Hi everyone ITS Gerry Well i think its time I sent a message out to all ,dennis has been very active getting all the updates on the blog and sending out emails letting people know what is happening and I want to thank dennis at this time , well done , we are now getting close to our trip and everyone is busy getting those last things done before we go , I say now I am really looking forward to our time together , i know all will be blessed by this time doing Gods work in Haiti . Im getting excited about the trip but I want to take this time and personally thank all who have given so much to make this trip a reality, without you listening to Gods voice speaking to your heart , nothing could be accomplished . It has always been my desire to have churches working together ,answering Gods calling united , as I believe it really is a wonderful witness to our community and the world , this trip we have 6or 7 different churches sending people down to Haiti , praise to GOD , we also have many more churches helping out with the funds needed to build this school , THANK YOU ONE AND ALL . Children who would never have had a chance to go to school now do so because of you , while Im on the subject if you would like to sponsor one of these children , they need money for school uniforms ,books, food , pay teachers salaries , the cost is very minimal , $ 200 to $300 per year please contact dickie macdonald at 902-742-5234 and God will bless you . MAY YOU ALL have a Very Wonderful Christmas ,, again GOD BLESS YOU ALL gerry

More Connections

Good Morning Friends,
After a wild, cold, rainy night it is a beautiful clear, cold morning. God is so good.
I had an e-mail yesterday with the following link attached - http://thoughtsfromhaiti.blogspot.com This blog is one that Liette Wilson is sharing with us.
Liette is Karen's daughter. She has 4 children 2 which were adopted from Haiti when she worked there. She is down for Christmas from Calgary.
The pictures are the foundation of the building we will be working on. I believe you will enjoy reading this blog and sharing in Liette's adventure.

Remember to keep praying for the team as they prepare to go to Haiti on Jan 5, 2009 - but also be in prayer for Liette and her family and our Haiti family as well.

Blessings,
Pastor Dennis

God Continues To Bless

Good morning

I hope that you all had a blessed day yesterday as you worshipped God in your various places of worship. He is, indeed, a great God.

With Christmas being so close, it certainly is a busy time of year.

The Haiti team 2009 has been busy as well - fundraising and trying to get all their needles and papers in order.

Our team Leader, Gerry, had a burning desire to be able to provide Bibles (or New Testaments) in Creole to the students in Grade Five and up this trip. After much prayer and sharing the idea around - the Yarmouth North Baptist Church sponsored Bibles (or New Testaments) for this group. The Bibles (or New Testaments) have arrived at the HATS - Haiti Compound and they will be distributed by the team members during their stay in Haiti. Praise God!!

I want to introduce to the last two members of the team.

The first is a man whom I describe as a "gentle giant" both in terms of his physical stature and his faith. Brian Roberts was with us in 2007 and we are delighted that he is going again in 2009. Brian and his wife, Patricia live in the Argyle area and faithfully attend the Argyle-Pubnico Baptist Church. Brian is looking forward to this trip and will be a great asset.

The last member of our team - but certainly not the least - is a new recruit by the name of Bill Olsen. Bill is a retired lobster fisherman and his friends are greatful that he is also a willing and able handyman. He is a member of the Yarmouth North Baptist Church. He has been active in the Gideons for several years, making the Word of God more available. Bill is also interested in working hands on where most needed. He has been thinking of joining a work mission for several years now and this year everything just fell into place to make this trip possible.

I introduced Ed Rose on my Dec 6 blog - but without a picture. Here's what he looked like at the airport in Halifax on our last trip -and he still looks that good.

Anyway, may God richly bless you as you prepare to celebrate the birth of the Christ Child at this Christmas Season.

Bod bless,

Pastor Dennis

Good News

Good morning
It's a snowy blustery day here in SouthWest Nova Scotia. A month from now the team will likely be wishing for some cool weather. The last trip we made to Haiti the temperature peaked at around 50 degrees C.
This week end we had the Bake Sale and we raised just over $350.00. We were very pleased.
This morning I had a phone call from the Beaver River Baptist Church and they told me that they had a Cinder Block Sunday yesterday and they are sending a cheque along to the Project for $425.60. We praise God for the number of area churches that taking this project to heart and supporting it so well.
I was speaking to Pastor Craig Minard at the Arcadia-Chebogue Baptist Church early last week and they too are taking up the challenge to purchase blocks for the school. The Salvation Army are building a block wall with cut out cinder blocks and that is progressing well.
Thanks to all who are participating in this project. Don't hesitate to contact me an let me know what your project is so that I can acknowledge it on the blog. Contact me at dennis.leamont@gmail.com.
Have a great day,
Blessings,
Pastor Dennis

Bake Sale at the Salvation Army

This was a great day. The sun was shining and everybody was in good humour. When I arrived at the Salvation Army Community Church this morning at 8:50am a few of our team were already there and our table was well on the way to being laden down with all kinds of goodies - cakes, rolls, biscuits, fudge, pies and lots of other things.

At 10am the doors opened there seemed to be a fair stream of people for the next two hours. Things quieted down about noon and were still quiet when I left at 1pm. I don't know how much money was raised for the school but it was more than with which we started.

Thanks to all those who helped with the sale. And if you bought something - thanks to you too.

I want to introduce you to a couple of more members of our team at this time.


The first is Paul Sims. Paul is a member of the Plymouth Baptist Church and is a faithful attender. He and his wife, Joyce, are hard workers in the church. Paul missed the last trip to Haiti and I was determined that he was not going to miss this opportunity. He is excited about the trip and looking forward to whatever God has in store for him and the team.
The second is Ed Rose. Ed is first of all a Christian man with a big heart for people, serving God in many ways in his local church and day-to-day as he encounters many people in his construction business. This is Ed's third time to visit and help out at HATS-Haiti. (Written by his wife, Janet)

Mark your calendars for January 02, 2009 - That's the night that we will be having a kind of commissioning service for the team. We would welcome any who want to come and be a part of this service as we praise and worship God for all that He is doing in our lives and in the lives of our friends in Haiti. That's at 7pm in the Yarmouth Salvation Army Community Church.

Have a great time at worship tomorrow and the blessing of God be on you and yours
Pastor Dennis

I'm Encouraged and Excited!!

Good morning and God bless.

I was at the Evangel Assembly Pentecostal Church this morning delivering Christmas Shoe Boxes (another very worthy cause) and Pastor Rod Bezanson shared with me that he got my e-mail regarding the cinder block idea - and he and his youth group are excited about it and they have some ideas of how they might help. I can't go into all the details, but let me assure you that I was encouraged and excited.

If you are becoming involved, how about giving me a call and letting me know?!

The leader of our group is a fine Christian gentleman by the name of Gerry Rhyno. He is married to Heather and they are both very involved in the HATS - Haiti Project. Gerry has been to various regions of Haiti in the past - he has made almost a dozen trips to Haiti over the years. It was Gerry who sparked most of our team's interest in the school project that we began over two years ago. Heather made the trip to HATS - Haiti last time but is unable to go this time. I know that we will miss her there. Gerry and Heather attend the Salvation Army Community Church in Yarmouth and are very active there. Thanks for all your guidance, Gerry and Heather. I love this picture.

Another new member of the group is Tim Newell. He is married to Gerry's daughter, Heidi. They have three young children and they are very mission-minded. In a few years their hope is to take a family mission tour wherever God would lead them. Tim tells me that "I've felt called to help, for a reality check to help appreciate how truly blessed we are, and to do something that matters." I know that Tim will find this to be a great experience and he will be truly blessed.





Please continue to pray for the team, their families ; for Karen and all of those who live at the HATS -Haiti compound.


God bless and keep tuned into the blog for more updates.


Pastor Dennis

Another Thanksgiving

Well, here it is American Thanksgiving. When I looked and saw that my last post was on Canadian Thanksgiving I said, "That's super!" There is so much to be thankful for. May we all realize how great our God is and give Him thanks for His goodness.

I am sorry to be so long in getting back on the blog. I was a way for a vacation and then it took me some time to get over the vacation.

But now I think I am back on track.

As well, we have had our first team meeting since September and now there is some news to relate.

We have had a number of fundraising events and they have been very successful. But we are still short of our goal. We have just launched a little promotion for the Advent Season - we are encouraging local Sunday School and Church Families to buy a cinder block for the school. We have challenged each congregation to try and buy at the very least 100 blocks at the cost of $1.00US per block. Then at our commissioning service we will collect the block money and hopefull have gained a lot of blocks. If you want to participate in this in your congregation please let me know and I will forward further information to you.

We will be having a table in tha Salvation Army Yard Sale on Sat Dec 06 from 10am to 3pm. If you can help us out by providing some fresh homebaked goodies - then please have them at the Salvation Army around 9am.

Let me introduce you to another team member at this time.

Bobby Comeau was born in Meteghan River and moved to Yarmouth a long time ago. He has been a carpenter for 28 years. For the last 12 years he and his wife, Linda, have operated a Senior Citizens Home in Yarmouth. They are members of the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church. Bobby was with us in 2007 and he says that he is looking forward to returning to Haiti to help others.
Have a Blessed day - no - make it a Blessed day!
Pastor Dennis

Thanksgiving Day

What a privilege to be able to take a few moments and write a note on the blog. This is Thanksgiving Day in Canada and I have just been reflecting on the bounty that we share here in this great country.


I recognize that this past week has been hard for many of my fellow Canadians as well as many people around the world - I speak in terms of the great financial crisis that is taking place. However, I believe that we, Canadians are among the most blessed people of the whole world and are still very well off despite the great drop in the Stock Market this past week. All I do, when I begin to think of the money my pension fund lost this week is to close my eyes and see the extreme poverty that I experienced when I was in Haiti as part of Haiti Team 2007. Words can not begin to describe the great need in Haiti and places like it.


Haiti Team 2009 is going back to Haiti to build another section to the school that we worked on the last time there. We believe that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the key to bringing hope to the people there. We also believe that Education is another key to bringing hope to the people there.


I realize I have not really introduced myself as yet in these blogs - I was looking for a good picture to share.


My name is Dennis Leamont. I am Pastor of the Plymouth and Pleasant Lake United Baptist Churches in those two communities just outside the town of Yarmouth. As I mentioned I have been in Haiti as part of Team 2007. I had not planned to go this trip but the call of God has been strong and I have said "yes". I am looking forward to seeing the boys and girls (and adults) that I met last time and I look forward to helping out in any way I can.



Another new comer to our team is Jonathan Skjelmose from the Yarmouth area. He is a local entrepeneur who is very interested in helping out in Haiti. He tells me that he expects to learn a lot from this trip. (And he will!) He is excited to see how people in troubles areas of the world can follow God through the hardest of living conditions.

May you all have a great Thanksgiving Day and please remember to pray for HATS - Hait and the Haiti Team 2009.
God bless,
Pastor Dennis

Meet Some Team Members

Dickie and Sandra MacDonald of Yarmouth are family to Karen at HATS - Haiti. This will be Dickie's fourth trip and Sandra's third to the HATS - Mission. Dickie and Sandra love to go, work and spend time loving the kids.

A new recruit to this year's team is a young Christian lady from the Argyle-Pubnico Baptist Church. Her name is Faith Greene and she was really moved when the 2007 Team did a presentation in her church and a mission trip to Haiti has been on her mind ever since. She says "I feel blessed that the Lord is pushing me to minister in this way and pray He will use me through His power." She promises a picture in the very near future.

Before I sign out for today let me remind you that there is a Ham Supper planned for the School Project at the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church on October 24, 2008 at 6pm. Tickets are $10.00 each.

Thanks for your continued prayers and support.

Blessing,

Pastor Dennis

Blog Problems

For the past few days the "blogspot" people have had our blog blocked. Why I do not know why and I am not sure that even now it is accessible, but I am going to try to post something now.

In my first blog I mentioned that the Yarmouth Wesley Church would receipt donations for sponsorship for the HATS - Haiti Mission - This information was correct. I was wrong in saying that they would receipt donations for individual team members support. Please accept my apogolies if this has caused any confusion.

For those who wish to send donations to HATS - Haiti please send them to the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church, 70 Haley Road, PO Box 337, Yarmouth, NS B5A 4B3 and clearly mark the donation for HATS - Haiti School Building Project.

Once I see this post worked I will post more in the near future.

Have a blessed day.

Welcome to Team Haiti 2009

Good Morning,

It is 6:33am Atlantic Time and it's hard to know where to start.

Team Haiti 2009 had its first full team meeting last evening at Gerry's house and all but 2 were present. Gerry, our Team Leader, led us through a very intensive package of things that we needed to know for our Mission Trip to Haiti.

The very first thing that we were told is that "it is an honour to be able to serve God and bring Him glory as He leads us on this new adventure." May all the team member and those of you who support us with your love and prayers always remember those words.

What is Team Haiti 2009? This is a group of men and women (mostly from the Yarmouth, NS Canada area) who have felt the call of God to travel to Haiti - and in particular to Deschappelles and the HATS - Haiti Mission (Hands Across The Sea - Haiti) to continue the work started by Haiti Team 2007.

A number of years ago, Karen Huxter founded HATS - Haiti as a small Christian Mission and Orphanage to care for a number of children who had been abandoned in the Deschappelles region. Over the years she felt the call of God to provide a school for those children and the other children of the region. In 2007 that became a reality. With the help of Team Haiti 2007 and their supporters $44,000.US was raised to build a seven room school. The work was begun in June 2006 by the local Haitians and in January 2007 Team Haiti, consisting of 11 members, went to HATS - Haiti to help finish the project.

Today there are about 200 students attending the school and they are out of space - thus the need to build an addition to the school. And that's the reason we have joined together again. Under God, we have been challenged, and we challenge you, to finance and help the Haitians build more class rooms for students hungry for an education.

The cost of the project is about $25,000.00US. The new construction is about 15 meters (50feet) long, 9 meters (30 feet) wide and one story high with the intension of building it one story high with the ability to add another level when the need arises - as we hope and pray that it will.

Each team member is responsible for raising his/her own support to get to Haiti and back. In addition to that we are asking each team member to raise an additional $1,000.00 to go toward the project. As well, there have been several yard sales and there is a Ham Supper planned for October 24 at the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church beginning at 6pm - Tickets are $10.00 each.

Should God lay it upon your heart to help sponsor a team member or the Project please send your donation to the Yarmouth Wesleyan Church and mark it for the team member or the project (I will provide you an address for the church in the next blog, which will be very soon.)

In the following blogs I will also tell you who is going and brief bio on each one.

For now - please keep - saturate this team and this project with your prayers - and thank you for your love and support.

Pastor Dennis