Donations can be sent marked “Haiti Relief Fund” through your local Foursquare Church or directly to the National Office and will be forwarded to Foursquare Missions International.

Foursquare Missions Int'l - Post Earthquake Missions Trip from FGCC on Vimeo.

A Letter from Jerry (Radio engineer for Radio Lumiere, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti)

An Incredible Day in the History of Haiti
I think that I will remember this day as one of the most significant in my life, not because of what I did, but for it's meaning. In fact, what I did today was insignificant, and may have even distracted from me fully engaging in the day.

Today was the one month anniversary of the great Haitian earthquake. About 3 days ago the Haitian president announced that there would be 3 days of holiday from work for the purpose of fasting and prayer. This is absolutely historic. If you have ever been in Haiti as a visitor or missionary, could you ever have imagined such a pronouncement? Could you imagine such an announcement from the U.S. president? This morning I saw a young Haitian-American woman, the leader of a work team, crying because the Americans could not understand the incredible importance of this day and wanted to go about business as usual. Remember, it was only about 6 years ago that a former Haitian president called the nation to come together to rededicate the nation to Satan.

This was not "a minute of silence for the deceased" or something as equally insignificant. Whatever the president might have originally intended, this became a real commitment for the Haitian people. As I sit here this evening, I can hear the preaching coming from a nearby church. Services have been going on all day. I just read a news story that Bob Dargan forwarded to us. It was about an official service with the President outside of the palace. The author may have accurately reported the little story of what he saw, but his highly biased hatch job piece totally missed the significant story of what was happening in Haiti today. Not that I often have strong opinions, but the author was a bigoted idiot. Let me tell you what I saw and felt today.

Peniel and I had planned an inspection trip up to the Artibonite Valley today. Right or Wrong, I don't really know, but since it was the only opportunity, we went ahead with the trip. As we left the guest house about 7:30 am, we were met by throngs of well dressed people headed to various churches. The sounds of Christian music and worship filled the air everywhere. The next observation was that there was NO traffic. Port-au-Prince streets are always clogged and overflowing with bumper to bumper traffic. This morning there were only a few vehicles on the roads, a few small buses (tap taps), some UN and military vehicles, and a few private cars. We had clear sailing through town. The same was true of foot traffic. Usually the streets are clogged also with people walking. Today there were only a few and many of them dressed for church. The only place that there were traffic blocks was in front of several churches where the congregations had overflowed the buildings, and the yards and had moved out into the streets as well.

The next observation was that EVERYTHING was closed! We could not find even one business or gas station open. There were no intercity buses running. Whereas the sidewalks are usually overflowing with millions of street venders, we only saw a few here and there. The huge outdoor market near the wharf where thousands work each day and spread out to cover most of the street, was EMPTY. Where were all the people? They were in churches and makeshift meeting sites. Every church (except a JW church) had services going on, almost always overflowing into the streets. Beside broken down churches, services were taking place outside. In homeless camps, there were services. Everywhere the nation was gathered to worship and pray. No, I did not see any voodoo, Islamic, or Buddhist services. This scene was repeated in every town and hamlet that we passed during the day.

Tonight, Pastor Ignace, who is sharing the room with me, asked this question: "Can people still say that Haiti is a voodoo country?" What has been happening and is continuing to happen in Haiti did not happen because of the earthquake. It has been happening because the Haitian people know how to pray. This is a tremendous outpouring of God's power as the result of prayer. Twenty years ago I started praying for the Gospel to change the Haitian culture. I think that I am seeing God do that work.

The only sadness that I feel today is for our nation. While a nation that has long been under Satan's domination is turning to God with total commitment, our nation, founded on Godly values has rejected God and rapidly trying to forget that his name even exists. Let us pray for revival.

Jerry (Radio engineer for Radio Lumiere, Port-Au-Prince, Haiti)

FEBRUARY 03, 2010 - UPDATE

On Monday, February 1, our Relief and Compassion Team arrived safely to the Dominican Republic. Most stayed overnight at the YWAM base. Dave Stone spent the night with missionary to Dominican Republic, Jerry Poppe. They set out early Tuesday morning, February 2, for Port-au-Prince. The purposes of this team are to:

• Care for Pastor Guy, his family, and the Church
• Assess the situation on the ground in order for us to properly prepare for our long-term approach for Haiti
• Provide as much of the immediate needs as they can carry with them

Haiti Update - Video #1 and Video #2
http://fmi.foursquare.org/articles/657,1.html


Story
I prayed with a believer with a crushed left arm.  After I prayed he told me through the interpreter, “You don’t know what you just did for me.”  I was encouraging him in the Lord and confirming the rightness of the decision he had made only days earlier though I had no knowledge of his commitment.  You see his armed was pinned down when a 5 story building came down on him.  And in that dark hour as a nominal believer he made a strong commitment to the Lord.  “I have not been living for You and I’m 31 years old, but from this day forward I will live for You with all my strength; my whole life will belong to You.”  Four men came and pulled him out of the rubble. So even though the enemy had come to destroy his faith and the faith of many others through this hard trial, God is leading people into an unshakeable faith!  He said that even if he can’t move his left hand again, he will still serve the Lord.  However, I also led him to believe the Lord for the complete healing of his left arm. -- Charlie Finocchiaro, Foursquare Missionary


Article on Understanding the Reality of the Situation in Haiti

Disease Spread in Quake-Hit Haiti
http://www.globalmontreal.com/money/Disease+spreads+quake+Haiti/2500117/story.html

Breakdown of Rule of Law Puts Haiti’s Vulnerable Children at Increased Risk for Human Trafficking
http://www.ijm.org/ijmnews/breakdownofruleoflawputshaiti_svulnerablechildrenatincreasedriskforhumantrafficking

Disaster Do-Gooders Can Actually Hinder Help – by JoNel Aleccia
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34958965/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquak

Total giving as of Monday, February 01, 2010 at 12:00pm PST: $219,000.00

JANUARY 26, 2010 - UPDATE
We have secured tents for Pastor Guy to house people along with one week’s supply of food and water.  All seven churches, pastors and their families have been accounted for.  The orphanage was not damaged and is structurally intact. The main church suffered some damage, but the foundation and structure of the building appears OK.  Pray for Pastor Guy as he continues to search for missing church members. Communication possibilities remain limited, but are increasing. Food, water, and supplies are still slow in getting to the affected areas.

Foursquare Is Responding
The Foursquare Church is uniquely positioned as a result of already being established in Haiti for 25 years. These relationships are now the building blocks that allow us to quickly reach people who need it most.

At this time:

• Through our partnerships with first responders The Foursquare Church is already engaged in a response effort on the ground.
• Resources have been released to assist our national church in Haiti to minister to the greatest needs of the people at this time.
• Our greatest need is to set up a base camp for our long term response.
• This will include the purchase of:
  • Food, water, and shelter for those who have been displaced
  • Trucks, motorcycles, and other vehicles
  • Building supplies and equipment
  • Medical care and supplies
  • Personnel and housing

Our initial need for this first phase is $250,000

Every gift, no matter how large or small, will make this possible.  Donations can be sent marked “Haiti Relief Fund” through your local Foursquare Church or directly to the National Office and will be forwarded to Foursquare Missions International.

When the media dies down and long after the film crews have gone away, our Foursquare family will still be serving in this nation by:

• Responding to the immediate needs
• Rebuilding broken lives
• Restoring hope

Long Haul Approach to Haiti
Setting up of infrastructure both on the ground and in Foursquare USA

Jeff Roper, Lead Person for Foursquare Disaster Relief and Compassion Efforts

Who are we responding to in Haiti?  We are ministering to and through our Foursquare Family to those suffering in Haiti.
We, your Foursquare Relief and Compassion Team, need your prayers and participation. Our dear neighbors in Haiti and our Haitian families here in the US need our love, prayers, and support.

1. Response: Our partnership with qualified first responders is enabling us to get needed resources to our Foursquare family and the surrounding communities.
2. Recovery /Rebuild: We are establishing a base of operations to serve the recovery and ministry needs for the next 18-24 months. Our current needs for this phase are prayer, finances, base camp materials and personnel, and people to sign up for short-term teams.
3. Restoration: By strategically working together we will see spiritually vibrant and socially relevant churches planted throughout Haiti resulting in long-term transformation.

Article on Understanding the Reality of the Situation in Haiti
Disaster Do-Gooders Can Actually Hinder Help – by JoNel Aleccia
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34958965/ns/world_news-haiti_earthquake


What You Can Do

HOW to PRAY
•    Pray for security. This is a critical issue. Some of our first responder partners have already been attacked.
•    Pray for the spiritual and psychological protection of those on the ground. This is a horrific catastrophe.
•    Pray for those who are part of the Foursquare Disaster Response.

HOW to GO
The response from local churches and their congregation members has been awesome. In order to field teams strategically with folks from all over the USA, it is necessary that all potential volunteers fill out and turn in our Emergency and Relief Database Questionnaire. This document can be downloaded at fmi.foursquare.org/goteams, and e-mailed to David Wheeler at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Over 170 people have inquired about joining a team, and out of this group, about half have returned the questionnaire. Many people from this group are pledging to field entire teams of workers to come with them, so our volunteer pool is even larger than the numbers suggest!

The following is information that we been compiling for those who want to join a Foursquare GO Team to Haiti:

IMMUNIZATION: for information on what immunizations you should be receiving:
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/Haiti.aspx

PASSPORT: for information on how to obtain a passport:
http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/first/first_830.html

TRAVEL WARNING: for the most recent travel warning issued by the United States Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs:
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_4632.html

GO TEAMS STANDARD FOR PROTECTING CHILDREN: We request that churches help us to insure the protection of children in Haiti by providing the same background checks for team applicants as you provide for your children’s workers. See link below for more information on this tragic reality and why we are asking for this safety precaution: http://www.ijm.org/ijmnews/breakdownofruleoflawputshaiti_svulnerablechildrenatincreasedriskforhumantrafficking
For more information on how to go about this, please e-mail David Wheeler at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

If you haven't returned the Database Questionnaire to me yet, please do so
quickly. We need to compile this information ASAP.  Link: http://fmi.foursquare.org/goteams/