Making of Sugarcane Cutters and Mission Ryan

Greetings to all who are helping Mission Ryan to help the people of Haiti.

Haitian families are traveling to the Dominican Republic (DR) searching for their injured family members who were flown to DR trauma hospitals. If they were lucky enough to find their love ones with their body parts chopped off, they find themselves in a dilemma. They can go back to Haiti to their rubble houses and to the tent city. If they go back to Haiti, they must endure looking for water and food in that ‘dead-body-eating-rat-city’. If they are stuck in the Dominican Republic, most of those Haitian transients will soon become Sugarcane Cutters.

So here is that vicious cycle of 'the making of a sugarcane cutter.’ It is logical for them to stay in DR where food and water is available. The only problem is that it is not free; they must work for it. Jobs are already scarce as it is and it is almost impossible especially for those who do not speak the language and being illegal. It is not hard to become a sugarcane cutter; just walk onto the plantations, machete the God forsaken sugarcane for a few pesos. The new misery are being created that Mission Ryan may alleviate some.

Mark Zimmerman and I will do the following in Feb 2010:

* Arrive 3 pm at Santo Domingo, DR on 2/17. Rent a SUV from the airport.
* Buy milk, infant formulas for the kids and supplies, etc. Drive (7 hours) to Descubierta, a border town; long drive but it will save us a half-day.                                                                                                                   
* 2/18 A.M. cross the border to Port au Prince (3 hours drive).
* Go to Maison des Enfante de Dieu Orphanage This is where Dave Hubner adopted his baby. Deliver milk, infant food, and supplies.
* Deliver medical care to the orphans. It would not only be primary but also secondary and teriary medical care. (Sleep on their floor.)
* Meet up with Humanity First Doctors and work with them to provide secondary and tertiary medical care. (Sleep on their floor)
* Pitch SUV-clinic in the middle of a tents area; don’t worry; it is not hard to find because the whole city is made up of tents.
* Meet up with Dominican and Haitian partners and plan for the next steps.

Mission Ryan’s original plans and the goals have not changed but rather have become bigger as we help the extra sugarcane cutters coming onto the sugarcane plantations.

SO HELP AND TELL OTHERS TO HELP US TO HELP THEM.

Sincerely
Julian Choe MD
Chief Executive Officer c/o Mission Ryan