Note: This is the fifth in a series of journals that will be written by members of the SRU Athletes for Forgotten Angels group that will be in Haiti Jan. 12-17 helping the country recover from the earthquake that rocked the country two years ago. For more information and links to all journal entries, visit the Forgotten Angels homepage


Hi from Haiti on our final full day here!

This morning we woke up at 7:30 to eat and get ready for the day. At 9 a.m. we left the compound en route to the local doctor's clinic. On our tour, the doctor told us there are only 3 doctors that work during the day although they treat approximately 100 patients a day. People will arrive at 5:30 a.m. to get a number to see the doctor, and could wait all day. There was only one surgery room at the clinic and it was connected to the blood lab by a swinging door. There are different buildings for each of the diseases they treat. There was an HIV building, and the cholera buildings weren't in use anymore since the outbreak. During our tour we saw Gregory, the soccer player who broke his wrist on Friday. He had to get his cast taken off and reapplied because of the increase in swelling. The x-ray machines were given from the Erie area.

After leaving the clinic we headed to Idadee to spend time with the younger kids. It was Michael Formento's first experience holding a child. He was very uncomfortable at first, but quickly had children climbing on him and jumping on his stomach. The rest of us made bracelets with the kids and just held them. They love interaction and our loving touch. There are many more kids than there are adults, so they do not always receive the love and touch they need.

Upon leaving Idadee we headed back to EBAC to pick up the older guys to head to the beach.  We rode in the back of Don's cattle truck for what seemed like an eternity through the back roads to the beach. Since we were no longer near the city, and these people were unaware of our presence, we were greeted by shouts of "blanco" which directly translated means "white" but to them it is considered "foreigner." At the beach some of us got in the water, while others stayed back to watch. We walked along the beach a bit, but then ended up coming back to play a game of soccer in the black sand. Haitians versus "Americans." It ended with a one goal difference, 10-9… them :( It started to rain, so we were forced to head back before the roads became unable to be driven on.

When we got back to the compound, we grabbed our belongings we had promised to some kids earlier in the week and headed to EBAC for the last time (this trip). When we were handing out our belongings, more and more kids came around hoping for a shirt or a pair of shorts. It quickly got dark and we had to say our goodbyes. For the members in the group who spent a lot of the time with the younger kids it was a very difficult goodbye. But even for those who spent time with the older kids it was just as hard, not knowing if we would see them again even if we do return in the future. When we were walking out many kids said "please do not forget us," "please do not forget to write, many people say they will and then we never hear from them" and "God Bless you."

Needless to say, the walk back to our dorms was a quiet and emotional walk. Some kids followed us halfway back which made it a bit worse. Saying goodbye multiple times to the same kid is such a hard thing to do. We got back to the compound, made dinner and cleaned up and then sat as a group and discussed our time in Haiti. As a whole we are hoping to come back and see what we have done for the people. Upon arrival at SRU we plan to dive right back into fundraising to provide the Haitians with a soccer field, rather than an un-level field where cattle and goats graze on a regular basis.

We're heading out tomorrow and spending one night in Florida before returning to Slippery Rock Thursday. Noreen will conclude the journals tomorrow!

Emer Flatley and Sarah Cadwallader