A steadfast mission

Homepage

Related Photos

January 27, 2010

By ANDY GOODELL The Oskaloosa Herald Wed Jan 27, 2010, 09:36 AM CST

OSKALOOSA — This mission will remain.

Dr. Molly Walker and husband Matt know what it’s like to help those in need. The Oskaloosa couple have gone on several mission trips to Haiti in past years. Their destination — Christianville Mission outside of Gressier, Haiti, just two hours from the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince.

The Walkers had planned to fly to Haiti this past Saturday for what would have been their fifth visit to Haiti. However, the Jan. 12 earthquake put all that on hold.

When the earthquake hit, Molly said she and Matt were worried about a lot of the people they’d worked alongside on past mission trips.

“We made some wonderful friends there, both American and Haitian,” said Molly.

Thankfully, the Walkers were able to get word that all of their friends at the mission were alive that evening. Although efforts to contact the mission via cell phone were fruitless, Molly said they were able to exchange messages on social networking Web sites Facebook and Twitter, as well as through e-mail.

It wasn’t all good news.

“Unfortunately, their housing structures and most of the mission has been destroyed,” said Molly. “God spared their lives and we know that’s for a purpose.”

In the days following the earthquake, Molly said Christianville missionaries have continued to reach out to the Haitian people in any way they can. Since the quake hit, the mission has been lucky to have received helicopter shipments of food, water and medical supplies, said Molly.

Despite improving conditions on the mission, Matt and Molly have learned from Christianville leadership that it is not safe to return to Haiti at this time. The couple remain eager to offer their skills to the mission as they had done on past trips to Haiti.

Molly, an optometrist at Oskaloosa Vision Center, had intended to work alongside another American optometrist at a Christianville clinic this month. Matt, an engineer with Garden & Associates in Oskaloosa, was going to help repair a Christianville church. Even before the earthquake devastated Haiti, the country was already in need of physical and spiritual aid, said Molly.

“It was just really something that God has laid on our hearts — to go and serve there,” said Molly. “The need in Haiti blows you away. We just felt that was such an awesome opportunity for us to go and minister and serve and put some of the things we do here in the states to good use there.”

Molly said she first became involved with the Christianville Mission while attending the Illinois College of Optometry. She also became involved with the Fellowship of Christian Optometrists while learning optometry, attending a mission trip to Haiti with them in 2007.

Although they cannot return to Haiti right now, Matt and Molly are doing what they can to help from Oskaloosa. Molly said it could be between four and six weeks before she and Matt can safely enter the country.

“First and foremost, we’re praying for their strength and their safety as they continue to have aftershocks even now,” said Molly. “Right now we’re kind of waiting it out.”

Once they are able to return to Haiti, Matt will look at the damage to Christianville’s buildings and help decide which ones are salvageable and which structures will need to be demolished. The likelihood that Christianville will be rebuilt is great because there are individuals throughout the U.S. and the world who support the mission, said Molly.

“This mission really is the lifeblood of this particular area of Haiti,” Molly said. “We’re eager to get it rebuilt. It’s going to take a lot of money and we know that.”

Molly acknowledged that Haiti will not fully recover from the earthquake in the near future. However, she is confident the country will get back on its feet, no matter how long it takes.

“Haiti is an amazing country,” Molly said with a smile. “We know that God’s at work there and we know that this earthquake happened for a reason. More and more, people are coming to know the Lord through this earthquake. We know that, ultimately, His glory is going to come from a disaster such as this.”

For more information on the Christianville Mission, visit www.christianvillehaiti.org. Donations to the Christianville Mission can be made by making checks payable to Christianville Foundation at P.O. Box 24598, Jacksonville, Florida 32241, memo: Earth Quake Relief.

——————

Herald City Editor Andy Goodell can be reached at news2@oskyherald.com

Text Only

Homepage

Search Results

Related Photos

A steadfast mission

Question of the Week: Who will win the Super Bowl, the Giants or the Patriots?

Site Map

Contact Us