Anchelo was racing through the playground with his friends when he heard the noise. A loud rumble filled the air, and he stopped in his tracks. He lifted his head and shielded his eyes from the sun as the large, silver machine took to the air. He watched it pass over, leaving a trail of white smoke against the clear, blue sky. “Wow,” he whispered to himself. He returned to the play before him, laughed loudly with his friends. Every time the sound filled the air, though, they all stopped and looked up to see the planes take flight.
Rescue of God Children’s Home, a newer partnership in Haiti, recently went on their very first field trip. “Many of the children have only ever been up the road from where they live, so seeing Port au Prince was a new experience,” explained Aaron Meeks, Back2Back staff. Earlier in November, Rescue of God captains, Jimmy Francois and Aaron Meeks, took the children to a museum of Haitian history.
“The children don’t actually learn a lot of Haitian history in school,” shared Jimmy. “We thought it would be a good opportunity for them to learn more about the country in which they live.”
They began at the museum, learning about their country’s rich history, then enjoyed a picnic lunch together at a local restaurant. The afternoon ended with the children playing at the restaurant’s playground and watching airplanes take off from a nearby airport.
“Most of the children had never seen such a nice playground before,” shared Jimmy. “They enjoyed trying out all the new equipment.”
Twelve-year old Anchelo loved the playground just as much as the other children, but the field trip also left a different impact on the young boy. Anchelo approached Jimmy after the day ended, “Jimmy, I had a lot of fun; I learned a lot about Haiti, and I loved playing on the playground, but what I’d really like to do is see the inside of an airplane!”
Jimmy smiled and bent down to look Anchelo in the eyes. “I know God knows your hope to see the inside of an airplane one day. I know we can do things to see our hopes become reality, but I also know asking for what we want never hurts, either.” Anchelo smiled and closed his eyes. Jimmy called out to God, lifted up Anchelo’s dream of seeing inside an airplane, and asked God to hear their prayers.
They both whispered amen, and Jimmy high-fived Anchelo. Special outings for the children at Rescue of God Children’s Home are so much more than seeing more of their country, it’s giving each boy and girl the opportunity to go boldly before their Father with renewed hope.
