Bob Collins
White Bear Lake native Troy Livesay and his wife, Tara, are getting plenty of national attention for their role in informing the outside world of what’s been happening in Haiti since the minute the earthquake struck earlier this week.
They are country directors for World Wide Village, a Minnesota-based charitable organization providing Christian education, health care, nutrition and opportunities to children and families in Haiti.
According to CNN, “besides Troy and Tara, the household in Port-au-Prince is made up of daughter Paige, 15, and “the crew”: Isaac, 8, Hope, 7, Noah, 5, Phoebe Joy, 3, Lydia Beth, 2, Annie, also 2, and Peanut the dog. Some of the children are adopted. Daughter Britt, 19, lives in Texas with her husband, Chris.”
Tara does the blogging; Troy does the tweeting. On their blog, The Livesay [Haiti] Weblog today, Tara describes sending the children back to the States:
They were taking anyone with a USA Passport to a cargo jet to board to an unknown location in the USA. I prayed for them and sent them off. This morning I was resting in the courtyard of the US Embassy waiting to be picked up when I heard Troy yelling at me from the gate telling me our kids are in New Jersey. THANK YOU to many of you that prayed they would get out. They are now going to be cared for by our oldest daughter and her husband and by my parents. I know God will heal their hearts and minds. Thank you God that my kids are on their way to respite and love and care. I pray that for all the frightened children in Haiti.
Many people were angry at not being able to bring bags. I got very angry listening to that as CNN inside the Embassy droned on and on about all the trapped all the dead all the hurting. I think a bag of possessions is hardly something to fight over. There are lives hanging in the balance and there is no end in sight.
She notes the U.S. embassy staff, who also lost homes, have been doing an amazing job, working without sleep.
Troy tweets this morning that they’re working on treating water in the area, and planning on setting up mobile medical clinics.
He also is encouraging donations to World Wide Village.
WWV’s president, Randy Mortenson, is organizing a conference of organization with Haiti ties today. “I just felt that it would be simpler for us to come together as leaders here in the Twin Cities and determine exactly what assets and resources are immediately available in Haiti, and then look at that next wave of people and assets that we can put our heads together and be as efficient and effective as we possibly can be,” he said.
