Hey everyone,
I’ve spent the better part of the last month with boots on the ground in both Haiti and Abaco. When you travel between different nations, you quickly realize how vastly different the environments, governments, and challenges are. But you also realize that the human desire for dignity is universal.
While I was walking the grounds in the Caribbean, I kept thinking about a very specific event that happened back in the freezing cold of Iowa last month.
1 Story of Impact
In January, on a day when the temperatures in Iowa plummeted below zero, a group of around 25 volunteers bundled up and showed up. Their mission? To pack a massive shipping container bound for Haiti.
But the story of that container actually started long before that freezing morning.
The container itself was provided by the Vos Family Foundation, a legacy gift intended to bless Pella-area nonprofits. The cargo inside included late Christmas gifts for the children in our programs, but more importantly, it was loaded with PET (Personal Energy Transportation) carts—sturdy, hand-cranked wheelchairs designed for rugged terrain. These carts didn’t just appear; they were hand-crafted by hundreds of dedicated volunteers at Mobility Worldwide.
Getting it ready to ship required our staff to grind behind the scenes, making connections with shipping companies and organizing all the accompanying materials.
And the chain doesn’t stop in Iowa. When that container finally reaches the port in Haiti, a large contingent of our Haitian staff will make the difficult journey to secure it and bring it back to the Many Hands campus. From there, a group of our dedicated staff and spiritual shepherds will personally distribute these carts to the most needy and vulnerable in our region.
In places like Haiti, a lack of mobility often means one is completely isolated. For individuals who have lost the use of their legs, their entire world is reduced to the patch of ground they can crawl across. They are literally and figuratively looked down upon.
But when a Haitian man or woman is lifted out of the dust and placed into the seat of a PET cart, everything shifts. They are elevated 24 inches. They can look people in the eye. They can travel to the market, attend church, and become active participants in their community.
This is what we call the Chain of Intervention. It starts with a foundation’s treasure. It moves to hundreds of people giving their time to build carts and pack a container in sub-zero weather. It crosses an ocean, unseen in the dark of a cargo ship, until our Haitian staff uses their talent to place a person on that cart.
We don’t always see the immediate results of our work, but the container of PET carts reminds me that unseen work is never wasted.
A box packed in the freezing winter of Iowa becomes a vehicle of dignity in the spring of Haiti. That is Love in Action.
3 Points to Ponder
- The Power of Elevation: A PET cart doesn’t heal a person’s legs, but it lifts them off the ground so they can look the world in the eye. Sometimes, the best way to help someone isn’t to fix their problem, but to change their vantage point. Who in your life needs you to help lift them up so they can see their own potential?
- The Unseen Middle: Between the packing of the container and the delivery of the cart is a long, slow journey across the ocean. In our instant-gratification culture, we often quit when we are in the “unseen middle” of a project or a dream. Where do you need to trust the process right now between the seed you planted and the harvest you are waiting for?
- Your Link in the Chain: The person riding the cart in Haiti will likely never meet the volunteer who packed it in Iowa or the person who built it at Mobility Worldwide. True impact doesn’t require recognition; it just requires participation. What “unseen” act of service can you perform this week that will eventually become a breakthrough for someone else?
2 Quotes to Share
“Action with and for those who suffer is the concrete expression of the compassionate life.” — Henri Nouwen
“The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.” — Nelson Henderson
As we move through this week, are you willing to do the hidden work today that will mobilize someone else tomorrow?
Feel free to reply and share — I read every response.
Live with impact,
Tim
