Two guest homes where Chattanoogans often stayed on mission trips to Leogane, Haiti, collapsed during the massive earthquake. However, Fred Robinson of the Church of the Good Shepherd on Lookout Mountain said it is not believed that any Chattanoogans were in the buildings when they fell.

John and Susie Parker, managers of the guest houses, are reported to be okay, though Mr. Parker had to be freed from the remains of one of the buildings by locals with sledge hammers. Susie Parker is the sister of Chattanooga attorney Brian Mickles.

Rev. John Talbird, former Good Shepherd rector, was in Petionville at the Kinom Hotel, near Port au Prince, when the quake hit, but he is also reported to be okay.

He was able to obtain a flight out of Haiti with a military crew to New Jersey. He was to make his way back to Lookout Mountain from there.

Rev. Talbird was in Haiti to interview a candidate to lead the reopening of the Hospital St. Croix at Leogane.

Mr. Robinson said, "I believe the other Chattanoogans serving in Haiti that our church has worked with are miraculously accounted for. The country needs our prayers and support."

The Church of the Good Shepherd and other local churches have been active in supporting that hospital and its Children's Nutrition Center as well as a school that Chattanoogans helped build on a nearby mountain.

A report sent out by the church says:

"In the sketchy reports Ann Aiken, Mitch Mutter, and others have received, we understand the staff members of the Children's Nutrition Program are OK. Ashley Aakesson, the executive director, was evacuated last night by military plane. Kara Telesmanick, the program manager, and Courtney Latta, a young intern, are at the U.S. embassy waiting to be evacuated for the trip home."

Mr. Robinson said those three were in Port Au Prince when the quake hit and they made their way back to Leogane to check on the Parkers.

The report also says, "Buildings in the Leogane area apparently suffered significant damage, including structural damage to Hôpital Sainte Croix where the CNP program is housed. Jean Marc with the filariasis program in Leogane says most houses are down. They've already buried 90 people in the immediate Leogane city and says many, many more people are buried under rubble. Right now he says they're most desperate for meds. He confirmed the road is passable, so any medical groups going down should be able to get there with supplies.

"Unconfirmed reports indicate that the missionary residence and guest house adjacent to the hospital, where many Chattanoogans have stayed, were heavily damaged, if not collapsed. John and Susie Parker, the guesthouse managers, have communicated that they are OK, but communication in Leogane is extremely limited."

It says the Parkers "are planning to stay and are living on the Hopital St Croix grounds. Apparently the Holy Cross Nursing School, where John was instrumental in the construction, and Filariasis/Gates House, also in Leogane, are still standing.

"Chris and Leslie from Clean Water for Haiti are safe, but his account of the earthquake is unsettling: http://rollingsinhaiti.wordpress.com/author/crolling/ . They are northeast of Port au Prince and the damage to this area was apparently less severe.

"Pere Deravil, who was the priest in Leogane for years, was transferred near this area and we are hopeful he is OK. Rodney Babe and his wife Sharyn have been accounted for. Rodney and Sharyn live (lived) in a 4 story apartment on a hillside in Port au Prince. Sharyn is a PCUSA missionary teaching at the Episcopal University in PAP. Rodney and Sharyn previously were PCUSA missionaries serving as the foundingDirectors of the CODEP project. Sharon was in the home when it collapsed, and even though injured, was somehow able to crawl out through a small opening in the rubble. She has been evacuated by medical helicopter to a U.S. military hospital in Guantanamo, Cuba, and Rodney remains in Haiti Wilkine, a medical student in Port au Prince provided a scholarship by the Haiti Committee, lives in Carrefour, very near the epicenter of the quake. His family has heard from him that he is OK. Mario, the other medical student the committee helps support, was home from Santo Domingo for Christmas Break, but we have not heard from him.

"To date, we have no reports about damage or injuries at St John the Evangelist School at Petit Harpon, nor have we heard any report from the Pere Michaud, the priest in charge. Unfortunately, the nearby villages of Trouin and St Etienne did sustain damage as Pere Ajax reports below: Dear Friends in Christ: We have devastating news to share with you from Haiti in the aftermath of the earthquake yesterday. According to reports I have received here in Les Cayes, the damage in Port au Prince and areas around it is terrible. There is no Cathedral. The entire Holy Trinity complex is gone. The convent for the Sisters of St. Margaret is gone. The Bishop's house is gone. College St. Pierreis gone. The apartment for College St. Pierre is still standing. Bishop no longer has a house in which to live. In Trouin, four people were killed during a service. In Grand Colline, the church is gone. In St Martin of Tours, the kindergarten is gone. In St. Etienne Buteau the church, the rectory and the school are gone. In Les Cayes, BTI is OK, but some people were injured trying to get outof the buildings during the quake. The rectory in Les Cayes is in very bad condition. The Rev. Kesner Ajax Executive Director, Bishop Tharp Institute (BTI)Partnership Program Coordinator For the many who have traveled to Haiti, the devastation to the poorly constructed buildings is easy to imagine but so hard to understand. Please keep these friends and all the people of Haiti in your prayers."

The Outward Mission and Ministry committee of the Church of the Good Shepherd has voted to make a donation toward the immediate relief efforts ongoing in Haiti. Church officials said the initial focus will be toward Episcopal Relief and Development, and just prior to the earthquake the church sent funding to the Children’s Nutrition Program.

Officials said, "Through our church’s work in Haiti, there are several other organizations that we are familiar with, each of which will provide varying levels of aid. All have ongoing efforts in Haiti and we believe are in the position to ramp up their aid in short order. We thought parishioners would like to know the actions our committee has taken and would encourage your individual support of these or any
of the larger relief organizations, knowing we will have future recovery and development needs after the relief stage is underway."

These agencies are listed:

Episcopal Relief and Development http://www.er-d.org/ - The Episcopal Church is a substantial force in Haiti, and its facilities have been heavily damaged. This arm of the Episcopal Church should be in the position to help meet immediate needs as well as help with long term recovery efforts. Address to make a donation: Web site or by mail to P.O. Box 7058 Merrifield, VA 22116-7058

The Children’s Nutrition Program of Haiti http://www.cnphaiti.org/ CNP serves primarily in Leogane, a city of about 12,000 people that has been severely damaged. This is the area many Chattanooga mission trips have been based, whether school, mobile medical, nutrition or hospital related. CNP will be mobilizing relief efforts to aid the area as soon as possible. They also have an effective water program that will be increasingly important to maintain in coming days. Address to make a donation: Web site or by mail to CNP of Haiti P. O. Box 3720 1918 Union Avenue, Chattanooga, TN 37404

Partners in Health http://www.pih.org/home.html This organization, founded by Paul Farmer, has a long history of helping meet the demanding medical needs in Haiti and elsewhere, has
permanent medical facility and staff in Haiti, and has ties to large US medical organizations. Address to make a donation: Web site or by mail to P.O. Box 845578 Boston, MA 02284-5578 with "Haiti Earthquake Relief" in the memo line.

Hopital Albert Schweitzer http://www.hashaiti.org This hospital is in Deschapelles, about 40 miles NW of Port au Prince. Communication from them indicated that their facility was not damaged and they have their full medical staff to assist. Address to make a donation: Web site or by mail c/o their Pittsburgh Office Hôpital Albert Schweitzer P. O. Box 81046 Pittsburgh, PA 15217 USA

Food for the Poor http://www.foodforthepoor.org/ Has established warehouse (still standing and being evaluated), supplies on hand and in transit, and a distribution network in Haiti. They also have an ongoing food program in Port au Prince, and should be able to help provide immediate and longer term nutritional needs. Address to make a donation: Web site or by mail to 6401 Lyons Road Coconut Creek, FL 33073 with HAITI # 11768 on the MEMO line.