NEWS from "Children of Israel Orphanage" - Les Cayes, Haiti

Rev. Charles Whited of First Trinity Lutheran Church was on the second floor of the orphanage in Les Cayes, Haiti, when the earthquake hit.

Tonawanda church group grateful to escape Haiti unscathed

Also thankful it can aid recovery

By Dan Herbeck
News Staff Reporter
Updated: January 15, 2010, 7:38 PM

At first, the Rev. Charles “Chuck” Whited wondered if his mind was playing tricks on him when a massive earthquake struck Haiti on Tuesday. “I heard a wall crack. Then, I saw people running. Everything around me was shaking,” said Whited, a Town of Tonawanda pastor who is in Les Cayes, Haiti, with a missionary group this week. “I got outside with my son, and everyone was running toward a soccer field. I felt wobbly, almost dizzy. Everything was waving back and forth. I thought maybe I was overheated because I didn’t drink enough water that day.” It was a bizarre and scary experience, but Whited is thankful that he and 13 other members of the missionary group from First Trinity Lutheran Church walked away unscathed.

They arrived in Haiti on Monday — one day before the quake — for their annual visit to help out at the Children of Israel orphanage, which was adopted by the Town of Tonawanda church six years ago.

Because of fears that an aftershock might cause the orphanage to collapse, the group slept outside Tuesday night, laying blankets on the stony ground. Since then, they have slept indoors. “The Haitians were really cold that night, but we weren’t cold. We’re from Buffalo,” Whited said with a laugh.

... saying nobody in the group wants to come home early.

“Our feeling is that God has put us in this place at just this time,” Whited said.

“We’re here to help and comfort the people of Haiti in every way that we can.”

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