In early November Spencer traveled back to Haiti to meet with staff and get an update on operations. While he was there, he had an amazing encounter with one of the kids living at Maison de Lumiere. He retells it below.
I arrived at Maison de Lumiere ready to meet with our new hire office administrator. I was grabbing some documents out of the backseat of my SUV when I heard a cheerful voice greet me, “Bonjour Mr Spencer!” I spun around to see Michael* with a big grin on his face. For a split second I thought my jaw would hit the ground, but I checked my reaction and simply returned the greeting, “Bonjour Michael!” Michael then went back to what he was doing. I zipped inside and grabbed our counselor, Cindy, and said, “I need to talk to you.”
Ok, you may be scratching your head reading this right now wondering what is so surprising about a simple greeting. For four years I visited the orphanage every day and got to know the kids pretty well. Michael was one who was always reserved. When the other children were playing, he was always on the fringe, never fully immersed. Whenever I said hello he would avoid eye contact and barely murmur a reply. He showed some connection to his siblings who lived at the orphanage, but never seemed to form a bond with any of the staff.
Cindy and I sat down in the office and I shared what had just happened. I said, “that has never happened before. What do you think has changed?” Cindy said that she believed the change was because Michael’s mom was back in the picture. As CHI began working toward family-based care, our social workers invited family members to the orphanage to visit the kids. Michael’s mom, Rosaline*, was reconnecting with her children. In fact, her oldest son graduated from MDL in August and is now living with her. Things are progressing in our assessments and we hope to transition the rest of the siblings back into Rosaline’s care soon. Michael is doing well in his school, opening up ever so slightly in counseling, being more involved in group activities, and overall having a more outgoing demeanor.
I continue to thank God for the reconciliation that had happened between Rosaline and her children. I know they will have bumps along the way. The work of reunifying children back with their families is messy. However, in every case of reunification, we experience stories like this one, little glimmers of God’s perfect plan for restoration and healing.
*Names changed