Mike DuBose

Some 5,000 people had crowded into a makeshift camp at the municipal soccer stadium in Leogane, Haiti, about 20 miles west of Port-au-Prince.  They were just a few of the 1.2 million left homeless by the massive earthquake that struck on Jan. 12, the soccer stadium just one of hundreds of similar encampments.

Rubble littered the streets, and strong aftershocks kept distressed Haitians outdoors for fear of even more damage. Families filled every available public space. City parks, university campuses, even the narrow median strip between lanes of a busy highway overflowed with tents, tarps, and lean-to shelters. Often nothing more than a dangling bedsheet separated a family from its neighbors.

Many of the displaced had their homes flattened by the earthquake, often trapping relatives inside. Others were simply too traumatized to remain indoors beneath cracked concrete ceilings.

The Spanish Red Cross had provided rubber bladders filled with drinking water for the Leogane camp. But basic sanitary facilities were lacking. People relieved themselves in drainage ditches and bathed from buckets in a muddy common area.

The camp was alive with the activity and chaos of daily life. Children fetched water and played in the scant open space. Men improved their temporary shelters with scavenged bits of tin and lumber. One enterprising soul with a generator was recharging rows of cell phones for a small fee.

In the midst of it all, a rail-thin Haitian man knelt in the mud and filth of the bathing area, gently brushing his son’s teeth. It was one of the sweetest gestures I’ve ever witnessed. This simple act of fatherly love symbolized for me the hope that Haitians hold for a restoration of peace and wholeness.

It is my prayer that the people of Haiti will know through our actions that we stand with them in faith and hope and love.

DuBose was part of a team from United Methodist News Service documenting the work of the United Methodist Committee on Relief in Haiti following the earthquake. Scroll down to see photos from his trip.

Noel Zierne of St. Martin Methodist Church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, shows where she was trapped in the rubble of the church following the earthquake. Zierne was attending choir practice at the church when the quake struck. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose

A girl plays between rows of makeshift homes at a temporary camp in the soccer stadium at Leogane, Haiti. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose

A crucifix stands amid the rubble of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose

Dr. Brian Good of Salt Lake City, Utah, examines Medina Alexis at Grace Children’s Hospital in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Holding Medina is her mother, Ketly Alexis. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose

Families crowd a makeshift camp at the municipal soccer stadium in Leogane, Haiti, following the earthquake. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose

A father helps his son with basic hygiene at a makeshift camp in the municipal soccer stadium in Leogane, Haiti, following the earthquake. A UMNS photo by Mike DuBose