Getting Ready for Haiti

We’ve been preparing for our February/March 2011 trip to Haiti, and last weekend Susan Bradley and I put the Care Bags together that we’ll give out to street children. Care Bags are zip lock baggies containing a new t-shirt, soap, shampoo, toothbrush and tooth paste, comb, mini-pad of paper and pen, and for the older boys we include razors. We add other items if we have them available like vitamin-C candy, decks of cards, and other goodies.
The boys that wash cars on the street are always very thankful, and one time I handed out a couple of Care Bags while at a stop light in Port-au-Prince, and as we drove away a boy smiled and yelled while holding the bag in the air, “I love you!” Another time I gave some out to young boys in Champs Mars, Port-au-Prince’s civic center, and their eyes lit up in surprise and they smiled as they looked through the bags. One asked, “Is this for me?” Onlookers were shocked that we had these ready made gifts for street children. It’s a small gesture, but very welcome.

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