7th May 2011
I pray all is well. We appreciate the faithful prayers of the mission committee and the church as it is a great encouragement to our family.
As an update, I graduated from the Toronto Baptist Seminary on Friday, April 29th. On Saturday, April 30th an ordination council of local pastors, including my father who traveled for the graduation, was convened for my examination as a candidate. After three hours of examination, the council made a recommendation for my ordination and on Sunday, May 1st I was ordained to the ministry of the Gospel. We praise our gracious Lord for His steadfast faithfulness to our family and the work in Haiti.
Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we prayerfully plan our return to Haiti. We have several challenges before us. Please join us in prayer as we seek employment, housing and schooling for our four children in Haiti.
Thank you for your continual prayers and may the Lord continue to bless your service.
Your brother in Christ,
Daniel
19 March 2011
As an update, I will travel to Haiti, Lord-willing on April 8th for a few days to monitor a cholera project and help with the reconstruction planning. Please pray for the following;
- Wisdom -a. (Family) as our family plan to begin the process of returning to Haiti after seminary graduation on April 29
b. (Mission) Reconstruction/work/Community development Planning - It remains necessary to improve access to drinking water and environmental sanitation in order to maintain the positive trend of the cholera epidemic.
c. (Mission) Dealing with cholera -According to the World Health Organization -the number of reported cholera cases up to 21st of February is 243,197, including 4,626 deaths. Despite the downward trend during the last periods, the number of hospitalized cholera cases (5,934) reported during the week of 15-21 February, 2011 has been the highest since week of 17 January 2011Health
- School - planning for next academic year
- Strengthening Local Churches - through the preaching of the gospel message and evangelization
- Political stabilitya. Short term- as Baby Doc and Aristide have returned to Haiti in a politically charged environment with the upcoming elections
b. Long term - stability to allow for nations building
- Health of my parents
We greatly appreciate your prayers, care and concern. May the Lord continually bless you and the ministry work he has called you to serve.
In His Service,
Daniel
18th March 2011
3rd June
We pray that all is well. As mentioned in the last email, we would like to provide more information about our summer mission’s trip to Haiti. Shantell and I have been praying and seeking God’s will as well as consulting with my father and mother.
There are many things planned this summer. We prayerfully look forward to the Bethesda Mission’s July convention where my participation in the convention will include preaching, outreach evangelism and distribution of evangelistic literature. We will purchase and distribute Creole and French Bibles and evangelism resources. There is a great need for leadership training and encouragement for the Sunday school teachers, Christian school teachers and pastors especially after the earthquake. For example, the pastor of the Delmas congregation who attends to the needs of the community lost his wife in the earthquake and is now a single parent of four children.
On the other hand, Shantell’s medical mission’s ministry as a Naturopathic doctor in several communities is essential. As requested by Emma, Shantell’s focus this summer will be on clinic care and launching a thorough community health assessment for the mission in certain priority areas. This will allow future medical missions trip planning to be efficiently and strategically organized. As such, Shantel’s ministry will be to support Emma’s foundational mission that “…acts of mercy through the delivery of healthcare increases the profile of the local church and provide the church with a better opportunity to carry out its God given mission”.
Specifically, our family will travel to Haiti on July 6th and return July 27th. We recognized that our family trip is a God given opportunity to strengthen the local church and to help the work move forward during this difficult time.
We trust that God will continue to make clear our long term involvement with Bethesda Missions. We seek your prayers as well as the necessary support to make this trip possible. Please find attached a copy of the needed resources.
Travel Expenses: $2,500.00
Medical supplies and resources, Vitamins & Supplements - $3,800.00
Orphanage Supplies, School Supplies, Bibles and Christian literature: $3,500.00
Total $9,800
In His Service,
Daniel
6th April
We pray that all is well. As an update the work in Haiti remains challenging and complex at time in terms of securing supplies in due to the damaged infrastructure. We appreciate your patience with updates as God continues to leads us in our practical attempts (ie. food distribution, temporary school and community housing, preliminary reconstruction) to help people put the pieces of their lives back together.
As a praise item, we are thankful that the OEBB school closest to the epicenter of the earthquake (Delmas) reopened provisionally on Monday April 5th and the funds we received were allocated for that purpose. Attached are pictures of the first day of school (although most of the classroom in the Delmas location were not damaged -students, teachers and parents prefer to work outside). Several other schools in the mission are not yet functional and need progressive temporary measures (temporary tent structures for large groups) to ensure they to can reopen soon.
There is much work to be done and at times it appears overwhelming but in Gods timely grace and mercy we see pockets of hope and progress on both the physical and spiritual level.
We thank you and Heath Evangelical church for praying and supporting the work God entrusted my parents here in Haiti. We greatly appreciate the interest in helping Haiti and OEBB’s relief and reconstruction efforts.
In His Service,
Daniel
2nd March 2010
I pray that all is well. We greatly appreciate the prayer, support, care and concern. I returned from Haiti on February 22nd. I am in the process of emailing other updates. Lord-willing, I plan to return to Haiti March 14th for three weeks.
My parents have asked that I submit a copy of the OEBB disaster relief plan.
We look forward to your feedback.
With Thanks,
Daniel
Haiti Update for Feb. 7 - 16:
Shelter: 10 (more) ShelterBox and 5 new school in a box were received by OEBB for distribution.
Medical: 3 babies were born in the last 5 days in the Delmas tent city near the house and are being cared for by the nurses - a 500 gallon plastic water tank was purchased today (Feb. 16) for water distribution.
Food Distribution: 3 sites will receive food for distribution this afternoon (Feb 16).
Church Ministry: Marbial/Jacmel -church community received medical care for the first time since the earthquake -over 200 people were cared for over a three day period.
School Ministry: partial school opening in Jacmel for students preparing for state exam (in case exam is administered).
Current Challenges: sanitation and water.
Praise: God remains faithful!
Sunday Feb 14
Daniel will be preaching at the OEBB Delma Church today, pray that the Lord would use Daniel as a vessel to speak to His people. Pray that the Church would be encouraged and souls would be saved as God’s word is expounded.
(Since Daniel’s call to the ministry he spent 3 years in a Haitian (Creole speaking) church in Florida as an English speaking preacher in attempts to bridge the generation and language gap, before beginning his MDiv at Toronto Baptist Seminary.)
OEBB’s Prayer request:
When to open OEBB schools?
Currently 6,000 schools have been destroyed in Haiti. Parents have sent children with US papers on to the US to continue their education.
OEBB’s challenges: Since the earthquake some of OEBB’s students have become orphans.
Some families have lost one working parent and many who have survived face the challenge of job loss and the struggle to make ends meet.
The OEBB board requests your prayerful support as they seek God’s wisdom and guidance in the timing and means to normalize their student’s lives in the area of education.
Greetings,
The following report was sent by Daniel on the current work being done in Haiti through OEBB-Bethesda Missions.
Please pray for all workers involved as well as those receiving assistance.
Blessings,
Shantell Jovin
| Feb 2, 4 & 5 | OEBB distributed food at 2 OEBB campuses, a minimum if 175 people were fed per site. (Families with infants received priority). |
| Friday Feb 5th | OEBB leaders visited the UN headquarters & logistics centre to determine the eligibility requirements of becoming a distribution centre for the WFP - World Food Program. Please pray that the OEBB Mission will be accepted as a distribution center. |
| Mon. - Thurs. Feb. 1- 4 | A 15 member medical team associated with New Beginning Baptist Church, Canada visited 3 OEBB sites and treated a minimum of 200 people per site. Thank God for this group of doctors and nurses who have so faithfully provided medical care on an annual basis for many years in Haiti through the OEBB Mission. |
| Friday Feb. 5th | The medical team left for the US and Canada. |
| Sunday Feb. 7th | God provided OEBB Mission with a local Haitian medical physician to work at the Bethesda Delma campus. Many individuals received medical care. Thank God for His provision. |
| Monday Feb. 8th | OEBB received 30 (Shelter Box) units for distribution. These boxes contain items for individuals who have suffered a natural or man made disaster. www.shelterbox.org |
| Daily Service | The tent city around the home of Pastor Martinez in Delma (see a section of the city below) receives medical assistance provided by nurses working with OEBB Mission every other day. |
