Marilyn: May 12, 2010

Just four months ago, before the earthquake, the Lord brought a precious surprise into our lives: Marilyn. When we first received her, she weighed only 14 pounds and was two and a half years old. We were stunned at her condition. She looked like a skeleton rather than a baby. Marilyn spent a week in a hospital and returned to our home the morning of January 12, 2010. As you all know, a few hours after we got home from the hospital, the earthquake hit. Marilyn was in my arms during the whole event. As her condition deteriorated over the next weeks, she was rejected from 4 hospitals due to the overcrowding caused by the quake. No one would even consider treating her. We didn’t know if she would make it or not…

However, God stepped in and finally got her accepted into a great children’s hospital here in Haiti. Now look at her! It’s amazing to see the pictures of her just 4 months ago. She has come alive!

Marilyn: January 12, 2010

This was Marilyn when we first got her. We knew she had a severe protein deficiency called Kwashkior’s disease but later found out she also had Tuberculosis. We consulted another ministry in Haiti who helped children with this disease, but we still weren’t sure if it could be reversed. Her chances were not good and the odds were against her.

Marilyn is from a village just outside Dini. Her family was very poor and unable to provide for her. She was also born with a club foot leaving her unable to walk. As she grew older, she became more of a burden to her parents. They couldn’t tell us the last time she had eaten. All we could do was pray and leave her in the Lord’s hands.

After 4 failures, Marilyn was accepted into St. Damien’s Children’s Hospital here in Haiti. During this time, we had also spend numerous hours trying to get her an emergency medical visa to the US with no success. The hospital did a wonderful job on her treatment. They diagnosed her TB and began treatments immediately. She has spent the last 3 months in their care.

Mostly due to the starvation, Marilyn is also behind developmentally. She is just now learning to speak and crawl. She has come a long way in a very short amount of time, but there’s still more for her. The doctors will need to do surgery in the near future for her club foot so she will be able to walk. They have been casting her foot to stretch it back into normal position but have stretched it as far as it can go now.

Even as I look at her now, it’s so hard for me to believe that she is the same baby I held through the quake. She has almost doubled her body weight in just a few months. She is also talking now, crawling, and laughing. Marilyn is a fighter. That’s what has kept her alive through all this. She is still a very needy child and will require a lot more than most kids, especially some extra TLC. She is still in diapers and on medications daily.

I want to say a special thanks to everyone who has been involved in the care, help, and hard work to get baby Marilyn to where she is today. A special thanks to an intern who spent almost two months staying with Marilyn at the hospital. Marilyn does not have a monthly sponsor yet. We are needing at least 2 sponsors for her to continue her medical care and for her baby supplies. You may also make a one-time donation on our website to help us with Marilyn’s expenses. We are so happy to have her back home! She has a chance to start over and enjoy her childhood! When I look at her, I am reminded every time about the love of God and His provisions. Marilyn is a living miracle!