Haitian Diaries: Arrival

Monday, March 26, 2007
Our team arrived at Port-au-Prince at 7:30AM. When I got off the plane, it was like being back in Freetown, Sierra Leone, except it was at night back then. The airport in Freetown was quite chaotic compared to the one here. It was bigger and cleaner, and no one was shouting to get your attention to be your "guide." The road outside seemed cleaner than Freetown, but it's still quite a mess. I was surprised that no one solicited us when we made stops near the airport. Many of the team members were complaining about the car pollution, but I almost didn't notice. I suppose I had gotten used to it in Kenya.

The House of Love, which is where we're staying, is only about 15 minutes from the airport. The orphans and the Bible college students that are training there can speak and understand some Korean, which surprised me. People called the lady pastor (Pastor Baek) who runs the place "mok-sa-nim" ("pastor" in Korean), and kids around the village called everyone one of us "mok-sa-nim," probably because Pastor Baek had ministered to these kids.

We went to a place called Fontain, where Pastor Baek is building a new orphanage. There were about 30-40 kids around, and we made them balloon figures (I made dogs and flowers most of the time) and gave them some bread.

Afterwards, we went to a clothing factory (called Willbes) run by Koreans. It was mainly to meet some of the managers there. It was quite interesting to see how they mass produced these shirts destined for Target in the US.

The kids here at the orphanage are so adorable. I just wish I could speak more French/Creole. I picked one up knowing that I would have to pick up every single one after that, but it was worth it. I love kids. I've started practicing my French with some of the students. They're pretty cool. Some of them are around my age and speak bits and pieces of Anglais. Must practice. I want to be fluent in French and Creole before I return to the States.

Tomorrow we start the clinic. Getting up at 4:30AM for early morning prayer. The electricity here is very scarce. I hear that they get 2 hours a day on average. I thought it was a scheduled 2 hours, but apparently it's kind of random when it will be on. I only have 25min left on my laptop battery, so I suppose I'll just have to leave it plugged in tomorrow and hope that it gets charged sometime during the day (and not get blown up during the process).

Haitian Diaries: Mountains Beyond Mountains

Sunday, March 25, 2007
"Beyond mountains there are mountains" is an Haitian proverb. I just finished reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder on my flight to Miami (and I'm typing this on the plane). It's a book about Paul Farmer, a doctor who has done and is doing some amazing things for the poor (and the sick) around the world, including Haiti. The book was especially meaningful because Farmer is an example of the type of doctor I want to be and the kind of attitude I want to have towards patients and the poor. It's very inspiring.

So why am I flying to Miami? Actually that's not my destination. It's just a brief stop where I can get access to the internet (for the last time in a while) and post this blog entry before I enter the land of "mountains beyond mountains." That's right, I'm on my way to Haiti.

I'm flying with a medical missionary team from Abundant Mission Church in LA. We'll be running a free clinic for a week, and the team will leave while I stay there for 3 more months.

I don't know much details yet (as it is often the case with my trips), but I'll be staying with a missionary who is in her 60s and runs an orphanage. So most likely I'll be teaching English and songs and stuff like that. It would be really cool to visit Zanmi Lasante (Paul Farmer's hospital) in Cange in the central plateau. I could really learn something important from there.

I'm told that where I'll be staying they only have electricity 2 hours a day and no internet, even though it's in Port Au Prince (capital of Haiti). I'll have to go find an internet cafe to get online. I'm going to miss broadband, but I think I'll be fine (I did survive Masai Land without electricity or running water for a month, and I would still go back there.)

Please keep me and the team in your prayers. I will post on the blog as often as possible (probably every time I get access to it).

I'll be back June 28.

[Obviously I didn't get access to internet in Miami, hence I'm posting this two weeks later in Haiti]

UCLA: Goodbye Sheldon

Oh, Sheldon. How can I ever forget him? I was his next door neighbor. I interviewed him for a paper I wrote for an English class. I was one of the summer house managers when he lived at the house. His rent checks never went through, but we didn't notice until he ran away (to live at Powell Library) and we found the bounced checks hidden in his room! I believe he still has an outstanding balance of over $3000. Oh, the good old days... Go Baspell!

Link to article:
http://www.dailybruin.com/news/2007/jan/30/man-36-allegedly-posed-as-stud/ (-ent)

Man, 36, allegedly posed as student

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

After allegedly posing as a UCLA student for at least two years, Sheldon Ross, 36, was arrested on Dec. 31, 2006 for burglary and illegally accessing university computers and will be tried on Thursday for identity fraud, university officials said.

Karen Gentilucci, a university police detective, said this is the third time UCPD officers have arrested Ross on these charges. The first was on July 29, 2006 and the second on Dec. 22 of the same year. She also noted that at the time of Ross’s first arrest, he had an outstanding felony warrant in Alameda County for grand-theft credit card fraud.

Ross could not be reached for comment Monday.

In the past years, Ross has infiltrated UCLA life: He wrote an article for the Bruin Standard and a submission to the Daily Bruin Viewpoint section, played rugby, and was elected editor of Nommo, an African American newsmagazine.

Mike O’Connor, operations manager for the UCLA Student Media Center, said Ross had been breaking into the Student Media offices for years and that Ross’ arrest over winter break is a continuation of what he described as long-term behavior.

“He comes in (to the Student Media Office) just before the doors lock, he hides, he waits for everyone to leave, and then roams around for the weekend. He’s been doing this for years,” O’Connor said.

O’Connor plans to testify at Ross’s trial on Thursday about what he has seen on the security cameras, which includes Ross “poking around” the Student Media Office, usually between midnight and 3 a.m., he said. O’Connor said he believes Ross stole a door from the office, along with a hard-drive and some money out of the desks. Though Ross is not visible on security tapes actually stealing the items, O’Connor said Ross is the only person visible on the tapes that evening.

He also said there were cups of urine all over the office the last time Ross was arrested and removed.

“When a person stays in the office all weekend and doesn’t leave ... it has to go somewhere,” O’Connor said.

O’Connor also said Ross had a “friendly” relationship with many people in the office several years ago.

“He sounds intelligent, he’s very polite ... just probably not altogether there,” he said.

Ross never received a paycheck as editor of Nommo, O’Connor said.

“He was never really considered an editor. It became apparent that he wasn’t really a student,” he said.

Chet Cohen, corporate loss prevention manager for Associated Students UCLA, said Ross was advised after his previous arrests not to come back to UCLA, and that he was taken back to jail after he was spotted again.

Ross also lived at the Alpha Gamma Omega fraternity house two years ago.

Eddie Looper, the fraternity’s president and a former Daily Bruin copy editor, said AGO does not require its residents to be enrolled at UCLA and would not know whether Ross was actually a student.

Brian Aspell, a fourth-year biochemistry student, roomed with Ross during the summer of 2005.

Ross would stay in his room all day, downloading podcasts and other Internet files, Aspell said.

O’Connor said prior to Ross’ most recent arrest, Student Media officials began noticing an unusually high traffic of movie- and file-downloading on the IP addresses of certain work stations where Ross liked to work.

“A week later, we realized – it’s obviously Sheldon again,” he said.

Aspell said the fraternity found items of Ross’ that he found unsettling, such as equipment to pick locks and a book about changing one’s name in California.

“It’s just pretty disturbing that I was his roommate,” he said.

Sunday / Looking For A New Church

Last Sunday, after taking lunch at OkHab Church, I attended the EM service at Natchimban Church, where my brother is a Sunday School youth pastor. My brother had just come back from a mission trip to Thailand, so he was wearing a suit, and I was in my normal Sunday clothes (which is usually just normal clothes). My brother introduced me to some of the church members, and some of them went down like this:

To a little girl:
Sundo: Hey, this is my brother.
Me: Hi.
Little girl: Hey, no offense, but you guys don't look alike at all.
Sundo: ...
Me: Um... thanks.
Then to an older adult:
Sundo: Hi, this is my brother.
Me: Hello.
Church member: Oh, I see. [to Sundo] He's more good looking then you are. [completely serious. walks away]
Sundo: ...

Anyhow, the service was pretty good. Though I already serve at OkHab Church, I should keep going to a service where I can focus on worshipping God. I personally don't mind going back to my old church where my dad used to serve ("don't mind" is an understatement, 'cause I definitely miss my friends there), but I suppose I should take this chance to explore other churches. All my life I've been going to my dad's church, which I don't have a problem with, but it wouldn't hurt to see new things.

To be honest though, I don't want to join another Korean church. Not that I don't like Koreans, but it's that I've grown up in a more diverse environment, and I would get along better with people where there aren't just Koreans around.

So I think I'll look for a (non-Korean) church that I can attend on Sundays after 1PM. Would anyone like to recommend one? It would have to be somewhere near where 91 and 5 freeways meet (Buena Park, Cypress, Anaheim, Fullerton, etc.)

Update on Church Situation

Thanks everyone for praying for my church and family. A final decision has been made, and I believe everything went according to God's great plan.

Last week Thursday, two pastors and two elders from our denomination came to our church to act as mediators. God had given my parents peace in their hearts, and they told the mediators that they would accept whatever demands the other leaders of our church make. So the mediators talked to the church leaders, and they decided that my father will leave the church as of last Sunday, just as they demanded. My dad was assigned to start a new church in Hacienda Heights. Praise God for delivering my family! Please continue to pray for my family and the church.

When I heard the decision, at first I felt like my dad should have called the mediators from the beginning, and then the matter could have been settled earlier. But now I believe it was God's plan for things to get a bit ugly in the church. The issue that my dad had to face didn't just come up couple months ago. It was there for several years already, and it had to climax to this, so that people could see what's really wrong in the church. Perhaps that is why God called my dad to stand firm until God opened another door. It seems that God revealed the need for a new ministry in Hacienda Heights at just the right time.

There's no arguing that what the elders and other pastors did to my dad was morally wrong as well as illegal. But there's no need for me to describe what they've done, because what's important is that they know what they've done, and that they repent.

I'll tell you one thing that you should be aware. Just don't believe what people say against someone unless they can prove it. And even if they can prove it, don't listen to them if the information does not concern you. Telling gossip is sin, so don't let your brothers and sisters sin by telling you gossips. Besides, if they talk crap about someone to you, they probably talk crap about you to others. Gossip is quite prevalent at the church, so no wonder problems like this came up.

Anyhow, I believe that God will correct His beloved. He will not forsake them. I pray that the people in my church will be convicted of their wrongdoings, and that they would repent. I hope that they would not just forget what happened, but will learn from their mistakes. Please pray for those who are still in the church, that they would be protected from lies and gossips.

As for myself, I'll focus more on the ministry at my other church (one that sent me to Kenya). And when my dad sets up a new church, I'll probably be helping there as well.

Urgent Prayer Request: May the Truth Set Us Free

Thank you all for praying for my family and my church. The situation is still very stressful and sad, but I am beginning to see God working amongst us.

One specific prayer request is for the church members who have been told lies and rumors for so long that they are blinded from the truth. No matter how much you tell them the truth, they would not accept it. Please pray that their eyes and ears will be opened, so that they may know the truth about the situation and repent.

It seriously hurts so much to see the leaders of the church being blinded with lies that they are acting irrationally and with anger. Pray that God will not forsake them, and that He will deliver them from the hands of evil.

Pray for my family. We are hurting because of all the lies told against my father, and because our friends are being deceived. It hurts me to see my family being hurt. Please pray that we could be more patient. Pray that we would wait upon God and not act on our own thoughts.

In all of this, I know that God is working. I know He hears our prayers. I will trust Him and not lean on my own understanding, so that He may make my paths straight. May God help me to depend on Him alone.

KEEP PRAYING FOR A MIRACLE. PLEASE.

Urgent Prayer Request: Pray For a Miracle

Please keep praying for my church.

I won't go into any details of what happened today, but at this point, only a miracle can mend the situation we have at my church. This isn't just about my dad being kicked out of the church. It's about the church being used as satan's tool.

Perhaps it'll be easier for both my dad and the elders if my dad left the church, but in that case, no body wins but satan. The elders and other pastors are not the enemies. They are just blinded by the real enemy, which is satan, and they don't realize that what they're doing is wrong.

But our church is already too deeply in the hand of satan, and there's nothing we can do to change it. Nothing but a miracle. I believe that everything is possible by God. And by God my church can change. By God it can be restored. Only by God and God alone.

I love my church, despite what they have done to my family. So it hurts so much to see it go down like this. It hurts so much to see them running towards destruction.

So please pray that God will work in our church. Pray that He will be glorified. Seriously, pray for a miracle because that's the only way the church will survive and be blessed.

PRAY. PRAY FOR A MIRACLE. PLEASE.