trip, he formed a special relationship with a 14-year old boy named Michael who had lost his parents in the earthquake and had been taken to the Global Orphan Project facility with a broken tibia. Near the end of that trip, Michael asked Hugh if he could call him Daddy. To many of us, that may have been too heavy of a request, but not to Hugh. He was overjoyed because he had spent the time to get to know Michael and to understand his pain and loss.  Hugh promised to keep in touch with him and send him letters, not knowing if he would ever get back to Haiti or ever see him again, but knowing in his heart why God had sent him to Haiti a second time.

Our third mission trip was in March of 2012 and, again, Hugh was there ready to go, not knowing what the Lord had in store for him. In true fashion, Hugh immediately connected with the kids. It was also an opportunity for him to reunite with Michael, and the two spent as much time as possible with each other.  On Sundays during these mission trips, the group typically travels from Croix de Bouquet to Port au Prince for church service followed by a bus tour of the city and surrounding areas.   On Saturday, Michael asked Hugh if he would attend church with him. Although Hugh was looking forward to the trip to Port au Prince, he agreed to stay behind to attend church with Michael. I was not there, but I can imagine the huge smile and the joy in Michael’s heart as he sat there in the pew side-by-side with Hugh. I can see Michael sitting there welled up with pride that Hugh cared enough about him to forego the group trip to Port au Prince. Later that day, Michael presented Hugh with an awesome plaque, which he had carefully hand-fashioned from aluminum and cardboard that he had found.    Michael had painstakingly cut Hugh’s last name, Root, out of the aluminum and added a cardboard backing. He then decorated it with colorful paper and magic markers. On the back of the plaque Michael signed it, “I love you a lot.” Once again it became obvious why Hugh had been called to Haiti, to share Christ’s love with a wonderful 14-year old orphan named Michael. God had used Hugh’s willingness to answer God’s call to write a beautiful story.

Well, that is not the end of Hugh’s story in Haiti. There was a woman named Diana in our group from Kansas City who had also decided to forego the Port au Prince trip. That Sunday afternoon, while the rest of the group was in Port au Prince, Hugh and Diana were at the orphan village filling up water balloons for the kids, when Hugh was prompted to ask Diana a simple question, “Where do attend church?” Diana’s answer was that she didn’t attend church anywhere and that it really wasn’t her thing, she had just come on the trip because a friend had invited her. For the next hour-and-a-half, Hugh simply shared with her what Jesus had done in his life and about his relationship with Jesus. I was not there, but knowing Hugh, I can only imagine that he shared with Diana in a very loving and caring way. At the end of the hour-and-a-half, Diana told Hugh that she wanted the same relationship with Jesus that he had. Right there on a dusty concrete floor in the middle of an orphanage in Haiti, Diana and Hugh got on their knees. Hugh led the prayer and Diana repeated after him, as she surrendered her life to Christ. 

Although Hugh has been a Christ follower most of his life and a man of deep faith, he had never been called to lead someone to Christ as he had been that day in such humble surroundings. I had the privilege of having lunch with Hugh since our last trip. He continues to stay in touch with Diana through phone calls and letters. He shared with me the last letter he had received from her that read, “I want to thank you for the time we shared and thank the Lord for putting us together. You will never know the impact you made on my life. You are an amazing man and I love you.” Praise God. 

It is not remarkable that Hugh was called to serve in Haiti. God calls many of us every day, but we find very convincing reasons to say no. What is remarkable, and why Hugh should be an inspiration for us all, is that Hugh at 82 years old got out of his comfort zone and said yes. Once Hugh said yes and made himself totally available to God’s will, God was able to use him to write a beautiful story that only God could have written. That is what God does in our lives when we say, “Yes, Lord.”    

If you would like to part of a future Haiti mission, or are interested in receiving more information, please contact Kathy Weed by email or phone at 954.462.8310, or complete the form below.