Sierra Leone: City of Rest

The Aberdeen West Africa Fistula Centre front door in Sierra Leone where we went to an international Christian fellowship.

We walked through a metal door in a high concrete wall with a sign on the side that says "Mercy Ships Sierra Leone: Aberdeen West Africa Fistula Centre".  Years ago, Mercy Ships helped to construct and staff a women's fistula clinic in this area of Freetown, Sierra Leone.  Slowly and carefully it is being turned over to the Freedom from Fistula Foundation. We went there and made a quite expected connection.

Sierra Leone - Land of Beauty

Our first impressions of Freetown as we went up to the team house on the hill that first day were of beauty and majesty. We will never forget it.

The Pocket Notebook

On our journey from Ithaca to Texas to Africa, we've collected a few things along the way.  However, none have been so helpful and used to such benefit than one spontaneous and seemingly insignificant gift from a friend in up-state New York.  It's a little nicely bound pocket notebook.

A couple pics from Benin

We just wanted to update you with a few pictures before we depart Abomey, Benin tomorrow.

This is Mama Arlette, the Children's home leader, where we worked with the kids and on some various building projects.  The kids are awesome.  She's reading out some letters the kids wrote to us on the last day.

This is Abbalo.  He's one of the orphans at the Children's home.  We got a chance to have a full-on water balloon fight in the courtyard.  Boys vs. Girls.  Abalo was the last man standing, so we eventually snuck up and doused him with water from the balloon bucket.  He was still smiling though.  

More updates to come.  We are on the eve of our departure to Togo.  Pray for safe travels!

Basic Safety Training: Fighting Fires

This week marks the last week of our training in East Texas.

It began with Fire Fighting practical training.  

In the hot sun, in a hotter shipping container, with full turn-out gear and SCBA(all the stuff we're wearing)

It was nice to get out of the heat after a couple hours in those suits. We salute the firefighters who risk their lives in such gear and conditions.  The work they do is unlike any other.

Up-Country Adventures in Togo: Healing in the North

I love this report.  It shows both the difficulties of practicing medicine in the poorest places of the world, but also the transformation it can bring to people's lives.  It's only 11 days till we get on the plane to Africa, and we are more than excited.  We hope you enjoy this story, written and photographed by Mercy Ships staff:


Dr. Tony Giles, maxillofacial surgeon, and his wife Ann, an OR nurse, have worked with Mercy Ships in many capacities over the past fourteen years. Recently, they conducted a 28-day screening tour in the northern areas of Togo, from Dapaong to Kpalime. It turned out to be quite an adventure!


Travelling more than 2000km through plateau, jungle, mountain pass and desert scrub, they encountered high winds, downpours, sudden electrical storms and power outages. They worked twelve-hour days – screening and performing surgeries with sub-standard equipment and local anesthetics. A power outage occurred during one surgery, but the flickering light of Dr. Tony's mobile phone allowed him to complete the procedure. And in Dapaong, Dr. Tony removed a pear-shaped growth from the forehead of a 99-year-old man under local anesthetic.




Tony and Ann were greatly encouraged by their Togolese team members. The two observers from the Minister of Health, realizing what was being done for their citizens, took an active and very helpful part in the screenings. The five volunteer translators, two of whom were drivers, helped to transport patients to and from the ship, the Hospitality Center, and testing facilities. They also organized minibus taxis to take patients home and to bring new patients to the screenings. Since they were so closely involved with the screening process, Dr. Tony trained them in pre-screening. As a result, they were able to continue the process with 95% accuracy during the week that the Tony and Ann returned to the ship to cover for Dr. Gary Parker.


Madame Adjeh Assoupi, from the Office of the Minister of Health, joined the team at Atakpame. She was instrumental in solving many of the problems encountered on the tour. Because the surrounding area consisted primarily of farming communities, there were many hernia problems – more than could be handled on the ship. Many of these people could be treated locally, but couldn't afford surgery. So, Madame Adjeh arranged for government funding for them to have hernia surgery at the hospital for a very small charge.


Shortly before leaving Atakpame, a 60-year-old man named Koffi arrived with a limpoma, a large growth on his back attached to his neck. Surgery had been completed for the day, and the team was about to move on to Kpalime. Madame Adjeh suggested transporting Koffi to Kpalime, where Dr. Tony could perform the surgery. She also made sure a diatherm ( to prevent bleeding) would be available for the surgery. She then made overnight arrangements at the local hospital for Koffi, and he went to Kpalime with the government film crew the next day. Using the hospital's instruments, Dr. Tony removed the 12-pound growth, the largest ever to be removed under local anesthetic. The entire procedure was captured by the government film crew. Madame Adjeh and the Assistant Director of the hospital even secured some badly needed clothes for the man and arranged for him to be returned to his village the next day.



Koffi Before






Koffi After


Dr. Tony and Ann told the people, through the interpreters, that goitres are caused by poor diet and a lack of iodine. The film crew interviewed them and also got the local dietician to talk about it on camera. Then the crew went to the local market and filmed the foods, like fish and shrimp, that would help with these problems. This type of adult education can go a long way toward eliminating these problems.


The screenings were advertised through churches and on government radio. The President's TV crew joined the screening team in Kara to film the proceedings, which were broadcast daily in ten-minute segments. The word definitely penetrated the area, but no one realized that such publicity might cause a security problem. By the time the team reached Kpalime, there were so many people surrounding the screening site, an open circular shelter in the ground, the team couldn't get in. The Prefect of Atakpame tried, unsuccessfully, to control the crowd. Finally, the army was called in to restore order. Dr. Tony described the incredible scene: “People just invaded. We were surrounded. We were stuck. We couldn't move. We got a megaphone, but people still didn't want to get out. They didn't want to lose their chance of seeing us. But we couldn't see anybody because we couldn't move. They swarmed everywhere – around us, behind us, in front of us… cramming in. I thought they'd crush us.”



Crowds pressing in at an up-country screening in Togo


They saw many facial tumors, cleft lips and cleft palates, VVF women, burns, hernias, and orthopedic problems – in all, over 3,000 people during the tour. They performed 31 surgeries with local anesthetic and selected 200 patients for possible surgeries. However, Dr. Tony is quick to acknowledge that their primary interest is in the individuals, rather than the numbers.




Due to the strong relationships forged during the screenings and everyone's willingness to help, the partnership between the government and Mercy Ships was played out once again with a remarkably successful result.




Dr. Tony and Ann have seen many miracles over the years, and this screening journey has added to their list. “You see all sorts of things happen. You begin to get confidence,” he explained. “It works … God does it. And these people's lives are changed!”


Story by Elaine Winn
Edited by Nancy Predaina

A Visit With Edoh

We have shared Edoh's story with some of you before.  Recently, a team went to Edoh's village and made a report.  That report is printed here.  If you haven't heard Edoh's story read on.

A sweet, gentle young woman walked forward, holding a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Thirty joyful family members joined her in welcoming the visitors from the Mercy Ship. This was Edoh - a life restored by mercy.

Edoh is the youngest of six children. When she was about four years old, her eye became very red and began to swell. Her mother, Afua, desperately tried to find help, going from hospital to hospital in Togo and Ghana. But no one could help her little girl.

By the time Edoh was nine, a massive facial tumor had displaced her left eye, distorted her cheek and mouth, and left her teeth protruding at odd angles from the edges of the mass. She struggled to eat and breathe. The tumor was literally stealing the breath of life from her - she was slowly suffocating.

Then Afua heard about a hospital ship, a Mercy Ship, that had arrived in her country to offer free medical care. So, she took Edoh to the screening.

A huge crowd of six thousand crushed into the stadium in Togo, almost tearing off the gate. These desperate people were living lives of misery and rejection because of their abnormalities - viewed as a curse in their culture. Unable to work, or even live in society, they saw Mercy Ships as their only chance to have a normal life. They wanted a chance for a free surgery, the chance for a miracle.

But in the midst of all that suffering and desperate longing, mercy raised its head. A little girl's gasping struggle to breathe captured the attention of the crowd. Arms of compassion - some weak and some strong - lifted Edoh and passed her to the front of the long line.

Edoh remembers that moment - the moment that changed her life forever. She recalls, "I remember being lifted over the heads of the crowd and being passed along to the gate. A nurse saw me and said, 'This is the type of surgery we need to do.'"

And that day Edoh received an appointment card for surgery ... an appointment to receive life instead of death.

The doctors warned Afua that this was a difficult, risky case. But she wisely replied, "God gives children; God can take away. We will give it all to God and go ahead with the surgery."

And her faith was rewarded. Edoh returned home to a very surprised community. "It's a miracle!" they exclaimed. And they held a big party to celebrate.

A year later, Dr. Luer Koeper, a maxillofacial surgeon, who had helped to remove the tumor, took Edoh to Germany for a second surgery on her lip. Then in 2003, she had another surgery on her lower eyelid.

And now, 15 years after her first surgery, this "walking miracle" was welcoming Mercy Ships volunteers to her village.

Edoh happily described the transformation in her life. She recalled how she used to stay away from people. She couldn't go to school. She became very shy, hiding in her home. But now she can go everywhere - including school.

In fact, Edoh is a good student. After she completes her secondary education, she wants to become a nurse to help others - just like the dedicated Mercy Ships volunteers helped her.

The celebration arranged by the family continued at the "cascade," a beautiful waterfall that roars down the mountain behind Edoh's home. There, her brothers played their native drums, and everyone sang praises to God for His mercy toward Edoh.

A smiling Edoh added, " If it wasn't for the Mercy Ship, maybe I would be dead. Mercy Ships changed that. I used to look in the mirror and feel pity for myself. But now I think about what happened to me, and it's all about God. I put everything in God's hands."

Written by Elaine B. Winn
Edited by Nancy Predaina
Photos by Debra Bell

GATEWAY Training

Our itinerary for the next month is to learn.  We are in some intense training to prepare us for life in Africa and in community.  Mercy Ships in Africa works and operates as a community unit.  We see at the Operations Center here in Texas that there is very little waste, everyone here has a crucial purpose, and everyone works very hard and passionately at the job they do.

Thanks to all who have supported us and are continuing to support us in this work through finances and prayer.  We have secured about 85% of our funding for the 2 years of service.  If you would like to contribute so that we are 100% funded, we would be grateful.  You can just click the "Donate Online" button.

We will continue the next few weeks with stories about what Mercy Ships is doing, and what we will be involved with when we get there in just 4 weeks!

Stay tuned..

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Road Trip 2010 - DONE

 We arrived at Mercy Ships Headquarters and completed our first day at Gateway Training.  We even had a chance to catch some of the World Cup!  Now to pick up where we left off and wrap up our journey to Texas:
From Raleigh, North Carolina, heading South West to Georgia, we stopped in Cumming, GA to visit our great friends, the Ashleys.

David and Gina are great hosts, and their kids Ethan, Evan, and Ryan are tons of fun.

We stayed for a couple nights with them and re-connect after not seeing them for many years.  

We geared up for the 9-hour ride from Atlanta to Little Rock, Arkansas and left early in the morning.  

With a short stop in Memphis, we were in Little Rock before we knew it.  We met one of Cecilia's good friends from college who just had a baby, 

and a great couple we met through an International Christian Fellowship back in Ithaca.  Mark and Karen were great hosts even though it was a short visit. 

From Little Rock, we drove North West to Fayetteville.  There, we spent a whole week with our dear friends, Tom and Barbara.  At their house we met many internationals, including a couple from Togo! 

We also visited friends and mentors of Cecilia's while at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville.  

They are all very special people in our lives, and we are blessed to know them.

We are now in Texas after a week in Arkansas, and a 6 hour drive this morning.  We are ready for the next month of training, rested, relaxed, and refreshed after:

8 different overnight locations, 19 states crossed, 50 hours of driving logged, 3,095 miles traveled in 30 days. 

THANK YOU EVERYONE WHO HOSTED US, HELPED US ON OUR WAY, OR PRAYED FOR US!!! WE COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU!!!

Tom is a bee keeper, and we had the privilege to help label his first big batch of honey!

It's a BEEutiful thing!

DC Excitement to North Carolina Respite

Washington DC is a place of inspiration for both of us.  The city is a hub of action, and it has moved us to action in many ways.  We re-affirmed our vision to work internationally with the poor when we were there in April, 2009 while visiting friends, and we both felt at peace to quit our jobs to seek work in that capacity.  Therefore, it is appropriate we returned for a visit on our way to Texas for training with Mercy Ships. 

Our good friend, Emily invited us to stay, and she was happy to accommodate us royally in her small apartment, right in the middle of the city.  Emily works in the huge non-profit sector in DC with an organization called AED.   She introduced us to many of her friends who all have a passion for working internationally and making a difference in the world.  We were only there for a day, but it was filled with action! 

We ran in the morning, applied for our visas at the Benin Embassy, 

checked out the “wild” animals at the DC Zoo, 

and had a party at Emily’s house with friends.  We got a chance to see Ayago, our friend from Kenya who we met in Ithaca.  He’s now living  and working in DC too.  

Later that night we went Latin-dancing with Emily and her friends and danced late into the night.  We know Africans love to dance, so we see it as part of our continuing cultural training.  We left DC exhilarated yet tired.

We left early the next morning for North Carolina to visit our friends Wesley and Barbara Moses.  To contrast the action and excitement of Washington DC, our time in North Carolina can be characterized as immensely peaceful and restful. 

Wes and Barb just had a new baby, Josiah and we had fun holding him, trying to make him smile.  We played tennis, met some of their friends and went to their church in Raleigh. 

Our time with them was so restful both physically and spiritually, and we are so grateful for the opportunity to stay with them.    

Next stop:  Georgia, The Peach State! and play time with the Ashleys.

Hartford to NYC to Philly

Travelling South West from Connecticut with our GPS at hand, we made an un-planned, spontaneous visit to our friends Brian and Kristin in Brooklyn, NY.  We had seen them a week ago when they picked us up from the airport, but it was only about 25 minutes out of our way to visit, so we swooped into Brooklyn to find Brian a little under the weather.

Get well soon, Brian!

From there we headed South West to Philadelphia to stay the night with our friends, Ben and Kate.  Kate was away, but we visited with Ben, and had a great time catching up, talking about Mercy Ships, and breaking a sweat playing Wii.

We had lunch with Behzad, a friend from Cornell, who is also living and working in Philly.  He had to go back to work like most "normal" people, so we got a chance to tour his lab at Penn University, walk the campus, and just hang out at the Penn bookstore.  They have a really nice bookstore.

It's a great blessing to visit so many of our friends:  people who have made a great difference in our lives for the better.

Next episode:  Washington DC: Wild-Asia meets Metro-Urban at the DC Zoo.

Road Trip III

Today marks our second day on the road to Texas.
We have been planning this trip for months, and finally we are on the road.  Our first stop, Jeff and Tatyana's new home in Hartford, Connecticut!  They just moved in last month.

We arrived at around 6:45PM to see Jeff chatting with one of his new neighbors, Tom.  We had a great night of getting acquainted with their new house, which is a beautiful old English Tudor style home, and having great conversation.  Unfortunately, Tatyana is in her residency and was on the night shift while we were there, so we didn't get a chance to see her much.  She'll be a great doctor, and when she gets established, who knows?  Maybe she'll come volunteer with us in Africa!

Jeff gave us a walking tour of their new garden which he has been feverishly planting and preparing.  We ate some of the first fruits, which were three perfectly ripened strawberries from the patch he had planted recently.

It's amazing that even though the garden is very young, it is already producing fruit and flower.  I have a feeling the next time we come, there will be all sorts of fruits to enjoy.

Jeff has the uncanny ability to make people feel welcome.  We know he and his wife, Tatyana, and soon their new baby who is due in a few months, will certainly be a light in their community.  We are so glad to start our trip with them.

We'll be updating more as we go.  Please stay in touch!

Keep on Grillin' Jeff! We'll see you again real soon!

Ecuador, Deep and Colorful

We´ve been in Quito, Ecuador since Tuesday, May 4.  We´ve seen and done much, but mostly we´ve just been living here with the family and enjoying the rich experience of being in the hot sun of the day and the cool breeze of the night.

We´ve gone to a parade held by the school where Edwin, Cecilia´s brother, teaches. 

The parade was set to begin at 10:00 AM, and sure enough, people were arriving, getting ready, and assembling on the street at 10:00 AM sharp.  Parents and locals gathered for the procession of the yough. 

The parade began with the ¨War Band¨setting the beat.  All drums, some snare, some bass. 
The batonistas surrounded the drummer boys in front and behind, twirling their batons. 
The valedictorian of the school and the two other best students led the procession bearing the flags of the nation, the school, and the city. 

Following was a display of the many cultures, dances, and people groups within Ecuador.  The entire school from the youngest first graders to graduating high-schoolers had a part to play. 

In the park nearby, some kids were setting off firework rockets that boomed overhead, and seemed to match the beat of the drummers.  One mis-fired and landed in a half-constructed building across the street from where we stood watching.  Lucy it exploded on the ground behind a brick wall, hurting noone, just setting off a few car alarms.

We watched from the shade of a building, Cecilia, Nate, and the moms, Maria and Christine.  It was a seemingly endless parade of children, bands, and cars dressed up to portray the rich culture of various different parts of the country. 

I was struck by the amazing fact that here in Ecuador, the culture, the history, the dances, and the people are connected and celebrated by all.  It´s not for the tourists to come and pay to be entertained.  It´s close to the heart of the people, and it´s celebrated in the streets far far away from the tourists with their cameras.  To be there was like being included in a procession that has been marching along since the distant past, before the spanish came, before there were written records and recording devices to capture the moment forever.  It was like being invited as a very special guest, and I will always remember it. 

A gathering for friends, food, fun, and farewells

This Saturday, Cecilia and Nate will host a little get-together to describe some of the work we will be doing in West Africa with Mercy Ships. If you have not heard about what we will be doing, please come.  It is open to all, and we will have pizza to munch on.  Even if you have heard our story already, and are in the area, you are most welcome to come anyway.

Please RSVP by commenting on this blog post below, sending an email to nathan.tarter@mercyships.org or get on our facebook group and post a message.

When:  6:00PM, Saturday, April 24, 2010
Where: Crossroads Life Center, 604 E. Buffalo St., Ithaca. (map below)
Why: To say a farewell to our friends in Ithaca and discuss our future plans to work in West Africa with all who are interested.  We want to keep in touch, and maintain strong connections with you in the US.

Thank you!

See you at the Crossroads...


View Larger Map

Crossroads on the corner of Buffalo St. and Stuart Ave.

What's in a name: African Roots to American Fruits

My Grandmother is a wonderful storyteller.  She weaves stories that put you on the edge of your seat, and that make you stop to think.  She holds a huge library of fiction and non-fiction in her head, and you never know what story she'll choose from the annals to entertain you with.  Here's a recent one that tells the story of my family's Surname, "Tarter".

Gustav Tata grew up in South Africa to Indian ex-patriots.  It was in Africa that he was educated and became an educator himself.  He became well known on the island of Zanzibar, where he lived, off the coast of Tanzania.

Zanzibar

He became a leader in education, eventually throughout an entire district of Tanzania.  Through his close ties to England, and by virtue of being educator to some of the British who were in Tanzania, he fell in love with a British lady, I think her name was Penny.  They had 3 children in Zanzibar, but she was not interested in staying.  She took the children to live in England despite the fact that Gustav would not come to England.  It was a multi-cultural marriage, but it seems neither of them were ready to start a family outside their own culture.  It came to pass that Penny legally changed her family name to the more British-sounding "Tate" instead of enduring the questioning glances and ill repute of having a very Indian surname.  

Gustav visited his wife and children in England very seldom, and much legend and story grew up around him in his absence.  They told stories of Gustav's exploits as a big game hunter on the plains of the Tanzanian savannah and the jungles of the African continent.  They called him "Bowana the Hunter", and passed the tales of daring and danger on to their friends and later, their children.  The middle child, Peter, who is my Grandfather, was rather individualistic, funny, and inventive.  Over the course of time he decided to change his name once again.  For some reason, he legally changed his surname to "Tarter". He met his wife, Patsy, in London, had 3 boys, and moved to the US in 1956.  The three boys grew up to marry, and have children of their own.  Peter Thurston, the middle child, had two boys.  One of those boys is me.  

I had no clue of my Tata heritage, spanning from India to South Africa to Tanzania to England, only to be changed twice in one generation.  The strangest thing is that when I went to college and started using on-line identities for chat groups and AIM, the screen name I chose was "Nate Tata".  It seems that unwittingly I went back to my roots and dug up the old family name without knowing a thing about it.  My actual idea was that "tata" is close to how you'd say the word "Tarter" in Massachusetts, with the typical New England accent.  Further, I had no idea I would marry my wife, starting my own multi-cultural family.  I am confident we will not have the same difficulty my great grandfather experienced as his family was split across continents and oceans.  My wife and I are solidly "in it together", wherever the Lord may lead us. 

Now Cecilia and I travel to Africa on an adventure of our own.  We will be in a completely different part of the continent, but who knows? I will certainly be on the look-out for some long lost Tata relative as we traverse the landscape and seek our place in the world.  If I find them, they will probably look much more Indian, or African than me.  I imagine what a family picture might look like, going back just 3 generations.  We'd look African, Indian, Scandinavian, and South American.  Blood from all over the world runs through our veins.  I have no "homeland", and I am thrilled by the opportunity to work internationally with countless others from all over the globe.  

Learn more about our work with Mercy Ships: Click Here

If you'd like to donate financially toward our work with Mercy Ships: Click Here

Announced: Mercy Ships Sierra Leone Field Service in 2011

Mercy Ships has  signed a protocol with Sierra Leone for their next full-term field service starting in February 2011.
This is exciting for us because it will be our first full-term field service with Mercy Ships.  We will be in Togo in July, then travel to Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone has a long and tragic history, and an incredibly complex and interesting culture. You can read a little bit about it here: http://www.everyculture.com/Sa-Th/Sierra-Leone.html.  We look forward to serving the people of Sierra Leone, and will be very thankful for your thoughts and prayers for the health and well-being of the people.


An excerpt from the link above:

M EDICINE AND H EALTH C ARE

The United Nations estimates that Sierra Leone has the highest death rate in the world, and the second highest infant morality rate (195 out of every 1,000 infants die within a year of birth). Life expectancy at birth in 1995 was only 34.1 years, down significantly from previously improving figures.
Even factoring in war-related violence, malaria is still the number one health threat. Schistosomiasis, bloody diarrhea, tetanus, measles, and polio are also endemic in some areas. Access to clean drinking water and adequate sanitation, especially in the rural countryside, is limited.
Medical facilities are extremely strained and are continuing to decline, especially since the 1991 conflict began. Yet even before this, the centrally organized national health service reached only an estimated 35 percent of the population, with less than 1 percent of annual government expenditures being allocated to health care. There are also an array of widely used indigenous practitioners, including midwives, broken-bone specialists, herbalists, society leaders, and Muslim-based ritual specialists.
_________________________________________________

Mercy Ships goes to Freetown, Sierra Leone to help break the cycle of poverty in this country and provide some hope for those who are forgotten and outcast.

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

A piece of my heart will always be in Ecuador

Nate and I will be flying to West Africa in three and a half months and my heart beats faster just thinking about it! Many times I have cried while watching videos about the beautiful African people because my desire was to be on the other side of the screen with them. But as the excitment about being in Africa increases, there are also feelings of sadness about being far away from family and friends. I have always wished that visiting my family in Ecuador was as easy as taking a bus and going away for the weekend.

In the last weeks, I've had an increasing desire to visit my home country one last time before our two year service with Mercy Ships. And after praying about it with Nate, we remembered that a check from his past job had not been deposited and was being reissued. The amount in the check was almost the exact amount of the price to buy two round trip plane tickets to Ecuador.

Can you guess where am I going with this? Yes, we are going to Ecuador!

King David was right when he wrote "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4). God is good!

There is one more desire in my heart regarding my connection with Ecuador. Let me tell you about Dulce Refugio:

"Dulce Refugio" means Sweet Refuge, and it is the name of my home church in Quito, the capital of Ecuador. I love being at Dulce Refugio, especially the days when 270 children (ages 3 to 18) come to spend time with their "Aunts and Uncles" who help them with their school work, prepare lunch for them, play with them, heal their wounds, and teach them about the Bible and God's love for them. I admire those serving the children. They love them so much: in word and deed. And the children are such a joy.

Dulce Refugio at lunch time

Nate playing tug-of-war with Dulce Refugio kids

Here is a video we made in 2009 about Dulce Refugio inviting people to come with us last July. We went with a group of seven took 13 suitcases full of school supplies, medicines, clothing, and Bibles and 9 laptopts. Praise the Lord! It was a wonderful experience.



People say that an image says more than a thousand words and I hope you noticed the condition of the facilities where the children come to be loved and helped. They are not in good condition and they are too small. Currently, Dulce Refugio is constructing a four story building with classrooms, a clinic, a computer lab, a kitchen, a church sanctuary and even a play ground on the terrace. The dream is to serve 500 children and even have an "Integral Development Center" where the kids come to school and receive help in areas including physical, emotional, and spiritual.

3-D Representation of new building

Current building site: foundation and ground floor columns

Can you guess how much money a project like this would cost?

In the U.S. probably over 1,000,000 dollars... In Ecuador, only 1/10th of that...

My desire is to see Dulce Refugio finish this project in 2010, and I found out today that people at the church have been praying about the same, by faith. I have seen their hard work and love. They do not give up. I also know raising 100,000 dollars in Ecuador is very difficult and without God's intervention, the building will be under construction forever.

Please join us in praying for provision for this specific financial need. This is something that God has put in my heart. Please pray also about how you can help, whether by donating financially or by sharing about this need with your friends and church. We welcome anyone who would like to come to Ecuador and visit Dulce Refugio with the desire to help. We will be there from May 4 to 18. Call me at 607-342-5038 for more information.

May God bless you abundantly in all you do and may you be a blessing to many.


-Cecilia

"But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand. We are aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our forefathers. Our days on earth are like a shadow, without hope. O Lord our God, as for all this abundance that we have provided for building you a temple for your Holy Name, it comes from your hand and all of it belongs to you. I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. O Lord, God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Israel, keep this desire in the hearts of your people forever, and keep their hearts loyal to you."
1 Chronicles 29:14-18

Mercy Ministries in Benin, 2009

This story was published in 2009.  I include it in this blog because we will be a part of this type of work starting in Togo, then Sierra Leone.  Cecilia and Nate will be land-based "host receivers", as part of a team to further coordinate the work of Mercy Ships on land.  Please read to see one side of the work Mercy Ships is doing to bring hope to a world of need.

Many crew members of the Africa Mercy hold positions that involve little or no interaction with the local community.  Thus, in every field service, Mercy Ministries provides opportunities for crew members to work within the local community through partnerships with longstanding, land-based ministry projects.  "Many of the crew work eight-hour, very routine jobs onboard the Africa Mercy," said Mercy Ministries Coordinator, Ines Kronester.  "I think they appreciate the opportunity to get a feel for what is going on outside in the local community.  It's important to see how other ministries are working in Africa."  

Mercy Ships crew member visit children at the School of the Deaf in Benin.  It's one of several land-based ministry sites crew members regularly visit.

Before the Africa Mercy enters a country, a small team is sent in advance to begin forming relationships with local ministries.  Upon arrival, Ines identifies approximately ten ministry sites crew members can partner with throughout the field service.   

"Ideally we find team leaders for each site.  Crew members can then sign up to go out and minister at theses sites during their spare time.  Ideally, most opportunities occur in evenings and the weekends," said Kronester.  "It's very low-key at the beginning.  We start by doing visitations, playing with kids, and supporting long-term ministries in practical ways like painting and cleaning."

During the 2009 Field Service in Benin, ministry opportunities have included working at a home for trafficked and abused boys, alongside the Missionaries of Charity, and supporting Soeurs Salisiennes, a skills training program for market girls run by the female branch of Don Bosco.

Ines Kronester, of Germany, reads a story to children at the C.E.O. Boy's Home for abandoned and trafficked street kids. 

The skills training program has been one of Kronester's favorite ministry sites.  "It's an amazing program," she said.  Participating girls come from the harsh market, where they have a rough and stressful daily routine.  Each is given the opportunity to complete two of the six-month courses on baking, pastry-making, cooking, or soap-making.  Girls are taken in overnight for a small fee and complete the skills training in the mornings, returning to sell in the market in the afternoons.  The program is designed to enable girls to sell better items in the market or leave the harsh environment altogether.   

One of the children at the C.E.O. Boys Home works on a special art project. 

Mercy Ships crew have had the opportunity to share the message of Jesus Christ during their visitations.  "We visit the program every week.  Because it's girls who are coming from the market, it's not a place where everyone is well-behaved and quiet.  They can be really rude and competitive. But many have never really heard about Jesus.  We try to bring a piece of the Gospel message across with very simple language, visualizations, and acting out scenarios," said Kronester.   

Market girls participate in the Soeurs Salisiennes skills training program.  "We visit the program every week.  It's an amazing program," said Ines Kronester.

On average, eighty crew members visit various Mercy Ministry sites every week.  Often, crew members discover serious needs of land-based partners.  Many times, crew members have offered further assistance through financial offerings and special projects.  "It often becomes much bigger than visitations.  Crew members feel like they've left something behind, something very purposeful," said Kronester.  "We try to offer a broad range of ministry opportunities so everyone can find their place.  We've gotten a lot of feedback from exiting crew members saying these are often the most valuable times for them.  It's been well-received." 

Written by Megan Petock

Edited by Nancy Predaina