We all have a part to play in Haiti's Restoration. What is Yours?

Haiti is an amazing country with amazing people, and they have changed my heart. Thank you for taking the time to read this blog. Our team leader, Dr. Joel Hurt, summed up my (and my teammates') heart in reflecting this trip that was beautifully orchestrated by Jesus:

"What you should all know is this. First of all, that this was not the doctors’ or nurses’ mission. It was OUR mission (meaning everyone who contributed both there and stateside). Countless hours of effort by some many people working in parallel were critical to allow the medical team to actually do anything. You all were an essential part of this. Second, we thank God for His obvious and plentiful provision for there were so many things we cannot explain in simply human terms. I am changed by this trip, as are all of us who went. In the end, it was us that received blessing. Thanks to you all and glory to Jesus…He is good." - Joel Hurt

If you have any questions about our trip or details, feel free to email me! sarenagreen@gmail.com.

One thing has been made abundantly clear to me, and that is Jesus keeps reminding me to tell Haiti's story. I have been overwhelmed by your responses, emails, financial donations to Hill Country & Mission of Hope, and hearts to hear these stories. From people I do know to people I don't know, I am humbled...and I all I can say is that Jesus is clearly moving His people. What beautiful proof that we are all working together, for the beautiful redemption of this country, through His love and strength. So, as long as there is an ear to listen, I will continue to tell their story, praying it inspires people to get involved. After all we are responsible for what we see, and we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves.

I have a beautiful hunch this journey is just beginning, and I am thankful to be experiencing it with you. :) We all have a part to play in this redemptive Love story, for the beautiful people of Haiti. He makes all things new.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10

So you too, when you do all the things which are commanded you, say, 'We are unworthy slaves; we have done only that which we ought to have done.' Luke 17:10

And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new " And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true." Revelation 21:5

Currently Playing: "Joy to the World" -Sojourn

Helpful Links

Hill Country Bible Church's link (the Church we went to Haiti through):


Mission of Hope for Haiti (the Orphanage where our team stayed and worked):


Help Haiti TShirts (Aaron Ivey, our worship leader at Austin Stone, has started this. 100% of donations go to supporting 3 orphanages in Haiti)


After experiencing these organizations, I put full trust and confidence in how they use all of their donations. It was humbling to work with these amazing organizations that have such loving hearts for the dear people of Haiti.

• Dr. Joel Hurt discussing how the trip and supplies came together
• Photos sent to KXAN from our team while in Haiti
• Our return to Austin on KEYE-TV
• Interview on Austin Citysphere (begins at 12:58)
• Nurse Week Article covering our trip
• Why Haiti? - a sermon by our Pastor, Matt Carter
• Medical Missionaries return from Haiti - Statesman Article

1/28/10

Thursday 1/28/10: Your courage asks me what I am afraid of, and what I know of God.

I rose at 0600 with a heavy heart, knowing it was my final day in this country that has changed my heart. I love these people, I love their hope, I love their faith in Jesus. They have blessed me so well.

We relieved our night shift at the post-op ward by 0730 and began morning medications and rounds. The surgeons had slowed down the number of operations knowing they'd be losing half of their team today. The other half would remain until Saturday (when a new fresh team of Dr's/RN's would arrive from Austin). Our plan for the patients in the post-op ward was to either transfer them to a different hospital, naval ship, or discharge them home (if they were stable enough) to their families. One of my favorite patients, a 78 year old woman, had suffered a left tibia/fibula fracture. When she'd been admitted on Tuesday, the doctors had recommended she have her leg amputated. She'd refused. They did their best to salvage the leg by placing an external fixation on her leg and dressing her leg with sterile gauze and ace bandages. When they came to re-dress her leg bandage on Thursday, her leg had progressively gotten worse. The open wounds on her left leg were so severe, it broke my heart. I could feel my nose grow pink, because I knew what this meant. The surgeons (through a translator) communicated she needed to have her leg amputated in order to survive at this point. If she refused, she would most likely die of infection from her leg. Despite the facts, she refused. She stated she was okay with dying. She was at peace. My heart so badly wanted to convince her just a little more, to have it amputated. However, I knew it was her decision. From her point of view, I realized she had lived a long life of 78 years and had loving children who never left her side. She did not want to be a burden. Her children (in their 20-30's), came and loaded her in the bed of a truck, and they made their way home. Tears streamed down my face as I waved from the post-op ward doors. She kept repeating, "Bless you, bless you", with a peaceful smile on her face as the truck pulled away.

We moved and transported six patients within a matter of hours to different hospitals (Mercy Ships, Naval Ships, U of Miami Hospital)...so we were busy :) Every time they were loaded in the ambulance I followed them to the car. I could feel tears swell up with each departure. I loved them so much. From Frantz (18 year old medical student with a fractured right tib/fib), to Johanna (16 year old crushed legs), I loved them all. I hated to see them go, but I knew they were in good hands.

Dani was still on the ward, and was in the process of being discharged. She called me over, "Sarena Sarena." I came (with a translator), and tears began rolling down her cheeks as she stated she was scared since she had nowhere to go. She had no idea where her Mother was, and had lost contact with her Father. She begged Lindsey, Jenny, and I to take her to America. What do you say? We just hugged her, and prayed out loud, that God would provide a loving earthly family for His daughter.

Two hours later (still on the ward), as I was discharging more patients, God moved mountains. Who walked through the ward doors, but Dani's Father. Dani saw him and instantly became ecstatic. She screamed "Sarena Sarena! C'est mon pere C'est mon pere! (It's my Dad it's my Dad!)". I instantly dropped what I was doing, ran over, and just hugged him (I think he was a little startled ;) ). She had presumed he was dead, since she hadn't seen him since the earthquake. Can you imagine? To catch wind of where his daughter was, without a cell phone, without a car, and to make his way 30 minutes outside of PauP to see if she was truly at this hospital, was nothing short of a miracle. God answers prayer. So Dani was discharged within the hour, to her sweet Father who fought all of the odds, to find his daughter. What a beautiful reflection of Jesus stopping at nothing to find His children; to go after the one sheep that has been separated from the herd.

What a redeemer.

I’ll find a way to get you here

If it takes my fleeting breath

Another sunrise hits the ground

And it’s a dark lonely sight

Lightyears away I hope you know

There is somebody searching

For the way to get you here

I will get you here

- "Amos Story" by Aaron Ivey

(worship leader at our Church who wrote this song about his son Amos, who was adopted from Haiti)

Then Jesus told them this parable: "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'

-Luke 15:3-6

Currently Playing: "I saw what I saw" - Sara Groves

1/27/10

Wednesday 1/27/10: Lift up your Voice and with us Sing.

It was amazing how we woke up, with no alarm clock, just when we needed. God is good. The sunlight was our alarm :) As the days before, we were dressed and ready to relieve our night shift nurses by 0730. For the first time really since we'd arrived, Lindsey, Jenny, and I had the chance to work together in the post-op ward. Naturally, we were excited to work together. We made our morning rounds with our seven patients on the post-op ward. It's amazing how attached you grow to your patients, even within a matter of days. I loved them all, so dearly. For the first time, things had somewhat slowed down. We had a chance to foster our relationships with our sweet patients: love them, laugh with them (mainly at my broken French...which they so graciously helped me translate into Creole), and shed tears with them. Jenny soon left our ward to be a part of the triage team out in the villages (She's a pretty amazing ER nurse :)... so naturally right up her alley).

One of our sweet patients, who was 67 years old, had suffered a right leg (tibia/fibula) fracture. Her sweet daughter and son-in-law, never left her side: they spent the night by her bedside. In the AM they had some more family members bring them fresh clothes/food. While Lindsey and I were finishing with administering IV antibiotics, this woman's sweet family called us to her bedside, "Sarena...Lindsey...come!". We came over, and they graciously gave us some of their food: freshly fried fish brought to them by their family that morning. My nose rapidly turned pink, as my eyes filled with tears. To think, someone with so little, giving you their food. Lindsey and I were speechless, and humbled. Such a beautiful testament to the love and sense of community Haitians treasure so well.

The day picked up, as we moved patients in/moved patients out. Jenny came back by late afternoon, so we all three were in the ward. Towards sundown, once again we prayed for night relief. He graciously provided. As we waited for our relief to make it to the ward (around 10:00pm), we were radio-ed that another patient was going to be transferred from the PACU to the post-op ward.

Her name was Dani (short for Danishelle). She was 16 years old, and had suffered a left arm amputation. Later she told us she had to partially cut her own arm, to make it out of the rubble alive. She had been transferred to the general hospital of Haiti where they performed her amputation, but she was later transferred to us because her amputation was infected. Our surgeons did an amazing job, by cleansing, disinfecting, and re-dressing where her arm had been amputated. She was brought in on the stretcher, and we quickly (with the paramedics' help), transferred her to a fresh bed. I grabbed her some water, as she repeated "J'ai soif (I'm thirsty)". The second phrase out of her mouth was, "I want to know Jesus Christ." (we had a 15 year old boy who lived at the orphanage serving as our translator). In that moment, Lindsey, Jenny, and I all locked eyes. This is the entire reason of why we are here. We immediately gathered around and knelt at her bedside. Lindsey led in prayer, as we laid our hands on her (the 15 year old translated our prayer to her). My heart broke as tears streamed down her face. We prayed that Jesus would rescue her, that He is wooing her, He is her redeemer, and prayed His Holy Spirit would reside in her. We prayed for her healing, to know she is beautiful, to know that she is loved and Jesus is with her always, He has called her by name. With that she responded that she had lost contact with her Mother after the earthquake, and she hadn't even seen her Father since the earthquake. She presumed he was dead. Tears began streaming down all three of our faces. We kept praying. As we concluded, the 15 year old boy broke out into a Creole worship song. Dani began worshipping with him, and slowly, every other single patient on the ward (including their family), began singing in unison. With this, my tears became sobs. It was the most beautiful music I had ever heard in my life. Next, he led us all in, "Hungry I am Falling On my Knees"...which they all had apparently learned in English. As he did, we all, by God's beauty and grace, worshipped Jesus in unison, in one language. It was a moment so powerful, I pray I will always recount His powerful presence in that moment. As we sobbed, sweet Dani would alternate wiping Lindsey and my tears from our faces. I couldn't believe this 16 year old, who'd lost her arm and had no idea where her parents were, was comforting us.

It was a beautiful, broken, and redeeming night orchestrated by Jesus. He is mighty to save.

But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

- Ephesians 2:4

But now, this is what the LORD says— he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

-Isaiah 43:1

Currently Playing: "All Creatures of our God and King" - Patty Griffin

1/26/10