On the first night I had one of the most profound experiences of my life. Jeff asked "who wants to go for a walk?" I thought we were going for a walk on the streets around the neighborhood...WRONG! Our "walk", which was after dark, was far from what I expected. We walked about 150 yards down the street from the house and walked through a large steel gate, which is a rather common thing here. On the other side was a tent city. The tents were constructed of tarps and scraps of wood and tin. I wasn't really scared, but I was certainly far outside my comfort zone. Jeff saw someone he knew right away and introduced us. All of the sudden small children surrounded me. They took me by the hand, embraced me, and wanted me to hold them. We ended up walking through the narrow corridors between the tents, stepping over the "mud" which was actually sewage. All the people were very friendly despite the fact that they were living in conditions that were hot, dirty, crowded and unsanitary for longer than a year. I couldn't believe the way the children flocked to us. I would never take two toddlers that I just met in minneapolis and take them by the hand and start walking around... I would get arrested! Where were their parents!?! Over the following 2 days I have come to learn that parents really don't seem to mind if some strange guy like me takes their children by the hand and walks off...

Gabriel Tschida

Healing Haiti Team Member