By Matthew K. Jensen
Published: Sunday, January 17, 2010 2:22 AM CST
After Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti, Charbine McBride, a 17-year-old girl born in the Caribbean country but now living in Cache County, waited anxiously for news that her biological mother and brothers survived.
On Saturday afternoon the girl received a call placed from a satellite telephone from Haiti with word that her family members were safe after they reached a small village where McBride’s adoptive mother, Mandi, is helping to provide medical care.
Kevin and Mandi McBride of Mt. Sterling adopted Charbine and a 4-year-old Haitian boy named Schnaider in 2008 after a years-long adoption process. Mandi arrived in Haiti on Sunday, two days before the quake, along with friend and fellow nurse Carol Smith of Nibley. The two had plane tickets to return home on Tuesday, but the cancellation of most commercial flights from the island nation could mean a later departure.
Kevin McBride spoke with The Herald Journal on Saturday, saying his wife suffered some minor injuries in the quake when a bookshelf fell on her, but that neither she nor Smith were seriously injured.
“She seems to be doing all right,” he said. “I talked with her about an hour ago. She didn’t say much because she was letting our daughter talk to her biological mom.”
McBride says his daughter’s Haitian family was staying in Carrefour, near Port-au-Prince, when the earthquake struck Tuesday afternoon.
“They lost everything,” he added. “Charbine and her mother stay in contact quite a bit. She actually raised about a hundred bucks to give to my wife to take down to give to her mom.”
McBride says he and his wife gave Charbine’s mother an additional $100 and that he hoped the money would help the Haitian woman and her sons.
Mandi and Carol Smith continue to provide medical care at the Ruuska Village orphanage where they’re staying. The main structure at the orphanage sustained some damage when at least two walls toppled, but McBride says the children are safe and still living in the building.
“They’ve stitched up a few people and anything they can do to help,” added McBride. “They’re kind of doing things out of their scope of work.”
McBride says the earthquake won’t keep his family away from Haiti for too long. After all the couple have been through, Haiti and its people are a big part of their lives.
“We’re planning on going to Haiti as soon as things settle down,” he added. “(Mandi’s) been down two or three times since the children have been home and we’ve been down there ten times before the adoption process.”
He added that his family is coping well with the tragedy, especially after hearing such great news about Charbine’s Haitian family.
“We keep doing the same daily activities to keep our minds off it,” he said. “You can’t sit around and think too much about it.”
Charbine attends Mt. Crest High School and Schnaider goes to preschool three days a week.
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