Day by day

Fortunately for us Hurricane Sandy skirted our island. It has been an

extremely hot and dry summer and fall. The temperatures have been in the

30's consistently with humidex making it feel like the mid 40's. The teams

usually only do construction in the mornings when it is more bearable but

as John tells everyone who comes.... "shade is your best friend". We are

looking forward to the temperature change which generally occurs in mid

November to a more manageable 25 - 27 degrees Celcius. 

 Another container was loaded this past Thursday and is on its way now. There are 90 barrels of dehydrated soup mix from the Ontario Christian Gleaners on this load which will go a long way towards feeding the poor. Tourism is very low on the north coast here and so many people are unemployed because of this. These people are desperate to feed their families and the soup will go a long way to helping out.

Robberies are quite common especially now as it gets closer to Christmas. We lock our house securely each time we leave to go out. Even the police are asking for something to eat for dinner if you get stopped along the road. We need to be extra cautious as we travel about for you never know when someone will "accidentally" run into your car or person to try to get some money from you...after all...they look at it as we are white and have money and therefore can pay for everything. We are truly blessed compared to their situations and try to show the love of Christ in all our actions. We know the Lord is our protector and shield.

This past weekend..John brought someone to the hospital twice in less than 48 hours who desperately needed help. Thursday evening after dinner he took a dear Dominican friend and her 13 year old daughter who had a fever of 104 degrees....she received 3 treatments through an oxygen mask and was released 4 hours later with no follow up instructions. Friday the girl was at the clinic in villa Paraiso where they live to see the doctor and receive her medication free of charge. However.... Saturday afternoon she had a raging temperature again and after a desperate call to John, they went back to Puerto Plata (25 minutes away) and spent 8 hours waiting in the public hospital emergency room. No bed was given to the young girl...she just sat on the chair and waited along with about 25 other people. A few hours later she saw a doctor briefly...they took blood samples and then they waited for the analysis.

Repeatedly, the staff came into the room to report that the machine was broken and would be fixed soon. Each time this happened...all the other patients looked toward John as the only gringo in the room to see how he would react. During the next 5 hours of waiting the people just talked with each other....no one read a book....just chatted until finally the machine was fixed. They waited another 1 1/2 hours to get medication and finally were on their way back home. This is an example of everyday life and how the people don't sweat the little things....they just accept it and live one day at a time. Was this the way we had planned on spending our Saturday afternoon/evening, especially since it was supposed to be our date night for our wedding anniversary? No... but God calls us to help the widows and orphans not matter the circumstances. This lady has a special spot in our heart as she tries to raise 4 children on her own ....especially Nicole her 13 year old daughter who has chronic bronchitis and asthma and needs to go to the hospital often. The slightest weather change will compromise her health.

We are thankful that we can be a blessing and help in our work and daily lives here in the Dominican. 

Blessings, Jane

SPRUCELAND RETURNS

For the 6th year in a row…a team from Spruce land Millworks in Alberta has arrived in October not only to work hard putting the roofs on 18 more homes they sponsored….but also to share once again a delicious Thanksgiving dinner at the Morau Mai restaurant in Sosua with the local staff of the Samaritan Foundation. Thirty four people enjoyed a turkey dinner with all the trimmings….complete with pumpkin pie and real whipped cream on Monday, October 8th, 2012.

All week the tea has braved 33 degree plus humidity = 42 degree temperatures while working in the direct sun as they strapped and later installed the tin on roof tops. Others were able to find a sliver of shade alongside the new homes as they painted all the windows and doors which will be installed this week to finish off their homes.

During one body cooling break….“superman” passed by during a photo shoot with the team photographers. All in good fun….Vic….you are truly a “super” man.

At the thanksgiving dinner….a challenge was thrown down to John regarding his facial hair. $3000.00 has been pledged if john will shave his moustache and next month his goatee also with all monies going toward the costs of operating the soup repackaging program. 96 more barrels of soup are arriving from the Gleaners via a shipping container next month and we need sponsors to offset the costs of purchasing these additional items. Please make your generous donation payable to the Samaritan Foundation with the FEED A FAMILY noted in the memo to help us reach this goal. By the time all the barrels of soup will have been distributed….880, 000 bowls of soup will be available to the poor.

We need to raise $9000.00 in total to cover the additional costs of the packaging. Can you help to meet this goal? Thank you and may God bless you all this Thanksgiving season.

During week 1, Dori & Gail with the help of our interpreters interviewed many families to hear their stories of their previous situation and how their lives have been changed with the gift of their new home. Meanwhile… Christa and Lorel the official tea photographers took photographs of each family and their homes, gardens, schools etc. etc. to show in a beautiful way these lovely families.

Week 2 begins now and as they continue to finish these homes, we look forward to the house dedications for 18 new families in the village of lower Zion on Friday.

In the meantime….Lorel and Christa both accomplished seamstresses (and a quilter too… yaaaaay) along with our interpreter Stephanie…will work in the sewing trade school teaching the students how to make finished seams which makes their clothing articles look professionally done.

In Christ, John & Jane Huizinga

SOUP MIX = JOB CREATION

With grateful thanks for the numerous barrels and pails of dehydrated soup mix the Samaritan Foundation has received from the Ontario Christian Gleaners, not only will many hungry bellies receive a nourishing meal but 6 poor ladies have also received temporary employment. These ladies from the surrounding communities work 5 days a week on a morning or an afternoon shift breaking down the 100 portion bags into family sized portions of approximately 8 servings each. Rice and seasoning mix is also added to the mixture creating a one meal in each bag. Stephanie de la Rosa oversees the daily work and orders the supplies as needed.

Each day, 2 bags of rice @125 lbs each (250 lbs) and 1 large container of seasoning is used in packaging 1400 family sized meal portions which is the equivalent to more than 11,000 bowls of soup.

Where is this soup all going? Barrels of the finished product are being brought to local churches, orphanages, schools and ministry organizations that will distribute to needy families in their area or make pots of soup to feed the children.

This is truly a blessing to many, many families and needy individuals but we really need your help to support this program. It takes approximately $500.00 a week or $100.00 a day to cover the costs of the rice, seasoning and labor. With your help, prayers and financial support, think of how many meals can be provided and distributed because of your generous participation in this program.

Your participation gift can be sent with a note indicating “Feed a Family” to,

The Samaritan Foundation,

P.O. Box 21003, North town Postal Outlet, Welland, Ontario  L3C 7E6

May God continue to shower you with blessings as we celebrate Thanksgiving together and continue to praise God from whom all blessings flow.