Today is the big day. It’s the day we all fly from Miami, Florida to Cap Haitien, Haiti. With this now being my third trip to Haiti I found that my feelings have changed as I return. Where the first time there was anxiety and anticipation over the unknown, this time I found myself wondering how things have changed and how I can help support positive change in this little country. I was myself looking forward to seeing familiar faces and experiencing familiar things. I also wondered how the hurricane and floods hit this poor country. 

It turned out that getting to Haiti was not much easier than getting to Miami. The check in and TSA process was uneventful. While waiting to board the plane we enjoyed some Starbucks. The boarding process was uneventful as well. Just as everyone was seated and ready to go though, everything changed. The flight attendant informed us that she didn’t know why but we had to all get off the plane and move to another gate and board a different plane. This we did. The second plane ended up being an hour and a half later. Finally in the air, we found ourselves winging over some beautiful islands as we made our way to Haiti. 
The descent into Haiti is perhaps one of my favorite landing approaches. The island is absolutely beautiful from above. However, as the plane gets closer to the ground details that aren’t so beautiful begin to emerge. This is the first opportunity to see the poverty of Cap Haitian. There are broken down buildings, garbage, dirt, rusted vehicles, and debris throughout the city as the plane lands. It is quite the difference from what we saw in Miami and hour and a half before…
It was a beautiful day as we landed in Cap Haitien. The sky was a lovely blue with a few clouds scattered around. As we disembarked from the airplane and climbed down the stairs, it was immediately apparent that we were in for a very lovely afternoon. The weather was absolutely perfect. Not too hot. Not too cold. Not to HUMID! We couldn’t have asked for a lovelier day. As we walked to the terminal a little band played what I presume to be Haitien music. Once inside, we quickly cleared customs and gathered our luggage. Outside, well that wasn’t quite as simple. There are always a LOT of people willing to help you with your luggage. To be completely honest, there is more help than one would ever want or need. However, we were very well taken care of and Doctor Manno was there to make sure that everyone was comfortable and taken care of. 

Once the luggage was loaded and our eager helpers all satisfied, we piled into a van and made our way to the Reliv Kalogris Foundation orphanage in Petite Anse. This children’s home I have visited before and every time I’m always struck at how it is a positive bastion of hope in the midst of a very desolate area. The last time I visited, a little over a year ago, it seemed like progress was being made in this area. This time, after the rain from earlier this winter, it appeared that things had digressed. Couple that with a transition government that isn’t paying the sanitation workers and a recipe for a mess is made. 
The children’s home is a beautiful building and is symbol of hope in the neighborhood. It is connected to a school and is known as a place where orphaned kids can get a future. By my observation, because of this children’s home it appears that the children who live there might have a brighter future than some of the kids with families in the neighborhood. After seeing the orphanage and school (and it’s new paint job!), it was time to make our way into the neighborhood of Petite Anse to the church/school where a Reliv Kalogris Feeding center was awaiting our arrival. 
The walk through Petite Anse is always an emotional journey. Walking through the dirt roads of the communities one is quickly reminded just how good everyone in the USA has it compared to people here. To say these people live in poverty just isn’t enough. Garbage is piled everywhere. Standing water with who knows what in it also is all over the place, especially after the rains earlier this winter. Building are built out of whatever happens to be available. Hodge podge is a good way to describe the neighborhood. It desperately needs help. 

In the middle of this neighborhood there is a church where a pastor runs a school. The students are recipients of the Reliv nutrition from the Reliv Kalogris Foundation. After a bit of a walk, we arrived at this little church and then continued on by it. For just a little further, Doctor Manno showed us a house that once had a roof that would be considered junk metal by most standards. For one hundred U.S. dollars, this house now had a new aluminum roof. The inhabitants also now lived a better life, thanks to the Reliv Kalogris Foundation. The little girl entered a drawing as part of a contest and won her way into the school and the Reliv Kalogris Foundation feeding program. Her mother received care from Doctor Manno and was recovering from tuberculosis. Doctor Manno assured us that she was no longer contagious. 
After seeing first hand what the Reliv Kalogris Foundation had done for this family, we returned to the church to see the children who were part of the feeding program get their daily shakes. As we entered the church, the kids happily sang to us. To say they were enthusiastic would be an understatement. They sang for quite some time and then some ladies started mixing together the Reliv shakes for these kids. They receive NOW for Kids, chocolate flavored. With all the smells we had experienced as we walked through the neighborhood, these shakes smelled amazing! After the shakes had been mixed together, they were passed out in little colorful plastic cups to the kids. Each kid received one cup of the NOW for Kids. After they had been served, we made our way back to the orphanage. 

As we wandered through the neighborhood we would say “bonsoir” to the people and they would always answer back, often with a smile. While before saying something they would often just watch us walk by, once we had said hi they would often smile. We finally arrived back at the orphanage and boarded our van for the trip back to the hotel, Le Picolet. This is a hotel that is probably one of my favorite places to stay anywhere. As we drove back, the entire city seemed to be celebrating and had traveling parties on the backs of big trucks. It was basically like a rolling DJ with their party surrounding the truck. The music was loud, the lights were bright and flashy, and it appeared everyone was having a good time… except our driver who was having a bit of a difficult time getting us back to the hotel. This was made even more difficult when we decided to go see everyone enjoying a Sunday afternoon in the park in front of the cathedral. 
Finally we made it back to Le Picolet and had some down time before dinner. Dinner was served as a buffet with local food that was absolutely delicious. Couple that with fantastic company and it made for a wonderful night of good food, good new friends, and happy new memories being made. 

Our first day in Haiti almost seemed like it might not happen as we kept running up against roadblocks on the way out here. However, once we arrived we were able to experience the ups and downs that are just a part of Haiti. It is an absolutely beautiful country that just seems to be married to tragedy. Despite all the tragedy though, organizations like the Reliv Kalogris Foundation bring hope to a country that might otherwise not have a lot of it. I think that is really what keeps me wanting to visit. Knowing I’m a part of something that is helping change the world in a place that probably couldn’t change itself is a humbling thing and I love the difference that is being made down here. 

Tomorrow we are going near the Dominican Republic border where there is an orphanage that needs painting. For me, this will be an interesting day as I visited this orphanage on the first day of my first trip to Haiti. I’m looking forward to seeing how it is now and how things have or haven’t changed. I’m also looking forward to helping make it look a bit better (if we are decent at painting I suppose)! For now, it’s time to call it a night and go to bed. It has been a very long day and this week will be full of them. Today started off an awesome trip to Haiti and I can’t wait to see what else happens while we are here!  

About Post Author

Robert A. Laird

Robert A. Laird is an entrepreneur and also Executive Director - Creative for Shepherd's Grove Presbyterian Church/Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller where he oversees the television show of the same name. He also works with the Reliv Kalogris Foundation as it strives to feed starving children around the globe.

robert.laird@dapsmagic.com

http://robertlaird.me

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Today begins my third trip to Cap Haitian, Haiti. The first day really is all about getting to Miami so that tomorrow morning we can fly into Haiti. The day began quite early with the goal of getting to Los Angeles International Airport by 7:30 for a 9:00 flight. Traffic was light until arriving at the airport. The rainstorm that hit Southern California yesterday and cancelled lots of flights apparently led to rescheduled travel today. Finally arriving at our terminal, the check in was smooth and so was security (even if it was a bit slow). 

Finally through security there was just enough time to stop by Starbucks and arrive at our gate just as it was boarding. The boarding process was quick enough and it seemed like this would be a fairly smooth flight to Miami… until I looked out the window and saw two mechanics working under the wing of our Boeing 777-300. No announcements had been made so I didn’t really take much notice of it. As time went by, nothing seemed to be happening and our departure time came and went. A brief announcement was made that there was a small issue that would be quickly fixed and we’d be on our way. Knowing that we would be leaving soon, I decided to play with the in-flight entertainment system. I was pleased to discover there was quite a large selection of movies to enjoy. Seeing that we’ve been watching The Lord of The Rings trilogy, when I found The Hobbit it seemed only appropriate to throw it on. Soon I was engrossed in the movie and time was going by but the ground underneath us was not. 

An hour later, we still found our plane sitting at the gate. An announcement was made that things might be a bit more serious than originally thought. More mechanics and trucks arrived. The pilot reassured the passengers that every effort was being made to get us off the ground shortly and he hoped to have information soon. 

The next announcement was made nearly a half hour later. This time, everyone was asked to disembark from the airplane as the gate was needed for another plane. We were instructed to grab all carry on items and go to another terminal where the plane would hopefully meet us… once they figured out what gate it would be meeting us at… assuming they could get the mechanical issue figured out. 

The plane quickly emptied and we all made our way towards what was presumed to be our new terminal. Halfway there, an announcement was heard instructing all on our flight to return to the original gate. Turning around, we made our way back to the gate where we found they were already re-boarding the plane. Once on board and back in our seats, we were told that a few passengers were being rounded up and that soon we would be under way. One of these passengers that was not on the plane was two seats over from me and had difficulty with English. Another half hour or so later my row-mate had arrived and the Captain was telling us that we would be under away soon…. again. 

Finally, the plane backed out and sat until two other planes were out of the way to allow us to leave. Then began the very long wait to actually get to the runway. As we waited, the Captain announced that there were just 10 planes in front of us and that it would take three to four minutes per plane. During this wait, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey reached its conclusion. As we finally barreled down the runway, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug began and we lifted off for Miami. 

We are now scheduled to get into Miami shortly before 8:00 PM tonight and tomorrow we will be flying to Cap Haitian, Haiti. As I’m writing this, we are flying over Oklahoma City and I am looking forward to being able to walk again (there has been some turbulence so the seatbelt sign is still on). By my calculations, we’ll have been sitting on this plane around 8 hours by the time we arrive in Miami. To say today has been an adventure would probably be quite the understatement. 

Once we arrive in Miami we will make our way to the hotel, get a bite to eat, celebrate National Wine Day, and I plan on shooting my first video of the trip. Throughout this trip I will attempt to shoot one video a day and post it on my YouTube page. I will probably also include them with the daily updates here on this website. We will also get to connect with all the people we will be traveling with, including Scott Montgomery who is the Chairman of the Reliv Kalogris Foundation and an all around awesome guy. 

If you would like to support the Reliv Kalogris Foundation and the work it does both in Haiti and around the globe, please feel free to share these reports from our trip and help raise awareness of what the Reliv Kalogris Foundation is doing. You can also follow along on my instagram (@roebearlaird) and the Reliv Kalogris Foundation instagram (@relivkalogrisfoundation). 

If you have any questions about the Reliv Kalogris Foundation and what it does, please feel free to ask them in the comments section below! Thank you for reading and for any support you might offer to the Reliv Kalogris Foundation! 

About Post Author

Robert A. Laird

Robert A. Laird is an entrepreneur and also Executive Director - Creative for Shepherd's Grove Presbyterian Church/Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller where he oversees the television show of the same name. He also works with the Reliv Kalogris Foundation as it strives to feed starving children around the globe.

robert.laird@dapsmagic.com

http://robertlaird.me

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Life’s too short to not make a difference. For several years not I’ve been supporting the Reliv Kalogris Foundation in its efforts to help feed thousands around the globe, mainly children, on a daily basis. As I’ve worked with them my eyes have been opened to just how great the needs are both nearby and further away. It also has brought me to Haiti now twice where I have met people who are changing the world and who I will never forget. I’ve also met the children who’s worlds are being changed due to the work of this non-profit organization. Because of that, my life has been changed as well.

We live in the United States of America, pretty much the most well-off nation to ever exist to date. We can sit in an air conditioned Starbucks and write a blog then post it via wifi, all while enjoying a fancy beverage that costs enough to feed a child in a third world country for the day… like Haiti. One of the lessons I’ve learned through the Reliv Kalogris Foundation is just how much we have to be thankful for. This realization has also led to conviction that I need to make a difference today.

So often in life we think, “I’m going to help out when I’m able.” I know there was a time that I thought this way. However, upon visiting Haiti and seeing the difference that is being made for those who are a part of the feeding programs there versus those who aren’t, I have changed my thinking. We need to help out in any way we can now, not later. While helping out when able might be a matter of convenience for those of us in the USA, it is a matter of life and death for those in Haiti. The same goes for other places around the world. An inconvenience for me today could literally create the possibility for a child to have a tomorrow.

According to the United Nations, approximately 21,000 people die of hunger or a hunger related cause on a daily basis. That is one person every four seconds dying because they didn’t have something to eat. The Reliv Kalogris Foundation exists to “nourish our world.” It exists to stop this exact problem and provide a tomorrow for those who otherwise wouldn’t have one. Life’s too short to not make a difference. Life’s also short to wait until tomorrow to decide to make a difference. So here is the challenge for you: How are you going to make a difference today?

About Post Author

Robert A. Laird

Robert A. Laird is an entrepreneur and also Executive Director - Creative for Shepherd's Grove Presbyterian Church/Hour of Power with Bobby Schuller where he oversees the television show of the same name. He also works with the Reliv Kalogris Foundation as it strives to feed starving children around the globe.

robert.laird@dapsmagic.com

http://robertlaird.me

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