Jessica in Uganda

August 19 (or, goodies, g-nut paste and goodbyes)

2008-08-19T02:26:00.000-07:00

It's here. Our last day in Masindi. Our leaving is still a surreal fact to me - we're so settled, but I'm looking forward to home, so it will be "sweet sorrow".
Much has happened in the last week. Much. Here is a short version:

We went to the Falls, as I mentioned. First, we hiked around the Falls. They're stunning - there is a constant rainbow around it. So we took lots of snaps and got a good deal of spray on us to refresh us from the hot, hot sun. Next, the game park - we saw elephants, hippos, giraffes, water buffalo, antelopes, a variety of birds, warthogs and even a pair of lions. Most of these, including the lions, we were just meters from our tax. It seemed like we should be watching it on tv, not sitting right there in the grasslands with wild beasts. They were mighty beautiful beasts, though.

Friday night, we hosted a thank-you supper for everyone who's been quite involved with our program. It was a blast. We went to a country-club type place, in Kinyara, and played pool and ate food. Some of the guys and Amanda even went swimming in the pool. It was really nice to have everyone together to start the good-byes.

Sunday was a fundraiser for the Orphans' Centre that's going to be built. Many of the students were there and their guardians. There was a good deal of items donated (including some few items from Tash and me), and the end tally was about 800,000 shillings (about $525), which is a good start. It was a really beautiful thing to see the community working together to develop itself. The concern and care toward orphans is ingrained in these people - they are really trying to help their society and these children.
In case you'd like to know what we purchased: we got baskets, a bowl, some necklaces and some pineapples. But the best was my first buy: the entire stack of sugar cane for all the students to eat while they were waiting around.

Yesterday, we went and played football with some of our students. I couldn't say good-bye to them yet, so we arranged it for the morning (and again today), and then in the afternoon we were going to come back to have a good-bye supper with the staff. When we came back, the kids were still playing! The supper was lovely - an African feast.
Afterward, we had a debrief will Rev. Mike, Christine and Garrison (the executive directors of UMOJA). They are such passionate people with such big dreams. It is very clear that they have a good attention to both present and future needs to be planned for, and it was such a pleasure to be a part of helping to discuss with them and being part of the planning for their future.

Thank you everyone for your support through prayer and e-mails. Please continue to intercede for us as we travel home, and for this community as it strives and struggles to better itself.

August 10 (or, colds and caravans)

2008-08-10T01:31:00.000-07:00

Greetings everyone,
Sorry for the delays in updating you - we are so busy right now!
Things continue to be amazing here - play hard, work hard, love hard, sleep hard.
I have a cold, again, but it's not incapacitating, so hopefully it will just fade away like the others have. I'm not surprised at all that we're getting sick though - we take good care of ourselves, but the weather changes on a dime - from blistering hot to a downpour - and we've been frequently washed by rain the past few days.

The week was fairly normal. Lesson continue to go well (even if the rain interferes sometimes) - for those of you who have seen pictures of the school, I'm sure you can imagine the flooding in the classrooms we get sometimes...

Yesterday (Saturday), it was time for more field work. We left at 10 am, since we were told to be at the office then, but didn't leave until 12:30 pm (this is not uncommon since, as I'm sure you know, time is different in Africa). We took about a dozen boxes of blankets, clothes, school supplies, toothbrushes and toothpaste, and food out with us. They were first loaded precariously onto motorcycles (at least 6 to a cycle) and transported to the chairman of the village's home. We then met up with him, Madam Lydia (a teacher from the school) and a couple of our students. We enjoyed a snack of yellow jackfruit, while waiting for the remainder of our party.
By the time we were all together, it was time for lunch. Rice, matoke, cabbage, chicken, avacadoes and beef (all in great quantity... we can only eat about 1/3 of what we are "supposed" to eat and are constantly teased about it).
From there, we created a caravan of bicycles (which were loaded with the boxes and pushed along the narrow dirt paths of the bush) and walkers. We made it around to some 15 homes before 7 pm.
It was such a beautiful sight to see the faces of all the family members light up. These few things we could deliver to the orphans will make all the difference. We can't wait to go out again today.

We have a busy week and a half left before flying out: a few more days of school, one more trip to the field (Tuesday), going to the Falls, hosting a thank-you supper for our family, a fund raiser (on Sunday) for the Orphans' Centre, and then a good-bye party.

Thank you to everyone who responded to my request for updates on life in Canada; they were humorous and nice to read.

I'm still trying to keep focused on the things to look forward to coming home (seeing family and friends, meeting our first years, school, food...), because it's going to be very hard to leave.

August 2 (or, fireflies and full recoveries)

2008-08-02T02:35:00.000-07:00

It's August! (As if you didn't know, but the shock has lingered with me).
The time here is flying. I'm looking forward to what the fall and winter seasons hold, but it's going to be very hard to leave. Masindi has really become a second home, with parents, friends, a job, routine...
I succumbed to some sickness also this week (just one day) - the fatigue of the weekend/beginning of the week caught up with me Thursday, and I was out of commission.
Yesterday, though, I was back on my feet, with more energy than before; I haven't run that much in a long time... The kids continue to be great learners and playmates. We are so sad that classes end next week, but I'm sure the students will be relieved.
In our religion classes, we've been working along the timeline of the the life of Jesus or doing the creation story, depending on the class. The Gideons came the other week and distributed New Testaments to the children, so it's nice for the younger ones to find a connecting point with the Word they've been given.
At home, we've been getting a few lesson on the charcoal stove - mostly observation, but we've been enlightened as to how to prepare chips, matoke, different sauces and posho.
Tomorrow, we are hoping to go to the Baptist church in town (the service is in English), and then we have a meeting with the board of directors for UMOJA.

I hope all is well at home - sometimes it feels as if we're going along and nothing is happening in Canada (please, send us some news, even the everyday events will helps us out).

Also, please continue to pray for the health of our friends and the children at the schools. The P7s are doing their exams this week, so the pressure is high - pray for strength and clear minds for them. Also pray that we will continue to be a blessing to this community and that we will have open eyes, ears and hearts to the needs around us.

July 30 (or, Ducka, ducka, ducka, Bush!)

2008-07-30T05:22:00.000-07:00

This weekend we travelled to Kampala for our mid-way-through-the-trip debrief. On the way, we stopped in Hoima to see the UMOJA office there and meet up with Rev. Mike. We then made the rest of the 5 hour journey to Kampala. Ugandan roads always make the trips interesting (let alone squishing as many people as possible on the seats...)

In Kampala, we stayed at the Maranatha Guest House. It was lovely - we even had a shower.

The first night, Tash and I decided it was time to mix up the food a bit and went for Italian. We ate so much. It was nice to have a taste of home.

The next day we visited the school where the children from the African Childrens' Choir stays. We had a tour, then some lunch, and met the kids. I got to meet the girls who stayed at my parents home this past year, and they told me about remembering eating shrimp and swinging on swings. We also sang with them a bit before we left - they were so charming.

We then had our meeting, which was a good time to discuss what has been happening and how everything is going. As well, we are trying to arrange for some much need school supplies to be sent the school soon.

Then it was time to rest our tired selves (I'm telling you, the roads in Uganda can take a lot out of you).

Sunday we went for worship at the Full Gospel Church. They sang songs and hymns we knew, we danced and received a very encouraging message on "The God who abandons not".

Then, away we went again, back to our home in Masindi. We had been missing it; we've become very grounded in the community here.

Everything else had been mostly normal (if that word applies here). I took on the teaching myself the first two days of this week (so Tash could recover from our journey) and the kids were great.

One of the boys we live with, Nicholas, was quite sick this week. Please pray for his health at this time, and also for all our friends who are suffering with sickness.

July 23 (or, We make quite the pair...)

2008-07-23T05:14:00.000-07:00

We've been here almost a month... that's quite an outrageous thought! It's going so fast - there's always so much to do and learn and see.

Please, put all worries aside on account of our health; we are much better now and more active than ever.

I've been enjoying the teaching SO much. P6 is by far my favourite class (a confirmation that middle schoolers are the ones for me). Making lesson plans, getting covered in chalk dust (which is actually white than me now), watching the students' eyes begin to sparkle as they catch onto a concept, playing games, laughing until my sides ache - all this and more happens during our school days. I do not want this to end!

Often now, we are invited to peoples' homes in the evenings. They try to feed us way too much maize and mango, but it is lovely to sit and here about peoples' lives.

This weekend we are going to Kampala for our first/half-way debrief, and honestly, we don't want to leave. We're so grounded here - it's really becoming a second home.

On Saturday, we went for field-visits. We made it around to 16 homes ('footing'). We visited homes from 1 child to 12, some with many orphans. The houses also ranged: they were 4-room mud-huts to permanent structures in good shape. We asked them many questions (as we're collecting data - part of our job here) about food, their health, what would help them most and other things.
The strength we met in these women was incredible. I am so in awe of them.

On Sunday, we had couch church due to miscommunication on our transport for going for worship. Then, Momma Christine insisted we see a little more of the country and go swimming, in Kinyara. Kinyara is an industrial town/area that produces Uganda's sugar. We met a really sweet lady there, named Vicky - she's a favourite!

All is well here for Natasha and I, and we hope everything is well with each of you as well.
Thank you for your prayers, and please continue them.

July 15 (or, power outages and pigs)

2008-07-15T10:00:00.000-07:00

Moleymoota!
Ndoho kurungi (I'm doing well).

We are catching on to a little more of the language all the time:
Mpah = give to me
Mukono = hand
Entebbe = chair
And the English words which have different meanings:
Sure? = Seriously?
Fine = Good
Catch = Carry
And many more...

In so many ways, I feel as if I'm having a second infancy and childhood.
I have been renamed "Aboki"
I am learning to walk differently (more slowly)
Talk differently (different language, and vowel emphasis)
Different manners
How to eat properly with my fingers (and at different times: breakfast = 7 am, lunch = 2 pm, evening tea = 6 pm, supper = 9 pm... and any other time our friends feel like feeding us. As the Director says, "Anytime is food time in Africa")
Indirect vs direct communication
Etc, etc, etc...

Everyone here has done everything in their power to make us feel at home. We have very good friend whom we talk about every topic with, and several mother who check on anything and everything.

Our schedule looks like:
Awake at 6:45.
Leave home by 7:30 to "walk" (more of a hike...) to school for 8.
At school, we have been added to the timetable. This is a wonderful development. We can now prepare lessons and give the students a better idea of what we will be doing with them that day. We have begun some music theory lessons and taught them many "Canadian" games.
We teach several periods and observe for some also.
At 5:30, it is time to walk/hike back home. (The very sweet children always insist on carrying/catching our bags).
At home, we take tea (which on several occasions has been french toast!! so delicious).
Afterward any number of evening activities could transpire - for example, one night we viewed a pig slaughtering (no comment), other evenings we walk to town (about an hour - and again, more of a hike), sometimes we sit in the kitchen and chat with our cook and host-mom, other times we relax and play cards with Nick and Brian... and sometimes, we sleep.
Often in the evening, the power will go out for several hours. This is supposed to lead to sleeping, but we manage to entertain ourselves. Even now, the power is out (the internet cafe has back-up generators, since it is attached to a hotel for muzungos).

There is so much else to share! We also went to an introduction ceremony (which is an official event put on by a potential bride, in which she introduces her intended husband to get approval from her parents - very interesting), and we met with the Umoja womens' groups on Sunday (after church, which was in Kinuro). The women are running their own micro-finances - collecting dues to help one another, give out loans, etc - and they are the guardians of the orphans at Progressive. On Saturday, we being our visits to their homes.

Some prayer requests are:
- the fundraising the womens' groups are doing in August for an Orphans Centre at the school
- health for the children (often they are absent due to illness, whether it is malaria or otherwise)
- the teachers at the school also have a variety of health troubles, and they would be happy to know you are praying for them
- also, please being praying about how you would like to invest more in this community. They do not need band-aids; they need people who are will to partner with them to develop over the long-run.
- our health (we are still a little unfamiliar with the times for eating, and we have caught colds from our precious children)

July 4 & 5 (food and friendships)

2008-07-05T01:39:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone!

It is a beautiful day in Uganda - we had rain this afternoon which has kept things fairly cool.

This morning we had chapoites (a fried dough flat bread), watermelon, and eggs (an omlet made from at least 3 eggs). Hopefully my stomach streatches sooner rather than later; everyone asks us why we eat so little (3 huge meals a day and evening tea... we're barely managing).

After breakfast, we spent the morning at the school. Tash and I were together in P2 for the first bit, then I was sent to P6. I was quite the distraction... but the teacher got through a great science lesson on seeds (hurrah for science). As soon as it finished though, I heard a timid, "Madam...?", and was answering question after question. It is exciting to tell them about Canada. They can't believe we don't have our own mango tree, or kasava. And winter, well, that's quite the topic to get onto. It has helped to have pictures to show them.

After the class, Tash and I met with the Director, and he told us all about the school and its partnership with Umoja orphanages.

Next , I went to P5. What a wonderful group of children! They were too excited and curious to do their lesson. I felt badly that I was such a distraction, but the teachers seemed to know it would happen - I'm sure it will settle down in a few days. They asked me a huge range of questions and were very amused with the texture of my skin, hair on my arms and colour of my finger- and toe-nails.

About 12 students walked us home for lunch, and so we could rest of the afternoon (our hosts are very gracious and are making the jet-lag very easy for us to handle - Momma Christine is especially adament about letting us having enough rest). The kids stay for a good 30 minutes - we sang, talked and played a few games. One game they taught us was a combination of duck-duck goose, tag and leap-frog - very fun, very exhausting.

We rested the majority of the afternoon, then took a leisurely stroll. Brian (one of our friends and people who live in our compound) escorted us, since it was dusk.

While supper was being prepared, we were invited to the kitchen and Margaret, Lillian, Tracy, Tash and I ate roasted maize - so sweet (the english word for delicious here).

Supper was millit (a gummy, purple staple prepared from millit and kasava) and peas and carrots and roasted maize.

After supper, we washed our feet and prepared for our nightly games of cards with Brian and Nicholas (a quickly developed nightly routine). Brian is a business student in university and Nicholas is finishing highschool. We have all kinds of wonderful conversations covering all kinds of topics - culture, geography, imports/exports, education, transportation, and they are also teaching us the local language. We doing surprisingly well at catching on, since we have no reference to any Bantu dialects.

Today, we walked into town (about 45 minutes). On the way, we were beckoned to share some breakfast along the roadside. Raymond, who is in the defence corp, invited us and was very happy that we would sit and share with him. We at kasava (which was roasted with salt - sweet.) and chatted a little about our stay.

Here we have been getting a few supplies, and we'll go to Christine's for lunch. From her home, we'll take boda-bodas back to our home. Boda-boda (said buddah-buddah) are motorcycles with seats afixed to the back - this should be an adventure on these bumpy roads.

Tonight, we expect the same as last night - supper and cards. It is so good to be somewhere that is completely people oriented; it is refreshing to not be so task oriented that we aren't taking the time to properly get to know people and really hear their stories, hopes and dreams.

July 1 & 2 (or, Wooden Roller Coasters and Welcomes)

2008-07-03T04:17:00.001-07:00

Moleymoota! (I have no idea it that's spelled right...)/ Hello, how are you?

Greetings from Masindi, Uganda. We are here and mostly settled.

July 1

We left a day early for Masindi taking a 14-passenger taxi. We found it in the new tax park in Kampala. Rev. Mike, Tash and I shared the back seat, while 15 other people composed the rest of our party.

The hawkers are very friendly, but not too persistent if you give them a firm "no", since Tash and I are mzunga (foreigners), they greet us as mzunga, or sister. After exhausting our "no" muscles, it was time for the roads of Uganda to tired out our seat muscles. They best way I can think to describe the roads is relative to a long and slightly less hilly wooden roller coaster, with pot-holes close to the size of inner-tubes. Enough said.

We did arrive (again, with all our luggage, which had been strapped to the top) in the dark, around 8 pm. Since Uganda is so near the equator, we virtually get 12 hours of daylight (starting at about 7 am) and 12 hours of darkness. We then went for some supper (goat stew and rice, with tea, and a slice of watermelon for dessert - here fruit is dessert). We met out new mom - Christine, who is a wonderful, regal woman (who is always forcing us to eat until we are going to explode). From there we went to our new home.

There are hardly words for how grateful I am for God's provision. Our home is not the same as Robyn's (the girl who was here before us), but in the same compound. It belongs to Christine's brother, who is an electrical engineer, in Kampala. It has a shower, toilet, twin beds, a fridge in our dining room, and a sitting room. It is far more than we were expecting or hoping for - we are very spoiled (and now finding ourselves with a lot of provisionary supplies that we will probably not need now). Our hosts are generous, welcoming and very understanding of our tiredness and ignorance.

We slept decently the first night, but woke up quite early.

July 2

Ugandans are wonderfully relaxed. There is never a rush, and much time is spent relaxing together. So, we journalled until Margaret (our house hostess) came in.

Christine said she would pick us up around 8:30-9, and arrived at 10:15. This is Africa - time is so different, and I'm quite enjoying it. She, along with the treasurer of Umoja (the orphange branch we are here to work with), went to introduce ourselves to some government officials of Masindi. We met the man in charge of security and the man in change of probation (which works more with vulnerable children and women).

Then lunch (typically around 2). Our friends took us to a place where we could get a variety of African food. We tried all kinds of new foods:

Kasava - a white, fiberous tuber, which is tastier with nut paste (similar to organic peanut butter)

Green bananas - they are ripe, and cooked into something to the effect of dry mashed potatoes

They call our potatoes "Irish".

Sweet potatoes - delicious!!

Rice and beans

Chicken

A paste that is made from pale green tomatoes

And pineapple Miranda (a rival to Fanta).

Our plates were heaped, so of course we couldn't finish all the dense food in such a great quantity, and were politely informed that we will be expected to do better in the future.

After lunch, we went to the market to purchase some food for our cook, Lillian, and for our fridge. Christine found us Irish, rice, tomatoes, pepper, onions, carrots, pineapple (which is beyond delicious here), bananas, peas, salt, and cooking oil.

Then, home to drop off our goodies.

After that, we went to the school (Progressive Primary, where we will be working), for a welcome ceremony.

There are hardly words for the beautiful welcome they gave us, but I will try to give you a picture:

The students lined up along both sides of the lane, and sang as we walked through. As we passed, they would all fall in behind us. The effect: an angelic chorus swelling behind us.

They younger children would rush in to hold our hands and bring us flowers. The ladies from the Umoja women's group greeted us with hugs. All of them issued us under a temporary structure assembled just for the occassion, where some parents and gurdians were also seated (perhaps 50).

The ceremony was hosted by a teacher from a neighbouring school, and the schdule ran in an alternation of entertainment and speeches. The entertainment was a few welcoming songs from each class (with drums and dancing), as well as songs and traditional dance from the womens' group. The speeches were from the director, headmistress, board members, and a special guest who helps organize a womens' group.

The speeches were not only for us, but for the community. Most told about the development of Progressive and the importance of it continuance. One of the board member's speeches will stay with me a long time. His English portion - for us - was an expression of gratitude for our presence, his joy at the growth of the number of guests (Robyn was one, and we are two), and his ardent hope that we will send much more support and tell the story of this place.

Then we partook of a HUGE meal from the moms and womens' groups. So delicious, but so much!

Then to home. We were served more supper at 8:45... "anytime is food time" as we were told.

Then sleep. We slept very well last night.

I have oma's quilt on our bed. It is nice a light and a wonderful touch from home.

Thank you again for all your support and please continue to pray for us and the community here in Masindi.

June 30

2008-07-03T04:15:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Uganda!
Currently, I'm sitting in the CRWRC headquarters of Uganda.
Let's start at the begin though, shall we?
Flight #1 - Toronto to Amsterdam:
Fairly uneventful, no sleeping, just resting.
We did, however, sit beside a celebrity! Sean Desmond, probably none of you even know who that is - but he sat right beside me. We only discovered this within the last 30 minutes, but we all had a lovely chat - and even if his music isn't our favourite, he was a nice guy.
Layover in Schipol:
Again, no sleep, but lots of exploration. We picked up some cookies for our host while there. By the time we were lined up for boarding, we were exhausted.
Flight #2 - Amsterdam to Entebbe:
No famous people that we could tell on this flight, but most of it we spent in fits of sleep anyway. We had an excellent flight attendant who took very good care of our tired selves.
Arrival:
We got through immigration without any problems and were extremely pleased to find all our pieces of luggage. Truely God was watching out for our travels - thank you all for your prayers for travelling mercies - they were received!
Our driver, Patrick, took us to our hotel in Kampala. We were quite quiet on the way there - probably because we were tired and trying to take it all in. It was so dark when we arrived (8:30 pm Uganda time). There is so little light pollution here. The air is a strangely welcoming smokey humidity.
Our hotel is wonderful - though we had some trouble sleeping, we are happily situated there for our time in Kampala. Natasha and I were both wide awake at 5 am (Uganda time) and played some Uno to get us to breakfast, and then to 8:30 for our ride.
Our ride arrived at 9:30 (not unexpected) and we had our briefing here at CRWRC headoffice. The cars drive on the opposite side from back home, so I'm still getting used to the sensation of turning left. The beautiful red earth that conposes the dirt roads makes for some pretty exciting driving (not to mention the motorcycles that are dodging in and out).
Everyone has been wonderful and helpful in preparing us. Our project co-ordiators, Allen and Carol, are fun and intelligent women, who I'm sure are going to be a joy to continue to work with.
We just finished lunch together and will be headed back for a nap soon.

Thank you all for your prayers, and to those who contributed notes to the journal Sarah put together for me (thanks Sarah!).
If you would like to send a few words my way, the best way is e-mail, since it seems to be the easiest to check on this slow internet. (Do write though - it will be good to hear from everyone and encourage me greatly.)

Training

2008-06-12T09:35:00.000-07:00

Greetings!
I know I'm quite late in posting this, so my apologies, but here's the update.

I’m now immune to almost everything. Well, not everything, but a lot. It’s been quite the process of receiving and recovering from each shot – about one or two days after each one, I was completely out of it. The process is almost over though – after my oral immunizations (Typhoid and Cholera) I will be all clear on that front.
The last weekend of May was spent at training, in Burlington. Natasha and I both found it to be very good preparation for the trip. We had talks on being culturally aware, safety and health precautions, how to effectively be part of another culture, logistics, and many others. We also had the pleasure of spending an evening with some of the people currently staying at Micah House, in Hamilton – what beautiful friends!
I can’t believe it’s less than three weeks until take-off. June was always in the future, far away, and now it’s here.
Thank you all again for your support, especially the warm notes, words and pledges to pray.

At this time, let me make a disclaimer about this blog. In no way does it represent the views and/or thoughts of CRWRC or ServiceLink. They are marvellous groups planning and arranging this trip for Natasha and me, and if you would like to know more about them I would encourage you to visit their websites.

May 24

2008-05-24T18:53:00.001-07:00

Thank you to everyone for all the support so far: notes and words of encouragement, your prayers, finacial donations, and general interest about how things are going.
Please continue to keep the community in Uganda, Natasha and I in your thoughts and prayers as we press on toward June.

Letter

2008-05-12T17:15:00.000-07:00

“Act justly … love mercy … walk humbly with your God” Micah 6:8
This verse continues to challenge me as it pertains to what God requires of me. It repeatedly draws me to projects and ministries that bring aid to the hurting and/or disadvantaged. Whether it is reconstruction/relief work in Jamaica and Mississippi, counselling underprivileged kids from the GTA at summer camp, tutoring refugees now living in Hamilton in an after-school homework program or serving on the Redeemer Social Justice Committee. I count it a privilege each time an opportunity presents itself and am in awe of how God provides everything I need to complete the task: strength, guidance, inspiration and the support of others. As you may know, I will be completing my Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Education in the next couple of years at which time my goal is to teach internationally. In the meantime, I have made myself available to opportunities to serve in a cross-cultural setting that will benefit vulnerable children now, as well as prepare me for long-term opportunities after graduation.
I am humbled to have been accepted to serve for nine weeks this summer in the Umoja Orphanage project in Masindi, Uganda. While there, I, and a fellow Redeemer student Natasha Motley, will provide counselling services to the children, participate in community outreach to families of orphans, assist with the teaching of lessons, and provide physical help. This assignment has been made possible through ServiceLink, a division of the CRWRC (Christian Reform World Relief Committee) and whose motto very closely reflects my own philosophy of service: living justice, loving mercy.

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” James 5:16b
Can I be so bold as to ask you to pray not only for Natasha and me as we prepare and serve, but also for the people we will be working with and serving in Uganda. There are so many challenges that come with this project, some cultural, others emotional. But even greater are the spiritual battles that come with doing God’s work. Please see my pray card for specific ways you can be praying now, during and after I return.
I am pleased to share that I have already 75% of my financial commitment to this assignment.

Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.” St Francis
I believe God has great things to teach me through this volunteer mission, not the least of which is a full reliance on Him to provide in every aspect of the project. My greatest prayer though, is that He will use my willing heart and hands to bring His light, life and love to these needy children and their community.

In His Peace, Jessica

Prayer Card

2008-05-12T10:28:00.002-07:00

Click on the image to enlarge

May 9 - Blog coming soon

2008-05-09T10:16:00.000-07:00

Hello all.
I'll post my prayer letter/card up soon to give you some details on the trip and keep you posted all the way along.
J