In July and August, Hope in Haiti sent 16 team members to assist with two youth summer camps–one in Nan Wo, and one in Port au Prince. As part of the Nan Wo camp, our team taught various job and life skills. Here’s a sample of one of those skills, weaving:

When Tuesday morning arrived, it was “go time” all over the church property at Eglise Evangelique Bethel de Haut-Marchand in rural Haiti. Teens everywhere were giddy with excitement and anticipation as the activities of summer camp began to take off.

They were also more than ready to dry off a little, as the Monday night’s rainstorms flooded a few of the tents.

16 Americans were also in the camp, just as eager for the festivities to take off. We had been planning this for months, hoping to have the experience of helping out with a Haitian-run ministry. So what did our team contribute to the camp? We came to help in any way we could, but our hope was to teach some skills that the teens could use as basic life and job skills. One of the major parts of our work was the weaving workshop

Men and women of all ages couldn't wait to use the back-strap looms

Susie, a teammate from Washington State brought a dozen back-strap looms to teach the campers how to weave some basic things like headbands, guitar straps and belts. This turned out to be a huge hit! Young men in their early twenties worked their hearts out on their weaving projects and hated having to quit so that others could take their turns. People were asking when they could weave again as soon as they were done. Everywhere you went in camp, the

fruits of their labors were tied around their waists or heads or folded with care in the tents.

In between weaving lessons, our team had to restring all the looms and prepare them for another round. It took a lot of time and work, but the joy it brought to them was worth it. We are so grateful to Susie and the whole team who worked to bring this useful and beautiful skill to the next generation of Haitians.

Praise God for this opportunity to share His love with our Haitian brothers and sisters!

This has been a contribution by Brandon and Grace Gloor. For more on the summer Hope in Haiti trip, and to learn about Brandon and Grace’s ministry, check out our blog at ntm.org/brandon_gloor