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Kaswanga,
Kenya
Summer 2008
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"She
was wearing a dirty little blue dress the first
time I noticed her and took her picture. She was
looking at the mzungu’s (white foreigners)
from a distance. There were lots of little ones
who seemed to be wandering around without their
mothers, but she was the littlest. She must be somewhere
between two and three years old.
That
was the only time I saw her wearing anything close
to decent. The rest of the time she wore a tattered
pink t-shirt and sagging panties. She was always
dirty with mucus streaming from her nose. Her head
was shaved close. She didn’t run towards me
with the others and beg for attention. She didn’t
giggle or run and play or sing. Usually she didn’t
even look at me…"
Adel
Torres, Living Waters Team Member
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| May,
June and July were busy and interesting times for
members of the Living Waters mission trip team. Daryl
spent the month of May in Kaswanga overseeing the
near completion of the soon-to-open feeding center.
He also spent time expanding and completing the water
deployment system and breaking new ground for a large
garden to supplement the feeding center with fresh
fruits and vegetables. The hiring of staff to run
and maintain the feeding program and compound facilities
was also accomplished.
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Living
Waters previously acquired a plot of ground to grow
such a garden, and it was time to clear the land, remove
the large stumps, clean the soil of small brush, plow,
install the large drip irrigation system, fence the
property and plant the seeds. With the ground ready
for planting the garden plot was lifted up to God in
prayer and we asked for His blessing for a bountiful
garden.
It
was with much concern that Daryl prepared to leave,
knowing that the only way we could be successful with
such an endeavor was to have the right person to operate
the center. God answered the prayers of Daryl and Mary
Jo almost immediately and we were impressed to ask a
local Christian woman named Julie to manage the project.
With consent of her husband and the Kenya Lake Field
Conference, she accepted. God could not have placed
a more sincere, dedicated and respected person as the
program manager.
Daryl
returned to the United States for a few short weeks to
prepare for the next trip which would include a team of
five.
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Transporting
the Grain Silos |
Daryl
left a week earlier than the team to help complete
the remaining items before the feeding program could
become operational. This included the final touches
of the feeding center, the uncrating of the newly
arrived solar oven and the installation of the water
storage and purification system. The compound now
has 26,000 liters of stored water capacity and an
improved water purification system.
There
are 15,000 liter tanks that store water for garden
irrigation and water purification for the feeding
center. There is another 11,000 liters of water
storage for the local church and community around
the church.
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I
was
truly amazed at how much the garden plants had grown
in 4 weeks. The shamba (garden) became the talk of
the Suba District. I was asked what kind of magic
I had done to make such a garden grow on barren land.
Island people from 25 miles away were asking about
the garden at Kaswanga. This provided a wonderful
opportunity to explain God’s love and might.
I explained there were two things that made the garden
so great. One, was it required a certain amount of
water which is provided through drip irrigation and
the second was God’s power and love. I explained
how God gave us good men to work the land. John and
Kennedy had never worked the land before, but were
eager to learn and work. They worked 12 hours a day
in very hot conditions and said how thankful they
were to have a job. They both take great pride in
their work and you can witness this for yourself by
seeing the pictures on the web site. I explained how
God had provided His blessing to the land and it had
produced very well. |
John
and Kennedy working in the garden (shamba).
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One
day I pulled an airline towelette out of my pack and wiped
her dirty face and snotty nose. She sat apathetically
with her eyes averted, like a little fawn trying to avoid
detection. The next night all I had to clean her face
was the same dirty towelette, but it did the job. She
looked better with a clean face, but still she didn’t
look at me, or even hint at a smile…
One
evening there was a brisk cool wind blowing. Most everyone
was wearing jackets or long sleeves. I watched the little
one sitting on the ground in the front in her tattered
and dirty pink t-shirt leaning on what must have been
her brother. The sound of her rasping cough wrenched my
heart. She leaned heavily on him and her face crinkled
up with misery. She looked so very tired and sick. He
ignored her.
In
the market the next day I picked out a simple warm little
jumper. I planned to slip it on the child during the meeting
after it got dark. If I did it during daylight, all the
children would be asking me for clothes. “Who is
that little girl?”, I asked Lamach, a retired teacher
with deep love of children. He said, “Her name is
Andes.”…
Adel
Torres, Living Waters Team Member
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The
solar oven had finally arrived and with excitement
I hurriedly started unpacking the large container.
It had been a long hard venture, starting with
the shipment in January that now had arrived almost
3 months behind schedule. There had been challenges
getting to the final destination but through it
all God was leading, and teaching. There is so
much to learn with each endeavor. I had never
refurbished a water infrastructure that extended
two miles, never purified water using solar technology
and salt, never used drip irrigation on large
garden plots, never built a feeding center and
never used solar energy to cook with.
I
had never done fundraising for a project of more
than $1000 and certainly never dreamed of becoming
a parent to 60 orphan children over night. Two
and one half years ago I started out with a small
idea that God was directing me to go back to Kaswanga
and try and do something.
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I
had no idea that He would lead me to “exploit my potential”
(term used in Kaswanga by Kenyans for what God was doing
in us). I look back over the past couple of years and
marvel at how God has provided in so many ways. He has impressed
so many people to sacrifice their resources to advance this
project. The astonishing results of this project are not
about what we have done, but how God used two ordinary people
to accomplish the extraordinary. |
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That
evening, rather than trying to pinch Andes’ cheek
or shake her hand or get her to smile, I just picked
her right up from her place on the ground and carried
her to where I was sitting. She went totally mute again,
staring away like she was in another world, and almost
limp. I held her close for warmth and she leaned her
tired little head on my breast. In a moment she was
sleeping soundly and obliviously.
Before
I had a chance to put the little jumper on, a woman
came to take her. I slipped the jumper into the woman’s
arms with the child. Then she was gone and my lap
was empty. I asked Lamach to find out what he could
about the girl. The next afternoon was Sabbath and
while everyone was mingling the children were crowding
around for attention. I saw Andes off to the side.
She was naked and as dirty as ever and as sad as ever.
I called to her and waved, but there was no response.
Leaving the other children, I walked over and picked
her up. I was surprised how light she was. She still
didn’t look at me…
Adel
Torres, Living Waters Team Member |
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The
rest of our team which included Mary Jo, my daughter
Autumn (a recently licensed registered nurse from
California), Adel Torres a registered nurse also from
California and Shirley Feather from Payson, Arizona
arrived to join a work in progress. Each member immediately
assumed
roles and responsibilities that helped make the feeding
program operational and successful. Shirley and Adel
were speakers for evangelistic Share Him meetings
at two different locations. Each campaign lasted for
10 days and fifty-nine people committed to giving
their lives completely over to God. They also committed
to being disciples in spreading the “Good News”
of Jesus to others in their community.
Words
cannot express the level of teamwork that each one
exhibited. They worked in the local clinic, provided
first aid to the orphan children at the feeding center,
instructed in the making and baking bread, taught
solar cooking, helped with the building construction
detailing, and so much more. There was valuable input
offered by all and it truly made for a most productive
and appreciated team. |
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Later
Lamach told me he had talked with the mother. He said she
was so happy for the clothes. But he indicated that Andes
had been treated roughly and made to keep quiet and out
of sight when visitors were present. He said she had been
locked in the house alone when her mother was away. When
I mentioned the difference between her and her sister, he
said it is common here in Kenya for parents to have favorites
and treat one child badly.
I
suppose I will leave some money with Lamach to see that
her needs are met, though doing so may encourage the mother’s
jealousy or lack of responsibility. But who will love
her? Who will cuddle her and touch her cheek and tell
her she is beautiful? Maybe there is someone here who
can do that for her. Maybe I can find someone....
Adel Torres, Living Waters Team Member
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ON
OUR LAST FULL WEEK IN KASWANGA
we finally experienced the reality of having the orphan
children move from Ezekiel’s home where he had
been operating the feeding program to the new Living
Waters feeding center. There seemed to be more excitement
on the part of our team and the staff than from the
children who were coming. Initially, there seemed
to be a wall of trepidation and anxiety from this
new experience of theirs. They went from sitting on
either rocks or thorny bushes in the sun to sitting
in a building made of brick and mortar.
They were introduced to new responsibilities; washing
their hands before eating and standing, waiting in
a line for their food, expressing polite appreciation
to those who were serving the food, giving thanks
to God who provided the food, having a Bible story
read to them each day while they were eating and then
washing their dishes and sweeping the floor area of
the feeding center. |
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As
wonderful an experience as this was for us on the first
day,
w e were struck with the awesome responsibility of becoming
parents to 60-plus children overnight!!!
That
evening we both became overwhelmed with what it was going
to take to sustain the needs of these children. For the
first time we experienced the reality of how different
it was to raise money to buy food for the children and
to pass the money on for the food purchase while someone
else actually took the responsibility of the feeding.
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Now we were not only buying the food but we were staffing
a feeding center and fully responsible for all aspects
of the feeding program. With the cost of food increasing
two fold since starting this project we were justifiably
concerned. Mary Jo pointed out how we just needed
to trust God, since He had made it clear to this point
that He would provide. Armed with that promise, we
started our second day of feeding the children with
peace that this was our mission and that our faith
would have would carry us through. It gave new meaning
to “faith based” ministry. |
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next realization was the incredible needs of the children.
What came to our attention first was that 25 percent of
the kids had only one pair of clothing, that being their
school uniform. For the most part they were tattered and
torn. Then the shock of how sick these kids were due to
many diseases and malnutrition. The kids were coming for
food while suffering from malaria, skin lesions and open
wound infections. We started buying antibiotics and topical
medications to treat what we could. We took one young girl
to the nearby medical clinic to treat a leg infection that
had been ongoing for 10 years. She was sixteen and could
barely walk. |
Boy
with skin lesions on his head. |
Then,
there was a young boy with twenty-plus skin lesions
on his head that we treated (see images).
We realized that not only was food needed but the
very basics of clothing and healthcare were needed
just as much. We will now be adding a line budget
item for clothing and minimal health care. It does
not cost much for treatment, yet when you have nothing
as an orphan not much might as well be a fortune.
Two dollars can cure malaria, $.74 can provide de-worming
for three months and $5.00 provides antibiotics to
help cure infections. |
Skin
lesions healing nicely after treatment.
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| Oh
the need! Is it to much to bare? Is it to much to
hope for a better life? Is it to much to care? All
of the major components for a successful program have
been implemented. A new feeding center, a water system
complete with water purification, a bountiful garden
and most importantly the children. All is there, but
now the need to sustain this great potential with
ongoing support for food and essentials for living
are needed. With your generous support there is a
center capable of meeting so much of the need. |
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| We
left with our hearts heavy, knowing so much could be done.
How will God use us now? By faith we will keep moving forward
knowing God will provide. God has touched many hearts and
many people have given sacrificially to this project. We
want to say thank-you for your support and may God bless
you as you consider your continuing support to the orphaned
children of Kaswanga. |
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