A Journey of the Heart - Blessings Upon Blessings

It was the day after we ministered in the village of Ti Marche and my heart was filled with emotions I had never experience before.  Images remained in my mind; the small school with desks that drastically needed repair, the faces of the precious children, the modest mud houses that most lived in, the makeshift church the people so proudly worshipped in each Sunday, the joy on the faces of the people as they were receiving medical care, and the thankfulness of each person – young and old – that we had visited and cared for – for just one day.

It was now Sunday, the Lord’s Day - a day of worship and praise.  We all gathered together to attend church and climbed into the Tap Tap; quite a feat for the ladies, each wearing skirts or dresses.  It was a short ride through Fermathe to the Baptist Mission, where we would attend Sunday service.  The service was in both Creole and French.  Listening to the people singing worship songs in these languages blessed each of us.  The joy and passion they demonstrated was tremendous.

On another day during our visit, we went back to the Baptist Mission for a visit and to have lunch.  During our visit, we met and spent time with Wallace Turnbull and his wife Eleanor.  Now, 88 and 86 years old – still full of life, joy and passion for the people of Haiti – they spent time sharing stories, history, and testimonials, which spanned their lifetime.

In 1947, at 59 years of age, Bertha Holdeman, later known as Granny, went to Haiti to become a missionary to the mountain people.  Beginning missionary work later in life, her support soon dried up, yet she decided to remain in the work she had begun. “The Lord brought me down here; He will take care of me.”  Her daughter, Eleanor, came to visit to scrutinize her mother’s situation.  Eleanor met a young missionary, Wallace Turnbull, and the two were married and remained with Granny; the three of them becoming the mission staff.

Wallace and Eleanor continued to minister to the Haitian people for over 60 years.  Together they co-founded the Fermathe mission compound and one hundred thirty-nine outpost churches on the island.

They were bold missionaries, going into the deep mountains of Haiti, visiting the many villages that thrived on voodoo worship – including child sacrificing and witchcraft.  Not only did they introduce many to Christianity, showing them the evil of their voodoo practices, but Wallace personally offered them hands-on training and jobs, helping to build what is now the compound at the Baptist Mission.  This included training in masonry work, handi-crafts, carpentry, and even terrace farming on mountain sides - teaching life skills that would stay with their families for generations to come.

The small dispensary became a hospital which was able to minister to thousands, compared to the few hundred when Granny first began the dispensary.

Eleanor taught mountain women to embroider and sew, selling their goods to mission visitors. These products became very popular and the project continued to expand.

Throughout Wallace’s years of missionary service, he continually collected objects; Indian relics found through excavation, cannon balls from abandoned Forts, French colonial china, and so much more. He collected artifacts from all over Haiti over the years, as well as many other places they had visited during their lifetime; there is a museum housing his collection.  Wallace personally took us through this museum, sharing the many stories as we viewed his amazing collection – including many voodoo artifacts from witch doctors and people who turned from that world and were given a new life because of this amazing couple.

On the last evening of our time in Haiti, we were once again blessed when Wallace & Eleanor joined us for Sunday dinner.
Wallace and Eleanor truly lived Jesus’ command to “love your neighbor as yourself.”  Eleanor said, “If my children eat, my neighbors’ children should eat, if my children go to school, my neighbors’ children should go to school.”

One of Eleanor’s known quotes is, “The love of Christ constrained us … to pioneer, cut jeep trails in the brush country of the northwest, go on farther on foot; to reach the remote coastal areas by sailboat… and now to nurture the new life in little churches and schools all over the island … these are the products of the call and compulsion which brought us to Haiti and now keep us here.”



Sitting and hearing the 60 plus years of testimonies, answered prayers, and passion they still hold for Haiti and its people, was such an encouragement and amazing blessing to me.