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Haiti Team Interview Four: Sandi

He said no, or so it was taken. Stepping outside that pastor's office, she must have felt a sense of disappointment. Still, few things worth pursuing are ever realized easily. Despite the barriers, what started as an idea eventually materialized into a team of eleven assisting a children's orphanage in Haiti. Sandi was the team leader, before there was a team. It was she who had heard of the orphanage, and she who joined her co-leader to begin the journey to get there.

Sandi's story with Hands and Feet began with a friend who was involved with the organization. Hearing of it, she's prayed about supporting it, but it wasn't until 2008, when Hurricane Gustav struck Haiti that she'd made the choice to do so. She had, in fact, always wanted to go to Haiti, but never found a team. Then, on January 9, 2010, Julie-- who would become co-leader-- approached her about Hands and Feet. Their purpose was confirmed when, three days later, the magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the country. She knew that God waking Julie in the night was no accident, and set to planning for her own team to go.

Her first step was to speak with the missions pastor at her church. Though she told him her story, he responded that they should go with another team, or join his. Undeterred, they went next to the young adults pastor. After telling their story, he approached the missions pastor to argue on their behalf, saying it was rare to find young adults interested in missions, and that he planned to support them. So began the process of forming a team. Announcements were made, interviews held, prayers prayed. A team of eleven eventually materialized, the trip slowly appearing more and more likely to take place.

Leading up to that trip, Sandi herself experienced her own separate struggles, but it wasn't until the day before the trip that those struggles turned nearly unbearable for her. That day, she'd found that her brother had been diagnosed with stage four lymphoma. The news didn't discourage her from going, but she felt "sick to her stomach," family on her mind. She prayed about it, and in her words, it "took every ounce of strength to get through the situation."

Still, on reflection, she feels "absolutely" glad that she went on the trip. It was because of this trip that she was able to see, for the first time, the little boy she sponsors and all the other children she's helped through Hands and Feet. She had, in fact, heard so many horrible things about the country, but when she finally traveled there herself, she fell in love. She was, in particular, happy to see that the people there were so friendly and joyful, a sharp rebuke to the poverty that's plagued the country. The people were to her amazing, and being there rarely made her feel uncomfortable. A fan of Disney movies and mint chocolate chip ice cream, her plans for the future include medical missions. It was Sandi's leadership, quiet at times but present, that helped make the trip possible.

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