Young adult changed by simple way of life in Haiti

Fresh out of kinesiology school from Louisiana State University in December 2011, Andrew Worrel had no idea that his perspective on life was about to change.
   
  On invitation from Father Ronnie Calkins, pastor at Mary Queen of Peace Catholic Church, Worrel traveled to Haiti on an exploratory parish trip to discover the needs of St. Benoit in Dessources, a Catholic parish with whom the Mandeville church had established a twinning relationship.
    Worrel had been on a mission trip to Mexico while in college but was not prepared for what he saw when he disembarked from the plane in Port-au-Prince.
    “There are tons of people walking around everywhere, and the city itself is still recovering,” Worrel said. “They don’t have FEMA. It’s definitely a slow process. Everywhere people are selling items to make money. It was kind of depressing.”
    After a four-hour drive up the mountains to Dessources, Worrel finally got to meet the people Mary Queen of Peace was helping.
    “I saw people in the country and how they live and realized they were really hard workers and don’t really have anything – no amenities – of their own,” he said. “They have to walk an hour or two just to retrieve water. Everything they do is work, even washing clothes.”
     He said the week-long excursion was eye-opening. He witnessed Msgr. Wildor Pierre shepherding not only the main church but numerous chapels miles away, and how Haitians worked hard just to get an education and even clean water. The trip drove home the importance of Catholics in the United States working alongside Catholics in Haiti as they rebuild.
    “The first trip was great because we could see the money that we were giving was being used,” he said. “The other part  – we went there to experience the community itself.”
    Worrel’s conversations with a man his age on that first trip made him realize he had more to give the Haitian people.
    “I knew I was called to go back,” he said. “I felt that God was calling me; it was where he wanted me to go. I didn’t know what I could do, I just wanted to serve.”
    The 24-year-old returned in late 2012 for a month-long stay as an English teacher to fifth and sixth graders at St. Benoit School, while staying in the rectory with Msgr. Wildor.
    He also collected demographics and information about students and the Haitian community so Mary Queen of Peace could prioritize how to best continue to help St. Benoit. Questions asked included, “What do they eat? How often do they eat? What do they do after school?”
    “It was interesting talking to these students and finding these things out,” he said. “We now have a better idea of what their priorities are and what they see as necessary for their community.”
    For example, after noticing that many of his students had to walk a distance to school, providing them with a good pair of shoes might be of help.
    “We wouldn’t have known that before,” he said.
    Witnessing how hard the people work just to survive impacted his return trip.
    “There were men building an indoor kitchen for the school cafeteria and didn’t take a break,” he said.
    He was heartened to see an indoor kitchen being built inside the cafeteria/multi-purpose building that Mary Queen of Peace is funding along with the church, rectory and school. “These are things that Mary Queen of Peace has taken a lead on,” he said.
    Students implored him to have his parish continue the relationship.
    “They see how much St. Benoit is changing and getting better since we started helping them,” he said. “It’s not that we are really doing anything big, but we are doing all these little things. They have a much better school because of us. The church is beautiful now. Hopefully we will get them electricity and a well so they don’t have to walk so far.”
    Worrel plans to become a physician assistant and eventually return to Haiti to teach basic medicine to natives at a clinic Msgr. Wildor hopes to build. He thinks helping Haitians become self-sufficient is the best road to recovery.
    “There is this love for Haiti, and I have this desire to go back,” he said. “If I become a P.A. I will have the ability to teach people medical knowledge.  … I would love, at some point, to serve in that clinic. I want to help out in some way.”
    He said the people of Haiti and their joy in life with so little amenities has changed him.
    “I realize I have so much compared to what they have,” he said.    “I am more intentional now where I put my efforts and money and where I spend it,” he said. “I have seen a difference in myself. Even when I brush my teeth in the morning, I feel bad because they don’t have accessible, clean water.”
    Christine Bordelon can be reached at cbordelon@clarion herald.org.