The roof is finally on

We have been trying to get the roof on for quite some time.  Many things stood in our way.  We met with the architect to improve our plans.  Because of the earthquake, we wanted to make the structure safer. It took time to study exactly what was needed, concerning the concrete and supports.  

Our second problem arose when Haiti had some political problems and the roads were blocked and places of business were shut down.  This lasted for almost a week.  

But FINALLY, on December 3rd, we were able to pour the roof.  We poured about 600 square meters of cement.  We hired almost 130 men to work on the project and we finished it in 1 day.  We also had 9 people working on food for those workers.  You can see it was a HUGE project.  We started at 6:00 am and  finished at 4:00 in the afternoon.  The photos below show the work in progress and the finished roof. 

This picture shows the preparation of the roof before pouring the cement.

This is our cooks and where they worked to prepare the meals.

The next two photos are of the actual pouring of the cement.  They had three areas where they were mixing cement and handing it up to the roof workers.  You can see the progress of the work being done.

And finally, it is finished.  We have someone out there pouring water on it to help set the cement firmly.   A job well done!!

 We are already starting the process of selecting the children for the home.  At present we have 4 children ready to move in with us.  Names will be published once we have the forms filled out.  Their ages are: 2, 3, 3 and 4 years old.  We had hoped to start with just infants, but these four cases are desperate children who have lost their whole families.  One 3 year old child has a grandmother, but she is quite old and unable to care for the child.   The child that is 2 years old has a father, but he is very ill and not expected to live.  The other two children are totally without family.

We will now start the process of finding supporters for these children.  We are praying that the Lord will find the right people to help with each child we have.

We have our house parents ready to move in.  Vilbrun and his wife (as of Dec. 19th) will be the main house parents.  Vilbrun and Wengelie (his wife) will be in charge of the children and their needs.  Sanvill and Leah will be overseers for the orphanage.  Leah will be cooking the meals and Sanvill will be in charge of the maintenance of the buildings and the yard.  Both couples will work together for the children and the compound.  We are also praying to find sponsors for these two couples as well.  
    

We have now given you many things to pray about.  We know the Lord will help us in our endeavor to help these children and to support them.  Thank you for being a prayer partner with us on this enormous project.  May the Lord bless you!