The latest on Minister of Missions Kevin Wright in Haiti, and our mission to relieve hunger and suffering after the recent hurricanes and tropical storms by arranging an airlift of food to Bayonnais:

Kevin, who arrived in Haiti on Wednesday, shares this good news at the end of an amazing Thursday:

"Four helicopter trips and one ton of food to a starving people. That's what we accomplished today. Tonight, the people of Bayonnais will have food to eat and to feed their children. The soccer field in which we landed was surrounded by onlookers, eager faces seeing this marvel of machinary for the first time. Children soon lined up outside of the gate, tin pails in tow, waiting to take the food back to their hungry families. The crowd cheered and clapped, smiled and let out the biggest whoops that I have ever heard. I have never received more hugs and kisses than today.

"Right now, the generosity of Myers Park United Methodist Church has allowed the people of Bayonnais to once again smile. Amilor told me that he has not been this happy for a long time. AirCalvary, the ministry coordinating the helicopter flights, commented that they were impressed by how much it seemed we have our act together in terms of having food ready to fly and having the money to pay for the flights up front. The congregation has done this, and it is a mighty thing.

"We have acquired another ton of food for deployment tomorrow (Friday). There is beginning to be a line of ministries waiting to use the helicopter, but as of this time, we are the only ones with the goods and money in hand so AirCalvary has granted us two flights in the morning for certain, with possibly more to follow as needed.

"We are done for the day and this is good because we started at 6:00 a.m. and have been working until now at 3:30 nonstop. I've had the experience of arguing with Haitian customs agents, meeting new missionary friends, riding in the back of a truck going 55 MPH surrounded by bags of rice, and learning how to demand in Creole that I be allowed onto an airport tarmac to see that our cargo got loaded safely. Oddly enough, this was never covered in seminary.

"Tomorrow we will do this all again and hopefully give Bayonnais a jump start in their efforts to recover from this flood. The roads are still impassible but we pray that by next week this time, the water will recede and allow people to begin repairing them.

"God has done a great thing here. Monday we started planning, not even knowing how to even pull off such a thing, and now here it is on Thursday and the rice and beans we were only dreaming about earlier in the week is now in the bellies of the people we care for so much.

"But perhaps the thing that touches my heart the most was knowing that our church did this out of a great love and compassion, which I think is the hallmark of who we are as a people of God. When our friends were in trouble, and no one else would respond, we stepped up to the plate and did whatever it took to respond to their cry for help, and I can tell you first hand that they are very thankful for that. Amilor asked me with disbelief, "You really love us this much?" When I told Actionnel that the first two food drops had taken place, he responded by saying, "This will do great things for helping this church to see the gospel in a new and different way." I think he speaks for both of us."