Plastics

There are places in the US that are recognizing the blight that plastic represents in terms of the landscape.

Check out this article:

http://www.marinij.com/marinnews/ci_18987419

Plastics

A beach near Leogane, Haiti, about 40 miles west of Port au Prince. Some of the trash is local, most washes in from Port au Prince

I've heard a number of reports in the last several months about the pervasiveness of plastics in our lives, our ecosystems, and our bodies. There is no question that in Haiti, plastic waste is a huge disposal problem. To find out that besides the obvious problems, plastics are being implicated in cancers and immune disorders terrifies me.

Here is a link to one article:

http://e360.yale.edu/content/feature.msp?id=2209

The NPR report I heard can be found online at

http://www.npr.org/2011/04/19/135245835/our-toxic-love-hate-relationship-with-plastics

and an article by the same researcher can be found at

http://www.susanfreinkel.com/books_Plastic.html

From article:

"Freinkel’s conclusion? We cannot stay on our plastic-paved path. And we don’t have to. Plastic points the way toward a new creative partnership with the material we love to hate but can’t seem to live without."

Arrived in Nicaragua

Jenny, Keila, Annika and I arrived in Nicaragua last night around 8:30. Jenny's younger brother, Michael came to pick us up with one other car, and incredibly, the two drivers were able to get all our luggage, and us, in the two cars and make it in one trip.

It was a long trip yesterday. My brother, Keith, his wife, Priscilla and their son, Keegan, came to see us off. So did my sister Nancy, her daughter, Leah and two sons, Zachary and Seth. Mom and Dad drove up from Amesville to spend the night near the airport and came to see us off as well. It was a huge help to get all our luggage, a boxed up bike, strollers, car seats and, oh yes, Keila and Annika, to the ticket counter. They allowed Keith to go through security to help us get settled at the gate, with all our carry on. When I asked American Airlines for help, an American Airlines authority told us we should only be taking on the plane what we could actually carry ourselves. I pointed out that we had two very young children who can't carry on their own carry on.

In any case, we made it. We were delayed in Miami due to heavy rains and we arrived in Nicargua over an hour late, but we made it. Keila fell asleep last night immediately after her bath. Annika took longer to settle into a new house with new noises.

Word has it that a piece of luggage that didn't quite make it last night will be delivered to the Bent's house today.

It is a great privilege to be able to move from family in Ohio to family here in Managua. Thank you to all of you who have also become part of our family, who hold us in your thoughts and prayers. Please keep us in those prayers as we continue to transition from the States to Nicaragua and from one job to another. We are still waiting final word for what comes next in 2012. I will be returning to Haiti the second week of October to finish out the year with MPP's Road to Life Yard project. Jenny and the girls will stay with Jenny's family here in Managua.

In Christ,

Mark, Jenny, Keila and Annika

Note: Cisterns Blog

Please note, on August 24th, there is a blog explaining the type of cisterns we are using in MPP's Road to Life Yard project. The blog is an ongoing project, so check it out periodically to see the new additions. My next step will be to add captions to the pictures to explain the process.

I have finished, I believe, listing all of the tools and materials. Anyone who has worked with this system that has some critique, please feel completely free to make observations.

To see all of the blogs mentioning the cisterns in the blog, do a search of the blog site using the key words "cisterns rainwater" I've been checking and there are at least four blogs that refer to the cisterns.

Annika Estela Hare's Baptism

Sunday, August 14th family and friends gathered at the New England Presbyterian Church, in the rural community of New England six miles from Amesville, to celebrate Hymn Sunday, and to join with Jenny, Keila and me in baptizing our second daughter, Annika.

It was a very special time. All of my brothers and sisters and wives and husband were present and most of my nephews, along with friends and neighbors. Jenny's brother, Norman, came from Detroit, with his frirnd Marifer and Marifer's daughter, Henrietta. All told, over sixty people attended the service and the coffee hour afterwards. We were very concious of our Creator's presence with us that Sunday, God's grace present and accounted for.


Arriving at New England Presbyterian Church Sunday AM. From left to right, Rachel and Zachary, two of my sister Nancy's children. Nancy is holding Keila, and my niece Emily, one of my brother Keith's two daughters, is right behind us.

The Baptism. My father, Rev Frank Hare (second from right), officiated. Gary Gould (far right) represented the New England session. Marcia Burchby (far left), our long time friend and supporter, agreed to become Annika's Godmother. Norman (second from left) became Annika's Godfather.

Presenting the new member of the church Family