New Adventures in Honduras

On January 4th 2010, a team of 13 students, faculty and staff, will head to Embarcadero, Honduras for our third trip in an ongoing partnership with this village. During our week in the village we will build relationships with our host families, and we will build as many Latrines as possible.

Communities engaging for the purpose of healthy change through learning, practicing, and partnering.

This project falls under the mission of Jewell’s Center for Justice and Sustainability. Our goals are to act thoughtfully and responsibly as we address societal, economic, and ecological challenges as we encounter them. Through this project we have broadened and re-defined what it means to “Serve Abroad.”

Students step outside of their own cultural experience, and engage in community led projects designed to meet specific needs for the Honduran village. Students and faculty will dialogue and reflect, enhancing the students’ academic and practical grasp of the challenges faced by developing communities. This project is becoming a model for campus-wide initiatives engaging global cultures.

Immersed in Rural Honduras

This year we will take two trips to Honduras. The first will be in January and the second during Spring Break. Participants will stay in the small village of Embarcadero, Honduras. Lodging will be in the school house, and each student will be adopted by a family in the village. We will share meals together and learn from our hosts.

As a community the residents have set priorities to improve the health and well being of their village. The first issues to be addressed include improving the water supply (wells) and providing healthy, sustainable waste systems.

To those ends, this year’s effort will be to work alongside the residents to build a latrine for each family in the village (19 families). Last year’s group did education work and completed the first two latrines. Since that visit a third latrine has been completed.

Matthew 25 Project: Lending a hand, where a hand is needed most...

In Kansas City’s urban core, one zip code was dubbed “The Murder Factory” in a January 2009 series of articles in the Kansas City Star. 

Author Tony Rizzo writes, “No other ZIP code in Kansas City, St. Louis or any other part of the state comes close. Though its 26,000 residents make up about 6 percent of the cities population, it accounts for 

20 percent of Kansas Citians in prison for murder or voluntary manslaughter.” In the midst of this neighborhood, WIlliam Jewell College has forged a strong partnership with the staff and volunteers at the Palestine Neighborhood Development Center. Among many of the good things they do for their neighbors, once a year they partner with Jewell, selecting homes to be painted during the Matthew 25 Project.

A qualifying home owner receives paint donated through the Kansas City Paint Program and Jewell provides the volunteers by inviting churches, schools, and other civic groups from all across the metro area. Volunteer groups sign up to serve for one day during the week. This year because of the extreme heat, crews started pretty early, around 7:00 am, and worked until noon or 1:00pm. In four days, 17 crews completed four homes, and by Friday, as we were gathering equipment and cleaning up supplies, homeowners were ecstatic about the facelift their homes received.

 During the course of the week one volunteer, who had been pondering the plight of the neighborhood, was thinking out loud and asked me, “Do you really think that painting this house will make a difference?” We visited for a few minutes and determined that each resident will definitely benefit from having a newly painted home. The next day his question was answered very clearly when DeWayne Bright, Coordinator of the L.I.N.C. Program at the Center, relayed the following story.

One of the residents of a street where we were painting 2 homes, told DeWayne how much she appreciated the work that was being done. She shared how a year ago, family members on that same block had been arguing and fighting with one another and the situation had escalated to some minor violence involving calls to the authorities. She told DeWayne that over the course of the week those same quarreling family members determined to work together to do some yard work and made plans to make some long past due minor maintenance projects on their own homes.

Each day new groups would arrive at the homes ready to get as much done as they could before the scorching heat sent their weary, sweaty bodies home at mid-day. Equipped with paintbrushes, scrapers, ladders and water bottles they worked in the morning sun and whatever shade they could find to beautify the resident’s home. In many instances they also made some minor repairs and yard work to help spruce up the finished product. One homeowner complimented a group, telling them they were “Angels” because of the work they had done.

One of the key partners in this effort is Major Gene Bresino and his summer ROTC Cadet program of Central High School. This summer Gene is coordinating five crews of 10-12 students each. His teams and their sponsors will work most of the summer painting other homes that qualified for the program. Each week they also spend a day in class learning about character development and receiving leadership training. Many of the Cadets live nearby and know the residents whose homes they are painting.

The Matthew 25 Project is working to make a difference in “The Murder Factory.” With more partners in this grassroots effort we hope that the biblical mandate of serving others, found in Matthew 25 can become a reality in the heart of Kansas City.  Find out more how to get involved at: www.matt25project.com

BEFORE & AFTER shots of one of the houses...

Meeting in Embarcadero

We arrived on Saturday in Embarcadero at about 11 am. We drove two vehicles, a Hyundai Santa Fe and a Toyota four wheel drive pick up. When we got to the river, it was not much more than a mud puddle, but the folks in the Toyota convinced us to leave the rental car behind and climb into the pick up to cross the muddy depression. During the rainy season (December & January) the water flows nearly as deep as the wooden footbridge on the left. Access by vehicles is often limited to the village because of this unpredictable drainage. 

Once we crossed the mud puddle and made our way into the village we were greeted with smiles and hugs, mostly from women and children because we learned the men were in a Co-Op meeting in the school house. We were able to walk around and visit and get a look at the latrines our team built in January. The folks of Embarcadero had built a third latrine near the church. I put a 

picture of one of the latrines on my last post. We were very encouraged by the way the community has embraced the value of the ecological, composting latrines. They prevent pollution of their water source and provide fertilizer for their crops. 

A little later in the afternoon we were able to hold a meeting with the

 

folks of the community in the school house pictured here. Our

discussion covered three primary topics. First we wanted their feedback on the latrines and we wanted to hear what they felt would be best for their community.

Men and women from the community expressed their appreciation for the latrines and also related that because

 of the education offered last Januray's visit, they no

 longer wanted to use the "Pit Latrines" because they understood that those would contaminate their wells. They are eager to enter into a partnership that will provide a "Composting Latrine" for each family in the village. When you include the church and the school, this will require the building of approximately 25 more latrines.

The second topic we discussed was the logistics of our on-going partnership between William Jewell College and the village of Embarcadero. Our goal in this partnership is best expressed through the phrase: 

"Communities engaging for the purpose of healthy change through partnering, learning and practicing."  

As we discussed ideas for our next trip to Embarcadero we arrived at the following model. A group of no more than 15 will travel to the village in January of 2010. They will sleep in the school building and each participant will be "adopted" by a different family for meal times eating what the family eats, when the family eats. Our group will cover the expenses of the extra meals and lodging in the school building. This plan helps meet our goals a number of different ways. Students will truly be immersed in the local culture, also we will be very close to our work sites as we build more latrines. Also because we will be right there with them we will have so many more opportunities to get to know them and learn from them. Building these relationships will be a great benefit to both of our communities.

Finally we discussed the best way to move forward in our plan to construct latrines and engage the folks of Embarcadero in the process. We talked about the need for resources to build the latrines. Materials for each one costs about $300 USD, which translates to just over 5,600 Lempiras. The average annual income for an agricultural worker in Honduras is only $450 per year or 8,500 Lempiras. They are committed to providing labor, along with our teams. We are also negotiating how housing our students can also be seen as an investment in the project. Each family will also plan and prepare the ground for the site of their family's latrine. 

In the coming months we will be raising funds for this project, but in our discussion with our partners we both agreed that we want both groups to contribute equally to the project. It is important that we continue to support and encourage their community as they strive for healthy change. 

Tim McNeely is serving at Proyecto Alcance in La Masica and teaching school in San Juan Pueblo. He is works with David and Dialis Romero, who have been our partners for the past 5 years. Tim will continue to visit Embarcadero every 3-4 weeks and keep our communication current as we move forward in our planning. Tim will be instrumental in getting supplies and building materials to our partners as we move ahead on this exciting project.

More next time about the great potential this project holds for participants from William Jewell.   Mucho Gusto - Jeff

Village Partners in Honduras

FRIDAY

Our day started at 4 am traveling to KCI where we would board a 6am flight to Houston, and on to San Pedro Sula Honduras by 11 am local time (Noon CST)  Our driver, WJC Chaplain, Dr. Andy Pratt, braved the early morning hours to take Campus Minister, Jeff Buscher, Chemistry Professor, Dr. Lori Wetmore, and Alumni Mark Buhlig to the Continental gate and send us on our way. 

( Photo - Latrines built by our group in January )

Our flights were both early, in fact the pilot on one flight joked, “So the next time you are delayed you owe us 20 minutes before you can start complaining!”  Upon arrival something totally unexpected occurred – 2 out 3 bags arrived – somehow mine did not make it.  They knew it was missing before we got to the counter. Mmm?  Anyway we submitted a claim and they indicated it would be delivered to our hotel the next day?  We’ll see how that goes.  I was truly surprised because over the last 5 years we have never lost a bag on this leg of the trip.  As I write this I realize that our video camera and my medicine is in that bag… I’m sure it will arrive tomorrow… Now that I'm posting this note - Everything arrived just fine. In fact the good folks of Continental delivered my bag to our hotel in La Masica - Three hours away from the airport. Thank goodness, another day in those clothes would have been challenging.

Renting a car was an adventure: Avis said their car was not working, so she took it on herself to send us next door to “Econo-Car” Where they rented us a Hyundai Santa Fe for the same price we were quoted by our friends at AVIS. We signed some papers and we were pleasantly surprised with a shiny new Hyundai. It had a few dings and scratches, but it will be ideal for touring this part of northern Honduras. The important thing is that the AC worked just fine. We then exchanged our cash and made our way to La Masica.

Following Thursday’s earthquake the drive was not too bad. There were back ups at the Bridges. The bridge near El Progresso was the worst damage we saw.  As we approached the bridge there were some cracks in the highway. We crossed on the good bridge and made our way toward San Juan Pueblo where we would stop in and pay a visit in the colonia where we have built homes and a church over the last 5 years.  It was great to see the families that we have worked with over the years, including the high school student – Rosita, who our CSM group sponsors by sending funds for her school supplies each year.

From there we drove another 15 minutes into La Masica where our base of operations… Hotel Media Luna  (Half Moon Hotel) stood waiting for our arrival.  After a few minutes of tracking folks down at Senior Antunez Hardware Store, we finally found a fellow that could hook us up with keys for the rooms.  And we got settled in for the night.  I have to stay up and wait for Donette, Tono, and Dani to arrive from Guatemala. They finally arrived around midnight. 

Some of the things we will work through on this trip:  How do we appropriately assure that our partnership with the village folk of Embarcadero is intentionally reciprocal and can we ask our partners to be vulnerable with us by telling us their story. And then how do we communicate the big picture of our Village Partners Project?  I look forward to re-connecting with the folks in Embarcadero tomorrow – For now I think our friends have arrived, I’ve got to give them their room keys. 

More Manyana - Jeff

 

EarthQuake in Honduras

Hey Friends,

All reports indicate there was scattered damage from this morning's earthquake. The village of Embarcadero is about 10 miles from the north coast of Honduras, and about 60 miles west of La Ceiba. I'm sure they felt the quake, hopefully their homes are still standing. We leave in the morning (5/29/09) and will return on Tuesday June 2nd. We understand some bridges were damaged, but it appears we can still get to La Masica before nightfall.  I will be blogging while we are there if possible, a primary internet line was severed, so I'll do the best I can to keep folks posted on the progress of our visit. 

Here is a link to the BBC story about the quake: 

 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8071568.stm

Serving Others...  Jeff

Headed to Honduras

Greetings Friends,

It's been awhile since our last adventure. We have wrapped up another great school year, and in just a few days a small group from Jewell will be traveling to Honduras to do some logistical work with our village partners near Esparta. The village is called Embarcadero and last January a team from Jewell partnered with some folks from Guatemala to introduce and build 2 composting latrines. We are going to see if they completed the third latrine and visit with them about the future of our partnership.  Pictured here is one of the homes in Embarcadero. Our plan for our next trip is to stay in the village 24/7 with our partners. Possibly camping out in the school building. With no electricity and no clean water, we will be doing some extensive planning to assure a safe and productive time while we are there next January.  Our upcoming trip will be from May 29 - June 2.  I look forward to sharing more about the trip soon.  Olah,  Jeff

The Matthew 25 Project

We are very excited about this year's Matthew 25 Project. 

Our goal is to recruit approximately 45  Kansas City area churches to assemble crews of about 10 folks and work on a house painting project for one day during the Matthew 25 Project.

Dates: Monday - Thursday,   June 22-25

(We will use Friday as a make up day in case we get rained out during the week)

More information at the Website: www.matt25project.com  

As churches register for the project they will be assigned to a specific house and work day and they will also be paired with another church from the Kansas City area. Monday through Thursday each of the six homes we will be painting, will have two teams working together for the day. 

Visit the website and/or contact Jeff Buscher  (816-415-7560) at William

Jewell College for more information.   Last year was our first y

ear for this project and we were structured more as a

 residential camp/missions experience with stud

ent groups staying at the college. (See article posted on a nearby blog)   Th

is year we are inviting local churches to get involved 

and serve locally and build relationships with churches from all across the metro area. 

Visiting Student Homes

In the middle of our time in Kenya, all of us had the very distinct privilege of spending a night with the families of our host students from Daystar University. Now that we are back in the states, and students are back into the routine of classes, I'm going to share about my experiences that weekend, and invite our students to contribute as they have the time. 

My roommate at Daystar was an older student by the name of Kimeli, a non- traditional student, in that he is about 25 years old and has a wife and two small children. I came to know Kimeli as a good friend, and as w

e spent time together the first week, I began to eagerly anticipate the opportunity of traveling to his home and meeting his extended family.  As it turned out getting to his home town of Marigat, about 4 hours north of Nairobi, was an adventure all its own. 

A matatu is a 14 passenger minivan, that will

 take you, rapidly, to your desired destina

tion for a small fee

 but only when the driver decides

 he has a full loa

d. And in our case, a full load meant 24 people. On our journey north, up the great rift valley, I learned we would be crossing the equator... well I was 

not about to let this momentous occasion pass me by, so 

I kindly asked our matatu driver if he would stop and let me take a picture at the

equator. He did, I did, and I was promptly accosted by a host of souvenir sa

les folk who wanted to sell me a little something to remember my equatorial crossing. What can I say, I was a

 captive westerner with more shillings than sense, they've seen my type

 before. SO... there I stood with one foot in each hemisphere, contributing to the local economy!

Just another 15 minutes down th

e road, Kimeli asked the driver to stop, and we got out, and as I looked around I saw a small gravel road heading off to the west. Next to the road was a small wooden stand where local folks would sometimes sell honey. On the other side of

 the gravel road was a small enclosure with a crumpled piece

 of tin for a roof. As it turns out that shed was just large enough to serve as the local pool hall. In the center was one functional pool table, and along the side was another older pool table that had seen its better days. I was introduced to the players and learned, that like most folks in this area, they were related in som

e way to my host, Kimeli. 

After visiting briefly with the local billiard pros, I couldn't help but wonder where our next stop would be. Two of the guys we met at the intersection were Ki

meli's younger brothers, one who is still in high school, and the other who is studying engineering at anoth

er university in Nairobi. After Kimeli consulted with his brothers, he said, "We're going for a walk, I want to show you around." Well that sounded great, but in the back of my mind, I couldn't help but wonder, where in the world we were going? We crossed the highway and began to walk down a path... straight into the brush, and that's when things really started to get interesting.

At our first stop Kimeli showed me a water retention pond where people and animals came daily for water. It was not very clean, and he shared about how he hopes after college he can return to this area and help improve the water sour

ces and living conditions for his people. We hiked on another half mile or so and we came to a small compound. It was a small fenced-in area complete with goats, a mule and two metal sheds and two mud huts with thatched roofs. "This is where I grew up" Kimeli said, as he invited 

me into one of the sheds. He showed me the kitchen, and he described 

how he used to stay close to his mother's side as she would prepare "ugali" over the fire. "Ugali" is a mashed potato sort of texture, but its made by mixing corn flour in boiling water. He explained how each structure was for different family members, his younger brother still sleeps in one of the huts when he is home.

On our half mile trek to the next home we stopped to meet a neighbor and her extended family. Once we arrived at his aunt's, we negotiated a small ga

te and we were greeted by more family members.  Meeting his aunt was another treat. His family members were all very gracious and so excited about having a guest drop by for a visit. Kimeli explained and helped me realize that I was the first 

westerner to ever come to his family's land and take the time to stop by and visit for a little while. 

The picture at the right, shows me, Kimeli, his grandmother and a young cousin. She only spoke Swahili, and so Kimeli translated as we got acquainted and visited about how long she had lived in the area. She said nice things about Kimeli and his brothers. Kimeli told me that I was the first white man she had ever met.

 I told her what an honor it was to get to visit her home and to meet her and I g

ave her a small gift. She was so touched and thankful that she grabbed my 

hands and shook them vigorously, then she did something I was not expecting... she spit on my hands, and continued to thank me and shake my hands. Kimeli must have seen the surprise in my face after she spit on my hands, he leaned toward me and whispered how his grandmother had just bestowed a tremendous blessing on me, and was showing her deep appreciation for my small gift. It is said that when an elder blesses you in this way, they

 are blessing you the hope peace and prosperity. After a couple of pictures, it was time to make our way to 

one more home.

As we walked toward Kimeli's second mom's home it was beginning to get dark. I learned that in Kenya, men may sometimes take a second wife later in life. This

 was the case with his father. They often do not divorce, but they just mo

ve on to live with another woman. The father often continues to support the first wife. Unfortunately, I did not get to meet Kimeli's father, he works for the highway department and was out on a job in a remote area. I did get to talk to him on Kimeli's phone and he also 

thanked me for coming to visit. 

As we approached their compound we were greeted by Winnie, a cousin, who I learned, is a first year college student at nearby Eldoret. We were invited inside for a cup of tea. As I mentioned it was pretty dark by now so they lit a small kerosene lantern and set it on a small coffee table. We en

joyed a cup of tea and what they called ground nuts, I learned later they were peanuts. Again, I was reminded

what a novelty I was as a guest. As we visited and

 enjoyed our tea, Winnie sat next to me and constantly brushed my hair with her hands. She was very curious, and g

entle as she stroked my head. It was truly a blessing and I felt that this was a great opportunity to experience real immersion as Kimeli's family members shared their time with us. 

We finished our tea and said our goodbye's and by the light of the full moon we started our one mile hike back out toward the highway. When we reached the highway we met Kimeli's mother. She met us and we took another series of pictures, and visited briefly. Again I wondered, what are we going to do now? Kimeli's home, where we were spending the night was another 1

0 miles down the highway, and I was pretty sure there were not going to be any Matatus coming by this remote stretch of road any time soon. Kimeli ssured me, "Don't worry, we will get a ride." And sure enough, a car came by and pulled over and offered us a ride to Marigot.  I got to meet Kimeli's wife and two daughters. And we had a great evening sharing stories and more tea.

The next day before we started our journey back Kimeli took me to Lake Bogoria

a beautiful park where we saw hot springs, giesers, flamingos and an ostrich or two. More about that in my next entry.

Deo Fisus Labora -  Jeff 

Why We Went...

Brian McLaren's book, "Everything Must Change" is about to be released in paperback, possibly with a new subtitle: "Where Jesus' Good News and the World's Biggest Problems Collide." I've read this book, and the new subtitle does a great job of explaining why our group traveled to Kenya.

First, it is important to understand the value of water in this region of Kenya. T

he average annual rainfall for the region is about 15 inches a year, (Wyoming averages about 12) and most of that comes between March and May of each year. The rest of the year the climate is hot and dry and the Ukarimu House, as well as the rest of the campus, relies on water from a reservoir at the University, and a very unreliable pipeline that brings water from Nairobi. In very dry times they pay a great deal to have water trucked into the college. During the school year the campus houses approximately 1000 students who all observe strict water conservation practices. 

The second piece of this picture is the ministry center that is under construction, called The Ukarimu House. (pictured above) Ukarimu is a Swahili word meaning hospitality. Chip and Chari Kingsbury have

 been at Daystar for more than 8 years. Chip serves as the director for faculty development, and teaches classes in the area of leadership and community development. They also coordinate a program called "The Praxis Team" which trains and equips students for ministry. Currently they live in a small home adjacent to The Ukarimu House. Once completed the roof of these buildings will collect rainfall

and fill the newly constructed water tank, providing water for most of the year. They are currently recruiting team members to travel to Kenya in August of this year to be a part of a crew that will help fund and install the roof/rainwater collection sys

tem. Total cost for the metal and tile roof, $40,000 USD. I am told that they have a little over half of this team committed. If you are interested in participating

 in this project contact Chip at:  ckingsbury@daystar.ac.ke 

So... how does a team of 10 college folk from the states fit into this equation? Jewell has had a longtime commitment to building student leaders that are engaged in their local and global communities. This project, with Jewell alumni, Chip Kingsbury, had all the righ

t pieces to mobilize and engage students at a number of different levels. First we sought the support of the campus by raising funds to help pay for the construction materials. Through the generosity of student organizations, faculty and staff we were able to donate $2,000.00 toward the water tank project prior to 

our arrival. When we arrived the hole had already been started, (pictured above) and for the next 10 days we used pick axes (the ground is very hard and dry) shovels, ropes and buckets to complete the foundational shape of the tank. 

Nothing builds community faster than working together, sweating and carving something out of the dense Kenyan soil. Our team partnered with 15 of 

the Praxis students from Daystar to dig this hole and the channels that will support the pipes carrying the rainwater to the tank. While building this ecologically friendly tank, what we were really building, was relationships with peers from a very different culture. We constructed bonds and understanding on levels much deeper than the 13 feet of earth we removed together.  

By the end of our second week our team began to dig the trenches that will be used to hold the pipes that will carry water to the tank during the rainy seasons. Chip employed some men that were skilled at lining the tank walls with concrete. As our time in Kenya drew to a close it was interesting to watch as the combined groups of students would walk over to the tank and stare with pride at our "hole in the ground," and reminisce at the amount of blood sweat and tears it took to make this huge tank. A sustainable rainwater collection structure, that will very soon make the Ukarimu House a self supporting ministry center at the base of the Lukenya Hills of southern Kenya. 

For two weeks in Kenya Jesus Good News, collided with the global issue of water conservation as Jewell, Carroll, and Daystar students shared labor and lives for the growth of God's Kingdom. Thanks again to all of you that helped make this happen.  Deo Fisus Labora - Jeff

Photos

Final Days in Kenya

We are on our way back, so while we have a few hours in the Amsterdam airport, why not feed the BLOG monster. I'll start with our latest adventures and as folks come by maybe someone will add a note or two of their own. I haven't blogged since Sunday, so here's a quick overview of the last 48 hours. 

On Monday morning we toured the "Beacon of Hope Ministry Center" in western Nairobi. This is a remarkable clinic meeting the needs of HIV positive women and families affected by AIDS. Monday afternoon we began packing our bags for the return journey. Monday Night was our big closing celebration time with our hosts from Daystar University. We had a "Nyamachoma" which is Swahili for goat roast, or more generally a barbecue. We had a great time eating goat and pork, and other local treats like "Ugali" which is a mashed potato type substance made of boiled water and corn flour. Following the meal the two groups exchanged gifts and shared words of thanks and blessings. We also enjoyed a slide show of pictures from the past two weeks projects and adventures.  The Vice Chancellor of the Athi River Campus, Dr. Godfrey M. Nguru and some of his staff also joined us for the celebration. He shared some brief words of appreciation, and looked forward to other opportunities for exchanges with William Jewell. To top the night of Chip mixed up an amazing batch of home made ice cream. 

Tuesday morning we left the dorm at 5:30 am with all of our luggage packed for the 10:30 pm departure. Why did we leave so early you ask? Well, when you tour the Nairobi National Wildlife Reserve it is best to tour at dawn or d,usk to see the most animals. Here is a short list of animals we saw during our 3 hour tour: (6-9am) Warthog, Hartebeast, Thompson's Gazelle, Ostrich, Zebra, Baboons, Rhino, Cape Buffalo, Storks, Guinea Fowl, Giraffes, Velvet Monkeys, Antelope, Crocodile, and the coup de gras... the King of Beasts, A male lion (Simba) and his pride of about 8 females. We were about 10 feet from the big guy as he laid in the grass - Sorry photos next blog.

Our safari was a blast, following that adventure we visited a gift shop and then had an amazing wild meat lunch at a restaurant called "The Carnivore." It was kind of cool, after seeing all this wildlife we got to sample Ostrich, crocodile, and the staples of beef, pork and chicken. They would continually cycle through with swords of skewered meat, and cut some off on your plate. We dined there for a couple hours, and ate our fill of meats.

Ironically the next event on our schedule ws a brief tour of Nairobi's poorest slum area known as "The Kibara Slum." It is the second largest slum in Africa, and this overcrowded area is home to over 1 million people. Our guides were some remarkable young men and women that grew up in the slums and have returned to lead a futbol program for the children of the area. They currently coach over 300 teams and they hold tournaments at neighboring schools that are very well attended by the residents. It was very humbling and eye opening to tour the area. I think our repsonse to that experience will require an entire entry of its own.

Next we made one last souvenir stop in the downtown market area known as "Biashara Street." Once our final Shillings were spent, we stopped at a home nearby, some friends of Chip and Chari, to re pack our luggage, grab a snack, and clean up before our flight. Once that was done we made our way to the Nairobi airport for our return flight. 

My Battery is nearly dead... Deo Fisus Labora -  Jeff 

Weekend Update

What an amazing weekend! 

Its late and we are all beat. 

So here's what I think I'll do...

...I'm going to do a bullet list of activities various members of our group got to experience with our Kenyan hosts over the last couple days. Hopefully this will serve as a great discussion starter the next time you see one of our team members... 

* Hiked around and climbed a volcanic crater

* Met a grandmother of a Kenyan who shared in Swahili that this was the first white person she had ever met. 

* Enjoyed an interesting dish made of bananas, black eyed peas, and potatoes

* Had a college aged Kenyan rub and touch his hair while he had tea with the family

* Didn't go to Nakuru National Park (Flamingos) because the Non-Kenyan price is $60 per person, Kenyan price - 300 shillings = $4.00 USD

* Watched a Kenyan produced soap opera

* Hiked by the light of the full moon

* Looked at the full moon using the Daystar University's telescope

* Crossed the Equator - Stood in two hemispheres at once

* Bartered with artisans at the Masai Market in downtown Nairobi

* Rode in a Matatu... numerous times (Public transportation - seats 14) However I counted 24 people in the one I rode 

* Stood by and watched as one of our Kenyan hosts argued with a Matatu driver for trying to over charge her American guests for a ride 

* Was mistaken for a local - and tried to act interested as a person spoke to her at length - in Swahili. 

* Taught Kenyan hosts how to play chess

* Drank Mango Juice - from a pop bottle

* Overwhelmed by the gracious generosity and appreciation shown by all of our host families

* Had there hands spit on by an elder (This is a gesture conveying great blessings)

* Saw geysers, hot springs, ostrich, zebra, Thompson's Gazelle, antelope, baboons, warthogs, flamingos, and 8 foot tall ant hills

Thats enough for now - as I said its late, and I may have confused a detail or two, but we really had a great weekend with our Kenyan friends.  Tomorrow we are visiting an AIDS ministry center in the morning, and having a nyamochoma (Goat Roast) tomorrow evening. 

Deo Fisus Labora - Jeff

Stalking Giraffe

Friday January 9, 2009  - Guest Bloggers: Elizabeth Warth, Sarah Taylor, Dawn Ferguson

Today was our last work day.  The hole was plastered and the brick wall is complete.  Trenches have been dug and we are now proud parents of a nine thousand gallon water tank. There is still a bit of finish work, but we are excited about moving on to the next thing. As our day

 ended, the group divided and headed different directions. Some went to a nerby town for supplies, another group headed back to the hostel (dorm) and six of us went giraffe hunting, including Chip Kingsbury, who has been our host and today served as our guide.  

After many miles of trees and dirt, Elizabeth Warth spotted a long neck in the distance.  After the first giraffe was spotted we found a total of eight of them in a herd.  They did not find us as interesting or as cute as we found them to be.  We eventually attempted to sneak closer to them, which failed due to the sounds of eccentric picture snapping and the fact that we

 are not stealthy. Feeling defeated we sat down thinking that if we were low to the ground and didn't move that they would come to us.  We were wrong.  

Everyone gave up except two of us.  Dawn Ferguson and Cyrus (a Daystar friend) decided to give it one last attempt.  They were very successful and Dawn was very excited because they finally got within 20 feet of them.  At this point there was a tragic turn of events.  Cyrus decided that it would be a good idea to storm the giraffes.  This did not work so well as giraffes are faster and stealthier than they look.  Within a few seconds of chasing, and zig-zagging around, the giraffes were scattered. And there was Dawn, standing with her mouth wide open in shock and disappointment, the giraffes were as far away as when the attempt began.  

The bystanders at this time were no longer sitting but standing in shock, much like the home team crowd at a football game when their team fumbles the ball. Overall the giraffe hunting experience was amazing.  There is nothing like being so close to wildlife in their natural habitat knowing that your encounter is genuine.  We are all preparing for a fun weekend with our friends shopping and visiting their homes.

A quick update... a couple students will be writing an entry a little later this evening. Briefly I wanted to let folks know I may be "offline" over the weekend. Our group is dividing into small groups and traveling to the homes of our host students.  I will be traveling to my roommate's home, which I'm told is a couple hours away via a "matatu" which is a small bus or minivan. Our girls are all going to one place where they will have the African version of a slumber party. Monday we are visiting an Aids ministry Center called Beacon of Hope, and Tuesday we will tour the Nairobi Game Park. So please stay tuned as our adventures continue.

Deo Fisus Labora,  Jeff

The Wall

Today we dug trenches and helped put a retaining wall around the top of our water tank. Its actually starting to look like a little more than a hole in the ground.  More than once today I spoke with students that were staring in amazement at our handiwork.

Tonight we introduced our African friends to S'Mores, they loved them, we ran out of biscuits (Crackers) and marshmallows. We built a small fire on a high hill on campus. Around the fire we sang songs and listened to some very nice music. We told stories and finally headed back to the residence halls, weary from another productive day.

Pictured to the right is the gourd my friend gave me yesterday. In northern Kenya these are used to transport and store milk.

The Gift

Today one of the young men from the school invited me to his small room, just off campus. He proudly showed me pictures of his family and told me about how in his tribe, milk cows are the staple of the society, in fact they are traded as currency. He has already begun to raise some cows himself to use in the future as a dowry. After a brief chat he gave me a small gourd that was hand painted and decorated with beads by his mother. He explained that these are used to carry milk and as a container for drinking. In December, while he was home, he told his mother that our group was coming to visit, and she gave him this gourd to share with someone from the group. I have to tell you I got a little choked up as my friend shared a piece of his life with me. We have a little less than a week left to spend with our friends and my experience today was one very small example of the kinds of relationships that are developing between these two groups of students. 

We have a few more work days on the water tank, and I can't lie, today was a hot one. We have begun to mix concrete for the rim, and dig the ditch that will carry water from the Ukarimu House to the tank. We had to take a few extra breaks this afternoon. I'm afraid our fair skin, gallons of sun screen included, is no match for the hot, dry, baking qualities of the equatorial African sun. We are about 50 miles south of the equator here, and the sun rises and sets at about 6:15 - am & pm each day.

We are also sharing some American culture with our friends. Tonight we shared a good old fashioned "Movie Night." The school provided a projector, and together we had pop and popcorn and we watched the classic movie "The Princess Bride." We had a great time laughing, and teaching our friends to say... "My name is Inigo Montoya, you killed my father, prepare to die." Tomorrow night we are planning to teach them how to make S'Mores around a campfire. 

Deo Fisus Labora, Jeff

Sorry about no pictures tonight - technical difficulties - jb

Conquering the Clod

Jan. 6, 2009 - Guest Blogger - James Buscher, Carroll College, Helena, Montana

Today was epic. The center pillar in the hole was toppled like your ego right after your girlfriend says "I just want to be friends." It was a Titanic feet, requiring all the man (and woman) power we could muster. After a few minutes of chopping at the solid base of the pillar, we lassoed that sucker and played the most one-sided game of tug-of-war ever to be played between twenty humans and one very large dirt clod. The humans won. With the mass of broken dirt carpeting the floor of the hole, we all felt the thrill of defeating such a huge and ominous inanimate object. 

With that surge of energy coursing through our dirt clogged arteries we headed just down the road to swim in a pool at an oddly located hot

el known as the Lukenya Getaway. Once there our Kenyan partners told us that most of them did not know how to swim and over half of them were afraid of water. So we did the culturally sensitive thing and shoved them into the deep end to learn through emersion. Not really. Actually we held a small swim lesson that ended up resembling a class on the art of drowning, rather than any form of swimming school. After a few pointers though, our Kenyan friends were racing each other across the pool, and while none of them would ever be mistaken for Michael Phelps, for multiple reasons, they certainly held their own

 considering for most, it was their first time in a pool. So as I said, today was epic.