By SUSAN BLOWER
Indiana Correspondent

MILROY, Ind. — Five days after the devastating earthquake rocked Haiti, a missionary team sent from Milroy United Methodist Church and St. Luke’s in Indianapolis finally found their way home, safe and sound.

The team arrived at the mission orphanage and school, about 30 miles southwest of the epicenter, on Jan. 11 - the day before the quake struck. They had just finished preparing a room to paint.
Now, they believe, the orphanage and school have been reduced to a heap of rubble.

“We are thankful (to be safe), but our hearts are heavy and sad with what we’ve left behind,” said Colleen Mahan, who was on her third – and probably final – trip to Haiti.

Mahan, a farmwife who works for Midwest Ag in Rushville, spent three nights on the side of a mountain with the other nine Hoosiers before they could secure motorbikes to ride to a hospital compound in Leogane. From there they made their way to the embassy and military flights out to the United States.

“We heard rocks crumbling, crying, wailing and chanting through the whole night,” Mahan said. “The Haitians were praying.”

One of the missionaries worked to pull people from the collapsed buildings, Mahan remembered. She said he had to be running on adrenaline.

Milroy team members included Chantel Fowler, J.D. and Ben Wicker, and Mahan.

For Mahan those days are hazy, running together. Eating little and spending cool nights out in the open were difficult, but she said the Haitians can only expect tougher times ahead. They are headed into the rainy season soon.

For their family and church members at home, the time it took to hear word passed slowly. With communications down, they spent the time gathering for a prayer meeting, as early as Wednesday morning, Jan. 13, and hoping for the best.

“We were frightened, but our faith kept us strong. We knew our prayers would bring them home,” said Bec Wicker, wife and mother to two team members, J.D. and Ben Wicker. The Wickers are dairy farmers in east-central Indiana.

Bec Wicker, who works with Mahan at Midwest Ag, said her emotions were like a “roller-coaster” ride as the church received second-hand reports of their safety. On Jan. 14, they received the first reliable message from a doctor who had seen them while treating the injured.

Wicker believes the team was “lucky to survive with no injuries,” but she is concerned with the plight of the Haitian people.

“The Haitians really need our help and prayers. The best way to help is to send money,” she said.

She recommended two options for those who want to direct their donations to help the region near Fondwa, the site of the mission. Donors can go to the website www.familyHM.org or they can write to: Hearts in Hope for Haiti, 530 Round Hill Road, Indianapolis, IN 42620.

Mahan doesn’t know what has become of the orphans they left behind. The mission’s future is unclear, she said, and her family doesn’t want her to return out of concern for her safety.
“I told my sponsored child goodbye. I don’t know if I will see her again,” Mahan said.