Hello Everyone,

This update is a couple of weeks overdue in coming out, but we have a good excuse, promise! We’ve actually been hosting Filter Technician trainings for the last two weeks. Today is that last full day of training and if we said we weren’t tired we would be lying. We were originally only planning on offering one week, but word got around and we had so many people interested that doing back to back classes seemed like the best idea. The first week brought 15 men that we really enjoyed. They were very enthusiastic and participated a lot in the theory, group work and practical sessions. This weeks class has been different. Just a different feel. They aren’t as enthusiastic which is something that we unfortunately encounter when students have been sent by organizations, often North American run. North Americans see the value in what we’re doing here and want to see the technology used in the communities they help. The students know their communities have bad water, but they don’t always understand the work involved in running a successful project. Where the first weeks students seemed like human sponges, this weeks class seems a little less enthusiastic, but for the most part both classes have been good. 

 Students from the first class preparing molds to make their first filters.

Getting ready for a class can be tiring in itself between getting all of the class material prepped, getting our staff ready, and getting our facilities and meals organized. We knew that October was going to be a busy month for us so we decided to start well in advance with getting the dorms and things like that set up and cleaned. It made a big difference when it came down to crunch time. Over the last few months we’ve made a big effort to establish a bit more personal space here, so having people around constantly and staff working in the house all day to prepare all of the meals has been draining for us. Haitians also have a very different approach to personal space and belongings. There is a mentality that because we are white we have an endless amount of resources at our disposal so there is often less care taken with things that can make a big difference. Our fridge is a good example. The door never closes properly. It usually requires a good push or a foot thump at the bottom. In the last two weeks I’ve lost count of how many times this conversation has taken place…

 

Enter the kitchen to find the ladies working and the fridge door open 2-6 inches.

“You need to make sure the fridge door is closed. We waste power and the food gets warm if it’s open.”

“Oh. Okay.”

 

Enter the kitchen again to find the door open etc and the ladies working.

“You NEED to make sure the fridge door is closed. Please push it hard.”

“Oh. Okay.”

And repeat.

We have a generator that charges a bank of 24 batteries through an inverter. Diesel is expensive. Every extra hour that we need to run the generator is more money paid for fuel and less money for filters. After a while we start to feel like parrots and we walk around shaking our heads. We probably won’t ever understand how people here think. There is a huge difference in the way people are taught which may add something to that. Those that have had an opportunity to go to school are taught by rote and repetition. They aren’t taught problem solving and how to think about the bigger picture. We often have to remind ourselves about this fact when we feel frustrated. It’s not always easy to remember though.

Last month we got to take a week long trip to Chicago to visit friends and do some mission promotion. We spoke at the Rotary club that is doing the matching grant for our new Daihatsu truck. We also spoke at Dupage Vineyard. We had a great time with them and felt very encouraged and loved after our visit. Our friends treated us out to some great food, a musical (That was Leslie, not Chris. He went to a book store and did boy things), some shopping, the Blue Man Group, the Field Museum, the Sears Tower and Second City – the comedy club where some very famous actors got their big start. We also took a drive to Milwaukee to visit Erik, one of Chris’ friends from university. We were able to get in on a tour of old Pabst Brewery, on of the oldest breweries in the US. It’s been shutdown and abandoned since the mid 90’s and is now being turned into a historic district in Milwaukee. It was amazing to see office spaces, staff rooms and locker rooms that we’re essentially just left when people were sent home the day it closed. We had a good time and enjoyed a bit of time away. We were really happy to return home and find out that there weren’t any major problems for our friend Barb who was house sitting. Well, there was one problem…our boat sunk up to the gunnels. No worries though, our guys had it bailed and floating again within hours. Welcome to life in Haiti!

 Chris, our friend Erik and I as we toured the Kettle Room at Pabst Brewery.

The first two days of November are national holidays here. This means everything basically shuts down. Our neighbors were all out enjoying their beach houses so we got visit with some that have become good friends. One morning we went on their boat down to the old Club Med resort. Yes, Haiti had a Club Med. Crazy, we know. It has now been reopened by a group of families and was renamed Club Indigo. This has been a big thing for our area because it brings more people out that haven’t been for a long time because of safety issues, as well as providing at least 100 jobs to local people so far. Once business picks up and the refurbishment is finished there will be more. We enjoyed some time in the sun and meeting new people. On the way home that day we stopped at another beach house (by far the most amazing one we have ever seen), only to find out that these people were part owners of the resort. It was interesting to learn that the land that the resort is on was once owned by their family, but during the Duvalier government it was taken away and leased to Club Med. This was a very common thing during that time. When they found out that we were missionaries and working with the filters they thanked us for what we were doing for their country. We don’t get a lot of encouragement from people in country so this meant a lot to us. A couple of days later we went out fishing with our friends. We had a lot of fun, caught some big fish, and had the very cool experience of going through a school of about 200 little puffer fish.

 Churchill, his brother Gilbert, and Chris show off the catch of the day. Our biggest fish was the 42 lb. Wahoo Churchill is holding.

The coming month is one that we’re looking forward to for many reasons. Next week is American Thanksgiving and we’re having all of the missionaries in our Bible study group over for dinner. We’ll have a potluck with all of the fixings. Don’t worry, we celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving too! I (Leslie) figured that there was no reason why we shouldn’t since we’re ¾ Canadian (Chris has his dual citizenship). I made a yummy dinner for us, Diana and Derek from CAWST who had just arrived for a few weeks, and Barb who came from St. Marc to join us. It was nice for all of us to share a meal together since we couldn’t be with our families.

Two weeks from now Chris’ parents will be here. We’re really excited to see them. I know we’ve been mentioning their visit for the last couple of months. It’s exciting because we won’t get to see them over Christmas, so three weeks before is the next best thing. We’re looking forward to doing some fun things with them. Things have felt quite a bit safer in the last couple of months so we’re hoping it will be easier to get out and not be as stressed about things. What we’re mostly looking forward to though is just spending time with people we love. We’ll be sure to take some pictures and give a very thorough report next month.

We are also less than one month away from leaving for Christmas holidays. It’ll be a good time of rest and visiting. We’re going to be flying into Seattle and spending a few days with our friends Joel and Trina. They’ll be getting married while we’re there and we’re so excited to be there with them. After that we’ll drive up to BC. I’m already getting giddy to see my family. Because of where we live they’ve had very limited time with Chris which has been hard. They love him, but I’m looking forward to having them spend more time with him so they can see even more of the reasons why I love him soooo much. My mom also LOVES Christmas, so coming home for Christmas is always fun. We’ll get to be cold, in sweaters, for two and a half weeks!

There are always things happening around here, but like life there, many of them just become everyday. It can be hard to remember the highlights to share with you and for this we apologize. For the most part we are enjoying life here. There are many days that are hard and challenging for many reasons, but we always manage to get through them. There are also days that are really good. I think we tend to be quite cautious though because we live in a very complicated culture and things can flip so quickly. That makes life a bit more difficult because you can’t really ever let your guard down. We’re really grateful for all of the prayers that are said on our behalf and the support we receive. We do feel them. God answers them. In times where we don’t know what to do, we are given wisdom. Things become calm. We’re protected probably more times than we’d ever want to know about. We receive what we need when we need it. We feel blessed. Thank you for loving us!

 

Until next month, love and blessings,

Chris & Leslie Rolling

We don’t have a snail mail address in Haiti, but if you would like to send us mail we WILL be able to receive it at Leslie’s parents house in Canada over the holidays (no later than Dec. 30). We would LOVE to hear from you! Send to: Chris & Leslie Rolling ~ 2475 Heather Ave. ~ Armstrong, BC   V0E 1B1 ~ Canada