PORTLAND - Two years after the earthquake in Haiti, many in the Northwest feel a special connection to the country.
Jill Wilkins tucks her connection in every night. He’s 4-year-old Samuel. Jill and her husband Joe had spent two years trying to adopt the child when the earthquake hit. It feels like yesterday.
“I wasn’t sure how I would feel when today came,” Wilkins said. “And then just a wave of emotions started to hit when you connect with other parents from the orphanage. It’s amazing how, how quickly time has gone by. It’s really hard to believe it’s been two years," she said.
Video shot by Joe Wilkins shows the desperate effort to evacuate all the children from the orphanage after the earthquake.
Days after it hit, Joe flew into the country to bring his son home. He helped bring 80 other children out too, for adoptive families in the states.
Samuel's smiling face now beams from the family's TV as his mom plays a special DVD made with photos of him and his new family. Samuel is 4 years old now and not home. He’s in daycare.
“It was a huge blessing to get him home,” said Jill. “And we could not love that kid any more than we do, it’s been a blessing to our family."
Big relief groups like Medical Teams International also rushed to help.
Janey Pinneo is a volunteer nurse who will never forget the experience.
“It was traumatic. I'd had a little sneak preview because our son went down there week three and so he was telling us that it was basically apocalyptic,” she said. “So had a little prep for that, but until you are walking through those streets and seeing the people, you can’t imagine,” she said.
Medical Teams International is still in Haiti, training doctors and nurses and hospitals how to better handle disasters and teaching the people how to protect themselves from malaria and other diseases.
The group poured $3 million into the country and still has 15 people working in three locations.
Joe DiCarlo runs international programs for Medical Teams International and just returned from Haiti.
“Do I wish there was a lot more progress? Absolutely,” he said. “I am seeing some progress, but in terms of livelihoods, in terms of re-establishing civil society, re-establishing health care systems, it's much slower than we would like at this point," DiCarlo said.
In downtown Portland, Haiti is monitored closely at the international headquarters of Mercy Corps. The agency has spent $11 million helping rebuild the country. It has 150 people, mostly Haitians, trying to empower women entrepreneurs and farmers.
It’s another effort to make every part of Haiti more resilient.
“We want to build Haiti back stronger so when the next shock comes they can withstand it without such trauma,” said Mercy Corps Haiti program manager, Amy Hause.
Back in Tigard, Jill Wilkins and her family are tied to Haiti forever. She's joined the board of directors for the orphanage. And while she and her husband Joe adopted Samuel thinking they could not have children on their own, their 6-month-old baby, Luke proved them wrong.
Still, they may adopt another child. There is still much pain in Haiti, much that needs rebuilding and some that need rescue.
