This team from Liberty E-free in Pella starts their journey home today. After a week in Haiti, they’ve seen and experienced so many new and challenging things. Here’s what they don’t want to forget:

I want to remember the hospitality that was shown to us. I need to go out of my way to build relationships. I want to remember to be content with what I have. I saw more happiness when a family got a plate of rice at Thrive For 5 in Haiti, than when an American gets a new Apple product.   – Sophie Vander Molen

I don’t want to forget that things don’t bring happiness. I’ve seen more smiles here than back home. I don’t want to forget that a little sacrifice of time and money can change the lives of people in Haiti. I want to remember the faces of the children and the Haitian helpers that assisted us greatly and helped us understand the culture here.  – Eric Van Ee

I do not want to forget the faces and places we have witnessed. The real world has gotten much bigger than the bubble we tend to create in our comfort zone at home. – Tim Vander Molen

I don’t want to forget the new friends that I have made in Haiti.  I will continue to pray for them, and they said that they would pray for us.   In America, we often forget how important friends and relationships are.  I also don’t want to forget the smiling children who so thankful for the smallest things like bubbles and painting nails.   – Veronique Shoemaker

I need to remember the Haitian people are real people and the situations in which they live are real life. I might have more monetary wealth than they do, but they are not to be pitied. They are proud of what they have and are no less human than we. Thus, we are not to look down on them as lesser people, but instead, we must seek to bless them as we would our friends and neighbors, as they are our brothers and sisters in Christ.  – Jonathan De Reus

I don’t want to forget the poverty of the people in Haiti. Hunger, sickness and disease is the norm here. I especially do not want to forget meeting Anderson Charles, a boy in the Thrive for 5 program. He went from being a name and a photo to an adorable boy with a beautiful mom and little sister with poor living conditions, no dad, and not enough food to eat. Now I know how much this program means to Anderson and his family.  – Donna Van Ee

What I don’t want forget is not just concerning Haiti.  The need is concerning the world.  The need is water, food, and the Gospel.  The need is very simple, yet powerful.  Haiti is just a small part of the world.  We have to reach all of it – what a job Christians have.  What I don’t want to forget is THE NEED.  – Nathanael Shoemaker

Want to read about the experiences that made each team member make these statements? You can start by reading about their arrival to Haiti by clicking here, or you can read about an especially fun day spent passing out Christmas gifts at Thrive for 5 by clicking here.