One Year Anniversary

Just one week from today will mark the one year anniversary of the 7.0 magnitude earthquake which struck Haiti leaving death and destruction at levels difficult for the mind to comprehend in the poorest country in the western hemisphere. Over the past year, the people of Haiti have also experienced downpours and winds from several tropical storms along with an outbreak of Cholera which has killed nearly 3,500 people to date. In addition, the results of their Presidential election are still uncertain and the runoff election previously scheduled for January 16 has now been postponed.

One organization which was actively working in Haiti prior to the earthquake and has been there throughout the past year is Samaritan's Purse under the leadership of Billy Graham's son, Franklin Graham. When I arrived in Haiti less than 3 weeks after the earthquake, Samaritan's Purse tarps being used to provide shelter could be seen everywhere. They have since built hundreds of temporary houses, provided food for tens of thousands of people, taught basic hygiene classes, provided water filtration systems, and are now running several medical clinics treating thousands of Cholera patients.

This coming Sunday, January 9, Franklin Graham will be in Haiti and will be proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ at the National Soccer Stadium in Port-au-Prince. The stadium will hold 15,000 people but thousands of people live close enough to the stadium to hear the message clearly. Michael W. Smith along with several other Christian singers will also be taking part in the program.

Beginning at 12:30 central time on Sunday, people around the world will be able to take part in this incredible event via the internet. The website is: WWW. Samaritanspurse.org/Haitilive. I encourage you to be involved by watching this event and praying for the people of Haiti to open their hearts to the call of the Holy Spirit on their lives. Please pray for Franklin Graham, Michael W. Smith and the hundreds of Samaritan's Purse volunteers and employees as they make preparations for this life changing event.

Sincerely,
John Rodgers

Haiti Update

For the first time in several days, American Airlines resumed flights in and out of Port-au-Prince today. Unrest over Presidential election results continues but with much less intensity. North American foreign ministers are pressuring the Haitian government to recount the votes from the election in order to verify the results.

As for the Cholera outbreak, the official death toll now stands at 2,323. However, the recent violence has hampered relief efforts, and as a result, there is some indication the death toll may not be accurate. Please ask God to be with the people of Haiti and return the sense of calm which had been prevalent for the past several months.

In an effort to assure the Haitian people they have not been forgotten in their great time of need, Franklin Graham of Samaritans Purse along with Sarah Palin visited Haiti over the weekend. One of their stops was one of Samaritans Purse cholera treatment clinics in Cite Soleil, an extremely poverty stricken area of Port-au-Prince.

John Rodgers

Pray, Pray, Pray

The results of Haiti's highly contested presidential election were announced today setting off riots and protests all over Port-au-Prince. As a result, American Airlines canceled all flights for the next two days and now the PAP International Airport has been closed. The run-off election is set for January 16 to determine Haiti's next president.

Unfortunately, with the airport closed, it will be extremely difficult for aid workers to get into Haiti to help with the rebuilding efforts following the earthquake and to provide medical assistance with the Cholera epidemic. The latest counts indicate 2,120 people have died and over 93,000 have been infected.

John Rodgers

Death Toll Exceeds 1,700

The official death toll has now reached 1,721 and nearly 76,000 people have now contracted Cholera since the outbreak began last month. The U.N. has asked for $160 Million in aid over the next year to attempt to keep the Cholera from spreading at a rampant pace.

As for the Presidential election, 12 of the 18 candidates have asked for the election results to be thrown out amidst questionable activities, lack of ballots, polling places not open, etc. So far, there seems to be no indication the election results will be thrown out. The official results are not expected to be announced until December 7th at the earliest. If none of the candidates attains 50% plus one vote, a run-off will then take place.

John Rodgers

Remember Haiti this Thanksgiving

The death toll has now reached 1,523 from the Cholera epidemic. Of those lives lost, 140 of them have been in Port-au-Prince. Since the onset, nearly 28,000 people have been treated in hospitals for confirmed cases of Cholera. Some say the numbers are actually much higher due to those who never made it to a hospital or clinic for treatment and, therefore, have not been counted.

This Sunday, November 28 the presidential elections are scheduled to take place. There are 18 candidates in the running to replace sitting President Preval who is about to finish his two term limit.

Please pray for God's will to be done in all of the challenges facing the people of Haiti at this time.

John Rodgers