We have met up with a group of 8 people from Charlotte that has come over for the World Cup. Most them are from our church, Watershed, and are involved in the soccer ministry there. They made arrangements for us to rent a house from a ministry here, Ambassadors in Sports (AIS), so that all of the proceeds go to the ministry. During our time here we are doing some various sports ministry activities arranged by AIS to support them in their sports outreach programs that they run. Honestly, we were so busy trying to leave Malawi that we didn’t really know what was going to be happening when we got here.
One of the programs that AIS runs is Hope Academy, which is a program that uses soccer as a way to build relationships with youth and share Christ with them. They have an academy at a local juvenile prison in Johannesburg where they go twice a week to have soccer training as well as spiritual training. On Thursday morning, AIS arranged for our group to go and play the team there and hang out with the youth in the program.
We played a full 90-minute game with them, which we lost 7-4 (I know…our defense was lacking a bit!). After the game we had an opportunity to sit around and share what God had done in our lives. We got to hear 2 amazing stories from two of the prisoners, who appeared to be in their early 20’s, about their life and the difference that Christ has made in their lives.
It was really a great experience to meet and hang out with these guys! To see how their lives have been changed through a relationship with Christ and the freedom that they are experiencing was truly inspirational.
In case you haven’t heard, Jamie and I have finished up or time in Malawi. We have sold our things, said our goodbyes and started our journey back to the US. It was really sad to say goodbye to all of our friends, especially not knowing if/when we might return to Malawi. We will miss Malawi deeply and our lives will never be the same because of our time there. I’m sure we’ll have more to write later about this.
We were able to arrange our travel so that on our way back to the US we could spend 2 weeks in South Africa at the World Cup. We arrived in Johannesburg on Tuesday, June 22 and will be spending a week in Pretoria (just outside of Jo-burg). We are then going to Cape Town on June 29 to spend a week there before heading back to the US.
The picture here is of Jamie and I at the US game on Wednesday. It was the most amazing sporting experience I have ever been a part of!! We are also planning on going to the US game on Saturday in Rustenburg!
Some of you may be wondering what the latest is with "Baby" Nasho, our friend's baby who was born in March with Spina Bifida. We are just so thankful to report that after weeks of waiting...literally 3 weeks of waiting in the hospital. "Baby" Nasho had his surgery on his spine to help close up his spine. This surgery was done in April. We were so thankful that one of our friends brother just happened to be doing his 6-week rotation in Malawi at the same hospital that we were at with the Nasho family (here in Blantyre). Dr. Shepherd was so good in helping us with answers and was even available to scrub into the surgery to observe the progress on "Baby" that day. After weeks of recovery at the hospital, "Baby" and Edith came home.
This just happened to be the day before our Watershed team departed Malawi for the US...and it was perfect timing as they were able to be a part of the naming ceremony that the 4 of us were asked to do. Before the team even arrived we decided to name the baby after our dear friend, Steve Cook. Steve and his wife, Rachael, led the team that was here. More than that, Steve and Rachael have been such a inspiration to us. They were the ones that taught us so much about the needs here in Malawi and the desire to pray for justice for the many that live in poverty. We love Steve and are were just so thrilled that we could honor him in this way by naming Baby Nasho after him.
We are deeply grateful for God's protection and provision for baby Steven and his surgery. The Spina Bifida could really have been a lot worse than it was...so we are grateful for the miracle that it was not as tragic as it was. Now almost 3 months old, Steven continues to grow, smile and learn new things...as well as move his legs, feet and wiggle his toes...promising signs that his development won't be as delayed as we originally thought. Thanks again for the prayers and concern. We will MISS the Nasho family probably more than any other family/friend here in Malawi. They will always hold a very special place in our hearts!
What a week it’s been! Last Wednesday I headed down to the most southern part of Malawi (near Mozambique)…let me tell you what that entailed. The goal: to visit a few Hope for AIDS orphan daycare centers, personally spend a few hours training the teachers at the Chilumba center, and to assist with training a church in Ndemera to help them start a center that they can self-sustain. How many days: 3 days. The temperature: upper 90’s. The accommodations: a resthouse aka: motel with lots of mosquitoes and no air movement…it was easy 100 degrees as I tried to sleep. The food: Chicken & chips (fries) and nsima, the two basic meals you will find in Malawi. The company: Gerald, the Hope for AIDS Orphan and Vulnerable Care coordinator, and Sarah and Mariel, two other SIM missionaries. The road condition: rocky, unpaved and not fun.
But amid the conditions, heat, sweat and bumpy roads, the stories and faces that I took away have been stored away in my heart and memory forever. Two stories that I will share with you.
First, it should be said that I am completely taken by the teachers that I have had the privilege of meeting and getting to know at all four orphan daycare centers. They are by far the hardest working teachers that I will ever meet in my life, hands down! Imagine being in charge of 100 orphan children all under the age of 5 years for hours each day with no resources but what you can make and/or find in your village. They work hard at keeping the children’s attention, entertaining them, teaching them simple development skills, preparing them a bit for primary school, making sure that they receive vitamins and medical attention, and providing love, attention and emotional support. They have a huge job!
I was able to really see Wyson in action…he is the main teacher at the daycare center in Phingo (one of two centers that my church, Watershed, in Charlotte financially supports). The first time we met in October he showed me how he has the children break up and go to “centers” at the end of the day. All I could think was "what centers? this is a dirt floor and 4 walls". But he had strategically assigned different play centers to the different corners of the center…dramatic play, musical instruments (that he and the other teachers made themselves), simple puzzles made out of paper, and the clay center (think play dough). I was intrigued that he had thought to have the children play with the clay, using their hands and imagination, one of the key steps to development at that age…so I asked him where he got the clay. He proudly told me that each morning he heads down to the river to collect the clay on the bank! Wyson is the man (as we say back home)! It was great to see him again in teaching action this past week and to continue to develop my relationship with him….I actually have a plan to go back in May again. I have committed to pray and think about these teachers at the centers each and everyday. What an impact their dedication has made on me.
Another highlight of my trip was meeting Zhawu. Zhawu is a 12-year-old boy who lives near the village of Chilumba where we have another orphan daycare center. Not only do the volunteers of these centers work with the children under 5 years that attend the center each day, but they also have the responsibility to visit and minister to the orphans and vulnerably, needy children in the surrounding areas. Zhawu was one of those children. His mother remarried either by divorce or death of his biological father. His new step-father didn’t give him time of day. Not just that, but Zhawu was also born crippled with clubfeet and suffered with this handicap until recently. Last year because of the funds from our program, Zhawu was helped! Our Hope for AIDS program assisted him in being transported the 4 hours to Blantyre to the CURE International hospital, a non-profit hospital that does free orthopedic surgeries that bring healing to so many children. So over the course of the last 2 years Zhawu has had two successful surgeries on his feet! He now has a new-found freedom on life—walking on his own, even starting to run, and wearing shoes! Can you imagine being a 12-year-old boy and not being able to run the soccer field with your friends? Can you imagine never being able to wear shoes because your feet were so twisted? I didn’t meet Zhawu before, but I can say that having met him last week, his smile says it all. We are so thankful that there was a program in his village that could see that he needed help and healing…and so thankful that Malawi has a CURE International hospital that specializes in this kind of thing. We know God has big things in store for Zhawu! Picture: Zhawu last week, 2 months after his last surgery, sporting some Crocs and a big smile on his face.
Only 8 weeks before we depart Malawi---8 weeks!! Not much time at all. I'm going to miss this place..I feel like each person I meet makes me fall deeper in love with this country. It’s the Wysons and Zhawus and baby Steven Nasho’s and many others…these are the people that I have come to love, the stories that have touched my soul, and the faces that will be far from my heart and mind.
Here is a picture of me and the four teachers at Chilumba daycare center. I was able to spend a few hours training them in lesson planning and give them some toys and teaching aids that were donated from the U.S.
And here is the last picture, Me completley in love with these sweet children from the Chilumba visit...one of the poorest and neediest villages that I have seen so far.
Visit our photo gallery to see more pictures from my recent trip to the villages.
We can't wait to see these 11 people in just a few short days! These are friends from Watershed, our church community in Charlotte! Not only are they friends, but close, dear friends who we've missed iimmensely this year, as well as the church community that they represent. It's going to be an incredible 10 days with them...showing off Malawi, introducing them to our new Malawian friends, teaching them Chichewa words and culture, and sharing in some amazing memories together! I'm sure we will have plenty of stories and pictures to share after they leave in a few weeks! Stay tuned!
In case you haven’t heard, Jamie and I have finished up or time in Malawi. We have sold our things, said our goodbyes and started our journey back to the US. It was really sad to say goodbye to all of our friends, especially not knowing if/when we might return to Malawi. We will miss Malawi deeply and our lives will never be the same because of our time there. I’m sure we’ll have more to write later about this.
I was able to really see Wyson in action…he is the main teacher at the daycare center in Phingo (one of two centers that my church, Watershed, in Charlotte financially supports). The first time we met in October he showed me how he has the children break up and go to “centers” at the end of the day. All I could think was "what centers? this is a dirt floor and 4 walls". But he had strategically assigned different play centers to the different corners of the center…dramatic play, musical instruments (that he and the other teachers made themselves), simple puzzles made out of paper, and the clay center (think play dough). I was intrigued that he had thought to have the children play with the clay, using their hands and imagination, one of the key steps to development at that age…so I asked him where he got the clay. He proudly told me that each morning he heads down to the river to collect the clay on the bank! Wyson is the man (as we say back home)! It was great to see him again in teaching action this past week and to continue to develop my relationship with him….I actually have a plan to go back in May again. I have committed to pray and think about these teachers at the centers each and everyday. What an impact their dedication has made on me. 
Zhawu is a 12-year-old boy who lives near the village of Chilumba where we have another orphan daycare center. Not only do the volunteers of these centers work with the children under 5 years that attend the center each day, but they also have the responsibility to visit and minister to the orphans and vulnerably, needy children in the surrounding areas. Zhawu was one of those children. His mother remarried either by divorce or death of his biological father. His new step-father didn’t give him time of day. Not just that, but Zhawu was also born crippled with clubfeet and suffered with this handicap until recently. Last year because of the funds from our program, Zhawu was helped! Our Hope for AIDS program assisted him in being transported the 4 hours to Blantyre to the 
Here is a picture of me and the four teachers at Chilumba daycare center. I was able to spend a few hours training them in lesson planning and give them some toys and teaching aids that were donated from the U.S. 
