Update from Dave in Uganda #3

Day 5 & 6 – The Weekend

Weekends are a special time here in Uganda. The banks are closed, as are most of the schools. Fee payments grind to a halt and we are able to focus our attention on the children themselves. For the past nine years, Kiwatule EPC has hosted a Saturday school for all the kids in the project. Students begin arriving just after 8 am and things wrap up somewhere around noon. It’s a great time to hear the students sing, watch traditional Ugandan dance and have an hour or so for instruction. This week, I was the guest lecturer. I found out late Friday night that they wished for me to teach for an hour on the “perils and pitfalls of fornication.”

I had apparently volunteered for the task, albeit accidentally. I made a passing comment after visiting one of our students who has been chased from the project after her second pregnancy that we should do some group teaching on the subject of pre-marital sex. Next thing I know, I am before 75 teenage boys and girls teaching through some scriptural guidelines for proper sexual expression and then answering questions. Elder Jim spent the same time teaching the little children the story of David and Goliath. Who got the short stick on this one?

Sunday means church…all day. It’s hard to describe what a worship gathering is like. It’s part dance, part singing, part testimony and a whole lot of preaching. As the guest of honor, I was given the task of preaching. I spoke for just over an hour on “Forming and Fashioning God into Our Image.” As I was coming to the end of my message, I looked up at the clock and asked my interpreter if there was enough time for me to look at one more passage. Before he could reply, Jim spoke up from the front row and said, “That’s enough!” I took that as my cue to close in prayer. We returned to the guest house just after 2 pm and I slept soundly for nearly 4 hours. I guess I was more exhausted than I thought. Week two begins tomorrow.

Day 7 - August 30

After a restless night of sleep in which my lower legs were a buffet for a mosquito who got trapped inside my mosquito net, I headed out with Jim and the rest of the team for the long trek to Mokono. Mokono lies northeast of Kampala on the road to Jinja. We have several students in St. Joseph Secondary School. Most of these students are orphaned or from single-parent households and have been with the project since it’s beginning. It has been a joy to watch them grow as I have watched my own children grow. It’s hard to believe that many of them will soon sit for their O-Level exams (the equivalent of completing 10th grade). The results of those tests and their cumulative scores during their O-Levels will determine their future. Those who test high and have accumulated 12 or more credits are eligible to go on and study in A-Levels. Those who fail to meet those standards have come to the end of their sponsorship with the Project.

With the exception of three boys, these students have not been performing up to their potential. They have a long track record of good scores but somehow in the last year they have let their grades slip and they are now in danger of not passing their exit exams. We gathered the 12 together and tried to determine what the issues were that were causing their grades to plummet. After some serious barking at them mixed with expressions of loving concern, we were able to put together a strategy that can put them on the road to success in their upcoming exams. Chastising students for a lackadaisical approach to studies is not our favorite thing to do but a necessary one nonetheless.

In the process of talking with each of the kids about their struggles, I was called over by one of our team members to talk with a young girl about her recurring sickness. The head teacher was nearby and joined the conversation sharing that the young girl would often miss classes because she had “the demons.” As I investigated further, she told me that she would often stay in the dorms for the entire day in a “coma.” I’ve yet to determine exactly what she means but it was clear that the girl was very troubled. I asked her to tell me what was going on and she began to share how her nights were filled with bad dreams and that she would awake and be short of breath and feel pains in her heart. She went on to say that she would hear voices in her head telling her to do terrible things. She feared that an evil spirit was possessing her. I shared with her that with the Holy Spirit living within her that there was no need to fear Satan or his demons. I talked with her about how to speak boldly to these voice and tell them to leave in Jesus’ name. The team gathered around her and prayed for her. You could sense a powerful move of the spirit as we lifted her up. The peace that came over her as we hugged her and said our goodbyes was amazing. It is days like today that remind me of why I am a pastor and why a part of my heart will always be here in Africa.

Day 7 Recap: 1 bank 19 students and creeping closer to having all the fees paid!

Kassanda

Today was perhaps the most difficult day I have spent in Uganda in the nearly nine years I have been traveling here. We traveled just over 100 km south and east to the town of Kassanda where Crosspointe has been helping the local EPC church complete a building on their land. I've been traveling to Kassanda since the very first year I came over here. I anticipated that it will be a long and tiring day based on my past experience but today was a bird of a different feather.

It began with having to travel entire 2 1/2 hour journey in a shirt and tie - something that I seldom do here in Uganda and almost never at home. It is the middle of the hot season here and the dust was incredible. On top of that, it is an election year here in Uganda and President Musevini is doing several major infrastructure projects to garner support in the upcoming election. One such infrastructure improvement is a massive widening and paving of the road to Kassanda. That meant all kinds of detours and of all things, speedbumps. That's right, speedbumps on one of the five major "interstates" in Uganda. The only way to describe the ride is to imagine traveling along a road in Dallas and having railroad crossings back to back to back for 40 miles! Throw in over 100 speedbumps and a trip that normally takes 2 1/2 hours took nearly 4 hours.

We traveled to Kassanda not only to distribute shoes but to be part of the dedication of the new church building made possible by the generosity of Crosspointe. I was an honored guest along with the town mayor and the local member of Parliament. The program began at 10 am and we did not depart for Kampala until 4:30 pm. We had more tradition African dances, praise and worship and yours truly delivering the dedication message. We then planted a tree together with the senior pastor and celebrated with a meal together. Rice, spaghetti, matoke, beef and greens were the luncheon items. We washed it down with tepid water and we were back for another message and speeches from the honored guests.

Distributing the shoes was an ordeal simply because of the masses of kids pushing in from all sides. It didn't matter what we did, we were surrounded by parents and kids grabbing at shoes and pleading that they receive a pair. We finally got things under control and began distributing shoes only to those without any shoes at all. It took only about and hour to distribute 100 pairs.
Once again, I was proud to represent the generous people of Crosspointe at Kassanda!

We piled 15 people and their gear into the van for the trip back to Uganda. Did I mention that the van holds 12? I had the pleasure of riding in the rumble seat in front of the tallest Ugandan man I know. His knees were on both sides of me like armrests for the 4 hour return ride! We arrived so late that we missed dinner at the guesthouse. Jim and I stopped by the local Italian market and got a wedge of aged Gouda and some crakers made in Oman and happily consummed them with an ice-cold Krest soda. It tasted delicious. Sometimes it's the little things that give us the greatest pleasure. Now for a good night's rest and back at it tomorrow!

Kiwatule, Kiwatule

We took delivery of the final 140 pairs of shoes this afternoon while we were at Kiwatule, EPC. Kiwatule is the church that was founded by Brainerd Presbyterian and through which much of the project has been run for the past eight years. Slowly but surely we are working to extricate ourselves from the church and become a stand along NGO in Uganda. Until then, we do much of our work from the church in Kiwatule.

Upon our arrival just after 9 am, we were treated to a two hour special program put together in our honor. Along with two messages from young preachers, we enjoyed an extended worship time (featuring songs from the latest album from Hillsong Church in Australia), two dramatic skits and a traditional African dance. Then it was time to get down to business - distributing nearly 200 pairs of shoes.

Last year the distributing at Kiwatule was a real challenge with children pushing up against the stage trying to grab shoes of any kind. This year we were much more organized and the children came up in groups of 4 or 5 after their names were called and we fitted them for shoes. It took over 3 hours for the first 150 pairs but it was orderly and we were grateful for that. We had reserved 50 pairs of shoes for local children who are not part of the project but had come by to see what was going on. For some of them it was the first pair of real shoes they've had and is a ticket to school this term. It was awesome!

Tomorrow will be another long day as we travel north to Kassanda to distribute shoes and for me to preach at the opening of the new church building. Crosspointe has been generous in providing the building materials necessary for the members of Kassanda to build part one of their facility located on the land purchased for them by another EPC church. It is a long, bumpy, dusty ride and we get to make the journey in shirts and ties!

Hurry Up, Then Wait

We've completed our third full day on the ground in Uganda and begun to experience the best and the worst of the local economy. First, we were able to get an awesome deal on the shoes for the kids. Then we had to wait for a full day for the order to be filled from the warehouse! Hurry up and get the money to pay for the shoes so they can pull the order from the shelves, then wait as one by one, box by box, they find and load the sizes we need. There is never any rush!

After waiting all of Thursday for the shoes, we were finally summoned to the factory on Friday morning early to pay the remainder of the money so they could load all the shoes up to be delivered. That took about three hours. Then the fun began. We off-loaded, sorted and stacked 680 pairs of shoes and began the process of dividing them into groups for the first four distribution sites. The joy of the day was getting to actually hand out the first pairs of shoes! To do that, we traveled about 40 minutes East of Kampala to a town call Gayaza to meet Patrick,the headmaster of a primary school in this very poor community. He and three other partners founded this primary school as a for profit business. Part of their charter is to allow 40 children to attend for free. Our task was to provide these and other needy kids with shoes and socks so they can attend when the semester begins next week. For many of these kids it was there first pair of shoes! It was easy to see when we began attempting to fit shoes to their feet. Since they were not used to shoes, there feet were often very wide and needed to be fairly crammed into shoes. We were assured that the shoes will soften and eventually mold to their feet.

It was a joy to represent my church family in distributing these shoes to families who absolutely need them! Today we head off the Kiwatule to distribute close to 400 shoes. Pray for our stamina and strength for the day!

Shoes, Shoes and More Shoes

I arrived in Entebbe late Tuesday (1/19) and was greeting by our Ugandan team members. It was great to be reunited in this beautiful country. I was struck again by how dark the night is here, even as you enter the capital. As we maneuvered through the pothole strewn streets toward the capital city of Kampala, I was gripped by a sense of the need all around me. I am so proud to represent Crosspointe in this missional partnership with the Uganda Children's Project.

My main task for my first full day in Uganda was to meet with the production and sales manager at Bata, the local shoe manufacturer. Bata shoes are consider among the best in Africa and they have a division that specializes in shoes for students. They also are the most costly which is why we have not partnered with them in the past. We met a gentleman by the name of John who took us on a tour of the Bata facilities and shared the company's vision for helping the less fortunate among them. When we told him what we have been doing with the Uganda Christmas Shoe Project, he was immediately interested in partnering with us. In order to do that, he reduced his shoe prices by over 50%! We are so excited to be able to offer these high-quality shoes to these kids! We purchased 820 pairs of shoes and socks to distribute in the next week.
Later today we will take delivery of 600 pairs and begin the process of counting, lacing and dividing by sizes. I'll try and keep you up to date as we move forward!

Sunday in Uganda

Today was an amazing Sunday! Dan and I were able to meet so many of the sponsored children and their parents as they gathered together for the holiday. The service began at 10:00 a.m. with praise and worship that continued until 11:45 when I was called up to preach. As you know, this was a big moment for me and for the UCP as I deliverd a message on Zaccheus entitled, A Little Man Encounters A Big God. My focus was Zach's repentance and the evidence of that repentance in the form of resitution for the money he had stolen. I had to name both Pastor Joseph and Director Vincent as unrepentant theives. It was not my favorite hour of the trip. The people just listened with somber faces not really wanting to belive what they were hearing but they know that it is the truth. Both men have confessed to the church but no restitution has been made. Both men will return to prison the day after Christmas if they do not make the first of their six payments.

We left the church and headed to Pastor Michael's house where his wife Mabel had prepared a traditional Ugandan feast and where I was able to join in the cooking and whip up a quick stir-fry dish - Thai Green Curry. It really was good but pretty spicy compared to the bland food of the Ugandans. Dan I feasted on yams, sweet potatoes, Irish potatoes, hot coleslaw, beef, peas and peppers, matoke with G-nut sauce and of course, stir-fried grasshoppers! You read correctly - Grasshoppers - a real delicacy and they really taste good!

From lunch we went an hour across town to the Full Gospel Church to enjoy a special musical celebration in our honor and then to hand out the remaining batch of 100 shoes. On Monday we head to Jinga to meet with the people from Suubi and do some sightseeing. We have 13 pairs left of the 1480 to hand out today in individual children's homes.

I know we had an exciting day but I also want to hear about your Christmas visits. What I have heard has been amazing. Share some of your stories!

Friday and Saturday's Events

The last two days have been long days! We made our trek up to see Pastor Fatima in Kassanda that included a traditional Ugandan dance. Two bottles of water...2000 shillings, 1 chocolate bar...750 shillings, the look on Dan's face when the dancer shook her boodie in front of him...priceless! As we have expected, we've run out of shoes at every location. We've not even been close. By the time the shoes are handed out to the project children, there are not many left for the sometimes hundreds gathered. It's actually harder then I thought it would be as we have to deal with the dissapointed kids and the sometimes angry parents.

I've been proud of how the team has organized things this time. After the first day I told them that we had to be more organized. We were just dumping boxes and fishing through sizes as the mobs attacked. Since that day we have been organizing our shoes when we arrive by sizes and by girls and boys and then we try to do an orderly distribution. This works for a bit but then all hades breakes loose when people see that the shoes are depleating rapidly. Then it becomes parents grabbing at shoes for their kids and we have to intervene. I only wish we had more pairs! It's an amazing site to see. We've got great videos and tons of photos.

When we returned from Kassanda we went back to the church and reloaded before heading out to the Evangelistic Church of the Lord located not to far from Kiwatule. Once again we had well over 250 kids and only 100 pairs of shoes. We also have the problem this year of not having shoes in the smaller sizes because of waiting so long to purchase them (at least that is what Michael is saying). We had a great celebration with them and then handed out the shoes.

Today (Saturday) started off early with a visit to Kiwatule. I have never seen so many kids packed into that building. Michael and Grace both said it was the largest group ever assembled there. They were literally hanging out by the windows and doors and standing room only from the stage on to the back. I suspect there were every bit of 400 kids and we had only 40 pairs of shoes to deliver. Most of the kids had been there since 8 a.m. and we didn't arrive until 9:30. After three hours of music, dance and skits (yes, you read that correctly), it was deemed that we could not pass out shoes in the church without creating a dangerous mob scene. 40 project kids were discreetly ushered to the office area to receive shoes. The remaining children and parents were sent home empty-handed. That was a very difficult time for me. I was tired, hot and thirsty and I had a seat. Most everyone present did not have a chair as the chairs were on loan to a local revival. Kids were spread everywhere squatting, standing and a few seated. I don't know how they managed. Both Dan and I were led to stage for a dance. I doubt the video to that will ever see the light of day!

When we sent everyone home, we grabbed a bite to each at Garden City before trekking to Entebbee to Jubillee Full Gospel Church. Once again, hundreds of kids and only 100 pairs of shoes. Dan and I began to hand out shoes and then things got to crazy with parents and kids barking out things in Lugandan and our English just wasn't cutting it. We finally just pulled back and let them fight it out so to speak. There was so much grabbing that at the end, we had six or eight mis-matched shoes. Several kids got out with two left feet. We sent Elder Kato through the crowd and got most of them corrected. This church was full of beautiful people. It also had a rather strange young man who led us across the street to his small reptile farm. We got to experience some really huge vipers (I mean four to five feet long and 6 or 8 inches around). He just kept climbing around inside these concrete vats full of bushes and grass and pulling out these poisonous snakes and holding them out to us. I have some amazing video and Dan has amazing photos.

They dropped us off at 7:30 p.m. at the hotel. We were able to get quick showers before a light dinner while watching Extreme Makeover Home Edition in the beautiful outdoor TV room. Tomorrow is a big day so I'll sign off for now.

Mpigi

Another amazing yet exhausting day! Even Dan admitted that he was
getting weary. Today we visited the Mpigi EPC. Pastor Jimmy was
waiting with his hand out as usual. I told him that I had no
authorization to give him any money for school fees (he said something
about he himself going back to school or some such). We had a great
turnout of kids. Wait until you see the video. We are running hundreds
short at each place as we expected but no angry mob. We did have to
hand some socks out at a place near Kiwatule (the one that used to be
with us in the EPC and then left) as the crowd was so huge but we had
only a small amount of shoes (100) but in sizes that were way to large
for many of the kids. I have a great picture of about 150 kids
surrounding me with their shoes and socks. Just as we were finishing
the picture, the sky opened up and one of the meanest rainstorms I've
encounter in Uganda fell on us for nearly an hour. We were stranded
for the time anyway as we had to send the van off for repairs. We have
been having some trouble with the radiator and a piece on the front
right suspension. I have no idea what it cost to fix but we had to do
it to make the trip to Kassanda tomorrow.

We got to eat at Garden City today. Dan was impressed at the dozen or
so waiters that were each trying to get us to eat their food. I
settled for the mixed grill from Pardis and the others had chicken
and/or pizza. So far we have done well on the budget and have kept the
team happy and hydrated. It's a good thing since it was very warm
again today until the storm moved in.

I have been preaching my same Christmas message at all three churches
having saved the Zaccheus sermon about forgiveness and restoration for
the big crowd on Sunday (at Michael and Kato's request). Our crowd
tonight was real small because the rains came at the time of the
midweek meeting.

I am not certain of our schedule on Sunday for food but Dan got to
experience a small Talapia at The Chef. He had the hairy chop as they
call it and I had the chaps. I am looking forward to Indian on
Saturday night at Garden City. We are always somewhat tired as
they are picking us up at 8 a.m. sharp and returning us to the hotel at 7:30
or 8:00 each night. I think we have about 400 more shoes to give away
tomorrow and Monday on the way to Jinga. We are making great headway!
I'll keep you up to date as I can.

600 Pairs Delivered.

The last two days are unlike any I have spent in Uganda! I knew it would be different but it has been amazing and exhausting all at the same time. We spent the better part of 6 hours collecting 1300 pairs of the shoes yesterday (Tuesday) and we had to go back for another 2 hours today to get the remaining 180 or so. The market is jammed like I have never seen. I had to keep bribing the parking man to let us stay and load the shoes. We rented a truck for 50,000 to get the bulk of the shoes. It was a very nice Muslim man that clearly stated to me that the rule of Jesus is through and it is now time for Mohamed to rule. We all pray that one day he will be saved!

It is very, very warm here - about 38C - and absolutely no breeze. There is no air-conditioning at the ARA (they are in the window but they do nothing more then move the air since the freon is long gone from them). We do, however, have high-speed internet which makes keeping up with folks at home much easier. Tonight we were invited to the ARA Club Christmas Party out by the pool. We met some interesting Missionary Aviation Fellowship folks from Canada and another missionary family. We mostly just felt out of place as visitors to Uganda while the vast majority of the members of this ARA Club are Ugandan residents.

I begin preaching tomorrow in Mpigi and then Kassanda on Friday. I will preach tomorrow night at Kiwatule. Dan is in for a treat tomorrow as we get to travel out for his first taste of the Ugandan Bush country. Friday's trip to Kassanda is even more remote. I am looking forward to seeing his response (or shall I say his backside's response) to the treacherous terrain!

We have not seen or heard from either Vincent or Joseph and they have not troubled us during the day. We did learn some interesting things from Michael about how the police have been troubling him about bringing the American visitors to the police station. They have a nice letter drafted from an attorney explaining the connection between the UCP and the EPC. Michael told us that if they had shared the troubles they were having with the police, we might not have come. He is right!

We are planning a Ugandan feast for Dan on Sunday that will include grasshoppers and white ants! Today he had chaps and chips at The Chef in Ntinda! You should have seen his face when the plate when down. It looks like a large, battered sausage with fuzzy things connected to it. Good eats!

Thanks for all your prayers! I will update you again when we can.

Safe and Sound

We arrived safe and sound late last evening after a long but uneventful trip. Our hotel is absolutely beautiful and the security is unbelievably tight. We feel sort of like diplomats! Dan is settling in just fine. The money for shoes arrived via wire transfer and we were able to get 29 million shillings to buy 1407 pairs of shoes and stockings! It was a huge ordeal at the bank but that is the way we wanted it to be - difficult for people to get money out from project funds.

Keep praying for us as we begin distributing shoes tonight and as I (David) share at the Kiwatule church tonight. There has been some dissension in the church over our treatment of the former pastor and project leader who stole from us. I will update you as soon as I can.

Bye for now.

A Special Worship Gathering This Sunday

If you hadn't already heard, we're having a special all praise, all worship gathering this Sunday. Karen's done a great job of setting up the gathering for this week and I have a feeling that this Sunday will be a powerful, refreshing time for everyone. I hope you'll all be there!

In advance of this (and feel free to chime in after Sunday as well), I wanted to ask a question.

We hear the terms praise and worship, bounced around a lot in church culture, and even in the mainstream culture to a degree. Depending on who you ask, the definitions of these terms can vary. So let me ask you a question: how do you define these two terms? If someone with absolutely zero church background came to you asking what praise and worship were, how would you answer them?

Bumby Roads Ahead

Greetings once again from beautiful Uganda! Our days here on the ground are quickly winding down. Unfortunately, the number of kids we still have to see doesn't seem to diminish as quickly. We still have about 50 kids to see in the next three days at a number of schools. With the Lord's help, I believe we will be able to see all of them!

Sunday afternoon was a great time as we headed after church to Kiwatule Recreation Center for lunch and a time of relaxation. We ordered Lake Victoria Talapia (as is our custom on at least one Sunday while in Uganda) and while we waited nearly three hours for the food, we were able to visit a recreation of the ancient tribal villages that once dotted Uganda. Each of the dozen or so tribes that occupy this beautiful land have a unique building style depending on their location in northern, southern or central Uganda. It was fun to watch the faces of our Ugandan hosts as they each located their tribal ancestors and imagined life in those huts. In actuality, things have not changed all that much with homes still being built from mud bricks but the straw roof has now been replaced with tile or more commonly, tin.

Monday was spent visiting 21 students throughout the Kampala area. Tuesday brought at trip to Kassanda. Kassanda is located about 85 KM outside of Kampala and is only accessed through some of the roughest roads you can imagine. After an arduous journey, we were treated to a luncheon of avacado, PB & J sandwhiches (we brought those), Casava (a root vegetable) and Chai tea. The girls were able to meet Pastor Fatima for the first time. She has been the pastor at Kassanda for some time. We love spending time with her. Jim described this place well when he said it is full of peace.

Tonight the girls get to speak with Lisa Steele at the EPC Women's Event that includes a matoke cooking contest, a traditional dress event and then the teaching time with the gals. Jim and I will spend the three hours or so meeting with the men in a roundtable discussion. We're all looking forward to the rest of the day.

Thank you for your continued prayers and for your support in this endeavor. God is doing some amazing things in not only our lives, but the lives of the children as well.

Uganda Part Two

Greetings once again from Uganda! The team continues to plod ahead with our mission having now personally visited with 206 students in over 70 schools. Only 70 more in roughly 30 schools. We are thankful for your many prayers and we can certainly feel them.

Our recent days have been filled by visits to students around the Kampala area. We continue to be impressed with the quality of our students and the progress they are making. We have been treated as honored guests in each and every school. Danielle and Angie are doing an awesome job! They seem to continually where a huge smile.

On Friday we visited at the school where the entire project began. Bright Futures Primary School began with 14 students and is now quadrupled. We were literally swarmed, then swamped with kids hugging us and pulling us toward their school. I have some amazing photos and video of the day. I've never seen Angie and Danielle smile so big! We celebrated with large pepperoni pizzas at the local takeout place owned by a nice Lebanese man. It was some of the best food we've had since arriving.

Saturday was a full day as we met 125 students at the church for what they call Saturday school. They performed song and dance for us as well as preaching and public speaking. Wayne's sponsor child, Jonathan, was the MC for the event. He was outstanding! We then took six of the kids who had performed at the top of their class last semester out for lunch and a trip to the zoo. The highlight of the lunch time was the excitement of the kids as they rode the escalator up to the food court in the mall. None of the kids had ever been to the mall or ridden on an escalator. I wish you could have seen their faces when they encountered the animals at the zoo! Their eyes were wide and they took everything in. What a day! We finished our day with dinner at a real Turkish restaurant!

Sunday was a day filled with worship and teaching. The girls were able to experience their first Ugandan worship service complete with 90 minutes of praise and worship along with traditional dance! All that before I got up to preach for an hour! I was especially proud of Angie who was drafted into the Children's Program on short notice to teach the lesson. From all accounts, she did a great job!

We miss you all! Keep praying for us!

Remap

Today marked our second session with transformational architect Ron Martoia as he followed up last week's session on "Bewildering Excitement" with the challenge of dealing with lostness. He often used the term "remap", and I think that's a great place to start our discussion this week, or rather continue the discussion from today.

What are you seeing as some of the challenges for you personally as you're working toward remapping an environment different from what we all currently experience as CrossPointe?

What are you seeing as some of the remapping challenges for us as a group?

Honest discussion encouraged...really!

Peace!

Greetings from Uganda

Greetings from Uganda! I apologize for the delay in getting together this post but things have conspired against us here in terms of internet access. We have been limited in our access but all is well. All of us had safe trips although we were all exhausted when we arrived. I was able to meet Danielle and Angie at the airport and although they were excited, they were definitely beat! It took a couple of days for them to get back to their normal selves but now they are doing well.

We have been able to visit with 134 children as of today (Thursday morning). The girls are out with the rest of the team visiting 25 more children today out in the bush to the west of Kampala. They will be crossing the equator so they are excited about getting some shots with a foot in the northern and southern hemispheres! I must say that I am very proud of the girls. They are real troopers. Danielle went down for the count yesterday with an intestinal issue from something that she ate. We are not certain of the culprit but we suspect is was a tomato that she ate. There was also the issue of some fire-hot chicken vindaloo at the Indian restaurant. In any case, she slept the entire day and is doing well today.

Both Angie and Danielle are naturals at this! They greet the kids with hugs and smiles and continue to be amazed by not only the beauty of the country but the amazing kids we have the opportunity to serve. Angie has been busy interviewing dozens of kids and writing in her journal faithfully. I hope to get them an opportunity to post sometime soon.

We hit the ground Monday with a huge day. We traveled about 100 km across some very rough terrain to visit our kids out in Jinga. We were able to cross the Nile River but did not have time to stop and visit the mouth of the Nile. We ate our first meal together at Ying Ying Chinese restaurant. Unfortunately, the government has banned beef and goat for the time being. Something about a disease that can affect humans. We had to "suffer" through twice-cooked pork and stir-fried eggplant. Both of the girls got their first bottle of SToney - a local ginger-beer type soft drink. Angie is a fan - Danielle not so much! OUr day which had began at 8 did not conclude until nearly 10.

Tuesday was a simpler day as we stayed around Kampala. We were able to visit over 75 kids in about 8 hours. I think that both Danielle and Angie have been profoundly impacted by what they have experienced. They have been amazed at how well the kids are doing considering the challenges they face. We have been greeted warmly by the Headmasters at each school - with a strong appeal for more sponsorhips for the many kids in the area not in school. It is hard to imagine that for every child in school - and their are hundreds of thousands - there are 2 or 3 more who are unable to go to school.

The highlight of our day yesterday, in terms of being a tourist if you like, was encountering a man who captures snakes for export to the UK and Japan. I was able to come within a few inches of a Yellow Cobra! I have some photographs to boot! Now before you jump on me for getting so close, it was only a baby - about 14 inches long. He raised up beautifully for my shot and spread his neck wide! It was awesome! Angie loved it as well. I am sorry that Danielle was sick at the hotel and could not be with us this day.

I have much I could say about the food we have been eating. Each meal is an experience in and of itself. We have eaten all kinds of chopped meats fashioned in to sausage like shapes and deep fried. Yesterday we had calzones that were stuffed with corned beef - or beef that had spoiled, we're not certain! There was no cheese in the calzone at all. It was served with a texas-sized hush-puppy the size of a large avacado.

Keep praying for the team - especially that we might have strong constitutions! We have many more children to visit and we are excited about the days we have remaining. I look forward to updating you again as soon as I can.