When we welcome new volunteers to join us in our mission at Light in
Africa, on the following day of their arrival, we gently give them an
introduction in to what it means to volunteer with our 'grass roots'
organisation.
One of the comments I repeat is that they have to get used to the "F" word.
"Frustration" is the most stressful thing about living in this
wonderful country.
Having arrived from the west, we have our cultural stories of how
things should work, so when visitors arrive and things that are
planned don't work out as they should, then the frustration really
starts......for example, you can arrange to be collected to go on
out-reach at 8am, the vehicle doesnt arrive until 10-30am or you have
made arrangements for a meeting at 8am in the morning, and other
invited members saunter in at 11.30am with no explanation as to why
they are late, and you have just sat there twiddling your thumbs, the
slowness of pace, when one is used to be so 'time concious' as I say
can be very frustrating....and boy did I have a big dose of it on
Christmas Eve.
Each year our children receive two gifts for xmas. One is a new
change of clothes, and the second gift is a shoebox full of 'goodies'
which has been donated from the community around Grimsby Town in the
UK where I lived.
Lucky children who have sponsors also receive their parcels from there
sponsors if they have managed to arrive on time. Each year, we go to
the local airport to collect the boxes after which they are stored at
Malaika until the great day........... this year everything went wrong
wrong wrong: two pallets arrived on different cargo flights and
could not be found, until our Secretary found them in the warehouse in
different places; then right upto Christmas Eve the shoeboxes had not
been released from customs. Only with ultimatums been given were the shoeboxes
released and arrived at Malaika House at 4pm. Marcus
- Godilla - and myself were there into the early hours making sure the
children each had a gift for Christmas Day, going over and over again,
checking the names against the list, until we were satisfied that no
child would be missed out on Christmas Day......... But it was all
worth while ...... as the children enjoyed a wonderful xmas day,
and the following day, we had a wonderful meal, followed by a "water
fight". This is now traditional, something which my daughter
started, and the children won't let us stop it, as they get their
chance to chase and throw water all over me, the Pastor, the nurses,
the carers, the cooks, the cleaners and the maasai, who are the watchman,
it's a hoot and the children love it.....
I'm sorry I didn't manage to get a goodwill message to you all on the
website, but as I dashed the 40 km from the airport, sat in my favourite
seat at Dot Cafe, compiled the message, the server went down so I
couldn't post it. That, my friends, completely finished my christmas
eve day.......
Be blessed, looking forward to chatting to you all in the New Year.
mama lynn
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Dear Friends and family.
Some more updates for you: Doreen is now walking unaided. She has made a remarkable recovery from her stroke.
Sister Grace visited the Food Kitchen project yesterday to weigh the children who have been attending the kitchen since September. The statistics are that already 80% of the children have a weight gain so we thank our friends in the USA for the food consignment and our staff for doing a good job.
At present, with the loss of Laura (mama Gemma) from our mission and Godilla at home on maternity leave we are struggling severly with the limited use of staff that we have.
I am especially struggling to answer so many emails, at present.
With all that is involved with the preperation of christmas in the homes, it is sometimes over 7 - 10 days before I can get to answer them, please bear with me on this.
600 christmas parcels of exercise books and pens and pencils which is awaiting distribution to the children who we support; without these much needed books they would not even be allowed to start school. I do know that some people think that Light in Africa is on a par with the likes of Oxfam from the comments that I receive, but I assure you, that I don't even have a secretary, and there is only 5 active managers that we have to organise all of our programs and out-reaches although we employ 60 local staff to care for our centers.
Thank you and bless you all, mama Lynn
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On a previous email around January of this year, I told you about the work of an amazing Doctor, who single handedly saved the lives of over 200 cholera victims. His name is Dr. Ninja and he is wonderful humble human being.
Around June of this year, I had visited Dr. Ninja to pay our monthly medical account where if anyone is ill during the month, and has no money to pay, they visit Fleeze House, and get a letter to take to Dr. Ninja and we at the end of the month pay the account. This ensures that no-one goes without medical treatment through lack of money. Many lives have been saved especially children suffering from malaria, whose parents where poor.
Anyway I digress, after we had completed the transaction he told me that he was having to build his own dispensary instead of renting the one he was in. He gave me the directions where he had started to build, so I drove past the area to see for myself. It was at the time pouring quite heavily with rain.
And what I saw depressed me, as the building was being built of mud bricks, and the rain was disintegrating them.
On my return to Mailisita - the volunteers accomodation, after dinner, I just casually mentioned to the present volunteers what I had seen with the mud bricks.
In the morning, a group of volunteers (including Gayle over 70 yrs young), came up with a suggestion: if Dr. Ninja would agree to build his dispensary with cement bricks and not mud bricks, they would provide the funds to build him a new dispensary............wow ..... so here you are girls, great job......pictures of the completed dispensary, of which Dr. Ninja with great enthusiasm and great joy moved into last Tuesday, and with his sincere appreciation for what you did to help him build his brand new dispensary.
Blessings - mama lynn
Two pictures, one of the new dispensary, and the second one of Dr. Ninja and mama Lynn
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Hi everyone,
Well, as predicted, the out-reach dispensary held at the Food Kitchen this past Saturday was a very moving experience for our medical and social worker team.
We think we have seen and experienced most things over the last 7 years, but even we can be shocked at the utter abuse of one party over another at times.
The door swung open and a bent, severly disabled young women, slowly walked across the room and sat down. She was accompanied by a good samaritan who was helping this poor young women with accomodation after she had been raped and is now 6 months pregnant, then chased away by her family........ Dr. Ninja who was our Doctor for the day, examined her and said she needed expert medical assistance.
After the home assessment on Wednesday, we will have her medical condition monitored at a hospital, where decisions will have to be made. This really is a life-threatening situation.
....
I have waited over 1 year to bring you this amazing update on a young married couple we found living on the streets when we did our pilot research as to what assistance we could offer the Mererani community in September of last year.
Pastor Frank Titus, Janet and Steven. And Steven now.
Grace, our newly-employed social worker from Dar-es-Salaam, was on her first out-reach visit. She set out her table to receive the many people waiting to be seen by the social and medical team. Steven walked in with this huge tumour on the side of his face. He explained that he was playing a game of football, and collided, and a tooth came loose. He asked someone to pull it out, and infection got in, and as he had no money for antibiotics, his face just kept growing bigger.
He and his pregnant wife where now living in door-ways as his mother had 'chased' them from her home when his face began to swell, and they were so hungry they were sucking on stones, to try to allay the hunger pangs.....
We held a meeting and made the decision to help this young couple in any way that we could. They came to live at Mailisita where the volunteers are based and whilst Steven was being assessed by the local hospital, Janet gave birth to their first child, Lyndsey, ( Lynn said).
KCMC decided this tumour was too big for them to help and advised that he be referred to Umbili Hospital in Dar es Salaam, but it would be a very costly operation. Having spoken to Paul our webmaster about the situation he spoke to a friend in Italy who agreed to fund Steven's operations, Praise God.
Four biopsies on the bone and the tissue had 9 surgeons in disagreement. We sent off Sister Grace to the hospital for a medical analysis. She rang me as the 9 doctors where at Stevens bedside. "I just don't know where this is going", she said, they can't agree what to do, but they have explained the dangers of the operation to me and Steven has agreed he has no choice but to go ahead. The operation was successful, when they removed a piece of bone from his jaw. Now with medication, each time we meet with him his tumour has receded.
We had to keep his spirits up during this difficult period, and I kept jollying him along that he had to get better because I needed him to be the Project Manager for the Food Kitchen. And this is what he is now doing: running and monitoring the kitchen, whilst his wife Janet is in charge of our three cooks......and Lyndsay is beautiful, so a happy ending to a story.
Blessings and thanks to all who were involved in prayer support and the recovery of Steven.
Mama Lynn
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Hi dear friends and supporters of Light in Africa,
On Saturday (24/11/07) we are preparing to operate a dispensary at our Food Kitchen Program where we are feeding approx. 390 - 420 malnourished children 6 days per week. Our medical team have previously visited the center and have distributed worm tables and anti-fungal creams for the many cases of scabies and ringworm the children have.
On Saturday it is to test the children for HIV/AIDS. We are expecting a large number of the children to test positive, this will then be a huge operational program to access the anti-retro drugs and give education on their use, and to ensure the children receive the correct dosage, as well as finding a way to transport them over 1 hours journey on untarmaced roads. But, In God We Trust, that we shall receive provision for this new program, for without the orphans being able to access the anti-retro drugs they will surely have a limited life expectancy.
New photo's of the children accessing the food kitchen have been added to the website.
Mama Lynn
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Hi everyone,
A thought from little Geoff to Gudilla on the arrival of his new baby brother Christian..
"If you say that you are the mummy to Christian, then where did my mummy go to?"
Some good news regarding Doreen our manager for the White House, Mailisita. I visited her on Sunday, and was thrilled that she has now gained some use in her right arm and sufficient in her right leg to now be able to sit up unaided and is slowly walking with a stick.
Bless you and thank you so much for your prayers.
I have just scanned a picture of volunteers sat preparing food for one of our "cook-ins" which would feed over 160 children and mothers.
The team gets down to all the preperation of cooking outdoors on three stones for a cook-in at Lerai, next to the dispensary.
Doreen is pictured standing to the right of the picture.
And this is a picture that Victoria posted to one of our girls,but
it is so nice I thought I would share it with you.
Mama Lynn
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Today our new webpages about the development of LIA's Tudor Childrens' Village have gone live.
Click here to go directly to the new pages and pictures.
While still a lot remains to be realized, we are very greatful for already so much that has been accomplished during the past several months, thanks to the contributions of our many volunteers and overseas supporters.
The village, once completed, will provide a safe and stimulating development environment for all the children in our care as well as for our staff.
Asanta Sana!
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At last, it's arrived here in Arusha!. Couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw it, but there it was staring me in the face. A pack of Lurpak Butter, but I'm afraid too costly for me at 7,000tz but we can hope the price will come down eventually, and the first set of traffic lights on the Moshi to Arusha Road, the finer things in life have arrived. Praise God.
This true story will help you to perhaps understand how difficult it is sometimes to work with people who have limited knowledge on how medicines work.....
Sister Grace and I where manning two seperate out-reach dispensary tables at a big maasai celebration meeting, and after the initial rush of patients, I settled myself down to watch some 400 maasai morans start their amazing jumping techniques. After a while, a maasai came over to my table and picked up the water jug and a throw-a-way cup. Still intent on watching this spectacle, I just happened to turn around just in time to see a handful of tablets been placed in this guys mouth and swilled down with water......'Sister Grace', I shouted, 'what tablets have you given this man'? 'Why', she said, 'Because I think I've seen him swallow a full course of tablets in one go'. 'What?!' she asked incredulously. She waltzed over to him, took the plastic bag from his hand, and laid into him about what had she just explained to him about taking the medicine........?? 'What is he saying Grace', I said, breaking into the conversation, "He says; that he didn't want to wait 5 days to get better, so he thought he would take all the tablets in one go and get better quicker, he's just said, "Why would I ask such a 'silly' question?
mama lynn
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For a new webpage on the subject of the development of the new Tudor Village project the webmaster would appreciate receiving any related picure files that our 2007 volunteers may have available.
Please send your entries to webmaster <at> lightinafrica.com
Asante Sana!
Paul
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For the many volunteers who know my daughter-in-law Godilla, who is Light in Africa's co-ordinator based at Malaika House, I'm thrilled to be able to inform you all that at 6am today Godilla gave birth to
a 10 lb. baby boy by caesarean section.
AND TODAY'S MY BIRTHDAY!!! wow, WHAT A BIRTHDAY SURPRISE.
Marcus and Godilla have chosen the name Christian for him,and mother and baby are doing well. So I have just dashed the 90 Kilometers from Seliani Hospital - Arusha to Dot Cafe in Moshi to share our joy with you, of this wonderful news, and also let you know that Sophie and Emily are being filmed today for Calender news in the UK. A blessed day for us all.
mama Lynn
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