It's official!

I officially have a niece & nephew!  After over 2 years of waiting, praying, waiting some more, going through the ups and downs of the foster care system, the adoption finally went through on Friday! My niece told me on the phone that she got to blow out candles on her cake and she said "all my Grammys came!" (Great Grandma, Great-Great Aunt, both Grandma's and Grandpa, too!). 

More OVC

But Jesus called the children to him and said, 

"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."

Imagine a giant old bus squeaking down the hill to the AfricaHope Centre, stuffed full of happy children laughing and singing praise songs. They have been riding for hours, coming from many rural communities, deep in the bush of Kenya. The ride was extra dusty because it hasn't rained significantly all year. But these kids are excited! Some don't know what to expect because it's their first time to camp--maybe even to Narok town; while others are looking forward to the bunk beds with soft mattresses and pillows, playing with the electricity and getting warm showers; they can't wait for the games and having fun with their friends.

Most of the kids show up in their school uniform and will wear it all week. But, don't worry, they'll get cleaned up! They get soap and lotion and shortly after arrival have a chance to scrub the dust off their beautiful faces and dirty toes! Their clothes will get washed at some point. Their tattered shoes will be taken to town to be repaired during the week. The majority of them are in boarding schools but live with relatives during school breaks. They have all lost one or both parents.

Their week of camp will look similar to what you think of when you hear "camp": dramas, Bible lessons, memory verses, singing, games, crafts. But the kids also receive individual counseling, medical check-ups, haircuts =), and lessons on personal hygeine, HIV/AIDs and sex education. 

This is what happened last week; Our annual camp for rural orphans and vulnerable children. It was a blast!

Waiting to register. They took turns leading songs while they waited in the bright sun

Everybody ready?!

Take our picture!

Relaxing after lunch

Salute! Getting settled into the dorm rooms

Lining up for games

Lesson time for group 3

If you or your church would like to sponsor any of these children or partner with their schools, please contact me! Or come next year! Join us on a short-term project and help with the camp. Special thanks to Kathy who joined us this year.

OVC Camp

Last week was our annual camp for orphans and vulnerable children. 87 kids joined us from rural Maasai land. The kids are so fun and adorable. Lots was learned and a good time was had by all =)

Hillary

Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, was in Nairobi this past week. I heard this story about someone proposing marriage to Chelsea during a public meeting.. then I found the story on CNN--check this out! It's so funny because it's so Kenyan! 

Will you be my 2nd wife, Chelsea?

Oh Electricity

The drought is so bad right now that they have begun to ration the electricity throughout the country. Most of the power in Kenya is generated by hydropower, and I've heard that some of the dams haven't been as low as they currently are since 1949. 

SO, on Wednesdays and Fridays from 6am to 6pm the power is switched off in Narok and other areas. The country is divided into areas A, B, & C with rotating days of power outages.

You forget how much of your life is dependent on electricity... until you have none! Lights, my shower (a crazy electric insta-heat unit heats my water), hair dryer, coffee-maker, computer, phone, ipod... key parts to my everyday. I'm into planning ahead now and charging everything the nights before and I'm surviving. It's actually been good for me... and will continue to be good for me... until at least October =) 

In loving memory...

Oliver Claassen

1945- 4 Aug 2009

I don't really have words right now to express Oliver. Pastor, leader, encourager, friend. He will be dearly missed. 

To my church family at EPC--I wish I could be there with you all right now. As Oliver liked to say in Swahili, Barikiwe.