Port Victoria!

Hey all!! so sorry for the long silence from this side of the world, but all the rest of orientation week was spent in staff meetings for me and then I was shipped out early to my ministry assignment in PORT VICTORIA!

I'm paired with a Kenyan girl named Hellen who is actually Masai and it's been so grand to learn so much about Masai culture and life from her. I'm with a lady called Mama Rosemary, she works in Nairobi but is origianlly from the very poor area of Port Victoria and has singlehandedly started a feeding program for orphans and HIV positive children in the area, it has grown into a primary school now and so my days are spent there I think the last two weeks of my life could be titled by the keywords, FISH, HOT, KIDS, CHAI, SWEAT, VISITORS....yeah just to name a few.

But yeah, it's been incredible just getting to know the area, it's a hard place to be because of all the sickness and poverty but this being my third time in Africa, i feel like the initial chock of this hard reality has already come and I've been having the mindset of seeing what I can do about it with what i have been entrusted with in this life.

THe major needs for the school are buying land for food so that they can be self-sustaining, getting a salary for the teachers (because everthing is volunteer work right now and it's hard to be able to hold high standards and make sure supplies don't get stolen). THis salary would only take someone (or a group of pplp) deciding to give 200 dollars a month to support two teachers and a cook for the school. The third is that they started a few years ago and now the orphans are beginning to age out of primary school with no where to go, Mama Rosemary is looking for sponsors to pay for school fees for the again children so they can continue on with education.

I've had the incredible oppurtunity to compile information and photos of the some 150 watoto (children) and I'll be bringing them back to the states and hopefully be an advocate for them. I'm also been able to pick out a brother and sister (Javan and Vivian) who I'm going to sponsor on to grade one. They are both sooo smart and clever and very sweet. They are living with their grandma as they are both complete orphans.

Okay, i really need to go now, but just wanted to give a quick update and urge you to think and pray about how you may be a part of bringing hope to the children of Port Victoria!

Be a part of the miracle!

-tiff