Scheduled side trip spares lake resident

Courtesy of Reggie Tuck

Missy Hughes is surrounded by Haitian children as she takes a break from helping construct cinder block dwellings in Cite Soleil.

In what might be called a quirk of scheduling fate, a mission team that included Melissa "Missy" Hughes of Union Hall left Haiti's capital just hours before last week's earthquake struck.

A second-year engineering student at Virginia Tech, Hughes was part of a 15-member team from Blacksburg United Methodist Church that went to Haiti on Jan. 7. Led by the Rev. Reggie Tuck and Sung Yoo, associate pastor, it included several college students who decided to spend part of their holiday break helping the people of Cite Soleil, a densely populated shantytown in the capital city Port-au-Prince, with home repair and construction and to learn more about the needs of an American-funded hospital run by Partners in Health.

After several days in Cite Soleil, the team left Port-au-Prince early Jan. 12 for a scheduled trip to a hospital in Cange, about 30 miles away. The earthquake struck Port-au-Prince a few hours later.

Church leaders and families of those on the mission trip learned soon after from e-mails and Facebook messages that their loved ones appeared to be safe. Communication was cut off because of electrical service interruptions in Cange.

"It wasn't until late in the afternoon of Thursday, Jan. 14 that we finally received another message, sent via the hospital's Internet connection, confirming everyone's safety," said Tracy Altizer, spokesperson for BUMC.

The team had been scheduled to return to the United States on Jan. 14. On the morning of Jan. 15, the group members were driven three hours by car to the Dominican Republic border, and from there secured bus transportation to Santo Domingo, a six-hour ride.

"Church leaders and family members worked tirelessly to make arrangements for the group to get home," Altizer said. "After being housed at the Baptist Church Mission Hostel in Santo Domingo, six team members boarded a flight to the United States on [Jan. 16] at 5:30 p.m."

The remaining nine left the following day, arriving in Washington late Sunday evening. By Monday morning, Hughes and her mission work colleagues were safely home.

"Missy was a true ambassador for the church," said Tuck. "She is an exceptional person in many ways, a credit to her family and her community. It was a gift to have her as a part of our team, and she touched the lives of the Haitian people in profoundly important ways."

To help the people of Haiti, send a check to United Methodist Committee on Relief, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087. Checks should include Haiti Advance Special #418325 on the memo line.