The woman’s screams pierced not only my ears but my heart. They continued for hours coming from the small whitewashed building they call Tom Mboya Medical Clinic. I could hardly bear continuing my work on the water system that was only 100 feet away. Were they having to do surgery without anesthesia, was she going through a difficult child birth or had she just lost a child to one of many of the diseases that end life so soon in Kaswanga? I will never know.

How do you respond to the question of “what do I do” when a mother says, “I have no food for my children, no house, no blanket and I am dying”! Or, What about the women who says, “I could not stand the crying of my hungry children anymore during the night and so this morning I did the only thing I knew I could do to get them food, I submitted to one of the local fisherman, who most likely carries the deadly AIDS virus”.

How do you explain how your heart weeps as you look at so many children who have no home to live in, and only receive 5 meals a week that you are able to provide? And knowing there are 152 more that desperately need your help.

Come along with us, and experience what life in Kaswanga is like. It is typical of many small villages along the shores of Lake Victoria where the poorest of 43 Kenyan tribes, the Luo live.

They started Living Waters International, a non-profit organization developed for the sole purpose of meeting the physical and spiritual needs of those in third world countries.

July 27th the returned from their 5th trip to Kaswanga in two years. In two years they have refurbished the water infrastructure including repairing the wind operated water pumping system and trenching and laying over one half mile of galvanized 2” water line to bring water directly into the village center. Four water tanks were purchased and installed while other tanks were refurbished providing almost 13,000 gallons of stored water capacity. Water valves were replaced and a water intake system was designed, built and installed to bring water directly out of Lake Victoria.

After daybreak prayer session, we started the unknown. Everything must be completed before 11 am when the winds would come and we would experience 3 foot waves crashing on the shore. Imagine working with over twenty local villagers, all having their own opinion on how to get this monster into the lake and very few of them speaking English. But today would be God’s day. Today He would be glorified in holding back the winds, in allowing clear communication of what needed to be done and in keeping all of the worker safe. By days end we were connecting the final pipes that connected the entire water system for Kaswanga.

One the day before we left Kaswanga the wind operated water system was drawing water through a four inch pipe that extends 150 feet into the lake and pumping it almost two miles with 6 major water distribution points.

Our sense of accomplishment was driven by the overwhelming understanding that this was not about us, but how God had provided and intervened in so many circumstances in allowing us this moment.

The following is the experience of former Payson resident Sandra Thompson-Lambert who joined us for her first hand glimpse of Africa and life in Kaswanga.

Out of Africa - Almost:
When Daryl asked me to write about my experience in Kenya, the thought was overwhelming. Where does one begin to explain an almost indescribable experience? Here is my attempt to let others know what the trip meant to me.

As I read about the island of Rusinga, I found it has a very colorful and long history. For social scientists, it is rich in historical significance since it is where Mary Leakey did much of her field work. The island, just off the shores of Lake Victoria appears to be inhabited for many years. The Luo, the second largest tribe in Kenya inhabit the island and have been there since the 15th century. Kaswanga, the village where Living Waters is concentrating its efforts is almost to the edge of the island. To get there, we had to travel about 4-5 miles through Mbita, a larger village, and cross over a causeway on very bumpy dirt roads that are subject to being washed out during heavy rain. Most of the people do not have transportation, so they walk these roads day and night.

The medical center is a small cluster of buildings that we in America would not send our pets to. It is kept as clean as it possibly can be considering there has been no source of readily available water. There is little medicine and not much staff. The day we visited we saw mothers with small children, men and women waiting patiently for whatever help they could get. The most common diseases are malaria, AIDS, tuberculosis, typhoid and other diseases related to polluted water. One thing I will never forget is the sight of very thin children racked with fits of coughing as their mothers held and comforted them. The mothers were not in much better shape than their children.

they were battling life threatening illnesses, some had no house or their house were falling down, their children could not attend school because they had no money for uniforms or fees, and some of the widows were ejected out of housing when their husbands had died.

There is a custom of “wife inheritance” which when a man dies, his widow then must submit sexually to the male(s) in the husband’s family. If she does not, she is “kicked out”. Since many men have died of AIDS, the women are naturally afraid of this, so their choice is submit and risk AIDS or leave and be homeless. This could include her children as well. Since women tend to be the primary caregiver of children, this custom does not just affect the women, but many of the children as well. If we look at the women in any culture and how they are treated, we will also be able to determine the well- being of the children. There is a great need in Kaswanga to address the unique needs of these women and their children.

During this trip Daryl concentrated most of his efforts on getting the water system set up. It was such a rewarding scene when water was pumped for the first time out of Lake Victoria to the four different sites – the school, the church, the medical center and the village. At the church, there was a gathering of 25-30 women who burst into song, singing “Joy, joy, Living Waters, God is so good to us!” What a sight! What a feeling of accomplishment after two years of planning, fundraising, digging trenches, solving problems. And what an outpouring of happiness and gratefulness by the villagers! By the time we were ready to leave, water was flowing.

I heard it said that going to Africa would change my life. It has. I will not forget what I saw, the people I met, the poignancy of life and death halfway around the world. I will never take for granted the life of abundance I have compared to the harsh reality of most of Africa. I will never see such beauty - in the people and country - as Africa holds as well. I thought I would never go again to Africa after this “once in a lifetime” trip - but God willing, I will return.

Sandra Thompson-Lambert

the lake. The local members had cleared a trail to make a road that went almost a mile to the site. Our average attendance was around 500 per night and 67 people gave their hearts to Jesus.

I would be neglect if I did not share at least one story about that experience. One the last evening we were having meetings a man came to me and said you must hear this story. He escorted me to a very old lady that could not speak a word of English. This is her story.

When she was a young mother about 51 years ago she lived on the exact spot that we were holding the meetings. She had a dream one night and in her dream she heard the voice of a mzungu (white man) echoing off the very mountain that rose above the area we were at. The voice was spreading the Good News of Jesus and just kept echoing.

That story was a direct affirmation to me that God is leading me to be and do exactly what he has in mind for me. It is incredible that God continues to search out his children and is patient even when we go in other directions. This story is also testimony that God has a plan and does not give up on us even when we have given up on Him.

What is next in store for Kaswanga? Living Waters is in the process of building a feeding center for the orphans and very old widows. Once completed our goal is to provide 2 meals a day, 7 days a week to all 200 children and approximately 15 widows who are unable to care for themselves.

We would like to thank the warm hearts of all of you who sponsor Living Waters. My next trip is planned for February when I will purchase a 40 storage container and supplies for the feeding center. We have the funds for the container but still need to raise the money to get it transported. That will cost approximately $2200. This must be in place to secure the building materials. We hope to start with the foundation and concrete slab at that time.

Please continue to pray for Living Waters and for the resources to help those in such a desperate need.

Be sure to view our gallery pages.
You can reach us at (928) 472-3388.