Memar and Paula in Haiti
Last December, Chanje Movement welcomed a missions team from the US for the first time in nearly 5 years! We’ll be sharing their trip testimonies in the upcoming weeks.
This testimony is from Marlene (aka Memar), a longtime supporter of Chanje. This was her first trip to Haiti.
“Every year I fill a Christmas Bag for a child at Chanje Lakay. As I was shopping, I found a large collection of dark-skinned “Barbie-style” dolls wearing bright island pattern dresses. In our area, it is sometimes difficult to find dolls with dark skin, yet they are so valued in Haiti.
This store only had 30 dolls… so I bought them all and then went on a hunt to find more. After visiting 3 stores I ended up with 90 dolls!
At this time, I had not been cleared to travel to Haiti BUT only God would arrange that I would be the one delivering the dolls in person to the 11 girls at Chanje Lakay.
The decision to go to Haiti was made very quickly. Space opened on the team, previously unavailable airline tickets became available, my gal pal Paula was free to go with me, and my very supportive community quickly donated funds to cover the cost of this ministry adventure. God’s hand was with me and the entire team the whole trip, beginning to end.
We had such a wonderful time with the children. They did a Christmas performance for us with singing and dancing. We all went to the beach together (a short walk from the campus) and visited a nearby cultural monument. It was easy to connect with them, even with the language barrier. Hugs are the same in every language.
The highlight of the trip for me was when Paula and I got a chance to speak love, life and encouragement to the 11 young ladies living at Chanje Lakay who have all experienced various forms of trauma, abuse and abandonment. They have been made to feel worthless and unwanted. Paula and I reminded them of this truth:
‘Jesus loves you and He sees you as perfect. Because of His death and Resurrection, you are without blemish and beautiful in His sight. If anyone tells you anything different, they are lying.’
Then we gave each girl a doll; each doll had a different dress! (another God-wink). Yes, the same dolls I had bought weeks earlier. Although many of the girls are teens and don’t play with dolls much, we told them that these dolls could serve as reminders of God’s love for them and that He saw them as perfect in His sight.
We encouraged them to put them somewhere in their rooms where they could see them every day to be reminded that they are beautiful, loved by God and created with a purpose.
The girls were thrilled. Many of them carried the dolls around all weekend, like a purse. As we were talking to them (through a translator) you could see how intently they were listening. I truly believe God was speaking through us to each of them and healing their hearts, little by little, from the trauma they have experienced. There is still much healing to be done, and Chanje Movement continues to do an excellent job of prioritizing mental health treatment and spiritual discipleship.
It was an honor to play a small part in the journey of these young ladies as they travel God’s path to full restoration in Christ.
Can’t wait to return”
can’t wait to return