Updates

We have 18 days left to meet the generous match offer made by college graduate from Texas. Thank you so much for giving! We have $3,508 left to raise to receive her 10K match. PLEASE share this with your Sunday School class, your Bible study, your friends and co-workers. We are anxious to help our anonymous friend in Texas be able to give her match. What a blessing!

Please be praying for the ladies in our program. We have one young mom with HIV that is due in the coming week, prayers for a safe delivery of a healthy baby are appreciated. We have another mom that is too high risk and probably needs a C-section, she is especially "needy" and not very happy about the c-section. We also have a mom of 4 who had a blood pressure of 172/128 last week - and is only 32 weeks along. She was told to go straight to a hospital after she left us. Someday soon we hope and pray we can give them a ride when we send them for emergency care.

To pray for them by name: Fenise - Nicole - RoseMarie

Our Program is for Natacha

By Beth McHoul

Natacha has been in our lives for a long time. She was orphaned at the age of 10 when her dad drowned. He was one of the many victims on the commuter Jeremie boat that sank several years ago. (Click here to read about that tragedy.) Natacha's mom died prior to her father but Natacha isn't clear on what happened. "It was voodoo powder", she says.

After their father died, Natacha and her little sister Nedeje went to live in an orphanage in Port-au-Prince. As a troubled teen Tachi was asked to leave the orphanage. Not unlike other troubled teens here and in the USA, she got pregnant.

Natacha delivered her baby girl in a small hut without a skilled attendant. She really loved her little girl but as a teen without support or teachers, she had no parenting skills and no way to provide for her daughter. She first came to us asking us to take her daughter into the adoption program. Her daughter was placed into the children's home and Natacha ended up staying with us and has never really left.

Tachi and my daughter Morgan became best friends over the years. They mixed their conversations with Creole and English giggling and acting like teenagers together. They love each other still and look forward to visits in Haiti a couple of times each year. Natacha has been employed at our boys house as a night nanny for a number of years.

About a year ago Natasha announced that she had a boyfriend. I gave her the purity lectures and warnings. I am a mother figure in her life. I hoped she could be spared more disappointment. I prayed she would make wise choices.

Here is an orphaned girl with huge losses in her life. She lost both parents, grew up in an overcrowded understaffed orphanage, gave up her first born child, lost her best friend to the States, and is not on speaking terms with her little sister. After such losses - of course she would be victim to a smooth talking boyfriend who said he wanted a family. He told her he would marry her but he wanted her to have "his" child first. She caved. She believed him.Our daughter Morgan came home for a visit earlier this year. Tachi whispered to Morgan that she might be pregnant. Morgan cautioned her to get married, do things right, it would pay off later. But it was too late. The pregnancy test came back positive. Natacha was full of hope, full of thoughts of family, being a wife, being a mother, making up for past losses.

Week by week we took care of Tachi in our program. Because she is fluent in English and works at the boy's home she is well known by many and a favorite of a lot of the Americans. People care about her.

As we feared, her boyfriend tired of her and found a new girl. He didn't even wait till the baby was born. At her last prenatal appointment she sat looking at her round belly and said, "He has a new girl. I hate him now." We felt that anger, disappointment, and hurt with her.

Early Wednesday morning Natasha called me from the boy's home to tell me she was in labor. Five hours later she was holding a 8 pound 8 ounce baby girl she named Esther Jane. Esther is Morgan's middle name.

We can only imagine her struggles. She's older now, she's 23, she is capable of raising this child.

In a life full of losses may little Esther help heal a wounded heart.Men are not dependable in this culture. Although this particular dad has a job it is unlikely he will be involved or help. Natasha will do this alone. But, she does have us, a community that loves her and will help her. And we will continue to point her to the one who is are true source of help and love. Our true help comes from Jesus Christ!

Please give a gift today. We need your help. Your donation allows us to grant these women a hand up, some dignity, and specifically allows us to offer them a safer option should they need emergency help. Thank you for helping us help them.

Meet Heartline Runner, Kim Rhodes

When asked about herself Kim wrote:

"I'm 33, From Greenville, SC. I have been married for 12 years to my husband Dave. I am a mother to Emma who is 7 and Izzie who is 3 and Frankie who is 2. We (with other people) run a ministry called- www.wayfarer.tv

The reasons I am running this: In high school I took a trip to Haiti that changed my life. I've always wanted to return. In May of 2008 I returned with a team and met Troy and Tara Livesay who then introduced our family to Heartline and to Maranatha Childrens home. We are now adopting our son Frankie from Heartline.

I'm just a normal mom who's heart beats for our local ministry here in Greenville, for Haiti, for adoption. This is just one way I can help support some fabulous people in Haiti who are doing amazing Kingdom work and having impact. So often I feel like "what can I do to help?" and well, sometimes you just get hit in the face and realize there are so many things you can do. This is one of them. And in the process this allows me to be part of something bigger than myself."

Kim ran the 200 and 400 m dash in high school but had never been a distance runner. This last January a friend asked her to train for and attempt a half marathon. Kim agreed because she just finished having children and had not gotten her heart rate up in over 10 years. She wanted to do it for herself. Kim said, "Training for it was hard but we did it and in April I completed my first ever Half Marathon. I never thought I could run that far." Kim went on to say, "After that one another friend asked if I would train and run one with her. In a lapse of insanity and forgetfulness I agreed. This time I wanted to do it for SOMEONE ELSE I really struggled training for this one. A few times I did not think I would live up to my commitment to her. I'm so not a natural runner and it's hard for me to train. But in the end we did it. Never thought I would do one half marathon let alone 2 in one year."

Kim said she had all but retired her running shoes when she heard that a bunch of folks were running for Haitian women and Heartline Ministries. Kim said, "This time I am running for a PURPOSE. So I will humbly join the current list of marathoners and attempt one last push for a half marathon. To help raise money for a VERY GOOD cause and bring awareness to a ministry that is changing the lives of woman in Haiti. Now that is something to run for."

Kim hopes to run a strong half marathon and beat her personal-best time and then be the biggest fan cheering on all those running the full marathon.

PLEASE sponsor Kim Rhodes ~ Thank You for your consideration!

Meet Heartline Runner, Shelley Tlucek

Shelley Tlucek was asked to share a little bit about herself ...


"I am 43 years old and live in Tabarre, Haiti, with Byron and our five youngest children. Our two oldest children are in college in the U.S.

Beth helped ease me into running when we arrived in Haiti 3 1/2 years ago. I have been following Jeff Galloway's 32 week program in preparation for the Disney World Marathon, and plan to complete the marathon through running/walking intervals. The favorite part of my training has been the 'alone' time which it has given me with Byron.

Beth, Tara, and Lisa have committed their time, energy, and compassion to the women of Haiti - and I am honored to support them as they endeavor to change Haiti one family at a time."

This will be Shelley's first marathon. Please help us reach our goal and sponsor her by chipping in!

Meet Heartline Runner, Lisa Hojara

Lisa Hojara is 46 years old, married to Ted, and has four children. Her hometown is Fort Lauderdale FL ... with a very worn path to Haiti. The Hojaras lived in Haiti helping with two ministries for much of 2008 and 2009.

Lisa says,
" There is only one explanation to do something so crazy at this age, as my son has reminded me... it is my passion to make a difference in the lives of Haitian women....and children....
I never ran more than 4 miles before July of this year.....I am living proof anybody can do anything they set there hearts and minds to. And of course if Beth says I can do it!! I believe it...she has been my inspirtation, my mentor and my good friend"

Lisa is setting her sights and goals to conquer this marathon. She is running with a purpose....remembering every step, is one step further in changing a life. She is excited to be a part of the running team, she believes that together, we can make a difference.

Please sponsor Lisa Hojara for her first Marathon this January, and help her show love to a Haitian woman.

Our Program is for Angena

Written by T. Livesay

Recently I wrote the following:

We're hoping to raise money for the vehicle that we so desperately need, we're hoping to bring attention to some of the needs in Haiti. But more than that we are hoping and praying that along the way many of you will begin to follow these stories of strength, endurance and redemption - each woman we serve has a story to tell - each woman needs our love and prayers.

Sometimes when working in a place like Haiti, it can be easy to get overwhelmed by the needs. This is especially true when so many of the people we meet share a similar story and a similar LARGE need.

It has been our goal to get to know each woman in our program and to glean a little bit of her story - to take the time to understand specific details about her life and her situation. We want to know more about them than, "they are poor". Whether we can help in each situation or not - we truly desire to know about the ladies and their lives.

Today I want to share Angena's story of strength and perseverance under difficult circumstances.

Angena is 28 years old and has four children. They are Angelo, 6 years old, Erna, 5 years old, Woodson, 22 months, and Rose Gerlande, 5 months.

Angena first entered our prenatal program in late 2007. At that time we were still very young and in a development stage. She was given prenatal vitamins for a couple of months and her baby boy was born healthy at home in February of 2008.

Angena had attempted to benefit from our sewing school but unfortunately she was unable to keep up with the requirements. It was very difficult for the sewing school director to make a decision to remove her from that class.

After that, Sheila (sewing director at the time) took a special interest in looking out for Angena and attempting to find ways to support her. Angena continued coming to the Early Childhood development classes with her new son, Woodson.

In our program we cover many topics. Some of the topics we teach about are: parenting, bonding, public health, hygiene, breastfeeding, STDs, birth control, and first aid. Some of the teaching is fairly basic and aimed at changing long-held cultural beliefs, and misconceptions due to rumor and superstition or lack of education. (For instance, most Haitians believe if the mother has a cold, she can pass it to the baby through nursing and she will not nurse her baby while she has a common cold.)

Many (if not most) women do not have a lot of power when it comes to choosing to say no to intercourse. Because of this lack of power women find themselves pregnant over and over at a young age. Often times by the time the baby is born the father of the baby has moved on to a new relationship - leaving the woman to fend for herself and her baby without help.

Teaching about birth-control is very important for this reason. We hope to empower the women by giving them at least a few options to try to reduce unplanned (and mostly unwanted) multiple pregnancies. We cover the health benefits for spacing children and we offer them a couple of family planning/birth control methods.

Despite our best efforts and Angena's plan to use birthcontrol, she found herself pregnant again just 8 months after Woodson was born. Angena was devastated. She told us that her husband lives and works in Santo Domingo and just comes home occasionally. He sends money from his job when he can. She is left in Port au Prince to handle the children alone.

Angena desperately needed our encouragement and support. We encouraged her to start coming to prenatal class again . She re-entered the prenatal program in November of 2008. For the next 27 weeks we were able to see her on Thursdays. Each week were able to remind her that she was not alone and that we cared for her. Angena was able to receive prenatal vitamins that allowed her better health throughout the pregnancy.

At times Angena was very depressed, and understandably so. During those low times we were careful to pray for her even more and to remind her that we care and will continue to help her whenever possible.

On June 13 Angena delivered a healthy baby girl. She had her baby with the help of a friend in her small home. The father of the baby was still out of the country, as he was for the entire pregnancy.

Since late June she has been back in the Tuesday Early Childhood Development Class. The benefit for her is to meet other Moms and to learn better ways to raise her kids. She is supported by people who love her. She is able to have her kids looked at by a missionary nurse when they are sick. This saves her a lot of money that the "village doctor" might charge to guess at what is wrong with her child.

I think it is easy to fall into thinking, "Why did she get pregnant again? Doesn't she learn?" Some might even think, "Well she got pregnant - it is her fault she is so poor." While a small portion of her situation *might* be a direct result of her own choices, the fact is MOST of her life circumstances have much more to do with the culture and country she was born into.

Our program does not exist to fix Haiti or change Haiti's culture. We won't do that successfully no matter how hard we try. We can change a few misconceptions. We can make a dent here and a dent there in long-held incorrect beliefs. But we won't always succeed in convincing our Moms to use birth control or to plan ahead or to breastfeed their newborn.

Our program exists to love and serve ladies that "don't learn" and that have incredibly hard challenges with very little hope for an improved living/financial situation. Our program exists to show mercy and grace and love to the forgotten and to be to them a little bit of Heaven on Earth. We hope that by feeling unconditional love, they might desire to know the unconditional love of the Father. We pray to that end.

Jesus came not only for me and for you, but for Angena. He loved the prostitute, the unclean, and the serial mistake-makers. He did not give up on them or turn away. It is for this reason that we won't turn Angena away. We hope and pray she does not have another pregnancy again in 2010 - we're doing what we can to educate her about that - but if she returns to us, we will love her and serve her and see her through another pregnancy.
In January, fifteen of us will run with endurance for the women of Haiti who live every day with great courage and endurance.

Please help us share their stories by passing this blog address to your friends. Because - we are hoping and praying that along the way many of you will begin to follow these stories of strength, endurance and redemption - each woman we serve has a story to tell - each woman needs our love and prayers.

Meet Heartline Runner, Kristen Howerton

Kristen Howerton is 34 and lives in Orange County, California.

When asked to tell us a little about herself, Kristen wrote, "I am married and I have three kids: Jafta (4), India (3), and Karis (6 months). I spend most of my days chasing them around. We are in the process of adopting #4 (a son) from Heartline. I am an adjunct professor of psychology at Vanguard University, and on extended maternity leave from my job as a marriage and family therapist. When my kids are sleeping I waste a lot of time blogging. I am also a big fan of musical theater."

Kristen considers herself a new runner. This will be her first half marathon. She said, "I am a new runner, or not really even a runner at all. I'm hoping to pull this thing off with a mix of walking and jogging. So I guess I'm a wogger. I've been wogging for about six months. Prior to that I was pregnant. At that point, I was a waddler. So I guess wogging is an improvement."

Kristen decided to run the half marathon because the 5k was full and she really wanted to help raise money for Heartline's Prenatal Program. Kristen said, "I am a big fan of the work Heartline is doing and more than anything I want to support them."

When asked about her personal goals for the half marathon, Kristen replied, "To stay upright."

Please sponsor Kristen Howerton for her 13.1 mile race in January, she need your support!

Update on Matching $

We have $8,201 more to raise to receive a generous donation of 10K, made by a 22 year old college graduate in Texas.

36: Amount of chip in donations since the $10k matching challenge over 4 days
333: Average needed per day over the 30 day challenge.
449.67: Average received
1798.67: Amount received since the 10k challenge was made

If you have questions about our ministry or programs please leave a comment or email:

bethmchoul@yahoo.com or tl7inhaiti@yahoo.com

We are looking forward to another great week with the ladies in our program. Tuesday we will work with approximately 35 ladies with babies 12 months and younger. Each and every one of these ladies came through our prenatal program in the last year and they are now working hard to care for their baby and make wise choices. The ladies are being given encouragement, acceptance, teaching and love - all things that are hard to come by in their culture.

Check back on Tuesday evening to meet one of the young mothers in our Tuesday Early Childhood Development Program.

Please consider chipping in!

Meet Heartline Runners, Nydia & David Miller

Nydia Miller is a wife, a mother and a runner. She is 43 years old and resides in Pennsylvania. Her husband Jon was introduced earlier, in this post.

Nydia has been running for many years but joined a running group seven years ago. She has run one half marathon in September 2009. This will be her first full marathon. Nydia said, "The reason I decided to run the marathon is to expose more people to the amazing work that Heartline Ministries does in Haiti."

Nydia and Jon have 5 children; two Haitian born children that joined their family through the blessing of adoption. Nydia is a full time student studying Elementary Education and a work at home mom. She says that with distance running, school, and raising five children - the only other hobby she has time for is "Watching our children enjoy life. That "fills me up" like nothing else".


Regarding her personal goals for the marathon, Nydia says, "My goal is to cross the finish line with my wonderful husband Jon by my side. It is going to be a blessing knowing that every mile we complete is to help the women and children in the Women's Program. How much more encouragement could we ask for?"


Jon and Nydia's son David is running the Disney Half Marathon on Saturday, January 9, 2009.

David is 15 years old. He decided to run the half because he knew that he and his parents were doing it to benefit Haiti.

David is newer runner. This will be his first half marathon.

David is a sophomore in high school. He enjoys playing basketball and is also very involved in his church and youth group. He said he likes going to the local Good Will store and shopping for crazy tee shirts.

David is anxious to raise money and awareness for Heartline Ministries and the women of Haiti and to travel to Florida with his family to compete together and cheer one another on. David would like to finish his half marathon around 2 hours, give or take a few minutes.

Please consider sponsoring one of the Millers running for Haiti this January.

Our Program Seeks to Serve and Love

We are running for them:


This photo above was taken before today's class. 17 of 20 women had arrived when we took the picture. We have ladies ranging in age from 15 to 40, giving birth to their first , and all the way up to their 8th child.

At the end of our appointment with the women we always pray for/with them. If we forget, they remind us. The last photo of the girl in the white dress is Nicole. She came in today and plopped herself down and said "You guys need to pray for me every day." We laughed and agreed with her and got busy doing that.
They need our prayers and we are constantly asking the Lord how to show them His love in every decision we make and every action we take.

We will continue to share our experiences with these beautiful ladies and tell their stories.

Thank you for reading, praying, and giving.

The Heartline Team

Also, check back here to meet the last five runners that have not yet been introduced.

Please Help us - December 18th we need to be at $18,052 to receive 10K more

Hi Heartline Team,

I want to offer a $10,000 match towards the Heartline ambulance. I am so excited about what y'all are doing in the women's program. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus to these women. I love y'all's unique approach and the way you love the women and serve them. And more than anything I love the women of Haiti and agree that they deserve the best care that can be provided to them!

I graduate from Texas A&M University on December 18th and my Dad offered to get me a car as a grad gift. I have a perfectly good and actually really nice car so I asked instead if I could have the equivalent amount of money to donate to the causes of my choice. My Dad said yes but only if I took time to really pray about where God wanted that money to go and where it would most glorify Him. I have prayed about donating to the purchase of the ambulance for a few weeks now and after reading the last few posts I know this is exactly where God wants this money to go to glorify Him.

I am so excited for all that Heartline is doing right now and can't wait to continue to follow the journey on the blogs! So, I will match up to $10,000 raised by my graduation date of December 18th when I receive the money. I mean honestly I want to send the check no matter what but I want to motivate others to give also! I so badly want y'all to reach that goal!!! The ambulance is such a necessity and I know God will provide!

love in Him,
Anonymous Graduate from Texas

Our Program is for Joranne

Labor and Delivery
Joranne is a vibrant, beautiful, spunky 21 year old woman. From the first day she joined the program she became one of the "stand-out" ladies. She always has a great smile and peppy attitude when she comes for prenatal class.

We all agreed that being able to see her baby come into the world and help her with it would be an amazing privilege. We were happy to look ahead on the calendar and know that by November when she was due, we would likely be able to deliver her baby.

Joranne has never been pregnant before. Unlike the vast majority of first-time moms in Haiti, Joranne received consistent pre-natal care and lots of attention through 7 months of her pregnancy.

On Saturday evening she called Beth to let her know she had been having contractions for three hours and was getting a ride over to us. She arrived and Jonna, a midwife staying in Haiti to work with us for 8 months, began to assess things and help Joranne get settled in for a night of laboring.

Lisa and Beth and others that were there to support took turns sleeping. Vivien (an EMT living in Haiti for 9 months) and Jonna handled all of Joranne's needs during the night.

Morning came and people who had not yet slept got a nap while others jumped in to help. We continued to help her through each contraction, to encourage, to pray, and to monitor.

Giving a Haitian woman an opportunity to labor while surrounded by love and help (and great back rubs) is an important part of what we offer. This experience is nothing like what they would experience elsewhere in Haiti. It is truly unique.

Around 10am Joranne's baby started showing a few signs of distress. The baby's heartrate decelerated and the midwives began to be a little bit concerned, but they also knew she was close to delivering.

At 10:35 Jonna, the midwife acting as primary for this delivery, told Joranne that she could push. A few minutes passed and Joranne was able to begin pushing with each contraction. At that point Lisa, another midwife, was getting fetal heart rates of about 70-80 beats per minute.

Lisa told Vivien to be ready for a baby that might need resuscitation. It was calm but incredibly intense for the next six minutes. We could see the head and we knew she was just a push or two away from delivering, but we did not know how the baby would fare. We prayed aloud and individually as Joranne pushed.

At 10:45 Joranne's 7 pound 7 ounce son was delivered and he started crying instantly. A collective sigh of relief was breathed by all in the room. Thank God for another safe delivery.



In this case, we were blessed with a healthy baby. Had he come out needing more medical attention than we could provide it would have been our responsibility to find him help. If you read the post prior to this one, you know that medical emergencies are extra difficult in Haiti. The roads are bad, the traffic is worse, and there is no "911" option. In emergencies (and there will be emergencies) we need to be ready to move and we need to be ready to move fast. We need a vehicle ready for use at all times that is equipped with oxygen, IV fluids and other life saving medical supplies. We need to be ready to give these women the best care possible.

Not to be ready - is to offer them less than they deserve. And that is wrong.

We cannot fix the lack of infrastructure in Haiti. We cannot make most things better for them. We cannot control a lot of things. But we can be prepared to take really good care of women while they are in labor and delivering their babies. We SHOULD be prepared to do that.




More on Vehicles
On Sunday there were 6 at the Buxman house, 11 at the Livesay house, 5 at the McHoul house, 11 plus at the Tlucek house ... all needing to get to church about 40 minutes from the area we all live. (These are the four households that work with Heartline full or part time.)

We were already begging for rides and trying to find vehicles to pick a few up and help out. We all usually have one working vehicle (per family) and we're always stretched to figure out transportation. We swap and trade and jockey to make it work.

On Sunday we needed a vehicle to stay at the Women's Center and ready to make a hospital run if need be. This meant a large group of people needed to stay home so that the vehicle could stay ready for emergency transport. The vehicle that was there was not sufficient. It was not outfitted with medical devices - it was better than nothing, and all we had.

If the question has crossed your mind, "Why do they need such an expensive vehicle?" I want to address that. I am a frugal person by nature and I get why you might wonder that.

We (our family) bought a vehicle 16 months ago. It is a 2005 with few miles on it. It has had three major issues, all three related to the fact that it is not a sturdy enough vehicle with high enough clearance for the roads that Haiti offers. Each time there are issues it takes about two to four weeks to locate parts and another week or two to get it fixed. At this moment Beth has been without her truck for 12 weeks due to issues finding parts. I don't share this to whine about it, I share it to explain the reality of vehicle maintenance in Haiti. Nothing is convenient or easy here.

We need a very reliable, sturdy, high-clearance, totally outfitted vehicle that we can count on. We truly never want to find ourselves in a situation where we lose a lady because we were not as prepared as possible to deal with a problem.

I know if someone I love had a major medical emergency, I would want more than a half broken down jalopy to get them to the hospital, if at all possible. The lives of these women are every bit as important as the lives of the people I love. A reliable vehicle that will serve 100's of women for years to come is a necessity.

We're so hopeful that we'll receive the funds to both buy and outfit the vehicle (60K does both) - we're available to answer your questions.

Please help us reach the goal by sponsoring our efforts. The Chip In button on the right is one way to donate, you can also mail a check to Heartline in Washington.

Thank you for helping us help them!The Heartline Team

(Written by T. Livesay)

Linking You

A long-time friend of Heartline Ministries wrote a post sharing a little bit about the reality of emergencies in an undeveloped country, like Haiti. Please go here to read it. Also, please check back this week for many new stories here.

Run well,

The Heartline Team

Our Program is for Marie Lucie

Marie Lucie is 22, poor, single and without resources. She has been faithful to our program for months now. She arrived Thursday morning in labor. Like most first time moms she was sure she was almost at the end and the contractions surely couldn't get any worse. We knew we were in for a long day and night when we saw that in reality she was not very far along.

Thursdays are always busy with 20 prenatal women, women wanting pregnancy tests and anyone else who shows up at the gate. We leave exhausted on Thursday late afternoons. When Marie Lucie came in in labor at 9:00 AM we knew we were in for an extra busy day.

A 15 year old pregnant girl from Simone Pele showed up wanting to get into the program. Another lady wanting to give her baby for adoption. Another with a four day old who she hadn't breastfed at all since birth. This gal had delivered at home since her labor went quickly so she was not with us for us to instill in her the things she had been learning in our program. Breastfeed right after the baby is born, we teach and teach and teach that. We were all burdened with heaviness at the sight of a failing baby and a mom who didn't seem to understand that baby needed to eat - continuously! We have taught this a hundred different ways! How could this mom have missed the message? Discouragement filled the room. A visitor, Gaylene, sat with mom for hours teaching her to breastfeed and how to care for her baby.

Our attention was now elsewhere. Women needing prenatals. Busy midwives, Staff doing their jobs, filling in paperwork, feeding moms to be, checking vitals, making sure women had their vitamins. Dealing with the heartbreaking issues that face these women daily.

Marie Lucie labored through the day. Women with bellies almost as big as hers poked their heads in to offer encouragement and check out their future! Marie Lucie informed me when her labor was taking hours too long and that all our other women had delivered quickly. She wondered aloud why she was different? False rumor!

Finally the house emptied except for the several of us involved in the birth. What a team this young girl had. We labored with her, walked with her, prayed with her, helped her and finally caught her baby. Her family could be heard praising Jesus from where they waited on the front patio of the house when they heard a healthy baby had been delivered. It was our own little cheering section. As if in direct contrast of the morning's event when her baby was born she declared "I have to breastfeed him right away like Madame John taught us!" We all cheered and the discouragement of the non-compliant mom in the morning lifted. This girl listened in class and put it to action. A baby boy off to a healthy start!

Several hours later Marie Lucie left for home with a 7 pound 4 ounce baby boy. A victorious event for us all. In January many of us will be running for Marie Lucie and many more like her.

We Run for Women That Need Love

HEARTLINE BIRTH
Written by Beth McHoul in September on the day David was born.

Today was the end of a long journey. It ended with a beginning. The beginning of a life that almost wasn't.

Mom isn't educated, she's poor, she has a hard life, she has been pregnant 6 times and is only raising two of her children. Men have used and abused her, other women have belittled her. She came to us pretty broken. She came wanting birth control.

We gave her a pregnancy test first and it was positive. She melted down at the news. She wanted the easy way out - a very dangerous route in Haiti. We begged, pleaded, and prayed with her. We found sponsors to pay for her housing and food. We offered to take the baby once born if she would follow through with the pregnancy. Finally, through lots of rocky emotions she agreed it was best not to end the pregnancy.

Then came more news. News that no one on this planet wants to hear. We do routine labs and HIV is the first result we look for on the page of results. Positive. Can't this woman get a break?

Extremely poor, very vulnerable, not skilled and now HIV positive. But like in all God stories through the ages - hope makes an appearance. Love shines through the darkness. God shows up.

Today this woman was surrounded by loving midwives who helped her cope through labor and brought an incredibly beautiful boy into the world. He cried only to let us know all was well and then he sucked his thumb and melted into the arms of each midwife. A peaceful baby. An unusually peaceful baby.

He will go to adoptive parents. A Christian family will love him and cherish him. Bio-mom insisted that she did not want to hold him or keep him but smiled in his direction and named him David. David it is.

She goes home to a one room cement hut with her two little girls. She continues on her antiviral drugs and may live a long life in spite of HIV. David will go to our children's home and on to his adoptive home.

Our lady knows she is loved. She will continue to be part of our program although she is no longer pregnant nor will she have an infant at child development. Some ladies are meant to stay in our lives, know our love, continue in our care. We pray she sees the love of the Savior in our love. We pray she sees the hands of Christ in our hands.

It is so like Jesus to lift up the hurting, the lost, the outcast. It is so like Him to love the unlovely, touch the untouchable and I am humbled and honored today to be His hands extended.

Today, I caught a baby - the mom caught grace.

~~~~~~~~~

In January many of us will meet in Orlando, Florida to run 13 or 26 miles. We are blessed to be able to do this. What an honor. Truthfully, it will be a fun time for us to meet up with others who love Haiti and have a connection to this beautiful country. We're excited to do it.

But we're hoping that it will be more than just fun and fellowship and running.

We're hoping to raise money for the vehicle that we so desperately need, we're hoping to bring attention to some of the needs in Haiti. But more than that we are hoping and praying that along the way many of you will begin to follow these stories of strength, endurance and redemption - each women we serve has a story to tell - each woman needs our love and prayers.

In January we will run for David's mother and many others like her.

Meet Heartline Runner, Corey Waters

Corey Waters is 37, she grew up in rural NH, She and her family recently moved to VA. She is a wife, a mother of 6, and a runner.

When asked why she is running this January, Corey said, "In July 2008, Jennifer Jablunosky, a Heartline adoptive parent, said to me, "So, a bunch of us are running the Disney Marathon in January 2010, and we want you to run it with us. What do you think?"

"And I thought, I can't do that! That was 40 lbs and 5 kids and 10 years ago and I have not run in YEARS and that sounds so AWESOME and perfectly self-indulgent and challenging and JUST what I need and...") "Yes," I said, "That would be awesome."

When Corey learned that the marathon would benefit Haitian women she was even more anxious to get involved. Corey cares deeply for Haiti and desires to raise money and awareness about the needs of the women of Haiti.

Corey has completed two marathons, both ten years ago. The first one was in Wisconsin. Shortly after that she ran the Flying Pig Marathon in Cincinnati. She ran that one to prove the first one wasn't a fluke. Corey said, "Then I sat down on the couch for ten years."

If Corey is not running, taking care of her large crew of kids, or blogging, she is sleeping. ("There are only so many hours in a day", Waters added.)

Corey says, "My personal goal for the Disney Marathon is to finish it. Preferably on the same day I start it, but I'm not overly particular. I would love to get Ben & Jerry to sponsor me. I would wear their name across my butt, since they are personally responsible for the size of it."

Please consider sponsoring Corey Waters for her January 10, 2010 marathon. She is not only running for herself, she is running for the women of Haiti. She needs your support.

Meet Heartline Runner, Jaeda Buxman

An interview with Jaeda Buxman

What is your age, your hometown, the reason you've decided to run this marathon?

I’m 23 - currently living in Gilbert Arizona. Good question, I can’t remember why I decided to run this marathon (*sarcasm* as I ice my cramping calves). I think it was back in January '09 after watching my mom, sister, Tara, and Beth run a half marathon and feeling like I wanted to accomplish something like that. I love Disneyworld so when my mom asked me if I was interested in helping with a group fundraising project I hastily agreed. I am excited to accomplish a goal and who knows what is next after 26.2, ultra marathons anyone?!


How many other half or full marathons have your run prior to this one? New or experienced runner?

I have completed one half marathon, I did that in August. I am definitely a new runner.

What do you do for a living, what are your hobbies besides running, are you married or single? Tell us anything interesting or unique about you.

I work Nevada bodily injury auto accident claims for State Farm Insurance, so helping people get the vehicle repairs and then assist in the settlement of their injury claims. Besides working and running, I am also in school full time to finish up my BS in Business Communication. I love to read when I have time and I kinda am obsessed with Harry Potter. Oh ya, single and ready to mingle. Kidding. Well I am single but no mingling please.

Any personal goals for the marathon come January?

Besides survival? I am attempting to finish under 5 hours with my sister Paige and have as much fun as we did while running a half marathon in August.

Jaeda would love if all of her relatives, friends, and co-workers would sponsor her for the January 2010 race - and help the Heartline Team of runners reach their goal. Please sponsor Jaeda Buxman today!

Women & Health

DESPITE LIVING LONGER - WOMEN GET LESSER CARE - WHO
Reuters
09 November, 2009

Excerpt from above linked article - WHO (World Health Organization)

"Poverty also plays an important role. Some 99 percent of the estimated 500,000 women who die every year giving birth are in developing countries where medical supplies and skilled workers are in short supply, the WHO said. Low-income nations also have minimal screening and treatment services for cervical cancer, the second-most common type of cancer in women, according to the WHO, which stressed that even within individual countries, women from rich families tend to have better health outcomes than those with poorer means."

Training and Matching Funds

We are 60 days from race-weekend. The runners are plugging along with their training. Some train in 88 degree heat and humidity and others train in cool air that causes their sweat to turn into icicles. The miles each week are steadily increasing. We're all training. We're all preparing.

We are so grateful to report that $4,086 has already come in. We are thankful for each gift.

Right now we need to get serious about raising these funds. We are hoping you'll ask your friends and relatives to check the ministry out and consider a gift this holiday season.

The cause is incredibly important and the women the program serves will benefit greatly.

A match of $250 has been offered . If $250 comes in by the end of the day Sunday (11.8.09 @ 11:59pm) - the donor will chip-in his $250.

Photos from Simone Pele - September & October

We Run for the Women of Simone Pele

As we've shared, each week 20 women come to the Women's Program in Tabarre (an area right next to Port au Prince) to receive care and education. More wait on a list to get into the Thursday Prenatal program. We keep our numbers smaller to offer a high quality of care and to have an opportunity to get to know each woman. We want to build strong relationships and really have a chance to be love to each and every woman we serve.

Because we've made this conscious choice to structure our program this way we wanted to offer a second level of care that would still be beneficial to pregnant women, but would not be exactly what we're able to offer the ladies who get into the program in Tabarre.

That idea/desire led to the program that started in September in Simone Pele. The first Wednesday of every month we pack up our gear and as many helpers and midwives as we're able to bring, and we head to an area just outside of Cite Soleil. We have a contact there that helps us get in and out without too much trouble and helps us secure a place each month to do a teaching, hand out a month supply of vitamins and do prenatal checks. The ladies in Simon Pele are living in tougher and rougher conditions and seem to have even less access to the money it would take to receive minimal prenatal care.During our time this month one of the midwives taught on the importance of water and drinking enough while you're pregnant and nursing. That may seem like a simple concept to you, but these ladies often don't know some of the most basic ways to stay healthy and feel good. Stephanie taught the ladies WHY drinking water is important, HOW much water they should be drinking, WHAT sorts of things it will prevent, and WHERE they could get clean and safe drinking water.After the teaching the ladies wait to be called while three or four stations are set up to do a condensed but thorough check on them. Blood pressure is taken, weight, fundal measurements, and problems are discussed. Many times after these interviews and exams we can treat them for common problems such as yeast infections, UTI's, and dangerous STD's. We may see a spike in Blood Pressure and be able to catch early warning signs of pre-eclampsia. We are also able to spend that time doing quick bits of education.Most of all, we are taking ten to twenty minutes offering the ladies our attention and our love. Many of them are quite young, all of them are quite poor, most of them are a little afraid. While we are only able to do this program for them once monthly, we can tell by the way it has grown in the three months we've been going to Simone Pele, that it is something they need and enjoy.

In January we will run for the women of Simone Pele. Will you help us?

Please sponsor a runner today.

Meet Heartline Runner, Erin Lancer

Erin Lancer is a wife, mother, teacher and runner. She resides in Buffalo, NY.

Erin has have been married to her husband, Michael, for 17 years. He is extremely supportive of her running. He helps her plan long runs,
calls to check up on her and brings drinks and snacks. The Lancers have two biological children, a son, 15 and a daughter who is 12. They anxiously await the arrival of their three year old son from Haiti.

Erin teaches music at the elementary school level and loves her work. When asked about her interest in Haiti Erin shared, "Not too long ago two students changed my life. I had two boys enter my school mid-year and into my 1st grade music class. They had just been adopted from Haiti. I fell in love with those boys and it started us down a path to adopting our little boy. Up until that point, I had never considered adoption. It has been a long road, but I am truly looking forward to being a mom again."

This will be Erin's 4th full marathon. Erin still considers herself to be a newbie runner. She started running seriously back in 2005.

Erin said:

"I had thought about running the Disney Marathon before, but it wasn't at the top of my list. Sometime this winter I caught wind of the fact that a group of moms adopting from Haiti were planning to run Disney. It sounded like an opportunity that I did not want to miss. Waiting
for our adoption to come through has been a very difficult time. Running helps me stay sane as I am waiting for our son to come home."


Recently Erin wrote and said : "I've been thinking about what we're running for. One thing that I keep thinking about ... As an American living in the US I am constantly thinking about all that we have here. I take so much for granted. Before traveling to Haiti I would never have thought about not having the help when I need it. I had two healthy childbirth experiences and treasure them. They were amazing experiences. I am so proud to be working with Heartline to be raising money for something as basic as emergency transportation. These women will not have the same birthing experience that we are fortunate to have here in the US. However, the ladies in the program with Heartline will have caring, compassionate women around them. If they run into complications it is the RIGHT THING for them to have reliable transportation to a hospital. I am glad to be able to help raise money for Heartline. I hope that people will continue to be generous. It is such a worthy organization and has the most caring people working for the women and children of Haiti."

Erin does not have any personal goals for the marathon. She simply hopes to run
strong and have fun!

Erin and the entire Heartline Team need you! Will you sponsor Erin Lancer for her January 2010 Marathon and help the women of Haiti?

Meet Heartline Runners, Lisa & Shane Buxman

Lisa Buxman is a mother of seven and grandmother of three. She is a missionary Midwife (CPM) with Heartline Ministries. The Buxman family returned to Haiti on a full-time basis last month.

Lisa hails from Greeley, Colorado where she lived most of her life. Lisa and Don will celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary next year.

Lisa will be running the Disney Marathon in January, it will be her first full marathon. She ran one half marathon in celebration of her 50th birthday with friends and family in January 2009.

Lisa says, "I have run off and on for 29 years but got more serious three years ago. Running is my time alone with God, and as my kids will tell you I am a happier mom when I have had a good run."

Lisa is hoping for many to hear about the ministry of the Heartline Prenatal Program. She hopes that this group effort will bring attention to Haiti, the beautiful women the program serves, and God-willing, a lot of money will be raised.

Lisa's goal on Marathon day is to finish. She said, "Beth said I should run the full 26.2 - so here I am!"

Lisa will be joined in Florida by her two adult daughters, Paige Greiner and Jaeda Buxman and her son Shane. The three ladies are all running the full marathon and Shane plans to run the half.

Shane is 16 and decided to run the half-marathon because he wanted to go to Disney and thought raising money for Heartline sounded like a great idea. Shane has run several 5ks but he considers himself a new runner. Shane says, "I love to read, write, play saxophone, and act on stage. One of my dreams is to act on Broadway. I am planning to go to college to be a History teacher. I am one of 7 children."

Please consider sponsoring Lisa or Shane for their races in January. Every sponsorship dollar will be used to help Haitian women. Thank you!

By Beth McHoul

It's a national holiday today - "The Day of the Dead".

Not much traffic on the Day of the Dead so I got up thinking it would be a great day to run hills. Not as much foot traffic and vehicles to navigate around would make for a better run.

Just as I was crawling to the coffee pot and swallowing Excedrin for a brewing headache I noticed John had visitors. One of them was Oriel, a guard at the girl's home. He is our contact into Simone Pele where we do monthly prenatals.

Simone Pele is an inner-city ghetto. From time to time folks from this area connect with us and we have had several adoptive kids from that area and a few that come for an occasional clinic we have.

One little guy and his mom that showed up at a clinic was 9 month old Jean Peter and his mom Eugenie. He was skin and bones, failure to thrive and in respiratory distress. We had 3 doctors on site that gave him wonderful care. Mom and baby would come back and forth to our child development clinic and each week he would have another infection of some sort. Troy and Tara got him on Medika Mamba - which in his case did not help. Even with instruction, Mom did not seem to be consistent in giving it to him. He did not gain weight. Mom just didn't know how to parent. A few weeks passed and Jean Peter ended up at Sisters of Charity. I searched for him there hoping to get him one on one care in a family situation. The sisters told me he had been discharged and was on outpatient care for Tuberculosis.

Good I thought - he is getting care. I'll see mom at Simon Pele and work out a plan.This morning, around my table, Oriel said "Ti Swazo" (Little Bird) had died. Matter of fact, such is life and death in a country that celebrates the "Day of the Dead". A baby gone. A teen mom who never knew how to be a mom.

This is why our child development program is crucial. We teach moms to breastfeed, get medical care early, feed their families nutritious foods on their budgets, hygiene, and so on.

Jean-Peter was cute, he responded to love, he hung on but died shortly after his first birthday. I cried through much of my run. I counted 13 trash piles on my run, a few of them had grown men picking through them.

Our ambulance vehicle will take us into Simone Pele monthly. We will continue to teach pregnant women and young women how to better care for their bodies and families. We want to work to prevent these kinds of situations where babies end up dying after being sick for most of their short lives.

Jean Peter, "Ti Swazo" touched several lives but in the end he died. We loved him, we tried to make a difference but it wasn't enough. We'll keep trying, we'll keep teaching, maybe preventing the next death. That's why we are here.