Last Days

I apologize in advance for the delay of this post.  I missed posting for our last days at the VTC so this will wrap up the trip.  We spent our last two days at the VTC continuing the same pattern.  Kelly continued his welding class, while Jill, Emily, Alissa, and Prissy rotated through the other classes, checking on their progress and getting to know the students.

It may seem like there was not a lot of structure to this trip, and its true.  We intentionally left things wide open to leave a lot of time to build relationships with the students.  While to American eyes, this doesn’t seem to be very productive, in reality its one of the best things we can do for them.  Kenyans value relationships above work effort in a way that westerners don’t really get.

Kelly’s welding class was a huge success.  He was able to cover the basics of safety, theory, oxy-fuel welding, grinding, and stick welding.  Every student got to have a hands on with all of the equipment and Kelly identified four students that showed exceptional aptitude and interest.  I know all the Kenyans we very happy with the result, and Kelly also felt like he got a lot accomplished.

Behind the scenes, I was meeting with key people, making plans for the future of the VTC, and making an important new hire.  Jackie Jepkemoi will be joining the KWO team as our Kenyan Director of Health Services.  Jackie is a Clinical Officer, which in Kenya is similar to a physician’s assistant in the US.  She will travel around to all of our locations, evaluating our clinics and nurses, build relationships with the local doctors and hospitals, and coordinating acute care for our people.  She will do a lot to bridge the gap between our local nurses and our medical mission teams.

I met with Stephen several times during the trip.  I also got to meet Mercy, his fiancé.  She is an awesome girl; I told Stephen that he is really marrying over his head.  I think they will be a good match.  They asked me to do a “marriage counseling session” with them, which made me laugh.  I’m not a counselor, but I did sit down with them and told them all I could think of in the way of marital advice.  It’s hard to know how that will translate in their cultural context, but I gave it my best shot.

The biggest new for me coming out of this trip was what just happened to occur while we were there.  Thursday, a road grader worked on the road back to Sondu all day.  It makes a huge difference for the people in this area to have a good road.  Also on Thursday evening, after three years of waiting, the power came on for the first time.  We’ve been running on generators for all this time, and now we can finally do all the things that electricity makes possible, like power tools, electric welders, desktop computers, sewing machines, and hair driers.  And of course, lights.  God is good!

Friday after lunch, we loaded the vehicle and said our goodbyes.  We drove into Kisii to stay a night at the Dados before our long drive back to Nairobi today.  We made it to Java House downtown around 2:30 and after a late lunch, we spent an hour or so at the nearby market.  Everyone got the souvenirs they needed and then it was off to the Capital Center for last minute shopping, and repacking.  Now we are here at the Nairobi airport, waiting for our flight.

It was such a good trip.  All of our travelers did very well, no one got sick, and everyone feels like they accomplished something.  I know the Kenyans loved having us and that made it all worth while.  Be Blessed.

Day 2-3 VTC

Yesterday, we departed from our hotel in Narok and completed the long journey to the VTC. We made a quick stop at the Nkumat in Kisii for last-minute supplies, groceries and water. We arrived at the VTC around 3pm and found our friends Thomas, John Kariuki, Lucas waiting for us.  We made our introductions and then toured the campus.  None of our travelers has been here before, except Prissy who saw it under construction.  We met the two young mothers who are here and their new babies.  These girls arrived at the VTC pregnant, and rather than sending them away, we decided to keep them here so they can learn a trade.

After we unpacked, we were just in time for evening devotional.  As usual, it was amazing.  It’s always a moving experience for me, but this time I felt something different.  It was not only a feeling of love and worship for our King, but also a profound sense of being at home; like my soul was thirsty for the sounds and feeling of Kenyan worship.  This place has really become a part of me. 

The others were also deeply moved by the experience, especially when we went down to the Dirubi orphanage for their devotional.  By the glow of kerosene lanterns, the 130 orphans of Dirubi sang with all of their hearts.  The songs of the redeemed of Christ, under a dark African night, is an experience that cannot be adequately described.

Wednesday morning broke and we enjoyed a great breakfast together.  We then split up to observe and participate in the classes around the VTC.  Kelly is teaching a welding course, and he began with safety and theory.  The kids were very receptive and polite and asked good questions.  Kelly said that their questions were every bit as good as any class he has ever taught.  By the end of the day, he had moved on to a demonstration of oxy-fuel welding using local materials.  It is a perfect approach to how these kids will likely practice this trade in the future.

Jill and Emily spent time in the kitchen with the catering class.  They experimented with corn tortillas, and the new spices they had brought.  Jill told me she ended up learning far more about African cooking from them than she taught.  I know they appreciated the effort, and the friendships that they are making.

Prissy and Alissa went down to spend time with the cosmetology class.  They got their hair braided, pedicures, and spent time playing and talking with the girls there.  This is the main reason we came on this trip.  To build relationships and show these kids that they are loved.  Mission accomplished.

In the afternoon, it was back to class and then play time.  Our people played soccer, Frisbee, and other games with the VTC kids as well as the kids from Dirubi orphanage.  Everyone really enjoyed that.  After devotional, we made an early night of it; everyone is very tired. Tomorrow there will be more fun things to do.

Day OneL Travel and Shopping

Well, I am back in Kenya!  It’s always good to get to my second home, even if it is for only a week.  But what a week we have planned!  I traveled here with Kelley Vaughan, my good friend and master welder, KWO board member Jill Brown, and her daughter Emily, as well as Prissy Chambers and Alissa Sharp.  We are headed to the Vocational Training center, to start a welding program, observe the other areas, and love on some kids!

Our flights were smooth and easy, even with a very short connection in London.  All of our many bags stuffed with gifts and teaching supplies arrived with us and we spent a relaxing night at Kamulu.  Francis and Mauryn Mbuvi are joining us on this trip, and I am so blessed to have them.  It’s been a while since I traveled with both of them.

This morning we drove into Nairobi to shop for welding machines and supplies.  We met a nice man working at our first shop, and he stayed with us the entire morning as we went from place to place gathering what we needed.  The ladies were very patient as we did man-shopping, which in Kenya can take some time.  No single place has everything you need.  I gave our guide a nice tip as we drove on to the Junction Mall for lunch at Java House and a quick Nakumatt visit.  Then we hit the road for Narok, a convenient waypoint on our way to Dirubi and the VTC.  We should arrive tomorrow after lunch and we will be there until Friday.

Tomorrow the VTC!

 

Easter and the long trip home

Possibly the greatest thrill I have had so far as a minister/missionary was to preach about the resurrection of Jesus Christ at Dirubi Church of Christ this past Sunday.  The service was very long, almost three hours.  Every choir had to sing three songs, and the though the sermonettes for giving and the Lord’s supper were fairly short, I preached for an hour, so it was 1pm before we finished.  Some of what I said was new for them, teaching about the new heaven and the new earth is fairly new to me as well, but they received it well.

After lunch we made the short drive to Kisii for one last night at the Dados.  Monday we made the long drive back to Nairobi.  We took the Narok road, still the easiest route, although this time the police presence was very heavy.  The security situation in the country on this trip has been greatly upgraded.  In the wake of several small bombings, and some serious tension on the coast between the Christian and muslim communities, the government is cracking down on people illegally in the country.  In the past month they have arrested more that 1,000 illegals, mostly Somali, and deported them.  The police didn’t bother with us at all, they were just looking for illegal aliens.

At Kamuu, I said goodbye to Angton and Stephen.  Stephen had promised to spend the night at Angton’s house.  Those two have become really good friends.  Stephen was the one who preached the gospel to Angton and helped him understand baptism.  I baptized Angton on my October 2013 trip.  These two men have been my strength on this trip, keeping me safe and well understood.  I couldn’t do what I do without them and my other great friends in Kenya.

This morning I got to see Charles and Darlene Coulston, and spend a few minutes talking with them.  They helped found the Made In The Streets ministry here with Francis Mbuvi, and many of their interests coincide with ours.  They agreed that Francis will be coming to Midland on his next trip to the U.S. so that was a real blessing.

Then we drove into town to do some shopping and have lunch, but first I had to find a good supplier for welding supplies, in advance of the June vocational mission trip.  We were successful this time, finding the right district of the city where almost any industrial supply items can be found.  Then we ate lunch at Carnivore!  It was a nice treat for me to have a first class meal for my last one in Kenya.  After a quick walk through the downtown Masai Market, we had a snack and Java House at Capital Centre.  Now I’m at the airport, doing my last blog entry for this trip.

So, what did I learn?  I did a lot of investigation about the nutrition levels of our orphanages.  I took a lot of notes, and asked a lot of questions.  There were some surprises, both good and not so good.  I’ll have to spend some time digesting the information and double-checking my results, but I think we now have enough to go on to make some positive changes for our kids.

I found very few problems at any of our orphanages on this trip, which was a pleasant surprise.  One of my key jobs is to find problems, so this was a real blessing.  All of our directors have taken my past suggestions very seriously, and it really showed.

I was shown a very high level of hospitality on this trip, which is the norm.  I keep thinking that with so many trips under my belt, they will stop treating me like a king, but so far that hasn’t happened.  I was “accused” of being a Kenyan several times on this trip, once for tardiness, and I found my self able to follow some of the Swahili conversations that were swirling around me.  This was a surprise, both for my friends and me.  I do not consciously understand the words yet, but still I am able to understand a lot more than I used to.  I am very grateful for this.

I have to say again how amazingly blessed I am to be in the situation I am in.  I get to contribute through my work to both my local church and this very important mission work, and get paid for it.  I have a beautiful, understanding wife who loves what I do, and loves me very much.  So much, in fact, that she is willing to share me with people on the other side of the world for weeks at a time.  I don’t fully understand why God has selected me to live this life, but I couldn’t ask for any more that I have now.

I am continually amazed at the power of Christ’s church to do good in the world.  I know that a lot of people in the world are skeptical of organized religion, and of course the church is flawed, just as we all are individually.  But the capacity of good, Christ following people to change the world cannot be overestimated.  Some of the places in Kenya are so very small and poor, yet they manage to do more and more every year to make this world better.  Weather it’s feeding orphans, helping widows, comforting the sick and bereaved, or just lending a hand to a neighbor, they really represent what is the best part about Christainity.

Driving through the streets of Nairobi today, through the masses of people each going their own way, I was struck by just how many people there are in the world.  I am in awe of a God who can love each and every one of them in a deep, personal way.  Every trip that I make here and every new story that I hear, I am ever more convinced that this is true.  God’s capacity to love knows no end; it’s as big as the universe is wide.  It’s hard to imagine that He loves me just as much as every other soul he ever created, but I know that it is true.

Dear God, I thank your for my life, and the beautiful way you are revealing yourself to me each day.  Thank you for your church, spanning the world, tying all Christians together.  Thank you for your comforter, the Holy Spirit, that guides our lives if we will only hear His voice.  Most of all, thank you for the gift of your son, Jesus Christ, who lived a perfect life and died a terrible death to redeem us from our sin.  Most of all, I thank you that the tomb is empty, that He lives again, and that He rules this world, even in it’s broken state.  I long for the day that He returns again to hand over the Kingdom to you, Lord God, for you to finish the job of making all things new again.  Until that day comes, I will praise you!  Through the name of Jesus, Amen.

Dirubi - April 2014

Friday we left the Dados behind and come here to the Vocational Training Centre at Dirubi.  This is the place where God began the orphanage work at the Dirubi church, and also where we train our students in a vocation before they leave our system.  We looked in on all the classes at the VTC first, and they are really doing well.  We have some new teachers here in the automotive and computer departments, and they are very stong.  I was especially impressed with the new automotive teacher, James, who seems to be doing a great job.  Then we spent some time with the Dirubi widows and got the nutritional information that we needed and saw the newly renovated kitchen here.  It is spectacular, as befits the “flagship” of the KWO system.

That evening we shared a brief devotional with the VTC students before dinner.  After dinner, we showed them, along with the 11^th and 12^th graders from Dirubi, the movie, “The Passion of the Christ.”  I have to say it was a profoundly moving experience for me, and the students. 

The film is hard to watch, particularly for Christians since it is so graphic in its depiction of Christ’s suffering.  If you have seen it, you can remember your reaction, maybe stunned, disturbed, deeply moved.  Now imagine that you have never seen any movie in a theatre before, there is no violence on your TV at night, and no violent video games, either.  If you are not “inoculated” with violent imagery the way we Americans are, the movie is even more intense for our students.  Some could not finish it, many kept their eyes covered, only peeking from time to time, and every one of them shed tears.  For me, as much as the film still moves me, and convicts me, it was even more moving to watch them experience it for the first time, especially on Good Friday.

This morning we visited our orphanage down the road at Mahana, Lee McGraw.  That place has really made some nice improvements, and the kids looked so good.  I was very happy to visit them again.  When we returned, we had a lazy afternoon relaxing and preparing for our departure tomorrow.

Tonight, at evening devotional at the VTC, I asked the students to comment on the film and ask any questions they might have.  I was stunned at the response.  Several of them expressed how much it moved them, and how they were convicted to turn away from sin after seeing how much our savor suffered.  One even asked how then can we deal with our sin, knowing how much He gave up for us.  That sparked a good discussion about living a life free from sin, knowing that Jesus had paid our debt for all time.  It was very cool.

Unbeknownst to me, all day the principal, John Kariuki had been counseling with students in his office.  Many of them sought him out to confess sins, rededicate their lives, and ask hard questions.  At the devotion, John told us all that nine of the students had requested baptism, as a result of the film. God is Good!

Later we attended evening devotion at the Dirubi Orphanage and I was so blessed by their singing, and their genuine love and affection that they have for me here.  Truly, my cup overflows today!

Tomorrow is Easter Sunday.  Resurrection Day!  I am bringing the word to the Dirubi church, and for once I can’t wait!  He Is Risen!  Be blessed.

Uriri - April 2014

We left Uriri after lunch on Wednesday.  We had planned to leave earlier, but at our destination, Ndhiwa, Alfayo is hosting the Homa Bay County Children’s Congress.  This event features delegates from the county’s children’s homes, government officials, and other stakeholders.  They were meeting at Ndhiwa for the last three days, which caused a shakeup in our schedule.  Alfayo said is was a good meeting and worth doing, so I didn’t mind the diversion.  While we waited for  Alfayo to be ready for us, we decided to drive into Homa Bay for a soda at the Tourist Hotel on lake Victoria.  Fredrick Kisulu, the pastor of Homa Bay Church of Christ met us there and it was good to visit him again.

We arrived at Ndhiwa in time for evening devotional, and then dinner.  Afterwards we showed them “Ender’s Game” and then it was (past) time for bed.  This morning we interviewed a widow from Ndhiwa about their nutrition information, and then we set out to see Manning Orphange.  But before we got there, we made a stop at Sukari Sgar Company’s factory nearby; Alfayo had arranged for us to take a tour of the factory.

One of the coolest things about Kenyan culture is their strong sense of hospitality.  A simple written request from Alfayo to the Sukari management was all that it took to secure a guided tour of their plant.  This has happened to us at a coffee factory and a tea factory on past trips as well.  I can’t imagine any factory like this in America being so open to visitors, especially ones with no real connection to their company.

One of their mechanical engineers named Charles, took us around.  He explained the entire process, he even lead us on top of one of the big machines while it was running!  Not exactly kosher from an OSHA standpoint, but this is Kenya!  It was easily the best factory tour I have done.  They invited us back any time, and I can’t wait to take some of you with me next time.  On to Manning!

Our visit here was short because the tour ran a bit long and we had to get back to Kisii to pik up our soapstone order before they closed.  It was a good visit.  They have made good improvements on the kitchen and added a new boy’s latrine.  The kids were all there and so happy to see us.  I did a short talk and took a few questions before we had to leave.  Look for the pictures, and many other on the KWO Facebook page. 

Now we are at the Dados in Kisii.  Tomorrow we will move up to the VTC at Dirubi to see that place and rest a bit.  I’m preaching Easter Sunday at Dirubi, so please be in prayer for that.  Thanks and be blessed!

Uriri - April 2014

Monday morning, we set out for Uriri.  The roads in this part of the country are about average, some potholes, speed bumps, and too many mutatu.  We made a stop at the Kisac Fair Trade shop, where we like to buy soapstone.  KWO also likes to get our trophies for K4K and the Golf Tournament here, so they have that authentic, Kenyan feel.  For the golf tournament, I wanted a soapstone golf club head.  Seems easy enough, but no one in this area has ever even seen a golf club.  I sent pictures ahead by email, but they were not able to decipher them very well.  I had planned to carry one with me when I came from the US, but I just clean forgot.

 

So there I stood, around all these gifted artisans, trying to explain the pictures, when I had a thought.  I asked them to bring me a bar of soap and I tried to carve one as an example.  Since I am self conscious about my lack of artistic talent, and sensitive to what people speaking a foreign language around me are saying, you can imagine I was not very comfortable in this situation.  The bar was too small, so they were going to have to scale it up, but I think it turned out OK. 

 

They were confused by it; not knowing what in the world it could be used for.  I tried to explain, but the allure of golf is not for everyone, I guess.  They were skeptical that I would like the finished product, I could tell.  Fortunately, our old friend Daniel showed up just then.  He had foreseen the difficulty, and somehow found the only golf club in Kisii County, I am sure.  It was a metal driver, just what I wanted.  Now the artisans were really laughing at my “soap” stone carving.  “You wanted this, from this?”

 

All’s well that ends well, I guess.  Tuesday morning I got an email with pictures of the trophies completed from Daniel.  They look amazing, and I know the tournament winners will be proud to display them.  We said our goodbyes and moved on down the road to Uriri.

 

Uriri is in sugar cane country.  Kennedy Chandi is our director here, and Joseph, who everyone just calls “Brother”, ably assists him.  We went around the place, seeing what was new.  We also sat down with a widow, Chandi, and Brother and did our nutritional calculations.  One of the things that surprises me in doing this project is just how different each place handles food.  They all cook in the same ways, but the availability of certain foods varies greatly from orphanages just 40 miles apart.  It shows how much transportation costs drive food costs in the developing world.  Every trip I learn something new, and this one has certainly been an eye-opener.

 

After dinner, we showed a movie to the kids.  This time it was “MegaMind.”  They younger ones loved it, but the older ones were a bit bored, I think.  However, they all calmly sat through the entire film, quietly enjoying it.  It’s fascinating to me how different the character of the orphan population’s can be at each place.  Here the discipline is very good and the kids are very well behaved, even with what seems to my eyes to be very relaxed oversight.  At other places, the kids are more rambunctious and harder to keep still.  I wonder if the difference is the director, some strong widows, or a combination of factors.  Hard to tell without staying for months.

 

We had planned to visit Nana Glasscock Orphanage on Tuesday, but the rains and the condition of the road into that place made it impossible.  Chandi said we could drive to within 3km of the place and then put on gumboots and slog our way in on foot.  For me, with this perpetually injured foot, that’s just not an option.  Next time I will be here in the drier season and we will get to see these kids again. 

 

Instead we stayed an extra day at Uriri.  We took some time in the morning to drive into Migori, the commercial center of this area and see that town.  I had never been there, since it is past Uriri a little ways.  It’s a typical town, bustling with activity.  The tobacco industry is also strong here; we passed two factories on our way to Migori.  We stopped and had a soda at a hotel here that was surprisingly nice.  I could see us taking rooms here for a mission trip to this area for a night or two.

 

Back at Uriri, there was time to relax and just enjoy the rhythm of the place.  The kids are on holiday from school right now so they are all here.  They amused themselves in various ways, after their chores were done, of course.  The older kids helped the younger ones, the widows were able to rest a bit and I was able to do some work at y computer.  Around five, we gathered the kids for a question and answer session.  They were slow to get started, but after I got a blackboard and chalk and drew a map of the US, describing the terrain and the location of the cities, they were full of questions.  I really enjoyed it; maybe teaching is still in my future?

 

After dinner we showed another movie, this time, “Ender’s Game.”  They were all into this one, eagerly watching the entire film.  The power stayed with us the whole time and around 9:30 we went back to Chandi’s house for a late dinner.  Tomorrow we will head out to visit Ndhiwa and Alfayo Bodi.  Be blessed!