In the city of Grande Goave, the market is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The farmers live way up in the mountains where they grow and make the products they will sell to the market. Twice per week, they walk down ON the river, as there is no road, mostly barefoot as they don’t want to break their sandals. They carry their goods on their head in big bags or they have donkeys that carry them. In the mountains, they have a community, a school and a church, funded and supported by Heart to Heart Haiti. This organization takes care of 6 satellite churches in the mountains along with the big school in Grande Goave where over 700 kids go to school and 150 orphans live full time. Other than having to walk to the river for over 4 hours to walk to the market twice per week, they also have to make a daily trip to the river where they get water, they bathe, do their laundry, etc.

We drove ON the river twice to deliver some food to the Lavange school. Our first trip was quite breath-taking. I did not know a 4X4 Toyota Helux was actually able to drive IN the water and through rocks and climb on the creek to steep parts higher in the mountain. Some of us had to sit on top of the load at the back of the pick-up, such a thrill. I closed my eyes more than once, hearing the engine grunt and the tires spin, creating a huge black diesel smoke behind us. We were greeted by a whole bunch of boys watching a soccer game on a small tiny tv powered by one little battery plugged on a tiny solar panel at the school.
We climbed the uneven dangerous stairs with the 50lbs bags of rice and oil and vinegar on our shoulders and we were on our way back, lighter of twenty bags of food and yet filled with emotions, knowing that the money we had raised, that our friends and family generously donated, was contributing to feed a whole community.

On the way back, we stopped on the river to watch a man climbed on a palm tree, way up in the air, probably about 12 foot up in the air, getting coconuts down. We waved at him and he quickly came down with coconuts for all of us, even after us explaining to him that we did not have any money, he still insisted to give them to us. We drank the delicious coconut water and then he cut the coconut and made us a little spoon in order to for us to be able to eat the flesh. Wow! That was such a great experience! Such generosity from this man. I have found that in Haiti, they are all sooo generous and yet, they have barely nothing and they will share it with you.

The second trip to Lavange, we took the Datsu truck and took 50 cases of Manna Pack with us. Each box contains 36 bags which feed 3 to 4 people each. Manna pack is a blend of rice, deshydrated soy and vegetables. The whole community was waiting for us as they were all looking forward to the food we were bringing.
Their crop and kettle has been completely lost because of hurricane Matthew so they are very hungry and relying on Heart to Heart to survive.

On the way there, our big Daihatsu truck got stuck on the river at a passing that was quite deep. Haitian men started to come out of the bushes to help push and get the truck through. After an hour of moving rocks, pushing, pulling, adding weight to the back of the truck, moving it around, giving it a go and get more stuck, pulling back and trying again and again, the truck finally went through in a common effort and generated a huge cheer!

We finally got to the school/church and the whole community was there again, they had walked up the steep part of the hill after pushing us through the river and they all lined up to empty the truck, then exited the church one by one as we handed them their ration.
Each adult was given 6 bags and the kids 3 bags. We also kept some to give to our ‘coconut-man’ his name was Mosa. On the way back, in the dark, driving down on the river, we stopped at his ‘house’ (more like a cabin) and gave him the Manna Pack to thank him for the coconut he had generously given to us two days before. This experience was sooo REAL. It was really the ‘on hands’ way of Giving. Blessing everybody with food and smiles, shaking their hands, giving hugs and love.