May 19, 2009The latest news on the students from College Susan Schuenke (CSS) and their driver as they recover from a serious truck accident.On Friday, May 1, 2009, the 12th grade class from CSS went to the town of Dondon for a field trip. On the way back to the school at the end of the day, their bus broke down. Piyou, one of our drivers, took Pastor Henoc's truck to pick the stranded students up. Before the group could reach Cap Haitien, one of the front ball joints on the truck came loose, the front wheel fell off, and the vehicle carrying the students rolled. The students were taken to two different hospitals; some had minor injuries and others were more seriously hurt. The driver sustained the worst injuries.
Most of the students were able to return to school the week following the accident. One student, however, had broken a bone near her should and was put into a body cast. Another was in a coma for a short time. Once she regained consciousness she continued to suffer from severe headaches. Piyou, the driver, required surgery to repair his badly broken leg. He developed a serious infection in the days following the surgery.
On Tuesday, May 12, Pastor Henoc took Piyou and the student with the severe headaches to Santiago, Dominican Republic. He felt that they were in need of more specialized care than was available to them in Cap Haitien. Wisler, a graduate of CSS and a fourth year medical student studying in Santiago has been key in helping Pastor Henoc find skilled medical help for the student and driver. The Dr. in Santiago was shocked by the level of infection in Piyou's leg and rushed him immediately into surgery. Piyou's original surgery will need to be redone, but for the present, the infection in his leg is his biggest problem. Piyou is in danger of losing his leg. The student with the headaches was seen by a neurologist. Praise the Lord! She will be fine and is just in need of some special treatments to alleviate her pain.
Because this accident occurred during a school activity and the driver was working for us at the time of the accident, VOHM is responsible for all expenses related to this event. Very few in Haiti have any type of insurance. Pastor Henoc's truck is insured, but in Haiti, vehicle insurance is basically paying the government for the right to drive a vehicle. This insurance does not cover any type of injury, nor does it pay for repairs or replacement of the vehicle. To date, accident related medical expenses have cost nearly $20,000. We are estimating the need for an additional $5,000-$10,000 depending on the type of care our driver will need.
In addition, we have lost our ministry vehicle. Pastor Henoc has been renting a vehicle for $100/day for a limited amount of time. Sometimes he is able to use one of the school buses for ministry needs. Last Sunday he was forced to miss the morning worship service in our church in Grande Riviere du Nord and the evening service in the Cap Haitien church because there was no vehicle available to him.
All of these expenses come at a time when in come for our school, College Susan Schuenke, is way down. Parents are struggling more than ever to pay tuition. We do not expect much in parent tuition income through August. There are still 78 students posted on our website who need scholarship assistance. The shortage of American scholarship donors combined with the uptick in the inability of Haitian parents to pay tuition means that VOHM needs to raise $66,166 in the next four months to break even on the 2008-2009 school year.
What can you do?
Pray. We need a God-sized miracle to meet our obligations for medical care for the accident victims and to meet our budget at the school. Please pray for complete healing for all the students who were injured in this accident. Piyou is in Santiago receiving treatment. He is very sick. Pray for his recovery and wisdom for those who are caring for him. Pray for VOHM as we continue to trust the Lord to provide finances for the ongoing expense of this accident and the shortfall in the school. Pray for Henoc and Guerline at this very stressful time.
Give. We have laid out our expenses so that you may understand the need. Ask the Lord for guidance in what He would have you do. If you would like to help with the expenses from the accident you can do so by sending your donation to our address as it appears below (please mark Disaster Relief on the check) or you can make your donation on our website here. Scroll down to the Disaster Relief area and use the PayPal button. If you would like to help with the shortfall at the school you can view students needing scholarship assistance here. You can make your donation on our website or you can send it to the address listed below. If you would like to make a non-specific donation to College Susan Schuenke to help cover the deficit from parent tuition you can send your donation to the address listed below or do it online here. Scroll down to the College Susan Schuenke area and use the PayPal button.
Share. Please share Vision of Hope Ministries with those you know. Direct them to our website. Ask them to pray. Make them aware of our need. Encourage them to call our office if they have questions.
Thank you!
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