William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development » William Haun – Multimedia Artist

Baptist Volunteer Video

William — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 11:30:01 +0000

While in Haiti with North Carolina Baptist Men, I did some photo and video coverage for Baptist Global Response. I shot & edited this video testimony by Eder Dadul, one of the volunteers doing construction work.

He does a great job of sharing how impressed he was with the Haitians’ eagerness to join them in rebuilding their community.

Baptist Volunteer Video is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

Haiti Story: “God is in Control”

William — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 11:45:05 +0000

Two Haitian doctor sisters work faithfully alongside Baptist disaster relief volunteers

Story and photos by William Haun
Download a printable PDF of this story

TITANYEN, Haiti – The heat index is 115 degrees. Two Baptist volunteer physicians from North Carolina have spent the last seven hours working with Haitian Dr. Francise Milien to see more than 150 patients in a sweltering clinic.

Each one has only taken one five-minute break to eat a melting peanut butter jelly sandwich.

When asked how she feels at the end of the day, Milien replies with a tired smile.
“I’m happy,” she said. “We saw everybody who has come.”

Titanyen, a small village on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince, has seen more than 250 volunteers from North Carolina Baptist Men (NCBM) come and go since the earthquake. Francise and her older sister Dr. Merline Milien have worked with every single one of the 22 teams.

Every weekday they split the volunteers into two teams, Alpha and Omega, and lead them to different locations to hold a medical clinics. They set up in churches, school houses, orphanages, and outside in tent cities using whatever is available: pews, desks, buckets, and tattered tarps.

They have seen over 15,000 patients with ailments ranging from general aches to malaria to elephantiasis.

“What we are doing now is very hard. But it is something we wanted to do six years ago.” Merline said.

Six years ago Merline was in her first year of medical school in Port-au-Prince. Her father, a Baptist pastor in Les Cayes, took $50 a month from his meager salary to pay for her tuition, leaving only $12 a month to cover the rest of the family’s living expenses.

The following year, Francise also felt God calling her to serve the Haitian people as a doctor. She was accepted into medical school, but it was impossible for her parents to pay both sisters’ tuition at the same time.

The sisters give their father credit for teaching them to rely on God – and Francise put that into action when she decided to attend medical school anyway. She prayed daily that God would provide a way to pay off her the mounting bills.

God did provide – through a sponsor in Indiana who gave them both full scholarships to finish medical school.

After they graduated, the two sisters were ready to serve the neediest in their community.

“We really wanted to do free community clinics,” said Merline. They volunteered 7 days a week at a clinic in Titanyen and when they would raise enough money, they would hold free clinics at their father’s church.

When the earthquake hit on Jan. 12, the two immediately rushed to help. Their clinic was destroyed, but the burn center across the street run by Global Outreach International was still intact. They worked tirelessly for nearly three days straight attending to hundreds of critically injured earthquake survivors.

On Jan. 15, the sisters joined the first Baptist medical team that arrived from North Carolina. They worked alongside the American doctors and nurses, helping them to overcome language, cultural, and logistical barriers in the chaotic aftermath of the earthquake.

Five months and 22 teams later, the two are still going strong.

Dr. Fred Loper, Executive Director of the Baptist Medical-Dental Fellowship, worked with the Miliens in mid-May as part of the 22nd NCBM team. That medical team saw a record 1,516 patients in a mere four days – proving that the demand for medical care has not abated six months after the quake.

“They are a source of personal encouragement. They are professional, competent, and highly committed to their people.” said Dr. Loper. “We get to go home at the end of the week, but they continue working.”

Merline admits, “Sometimes I am so tired when I wake up in the morning that I feel I want to cry. I think ‘I cannot do it,’ but I just pray and God gives me the strength to continue.”

The Milien sisters are not the only Haitians joining the Baptist disaster relief volunteers to help rebuild their communities. The construction workers on the 22nd NCBM team were amazed at the number of Haitian believers joining them in their work.

“Every single day 20-25 local volunteers come out to help us build these houses. They aren’t even getting paid!” said volunteer Eder Dadul, a member of First Baptist Church in Mayodan, North Carolina. “It’s a beautiful thing seeing a village come together to rebuild and sing the praises of the Lord.”

Despite the immense need surrounding them, Francise and Merline are also praising God for the help He has sent via the Baptist volunteers.

“We are so grateful for the American volunteers’ help. There is a big job ahead and we need help to help ourselves.”

But Merline hasn’t forgotten a lesson she learned about the true Helper when she had an opportunity to shadow doctors in a hospital in the US.

“They took us into the emergency room,” she recalls. “While we were there a man came in and the doctors tried to save his life. I thought ‘They have all the machines you need to save a person’s life and this man still died!’ God is in control. He decides who lives and who dies.”

She smiles and adds, “I don’t have any machines. All I have is my stethoscope and my two hands. But I am willing to serve and God can use me.”

Get Involved

Want to help Haitian believers like Merline and Francise make a difference in Haiti? Find out how you can get involved through these reputable Baptist organizations:

Baptist Global Response – http://www.gobgr.org/
North Carolina Baptist Men – http://www.baptistsonmission.org/
Baptist Medical-Dental Fellowship – http://www.bmdf.org/

Haiti Story: “God is in Control” is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

BMDF Haiti Video Reports

William — Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:30:35 +0000

Two members of the medical team I joined in Haiti last month were board members of the Baptist Medical-Dental Association. At the end of the week each of the two doctors gave me a short video report which I edited together with footage of their clinics.

BMDF Haiti Video Reports is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

Portraits of Haitians in Jacmel

William — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 04:29:26 +0000

It has now been 3 months since the earthquake that claimed over 230,000 lives in Haiti. The non-stop media coverage that showed us the destruction and moved us to help has waned but the hardships that the quake survivors face hasn’t.

Hundreds of thousands of Haitians are still homeless – living in temporary shelters. The rainy season is coming and it brings with it landslides, malaria, dengue fever, and dozens of other diseases and hygiene issues.

These are portraits I made in February of survivors in Jacmel, Haiti. As you look at their faces try to imagine what they are feeling right now, 2 months after the photos were taken. Pray for each of them and thank God for the blessings you enjoy. Visit the Baptist Global Response web site to share a portion of your financial blessings with those less fortunate than you.

Be sure to click the fullscreen button below for the best viewing experience! ↓

Click here to see portraits of earthquake survivors in Jacmel, Haiti.

Portraits of Haitians in Jacmel is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

Grangou: Hungry in Haiti

William — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 16:18:14 +0000

“Grangou” was all he said to me when I first met him. He opened his shirt to show me his thin figure and his belt which had 6 or more extra holes punched in the leather. I didn’t need to see his emaciated figure to understand the word “grangou.” The week before I had been learning basic Creole with some software and that word popped up in one of the first lessons. It was mixed right in with “Alo (Hello)”, “Kòman ou ye? (How are you?)”, and “Mwen regrèt sa (I’m sorry)”.

Even before Haiti’s devastating January 12, 2010 earthquake, the word “Grangou (Hungry)” was a common response to “Kòman ou ye?” Now it is even more and more common – especially among the oldest of Haitians.

In West African culture, the elderly are well-respected and cared for by their children and grandchildren. Haiti is no different but the earthquake has made food hard enough to come by for one’s own immediate family, much less to provide for one’s elderly relatives.

This grangou man lived in a small, wooden shack with is wife and sister-in-law in the village of Paskèt, just outside of Jacmel. They hadn’t eaten for days and it was obvious. The man was so weak that after walking down the hill to attend our clinic he nearly passed out from exhaustion. We had to carry him back up to his house in a chair.

As a medical team we were not equipped to distribute large quantities of food to this neglected community. We did however purchase $800 of rice & beans (that’s still a lot) and the doctors treated the food like medication – prescribing it to those that needed it most.

This family was one of the grateful recipients of the food. “Halleluiah, Peace from Jesus” the sister-in-law proclaimed when I visited them again later in the afternoon. The food was already cooking in a tiny pot on an open fire on the dirt floor of their kitchen. When I told her I would pray for their family she held her hands up to the sky and said that we would meet again in heaven.

The rice and beans we shared will only sustain them for a week or two, but their faith in Christ will sustain them for eternity.

Be sure to click the fullscreen button below for the best viewing experience! ↓

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Grangou: Hungry in Haiti is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

Dawlence: Paskèt’s Miracle Baby

William — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 07:25:10 +0000

Dawlence’s story is one of the most moving and memorable from Haitihelpers‘ February 2010 medical mission trip. In the village of Paskèt, just outside of Jacmel, Haiti, the team was holding their 3rd and final clinic. Over 300 patients had already been seen and as they were packing up, one last patient arrived.

It was a 6 day-old child whose mother had died giving birth to him only six months into the pregnancy. He was being cared for by his cousin but had not breastfeed at all since his birth. The family said they had only been able to get him to drink water. Dr. Joni Yamamoto, a family physician from Georgia, took him in her arms and examined him. He was in dire need of nourishment or he would soon die.

A week earlier, before leaving for Haiti, Joni had visited a pediatric practice to get supplies from their samples closet. She had hoped to stock up on children’s antibiotics for the Haiti mission trip but left a bit disappointed with only a few allergy meds and three enormous boxes of infant formula.

God had a plan for all that infant formula.

Joni excitedly opened one of the ready-made formula boxes and found that it came with a bottle & nipples to attach. The tiny boy immediately began to suck on the bottle and finished an entire ounce in no time. She went over the importance of frequent feeding with the cousin and took the whole bin of formula to their home.

The next night, after a full day of waiting at the airport with no luck getting a flight out of Haiti, Joni and several of the team members returned to Dawlence’s home to check on him. It was dark and the family’s two room house with walls made of tarps only had a single candle illuminating its interior. The entire family (and some neighbors) crowded in to hear what the doctor had to say.

Dawlence was doing well but was sleeping and not being fed every 3 hours as the family had been instructed. I translated Joni’s instructions into French and we explained again how important it was that he be feed regularly even if he is sleepy. It turned out they had no clock with which to tell the time and schedule feedings! Without hesitation, Joni’s husband Chris handed his watch over to the family.

Before leaving, we prayed with the entire family for them and for Dawlence. Life in Haiti has always been hard, but in this post-earthquake period it is harder than it has ever been. Everyone’s lives have been turned upside-down and taking on the responsibility of raising a relative’s orphaned child isn’t easy.

Keep young Dawlence uplifted in your own prayers – may he grow up strong and come to know his loving Creator who gave him life. Praise God for providing the infant formula the child so desperately needed. Praise God for providing Dawlence with an extended family that is willing to care for him during these extremely trying times in Haiti. Praise God for doctors like the Yamamotos who are willing to leave their own families and comforts of home to serve those suffering in Haiti.

Dawlence: Paskèt’s Miracle Baby is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

Joy in Jacmel’s Tent City

William — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 04:51:04 +0000

A sea of tents and tarps is what first appeared as we headed over the the crest of the hill in Jacmel, Haiti. Thousands of individuals displaced by the January 12th earthquakes have had to sleep in tents and make-shift homes that line the city’s streets and fill its parks.

I’m in the town with a team of medical personnel from North Georgia and we had just finished an exhausting day of seeing over 300 people in clinic. A few of us walked down to the “tent city” to see people living there and tell them about the next two clinics we will be having in a nearby neighborhood.

It has barely been a month since the catastrophe and the people living in tents have smiles on their faces and laughter in their voices. I joked with an elderly woman smoking a pipe, laughed with a parent about the large amounts of drool pouring from her baby’s mouth, and attracted a large crowd as I joined in on a game of jump rope with the kids.

We had stayed in the tent city for barely an hour entertaining with our antics, chatting, and making friends. When we left everyone was smiling and feeling great. No diagnoses had been made, no medication distributed. In fact, the calamity they had endured wasn’t even mentioned in conversation.

At first I’m inclined to declare the old adage that “laughter is the best medicine.” However, the formula is a bit more complex. I’m sure laughter is integral but these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Be sure to click the fullscreen button below
for the best viewing experience! ↓

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Click here to see my photos from our visit to the tent city.

Joy in Jacmel’s Tent City is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development

In Haiti for a Week

William — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 04:20:39 +0000

This week I’m in the city of Jacmel, Haiti with a team of medical personnel. I’m serving as a translator and photographer for the team. We flew into Haiti from the Dominican capitol of Santo Domingo and spent today organizing our 1500lbs+ of medical supplies.

I had a chance this afternoon to walk around the city and see the damage first hand – it is pretty overwhelming. Being able to speak French is a true blessing as it allows me to converse with the locals and hear their stories. It is unbelievable how positive the people are despite their hardships.

I’m hoping that in-between my translation work I’ll be able to record some stories via pictures and video.

Below is one of my favorite photos I took today. If you look carefully you can see me in the TV the guy is looking at.

In Haiti for a Week is a post from: William Haun Photography, Video, and Web Development