April 2017: Exciting Trip to Haiti

It's been a super 48 hours as we got ready for yet another trip to Haiti!  Last night we traveled to Miami and arrived in Port-au-Prince about mid-morning Thursday.

Today, we have an important meeting with the dean of the University of Haiti Dental School, Dr. Samuel Prophete.  We have collected many important dental items from fellow dentists, corporations, and well-wishers to give to the dental school. Thank you to all who have helped us bless them!

Next stop after this is to set up a clinic in the center of Port-au-Prince.  We'll be seeing many, many people in our dental clinic.  Long days, but rewarding days ahead!


We're dedicating this trip to Gary and Deb Rolph who were in a serious motorcycle accident six months ago.  Gary and Deb both serve on the board of Believe in Haiti and Gary had his first moments back in Colorado yesterday afternoon after recovering for many months at a rehab center in Omaha.  They are instrumental in the caring of hundreds of people and we are so excited to have them back home in Colorado!  We're thinking of you, Gary and Deb, while we're down here in Haiti this week!

Haiti... Exciting news update!

Haiti... Exciting news update!

In 2016 we journeyed several times to do dental work in Port-Au-Prince & Gressier, Haiti. We worked with two different organizations, Believe in Haiti & Respire Haiti. One of those organizations, Believe in Haiti, for whom I serve on the board as Medical/Health Director, has requested a last-minute trip next week and it’s super exciting! 

Believe in Haiti has been working in St. Roch to build a Community Center. We had plans drawn up for the building. The local government recently approved it! Next Tuesday, January 24, myself, Justin Henwood (Co-Founder of Believe in Haiti), Chuck my brother, & Beau my son will meet with a local architect and different construction groups. The building will break ground this February and be completed in fall 2017.

This is HUGE for the local community!

 The Hope Community Center is being built for Computer, Sewing, English, and Cooking classes, as well as for educational and economic opportunities. Local crops can be canned in this building. The village will have their first oven for the entire community! The lower floor of the Hope Community Center is designed to be used as a Health and Dental Clinic!

This Sunday, January 22, Justin Henwood, Chuck, Beau, and myself travel to Haiti for 4 days. Justin and Beau will provide the construction leadership as we meet in Port-Au-Prince and up the mountain in St. Roch with architects, local builders, and construction support people. 

On Monday afternoon I will have the privilege of meeting with Dr. Samuel Prophete, Dean of The University of Haiti Dental School. Thanks to my friends at the American Dental Association Foundation, leaders of International Humanitarian Dental Service, who helped make this meeting possible. Dr. Prophete seems to be very friendly! Our goal is to involve local dentists in our service.

In addition, we will meet with four dentists from the Boston area working with and for the St. Roch Foundation. Two Haitian dentists work with them now. It is a miracle that we will all be in Haiti together. Coordinated efforts will be to everyone’s benefit. We will meet with the St. Roch Foundation’s leadership that’s will be in country.

This is my first trip to Haiti without dental patient responsibilities  It’s a short trip, but an important trip from a strategic perspective. I’m excited to see more of the vision of how we can impact Haiti long term and help the community flourish.

Haiti Trip Wrap Up!

We had such a special time in Haiti last week.  Thank you, thank you for following along with our journey.  Thank you for the prayers, and the support you can give to the Haitians.  There are some cool things happening down there and it was an honor to be part of it for a week.

Day 4 & 5 - Respire Haiti
We wrapped up the last part of our trip in Gressier, where we served alongside Respire Haiti.  If you haven't had a chance to read it yet, go check out Miracle on Voodoo Mountain, written by Megan Bourdreaux.  We worked alongside Megan and their ministry that takes care of 500 students.  Read her story and you'll understand just how important it is to give these children education.  It's not just for the learning, but school helps keep them out of harm's way every day.  The dental need was huge in Gressier, just as it had been in Port au Prince with many of our friends at St. Roch (where we served with Believe in Haiti).

At the end of day 5, we headed back up to St. Roch to see Whitney Henwood with Believe in Haiti again.  We got to see their feeding program.  It's neat to see the food that is packed by groups like "Feed My Starving Children" here in the States actually making it to their final destination.

This trip was such an eye opening experience for everyone on our trip.  I know we'll take these memories with us for the rest of our lives.  Even though we're back, we are constantly reminded of the need and know that there are many here in Parker and Franktown who can help make a difference.  If you want to help, please, please, please check out these links below to see what you can do.  Suggestion, support one child for one year through Believe In Haiti or Respire Haiti!

Thank you again for your support as we made this dental trip to Haiti!

Haiti is only a ONE hour and 36 MINUTE flight from Miami.  That means that you are in a country with over 300,000 CHILD SLAVES but in an hour and a half you are back in a country where we don’t even realize what’s going on with our next door neighbor.

How can YOU help?

• READ Megan's book, Miracle on Voodoo Mountain with an open heart.  Be open to how you can get involved based on what you read.
• School can change a child's life!  You can sponsor a child for school for a year, which helps ensure that they don't get drawn into childhood slavery.  Check out Believe In Haiti (founded by Whitney and Justin Henwood of Parker, Colorado) for a practical way to help.  
• Support Plan International - Haiti financially with their efforts in Haiti.
• Support Megan's ministry:  Respire Haiti

Day Three - Blessings & Joys

Wrapping up clinic day #3 is bittersweet because this was our last day in St. Roch.  Yet, we were able to see and help so many people!  We were able to see all of those who had received tickets, and then also dozens of drop-ins (including 17 orphans at the end of the day).

Today was much calmer as we established three main areas.  The need for dental care here is very high.  Most have never seen a dentist EVER.  As you can guess, there are many dental health issues related to this fact.


We are on the move now.  We packed up our clinic into two SUV's and moved on to the clinic in Gracier, Haiti where we will be serving with Respire Haiti.  This was a 1.5 hour drive and we're really excited to start serving the students in the school here.

Smiles Along The Way!

Here's me with Wayne, an orphan graduate.  This was his first dental visit at age 24 and had deeply infected gums.  He'll be able to keep his teeth for a lot longer now!

Tanya, a three year old from a Haitian mountain village.  She and her younger brother were dropped off at the orphanage two weeks ago.  She was so sweet!

Someone had to help entertain the kiddos while they waited!

It's a team effort!

Normal sightings along the road.

Day 2: Hurdles & Heros

Our second day was extremely busy with people busting at the seams waiting to get dental care.  We feel like we are making a difference and the people are absolutely fantastic.  

Hurdles we're facing:

Long Days:  We've had 11 hour clinic days (LONG!).  Our hands were trembling from overuse.  Dr. Gartz, handling the bulk of the oral surgery cases, had lots of hand cramping.  

Power:  We miraculously found a new gas powered generator to purchase, which has allowed us to have power for our equipment.  It is noisy - as we have it INSIDE the clinic.  However, the noise bothers no one.  Another side effect is the fumes, which are somewhat strong, but with an open-air building with fans, we are surviving.

Presidential Elections:  There is a tension in the air because of the presidential elections this coming Sunday.  There is a great tension in the air.  Our clinic here in St. Roch is 1.5 blocks from demonstrations where military and equipment moved in to keep it calm. 

Need:  The need here is great for dental care.  95% of our patients have never seen a dentist.  There are  so many people wanting to get care that the crowds have even got hostile at one point.  At one point, we had a fist fight that broke out, even bumping Roger during a surgery.  Jeff (my translator) and Hunter helped break it up and on we went.  

Language:  While my French is fluent and I can use it with most people, my Creole is poor.  Jeff has been a huge blessing, translating when necessary.  

Haiti is only a ONE hour and 36 MINUTE flight from Miami.  That means that you are in a country with over 300,000 CHILD SLAVES but in an hour and a half you are back in a country where we don’t even realize what’s going on with our next door neighbor.

How can YOU help?

• READ Megan's book, Miracle on Voodoo Mountain with an open heart.  Be open to how you can get involved based on what you read.
• School can change a child's life!  You can sponsor a child for school for a year, which helps ensure that they don't get drawn into childhood slavery.  Check out Believe In Haiti (founded by Whitney and Justin Henwood of Parker, Colorado) for a practical way to help.  
• Support Plan International - Haiti financially with their efforts in Haiti.
• Support Megan's ministry:  Respire Haiti

Haiti - Day 1 In The Books

Our first full day of dental care was a long one.  We started out by hauling a mobile dental clinic, including a van packed full of equipment.  We even encountered military road blocks full with machine guns due to a presidential election.  We were nice and allowed to pass, but you sure don't see that in Franktown, Colorado everyday.

Every hour presents a situation we didn't anticipate, and yet with a deep breath and quick prayer they seem to be resolved.  It's taken being here physically to be able to comprehend the need here, for health and dental care and beyond.  There is so much need here.

The Haitians are worth the effort.

Bags of coal used in fire pits throughout the city.  Most families use it to cook each night.

Food pick-up for Believe in Haiti's feeding program for the children of St. Roch.  Food comes from organizations like Feed My Starving Children, LDS Foundation, and Nu Skin Corporation.

Haiti is only a ONE hour and 36 MINUTE flight from Miami.  That means that you are in a country with over 300,000 CHILD SLAVES but in an hour and a half you are back in a country where we don’t even realize what’s going on with our next door neighbor.

How can YOU help?

• READ Megan's book, Miracle on Voodoo Mountain with an open heart.  Be open to how you can get involved based on what you read.
• School can change a child's life!  You can sponsor a child for school for a year, which helps ensure that they don't get drawn into childhood slavery.  Check out Believe In Haiti (founded by Whitney and Justin Henwood of Parker, Colorado) for a practical way to help.  
• Support Plan International - Haiti financially with their efforts in Haiti.
• Support Megan's ministry:  Respire Haiti

We made it to Port au Prince!

We made it to Port au Prince!  Snow Storm Vexo couldn't keep us down!  It did delay our flight a little bit and we left Colorado soil around 1:30am Sunday morning.  From plane cancellations and missed connection flights, somehow it al worked out!

Downtown Port au Prince traffic

En route to St. Roch Village

Walking the village.

We are with "Believe in Haiti" and are set up with our dental clinic in downtown Port au Prince, Haiti.  We landed Sunday and then drove up in the nearby mountains to see their feeding program.  They feed 210 children meals several times a week.  This allows them to attend school and avoid child slavery.  We also visited the property that the organization wants to purchase for future services to the children.  Some of these kids will be ones we see this week at our dental clinic!

In St. Roch Village

Hunter, our new dental helper, with new friends!

Haiti is only a ONE hour and 36 MINUTE flight from Miami.  That means that you are in a country with over 300,000 CHILD SLAVES but in an hour and a half you are back in a country where we don’t even realize what’s going on with our next door neighbor.

How can YOU help?

• READ Megan's book, Miracle on Voodoo Mountain with an open heart.  Be open to how you can get involved based on what you read.
• School can change a child's life!  You can sponsor a child for school for a year, which helps ensure that they don't get drawn into childhood slavery.  Check out Believe In Haiti (founded by Whitney and Justin Henwood of Parker, Colorado) for a practical way to help.  
• Support Plan International - Haiti financially with their efforts in Haiti.
• Support Megan's ministry:  Respire Haiti.

Bringing Healthier Smiles To Haiti

Hello Friends!

“I want you to be concerned about your next door neighbor. Do you know your next door neighbor?” - Mother Theresa

We're off on another adventure in a few short days...  This time we're headed to Haiti to make some smiles healthier!  It's a little closer than Cambodia, but has it's own challenges, for sure!

We'll be heading to two main places to provide dental care to the locals.  We'll be going to one location in Port of Prince and another clinic setup with Respire Haiti.  We'll be working alongside Megan Boudreaux, who has a deep passion for Haiti.  Check out a little of what has sparked her passion for Haiti:

When I first visited Haiti I was so naive about many things…one of them being slaves in Haiti.  A Haitian friend and I were having a discussion about child slaves, and I asked, “How do you know which child is a slave?”  And he answered, “You just know.”  It wasn’t even 3 minutes later as we were driving along in the car that I saw her…she was so tiny she looked like she would break in half…the little girl had a women’s skirt on as a “dress” type of outfit…she was barefoot, dirty and carrying two heavy water jugs in each hand…she paused on the side of the rocky road as her eyes followed the car…My Haitian friend took one glance at her and said, “See her there?  She’s one.”

I felt like I couldn’t breathe.  As we drove by her I felt like her eyes were SCREAMING out for help!  She couldn’t have been more than 7…Can you imagine that?  Working ALL day long, then getting the leftover scraps for dinner, getting beaten and sometimes raped…And only being a CHILD…

There are hundreds of thousands of these child slaves or Restaveks in Haiti…an estimated 300,000-500,000 of them, but sadly after living here in Gressier, Haiti for more than 6 months I believe that number is much higher as the line is SO blurred between slavery and “paying your way” in a household.

I’m not sure people realize how incredibly disgusting this is.

Haiti is only a ONE hour and 36 MINUTE flight from Miami.  That means that you are in a country with over 300,000 CHILD SLAVES but in an hour and a half you are back in a country where we don’t even realize what’s going on with our next door neighbor.

How can YOU help?

• READ Megan's book, Miracle on Voodoo Mountain with an open heart.  Be open to how you can get involved based on what you read.
• School can change a child's life!  You can sponsor a child for school for a year, which helps ensure that they don't get drawn into childhood slavery.  Check out Believe In Haiti (founded by Whitney and Justin Henwood of Parker, Colorado) for a practical way to help.  
• Support Plan International - Haiti financially with their efforts in Haiti.
• Support Megan's ministry:  Respire Haiti.

We leave on April 16, so stay tuned for some fun pics and stories!