Volunteer trip wrap up

Marianna and Megan are heading back to the good ole US of A tonight. They are with Katie in Kampala right now doing a little souvenir shopping. We had a great time with them here. We were able to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time.

As I mentioned in our last blog, we held three days of vacation Bible school last week. It was a huge success. The kids had a great time. We did crafts, coloring, skits, songs and even squeezed in a veggietales movie. As is typical around here two out of the three days nearly didn't happen. We scheduled the programs, but that doesn't mean anything. Praise the Lord we eventually rounded up the kids each day. Our 10 AM class started anywhere from 11:30 up to 12:30.

We also held 4 more HIV testing outreaches. We had a great turnout at each of them. As I mentioned before it is a great assistance to the community, but it is quite sad when you find out some of these people are positive. I went with them this past Tuesday and the results for the day were looking very good. We had 2 out of 74 being positive, but we then had 4 positive in our last 8 patients. It's heartbreaking. One of them was a 7 year old boy. When you stop and think about this boy and how the rest of his life is going to be with this news, it's tough. But, thankfully he now knows. If he was not informed he could get very sick and not know why. He possibly wouldn't get treatment and his conditions could be fatal. So, what was accomplished in these past two weeks is huge!

On Friday of last week we went back out to Kyongera, now armed with a new supply of mosquito nets and blankets. THANK YOU to those who supplied us with nets and blankets! We were able to visit 7 homes. We distributed nearly 20 nets and 10 blankets. We also, made it a point to pray for the needs of the family members. It was a great time and our volunteers really enjoyed it. It is one of the most rewarding aspects of our job. We have the opportunity to get involved in the lives of those who are so removed from the rest of the world. We will update you on any and all answered prayers. The most common prayer requests were for their children to apply themselves and succeed in school and for the mother's backs. They work long hard days in their gardens day after day, year after year.

On Saturday I took the team to the southern hemisphere for the day. We snapped a few photos on our way to the safari. Everyone had a great time. As many times as I've seen elephants, they still impress me. They are just so large, especially when they are really close!

On another note, our garden is coming up well. From my office I can see the beginnings of green beans, cucumbers, pumpkins, okras and a banana tree coming up that I need to go rip out.

I hope you all have a blessed week.

Chris

Singing and dancing with the kids at the vacation Bible school.


Coloring and crafts at the vacation Bible school.


HIV testing outreach.


Distributing Mosquito Nets throughout the community of Kyongera.


Praying for family needs while giving out mosquito nets.


Aaron, Colby, Chris and Moses (left to right) at the equator.