Cathy LeVahn

I live in Lino Lakes and have two grown children, John (29) and Amy (28).  I’ve worked in Human Resource Management for over 20 years, a majority of that time in the medical device industry.  My ‘holy discontent’ drives my passion to serve the poorest of the poor.  I went on my first mission trip to Nicaragua in 2010.  In January of 2012 I was put in the path of Healing Haiti and was blessed with the wonderful opportunity to become their Aquaponics Advocate (raising fish in a recirculating system to grow vegetables hydroponically).  In April I made my first trip to Haiti to view the future aquaponics site at Grace Village.  Construction of the aquaponics system is now complete so I will be spending an additional week at Grace Village to get the system up and running and provide training to those who will partner with me to ensure sustainability.  I am also Healing Haiti’s Sponsorship Coordinator, a new and exciting role that I am excited to dig into.

“Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.”
― Mother Teresa

Dick and Gloria McNeill

We have been married for 45 years,  have three children and 12 grandchildren. We live in Plymouth in the summer and then have a condo in Clearwater, Florida where we live for the majority of the year. We have supported a number of missionaries and short term mission trips for many years. Gloria has been going to the inner city of Chicago to work at an inner city church for the last 13 years. Two years ago we decided we needed to actually go on a mission trip out of the country. So for the last two years we have gone on mission trips to Peru where we taught English to approximately 500 Peruvian children. We also taught them about the love of Jesus.

We look forward to going to Haiti with our son Brian. We have read some of the blogs in the past and know it will be a very meaningful and impactful trip. We look forward to demonstrating God’s love for all people regardless of circumstances. We are looking forward to spending time with the children at the orphanage.

Ken Tritch

I was confirmed at Calvary in 1997, though just in the past two years have I become an active follower of Christ. I am currently working on my PhD in chemistry. My reaches into science have been foundational to the growth of my faith, an outcome that I was neither seeking nor expecting when going into science. Music and designing and building guitar electronics is my biggest hobby. I frequently play electric guitar and other instruments at the Journey Community worship service. Upon becoming active at Calvary, I felt immediately called into serving the local community through several of the many channels available through church, in addition to stepping outside of the box during everyday life around the twin cities area. Roughly one year ago, that calling expanded to the international scale when I felt drawn to participate in a Healing Haiti trip during a presentation at Calvary. I was unable to go last January due to a school conflict, and I have been looking forward to the trip coming up this September since that time. I had never booked an airplane flight before this trip, nor have I left the country by more than a few miles into Manitoba, nor been on a mission trip. I am looking forward to this opportunity to serve the people of Haiti with music, embrace, and loving energy. I also look forward to having my heart broken in a way that will forever transform my perspective on living and giving for the benefit of many, both abroad and back home, both needy and wealthy.    

Trip Video

Truth - Verite

"The truth is that the 143 million orphaned children and the 11 million who starve to death or die from preventable diseases and the 8.5 million who work as child slaves, prostitutes, or under other horrific conditions and the 2.3 million who live with HIV add up to 164.8 million needy children. And though at first glance that looks like a big number, 2.1 billion people on this earth proclaim to be Christians.

The truth is that if only 8 percent of the Christians would care for one more child, there would not be any statistics left.

This is the truth. I have the freedom to believe it. The freedom, the opportunity to do something about it. The truth is that He loves these children just as much as He loves me and now that I know, I am responsible." -Katie J. Davis, Kisses from Katie

Orevwa et Mesi Anpil (Goodbye and Thank you very much)!

Our week in Haiti has come to an end. Our hearts today are filled with gratitude. We were protected from sickness, injury (except for a few blisters), mechancial failures that would have prevented us from doing what we came to do, and natural disasters. We were blessed with a team of 15 people that were flexible, thoughtful, enthusiastic, and dedicated. The Haitian people have been gracious as they have allowed us a glimpse into their lives and culture. We came to help them in small ways by delivering clean water and playing with orphans, but we all recognize they were the ones who ministered to us. We've had the opportunity to observe a people with a steadfast faith in Christ. By American standards, they have nothing. Yet many of us found ourselves envious of what they do have - a life that is fully dependent on God. They do not worship their possessions or take comfort in the things of this world, but direct all of their worship and praise to the ONE who provides for their needs and gives them the strength they need to persevere despite their life circumstances. Thank you to the people of Haiti for teaching us much and to our God for his love for us in providing us this opportunity. And thank you to those who have followed our journey and prayed for us. We look forward to sharing more with you when we return.

One orphan from Haiti and one orphan from Minnesota

Today we took the children from Grace Village up the road an hour to a beautiful beach so that they could play in the water and have lots of fun! There was much splashing, laughing, singing, dogg-pattling, and playing soccer, etc. At departure time as the sun was beginning to set we took this great group photo of our entire team after an amazing day in so many ways.
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Quite soon after our arrival, Sandy noticed Isaac wasn't in the water but instead just sitting on the rocky beach gazing out and rather still. Sandy sat next to him and eventually he leaned in. With the help of an interpreter she learned that he had a headache. Bummer! All of his friends were expending so much excitement in and out of the water and he did not feel well enough to fully participate. So she held him, she held him, and she held him while providing some shade under her floppy sun hat (chapo). He just laid back against her. Very few words were spoken. She wrapped a wet bandana around his head and intermittantly massaged his temples and head softly in an attempt to relieve his discomfort. After some lunch, she held him some more and on the ride back in the tap-tap, Isaac sat on her lap and gazed ahead down the road back to his new home on a mountainside. He glanced back at her and smiled with his eyes.

Isaac doesn't have a mother and father in his current earthly family. He does live with 40 brothers and sisters in Haiti. Isaac also has many other people who love him but today he got some lengthy comforting touch time for his general wellbeing as a child of God.

Sandy no longer has her mother and father in her earthly life. Sandy lives by herself in Minnesota. Sandy does have a brother and sister and special extended family and many people who love her but today she got some lengthy comforting touch time for her general wellbeing as a child of God.

Simply put: In the body of Christ, we are never orphans completely on our own.

Sandy