"Haiti: Building in Hope"

WMCEC Fall Enrichment Day – October 23, 2010

123 women from across Ontario gathered at Bethany Mennonite Church in Virgil to hear speakers on the theme “Haiti: Building in Hope”. Donna Thiessen shared in the morning her first-hand experience during the Haiti earthquake with Leah Reesor and Luke Keller updating us in the afternoon on what MCC has been and continues to do to help in the recovery. Click here for Leah's blog on Haiti related themes.

The Niagara Bethany Hand Bell Choir which has a long history of supporting children in Haiti provided special music under the direction of Tracey Frena.

Using Luke 10:25-37 as her text, Carol Penner, pastor at The First Mennonite Church in Vineland challenged us to ask ourselves “Who is my sister?”

A special treat was hearing musician Heidi Wagler’s story of how she has been able to continue to have hope even though she has experienced pain and hurt in her life. She was led to produce a CD entitled “Healing and Hope for the Nations” the proceeds of which are directed to MCC for its ongoing work in Haiti.

Brian Bauman, MCEC Missions Minister, affirmed the women of MCEC who have consistently support projects of MCEC as well as projects in their own communities.

The business session was chaired by WMCEC’s new coordinator, Pattie Ollies and included a report from Erna Neufeldt, Mennonite Women Canada’s president and reports from WMCEC's personnel and programme committees.

Comments that I heard that day included the following:
***It was a great day!
***Donna’s presentation and video were well done and her thankfulness for God’s safety and protection was very evident.
***I thought the program on Saturday was just fantastic!
***The historical, social and economic context given by Leah was very helpful in understanding the culture of the Haitian people.

If you are interested in more details please leave a comment and I will gladly provide more information. A more detailed report has also been submitted to the Canadian Mennonite.