Haiti Field Diary - Part 1
Haiti September 2021 - NATAN and Operation Blessing Aid Delegation
Field Diary by Dr. Sharon Kronfeld Shaul
Monday, September 13, 2021
After two days of travel from Israel via Madrid and Santo Domingo, which involved filling out countless forms, health declarations and security checks, we reached our destination.
In our experienced team: Oded – our champion of logistics, Eitan – the Social Worker and Resilience expert, Yael and I are family doctors.
Some of us had visited Haiti 11 years ago as part of NATAN’s relief operation following the severe earthquake that struck the area. Over the long road in the last two days, we reminisced about the difficult experiences and also the pleasant ones from those days.
The people of Haiti remained in our hearts, and we even kept in touch with some of them through social media.
At the airport in Port-au-Prince, we were greeted by Jenny, a young Haitian doctor who has been managing Operation Blessing’s medical team in Haiti. Jenny brought us a stockpile of drugs generously purchased by Operation Blessing, our remarkable partner in this mission.
NATAN Team arrives in Les Cayes, Haiti - Sept. 13, 2021 -Left to Right: Dr. Yael Gillerman, Dr. Eitan Shahar, Oded Regev, Dr. Sharon Kronfeld Shaul
We were sorry to hear from Jenny about the difficult security situation. Kidnappings and robberies paralyze city activity. Other organizations reported delays in their activities due to the dangers of driving in areas affected by violent encounters with gangs on the roads.
We followed security instructions, avoided venturing out into the city and took our flight to the area affected by the current earthquake that occurred on August 14th. In the afternoon we landed in the city of Les Cayes, which we expect to use as the base for our relief activities in the surrounding villages affected by the quake.
Port au Prince, Haiti - Sept. 13, 2021: NATAN-OB Team. Left to Right: Dr. Yael Gillerman, Dr. Sharon Kronfeld Shaul, Jenny Flor, Oded Regev, Dr. Eitan Shahar
We were greeted by Jordanie, our driver and translator who will accompany us in the coming days. Jordanie, married and father of a child, is studying civil engineering in the Dominican Republic.
In the evening, we prepared our bags of medicines and medical supplies.
Les Cayes, Haiti, Sept. 13 - Dr Sharon Kronfeld Shaul and Dr Yael Gillerman pack medical supplies for NATAN/OB field clinic
Ready and excited for the first day of activity tomorrow morning. Tomorrow we (Yael and I) will open a medical field clinic in Duchity, a village of 6,000 souls - just 14 miles but 2 hours’ drive from Les Cayes. Eitan and Oded will check the needs in the village of Marceline.
Les Cayes, Haiti - Sept. 13, 2021: Oded Regev packs supplies for NATAN/OB field clinic