Get Well for Christmas campaign was a success

Well, well, well.........yes a WELL! The words are music to my ears.  When we found out that the problem with our well was found in the control panel we were excited.  This meant that we could repair this well rather than have to drill another well. The cost was just under $2000 for the entire operation and repair.  As an answer to our prayers, my sister Sharon, organized a fundraiser in the greater Moncton area that she called "Get well for Christmas".  The effort succeeded in raising a surplus of several hundred dollars, I am not sure of the exact total yet, but the extra money will be used to buy new clothes for the orphans for Christmas.  We want to send our heartfelt thanks to her and all the rest of you out there who sacrificed to support this project.  I will attempt to post a picture next week of the water flowing with a complete report.

The garden project that we are working on in partnership, with Organics4Orphans, has been going very well.  Today we have over 70 garden beds cultivated with about 20 beds planted with a variety of vegetables.  We have managed to begin installation today of a foot powered pump, commonly known as the "money maker pump" here in Africa.  We are connecting this pump to a 10,000 litre tank, that was donated by Moncton High School, so that we can use the collected rain water to irrigate the crops.  We currently have 2500 litres in reserve that will last us for a little over a week. The success of our gardens will rely heavily on the availability of water so we have to plan ahead.  The rainy season this fall wasn't as rainy in this area as usual, so we have to think ahead for contingencies should our expected sources 'dry up'. The well water next door at the orphanage will be used for drinking and cooking as a priority, then bathing and laundry if there is enough, and finally for irrigation.

Skygo Utility Vehicle

Looking ahead it may be reasonable to think about fundraising to purchase another Tuk-tuk as they call them here.  ( So named for the sound of the 2-cylinder engine, Tuk, tuk, tuk, tuk.....) This utility vehicle is made by a motorcycle company called Skygo.  The front of it is a motor cycle , but the rear is a utility trailer with a dump feature. It has rear wheel drive (shaft driven ) and the rear part can be out-fitted with seats for passenger transport.  They presently have one here but it is kept busy hauling grass and water for the cattle most of the day.  With an additional Tuk-tuk they could transport the younger children to school (presently  a several kilometer uphill walk) and haul water for the gardens. These machines cost about 160,000 Kenyan Shillings or about $1900 Cdn.  These bikes are very practical and  due to their affordability have become very common in the past few years.  Mainly they have been used as taxis in the large cities but this new utility vehicle has found a market in rural Africa.

It's strange to think that Christmas is just 11 days away. The heat, the climate and the sun burns on Chelsey's back are saying mid-July.  No Christmas music, no cold or snow, no Christmas cards, no Christmas lights, no Merry Christmases in the shops..... I have come to realize that the things that we associate most with Christmas are the commercial hypes that our culture has conditioned us to respond to. (But we miss it, lol)  Don't get me wrong, they celebrate Christmas here, but the things that they treasure are different.  The focus here is on a Christmas feast.  They will slaughter a cow and everyone will eat meat!  Food is the big deal here at Christmas, because what they have in scarcity is what they celebrate with.  They mostly eat the same things here day after day, when they get meat it is usually chicken, so beef is a treat.  Variety and plenty are the things they celebrate with.  So Christmas here is a sort of  like a Thanksgiving, which is rather appropriate, after all.  It means that if you get a good meal with meat and a new set of clothes then you have had an amazing Christmas.  What more could you ask for??   (It is a lot like living in an episode of "Little house on the prairie".)

So tomorrow my African bank account will be open. There has been a little red tape, but complete with a local address and a card that will work in the bank machines here (although the closest one is 40km, 1 hour drive). This will make it possible to wire money from a Canadian bank to the Kenyan bank, which as it turns out is cheaper than withdrawing money from here.  Even from here it is the banking rules and fees that get you.

So Ben 'Kay-D', our resident christian music star, was filming a music video today and this afternoon we went with them part way up the mountain to the village just below the bluff of Mwan Gogi.  The road to get there was about the same condition as the road to Martin Head in the spring.  That's the condition of many of the roads here. Most of the wood roads in New Brunswick are in better shape then the main roads here.  It sure makes us appreciate the roads at home.  I don't think that I will be able to complain about potholes now and keep a straight face.

Well I guess that is about all for now.  God Bless.

Clothes, nurture and nutrition. What do you want for Christmas?

There are snakes, scorpions, spiders, and lack of water. We are surrounded by profound poverty and filth, yet there is nowhere on earth we would rather be.  Karen had a good cry today, the tears were tears of happiness, tears of sorrow and tears of gratefulness to be here in Taita Hills with the children and such incredible people.  What an honour to be able to live among these people in this place.

 Karen was talking to one of the children today about Christmas and he said he would love a pair of socks and shoes and he said he would look so smart (this is their word for sharp).  Many of the children have torn dresses, pants without crotches, no underwear, some of them don't have footwear at all.  Our Christmas wish would be a special meal for the these little treasures and one set of nice clothes each.  Most of them wear flip flops(or slippers as they call them) some too big and some too small because with flip flops it doesn't matter so much. Socks and shoes he  said, with a dreamy look in his eye, socks and shoes. To him this was something he could wish for, a Christmas miracle.  So we cry. We cry in disbelief, in amazement, in wonder really, that we could be so ignorant of things that should be treasured.  A simple pair of shoes here can be purchased for around $10 but for some of these people that is more then they earn in a week. Minimum wage here in Kenya is less than $75/month and unemployment here is well over 50%, some say 65% others say nearer 80%, lets just say it is really high.

Karen was feeling guilty the other day because of the tight budget that we are on here and with Christmas coming was worried about how Chelsey would feel, with the lack of presents under our tree. (figuratively speaking, of course. There will be no tree.)  Chelsey with wisdom beyond her years and a blossoming maturity of someone much older responded simply with, " It doesn't matter Mom". You know she is right of course, it doesn't matter. We will undoubtedly have the richest Christmas that we have ever celebrated just being here with these kids.

We have been watching the daily routine and the women that care for these 40+ orphans are busy cooking and cleaning from sun up to sun down. The children have tea for breakfast, then simple meals of starches and vegetables for lunch( between 1 & 2pm ) and supper between 7 & 8pm. Chores, bathing and laundry are things that get fit in between the rest. The nurturing is mostly done by the older children to the younger, so the time they get with Karen and Chelsey is highly treasured. One of our visions right now is to see how we can increase their nutrition level and immunity by implementing a breakfast shake/smoothie made from greens(kale) and fruit. So we need some commercial sized hand powered blenders and with the gardens we are planting we can begin to implement a breakfast drink for these children. Who would think that our main focus would simply be clothes, nurture and breakfast?( and a stable water supply, but I've covered that thoroughly)

On the water front, we have managed to contact some well specialists that have helped us diagnose some of the problems with our well. We have also had some energetic and generous hearted people come forward and offer to raise some money toward this project. We are very hopeful on this front, so keep praying.