Thursday, November 11, our dear friend and colleague, Jules Gedna and his wife, Marthe, returned home to Haiti! Many of you have been praying for him and following his progress this past year and a half as he has made his journey through the bone cancer treatments and then a bone marrow transplant. It’s been a tough year in many ways. His health was precarious for most of those days. He and his wife didn’t know many people in Boston, not to mention it was very cold there! For several months they had to live with a future niece-in-law before they were able to move to a small basement apartment. Having no transportation, they had to rely on buses to get them to doctor appointments, grocery shopping, etc. Yet through it all, Jules always had a smile on his face and that same humble, sweet attitude that we all know and love. He was encouraged by visits from friends who traveled great distances just to be with him for a few hours, by the many cards and letters that he received and by phone calls from many people. His 2 sons were able to visit from Atlanta on several occasions.
He was declared cancer free by his doctors, but Hurricane Tomas delayed his return 2 weeks ago. All of the RMI staff and many missionaries that knew them were at the Cayes airport when the plane landed Thursday afternoon. They were surprised and overwhelmed to see so many people there to celebrate their homecoming. From there they were taken to the home of RMI missionary, Rob Thompson, where a welcome home dinner was held for them and the RMI staff. Once they finally got to their house, many more friends came by to greet them. You can see pictures of his return here.
Thank you for your prayers for this dear man of God! Thank you for your financial gifts to help Jules and Marthe. They could not have made it if it hadn’t been for these prayers and financial gifts. Many thanks to Greg Stritch (CrossRoad United Methodist Church, Jacksonville, FL) who flew back with them (since Dan was not able to go in with them due to other commitments). He made sure everything went smoothly as well as helped cover their flight expenses. Thanks Greg!
They are both so excited to be home after all this time. When they left they thought it was for Jules to get his back issue attended to, never dreaming that it was bone cancer. We are so thankful and praise God that Jules is doing so well. Continue to pray for him. He still has to deal with back pain and has a ways to go to recover his strength. Since his return almost a week ago, he’s had a steady stream of visitors coming to see him. He is not only a pillar of RMI’s ministry, but is well loved and known to many people in the Cayes area. What a testimony!
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