Malawi Recap for 10-14-19
Monday morning – up and at it with a pancake breakfast before we go back to the orphanage. Had to stop by CrossRoads to buy some medicine for some of our children who are affected with a skin disease and a few with malaria. Took until nine before we got out of the city and on the way to the orphanage.
After arriving, the men had a day of meetings as we met with Lester and Chief Dhmera, then Lester alone, then Lester with Maxwell and Paul. We are attempting to make some organizational changes in the orphanage, so we have had much to talk about. After lunch we had a meeting with the chiefs of our area (25-30) who were concerned about the house that has been erected on our site, the status of the clinic and the status of the staff houses. We believe all their question have been answered and they seemed content as we presented them with cokes and cookies and then some clothes that were donated from the states.
We are instituting a new experiment with the chiefs as we have established a “share crop” program. We will finance the seed, fertilizer, etc. and they will grow various crops on their lands. At harvest time (hopefully 2 or 3 a year) one-half of the crop comes to the orphanage and the chiefs can keep the other half for their own village. We are starting with three chiefs chosen by our head chief and each will be given $100 as our investment. We will try for a year and see the results: if good, we add three more chiefs; if we do not get our part from any, we stop the program; if a couple do well and the other produces little, we will get rid of that chief and replace with another. They though this was a great idea and we have started the program. We think this will benefit the orphanage and the villages.
During our meetings, Doris and Shirley have been working diligently with the kids as they have been bathing them, giving them much needed medicines, playing with them and helping the mamas, and telling them some Bible stories. The ladies had a full and tiring day.
We apparently hit something on the way to the orphanage that made us lose oil or transmission fluid, so we had to wait at the orphanage for our rental man to bring another vehicle. This second one was not as good and when we pulled into the pizza place for supper, I noticed the key would not start the vehicle. Finally, after some time, we got it going, took the pizza back to the place for the night and will stay in for the rest of the night. Tomorrow our rental man will bring back our original car to continue. There is always something going on that we did not expect but God has never failed us yet and we know He will not.
“The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear, the Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 27.
May God bless you all and continue to pray for us while we are gone.
Your Team in Malawi