Joslynn's Haitian Adventure

"Welcome back home!" is always the response I get now that I am back in Louisiana for the summer. Home. This is home-it is the place where I grew up, where my family lives, where I have many friends, and where my church is. However, I cannot help but think that I am not home. Haiti is home. It is where my ministry is, where my fellow missionaries are, where my Haiti church is and all my Haitian brothers and sisters are. So Haiti is home; but so is Lafayette, LA. I find myself torn between two completely different worlds. In Louisiana, I have all the familiarity, comfort, and good food. In Haiti, I have my students, my community, and the simplicity of life. So where does this leave me? Well, for now, I will continue to be between the two as I prepare to return to Haiti in the fall. I need help to get there though. As with the last two summers, I am fundraising to return and continuing teaching at Cite Lumiere Christian School. My goal is $5,000 for the yea...

As I see all of the "Back to School" posts on Facebook, I realize that back to school for me is also just around the corner. Cite Lumiere Christian School begins the first week of September. Soon I will be organizing my classroom, attending meetings, and getting all my lesson plans in order. But before all that, I want to reminisce about my summer.   Church As grateful as I am to be able to watch The Bayou online most Sundays, there is nothing quite like gathering with my church family in person. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing familiar faces and giving plenty of hugs. I also did not have to worry about slow internet connection which is always a plus. It was the first time in nine months that I attended a church and understood what everyone was saying. Don't get me wrong; I LOVE Haitian church services but I still do not have a strong grasp of the language so I feel like I miss out on so much. I absolutely love my church and am incredibly thankful for being able to attend ...

My second semester teaching in Haiti was quite the busy one (so much so I never updated the blog). Here are some highlights from the past few months: *Missionary Retreat where we learned about understanding cultural intelligence. Photo courtesy of Rob Thompson *Visiting my sister church Petit Trou with The Bayou team  * Co-leading the team with Josiah Nunemaker  *Celebrating the 11th anniversary of my 25th birthday. My students threw me a surprise party and gave me a coffee thermos as a gift. *Watching soccer at a stadium in Les Cayes. The player we were watching is the son of my neighbor's house help. *  Casey and Heather leading the Women's Conference and using their gifts and talents to encourage the missionary women. Photo courtesy of Becky Thompson. *Visiting a waterfall Making water rockets as a science project  *Visiting fort ruins from when the French ruled Haiti. *The last adventure of the "J Team". Josiah will be returnin...

                                                       My class at the Christmas program Culture permeates every area of our lives...even how we celebrate holidays. I chose to remain in Haiti for the holiday season in order to experience how the Haitian culture as well as the missionaries here celebrate. Thanksgiving : Since Thanksgiving is an American holiday, it is not celebrated in Haiti by the Haitians. The missionaries who live here, however, do celebrate; even those who are not American. Almost all of the missionaries gathered at someone's house with a dish in their hand to share with all. It was quite the spread (you can see pictures on my Facebook page). A great time was had by all. photo by Rob Thompson Christmas : While there have been plenty of Christmas activities, it has not been the hectic, busy season in normally is in...

School is in session : Do you remember those back to school jitters? Asking questions like, What to wear?, What will my teacher be like?, Will I have any friends? Well, my back to school questions were different. What will teaching in Haiti be like? Will my students understand me? Am I going to die in this heat? As I sat in chapel with my new students, I had an overwhelming feeling of "This is going to be a great year!" So far, I was right. God has blessed me with amazing student who are hard workers, diligent, and competitive-just like their teacher. We love playing games. We play review games for tests as well as fun games to give our brains a break. Students even get to compete against the teacher. While it has been a challenge teaching two separate grades at the same time, it is definitely a rewarding experience. A Surprise Visit : One day in class, I received a surprise. Pastor Solvat from The Bayou's sister church Petit Trou, was in Les Cayes along w...

Ready -Bags are packed. Set -Plane ticket is bought. Go -I leave Monday, August 28, 2017 for Haiti! After months of praying, preparation, and packing, it is time for me to follow God's call on my life and head to Haiti to begin the school year with my 6th/7th grade class. I am quite excited about this new journey in my life. I know there will be many joys and struggles along the way. I look forward to both as I continue to be a fully devoted follower of Christ. It is always hard to say goodbye to friends and family, but I am grateful to have such an amazing support system. Though I am going now, I am not yet fully funded. I have raised half of the amount I need to teach there for the entire school year. If you feel led to join me on this adventure by supporting me, you can do it either monthly or a one time gift. Checks can be made to RMI with Joslynn Stakes in the memo line mailed to RMI 5475 Lee Street, Suite #301, Lehigh Acres, FL 33971 or you can give online at  ww...