The President of Haiti delivered news that the first two positive tests for COVID-19 were reported in country. In conjunction with this announcement, the GOH (Government of Haiti) closed schools, universities, airports, and factories. Other protocols regarding curfews and number of people to meet together at one time were also communicated.

Earlier this week, MSPP (Haitian Health Department) put out a 57 page contingency plan for the virus. RHFH’s Cholera Treatment Center was listed on the institutions that could provide isolation and treatment. After we became aware of this, we notified MSPP that we neither have ventilators nor the resources/ staff to adequately respond to this present crisis. As it is in every context, the situation is changing rapidly. We are doing what we know how to piece together a response and prepare as the situation remains fluid, and are waiting for further directives from MSPP.

We are thankful for our staff that continues to work tirelessly in difficult circumstances. We met for one hour with our clinic staff this morning prior to opening clinic. There is fear, there is uncertainty, but there is also in our staff a deep resolve to stand firm and trust the Lord to provide the wisdom, knowledge, and strength we need. We told them the government needs to be clear in communication. Churches need to be bright in shining the light of Christ during these dark times. We, at Real Hope for Haiti, need to be the medical professionals God created us to be for He has used all of our education and efforts in the past to create us for such a time as this.

We reminded them that we have confidence that God will give grace and guide us all to persevere through this, because the Zachary family has witnessed our Haitian staff’s dependability and God’s faithfulness through floods and famine, through earthquakes and cholera spikes. We are grateful for our employees. We are grateful for your prayers for all of us.

We trust you feel our prayers for you as well. You have been incredibly faithful in prayer for this work and for the Haitian people over the years and helped to bear so many of our burdens as genuine brothers and sisters in Christ. We are all bearing a great deal right now and have much to pray for, so let us pray together, one for another.

Immediate Action Needed:

• Pray for clear leadership from Haitian government, ministry of the local churches, and wisdom and courage in preparing for RHFH.
• Until we know how the virus impacts Haiti or what directives we receive from MSPP, we are not yet in a position to ask for additional funding to aid us in ramping up for a response at this time. If and when these associative costs materialize, we will communicate them with you and trust the Lord’s Provision.

There is a great deal of angst among all of us. This is a unique and defining time in our lives and in our world. No one knows the extent this pandemic will have medically, economically, or psychologically…in a global, national, or household context. One activity our family tried a few nights ago proved helpful to us and I would like to share it with you. The idea came from another missionary named Jonathan Trotter, who serves with his family in Cambodia:

The idea is you take a piece of paper and draw a small box in the middle and label it “What I don’t know…” and then draw a larger box around it labeled “What I do know.” The idea is that you can fill the inner box with thoughts and fears that are real and true. Then you fill the larger box with truths about what you believe and the fundamentals of your faith. Allow that to help you maintain perspective as we navigate uncertain times.

Here is a video with further explanation