Haiti
(MNN) — Starving children enjoyed a Christmas party complete with food, gifts,
and a Gospel message this season. Despite difficulties with obtaining supplies, the party was a great success.
"Not everything got in, but we did have enough for a really,
really great party," said For Haiti With Love's Eva DeHart. "We cannot import from the Dominican Republic
anymore, so we couldn't get the frozen chicken that we usually use. So they
found a calf. We literally killed the
'fatted calf' this year and served them beef with their rice and beans. It
became a special treat because that's something they just don't get in their
regular diet."
Unfortunately, FHWL did not have enough food to feed all of
the hungry people.
"The only sad part is the number of people who were still
outside the gate who we didn't have enough food for, because everybody is so
desperately hungry," DeHart lamented. "They
couldn't have cared less about the gifts this year; they were just after a
meal."
The children also enjoyed a two-hour church service this
year, in which they participated by singing and dancing. They heard the Christmas story and sang
Christmas music, and some of the children did dances and solos.
"The church service part of the Christmas party lasted over
two hours this year before they got around to the food," DehHrt said. "The message was strong and powerful, and it
reached outside the gates because of the speakers. So the message touched everyone within
hearing distance."
Dehart said that the children responded well to the
service.
"They did keep wanting to sing," she said. "And they were encouraging [the preacher] to
keep talking to them. They were as
hungry for the message as they were for the food, I think."
The children are desperately hungry, not only physically but
also spiritually.
"The thing that the Christmas party normally does is it's an
uplifting glimmer of hope," DeHart explained. "When you're living in the middle of what they're living in now, without
hope they would all be committing suicide. But if you can give them a taste of hope that things can be better, they hold
on to the hand of Jesus and see that we can make it all better together."
