Friday in Chimwong'ombe

Greetings from Malawi,

Another beautiful day. Today was our first day at Chimwong'ombe, having finished our work and other efforts at Khwamba yesterday. Chimwong'ombe is another Ministry of Hope feeding center and village like the other, typically serving more than 500 orphaned children a couple of meals a week consisting of a local version of corn meal.

The day began early as the team divided into two groups; Paul and Keith took the flatbed truck with all the necessary equipment and supplies for the new solar installation to be done this week while Lisa, David and I rode in the minivan we've been using with our driver, Felix.

The road to Chimwong'ombe was unbelievable. Not sure I can explain other than to say, imagine 2 hours of driving a car with no shock absorbers on the surface of the moon. The potholes could swallow texas, and there were plenty of them, throwing our van and ourselves from side to side as we avoided some and took others head-on.

Here's a picture of the "good part" of the road to Chimwong'ombe:

Once we got there, our van pulled up to the MOH feeding center we will be working at this week and hundreds of children ran to greet us with wide eyed curiosity. Here's some of our greeters:

Once we got settled and unloaded, we were offered a tour of the garden there which the locals are quite proud of, for good reason. it was a beautiful veggie garden with gorgeous tomatoes growing now. Part of the success was due to a unique irrigation process by which people take turns operating. Picture an eliptical machine at the local gym, but one that pumps water from a nearby river into a hose servicing the garden when it's operated.




One of the kids demonstrated the "elpitical" pump, here:

While some of us enjoyed the garden tour, the rest of the team got situated on the center's roof and began to install the new solar panel which will light the center with new, first-time ever overhead lighting. The metal roof coupled with what we are told is a bat infestation in the rafters and attic may slow progress, but thus far after day 1, huge strides have been made.

Here's a shot of the guys on the roof working to install the brackets that will hold the panel safely, long into the future:

 Before lunch, David inflated six soccer balls and handed them out to the kids. The locals are soccer fiends and showed amazing skills the moment they got their hands on the balls. They were thrilled to play and immediately took them out to the field and ran to play.

After the soccer game settled down lunch was served. Approximately 400 kids were served today, and they were so great about it. Each kid took a plate, was served, and when finished, they took their plate to wash it and their hands, returning the plate so the next groups of kids can use them and eat their own meals.

Here is an example of a few of the little ones enjoying their lunch, outside under a big shade tree:

After lunch, Lisa, David and I walked to a nearby village with the Center director and three children to visit a local family for a short home visit. We got there by foot, walking about a mile over some pretty rough terrain including loose bricks and stones across a shallow river.

The woman we visited with was in her mid to late sixties, and yet she had three young children including a pair of twins, all under ten or eleven years old. Her home was modest, no more than 200 square feet and perhaps 6 feet tall inside, divided into two rooms by a partial wall and a curtain.

We sat there in her home for close to thirty minutes, asking questions about life in the village, learning fascinating things about her family, her past and her village, and she was so proud to see her three kids presented with new clothes as part of our gifts we presented.

Once we returned to the center following the home visit our visit was coming to an end, but not before an exciting bible lesson that Lisa led for the kids, outside under the same shade tree. Most of the kids and the volunteers listened intently as Lisa led the lesson like the most talented preacher. Everyone loved it.

As part of the bible lesson, hundreds of the kids were each given a bar of soap, representing a way to cleanse their outsides just as Jesus helps us cleanse our insides. The kids lined up patiently and were on their best behaviors as bars of soap were distributed.

They seemed so excited to get their soap bars!

All in all, it was such a terrific day, we can't wait to go back in the morning to continue our work with those awesome kids and those caring for them.

With love,
Marc

Friday in Malawi

Do I dare say we woke up again to another beautiful morning? We did not have internet service yesterday,so I will provide you with the highlights as we wrapped up our time in Khwamba village.

Paul led the way to completion of the larger solar power board, new lighting for the mobile medical clinic and additional cell phone chargers.  The number of cell phones used is truly amazing.  The children we encounter know little English, but Marc pulled out a pair of headsets to share some music and they all knew the word "headset" -- just proves that kids are kids, no matter where you go.

The rest of the team drove out to a more remote village and installed two more drip irrigation systems.  The villagers, men and women, we're very eager to be involved and learn.  They are incredible- humbling reminder that we Americans do not always know best -- we demonstrated how to tie the tripod stand together and wouldn't you know, when they did the next one, it was a better and more secure design.

One of the teams best experiences of the day was gathering with the villagers after we completed the gardens and hearing them sing praise - such amazing voices.  The pastor led them in song and shouts of "Hallelujah" for the visit and the work we had done.  We provided each family head with a bible in Chichewa, and before we left, several requests came for more.  God is very much at work here.

As is the case everywhere we go, we spent a lot of time taking pictures and showing them their photos - this is one of the greatest joys they have.  Such a small gift to give when you get a gentle tap on the arm and a request for "jambalani" (picture).  Always gives a lot of giggles when they see themselves, regardless of age.

David also ran the dental education program and the kids laughed hysterically when he demonstrated spitting out the paste when done.  The excitement for toothbrushes rivaled that of the soap.

Finally, Paul drove out to visit Grace, a young girl we met several years ago.  She and Diana became friends.  Last year, after passing her exams to begin secondary school, we found out Grace had gotten pregnant - a far too common occurrence here.  Grace named her baby after Diana. Paul gave Grace one of our Diana's favorite dresses from when she was a baby, and Grace immediately put it on baby Diana.  Grace is king back to school now, after missing a year, and her grandparents care for the baby so she can attend school.

Far too much to blog happening.

Going to another feeding center today we call C'Bay, because it is far too difficult to pronounce or spell.  Pray we show the face of Jesus to all we meet.
We. Miss you all.

Wednesday in Khwamba

Tired group writing to you tonight from Malawi.  A very rewarding day filled with kids, kids and more kids.  Just like the thriving pilot rabbit program, these kids are multiplying before our eyes.  Food security is a major issue right now due to both a meager harvest and a double in the price of maize from last year.  We got to see and hear how rabbits are being used for food and for sale for food and allowing families to improve their food situation.

We circled this morning for our daily devotions and Paul led us through An interesting discussion on intersecting values from the scientific and Christian communities, as we pondered light vs darkness; our devotional theme for this trip.

We installed our 1st pilot family-size drip irrigation system, and it was truly a team effort.

Our bible study focused on God's promise in the book of John 8 that Jesus is our Light.  Each child was given a solar-powered flashlight to use as another light source in their home to assist with reading and schoolwork.  It is important to remember that there is no electricity in these villages.

A day in a village would not be complete without a good deal of lap time,and the kids are especially fond of Marc and follow him around for a chance of a high-five, a pickup or a bounce on the knee.

David, Marc and Lisa left the village exhilarated and exhausted.  Paul and Keith are spending the night in the village to get a much more vivid experience of life at night in complete darkness.  We'll pick them up tomorrow as we go back for Day 3.  Please pray for them tonight.

Everyone remains healthy and moved by these experiences.We miss our prior group members as we carry on the mission in their absence.

Much love, Lisa

Tuesday at Khwamba

Greetings from another beautiful Malawi evening....

The day started early, with a devotion presented by Marc, when he presented the "The Station" a short story written by Robert Hastings. The story reinforces the point about the importance of living in the present, with God, because of uncertainty of the future. The team reflected about the themes in the story and related it back to their own lives.

Then we got on the road, stopping at the Ministry of Hope and then heading off to spend the day at Khwamba, one of the Ministry of Hope's feeding centers, where we were greeted by over four hundred kids eager to meet each of us. It was an amazing experience spending time with them, getting to know them and sharing a smile or a hug.

Can you imagine over four hundred kids of all ages and sizes coming together with one another and with us to sing songs and meet us, and enjoy a short bible lesson while we visited? Here's what four hundred kids looks like when everyone sat down at the center, on the floor:

One of the first things that really struck the team today was the universality of a smile, and how that even though there was a complete language barrier between us, a smile or a laugh overcame it and bonded us with them and them, with us.

We arrived at the feeding center at about 9am, and David, Keith and Paul immediately went to work cutting PVC and climbing onto the roof and beginning to the upgrade effort on the solar panels installed on the last visit during 2011.

Lisa and Marc spent time with the kids, sitting on the ground or a nearby log and able to look even the littlest kids right in the eye that way. We shook hands (Malawi style) and played, picking many of the smaller kids up into the air and saying, "Wheee!" which they seemed to enjoy a lot.

Before lunch, David, Lisa and Marc visited a family led by an amazing woman three kids of her own and taking care of three other, small kids who's mother had died during childbirth. She's lived in the nearby village her whole life. We presented her a wool blanket and some cooking foods and supplies, as well as soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste and a bible. She was very gracious and thankful for the visit and the gifts we presented.

After lunch, David and Lisa led a short bible lesson about how Jesus' love helps to cleanse us on the inside, erasing our sins. We presented over 200 of the kids with special bars of soap, representing Jesus' cleansing of us, with hand-made Crosses and a quote from Romans 11 which the kids loved receiving and were very excited about it.

We also presented over one hundred new outfits for the boys and another hundred new dresses for the girls. The dresses were extra special because each was hand made by loving donors who generously and lovingly made and supplied them. The kids were thrilled and couldn't wait to see how they looked in their new clothing!

It was an exhilarating day for all of us, and only the first of three days we'll be with these kids at this center before moving to the next one.

It was a terrific day!



Love to all,
Marc and the Malawi team

Full report from Day one in Malawi

Hello from Malawi.... Great to be here.... 

Just a quick update from the first full day and a half here on the ground in Lilongwe, where we're staying and working with the Ministry of Hope folks.

All supplies, including the ocean-shipped crate have made it safely, and the team divided in half today with Keith and Paul working at the MOH offices to help build a ladder and other woodworking while also preparing all of the solar equipment for installation beginning as soon as tomorrow.

At the same time, David, Lisa and Marc went to the various downtown shops and worked to purchase additional supplies such as blankets, large pails for the irrigation equipment, grocery supplies and over 400 bars of soap for a VBS class for the kids at the feeding centers. We also sorted a bunch of donated soccer equipment and prepared it for distribution. 

We also met with the Director of the MOH who told us a great deal about the local successes in terms of new food and money sources such as breeding rabbits for sale, revitalizing the chicken coop and its egg production with hundreds of harvested eggs in their kitchen right now and more every two weeks.

Almost everything was successfully accomplished, and the team retired for a nice dinner at a local restaurant before returning to the boarding house which will be our home for the next week and a half.

We got great pictures of the various preparation work we did today and those will be posted here shortly. Until then, just know it's great to be here as all of the people we've met - both old and new friends - have been truly gracious and lovely and happy to get to know us. Malawi really is an amazing place and one I'm excited to get to know better over the next two weeks.

More soon,

God Bless,

Marc

The Team Has Arrived Safely in Malawi

The Malawi Team just before they headed to the airport on Saturday morning 9/15/2012.  Glad to report that they landed safely on Sunday morning (our time).   They were looking forward to settling in and showering.  They discovered that their lodging location now has Wi-Fi which is an much appreciated technology upgrade which will hopefully allow them to update their activities more easily than in the past. 

What do your donations look like?

Once again, the team is taking more luggage than what they can conceivably manage.  For 5 people, I think we ended up with 12 crates plus our own luggage and carry-on's.  But, oh, for such a good cause.

Mary Browning and I sorted and space-bagged all of the handmade dresses that so many women and girls made.  We had set a goal of 200 dresses for this year, and the picture above shows 250 handcrafted dresses - such a blessing to the girls in Khwamba and C'Bay, many of which have never known a new item.

Big Thank you to all who participated in this - You are such a blessing to these girls!

Team Commissioning

Pastor Don and the attendees at the contemporary service prayed with and for the Malawi travel team on Sunday.  I believe the team is laughing as Don points out that Lisa needs extra prayers being the only female in the group this year.

You'll see the team sporting their "Light a Village" t-shirts, from left to right:  David, Keith, Lisa, Marc, Paul.

T-shirts still available for $20- all monies go directly to the solar program!!  We are already fundraising for next year, so it's never too late!

Preparing crates of supplies

The five members of the Malawi traveling team met at LCPC on Saturday morning to make sure the sixteen large plastic crates full of supplies are all packed, locked and documented.

The crates will head to Malawi with the team next Saturday as checked "luggage" on the plane and help form the basis of all of the planed for activities while there. The only significant exception is the solar panels and lanterns which were shipped by cargo freight back in the Springtime. We just got word this week that the solar equipment has just arrived as well, right down to the wire before we got there.

Each crate couldn't exceed fifty pounds in weight, and after some shifting around of contents such as girls' dresses, soccer supplies, and tools, all was ready to go.

Malawi map and Wikipedia article

Many of our friends have asked to share a map of Malawi and highlight some of the places we'll be when we're there. I hope this map helps you to visualize the villages and city.

Remember, all the whole country of Malawi is not that big at just over 45,000 square miles.

There is also a great Wikipedia article about the country and its origins. You can find that article here: Malawi Wikipedia article

More soon, as we get closer to the trip.

Marc