Tugging at My Heartstrings

Jambo again!

Today we were able to be at the BCC most of the day. Our primary focus was to completely tour the facilities and programs and see how we could best serve them using our strengths. We are pretty eager to just jump in, but I see the wisdom in the Buckner staff wanting us to take a day to really pray it over and plan as a team.

As soon as we got out of Noah (our trusty van - Victor thinks we are crazy Americans...) and started to walk toward the school buildings, all of the little kids walking to school saw us, started waving, and RUNNING toward us. We were surrounded pretty quickly and were blessed with hugs - one little girl, about preschool age, pretty much jumped in my arms.  She didn't say a word, but just hung on my neck. Oh, Lord, I've only been here two full days and already I know I'm going to leave a pretty big chunk of my heart in Kenya.

A little more about the BCC:

• It is located in Mailisaba, a bourogh of Nairobi - kind of on the outskirts of the city. Definitely more "country-like" feel.
• 22 kids are part of their residence program - they actually live on the compound, in the orphanage
• They have 297 kids enrolled in their school. They teach grades PreK-7th grade. The kids come from the residence program as well as the surrounding community.
• The BCC offers a Health Clinic for a paltry fee, although they give free care to the resident kids and the community members that truly cannot afford even the small charge. At the clinic, they do consultation and can treat minor illnesses, give vaccinations, and offer a Free Clinic twice a year for the community when teams come from the US. They also have dental facilitities, but those are only used when a Buckner medical missions team comes.
• They have a large number of children in their Kinship and Foster programs (I can't remember the exact number). That is why there are so few children actually on the compound.  BCC's goal is to allow the children to be a part of and grow up in the community if possible. If the BCC can locate a relative, or if their home in which they used to live has become a safter, healthier environment, they encourage the kids to live there. The BCC's social worker still makes home visits in these cases and continues to provide many other services for the children.
• After a child in the Resident program finishes 7th grade, they must move from the premises. They are sent to a boarding school for "high school". They are still visited occasionally by the BCC social worker, to check on them, and provided for by BCC until graduation.  Then, they do their best to help the kids transition into society as an adult, or apply for college if they can receive grants.
• The BCC also has a church - open to the community.
• They have a small farm, where they grow vegetables for their food, as well as several cows for milk, and chickens for eggs.

After visiting with one of the BCC's social workers, it seems that a large portion of the country's poverty stems from a lack of education.  She said that there are only 5 universities/colleges in Kenya. Each year 700,000 Kenyans graduate high school.  Most of them are eligible for college, but only 17,000 are admitted. She told us that without a bachelor's degree, you could not get a job in Nairobi. Those without higher education are forced to open their own "businesses". This can be running a matatu - a public taxi...ish, or offering sewing, or setting up a roadside stand (which is what a large portion of Kenyans do - they line the streets throughout the city).

After our tour, we helped the kitchen staff serve lunch, which consisted of ugali (corn flour mixed with hot water to make a dough-like substance) and a mixture of meat, carrots, and cabbage. After serving the meal, we helped wash dishes - which was an experience. I think we made a friend by pitching in and helping though. The head of the kitchen staff was asking us if we would stay for dinner. =)

I'm sorry I didn't get many thoughts down, there is so much going on. I'm trying to type as fast as I can with the time I have. Hopefully more soon.

Your prayers are felt - keep it coming!

Love, t

Jambo from Nairobi!

Jambo!

After 2 flights, 18 hours in the air alone, 8 timezones, and some very interesting plane food, we made it to Nairobi! Everything went so incredibly smoothly, we couldn't believe it! Thank you for your prayers.  No trouble with luggage, visas, passports, etc. 

It's so unreal that we are actually here. Of course, when we landed, it was dark so we couldn't see much of the city.  Three Buckner staff members picked us up from the airport in two vehicles (did I mention we brought a LOT of luggage??). Our first car ride in Africa was an interesting one (and the ones since, and I'm sure from now on). I'm not really sure how many hard and fast traffic rules there are...but I don't think anyone follows ANY of them. Ha. =) But Victor, our driver, is taking very good care of us and has gotten us around quickly and safely.

Nairobi in daylight is indescribable. I can try, but will fail miserably. During our orientation/training in Dallas, a Buckner Mission Coordinator told me, "There is poverty everywhere. It just looks different in different countries. In Kenya, it's like nothing you've ever seen." The dichotomy of Nairobi is staggering. There are some very modern, beautiful buildings with gorgeous landscape, every country's embassy is breathtaking, and then there are children digging through rotting garbage for food in their bare feet just down the road.

We attended church at the Baptist Children's Center (BCC - the "orphanage") this morning. It was so sweet to worship with our Kenyan brothers and sisters, and to meet the kids. The entire congregation made us overwhelmingly welcome, introducing us, thanking us over and over again, and praying for us as we spend the next several weeks there.

My camera made me quite popular with the kids..."Picture?" "Photo?" One little boy even came running over so he could sit on the bench next to me during services, so he could be first in line to have his picture made after church was over.  I have made a friend that I hope I can pour into while I'm here. I connected with a young girl, "S" during the children's Bible study.  We shared my Bible and she was so eager to copy down everything the teacher said and write down each scripture to memorize. She is 14 and told me her favorite thing to study is English. She told me she is very excited for me to come back tomorrow.

There is so much more I want to share with you all! Unfortunately, my time at this cafe is up. Hopefully more updates soon.  Some specific prayer requests as I go:

• Specifically pray for me: that as I am overwhelmed with what I see and experience, that I do not become discouraged and can serve beyond wanting to "fix" the "problem".
• Continue to pray for my team - health, time and cultural adjustments
• Pray for the BCC and Staff.
• Pray for the community to continue to embrace the Gospel as the BCC works in the community.
• Pray that as we get a more in-depth tour of the BCC tomorrow, we can make decisions about where we spend our time and how we can best serve these kids.
• Pray for the government of Kenya.

Must go! Love, t

And Away We Go!

Tomorrow's the big day! Mom and I are leaving pretty early in the morning to head to airport (Buckner made arrangements to fly me to DFW for our orientation day).  I'll get to meet my teammates and go through training with the other summer interns....then on Friday, we will all disperse from DFW to our respective parts of the world. =) My team and I should reach Nairobi later in the evening on Saturday.

Once again, I want to say "Thank You." Thank YOU. If you are reading this, YOU are an intregal part of my GOing. Thank you for your prayerful, emotional, financial, and physical presence during all steps of this journey so far. Please continue to pray! For these first few days of mostly travel, I have some general prayer requests; I'm sure I will have more and more detailed requests after I reach Nairobi and tour the orphanage.

PRAY FOR:

• My Teammates (Melody, Kenda, Delaney) and myself: Immediate team bonding; Likeness of mind
• Physical safety
• Spiritual health
• Calm journey - meet all connecting flights without problems, no luggage mishaps, rest on the plane, preparation
• Prepare the hearts of the Kenyan children and adults with whom we will come in contact
• Spirit-controlled tongues - that we would boldly proclaim the Gospel; we would speak words of kindness and encouragement to each other

That's a good start! I'm hoping that when we arrive in Nairobi I will have the opportunity to update rather quickly.  If you are interested in following this journey as it occurs, you can either check this blog occasionally, or subscribe to it. (On the right sidebar, down towards the bottom of the page, there is a button that says "Subscribe". You can have the blog post sent to your Google Reader or other reader options.

The Intern day of rest is on Saturday, so it is most likely that I will update about once a week on Saturday. =)

Again, Thank YOU. God has blessed me so much. I cannot but hope to be a blessing to Kenya!

Love,

T

A Jumbled Mess of Life Happenings

I guess I'm not as good at this blogging thing as I had hoped!

Wow. Much has happened since last time I caught you all up...and yet, there are still soooo many questions! I guess I'll break it down into categories and try to fill you in.

Buckner Internship:

26 days until I head to Dallas to start my incredible journey! Wait, I take that back. I have already begun this journey. 

It truly started back in January when I applied in faith, knowing that God would do something amazing....It continued when, in outrageous obedience and generosity, the Church responded and covered the entire cost of my trip plus additional donations to purchase supplies and gifts for the children and workers at the orphanage. In fact, I canceled my support lunch because the amount coming in made it no longer necessary! Isn't God Good!?!?!

Now, I am eager to meet the rest of my team, board that plane, and finally see and hug those sweet kiddos I have been praying for these past months. Please continue to pray for me and the rest of the team: Melody, Kenda, and Delaney, the country and government of Kenya, the workers and kids of the orphanage, Buckner International, and that God would be glorified.

Random fact: I found out yesterday that the last two days of the internship, we get to go on a safari! FUN! I wanna see an elephant...and a giraffe...and a lion...from a distance ;-)

Grad School:

I have officially accepted the offer to start my Masters in the fall at the Anne and Henry Zarrow School of Social Work at The University of Oklahoma! Whoop! (See...I'll always be an Aggie.)

Still - I ask anyone that actually reads this post to please please please PRAY! I accepted the spot knowing that I will only actually be able to go in August if something miraculous happens with financial aid. My family cannot afford to help me go to an out-of-state school, nor do I wish that burden on my parents (or want to take out a loan!).  But, everything just feels right about OU. I visited there about two weeks ago, and loved it. The faculty and staff are amazing. I sat in on the department head's class and was very impressed. Housing options look good. And it's NOT Austin. ;-) I felt at home in Norman, and have already received several church recommendations there. I asked God to very emphatically shut the door if that was not where I am supposed to be, yet all signs point to OU. I am faithing that some sort of financial aid will occur where I can pay resident tuition.

CS Home:

My house in CS sold! About three weeks ago, I went down with my parents, three vehicles, and two trailers to pack up 3 1/2 years worth of life (man - can I accumulate junk quickly!).  It was a little sad knowing that I no longer live in CS, but I'm glad to have the packing/moving behind me. It was also really great to spend a little time with friends that were still there.

Other Life Events:

Well, the not-so-great news. I am currently on week three of having pneumonia. Yeah, I know - stink. I've been through two chest x-rays, two rounds of oral antibiotics, one round of steroids, a breathing treatment, and a shot in the rear. Awesome.  And I'm still coughing and wheezing. I'm so ready for it to be over, and I have to get well soon so I can go to Africa! So, while you're at it, pray that I kick this thing - soon!

On another note, I'm super glad it's Saturday. I slept unacceptably late (which was glorious!), loved on my Sadie-dog (who is not feeling super well), little-by-little worked on cleaning my room and storing away some residual junk from the move, and shot at annoying black birds around the house with my dad. Good day, I'd say. =)