Flutters and Flowers for Mommy



The past few weeks have been more than any women could ever ask for. I give God the glory for the gifts He has given to Doug and I. My mom in law says a great saying, usually followed by tears…”My cup runith over.” These words have been in my mind over the years, but this weekend, my cup couldn’t have been fuller. As you have read in our past blog entry about Dor and how he came to our home, you understand how special he is. Doug and I dropped him off in the orphanage two weeks ago and we cried most of the way there. In my mind I was taking him to an orphanage that would give him the best possible chance of being adopted, but my heart was crushed to leave him. I know of other orphanages that have great funding and support that could have cared for him differently, however they don’t adopt out. I thought that Dor needed a mommy and daddy in a family setting, under the circumstances that I knew about him. When we dropped off Dor we realized that we had forgotten his birth certificate and medical paperwork that the orphanage required to keep him. We simply told the director that we do have it but we will just have to bring it next week. She agreed with no problem and we reluctantly left him crying for us.



The following week Doug’s parents came to visit us for their first time in Haiti. We were so excited to have them in our home and show them all we do here and how God is blessing our work. While they were here I got the flu for the first two days. I was so disappointed in not being able to go and do for the first two days as we had planned, but Doug was a great tour guide and Karen a great nurse. As I continued with terrible stomach pain though out Friday night, I wondered if my growing baby was ok. All the motherly scary thoughts jumped through my head as my fever continued and my pain wouldn’t subside. After most of the night lying on the bathroom floor praying to God that my baby was ok, Doug called Dr Jim and he came down with the ultrasound machine. I just wanted to hear that the heartbeat was there and I felt that I would be calm. Sure enough, that little pitter-pat was going strong and the relief that I felt was tearfully overwhelming. Perk and Karen were to come to Haiti for 5 days and then Doug and I had a Christianville (CV) board meeting in FL for 2 days. We decided to stay and visit them for 4 days and get a little rest between teams. The day before we went to FL, we decided to take the paperwork to the orphanage, show Perk and Karen the beautiful, 2 hour mountainous drive to Jacmel, and introduce them to Dor. Almost to the orphanage we noticed a Haitian prayer circle under a beautiful tree, such a nice sight to see Haitians praying to our God. We arrived at the orphanage and visited with Dor for a few hours, and Karen asked what they could do to help Dor get a mommy and daddy. She put him to sleep for nap time, and this time he was sleeping and not crying when we left him. This made it easier, but not easy to leave him. After the visit at the orphanage we stopped to pray at a tree nearby that we noticed earlier in the day. It was such a magnificent creation that God had made for people to pray under. As Karen prayed, she said, “….Lord, guide us and Doug and Amy in the possibility of giving Dor a home, and let us know if you have chosen this family…..”




The next day, Wednesday, was an all day airport travel day. During our time in FL a friend and Doctor that comes to CV and volunteers his time at our clinic had set up an appointment for me to get a high quality ultrasound as well as a few blood tests that I can’t get done in Haiti. We had such a great time watching our little astronaut toad jump all around and clap and wave at us. We found out on Thursday, March 27, 2009 that “It’s a BOY.” Daddy was so happy to hear it is a boy! And mommy was happy he was so active and healthy…..surely to be a ball player! As we continued to be blessed by the baby in my tummy we couldn’t help but to continue to pray for Dor and the possibility of him being a brother, son, nephew, grandson, cousin and faithful believer and servant in our families. As we continued to pray over the weekend, we stopped at Babies R US to register for our baby. This was the only chance we would have to register in the states, and many people have already written us to ask if they could throw us a baby shower when we returned to have the baby in August. We found ourselves seeing all the little things that a two year old would need to potty train and thought then, was this our answer as to whether God says to move forward on the adoption. After asking my brother for prayer, he asked if we had the ability, the opportunity, and the love it would take for this to take place. He said the adoption process is already hard enough, and to not make it any more difficult. He said that God will bless the decision if we ask for his guidance though it all. After Perk checked into the legal side of the adoption on Monday and he started his flowchart on a napkin in the restaurant in the airport, the decision was made. We’ll pick him up this week! We said our goodbyes as they went to the Ohio gate and we went to the Haiti gate.


A few days later, on Thursday, my parents Jeff and Rita came and brought a work team of friends from their church, First Christian Church of Moncks Corner, SC. Knowing they would be going to the orphanage to purchase food and supplies first thing on Saturday, we decided to wait and only take Dor over the mountain one time. This is a very long 2 hour drive. Saturday couldn’t come fast enough. I hardly slept a wink thinking about “gotcha day” as Karen Gail calls it. I got up at 5am not having to leave til 8am. I had Dor’s things ready and packed as well as Doug and my clothes. We went straight to the orphanage and his caregiver that nicknamed Dor Bijou or "Precious Jewel" gave him right to Doug and greeted us with hugs, kisses and a beautiful smile. We went to the hotel for lunch and he cried a little as we drove away, confused as to what was going on. After arriving he had a great lunch and nap and I decided not to take him back to the orphanage with the group to help, so he won’t be confused more than once. We came back to CV the next day and as I sat in our bible study my baby started to kick me for the first time. Dad was sitting next to me and I told him to look, he smiled with joy. Punches and kicks continued though out the bible study. All I could think about was the day Doug and I brought baby Dor to our home was the day I felt our baby flutter inside me. The next morning took a little while for me to get it together and before I even had my shower Dor (with some help of Michelle Robinson) had brought me my first “mommy flower”. Thank you God for Flutters and Flowers for mommies!! “My cup runith over!”

“Our Week with Dor”

Last week we were asked to bring a Haitian baby to an orphanage that we know of in Jacmel. He was in a nearby orphanage that has recently closed and was moved to a Haitian family’s home until last week. We were supposed to take the boy to the Orphanage after we got his Original Birth Certificate and a negative HIV test. When I called my friend’s orphanage to let them know that we had all the info, she asked if I could keep him a little longer because arrangements hadn’t been made with the Nanny that will be caring for him. The director of the orphanage will be in the states until Wednesday and we will talk about it easier via telephone then.

With that being said, he didn’t just stay one night with us… so I would like to introduce him to you. His name is Dor, short for Dorvensky, and he just turned 2 years old in November. He is very precious and has made this week quite exciting for Doug and I. First, He just wants to be loved on. He has been in a nearby orphanage for the most of his life and was in a room most of the time with other children. He had fun playing but rarely got “one on one, love on him ONLY time”. So he cuddles and would rather you talk to him and hold him then to play with him. After a week, he is now beginning to let us sit him down and play soccer back and forth or with tractors and coloring books.

Tonight, I sat as he and Doug played with a tiny bowl that he had dry cereal in for “bednight” snack. Dor sat in Doug’s lap as they put it on each others' head, made a funny face, then laughed hysterically at each other. They did this for a good 20 minutes before it was time to quiet down for bed.

I believe that God has sent this little guy to our home for a short time to learn a few lessons.

Lesson 1
Dor was dropped off to us on Friday with a tiny little blue suitcase with a few items in it. He had 2 tractors, some clothes, sandals and some diapers. Dor was a great baby that slept all the way through the night and for the first two days was very happy. Then Doug and I both started with colds and by Saturday night I had excruciating pain in my ear. At midnight I knew it was an ear infection but couldn’t call the missionary Doctor that lives here at CV until 6am Sunday morning. When I did call him, he said he would be right down with pain meds and antibiotics which were ok to take during pregnancy. After looking at my ears, he confirmed that it was in fact an ear infection and treated me. After not sleeping Saturday night since midnight, I decided to stay in bed and not go to church so I could take the pain meds and finally get some sleep.

After church Doug and Dor came in and Dor was screaming his head off, which was very abnormal for him. I sat up and said, "what is going on?". Dor had seen the Haitian family at church that he had stayed with since his orphanage closed in December and didn’t want to leave them. Since Doug did the "bad thing" to him by taking him away from them, this made me the “Good guy”. He came right to me and with his angry eyebrows and tried to explain how Doug did that “bad thing” by taking him away from the family that he grew to know so well. I held him tight and I told him he would be just fine and that Doug had to bring him here… he stopped crying but was clearly exhausted from crying all the way home from church. He fell asleep with me as we lay in my bed. When he woke up we had lunch ready for him and he was ready to eat. He clung to me and wanted nothing to do with Doug. After a little bit Doug went out for while and it was just me and Dor. I had to go to the bathroom so badly so I sat him down and ran to the potty. He ran after me SCREAMING. I was sitting there doing my thing and all he wanted was to be cuddled. So I sat there and held him tight and realized two things. One…”Anna (my sister) is right… after becoming a mommy, you get interrupted in the bathroom 99% of the time.” And two… ”Mommies do crazy things to comfort their babies” As I sat there on the toilet, kinda feeling silly for holding Dor while sitting there, I realized that there is never a time that our Heavenly Father pushes us away from Him. He cares for us and wants us to love Him and worship Him and adore Him. And when we need Him, He is ready. This is unconditional love, something that I am really learning as God is preparing me for motherhood. So, I learned that even when mommies are on the “throne” they should still make time for their babies, when they need her to. Wouldn’t God allow us to disturb Him while He is on His “throne”?

Mark 10:13-16
People were bringing little children to Jesus to have Him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this He was indignant. He said to them, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And He took the children in His arms, put His hands on them and blessed them.


Lesson 2
I was doing laundry, and I usually try to do it pretty fast... pulling one load out of the washing machine and putting one load in since we have limited generator and during this season we must get the laundry on the line before 1pm so it will dry before dark. As Dor watched me pull the clothes out and start to put more in, he decided that he needed to do it too. This little guy stands two feet nothing and took each piece of clothing and placed it on the top side of the machine. Then he would reach to his tip toes and push the clothes in and it would fall out of sight. He did this very slowly piece by piece until finally the whole load was in. Then he followed me out to the clothes line where he handed me piece by piece to place nicely on the line to dry. This process was very slow. Just the walk to the line took about 4 times longer then it would if it were me walking briskly alone. However, as each bird chirped, he pointed. And as the chickens walked around he laughed, and he even managed to pick a little flower, then quietly we walked back inside. The lesson that I learned from Dor that day was just the simplicity and innocence of a child. God wants us to be like this child, taking our time in life to enjoy the beauties of this earth and to “be still” and not uptight with our time.
Sure, time is money… but at who’s expense? Are you spending enough time with your Lord?
PSALMS 46:10
Be still, and know that I am God

MATTHEW 18:2-4
He called a little child and had him stand among them. And he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

This is Amy's little baby belly at about 13 weeks, March 9th.

Dear Friends,

Happenings in Haiti are going well. We actually had a short break this week in between teams coming down, which has allowed up to catch up on much needed lists. The whole guest house got scrubbed from top to bottom and was able to give our staff a day off today before the team comes in tomorrow. For the last 3 1/2 weeks, Doug has been working with teams, on getting the roof on one of our nearby churches, Grann Savann Church. We were almost finished but had to stop the final touches since we are about $900 short of the finish line.

This week Doug has been getting prices for another church we would like to build with a work team as well as other supplies that will be needed to work on the 4-Plex that is currently being built for additional housing for our medical missionaries.... Doug has also been working with Edsel Redden, the stateside Director of FISH ministries to calculate the supplies that will be needed to build a chicken house. The chicken house will be for a nearby orphanage. This project will be built by a youth team in April lead by Amy’s parent's from Moncks Corner, SC. They will purchase the first batch of chickens and every few weeks the orphanage will be able to sell, then purchase more food for the chicks and be able to eat some chickens. They will also have a small but constant income from the chickens. It's a great idea!

Here at Christianville we work with a ministry that is located here on CV grounds called FISH ministries. They have an amazing set up to help feed here at CV. They built 16 tilapia ponds, about 396 chickens that provide eggs, and pigs provide meat. They also have goats but are not ready to start the butchering process just yet. All of this provides the CV school children the animal protein that they need in their weekly diets. Through this program every week about 1400 children get fed at two different schools. There are also enough eggs to give to some elderly in our elderly feeding program and our very malnourished that that are discovered in our medical clinics weekly.

Teams that came to CV this month:
Nate Bush’s team from Christ Community in FL worked their tails off preparing the walls of the Grann Savann Church (GSC) for the roof. We had great teachers work at the English academy as well has thousands of pills counted in the pharmacy. We were able to evangelize in the surrounding villages and give out baby layettes. That week Board President, Mark Cellura and friend Marlon from Brazil, put on a soccer ministry.
Next, Kurt Lowenberg brought his team from Iowa and PA. They worked on building the tresses of the church roof and painting them. They also welded them together to be ready to place on the roof.
The eye team was joined by Eye doctor and Board member Dr. Mike Hutton. They were able to go to several orphanages to give eye exams with Dr. Ryan Price here at CV. They also worked in the eye clinic and medical clinic. They did popcorn ministries and baby layettes in the villages and many continued to work with Doug and Kurt on the church roof. Like I stated above we thought we were going to complete the GSC roof but had to stop after running out of tin and supplies. Kurt stayed for over two weeks determined to get this roof on. We pray God will touch someone to fund the final roof costs in the amount of $900.

We hope over time to give you a great visual of all aspects of our mission and what God is doing through it!

UPDATES ON PRAYER REQUESTS FROM LAST MONTH:

1. Deleon, Our Dean of Students at the University, gave us a scare last month with health problems. God has provided answers for doctors and Deleon is now back to work with no problems. Praise God for his healing so he can work for God’s Glory.
2. We have been praying for a full time director here at CV and God has revealed to us a couple that is interested in this possibility. Please pray for this couple as they are in the praying and planning stages. Praise God for this possibility.
3. The school is still struggling for new sponsors since giving is down; however, food was delivered 3 weeks ago to COMPLETELY FILL our food depot. We have hundreds of bags of food that we were having to purchase and now we only have to purchase a few bags of rice each week.
4. Christianville is still in need of another vehicle. Please keep praying for funds to help with this purchase.
5. We came up $900 short of completing the Grann Savann Church. We need donations to complete the roof!
6. Baby Reichley continues to make Amy sick in the mornings but the little toad is growing and mommy is beginning to feel better earlier each day. Please continue to pray for health for our baby. Currently at 13 weeks along.

WoW! After looking at these answered prayer requests, God has surly been with Christianville in the past month…isn’t He always?

February Visitors to CV: 42

Thanks for your continued prayers and support!

Doug & Amy Reichley
Guest House & Field Coordinators
Christianville Foundation, Inc.
Gressier, Haiti

If you would like to send donations towards the needs at Christianville please send to:
CHRISTIANVILLE FOUNDATION
PO BOX 24598
JACKSONVILLE, FL 32241

Amy's ultrasound picture!

As of February 10th, Amy was 10.5 weeks along. Baby R was active on the ultrasound!

Dear Friends,

This month has been really busy. Starting Jan 3, we have had teams in from all over the map….MI, OH, SC, IA, IL, FL, GA & OR. WOW!
So far we have had a medical team of two, with our frequent flier, Kyle Martin, on break from med school, and nurse friend, Kim Kirk that will be with us until Feb 7. She has been a blessing and helped tremendously in and out of the clinic.
Next, Stuart Kelly brought a team of Pastors and they put on a Pastors Conference and Elderly feeding program. It was very successful with about 30 Pastors in attendance. They also preached at La Saline and Grand Savann Church that Sunday.
Next, my Parents and Mme Beverly Carter came in to help where needed. We visited orphanages that needed food and Dad and Doug ended up working with Sove on both the Mazda and our truck. They were both NOT working and we were in panic mode knowing that we have many many teams coming in from now through July. We thought our truck might need a transmission and we prayed that it would be something else because of the expense. It ended up being the clutch which was much less then a transmission at $280 US. Mom and Beverly picked up my slack after finding out why I was feeling so sick and tired. Doug and I are pleased to announce that we are EXPECTING our first Baby in September. This week baby is now the size of a Kidney Bean! God’s timing for mom and Beverly to be here now was by no accident. I have been in sick since shortly after they arrived 3 weeks ago. They departed this am with so much accomplished including bible studies, 2 elderly feeding programs, and purchased 28 pairs of shoes for children nearby.
Next, were a few medical Doc’s, friends, and videographer that joined Board member Edsel Redden and his wife Jayne for a few days. They were able to travel to Boucan Carre to aid by distributing Beans and Rice and also spoiled us missionaries with Chocolate, goodies and much needed encouragement.
Next, was a team from Teresa’s church (our PA) lead by Pastor Bill Davis. They worked with Doug and Tingue so hard by completing the walls of the Grand Savann Church (GSC) and getting it prepared for the roof project to begin Feb 7. The congregation came out of the wood works to help. What we thought would take a week ended up taking only 3 days because of the extra hands. Pastor Bonito and Pastor Laguerre were in attendance everyday and were not wearing their suits and ties. They got dirty just like the rest! The whole village is praising God for sending a team to continue to work on GSC. Other team members helped get the new pharmacy caught up by counting pills, organizing and cleaning. There were two nurses that assisted Jim and Teresa. This team also painted the GH and it’s staring to look new! One highlight of the trip was village visiting and passing out baby layettes, explaining to new mommies how important it is to raise their baby in a church family. Our new full time missionary also arrived last week. Her name is Jenn Rogan and has lived in Haiti for about two years near Les Cayes. THANKFULLY she is fluent in Creole and ready to assist Dr. Jim and others in the clinic.
Our last group for January, lead by Bill Roen, has gone over the top to get things finished. They helped put the GH back together after painting last week. They cleaned finished the supply room with a new coat of paint. The clothing depot is cleaned, organized and ready for more needy to pass through. They also helped in the pharmacy and Pastor Anilus’ school. We also have a PA friend of Teresa’s, Sherry, in to assist in the clinic during this last week of Jan. On Thursday night we all plan to introduce s’mores to the college students with a campfire and fellowship. We hope it is quite an event!

With all that being said we have had many blessings. We would like to also share a few prayer requests with you.

1. Last night, around 11:30, we got a tap on the door from a friend saying that our Dean of Students, Deleon, could not talk to him. Doug and Mom grabbed flashlights and ran to his house. Doug found him unresponsive and staring into space with is jaws locked. Mom came back to me after unable to reach Dr. Jim by phone. We went to Dr.Teresa & Dr. Ryan and they came quickly. They needed to get him to the clinic so Dr. Jim and Sandy were aroused for their expertise and Tingue turned the generator on for lights. They all worked with Deleon as his wife, 2 yr old daughter and many friends were waiting in the hall. Dr’s said at this point there is not much that can be done but sent him to a Hospital in PAP for possible scans and tests. He has apparently had some sort of intracranial event, possibly a bleed. He is unresponsive, has left sided weakness. Please pray for God’s will on this.
2. We are still in need of a full time administrator here at Christianville. Please be praying for someone to want to serve here in this capacity. We are also looking for a full time English Academy Director/Teacher.
3. The CV school is still struggling for child sponsors and for food. Giving is down and that is hurting our school children and other programs that we have done in the past (pop corn ministry, elderly feeding). The organization in PAP that has always donated Beans and Rice to the school, has sent all their supplies to Gonaives for relief after the hurricanes in the fall. They still don’t have food for CV school and this is an additional $625/week to feed over 700 children. Right now we have funds for a few more weeks but after that, the children may not get the rice and beans. FISH ministries are still doing a great job providing fish, pork and eggs three days/ week but without the rice and beans 5 days per week the children will be hungry.
4. As the calendar continues to fill with teams coming in, we are in need of another vehicle for transportation. We are currently using the little Mazda, our truck and inconveniently borrowing one when teams come and go every week. Please be in prayer for funds to be raised or someone to donate towards this need.

January decisions for Christ: not totaled yet
Visitors to CV: 36

Thanks for your continued prayers and support!

Doug & Amy Reichley
Guest House & Field Coordinators
Christianville Foundation, Inc.
Gressier, Haiti


If you would like to send donations towards the needs at Christianville please send to:
CHRISTIANVILLE FOUNDATION
PO BOX 24598
JACKSONVILLE, FL 32241

There is so much going on in the prayer world for Christianville (CV) in Haiti. Currently, Doug & I are in Ohio with our families and daily raising awareness of the needs in Haiti. We start by asking for these prayers to be prayed:

1. We are in need of an administrator/director to live in Haiti. We have a person that we are interested in bringing to the board however they are still in the praying stages of making a decision. Please pray that God is evident in His choice to work for CV. Also we are not closing the door to others to pray about considering this position.

2. We are in need for a teacher/director of the English Academy to live in Haiti. Currently, Amy is filling the position of the director and has a Haitian substitute teacher in the classroom. The position is a fairly simple position however we ask that this person also be willing to help with other programs going on at the mission. This person would be a teacher for ages 3-6 (Pre-K) from 7:30am -12noon, teaching a home school curriculum called ACE. They would also be in charge of 2 other Haitian teachers, disciplinary actions for students, as well as making sure all tuition is paid to the school on a semi annual basis.

3. US financial giving is down dramatically and CV members as a whole are fundraising and continually looking for sponsors for the school children. Please pray that new people will want to help financially that our current supporters remember how much we rely on their monthly commitments to keep our mission going.


There are no short term teams coming to Christianville in December. All clinics will close next week for the holidays and all missionaries should be leaving to be with their families for Christmas. YTD we have had approximately 200 decisions for Christ throughout Christianville in 2008. Hats off to the clinic, for being God’s tool for about 150 of those decisions. Starting Jan. 5, 2009 we will be busy with short term teams and the clinics and schools will reopen on the 5th and the 12th.


Satan is peeking wherever he can but God is so good to show us His power.


Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Doug & Amy Reichley