Seven days to go

Greetings

Three days in a row.  I am definitely on a roll now.  Seven days until my departure.  Hard to believe that it has already been nine weeks since I have been back in the states.  Upon my departure next week it will be ten weeks since I came back to the states.  I can honestly say that the ten weeks I spent in Kenya seemed like a much longer time then the ten weeks here in the states.  Today I had a spicy chicken sandwich in anticipation of the Wendy’s withdrawals I will suffer once I am out of the country.  Since I will be staying at the guest house that has laundry service I have decided I can sacrifice clothing in my one small suitcase for some treats.  Last time I went to Costco and bought some stuff but it was gone in a couple of weeks.  This time I have to plan for at least 24 days of the 28 days I will be gone.  I already have some slim jims and plan on some jerky.  If anyone has any ideas pass them along.  I do not eat stuff that is too healthy and consider pop tarts a decent breakfast food.

Pastor Ososo wrote me the other day and told me that he had been to Funyula to start on his plot in Busia as well as getting the caretaker of Pastor Odongo’s plot organized.  Pastor Odongo is presently studying in his second year of three years at the African University in Zimbabwe along with Pastor Ososo’s son Reuben.  On my first visit I had met Pastor Odongo and he was serving as the Pastor of the Highrise UMC in the Kibera slum.  Reuben was serving as the Head Master of the Dr. BT Cooper Academy in the Kayole slum.  Pastor Ososo is the District Superintendent of the Nairobi United Methodist Church.  All three of these gentlemen have a real passion to serve those in the hardest hit areas of Nairobi the slums.  Pastor Ososo has taken me to visit with some of his pastors and people in every major slum in Nairobi.  None of the pastors or the DS are paid and one of our major objectives is to help provide an income so they can continue to minister to those in the slums that have little if anything.  For those of you that have visited one of the Nairobi slums can understand that there is not much of an economy and surely not many good paying jobs.

Highrise UMC in Kibera slum Nairobi

Pastor Odongo with Reuben to his right

Upwards of a million people in one square mile (Kibera)

Dr. BT Cooper Academy in Kayole slum

Courtyard of the BT Cooper Academy

One of the classrooms at the BT Cooper Academy

When I visited Highrise at the edge of Kibera the first time back in 2009 I was amazed to learn that the church had to be assembled and disassembled every Sunday.  Think about that the next time you are sitting in your cushioned pew looking at the stained glass windows listening to the choir singing traditional hymns.  There are a few of these style churches in Nairobi but the vast majority of the churches I have visited are either made of sticks, plastic sheeting, corrugated sheeting, cow dung, or just a group of trees with some chairs to sit on.  With the two plots in Busia we will be able to help Pastor Ososo with his duties in Nairobi, some funds to help with Reuben at the university, and Pastor Odongo to help support him and his family while he attends school in Zimbabwe.  Once both Pastor Odongo and Reuben are finished with their studies they will be right back into the slums of Nairobi ministering to the needy. 

Here is a little video of a visit to a small church on Mt. Elgon that our traveling group visited back in December of 2009.  This is the home church of Pastor Joseph and this is where we want to plant 500 passion fruit seedlings to help support a clinic to serve the IDP’/Squatters that have taken up residence.  Most of these people live at an elevation of seven to nine thousand feet and must come down to the base of the mountain closer to the six thousand foot mark to visit the first aid station.  Not only is it a couple thousand foot decent and return it is up to 20 kilometers away.  I remember it very well being somewhere up there with a pounding heart trying to pump oxygen to my brain.  I was able to speak for an hour or so but afterwards all I remember was feeling really bad.  Hopefully this next trip if we go up the mountain my body is better adjusted to the altitude.  Thanks Aaron for the video.

Small church on Mt. Elgon singing us a traditional song

As we start to plant these orchards I want to make sure that I can tell the stories behind them all.  As I said before one of our major goals is to reach those that have not been reached or those no one else wants to reach.  Mt. Elgon is an area not many missionaries go to.  My understanding is that our little five person group were the first white people (Mzungu’s) to visit this small village.  Yes most of them have seen white people before but never in their village up the side of the mountain.  It is usually the small children that freak out the first time they see a Mzungu.  I can’t count how many times I have had a child scream for dear life upon the sight of me.  I guess I just set myself up with that comment.  Go ahead I deserve it.  Usually they run to an older child or adult and try to hide.  When they run to another child that child will try to get them to touch me or rub my arm.  Some times it works many times not.  You would believe that this is impossible in this day and age.  As I have said before some people never stray but a few miles from their homes in their entire lives.  Think about that the next time you get on the interstate for a family vacation. 

Just a few months before our arrival on Elgon horrible atrocities had been committed amongst the different tribes.  Eventually the Kenyan Military had to come in, restored the peace and continue to this day with a presence to maintain order.  On the day of our visit our hosts were so gracious that they took their only goat and slaughtered it to feed our group.  I pray that we will be successful with this orchard to help fund this clinic so people mostly children will not die for lack of some basic medical attention.  If a child in the bush can make it past five their chances of making it to adulthood are much greater.  That pesky little mosquito that bites us here in the states well that pesky little Kenyan mosquito in the bush can be a painful death to a small child.  Having some basic medical attention increases that persons chances for survival many times over.

Again if you feel compelled to send some money or even some more money you can write a much appreciated check to:   

Olathe Wesleyan Church

15320 S. Ridgeview Road

Olathe, KS 66062

Attn: Dave Wood Kenya Trip

Take care and God Bless

Dave