Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Back to Sacramento
It was a very long and exhausting trip back home. God brought us back safe and we are so thankful. It is always an adjustment coming back to the states. We'll start working on getting our photos put together and get the link posted later. THank you all for your prayers and support.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Home and tired
We are home and resting. Both Brian and I are very tired. We would love prayer. Brian threw his back out today and I am dehydrated and tired. Our trip was blessed beyond measure and amazing. We already missing Haiti and the amazing food. Not to mention our wonderful friends. We will post new pictures.
Love Brian and Tina
Love Brian and Tina
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Last Day of the computer class
Yesterday was the last day of the computer class. We spent a lot the time in the morning reviewing all that we had learned. Then we learned about email. They were so excited. We logged into Yahoo France and everyone got to create an email account. It was much harder than it sounds. The internet signal was not real strong and made it difficult to confirm the accounts. Plus, it was a very steep learning curve for applying what they learned. They really thought hard about each of the required questions that you have to answer to create an account. It took us a few hours to get everyone setup. But the results! Everyone in class has an email account and they started swapping addresses so they can communicate with each other. Pastor Bastia promised them that they can come on Saturday afternoons and they will have the lab setup for them. They are so excited.
Then it was time to hand out certificates. You had to attend every day in order to get a certificate of completion. This was an important lesson for them to learn. If they weren't there, I wouldn't sign the certificate. It helped teach responsibility for the students and it showed them what it means to have professional integrity. It was well received.
After we handed out the certificates each of the students got up and said thank you. They told me how this has completely changed their lives. They can't believe this opportunity that they could never afford a class like this. As Haiti develops and begins to offer jobs, computer skills are a requirement. If you don't have any experience or a certificate, you won't even be considered for a job. They are excited to have a future.
After we handed out the certificates each of the students got up and said thank you. They told me how this has completely changed their lives. They can't believe this opportunity that they could never afford a class like this. As Haiti develops and begins to offer jobs, computer skills are a requirement. If you don't have any experience or a certificate, you won't even be considered for a job. They are excited to have a future.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Day 4
I just finished the computer class. It was AWESOME! We spent the whole time learning how to get on the Internet. I explained what a web browser is, a search engine, etc. Then we went ahead opened Internet explorer and went to Google.com. We just opened up the world to them! They are so excited! They did research on the earthquake, the new president, the Cholera outbreak, etc. It is just amazing. They are so thankful. God is so good.
Tina is painting on the tower still and she has the camera. She'll give her update and add photos later tonight.
Tina is painting on the tower still and she has the camera. She'll give her update and add photos later tonight.
Friday
Tina is teaching a painting class today and I am prepping for my class this afternoon. The kids are absolutely loving the painting. Some of them are doing quite well. We'll post pictures tonight hopefully.
Today we will be doing lots of lab time and then learning about how to surf the web and then search the web. It's going to be fun!
Today we will be doing lots of lab time and then learning about how to surf the web and then search the web. It's going to be fun!
What a Day!
What an incredible day today. Where do we even start?
Today was the first day that Tina got to really work on the radio station. She was able to accomplish a lot. While she was painting she also spent a lot of time with her "six little friends". She passed out paper and crayons and the kids around her colored and talked with her and played with her. She gave them little pieces of her Cliff bars and that was a big hit. She also brought out some balls for them to play with and had a blast listening to them giggle.
I started on day3 of the computer class today. It was quite an experience. We reviewed network and the Internet and the difference between the two. It was a really hard concept. After two hours it began to pour down rain and I got concerned for all the computer equipment so we packed it up real quick. We thought we were going to end the class and then we changed our minds. We just let people ask questions for a long time. Some of the questions were awesome. When they learned that we get Internet in Haiti via satellite, they wanted to know how the satellite got into space, who maintains it, etc. It was fun. They we really stretching my knowledge! Then we went into the office here and showed them how the satellite connects to the modem, which connects to the router, which allows the computers to access the Internet. It was a great "hands on" activity. They are really wanting more lab time so they can get more experience.
After dinner tonight some of the teachers came by. We gave them some art books that Tina had purchased for the classrooms. The teachers LOVED them! They never get to do art, nor do they have any experience. We told them that we would do an art lesson tomorrow and let the kids paint. They have never painted before, so the teachers are as excited as the kids. I then asked the teachers what they thought of the computer class. They said that all significant jobs in Haiti require that you know something about computers or they won't even hire you. They can't believe all the opportunities that this opens to them. It was a great conversation.
They've already asked us to come back next year. They want me to figure out how we can get some kind of computer certification for the people here. And they want Tina to come back and teach some of the ladies how to make jewelry. They ave a lot of poor woman, many widows, and this would be an opportunity for them to support themselves and their children. Tina is very excited! We both are. :)
Please continue to pray for us. The heat is pretty overwhelming sometimes. They have plans for me teach all day on Saturday (starting at 8 and going until whenever). Right now it has been about 4 hours a day and that has been very tiring. It doesn't help that my feet are swollen like sausages! For some reason the mosquitoes only like me. Oh well. There is so much to be thankful for. God is so good.
Today was the first day that Tina got to really work on the radio station. She was able to accomplish a lot. While she was painting she also spent a lot of time with her "six little friends". She passed out paper and crayons and the kids around her colored and talked with her and played with her. She gave them little pieces of her Cliff bars and that was a big hit. She also brought out some balls for them to play with and had a blast listening to them giggle.
I started on day3 of the computer class today. It was quite an experience. We reviewed network and the Internet and the difference between the two. It was a really hard concept. After two hours it began to pour down rain and I got concerned for all the computer equipment so we packed it up real quick. We thought we were going to end the class and then we changed our minds. We just let people ask questions for a long time. Some of the questions were awesome. When they learned that we get Internet in Haiti via satellite, they wanted to know how the satellite got into space, who maintains it, etc. It was fun. They we really stretching my knowledge! Then we went into the office here and showed them how the satellite connects to the modem, which connects to the router, which allows the computers to access the Internet. It was a great "hands on" activity. They are really wanting more lab time so they can get more experience.
After dinner tonight some of the teachers came by. We gave them some art books that Tina had purchased for the classrooms. The teachers LOVED them! They never get to do art, nor do they have any experience. We told them that we would do an art lesson tomorrow and let the kids paint. They have never painted before, so the teachers are as excited as the kids. I then asked the teachers what they thought of the computer class. They said that all significant jobs in Haiti require that you know something about computers or they won't even hire you. They can't believe all the opportunities that this opens to them. It was a great conversation.
They've already asked us to come back next year. They want me to figure out how we can get some kind of computer certification for the people here. And they want Tina to come back and teach some of the ladies how to make jewelry. They ave a lot of poor woman, many widows, and this would be an opportunity for them to support themselves and their children. Tina is very excited! We both are. :)
Please continue to pray for us. The heat is pretty overwhelming sometimes. They have plans for me teach all day on Saturday (starting at 8 and going until whenever). Right now it has been about 4 hours a day and that has been very tiring. It doesn't help that my feet are swollen like sausages! For some reason the mosquitoes only like me. Oh well. There is so much to be thankful for. God is so good.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Computer Class Day 2
Oh my. Computer class is going strong. We had over 30 people today in class. Two of the computers overheated and wouldn't work. So we had 4 people to each of the remaining 8 copmuters. The overhead projector overheated & wouldn't work today either. It was REALLY hard to explain clicking & dragging files when you can't show people. But the good thing is that they had the opportunity to do more of the "hands on" part of the class. I'm exhausted from prepping, teaching, and the heat. Betty has prepared a nice dinner for us and then I'm going to crash.
Tina got overheated trying to work on the tower this morning. So she took a nap and waited for it to cool off a bit. So while I taught class she went out and started painting. She created the outline and started painting today.
More updates to come!
Tina got overheated trying to work on the tower this morning. So she took a nap and waited for it to cool off a bit. So while I taught class she went out and started painting. She created the outline and started painting today.
More updates to come!
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