September RAINS!!! Planting, a roof and more...

Patiently Waiting

Months have passed with little to no rain. September the rain started! We praise the LORD for this rain. 

Two different occasions provided RAIN!

The PLANTING begins again. 

There are still challenges with the planting. Worms that come to eat and the need for more water. 

SO...

We are thankful for the water cistern! 

The NEW ROOF IS ON!!!

Thankful for the provisions to finish the roof on the WATER HOUSE. The cistern holds 9,000 gallons and with our new roof we trust that the sun will not take our precious water. 

What is NEXT?

Tree Nursery... during the next few months Samuel will continue to work with Manes. Together they will work with some others in the community to build a simple yet functional tree nursery that others would be able to replicate. 

Thankful and Blessed! 

The TEAM at Samuel's Trees

July ideas....

Let us begin...

We collected the ideas from July and will pray and ask those in the community how to begin the tree nursery. 

Thank you for those who have walked with us through this en-devour.

We are excited to see how planting the bawonn tree, for charcoal, will help alleviate people's financial burdens and hopefully diminish deforestation. 

donations to: Lemuel –Samuel’s Trees

When you LOOK DOWN!

“WOW, THEY TOOK!” 

I had no idea what I was about to step on till Manes bent down and carefully touched the new leaves. Weeks ago Manes scattered bawon seeds on the ground. This is how you plant them. A little water was given and LOOK they are growing! This will be the next crop of trees!!! 

 We so appreciate ideas that are shared with us and words of encouragement. These are passed on to our staff here. Manes was so thrilled to hear how people respond that he wanted to have a good picture taken of him and his son. He wanted to stand beside the trees that he's working very hard to keep alive during this drought. 

“It’s just like LIFE”

“Look how they grow” Manes showed me the work he did with the mango trees. Manes has been working really hard to keep the trees alive during the drought. He told me that without a source of water the trees would be dead. To help the little trees keep growing, Manes has collected fertilizer and covered the base of each tree. The results have been a foot of growth. “You know, these trees are like our lives, without care we don’t grow” he told me. I asked Manes if that was the same for our spiritual life. His eyes looked down, “I guess it’s true, but I don’t know how”.

Thankful for opportunities we have to learn from one another. 

Hard . Cold . Facts

You can look on the internet and see that Haiti still has a HUGE problem with deforestation. WHY? 60%-70% of Haiti’s energy source is charcoal. There are many efforts around Haiti trying to fight this problem but the reality IS people will still use charcoal and it doesn’t look like that will change any time soon. 

SO…what makes Samuel’s Trees so different than other reforestation projects? Well, we are not only planting trees but we are planting a tree FOR CHARCOAL. The bawon tree can grow in very arid conditions, it grows quickly, and it’s great for making charcoal.

WHY NOT?

On the land we are introducing an idea of planting bawon as a crop with a 5 year rotation. Every 5 years you cut and re-plant and so on.

But not today…

We will not see the results of what we are doing for some time. Right now we are planting, watering, and creating jobs for men in our community. AS the work continues, we are praying and trusting God to show us the people he’s wanting us to invest in. Those who truly have the desire to continue the work.

Thank you for allowing us to share these stories and experiences with you. 

HEAT, DROUGHT...yet they GROW!

...and they continue to grow!

Several places around us have confirmed the unusual high temperatures. Yet, with heat, no rain, and filed crops around us, our drip system seems to be working! NOT all the grains have survived but the corn and beans are making it!

IDEA SHARING MONTH!!!

IDEA SHARING MONTH!!!

The team at Samuel’s Trees would like to ask you for your ideas! This month we are inviting you to share your ideas of how you would design a tree nursery? You can share a link, something you have seen or done yourself, WE ARE OPEN TO ALL!

Details:

-9,500 square feet of land designated for the tree nursery

-9,000 gallon water cistern. Water is trucked from a natural spring an hour away. 

-we are in a dry arid area that has been deforested due to years of drought. 

-we would like to start trees like mango, papaya, lime, orange, coconut, acacia, neem, bawon, and MORE.

THANK YOU IN ADVANCE for sharing your ideas! 

Resistance and Change...

“This is my father’s land, and you won’t clear it!”

The last two weeks Lemuel has provided some funds to help encourage a community near Samuel’s Trees land to clean out all the thorn bushes so it can be prepared for planting trees. While most are seeing how important this is others are fearful.  Some fear that their land is being taken from them.  In addition, it is believed that the thorns protect you from roaming evil spirits.  Jinel stood by the man and listened, then explained why they were clearing the land. The man started to relax and soon the men were on his land working.

Our desire to have a tree nursery filled with trees ready for this community to start planting trees.

If you would like to help us build this tree nursery we are praying we will have all the funds needed by August. 

CLICK HERE, Designate donations to: Lemuel –Samuel’s Trees

a way we can help...

They planted and the worms ate…

Two weeks ago the inch and a half of rain was enough to encourage people to go to their gardens to plant! Last week WORMS came and have eaten most of what they planted. One man was so discouraged he said he couldn’t go back out to the garden again. We take time to encourage those around us.

Our drip irrigation system is still working and the WORMS have not yet come. We have a tree growing called Neem that we can make a natural pesticide with the seeds. 

The Tree Nursery will be a place where we can provide trees like the Neem tree to farmers around us.

To give to the Tree Nursery now:

CLICK HERE, Designate donations to: Lemuel –Samuel’s Trees

ANNOUNCING TODAY!!!

WE WANT TO ANNOUNCE TODAY that ALL funds will be NOW going through Lemuel’s partner Extreme Response. They are a North American non-profit organization dedicated to providing relief and support to people living in extreme conditions.  We are grateful for all the money raised on GoFundMe! We will now close those sites.  

 

IN YOUR HONOR…

We have planted a tree in your honour, and placed a rock with your name on it. Those of you who continue to give through Extreme Response will have a tree planted in your honor as well. This is our way to say THANK YOU!!!

AND NOW…

WE ARE READY and SO ARE THEY!!!

A lot of families have been working very hard through this drought to clean their yards and prepare for planting trees. WE NEED A TREE NURSERY, so that we can start seedlings. WHY? Trees need a good start if they are going to survive. WE want them to SURVIVE! SO…with your donations to Extreme Response we want to start raising the $15,000 we need to construct the tree nursery. Our goal is to start construction by this August! Can WE DO IT??? 

CLICK HERE, Designate donations to: Lemuel –Samuel’s Trees

“You will SEE!”

Walking over to the land this afternoon, I saw Manès starting to fill the buckets for the irrigation system. “Bonita, you will see! I am going to work very hard and you will see!” Manès told me. “What am I going to see?” I asked him. “A beautiful garden!”

  This may be true! Today the beans are starting to push out of the ground and others are already 2’’ high!  

Still not sure…

Almost a week ago today Samuel and Michael finished designing the drip irrigation system. They were determined to find items here in Haiti that others in the community could one day purchase: large buckets, elevated platform, medical syringe, and black hose.

Thursday, the system was set up.

 Friday evening, we all planted millet, beans, corn and other vegetables.

 Early Saturday morning, it RAINED! Not much, but it was enough to soak the ground.

Monday evening, we finished planting.

Tuesday….the first plot of millet is COMING UP!!!

There is still speculation among the community as to how and if it will work. One commented, “If there is no rain, you will lose your crop.” It’s hard to understand something so different then what they are used to. If there is no rain will we still have a crop? We think, “YES!”