Helping Hands -- Giving Hearts!

It is a thrill for me to introduce my very first guest blogger to you -- Alex Hinton.  Alex holds a special place in my heart, and always will!  She is the youngest of my brood of eleven, and there's just something that will always be special to a mom about her youngest child. 

Alex graduated from Waynesburg University in December 2012, has been blessed with a job, and has been convicted with a desire to begin giving back to those in need.  Please read on in the words of Alex..............

I believe it is our duty as humans to help others:  family, friends, coworkers, and even strangers.  When we see someone struggling with something, no matter how big or small, we need to do what we can to lend a helping hand.  I have been given the opportunity to do this by taking a week long trip to Haiti next month.  Along with six others, including family and church friends, I will provide food and love to many in need.

This is a view overlooking an orphanage where we will be helping to feed children. 

As the date of the trip is quickly approaching, I'm becoming a little bit nervous; this will be my first time traveling outside of the U.S. and my first time in a place that is so unlike what I'm used to.  I will experience firsthand a culture that is vastly different from that of the U.S., from climate to language, cuisine and sanitation. 

This is the main dining hall where our mission team will be fed two meals a day.  I've never eaten most of the food items you see here, and I'm not sure how my stomach will adapt, but I'm willing to give it a try!

Aside from a little bit of fear of the unknown, I'm really excited about this trip.  I will be able to make an impact on many lives during my week's stay in Haiti, and I think that's pretty amazing.  I know a lot of people who have gone on mission trips, both international and domestic, and they always return with a greater appreciation for life.  It's difficult for me to even try to imagine what goiing on this trip will feel like, but I'm sure once I'm there, it will change the way I see the world.

This is "home" to many, many orphaned children -- far, far different from the homes I'm used to seeing! 

What a thrill it will be for me to help package and deliver beans and rice to those who are in need of a meal!

It's hard to imagine that only two miles out of the village there is such beauty!  How can this be while there continues to be starvation, sickness, and dying?  I'm so happy to provide hands that will be helping to bring not just beans and rice, but spiritual food to the people, too!

While in Haiti, our group will be staying at the Cap-Haitien Children's Home, an orphanage run under the direction of Hunter and Jillian Kittrell, a young couple from the U.S.  We will hand out food to families in need, visiting in the homes of families, visiting a prison and a homeless shelter provding some food relief, sanitation packs, and giving some much-needed love!

Word of help travels fast throughout the villages.  People wait in the hot, blazing sun for hours to receive such things as Tylenol, peroxide, and bandages for their grave illnesses!

Here is where your help is needed.  To accomplish our goals, our group must raise a total of $1,300 per person to get to Haiti and to make our time there worthwhile -- providing for the needs of the children and families who have been days without food.  They need someone to care!  Without the help of friends and family, I will not be able to take this trip to serve the people of Haiti.

Will you be my mission partner by donating towards this trip?  I will serve to the very best of my ability.  I will represent Jesus in all that I do.  And, when I come back to the U.S., I will have a changed heart -- an even more willing heart to serve those in need!

A donation of just $10 can be used to purchase a significant amount of rice in Haiti.  Please help me to help the children by donating here .  You can use the drop down and find my name, Alex Hinton. If you don't like to donate online, you can use snail mail by sending your checks made out to Somerset Church of Christ with Alex Hinton -- Haiti" in the memo line to:  Somerset Church of Christ, 310 S. Kimberly Ave., Somerset, PA  15501  c/o Haiti Mission Trip.  All donations are tax deductible. 

Thank you for taking the time to read my post!  I appreciate the help of everyone offering their support!

Wanting to serve,

Alex Hinton

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Thank you, Alex, for being my honored guest blogger today!  May God bless your heart and always keep it full of love and the desire to serve!

Love,

Clara Hinton (mom)