So I have good news and I have bad news. The good news is we found Jonny D (or John Doe as he was originally referred to on the ship). The bad news is they changed his name.... again! Now they are calling him Job. If he wasn't confused about what his name was before he sure is now. But at least it starts with a J and quite honestly as long as Jonny (Job) is getting the love affection and attention he wants and needs I don't think he much cares what he is called. So we spent the better part of a day tracking Jonny down having had some loose idea of where he was and had been discharged to from the ship. He is at the facilities run by the Mission of Hope Haiti (ironic that they too have "hope" in the title). They are an NGO that has been in country since 1998 and do a variety of different things. They are a faith based organization so there is a church ministry there. But more impressive is they have a hospital that has a 24 hour ER, dental services, surgical services and patient wards for peds and adults. They also have a clinic that is open 5 days per week and sees about 60 patients per day. In addition they have a school that educates about 1300 students from surrounding areas.
As we arrived I couldn't decide whether or not I thought that Jonny would recognize me but felt that since he had encountered so many people during his time on the ship he probably wouldn't and that was fine. The road out to Titanyen was long and dusty. You trek through some of the busiest parts of Port au Prince especially during rush hour which is when we departed. Titanyen we had been told had become sort of an off limits area for folks because since it is out and away from the main part of Port au Prince they have been using it for mass burial sites. As we made our way out route one you could see all the tent cities and IDP camps that had formed along the way. What suffering... and the smell along the road was the smell of the indignity the Haitian people have had to endure these last several weeks.
As the sun was setting and dusk was upon us we arrived at the Mission of Hope for Haiti and it only took a brief explanation of why we were there and who we were there to see before peoples faces lit up knowing exactly who we were talking about. He was being housed in a school room with other medically fragile patients because he was awaiting surgery the next day to clean the wound on his eye.
As we entered the room we were greeted by several "mammas" (Haitian women that were looking after the children). Jonny came right over to us but not because he recognized me but because he saw a new pair of arms to hold him for a while. We visited with the mammas and were sure to get the exact address for their location so that we might be able to arrange for follow up care perhaps even in the states for Jonny.
It was nice to see him there... a circular moment really when so many were discharged and you will never have the benefit of knowing what happened to them or where they ended up. I hope to keep tabs on him and see that he gets treatment but who knows what lies ahead for sweet little Jonny D/ John Doe/ Job... I hope good things!
