Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Upward Spirals: A Shared Sense of Humanity in Haiti

Christa notes:
I'm only halfway up the climb,
but I finished the hardest part!
When things go wrong, it's easy to get caught in a downward spiral, a whirlpool that sucks you in and seems impossible to escape. But some stories show that in life we can also create and add to the momentum of an upward spiral, a current of events capable of pulling up not only ourselves, but countless others.

Even just one small deed can be the blast of fresh air that lifts a kite into the sky. An upward spiral is when that one thing leads to or joins with another and another until it is a whirlwind with incredible momentum.
  • It is the volunteers who leave their home and country to help others gain things that we in first-world countries take for granted.
  • It is the student-cum-rescuer who refuses to give up and goes as far as it takes to save the life of a foreigner.
  • It is the complete stranger, a child, who sees someone in pain and reaches out to hold their hand.
  • It is the amputee who inspires others as she relearns to walk, to run, and to climb rocks and ice.
  • It is the victim of a natural disaster who in her moment of greatest agony makes a promise and keeps it.
  • It is all those who hear a story and put their time, money, and hearts into supporting someone else's dream.
  • It is the countless others who are never in the spotlight, but who dedicate their lives to saving lives, rehabilitating the injured, rebuilding what's been broken, or building what never was.

This is the story of many not-so-everyday heroes: Christa Brelsford, Wenson Georges, Gerald Lumarque, Julian Brelsford, Kent Annon, emergency workers, surgeons, community leaders, volunteers, and many more.

On January 12, 2010, a magnitude-7.0 earthquake, the largest in more than 100 years, struck Port-au-Prince and reduced much of central Haiti to rubble. Christa Brelsford was in Darbonne, just south of the capital, volunteering for a literacy project. As the earth and buildings began to shake, she, her brother, Julian, and three colleagues were about to get on the internet -- in a second-story room. As they fled, the house began to crumble. Christa fell on the stairs, and rubble rained around her. A huge chunk of cement dropped, crushing her leg and pinning her in the debris.

As for so many others, that tragic day could have been the end for Christa. But Gerald Lumarque, Wenson Georges, and Julian labored for hours to rescue her. They broke up the larger pieces of rock with a pick ax and dug her out. When they finally broke her free of the debris, Gerald took the driver's seat on his motorcycle, and Wenson climbed on behind, holding the injured Christa like an infant as they rode through rubble-covered streets to a United Nations peacekeeping mission where she received rudimentary medical attention (and cookies). Wenson stayed with her. He sat so that his body blocked a glaring light, hoping it might allow her to sleep and escape her pain. He gave her his clothes when she complained of being cold. He made sure the embassy knew about her and the severity of her condition so that she would be medevaced out and receive the treatment she needed.

But Wenson was not the only one watching out for the injured foreigner.

"While I was laying on the ground at the military base, the Sri Lankan doctors were trying to remove a piece of concrete embedded in my left leg," Christa wrote on her website. "It was quite painful, and I sat up looking for something to hold on to. A little boy noticed me, came over, and held my hand until the doctors had finished."

Christa was medavaced to Miami, where surgeons had to amputate part of her right leg, but as she sat in the hospital room, she didn't succumb to self-pity -- she made a promise.

"When I was in the hospital after the earthquake, the two most important things that came to mind were: Get the school rebuilt and help the kid (Wenson) who dug me out," said Christa. "I promised myself that I would return to help them."

She started Christa's Angels, a foundation to help quake survivors, and with the help of Haiti Partners, she has kept that promise. On November 21, she was back in Haiti for the inauguration ceremony for the Cabois Community School, where 177 students are receiving an education in the newly rebuilt facilities.

Christa has also been working on her other promise by trying to secure a visa for Wenson to come to the United States. The paperwork has been submitted, and she hopes that he will be able to visit and interview for the the visa in January.

A note on Christa's website says:
This experience has reinforced my faith in the basic goodness of humanity. People step up and do the right thing when they’re given the chance. I’m just a ordinary kid who had one big bite of bad luck, and an even bigger bite of very very good luck. The bad luck was completely impersonal. Getting caught in a house was just timing. However, the good luck that I had was the result of deliberate human choices to be kind and compassionate. People stepped in at the right time, chose to help me out, and made things happen in order to get me safe. I was lucky, but the behavior I saw in the immediate aftermath of this terrible disaster wasn’t the violence and selfishness that people fear. My experience in that terribly time was one of compassion, helpfulness, and a shared sense of humanity.

Watch interviews with those involved:

Christa shortly after the amputation



Christa about keeping her promises and a tearful reunion with Wenson



Kent Annon of Haiti Partners talks with Wenson and Gerald about Christa's rescue






Related books and videos:
Posted by tania at 11:41 PM
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