by Adam Burgraaf, NVM Missionary

NVM Children Home Beach Day.These kids have never been to a beach nor had they left their Village, but that was all about to change.

This was their christmas gift from a great and loving family who wanted them to experience something that they may never get to experience in their life.

Posted by Jim & Cheryl Warner, GAiN USA Missionaries: 19 Dec 2011 01:04 PM PST

NVM has a major partnership with Global Aid Network (GAiN) which is located in Plano, Texas.  Jim and Cheryl Warner serve on the GAiN staff and are on loan to NVM for one year. NVM has a school on the compound that serves nearly 400 young people from Chambrun and other nearby communities.

One of the continual needs for these children is school supplies. Today the Warner’s along with other NVM staff distributed a bag of school supplies to each student along with a big Merry Christmas.  They were all very excited to receive this Christmas gift.

Please be praying for each of these young people. They are receiving a great education and some of them may even be future leaders in Haiti. Leadership in all sectors of Haiti is a tremendous need. And these children could make a difference in making Haiti a more successful country and a better place to live!

Posted by Jim & Cheryl Warner, NVM Missionaries: 16 Dec 2011 01:56 PM PST

On Thursday afternoon we invited the entire staff of NVM to the annual Christmas party. It was a great time. With nearly 100 in attendance we had great food, singing, sharing, gifts and a few rousing rounds of Christmas Bingo. That was a huge hit.

But it was also a time to say thank you to the NVM staff who work so hard throughout the year. We wanted to provide them with a great night to show our deep appreciation for all they do 365 days each year.

Santa even showed up to distribute gifts, to have his picture taken with all the boys and girls (some quite old!) and to bring merriment to our evening.  We wanted to let you have a peek into our joyful evening. Merry Christmas to you all!

Posted by Jim Warner, GAiN USA Missionary: 15 Dec 2011 12:18 AM EST

In the past, the operation of the NVM ministry was conducted out of 3 small offices. Today we officially moved into our new office building! Construction of this building started only 6 months ago which is very quick by Haiti standards. Pastor Pierre has made the quick completion of the new office building a high priority.  We will now operate out of a 3500 square foot building. A wonderful new phone system was donated and internet access is better than ever. Many thanks to Steve and Jake.

During the celebration today we started outside with a time of prayer and ribbon cutting. We then moved inside for a short praise service and a few words or encouragement from Pastor Pierre.  Those involved in the construction and opening of the building were recognized. We then let the staff tour the building and provided them with food and drinks.  It was a grand time for everyone!

We are very grateful for this new facility. God is good and the building will be used for his glory and to expand his kingdom in this part of Haiti.  Come down and take a tour sometime soon!

by Brooke Smalley, NVM Nurse

Posted by Jim Warner, GAiN USA Missionary: 13 Dec 2011 08:40 AM PST

Over the past 10 weeks, Cheryl has been working with a group of young teenagers teaching them to sew. An important part of the program was mentoring the girls and teaching them about purity and being filled with God’s Spirit. Cheryl has come to love these young ladies and has had a tremendous impact on their lives.  This past Sunday, the church took some time during the morning service to recognize these young girls as they have successfully completed the course. They each received a laminated certificate and a small gift.  Please be praying for these girls that they can use their new craft to help make a living and have hope for a future and that they will be committed to following Christ with their lives.

Posted by Jim & Cheryl Warner, GAiN USA Missionaries: 02 Dec 2011 07:45 AM PST

We want to tell you about an exceptional young lady. Her name is Jolina Desir. Jolina is 23 years old and lives in the community of Chambrun just a 1/2 mile from the NVM compound. She is one of the most cheerful people we know in Haiti. Jolina is actively working on her English and is currently in Jim's ESL class. She is learning quickly! Like many others in in Chambrun, she only has a 6^th grade level of education.


Jolina was born in this community and has lived there her entire life. In fact, she has only ventured out of the immediate area once. Port-au-Prince is only 15 miles from her home and she has only been there on one occasion. That was this summer when Pastor Pierre took a group of young people on a tour of the city and to his home for Cheryl’s birthday party.

Jolina lives with her mother, two brothers and two sisters. Her father was killed by robbers when she was only 12. So at her young age she is actively involved in caring for and supporting her family. Jolina is employed by NVM and serves as one of the staff cooks. She earns approximately $50.00 per month. She prepares meals for the Haitian staff, the US staff and for the mission teams who are visiting the compound. She has also gone through the jewelry making class taught by Cheryl and is doing very well making and selling beaded jewelry. She uses the income from these two opportunities to support her entire family. She also raises pigeons and goats so her family can eat the pigeon eggs and the pigeon and goat meat. Jolina receives Global Aid Network’s donations of rice and beans often which is a blessing for her, as

it helps to supplement her need to buy food for her family. She says she knows God is watching over her family when she receives extra help.

Jolina accepted Jesus into her life when she was a young teen. Since then she has become a leader in the NVM church. She works with the youth, and helps with communion and offering in the church. She has come so far in her leadership abilities over the past two years. Currently her other family members are not Christians so we are praying with her for their salvation. Jolina just recently gave her testimony for the very first time to a group of ladies in the beading class. This was a great step of faith for her.
It has been a joy getting to know Jolina. We ask you to pray for her and her family. Pray that God uses her in a great way and that her family comes to know the Lord through her walk with Him. 

by Brandon Hutchens, NVM Missionary

So it has been one crazy month here in Haiti and I am excited for my first blog post!  The previous posts have been written by my amazing wife but today I will take a crack at it.  Over the last month we have had 1 full day off with no work so today Katie and I decided to go with the team to the beach.  We were very excited for a day of rest!

The day of rest started at 6:30am as I got up to determine which vehicle we would take to the beach.  The tap tap has been having a few issues lately and between the short test drive I did this morning and the call with Pastor Pierre we decided that the NVM bus would be the better option.  This week the transmission on the bus was replaced with a rebuilt transmission and it needed a few final tweeks this morning before we took off.  Not sure why I asked but I first was told that the bus would be ready by 8am.  So I left Paul (our head mechanic), Jean (mechanic aid), Amos (our head welder), and Elie (welder aid) to finish preparing the bus for departure.  On my way up to the dining hall Jim stopped me and told me that we were out of water in the kitchen, restrooms, and staff housing.  I was not surprised because one thing I have learned over the last month in Haiti is you never know what may happen.  So I headed over to our water sanitation garage to see if I could figure out the issue.  Long story short the well pump was shut off yesterday during a repair and was not turned back on so no one was able to take showers before we left but knew that when we returned we would have water.  By the time we understood the water situation it was 8:30am.  When I walked over to the bus the guys were almost finished and had one bolt left so I was told we would definitely be able to leave by 9am.  After another 1 ½ hours we finally pulled out away from campus to the beach at 10am.  We arrived at Wahoo Bay at 11:30am and had a very relaxing day by the pool and the beach.  Katie and I spent the morning by the pool relaxing and reading and then headed to the ocean after lunch.  To add to the craziness of the day, Katie and I unfortunately both came across jellyfish.  Thankfully our stings were more of an annoyance than painful stings and we were able to enjoy the rest of the afternoon.  It was great to hear from the team that they really enjoyed their day and were able to reflect on their week.  I enjoy beach days because of the individual reflection on the week and also being able to share the potential of Haiti with the team.  The beauty of the mountains falling into the crystal clear ocean water will never get old.

Overall it was a great day of relaxation for Katie and I.  Today just a small example of the difficulties living in Haiti and it also reminds us of the blessings we have in America: reliable transportation, easy access to hardware stores and plumbing that for most is managed by the city we live in.  Today I am thanking God for our blessings back home, a relaxing 5 hours at the beach today, and an amazing first month in Haiti!  We are looking forward to what God will do here at NVM and in our lives over the next 11 months!