On Safari

After working at St. Matthews Church moving more rocks until after lunch, we said our goodbyes to the church people and the school children. When we arrived at the gate of the Shaba Game Preserve, the drivers popped open the roofs of our vans so we could stand up to see the wildlife. From Thursday afternoon until Saturday morning, we saw elephants, giraffes, lions, cheetahs, monkeys, and leopards to name a few. It was awesome!

The Simba Lodge was very nice - it was great to have hot and cold running water for the sinks and the showers. Each room's balcony looked out over a pond to the grasslands beyond. Last evening before going to dinner we counted eleven elephants feeding. There was, however, no internet service. As one of the staff remarked, "We are in the bush."

This morning after our last game drive, we headed to Sweetwaters Tented Camp in a private game reserve. On the way we crossed the equator. We stopped for picture taking and a little shopping. Tomorrow it is on to Nairobi and, hopefully, a new post with pictures.

What Didn't We Do?

Today we picked up rocks, counted pills, played ball, and gave away school supplies. Our last full day of mission was spent at St. Matthews Church where some of our group finished filling one classroom foundation with rocks. Others assisted with this church's first-ever medical clinic by assisting with prescription medications and directing patients. Three hundred and seventy-three persons were seen by the doctors and nurses during the clinic. We also delivered a massive amount of school supplies and books for the school. While the teachers got to "sign out" their materials, the children played soccer and helped with the rocks and trash pick-up.

The children have been very loving. We walk holding hands with three, four, and five children on each side. They delight in touching!

After a full day of work, we stopped by a children's home for orphaned children to leave gifts of money, clothing, and school supplies for students.

Tomorrow we will be back at St. Matthew's until after lunch and then we will leave from there to travel to a game park.

Enjoyed seeing these pictures? Checkout new pictures on some of the previous posts!

"Take me! Take me!

Those words we heard from the children at St. Matthews School today when we pulled out our cameras to take pictures. They were so excited to see themselves as we checked to make sure we had good pictures.

After arriving at St. Matthews Church and School this morning, we were entertained for over an hour by dancing and singing children. And, they were amazing! We saw and heard traditional Kenyan dance and songs; these children could perform at Folkmoot... they are that good! Then we went to work throwing stones into a foundation which needed to be leveled so the floor can be finished with concrete. We are working on two classrooms for the school, which serves 120 students ranging in ages from two and a half to twelve.

Tea and lunch ran together today, and we were graciously fed by the women of St. Matthew's Church. After eating and resting, it was back to work hauling and throwing stones. It became a team effort as teachers and students joined in. Late afternoon we stopped work to hand out a package of maize meal, a toothbrush, and toothpaste to each student and teacher. As the chairman of the building committee said, the maize will not only feeding children, it will feed a community.

Monday - A Long Day

Starting with chapel at 8am at Kenya Methodist University, we spent a good portion of our day touring the campus, having tea, meeting with students, and eating lunch. Mid afternoon we traveled to St. Matthew's Church, our work site, to meet church leaders and learn about our work responsibilities. Arriving at the church, we had tea and then got down to business. Actually, we worked a little on Monday; we moved some cornerstones and met some of the children. Then it was back to Meru and out to dinner with people from KeMU. We finally arrived back at Thiiri around 9pm.

Kenyan tea is very good and is usually served with hot water and milk. We have eaten a lot of fruit... the bananas, papaya, and pineapple are delicious!

Sunday Services

Paired with a lay person, the eight clergy in our group preached in the local Methodist churches. Most of the services started by 11am and lasted for about three hours. All of the churches received a regular offering and many received a thanksgiving offering. Consisting of eggs, homegrown fruits and vegetables, sugar cane, chickens, and even a calf, these items were auctioned off at the end of the services with the money collected going to the church. After lunch and visits to other places on the individual circuits, most of us arrived back to Thiiri, our home away from home, late afternoon. But there were several persons who arrived back as late as 7pm. It was a tiring day but a joy to meet and spend time with the local Kenyan people!

Graduation

What a celebration! Kenya Methodist University (KeMU), a chartered private university, was founded by the Methodist Church. From a population of nine students in 1997, there are over 9000 students on five campuses today. And, on Saturday we saw over 2400 students graduate at KeMU's tenth graduation. As honored guests, we were seated on the platform and listened to speeches and the reading of each graduate's name. After lunch in the Administration Building, we walked off campus to meet our vans. Because of a massive traffic jam, we could not find them. So, we started walking toward Thiiri along the highway. About a quarter of a mile down the road, we found the vans pointed in the right direction... we hopped in and were back in no time!

The best news of Saturday was that the last of our luggage arrived... about 9pm!

Finally, We Are in Kenya!

Wednesday morning thirteen of us flew from Asheville to Detroit and the other four flew to Atlanta. From those two cities we took three different flights to Amsterdam with all of us arriving within two hours of each other Thursday morning. From Amsterdam we were to fly in two groups into Nairobi... one group leaving late morning and the other late at night. Long story short, none of our group was in the computer when we tried to get our boarding passes, so... KLM went to work, found the problem, and put us all on the late morning flight into Nairobi. That was great! Upon arrival into Nairobi, we discovered that our luggage was still in Amsterdam. Leaving the airport, we spent the night at the Presbyterian Church Guest House instead of the Methodist Guest House. After being up for two days, it was great to sleep in beds and take hot showers.

Most of our luggage arrived late this morning... we are still missing three pieces, but we have been told that it will arrive late tonight or tomorrow morning. With the luggage delay, we have been three hours behind all day today. Lunch at the Trout Farm Restaurant near Mt. Kenya turned into dinner and we arrived in Meru after dark. Kenyan roads are full of potholes in places so arriving after dark made the trip a bit longer.

The delays have put us behind on our mission work, but everyone is doing well. We are thankful to be here safe and sound. No one on this trip has ever experienced such travel problems, but we are glad we had each other. We have laughed a lot, learned a lot, and have experiences to share. Thanks for keeping us in your prayers...

Tomorrow is graduation at Kenya Methodist University here in Meru, and we will be the honored guests. We look forward to seeing the 2000 graduates receive their diplomas.

Overnight in Asheville

Due to mechanical difficulties our group is spending the night in Asheville and will fly out tomorrow morning and afternoon. It's been a trying and tiring day, but our spirits are good! Keep us in your thoughts and prayers for a sane and safe journey to Kenya.

Delayed at the Airport

Our flight was to leave at 2:07; it is now 2:28... they say we will leave Asheville at 3:00, which if everything works as planned will get us into Atlanta in time to make our flight to Amsterdam at 5:30. It will be close so keep us in your prayers!!!

Ready, Set, Almost Go...

On July 20th seventeen men and women will depart Asheville, North Carolina for a fourteen day mission trip to Kenya. Group leaders Lewis and Dottie Gibbs served as missionaries in Meru over twenty years ago, and the group will be working in schools and clinics sponsored by the Methodist churches in that area. Excitement is building for our departure on Tuesday...