Lessons are learned in spiritual terms from good times and bad. Obedience is not always easy, or the obvious thing, but the Spirit of the Lord is the greatest tool for the Watchman on the walls. Missionary JoAnna Rochester said she never had peace in her spirit concerning her recent mission trip to Haiti, but she has experienced danger before. She has lived where bombing and riots were an everyday occurrence. But it is different as a resident than as visitor.

In The Daily Iberian June 14, a story about Rev. Gregory Georges from Grand Goave I’Ouest, Haiti W.I. told how important it is for people going on missions to know the power of God and the reality of evil. The rescheduled mission trip to Haiti in September was planned to support Georges’ ministry to orphans. In that story he said, “Imagine sending a child to primary school for a whole year supplying books, tuition and supplies for $170 — plus uniform and shoes.

Imagine that some of the children come from the hills of Haiti where they run around with no clothes or shoes and often go days without food or just what they can gather from the surrounding area. Imagine if those children had a chance to learn a trade so they, too, could give back to other children and inspire hope for a better life.” That is the mission, in part, of Rev. Georges. The six-person team from New Iberia, plus five other missionary friends of Rochester, had an assignment, but it wasn’t what they had planned. Before telling her story, a reflection this week on the significance of Haiti in New Iberia as residents celebrate the Louisiana Sugar Cane Festival.

Historical Background

The man buried in St. Peter’s Catholic Church Cemetery recognized for incorporating New Iberia is the late Henri’ Frederic DuPerier, son of Pierre Dumouvier DuPerier and Eleanore Langier DuPerier. Henri’ Frederic DuPerier was born in Philadelphia in 1802. His parents were the owners of a sugar plantation in Haiti/Dominican Republic. Due to the unrest in that country, they left their two children in Philadelphia to return to Haiti to sell their sugar cane plantation. They lost their lives there during the slave revolution. Both were natives of France from the Perrier region and decided to move to Haiti to raise sugar cane when Haiti was a booming sugar exporter, before the revolution.

Henri’ Frederic DuPerier moved to New Iberia with his aunt around 1816, said Penny White, a descendant of the DuPeriers. The New Iberia Sesquicentennial Commission marker in front of city hall continues the story. “Under his leadership the town was incorporated on March 13, 1839, two days before his death.” Much has changed in New Iberia since its founding, but as Rochester and the others discovered, the political unrest and destruction of property and loss of lives in Haiti, continues.

Missionary’s Report on Haiti

Was this your first trip to Haiti?

More than 25 years ago I wanted to take a mission team to Haiti but there was a warning by the American Embassy saying, “Do not go to Haiti.” It was too dangerous. I was obedient. The same condition exists now, not to travel to Haiti. I never felt a release in my heart to go to Haiti while the American Embassy said to stay home. My spirit was continually troubled — continual unrest in my heart and spirit man.

When did you get peace?

When we made our decision to return to the United States. Two days before leaving a pastor who travels there often advised us to go, we would not have any trouble. But the Bible says, “Obey God rather than man,” Acts 5:29. We sometimes put God aside, obey men and listen to words blindly.

Have you been in danger before?

I’ve experienced bombs and riots and all that but I was by myself living in Nigeria. But not as a stranger and having to take care of a team. It is totally different. You can’t put the lives of other people who are married and have children in danger. See, I’m used to living in conditions like that.

We just don’t know do we?

Americans are so … it’s a nation that does what it wants, eats what it wants … there was another time when I went to China with a well known woman of ministry and she never told us what we would be doing. We had to smuggle Bibles in because 30,000 people a day were giving their lives to Christ. But it was illegal to carry Bibles. A lady said to me, we’re going to go to prison. I said why did you say that? She answered, because you’re black and I’m Jewish. I fell out on the bed and said, no I’m not going to prison. The minister couldn’t tell us this in the United States, it was our job to get the Bibles in. That was our job. Some flew in, some walked in and I took a bus. We all carried Bibles in. At the hotel, we saw from the floor to the ceiling Bibles from the United States, translated into Chinese. The minister flew us out of there the next day.

How does that relate to Haiti?

Our assignment was to get all these materials into the hands of the pastor in that country. We had 33 suitcases, half of those went into the country filled with clothes, shoes, school supplies, notebooks, pens, pencils, crayons, 250 backpacks, candy, toothbrushes, eyeglasses, lotion, soap, perfume and so much more. We were able to give $746 to purchase rice and beans and soap, financial offering of $540 plus money for transportation to get these materials up north to the pastor. We gave a total of $1,486 to Pastor Gregory Georges for the children and other money to his assistant that was helping. But if we hadn’t gone, he wouldn’t have gotten it. When you ship, they steal it. It had to be delivered. That’s why God wanted us there. After that, it was time to go. I’ve flown into countries for one person to give their life to Christ. If God does something different than what you expect, He has a reason. You’ve got to go with the flow. Not complain or murmur. If I am here to lay on my face to pray for this nation, let me do that to fulfill it — some places, Jesus couldn’t do miracles.