This year the day also took on a whole new meaning as Sophie is old enough to truly participate.  She assisted in passing out all 86 pairs of shoes and was excited to be a help.  We were a bit nervous that she would want a gift as well when it was all finished, but we made the decision that we wouldn’t give her one…this was just a day for the kids at Hosana.  We were so proud that when all the gifts were passed out she was just happily watching the excitement of shiny paper flying everywhere.  We know that at 18 months old she does not truly understand everything that was going on, but we hope that these experiences are instilling a joy of giving within her, that even though she may not remember the day she passed out presents to 86 orphaned children that the desire to give and bless others will always be a part of her nature.

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to the members of Culbreth Memorial Church in Falcon, NC, for raising the funds to purchase the shoes for the children.  As we often say, it is the generosity of others that makes our work possible and for that we are grateful.

That afternoon we had a traditional Thanksgiving lunch with several friends here in Nairobi.  The next morning we traveled to the village of Kanja to visit Bishop Ayub and his family.  Ayub has started a school for the community through his church, Emmanuel Worship Center.  That weekend they were having a Harambee to raise funds for a new building for the school.  Harambee is a swahili word which literally means “pull together,” but it also refers to a type of fundraising common in Kenya.  The whole community comes together to contribute funds towards the project, and “special guests” are also invited.  We were honored to serve as special guests and were joined by a Kenyan member of Parliament.  The fund raiser was a success, but they still have a long way to go before they reach their goal.  During the coming months we would love to get involved in a larger way with assisting Ayub with this project.  We would love to be able to see the building completed as well as potentially assist the school in creating sustainability projects in the future.  We will post updates soon.

We spent the weekend in Kanja with our friends Kevin and Summer Sneed.  This is one of our favorite places in Kenya to be.  The village is on the slopes of Mt. Kenya and the surrounding scenery is breathtaking….tea fields, waterfalls, mountains, forests….gorgeous.  It is an extremely quiet and quaint spot, and a great get-away.  Lucy, Ayub’s wife, took great care of us with a constant supply of chai and delicious food.  Sophie had a blast greeting the many cows, donkeys, and chickens in the village, and of she of course loved the attention of the locals, who aren’t used to seeing blond headed white kids very often.

It was a busy Thanksgiving weekend but a rewarding one.  We have so much to be thankful for.  We are also thankful for those of you reading this that pray for us and contribute to our projects.  The things we are able to accomplish would not be possible if it weren’t for you.  So….Thank you, Asante, Niwega (Thank you in Kiembu…what is predominately spoken in Kanja).  God Bless….

Community Christian School Ruai 

Chicken Project:  We are starting a sustainability chicken (egg laying) project for the school.  We have purchased 500 chickens, immunizations, needed supplies, and built a chicken shed for 200 adult layers, complete with a room for a caretaker.  We are in the process of building an additional chicken shed that will house 300 adult chickens when they begin laying.  We still lack the roofing, wire mesh, and laying benches for this structure.  Once the structure is finished we also plan to build a wire fence around the school compound as an added security measure, as people commonly walk through the compound.

Student/Teacher Christmas Gift:  A couple of times each year we like to bless the students and teachers of the school with a gift.  In the past we have given school bags and food items to bless their families/caretakers.  We have appreciated the teachers of the school (who receive very little compensation for their work) with gifts of money, hand bags, and traveling suitcases (these may seem like odd gifts but these were requested).  This Christmas (actually late November since the school is not in session in December) we plan on providing each child (over 100) with enough food supplies for their families/caretakers for the month.  This will compensate for the meals that the children would normally get at school, but also as an extra blessing for the family.  We will also bless the teachers with food items for the month.

Feeding Project:  The monthly feeding project is on going.  Within the next few months, as the Chicken Project begins to generate income, we will slowly begin to withdraw the monthly food support and provide support in other ways.

Hosanna Children’s Home, Githunguri

Well/Water Harvesting Project:  We have been working towards digging a well for several months now, but the workers have been having extreme difficulty finding water, due to the rock they have to work through.  So in the meantime we are assisting with the installation of a water harvesting system for the home.   The water harvesting will really bless the home with additional water for cleaning, washing, bathing, and flushing toilets (newly installed!).   However, the well is much needed for drinking and cooking water.  Please be in prayer that the workers will find water soon.  Beatrice and Issac, the directors of Hosanna, are extremely focused and dedicated.  Every time we visit they have made incredible upgrades to the home and they are always finding new ways to make improvements. 

Christmas Party:  The last 2 years we have celebrated the Christmas Season at Hosanna by throwing a party (pizza one year, but they requested sausages the next….totally different culture) and giving each child a new pair of shoes.  Since shoes wear out and kids grow, this year we have been asked to provide shoes once again.  There are around 70 kids now at Hosanna.

This past weekend I (Jamie) joined a group of volunteers from International Christian Fellowship and Convoy of Hope to travel to a small village of Sombo, just south of Garissa, to deliver much needed food aid.  I drove up with the advanced team on Friday so that we could meet with workers in the area and prepare for the following day.  The rest of the team (my sister, Melissa, included) flew in the next day.  The village of Sombo is made up of a combination of Somali and Watu people that have migrated from Somalia over the years.  This area is desert and has not received rain in over 2 years.  The results have been devastating.  A common sight in the area is to see people digging in a dried river bed in search of water.  People are dying every day.  Even the camels have sagging humps and are thin.   Our mission was to deliver food to between 300-400 people, enough to last each family a week or so.  When we arrived in Sombo we were welcomed by the people with traditional songs and dances.  They were overjoyed at the prospect of receiving food.  We arrived early in order to spend time with them.  Shortly after arriving the Elders of the village invited the oldest members of our group into the main Elder’s hut for introductions and to take chai brewed with camel’s milk, as is the custom.  I was not one of the oldest among our group but I was asked to enter.  I was hesitant to go in because I knew that I was not an “elder” and I did not want to be offensive.  One man saw my hesistance and said, “You don’t want to enter?”  I didn’t want to give that impression either because I thought that may also be offensive.  So I humbly entered, unsure if I was truly supposed to or not.  I asked the local missionary, a Kenyan man named David Maina, if I had done the right thing by entering.  He told me that I had done the right thing, and that they probably included me because of my red beard.  Somali Muslim Elders have a custom of dying their beards red, so David said that my red beard made me look like a white Somali Elder.  This was one day I was thankful that my beard oddly grew red even though my hair has always been blonde, because I was thankful that it allowed me the opportunity to have this experience.  To be a part of this meeting of elders, with traditions and customs that have existed for years, was truly unique.  It was also encouraging to sit among these devout Muslim men, the elders of their communities, and see how their hearts are beginning to soften to Christ.  They are not believers yet, but because of the work of David Maina, Brian Burr (Convoy of Hope/Assemblies of God), and countless others that are sharing Christ’s love with these people in their time of need, they welcomed us into their homes and allowed us to pray for them.  It was a  wonderful experience.  It was extremely rewarding to distribute the food and to show Christ’s love to these people.  However, the need is far greater than anything we can do.  No human effort can fix this problem.  Please pray for the millions affected by this drought.  Pray for rain to fall and for people to be drawn to Christ during this terrible time.

You can also lift up David Maina and his family in your prayers.  They left their home in Nairobi and moved to the desolate desert of Sombo 10 years ago to establish a Christian school.  This school is feeding and educating over 200 kids from the community.  These children are also being introduced to Christ.  He is working every day to make connections with the people in this area and to show love.

Also, if you are interested in supporting the work of Brian Burr/Convoy of Hope and his work in this region, you can make donations to:

One area of need that we currently face is the construction of another coup/structure.  The current structure is large enough to house 500 chicks, but can only accomodate 200 adults.  So within the next 5 months we need an additonal structure to house the other 300 chickens.  When we decided to purchase the chickens we decided to purchase 500, believing in faith that we would be able to build an additional structure within 5 months.  We have faith that the finances will come, as several people have already made pledges to support this project.  If you are interested in supporting feel free to click on the “Ways to Help” link at the top.  If not, no worries, but please lift the students and community of Calvary Community School Ruai in prayer as often as you think of it.  Asante Sana…

Oh, and we did see some incredible animals and have an amazing time at the Mara.  It was a phenomenal 3 weeks with the Crowgeys, and other than the above story, everything went incredibly smoothly….except for the couch Jason and I broke in a wild game of Cranium, but what would you think of if you had to act out “Tom Cruise” for a teammate without saying proper nouns?  Exactly, the same thing we did just before we jumped on and crashed through our couch.  But anyway, here are some photos from the more enjoyable parts of the Mara safari.