Newspaper Page Text
July 13, 2011
PAGE 11A
Eqportser
Forsyth mom delivers smiles, farm food to Haiti
BY RICHARD DUMAS
Many Americans have
donated time and money
to the Haiti earthquake
relief efforts in the last
year, but few have gone to
the lengths that Forsyth's
Amy Hobbs has.
Hobbs, a local attorney,
and her sister Aspen
Smith, a rising senior at
the University of Georgia,
traveled to Haiti on June 5
and hand-delivered over
$9,000 they had helped
raise for Haiti relief.
Hobbs had first visited
Haiti for a week in March
as part of a 10-person
group from her home
church, Ingleside Baptist,
in Macon. The group went
to poverty-stricken Haiti,
which was ravaged by a
January 2010 earthquake,
as part of Baptist Global
Response (BGR), a branch
of the International
Mission Board (IMB).
Because Hobbs' husband
Kerry is a pharmacist, she
was placed on a three-
woman medical team
made up of Hobbs, Macon
physician Dr. Liz Young,
and a Haitian high school
student interested in a
career of practicing medi
cine.
Hobbs said the trio found
a really poor orphanage in
a town called Bon Repos
and set up a medical clinic
there, in addition to mak
ing house calls. Hobbs said
many of the children at
the orphanage, whose ages
ranged from several
months to 18 (though she
said few accurate recorded
ages were available), were
so malnourished that they
had red-tinted hair and
chronic intense stomach
pain.
Hobbs, who has three
children, ages 7, 5 and 2,
said her experience as a
mother caused her to feel
particularly emotional
about the plight of the
children.
"My heart just bled for
those kids," she recalled.
Hobbs said on the return
flight home, she sat next
to a man who told her he
travels to Haiti 18 to 20
times per year on relief
missions. Hobbs said the
experience caused her to
question what more she
could do to help. She ini
tially considered adoption
but found out the process
is increasingly difficult.
She then consulted with
several BGR missionaries,
including Delores York and
Nat Holland, about finding
something that could pro
vide long-term aid.
Together Hobbs and the
missionaries hatched the
idea of building a mini
farm near the orphanage
because as Hobbs
describes it, "Chickens lay
eggs, eggs feed orphans."
To carry out the plan,
Hobbs began soliciting
donations to purchase ani
mals for the farm on
Facebook with some help
from her younger sister
Smith, who is an editor of
UGA's student newspaper,
The Red and Black. What
began with donations from
friends eventually led to
gifts from strangers.
Within two weeks, Hobbs
and Smith had collected
$9,100. The duo then
booked two plane tickets
for Haiti, where the money
was used to purchase 100
hens, one rooster, five
goats and three pigs, as
well as several full-grown
mango, lime and avocado
trees.
Hobbs said the experi
ence was the first time
that some of the children
had ever had breakfast.
One child was so excited
he drew a smiley face on
one of the eggs.
The new farm was par
ticularly critical because
the orphanage population
had significantly expanded
since Hobbs' first trip in
March. There were about
60 children staying there
when Hobbs went the first
time, and about 140 chil
dren currently.
Hobbs said she did not
have much prior knowl
edge of farming, so she
said she and her sister had
to do a
lot of
research
before
they
went,
but she
said for
tunately
the pas
tor of
the
orphan
age,
Pastor
Julian,
whose
wife
perished
in the
earth
quake,
did have
farming
experience and helped
build the chicken coops.
Hobbs proudly noted many
of the children joined in
and helped.
"My heart just over
flowed with joy," Hobbs
Aspen Smith and Amy Hobbs visit a
Haitian orphanage in June. (Special to
the Reporter)
said.
But the work is not com
plete, Hobbs noted. She
said the orphanage still
needs wells to provide
clean water, as well as
effective showers and toi
lets. She said the Haitian
children also need to learn
more about Jesus. While
she was
there,
the chil
dren got
a good
start
when
they
learned
to sing
"He's
Got the
Whole
World in
His
Hands"
in their
native
Creole.
Hobbs
said she
had
done a
lot of
previous mission work in
Peru but felt that Peru
was "in my comfort zone."
"I felt like the Lord want
ed me to go outside of my
comfort zone," Hobbs said.
She said she was espe-
New Providence youth on mission in Macon
The youth from New Providence Baptist Church in Smarr attended SPLASH
(Showing People Love and Sharing Him) in Macon last week, spending six
days making repairs to the homes of the needy while spending nights in wor
ship and fellowship at Tattnall Square Academy. Attendees included Kay
Bertram, Kaleigh Bush, Katie Sanders, Samantha Rogers, Jessica White,
Taylor Barker, Melinda Stephenson, Caitlin Stephenson, Whitney McDaniel,
Olivia Cobb, Bryon Coleman, Ruby Adams, Kyle Jenkins, Nathan
Jackson,Daniel Mize, Johnathan Jenkins, Sidney McDaniel, Michael Cobb,
Nathan Jenkins, Lauren Hickman, Shelby Demos, Carlie Neal, Ashley
Bertram and Nick Demos. Not pictured are Marcy Sanders, Amber Sawley,
Lauren Devereaux and Will Young. (Photo courtesy photographer Michael
Sullivan/mjs0004@tigermail. auburn.edu)
.
Probationers clean up
Forsyth’s city park
On June 11,28 probationers from the Towaliga Judicial Circuit participated in a Community
Service Special Project in Forsyth, beautifying of the Forsyth City Park. Probationers paint
ed the two pavilions and the inside/outside of the bathroom facilities, removed graffiti from
the playground area, cleaned the grounds of trash and debris and spread new sand in the
playground. Officers said all participants worked very hard to make it a success. Packed
lunches were provided by Burruss CTC, and supplies were provided by the City of Forsyth
under the management of Arthur Jackson. Pictured left to right are PO Gary Bell, PO III
Karen Hood, SO Danny Barron, CPO Susan Phillips, Community Service Workers, PO Den
nis Boyt and PO Dwayne Williams.
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turn to the experts
daily drawn to Haiti
because the county lacks
the abundance of material
things that America pos
sesses.
Despite returning home
June 11, Hobbs said she is
still communicating daily
with the missionaries
there and would like to
start a grassroots sponsor
ship program for Haitian
children.
Hobbs said the local
interest in her Haiti mis
sion work has led to one
other unexpected benefit.
She said, "The Lord
opened doors for me to
share the gospel right here
in Forsyth."
For more information
about or to donate to
Hobbs’ efforts in Haiti, go
to
www.facebook/haitismiles,
where a Paypal account is
set up for donations.
Persons can also e-mail
Hobbs at ahobbs@thehobb-
sfirm.com. Persons who do
not want to make pay
ments online can make
checks payable to Amy
Hobbs at mailing address,
205 Kyndal Lane, Forsyth,
Ga., 31029.
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