Team Debriefing, Update, and Reflections

Pictured (in no particular order): Rev. Matthew Harrison (WR-HC), Rev. Glenn Merritt (WR-HC), Rev. Dr. Albert Collver, Danelle Putnam (WM), Rev. Ted Krey (WM), Rev. Dr. Jorge Groh (WM), Olga Groh (WM), James Neundorf (WM), Sherie Auger (WM Caymen Islands), Rev. Ed Auger (WM Caymen Islands), Rev. Walter Ries Jr (Missionary from Brazil), Kisayrio Gebhart (WM Administrative Support), Rev. Carlos Hernandez (WR-HC), Jacob Fiene (WR-HC), Rev. Steve Lee (LCMS Pastor), Matthew Schlanger (WR-HC), and probably a few other people I forgot.

Today, from 9:00 a.m. until just after noon, the "team," minus the LCMS WR-HC Medical Medical Team (which returned yesterday), met to debrief and discuss the best way to pool resources to move forward to provide relief to the people in Haiti. The meeting was productive and offered time for the team to reflect and debrief on their experiences over the past few days. One thing that became apparent was that there were two distinct sets of experiences--the experiences of those who went into Haiti, to Port-au-Prince and Jacmel; and the experiences of those who stayed behind in Jimani at the Good Samaritan Hospital.

In summary, those who went into Haiti saw mass destruction of buildings and property, as well as evidence of the loss of human life. (Many bodies are still left buried in in the rubble, etc.) The destruction was great. However, apart from a few encounters with people on the ground, they were dealing mostly with assessing the situation, observing the conditions of the roads and buildings, and formulating logistically how further aid could be provided. They also noted that there were three basic needs: medical, food and nutritional, and spiritual and pastoral care.

On the other hand, those who remained behind at Jimani had a different experience altogether. There was the activity of the hospital and critical patients being flown in and out. Perhaps the most defining moment of their experience was the occurrence of two earthquakes/tremors that shook the compound. The first earthquake/tremor happened late afternoon/early evening just before dinner. In fact, I was sitting on the roof fiddling with "technology" to get an Internet connection for my laptop when the first quake/tremor hit. One thing I knew for certain was that I wasn't going to remain on the roof, and I quickly made my way down the stairs to terra firma. After that, I returned to the house where the doctors, volunteers, and caregivers were staying to relax some and reflect on what had just occurred. Mere moments after I "settled in," a nurse came running into the house saying, "We need a pastor! We need a pastor!" Carlos Hernandez and I responded and followed her to the hospital grounds. Meanwhile, Rev. Ted Krey and Rev. Walter Ryes (Ries) were at a different part of the hospital grounds, near the orphanage trying to assist there. The earthquake/tremor/aftershock caused the patients to relive what had occurred days earlier. Some were trying to flee, others were tearing their bandages off, and at least one jumped off a second story balcony, fracturing his pelvis. Once the situation settled a bit, it was time to help distribute the meals to the patients (and their families) for the evening. One Haitian climbed up to a high place and started shouting that the end of the world was near, etc. The situation over all was rather chaotic.

The second tremor occurred after many of the relief workers had fallen asleep and indeed felt stronger than the first one. The second tremor seemed to affect the doctors, nurses, and caregivers more than it affected the Haitians. One of the doctors panicked and tried to jump off the second story balcony. (Fortunately, he was persuaded to come down the stairs quickly instead.) A large number of the caregivers (including yours truly) slept outside that night.

The point being: the team that remained in Jimani was much more involved in the care to patients and caregivers alike than the assessment team that went into Haiti. Because the Lutheran pastors wore clerical collars, the Haitians, who are predominately Roman Catholic, took comfort knowing that a "priest" was praying for them--even if, the "priest" couldn't speak their language. The other protestant ministers (e.g., few Baptists) tended to blend in with the other volunteers and relief workers because they were not readily identifiable as clergy.

These two different sets of experiences were helpful in the team debriefing for the planning of the next stage of relief.

Currently, LCMS World Relief and Human Care is in the planning stages to deploy a Mercy Medical Team (MMT) to Jacmel, Haiti, very soon. Such a team comes at the request of President Kessa. Of course, over the next few days the situation could change, as it is rather fluid, but currently that is the plan. Further plans are being made on how to best provide relief for the next stage. The debriefing experience was good and allowed the team to express gratitude to each other and to look forward to the future.

- abc3+

Rev. Harrison's Third LWR Post -- "Thank You."

"Thank you."

The team of LCMS docs just debriefed, packed themselves into two vans here in Jimani, Dominican Republic, and headed off on the six hour trip to the capital and back home. What an amazing group!

Not a half hour ago, we were all together on the back porch of the large home, which has been the erstwhile dorm for medical teams. The stories of who was with us, how they were assembled within hours, and then put on the ground is amazing. The docs and nurses where high-level professionals, university instructors, emergency room doctors, and nurses--experts in numerous disciplines. As we talked, they were thankful, traumatized, joyous, exhausted, and emotional. They expressed profound struggle in dealing with the carnage they had just walked into; and yet at the same time, profound faith in Jesus.

As the first tremor struck last night, and as the LCMS missionaries delivered trucks full of meals, I was asked to guard the load until the word was given to disperse the precious cargo. I leaned against the tailgate, and a tall, mustached gentleman with an easy southern accent struck up a conversation. He was in his scrubs watching the chaos of 1500 Haitians who not ten minutes earlier had scrambled for their lives out of the orphanage converted to a hospital. "Where ya from?", I asked. "Georgia." "Who ya with," I continued. "I'm with a group called the L.C.M.S. I never even knew they existed, had no idea what they did, but a friend of mine called and asked me to go. I've never been so impressed with a group of people in my life." "That¹s great to hear," I said. "I'm with the L.C.M.S. too."

One of the seasoned emergency room docs struggled to get hold of what she'd just seen. She wept as she recounted the story of stepping off the bus late at night this past Tuesday and jumping into the operating room. Her first patient was a young woman who lay bleeding to death on the floor. The team worked and tried everything, but life was quickly ebbing. The woman had lost her entire family. "What should I say to her?" the doc asked others in the room? "Tell her it's o.k. . . . to go be with her family." She did so.

"Pastor, I don¹t know how to cope with this," she told me. I helped her begin to process the matter in the context of the cross of Jesus. "Pastor, I'm going back home now. The people I work with will not understand this. Patients where I work complain about everything. I just treated a woman who had her arm guillotined with nothing but Tylenol as pain reliever, and she was smiling at me, thanking me. I couldn't believe it. These people have lost everything, and they are so thankful."

As I was writing this, a doctor just appeared behind the building where I am sitting, moaning in anguish and pain about what he'd just experienced. One of our pastors was with him. He's just come from Port au Prince, is exhausted, overwhelmed, hasn't slept in days. The volume of trauma is infinite. He feels great need to return.

In the midst of all this, the Haitians have shown amazing faith, regularly singing hymns to Jesus as they huddle with their lone surviving child or a new friend on the ground or in the next bed over.

O blessed Jesus, have mercy upon your people. Cause this affliction to cease. Comfort the dying, the sick, and the traumatized. Uphold the faith, hearts, and hands of all those many who are were unharmed but now are assisting the needy, and also those who have come as angels of mercy. Amen.

No mind can comprehend this. "Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!" (Rom. 11:33).

We can only face tomorrow with the knowledge that the outpouring of love and blessing in the wake of this disaster is and will be one of the most phenomenal acts of mercy in our time together on this earth.

Pastor Matthew Harrison
Executive Director, LCMS World Relief and Human Care
Board Member, LWR

President Kessa Welcomes LCMS Group in Haiti

President Kessa welcomes the LCMS group just past the border in Haiti on the morning of 22 January 2010. Present from the LCMS for President Kessa's greeting: Rev. Matthew Harrison (WR-HC), Rev. Dr. Jorge Groh (WM), Rev. Glenn Merritt (WR-HC), Rev. Dr. Albert Collver (WR-HC), Rev. Carlos Hernandez (WR-HC), Rev. Steve Lee, Dr. John Lautenschlager, Rev. Dr. Doug Rutt (CTSFW), James Neuendorf (WM), Matthew Schlanger (WR-HC).