Tuesday, May 13, 2014

TiCarme: My Lydia friend in Haiti

Over the next few days I want to introduce you to some amazing friends through my blogs.  They are the people we are partnering with in Haiti.  I pray you will be blessed by their stories.

One of the surprises when we got to Neply, the village in which we stayed, was to see how God had prepared the road for us by positioning amazing people to work with.  The Spirit had already prompted them by whispering a dream into their hearts, and they were passionate about making it happen.  Of course God was ahead of us in this endeavor, we just forgot to expect it!!

We knew and stayed in contact with TiCarme since we lived in Haiti in 2001.  We knew then that she was a very competent, spirit-filled woman, and God has been at work in and through her in many ways.  Today one of her nicknames in the village is "Mayor."  A woman of influence and respect!

Here is her story:
TiCarme became a student at New Missions school when she was 8 years old.  It was the rule that every student needed to attend church.  At 10 TiCarme's father left their home and had nothing more to do with her. She was always #1 in her class, year after year.  She didn't want to be second.

It wasn't until she was 14 that Ticarme decided to "take God."  Before that time she would attend church in the morning and then go to the Rara Bands (Voodoo) in the afternoon.  In 1988 she decided to serve God...no turning back.

At 17 TiCarme got pregnant and thought, "My life is done.  I don't have money to go to school.  There will be nothing for me."  But Pastor George, from the mission, came to her and invited her to come back to school.  TiCarme was given a second chance.  That "Second Chance" continues to motivate her as she seeks to give other children a second chance at school and at life.

For many years TiCarme prayed that God would let her have an orphange.  She didn't realize that God was answering that prayer until years later a younger friend said, "TiCarme I remember how your house was like an orphanage."  By the time she was 25 she had 7 extra kids living in her one room home.  Today her 2 room home continues to have an open door.  Her compound is the detour for many children who stop by to get some food on the way home from school.  (All of this on an income of about $70 a week, in a place where food is more expensive than in the US.)

TiCarme has very good English and has been a translator for many mission groups.  Currently TiCarme is working for an organization called Acts of Mercy.  This group came in doing disaster relief after the 2010 earthquake and have stayed to do community development work.  They do seminars and discipleship, helping the people of Haiti to engage in their own community's development.  Initially they hired TiCarme as a translator, but soon realized she was fully capable of leading the seminars and mentoring the participants.

Today TiCarme's heart is broken when she sees young people who have lost sponsors, been kicked out of school, have lost a parent, or have lost hope.  She says, "My job is to help young people who want to finish, who want to be excellent."  TiCarme says, "People forced me to ask you to come back.  They say, 'TiCarme, you know Pastor Al, you know Madame Holly'  But I say, God knows.  God has to lay it on their hearts to come back."

And we say to Ticarme, "We will not start a mission, but we will help support your mission."  And that is exactly what Ticarme needs.  She has been prepared through her education, life experiences and the Spirit.  She has been positioned in her community and through her contacts around the world.  She has been prompted all of her adult life to love and serve her community, and now to start this mission. She has co-workers who share her vision. And she is definitely passionate!  She lives to bless others!





1 comment: