monday, july 6, 2009
Friends! First I'd like to appologize for not updating my blog in about 3 weeks. A few things have happened which have kept me from doing so.
I've had some blogging complications that you will be recieving an e-mail about. The other reason is because for about 4 days Maggs and I went to climb Mt. Kenya! This was truly a blessing because we didn't think we would have a chance to do it.
Not much has changed here lately, except that Maggie and I have had a few days where we are the only two running the entire place. Thanks to the $100 that Grace World Outreach gave a couple weeks ago, Nancy has ceased the opportunity to go home for a break and bless her family with the money. This has been a long time coming. The last time she was able to go home was about 7 months ago. The Pastor is still working hard on the avocadoes and can spend some nights away from AMCC leaving Maggs and I to pick up the slack. Recently AMCC was blessed with avocadoes from some of our neighbors whose original avocado harvesters didn't show up. The children had a good time helping to collect them because the farms were so close.
Here at AMCC, and all of Kenya along with most parts of Africa, children are caned more often than those in the states. They seemed a bit more disciplined that most kids in the U.S. as well. It's very different for me culturally but I've become a little more used to it. I found that the children don't seem to feel oppressed or threatened by caning, however, Maggs and I have been instiuting some other ways of discipline. Here you can see David sitting on top of Jerald with their arms around each other. This was the consequence for their hitting each other. After a while sitting there, I asked them if they were brothers and if they loved each other. They both responded postively to each inquiry.
Njau the Butcher (pronounced "Jow") is a noteworthy person in our small sub-district. This man doesn't speak English but has a servant's heart that speaks louder than words. He owns this small butchery in Mukarara, a village that lies about 3 kilometers away from Kimata. When we have the money, we buy meat from him. He's always been faithful in allowing us to charge our cell-phones and any other electronical device for free. He plays a huge role in supporting AMCC in this way. He's also been super helpful for me to practice Swahili with.
Recently the rains have been scarce, forcing the children to hike to a nearby river to draw water. This is a picture of the kids hiking back up the side of hill with jugs full of water. None of them are fat. 
The next picture is of a technique that John and Nancy use to get the children's attention when telling them something very important. You can see Nancy grabbing her ears as she tells the children to do the same. I know it looks a bit militaristic but don't worry, the kids are all laughing at this point.
This is another noteworthy person in Thika Town. Her name is Sho-sho (grandma) Victoria. She has a small shop in Thika where she sells a variety of fruits and veggies for a living. She loves the Lord and has always been an encouragement to Mark and I and helpful in supporting AMCC.
This man is Samual Mwangi. He deals with coffee in the area and has brought by a sample for us to ship to some friends in the U.S. The coffee that is bought in our region is going for about 25 shillings. The same coffee in the U.S. is being bought by 1200 shillings. Of course there should be a price gap from the famer to the consumer, but not a gap of 50 times the selling price. AMCC hopes to be able to buy the coffee from the farmers at a greater price than the Kenyan buyers. We're hoping this will give Kenyan farmers a hand in getting out of the cycle of poverty while helping AMCC pay the bills.
The last picture is of the four staff members walking to a celebration one Sunday afternoon. A lady that is a cousin of John was healed and the church she is a part of decided to celebrate by meeting at her house and eating together. I wish we did more things like this. The people here seem to have a cool spirit of thanksgiving. It was a great time hangin out with people who were so appreciative of the Lord.
The only other news is that we should be getting a mango order sometime next week. Please be praying that we can actually get the order and that all goes well with the new business venture. Nancy should have a few more days off befor her return. Also, pray that the Lord would give Maggs and I wisdom in how to love and discipline the children here while the Pastor and Nancy are out.
Mungu Akubariki!
Friends! First I'd like to appologize for not updating my blog in about 3 weeks. A few things have happened which have kept me from doing so.
I've had some blogging complications that you will be recieving an e-mail about. The other reason is because for about 4 days Maggs and I went to climb Mt. Kenya! This was truly a blessing because we didn't think we would have a chance to do it.
Not much has changed here lately, except that Maggie and I have had a few days where we are the only two running the entire place. Thanks to the $100 that Grace World Outreach gave a couple weeks ago, Nancy has ceased the opportunity to go home for a break and bless her family with the money. This has been a long time coming. The last time she was able to go home was about 7 months ago. The Pastor is still working hard on the avocadoes and can spend some nights away from AMCC leaving Maggs and I to pick up the slack. Recently AMCC was blessed with avocadoes from some of our neighbors whose original avocado harvesters didn't show up. The children had a good time helping to collect them because the farms were so close.
Here at AMCC, and all of Kenya along with most parts of Africa, children are caned more often than those in the states. They seemed a bit more disciplined that most kids in the U.S. as well. It's very different for me culturally but I've become a little more used to it. I found that the children don't seem to feel oppressed or threatened by caning, however, Maggs and I have been instiuting some other ways of discipline. Here you can see David sitting on top of Jerald with their arms around each other. This was the consequence for their hitting each other. After a while sitting there, I asked them if they were brothers and if they loved each other. They both responded postively to each inquiry.
Njau the Butcher (pronounced "Jow") is a noteworthy person in our small sub-district. This man doesn't speak English but has a servant's heart that speaks louder than words. He owns this small butchery in Mukarara, a village that lies about 3 kilometers away from Kimata. When we have the money, we buy meat from him. He's always been faithful in allowing us to charge our cell-phones and any other electronical device for free. He plays a huge role in supporting AMCC in this way. He's also been super helpful for me to practice Swahili with.
Recently the rains have been scarce, forcing the children to hike to a nearby river to draw water. This is a picture of the kids hiking back up the side of hill with jugs full of water. None of them are fat.
The next picture is of a technique that John and Nancy use to get the children's attention when telling them something very important. You can see Nancy grabbing her ears as she tells the children to do the same. I know it looks a bit militaristic but don't worry, the kids are all laughing at this point.
This is another noteworthy person in Thika Town. Her name is Sho-sho (grandma) Victoria. She has a small shop in Thika where she sells a variety of fruits and veggies for a living. She loves the Lord and has always been an encouragement to Mark and I and helpful in supporting AMCC.
This man is Samual Mwangi. He deals with coffee in the area and has brought by a sample for us to ship to some friends in the U.S. The coffee that is bought in our region is going for about 25 shillings. The same coffee in the U.S. is being bought by 1200 shillings. Of course there should be a price gap from the famer to the consumer, but not a gap of 50 times the selling price. AMCC hopes to be able to buy the coffee from the farmers at a greater price than the Kenyan buyers. We're hoping this will give Kenyan farmers a hand in getting out of the cycle of poverty while helping AMCC pay the bills.
The last picture is of the four staff members walking to a celebration one Sunday afternoon. A lady that is a cousin of John was healed and the church she is a part of decided to celebrate by meeting at her house and eating together. I wish we did more things like this. The people here seem to have a cool spirit of thanksgiving. It was a great time hangin out with people who were so appreciative of the Lord.
The only other news is that we should be getting a mango order sometime next week. Please be praying that we can actually get the order and that all goes well with the new business venture. Nancy should have a few more days off befor her return. Also, pray that the Lord would give Maggs and I wisdom in how to love and discipline the children here while the Pastor and Nancy are out.
Mungu Akubariki!
I've had some blogging complications that you will be recieving an e-mail about. The other reason is because for about 4 days Maggs and I went to climb Mt. Kenya! This was truly a blessing because we didn't think we would have a chance to do it.
Not much has changed here lately, except that Maggie and I have had a few days where we are the only two running the entire place. Thanks to the $100 that Grace World Outreach gave a couple weeks ago, Nancy has ceased the opportunity to go home for a break and bless her family with the money. This has been a long time coming. The last time she was able to go home was about 7 months ago. The Pastor is still working hard on the avocadoes and can spend some nights away from AMCC leaving Maggs and I to pick up the slack. Recently AMCC was blessed with avocadoes from some of our neighbors whose original avocado harvesters didn't show up. The children had a good time helping to collect them because the farms were so close.
Here at AMCC, and all of Kenya along with most parts of Africa, children are caned more often than those in the states. They seemed a bit more disciplined that most kids in the U.S. as well. It's very different for me culturally but I've become a little more used to it. I found that the children don't seem to feel oppressed or threatened by caning, however, Maggs and I have been instiuting some other ways of discipline. Here you can see David sitting on top of Jerald with their arms around each other. This was the consequence for their hitting each other. After a while sitting there, I asked them if they were brothers and if they loved each other. They both responded postively to each inquiry.
Njau the Butcher (pronounced "Jow") is a noteworthy person in our small sub-district. This man doesn't speak English but has a servant's heart that speaks louder than words. He owns this small butchery in Mukarara, a village that lies about 3 kilometers away from Kimata. When we have the money, we buy meat from him. He's always been faithful in allowing us to charge our cell-phones and any other electronical device for free. He plays a huge role in supporting AMCC in this way. He's also been super helpful for me to practice Swahili with.
Recently the rains have been scarce, forcing the children to hike to a nearby river to draw water. This is a picture of the kids hiking back up the side of hill with jugs full of water. None of them are fat. 
The next picture is of a technique that John and Nancy use to get the children's attention when telling them something very important. You can see Nancy grabbing her ears as she tells the children to do the same. I know it looks a bit militaristic but don't worry, the kids are all laughing at this point.
This is another noteworthy person in Thika Town. Her name is Sho-sho (grandma) Victoria. She has a small shop in Thika where she sells a variety of fruits and veggies for a living. She loves the Lord and has always been an encouragement to Mark and I and helpful in supporting AMCC.
This man is Samual Mwangi. He deals with coffee in the area and has brought by a sample for us to ship to some friends in the U.S. The coffee that is bought in our region is going for about 25 shillings. The same coffee in the U.S. is being bought by 1200 shillings. Of course there should be a price gap from the famer to the consumer, but not a gap of 50 times the selling price. AMCC hopes to be able to buy the coffee from the farmers at a greater price than the Kenyan buyers. We're hoping this will give Kenyan farmers a hand in getting out of the cycle of poverty while helping AMCC pay the bills.
The last picture is of the four staff members walking to a celebration one Sunday afternoon. A lady that is a cousin of John was healed and the church she is a part of decided to celebrate by meeting at her house and eating together. I wish we did more things like this. The people here seem to have a cool spirit of thanksgiving. It was a great time hangin out with people who were so appreciative of the Lord.The only other news is that we should be getting a mango order sometime next week. Please be praying that we can actually get the order and that all goes well with the new business venture. Nancy should have a few more days off befor her return. Also, pray that the Lord would give Maggs and I wisdom in how to love and discipline the children here while the Pastor and Nancy are out.
Mungu Akubariki!
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