Our "little country church" completed an unusual missions project this
summer. On August 28, 1999 a U.S. Air Force plane transported a second-hand D3C bulldozer to Port-au-Prince, the capital
of Haiti.
Mendon Presbyterian has been involved in this project for more than 2½ years. For
about 6 years, we have supported a missionary named Bruce Robinson, a civil engineer who
has worked in Haiti for more than 15 years. He is with a
missionary organization called UFM (Unevangelized Fields Missions). On one of his visits
to Mendon in September 1997, Robinson explained that the rough terrain in northwest
Haiti, where he works, often destroys regular tractor tires. This area has been largely
deforested, as the Haitians cut down trees to burn for charcoal, their primary "cash
crop" in lean times. Sharp tree stumps are often left behind, which can puncture
tires. The treads of a bulldozer are better suited to this terrain… and this led to
our "Bulldozer-to-Haiti" project.
We were able to locate a used bulldozer in very good condition, and added what is
called a "ripper bar", which is attached behind the vehicle to till the soil
more deeply. Robinson informed us that this addition would double the usefulness of the
‘dozer. Digging deeply prior to planting greatly increases the yield of crops, as the
rain – when it comes – can better nourish the plants. The cost of the bulldozer
with the added ripper bar, plus some expenses related to the project, was about $46,000.
An anonymous donor started us off with $20,000, which the congregation match and eve
surpassed, thanks to additional contributions from Robinson’s home church in
Virginia.
Robinson stressed how important this bulldozer will be to the people in northwest
Haiti, who will be able to rent the vehicle to prepare their fields: "Relying on
relief is hard o people’s dignity. Our goal is to help farmers grow food
themselves."
Robinson also predicted very early on that this project would be blessed not only to
the Haitians, but also to our church. Dozens of people from Mendon, Virginia, the Midwest,
and Pope Air Force Base in North Carolina, among others, came together to achieve our
goal. The members of the Missions committee and many, many others donated their time,
talents, and financial support. An article in MPC’s summer newsletter sums it up
best: "We can celebrate how God has worked through so many people to bring the
project this far!"
