Today was the final day of morning camp and we were greeted with cheers as we arrived. The kids were so excited today that it was a challenge just to get them to sit still. We all got lots of hugs when it was time to say goodbye and the children asked for our handwritten name tags as a keepsake. 
Then this afternoon we went to a nearby batey, which is a camp for transient Haitian workers who are brought in to harvest sugar cane by the sugar companies. This was our real eye opener for the week. Extreme poverty, squalid conditions, and children who have absolutely nothing.
They were thrilled to be given something as simple as a piece of chalk to keep. We spent the afternoon reading to them, coloring with them, playing ball with them, blowing bubbles with them and just holding them. They are literally starving for attention; some appear better cared for than others, but there is definitely evidence of malnourishment. And the Haitian girls love to braid hair – as Alison, Jennifer and Hannah found out!
Tomorrow we will get to visit the orphanage at Monti Christi, which was the first one established by Orphanage Outreach and the one April has worked at in the past. And we also get some beach time!
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