UPdates from Univers

The Univers bakery is up and running!  The whole wheat bread, white bread, rolls and pizza are selling well, actually selling out or close to selling out everyday! Rick has returned as of last evening for further training of the staff, and to check how things have gone over these last two weeks with the staff "working on their own". I believe he was pleasantly surprised as we entered the bakery this morning. 

We have a new director at the vo-ed school, UTEC. Valentino joins us with a wealth of talent. He is Haitian, Hugues cousin actually, who has been living in Montreal, and has desired to return to Haiti. The timing was right, as God's timing always is! I jokingly said to Hugues and Valentino when Hugues introduced me to him, "ah, I see we are becoming a family business!!" Well, now all joking aside, we truly are adding family members, as, as of last week Valentino's brother has joined Univers as the new medical director at the Univers Medical Centre. This warms my heart that Haitian, especially those related to Hugues desire to serve alongside Hugues. If you recall, Dr. Francoeur suddenly passed away last December. The credentials of  Dr. John Nelson are Way Beyond what we were looking for. Again, we are privileged to see God uniquely working out His details. He too had been living in Montreal, and of recent  and now living and teaching at a university in Port au Prince. For the next month he and his wife are commuting, spending half the week here and half in P au P. I am enjoying getting to know his wife, Chatel. What a precious woman! We are blessed with the people that God has chosen for us!

The career assessments with the Philo students are in their last week. I am enjoying working with the students and seeing their enthusiasm when they discover how the technology allows them to reconfirm their likes and dislikes, and allows them to discover new avenues to consider for their future.

And what an asset Hantz-Jerry is to Univers! Jerry as he likes to be called is our first "U.S. university graduate" to return and be employed. He is training in many facets of the organization. Namely, information technology, Morne CouCou and the bakery. His willingness to learn is inspiring! Oh my, it is good to get to know this young man. His energy energizes me! 

As I prepare to return to the states, I have secured a number of college appointments and church speaking engagements. I will update the calendar as soon as I have a few more set this week, so click on the tab "Calendar" at the top of the blog for my schedule. If I'm coming to your area to speak, please come and visit! I'd love to see you. If you'd like me to speak at your church, civic group, Bible study group, wherever you desire...Please contact me; I'd love to share what God is doing in Haiti with those who mean so much to you!

May God's face shine upon you,

Marylee

An exciting day in the life of Univers...
The following is News from Dave Mann out to the Board, and I'm sharing it now with you to get the news out. Digicel is an Irish company that is deeply committed to Haiti.
Please feel free to share with all those you know. 
Thank you for your dedication to Univers!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Monday, October 14, 2013 - CAP HAITIEN  

Today was the gathering in Cap-Haitian to announce the regional winners of the Entrepreneur of the Year.  There are four categories and Hugues was nominated (anonymously at least to us) to the education category.  As you may know, Digicel is the largest cell phone company in Haiti and throughout the Caribbean.  Hugues is now the winner of the education Entrepreneur of the Year award in the north region.  There are a total of four regions in the nation for this selection process.  On December 17^th, he is invited to Port-au-Prince, where the selection of the national winners will be announced.

Before that date, Digicel will send a filming and interview crew to Univers to gather more information and footage to put together a short video to present at the December 17^th gathering.

Hugues and the other regional winners are also invited to Columbia University in New York for a seminar on leadership.

As proud as we all are of Hugues and his initiative in setting the vision for Univers, he is quick to comment that this award is really about the entire Univers community.  It is a recognition of what has been accomplished TOGETHER in the work that the Lord has given us to do.

Thank you, Lord, for the privilege of serving with Hugues in your work.

Dave Mann

My friend Mary from CVCA just emailed me with such an encouraging email. I am blessed! Here are the verses she sent me. It surely encouraged me so I hope it does the same for you. We all have a calling! Live life purposefully, my friends!

Colossians 1:9-14

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

⁹ For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the^[a]knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,¹⁰ so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, ^[b]to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and^[c]increasing in the ^[d]knowledge of God; ¹¹ strengthened with all power, according to ^[e]His glorious might, ^[f]for the attaining of all steadfastness and ^[g]patience; joyously ¹² giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us ^[h]to share in the inheritance of the^[i]saints in Light.

The Incomparable Christ

^13 [j]For He rescued us from the ^[k]domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of ^[l]His beloved Son, ¹⁴ in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Love,
Marylee

These are taken from my apartment - aren't I a blessed gal?! Beautiful Haiti!

It's a GREAT day in Haiti when we have water, electricity, internet and cell phone service - as many of you have heard me say. We have been saying it a lot around here since yesterday! Now, not to say that the wireless only lasts until about 10:00am and then we move to our internet "sticks", which until Tuesday wouldn't work since last Friday. But, a former student who is much more astute in computers than me, which is not hard to be, by the name of Bilou said "Mrs. Marylee just try this". So I clicked the wireless connection off (which hadn't been having enough power to even send an information up onto the cyber highway anyhow) and VOILA! - my internet stick worked. Oh joy!
Career assessments could resume, I could read emails and respond, be in touch with my loved ones, research college and scholarship websites, introduce us to new contacts, organize MetPas' (Hugues) November tour and, as of today, find my blog so I could catch up with you! Google rearranged some things on their site and I couldn't find the administration webpages to update my blog. Now you can understand why I need these young people to direct me in my computer naivety!
I have also hired Bilou to be my creole instructor this year. One exciting pattern for me - everyone I've hired has gone on to college in the D.R. or the U.S. - a pattern I'm happy to live with! So, I am hoping that Bilou will move on someday too, so that he may turn his dreams into reality, by going to college in the U.S.
I am currently working on the college application process with Imelda, Bilou and Evens, who graduated in 2013, and Junior and Tisma from the 2012 graduating class. Please pray for which colleges these students are to attend. Tisma is already accepted At Bunker Hill Community College in Boston and is preparing for his Visa interview. As you pray, please pray for host families, and financial sponsorship to be secured for our 2014 class. I have eight students this year who are qualified to attend college in the U.S.
We have one tuition only scholarship secured thus far.
This week we were able to tell the family who is providing a full Haitian scholarship to a female student who their girl was going to be. It's Anaychilove Elva, and do you know what? That's exactly who this family was hoping and praying for - isn't God tender and rich?! Yes, He is!
I will be in Colorado in December and California in January, if you would like me to speak at your church, Bible study, civic group, Rotary meeting, etc. Just contact me at marylee.lewis@gmail.com
Lastly, please keep my mom in your prayers. She has been diagnosed with inflammation of the sciatica this week and we need prayers for wise decisions to be made for both my folks. Thank You very much for your prayers. Right now it is difficult for me to be here with them there.

As I close today, here are a few photos for your viewing enjoyment:

The "grocery store" (my Trader Joe's in Haiti!!!!):

Anaychilove!

Every morning MetPas greets students as they arrive - 2,400 this year - we are at maximum capacity at Institution Univers!

ESL Students, Joubert Bernard and the Shipp family this summer - thank you Tonya, for emailing this to me!

Be Faithful!
Love,
Marylee

I'm back in Haiti!
We have had VERY intermittent internet therefore this is the first I'm able to catch you up on what's been going on! First, here's a few of the college students who are studying in Ohio; the photo was taken this summer after Evelyne's arrival as a freshman:

The school year has begun - such an exciting time for the students! I arrived on Monday and hit the ground running! After crossing the border Hugues drove me straight to my apartment to drop off the duffels and my luggage, I moved the supplies I brought with me to one of the duffels and jumped back in the truck to take the supplies to the school. But not before we first went out to the farm to see the progress he's made over the summer. The pavilion sides are now protected with chicken wire, there is a personal vegetable garden started, and the biggest news - a new rabbit house with many new rabbits. One rabbit looked like it was just days old. So adorable!
There is now much room for growth of the rabbit "farm".
Then on to the school, where I was able to deliver three musical instruments for our school band. Thank you to Bruce and Christ Community Chapel for your generosity. If you have a musical instrument you or anyone you know would like to donate please contact Bruce Hilburn at civilwarsword@gmail.com
PLEASE donate them in "ready to play" condition. We appreciate if you have them cleaned, conditioned and repaired prior to donating them. THANK YOU so much!

I may lose the internet again (electricity keeps going on and off today) so let me make a couple of other requests and then the next time I am able I will update you with this week's activities here at the school.

We need donations specifically for two things. Checks can be made to COCINA and sent to COCINA, P.O. Box 12685, Columbus, OH 43212, for the following:
1. Construction of three bathrooms at the Clinic, so that the three inpatient rooms we have allocated can have private bathrooms in each room. Construction is to begin this month.
2. Six Philo students need to sit for the TOEFL exam - the cost is $160.00 each.

Please email me or comment to me with your contact information if  you are able to donate - ANY amount is welcome! marylee.lewis@gmail.com

Bondye Beni Ou (God bless you)!