8/14/2019 Interview with Lt. Stephenson

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The VanCougar:

When was your

trip taken?

Lt. Stephenson: We leftJanuary 24 and arrived back 

home on January 31. Our 

medical team met in Miami

and ew on a chartered

aircraft directly into the Port

Au Prince airport. We were

fortunate to be allowed

into Port Au Prince, which

was crowded with relief 

and cargo operations. The

alternative was to y into

the Dominican Republic

and drive about eight hours

into Haiti.What was the purpose

of this trip? Did you go

with an organization or

through work?

I was part of a medical

relief team organized and

sponsored by Compassion

International. Compassion

is a Christ-centered, child-

focused child-development

organization working

through local evangelical

churches that seek to help

children in poverty living

in developing countries.

Compassion has been

working in Haiti since

the late ‘60s and there are

over 65,000 children in the

 program. Our team’s mission

was to provide medical

treatment and support to

areas surrounding some of 

the affected Compassion

 projects. Our team included

a mix of medical specialties

and skills intended to staff a mobile clinic that could

  provide care in the eld.

Our team of ten included an

orthopedic surgeon, three

general practice physicians,

three pediatric ICU nurses,

two paramedics, and an

administrative leadership

 person.

From your experience,

what do you feel is the

immediate need of the

Haitian people after the

earthquake? Is thereany need that has been

not been met with Relief 

efforts? In the long term,

what is needed?

Haiti was already the

  poorest country in the

Western Hemisphere

  before the earthquake. The

devastation that I saw there

was worse than anything I

have ever encountered. Most

  people are now homeless

and living in streets and

  parks because their homes

were destroyed. The people

are afraid to stay inside thefew buildings still standing

  because of the devastation

and the signicant number 

of aftershocks that continued

to shake the country. Their 

greatest immediate need is

shelter. Organizations and

governments from many

nations have responded with

help and continue to provide

support, care, food, and

water to the people as best as

 possible. The infrastructure

of the Haitian governmentthat was already weak is

now nearly absent. Due to

this, even organizing the

task of clearing the rubble

so that rebuilding can begin

is a major problem. The

rainy season is due in a

few weeks and will bring

with it new hardship and

threat of disease spread.

There are still thousands

of decomposing bodies

trapped under the rubble

all over the area. Relief 

efforts are continuing and

are well organized. The

United Nations is there and

is working hard to distribute

and protect food and water 

so it reaches the people in

need. The United States

military is operating the

airport and is conducting

around the clock ight

operations to maintain a

supply line. The port is

  partially operational again  but a large amount of the

needed cargo and support

still has to be transported

from the Dominican

Republic via roadways and

this takes more time to reach

the people in need. While

I witnessed an excellent

world relief response, that

response must continue and

will be needed long into the

future before Haiti can stand

on its own and rebuild.

What is a better wayof helping: providing

monetary funds or specic

things (food clothes/

medical supplies)?

I think the most efcient

way to help is to donate

money to a well known

and well respected aid

organization with an

account fund for assisting

Haiti. Additionally,

many churches and aid

organizations have in place

collection and transport

for needed items such as

tents, sleeping bags, shoes,food, and water. It is often

easier to purchase those

items with donated funds

and get them shipped

directly to the country

than for an organization to

collect, store, and transport

actual donated goods. If 

you have skills that can be

useful in assisting people

or rebuilding, I strongly

recommend volunteering

with a relief organization to

 participate in a relief team.Is the response enough

to bring Haiti back out

of the rubble? What

kinds of organizations

did you encounter while

you were there? Are we

doing enough? Did you see

progress?

I was impressed by the

response from all over the

world. They do not yet

have enough relief and I’m

not sure “enough” is even

  possible. It will take years

for experts with heavy

equipment to get Port Au

Prince to a point where they

can begin rebuilding. Each

day, I saw Haitians moving

debris and rubble by hand

and trying to sweep and

straighten up (trying to get

life back to some semblance

of normal). They are using

 brooms made of sticks with

a few pieces of straw tied

to them and shovels madeof scrap and sticks. Seeing

their determination and

will to rebuild their homes

strengthened my resolve

to continue to send help

and not forget them. I saw

various aid organizations

arriving from many areas

and disciplines. Numerous

eld hospitals and mobile

medical clinic teams were

in the country. However,

my concern is that this level

of support may not continuefor as long as it will take to

rebuild this area and that the

Haitian people will be left

to manage with less than

adequate resources.

How did this trip affect

you personally?

Profoundly; I’ve traveled

extensively and spent time

in developing countries.

I’ve seen poverty and have

  been moved to do what

I can to help on many

occasions. What I saw in

Haiti touched me more

deeply than anything I’veexperienced. Devastation

on top of previously existing

  poverty is choking and

seems to promote a feeling

of hopelessness. Yet the

 people I met are resourceful,

friendly, helpful, loving,

hopeful, and grateful. They

freely share what little they

have and, despite their own

suffering, were concerned

about my comfort while I

was with them. I am deeply

touched and proud to have  been able to help these

 people in a small way.

As a member of local

Law enforcement, what do

you think are some of the

problems Haitians face in

terms of keeping law and

order?

Crime often accompanies

  poverty. The main prison

in Port Au Prince that

housed the country’s worst

criminals was destroyed in

the earthquake and many

  prisoners escaped into the

city. There are currently

not enough resources to

recapture them and they

are not a priority when

so much life remains in

danger. They will continue

to be an issue for the people

as long as they are at large.

Country law enforcement

is present and is trying to

keep order and protect the

infrastructure that remains.They are augmented by

military support from the

UN, Britain, and the United

States. I was pleased to see

how the UN operated on

food and water distribution

missions and witnessed the

  people react in an orderly

and purposeful way. I did

not witness any looting or 

violence associated with

the distributions but I am

aware that it is happening

on an infrequent basis andsecurity remains necessary

when transporting and

distributing food, water, and

medical supplies.

How can the campus

and the local community

help the people of Haiti?

Give money to reputable

relief organizations and/or 

align with an organization

that can get donated goods

into the country and into the

hands of the people that need

it. Above all, don’t forget

their need and don’t let

others forget. Haiti will needall of our support for a long

time. The most important

thing I can say is that we

can’t forget Haiti once the

media moves on to covering

something else. The Haitian

  people I encountered on

my trip amazed me with

their strength, resilience,

gratefulness, and

determination but they will

need our continued help to

recover and rebuild from

this overwhelming tragedy.What message/advice

would you like to give to

volunteers/relief workers

going to Haiti?

Check with the travel

clinic before you go for 

needed immunizations and

advice. While water and

food was widely available

while I was there, I’d

always plan to take basic

food and water supplies

with me. A water lter is a

great idea and a good asset

in any developing country.

Haiti is hot and humid for us

northern atlanders so you

need to plan on drinking

lots of water and staying

hydrated while you are

there.

Will you be going back?

I would love to go back.

I hope to be invited again

on a similar relief mission.

Otherwise, I will return

someday to visit friends Imade while there.

 

  In order to help

the victims, WSUV group

known as Haiti Relief 

Coalition will be holding 

 series of fundraising events

throughout this semester.

The group is rallying 

behind the motto, “if every

Coug gave a dollar” and is

hoping to raise $3000. The

raised funds will go throughthe WSU Alumni group,

who will be distributing the

  funds to an organization

currently working in Haiti.

Cougs willing to join

the efforts of the group

can e-mail the group at 

vancougdisasterrelief@

  gmail.com . Also, look for 

red donation jar around 

campus to donate.

The VanCougar interviews Lt. Stephenson