Just $2,432.00 to go!

It is now September and the leaves are starting to change color. I love this time of the year. It is just beautiful! What I wanted to tell you and share with you is this. I went to my Dad's on Monday as I do almost every Monday, and he showed me the Church Bulletin. For the month of October, all the donations will be used for Joy In The Harvest for the nets that we are working on getting over to Kigoma. I am so excited about this. We have collected so far $718.00 and we just need $2,432.00 to reach our goal of $3,150.00. It is amazing how God works and what he does for all of us. I feel so blessed to know he is with me where ever I go and his arms are always around me. How awesome is that? If you can put in your prayers this mission and please pray for the people in Kigoma. They are still working on the hospital. They hope to hear something soon to know if they get the land where the hospital will be built on. Also one of the gate keepers there just lost his son over the weekend. Please pray for him and his family. There are a lot of prayers that need to be said and I am praying for all of you now and I know that God is listening and he is there with you as well. Grab him and take him in. He would love to have you. God Bless all of you.

Love,

Julie and Kevin

Update

Hello to everyone. I know it has been awhile since I have written in here and a lot has gone on. That gives me more to tell you about. I didn't know if I have mentioned this but if I did then you get to read about it again if not then great you still get to read about it. When Kevin and I came back from Africa, there has been something wailing on my heart. It was the orphanage and the living conditions they were in. One of the things that stuck with me was the mosquito netting. The netting had holes in them. I talked with the president of the company I work for and he helped me look at some places that sell mosquito netting. Well he found one in Tanzania and the nets are medicated and they last 5 years. The best part was that they only cost $6.30. I say that is the best part because I was looking and found them around here for $75.00 and up. Those weren't medicated or last 5 years. How crazy is that? So I told Mwenge who is the 2nd hand guy of Joy In The Harvest about this. I asked him how many they would need and what was the best way to get the money to him and the nets. So this is what he told me. They 500 of them if possible. He said to have the money be sent to Joy In The Harvest at the Illinois office and Melinda will send out Tax exempts to those that have donated and she will put the money in an account for the nets only. Once we reach our goal then I will let Mwenge and Melinda know. Then Mwenge will order and pick the nets up and he will distribute them to the orphanage. He will also take pictures of them recieving the nets and then send the pictures to me. Then I will post them and email them to those that have contributed. That way everyone will see where their money went. You can check out the website for the nets at www.oleyset.net and you can also read and learn about Joy In The Harvest at www.joyintheharvest.com. Since this is so important to me and to the Kigoma orphans we have raised so far $558.00. We just need $2,592.00 to reach our goal. I know we will get there and when we do, I will cry like a baby. LOL

So that is my mission that I am working on since I have been back. If we make more then that, then I hope to have some money raised for their mattresses. :)

I did talk at my Dad's church on the 28th of June. It went well. I was nervous but once I got going it went smooth. Everyone was interested in what I had to say and what I was doing. They gave me hugs and told me how great of a job I did. Then some were shaking my hand and when I did that I had money in my hand. I was so touched and truly did not expect that at all. The next day I took that money and sent it off to Joy In The Harvest. God has shown me so many things that I have been blessed with. I am so thankful to have him in my life and for him to show me what path he wants me on. I pray I never stray from his path.

God Bless all of you,

Julie

I know it has been awhile since I have been on here. So I thought since there was an email I recieved that just hit me in the heart, I wanted to share it with you. This email says so much and it really describes what the church was like in Africa. So here it is:

Mark 12:42-44 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling His disciples to Him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the pothers. They all gave out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty, put in everything- all she had to live on.”
While our medical mission team was in Tanzania we had the opportunity to attend the Methodist Church in Kigoma where Lowell and Claudia Wertz, our missionary hosts, attend. Church in Africa is quite an event and experience, and can go on for hours. This particular worship service included a visit from the District Superintendent, a visiting choir performance and three weddings. The traditional church hour turned into three, but really flew by with so much to look at and so much going on. Praise and worship energy abounded, and even though the language spoken was Swahili, the language of the heart in worship was the same for all- Love.
A meagerly dressed elderly woman sitting in front of me turned around just before the offering time and opened her very small hand to reveal one small coin, probably worth less than a penny. She spoke something in Swahili to us. Claudia smiled and responded in Swahili, at which point she turned back around smiling. Claudia then told me quietly the woman had asked if we had anything more to share with her for her offering since she had so little to give. Claudia assured her what she gave from the heart was worth more than what most people gave. I immediately thought I was sitting right behind the original woman from the widow’s mite story in Mark.
Watching these very poor, but generous people approach the offering box with coins that could have meant food and water for them or their family for the day or week, humbled me beyond words. I asked myself then, and will continue to ask, “What am I willing to give to my Lord and my God today and everyday?”
Father God, Thank you for giving so generously to us so that we, in turn, can give generously to others. Open my eyes to opportunities to share my gifts, talents and treasure.

What adds to this is I was asked by my Dad's church to speak in June about our trip. I am so excited to do this and I love telling everyone about our trip. I really believe that this is one of the things I am to do. So on the 28th of June I will be telling our story at my Dad's church. :) I am pretty excited. :) We all have our talents, gifts, and treasures that God had made in us and it is up to us to find them and use them. I think I found one. :)

Praise God!

Hello everyone,

I wanted to give you an update of what has been going on in Kigoma. Right now they have a team of Medical Dr.'s and nurses from Texas. They have converted the computer builiding into a clinic. What is neat about this clinic is it is free. How awesome is that? So this was one of the emails we recieved from Claudia:

"PTL! The 8 from TX have arrived and all 16 trunks of supplies (with some goodies for the kitchen).Please pray the Lord will richly bless all the time and planning that has gone into their trip.We have converted the computer school into the "JOY FREE CLINIC" with signs all over town.The speakers all over town and on the radio are letting the population know they can come to JOY for medical treatments.The first thing you see on the wall when you enter our make shift clinic is "Joy in the Harvest .... so they may know Jesus".Blessings to you as you serve Him,"Claudia

Then today we received this email from Terry:

Here is some photo's of the medical clinic and the first morninglines. This is Wed morning here and they have treated I think 360Tanzanian's. They are shooting for at least 1000 while they are here.They lost a couple of children which had Malaria of the brain. Iguess they don't have a medication for this stage of Malaria.

He did send some pictures as well, but I don't know how to put those on here as of yet. I will tell you that the pictures are awesome! They bring tears to my eyes. I also wanted to share this with you. Every year I help the Country radio B100 here in Mishawaka, South Bend area out with St. Jude's. I help take donations. Well I called them today on my break and I talked with one of the DJ's. I told him about what was going on in Kigoma and he then put me on the radio. It was pretty neat. I know this was God's doing because I felt him telling me to do this. So I did it. I thanked him after I did it and I just feel good about doing it. It is really amazing what God can do. I just wish more people would see what he does. I just wanted to share this with you all. Until next time.

God Bless you all and Love you,

Julie

P.S. I was able to get one of the pictures up. Yea!

Presentation

Well our Presentation at New Life Church in Rochester IN, went well. JoAnn and Steve did a remarkable job with getting the pictures set up and putting them in order. They did great! Between, all of us I think we covered it. All though I must say there are always more to say and show. I did wear my dress that I had made there in Kigoma. All though I walked outside and asked myself why was I wearing this when it is cold and raining outside. LOL I was glad I wore it though. I did get a lot of compliments. Those are always nice. We didn't get a lot of questions like I thought we would but that is ok. We did what God wanted us to do and we keep spreading the word. Iam still waiting to hear how we can get supplies and that over to Joy in the Harvest. When I know I will make sure everyone knows. That way we can all help out. I know God has plans for all of us and we will trust in him that he knows when is the best time to get those supplies to them. God Bless all of you!

Imagine

Since we have been back all I do is think about our trip. I have been sitting here today looking at these pictures and I want to go back. I miss everyone and to know what is out there just amazes me. I look around at where I am and then I look at these pictures and wish I was there. I want to be there, because there is so much that needs to be done. I think what else makes me want to be there is because when you are helping those around you there, they appreciate you and what you did for them. I don't feel that you get that here. Well in some places. To feel appreciated and to know that you are helping someone out is such a wonderful feeling. I love helping out and just being able to make a difference in someone's life just brings tears to my eyes. To know that I went to Africa and I helped out over there brings a lot of emotions to me. Everywhere I go I just look around and I study so many things now. Sometimes I feel guilty for what we have and what some don't have. I just shake my head in aw and then I pray.

Tomorrow Kevin and I are going to Rochester to New Life Church. We will be telling the congregation about our trip with JoAnn and Steve. I am looking forward to it. I know Kevin is nervous but I know he is going to do great. It will be emotional, happy, sweet, and most of all it is going to be from God. :)

On our way Home. :)

February 23, 2009

The flight from London to New York seemed to have taken forever, but the hospitality was wonderful. British Airways was for sure our favorite of the flights. So we landed in New York around 10 or 11:00 on the 22nd. We went to get our bags and then have our passport stamped. The most nicest and best way treated was when the lady said to us "Welcome Home." I thought I was going to break down and cry right then and there. So we get done with that and went to see where to next. Well we needed to go too another airport. We were told that we could take a shuttle there and it would be free. Well the shuttle's didn't open till 8 and our flight to Chicago was at 6:00 am. Problem, you think? LOL So we had to take a taxi to LaGuardia airport. I may have spelled that wrong, oh well. So $30 later we were at the airport. Then we were trying to get checked in. Well American Airlines doesn't open up till 3:30 am. So it is after 1 and we were in a lobby area and we tried to sleep. Well it didn't happen. I couldn't sleep and neither could Kevin. So 3:30 finally came around so we checked in and then was told that security for our bags won't open till 4:00. Ok that was messed up. You would think they would open the same time as your check in. Well anyways we went and got ourselves something to drink. I had my Hot Chocolate. Needless to say I was missing my Swiss Miss. Then we checked in our bag at 4. Then we got on our flight and we were off to Chicago. I was ready to put my fleece pants on and my turtle neck, but they were not on my carry on. What was I thinking? LOL I guess I wasn't. So we landed in Chicago. Oh I forgot to mention when we were in New York we called and talked to Bryce (Kevin's best friend) he told us that we had 7 inches of snow on the ground. Welcome back! LOL
So we landed in Chicago and we went for our luggage. Then we went to where the buses were. I then called my Dad while we were waiting. He said they were going to leave the house at 11 so they would be there to pick us up. Then I called my Mom and Dawn from work. They were both glad to hear we were home safe. Well at least in the states. LOL So we get on the bus and head for the South Bend Airport. We made a stop in Highland and then we were told that we were going to get to South Bend an hour earlier. I was so excited. I was so anxious to get home. It was like God new and answered another prayer for us. I know he did. Then I tried calling my Dad to let him know this but he had left already and they didn't turn their cell on. It was ok, I new he would be there. He is always early. So we drove up to the airport and I was so ready to get off the bus. Kevin grabbed our luggage and we walked in the doors and I ran in tears to my Dad. My Dad and Step mom gave us each a hug and we were off to our house. We were telling them all about our trip and gave them their gift. We get in the house and it was so great to be home. All though it was different when you don't have the dogs there to greet you. All though Buddy and Lacie were on their way home too. Mickey we decided to get her the next day, because of other things we needed to do before Lacie and Buddy came back home. So after my Dad and step mom left we went to the grocery store and then surprised my Mom. It was so great to see her again too. We then left for home and unpacked put some clothes in the laundry and then cooked a pizza. Jerry then came around 5:30 with Buddy and Lacie. They were excited to see us but they were ready to go back with Jerry. At least we know they were well taken care of. We made Jerry eat before he left. So we filled him in about our trip and he filled us in on how the dogs were. Then he left and we just played with the dogs and then went to bed.

So this brings me to what has been going on since we have been back. We both went back to work, we have also been sharing with everyone about our trip. I told everyone at work about the trip. On Monday the 2nd I went to my Dad's and he had some friends of theirs come over. They wanted to hear about our trip and see pictures. An aunt of theirs went to Africa in 1947, so she was sharing with me her stories. Then on Tuesday the 3rd I went to the Eagles to see my line dancing family. They put me on the spot (I did ask to do this, but then changed my mind later) but they still put me on the spot and I told them about our trip. I was so glad I did it. I have had people from work, family, and friends that want to help with getting all kinds of stuff over to these people. I am so excited. I hope we can get something together and do this and get things to them. Please pray that we get this going and these supplys over to them. Just pray this happens. LOL So this Sunday we are going to meet up with Steve and JoAnn, and we are going to talk to the people at New Life Church in Rochester about our trip. You are welcome to come and listen if you want. We are looking forward to it. So now you all have the scoop on our trip and the adventure is still going on. We are hoping to get something going to send all the goodies we can to Joy in the Harvest.

Oh, I do have some really good news too that I forgot to mention. On Thursday the 26th, I recieved an email from Claudia and Lowell and Terry. They have water! They dug 206 feet I believe. Praise God! AMEN!

Talk to you all soon.

God Bless all of you

Love,

Julie, Kevin and the Mission Buddies. :)

It had to happen. :)

February 17th, 2009



I know I have mentioned a lot of what I did and not a whole lot of what Kevin did. I promise I am not trying to leave him out. Kevin has helped Steve with a Radio room that they have built. Well it is added on to the Computer building. Kevin was helping with the wiring and he sauterd microphones to the cord. He did a great job. He had also taken pictures of all the computer students on Friday when they graduated. They plan to use those pictures and put them up in the computer room, I believe. I could be wrong, just don't quote me on that one. Kevin had also helped me with pairing up the shoes and helping with the feeding also. He pretty much didn't leave without his camera. All though I probably shouldn't say that since I think there were two instances where he didn't have it with him and wished he would have. But that is OK, we did get pictures of those places from Steve, Terry, and John. So we were covered. :)



I went to help Cindi find clothes and shoes for the Friday people and paired up more shoes and then stamped envelopes for the newsletters. I didn't sleep well that night because my stomach had a sour feeling to it. So I pretty much laid low as much as I could. I didn't want to miss out on anything and I wanted to do what I was there for. We all took Mwenga out for lunch and then to the market. He wanted to go too the Modern Restaurant. So we ate there. Kevin, I , and John had fish and rice. Terry had Ribs, the others had Chicken and Rice. The fish I had, I new I shouldn't have ordered. It came out whole. The face was on there with the eyes and well it wasn't a pretty site. All though it was pretty good. I just tried not looking at the face. So then we were off to the market. We picked up a few souvenirs and some grocery's. Some of the guys haven't been to the market yet and for them as still for me, it was a lot to take in. This time we saw a lady walk around with no top on and with a baby. Then I saw a kid pee on the side of a building. Then going into the market there was a baby going to the bathroom in a trench. You had to walk over her or you would have stepped on her. It was just sad. I think I saw more families and kids just lying around, because they have no place to go. Just brings tears to your eyes. We then went back to the guest houses and I took a couple of naps. Then we headed to Lowell and Claudia's for dinner. Pat, Claudia's mom made us fish and chips. It was very good. All though, it had to happen and I guess I am glad it happened there and not on the safari or on the plane. I won't go into detail but me and the toilet became pretty close the rest of the night. Yea, nice. NOT!

February 18th,
Our last day here at Joy in the Harvest and I was in bed most of the day. Our Mission Buddies were praying for me and checking on me and just being so loving. I really appreciated it. Even Mamma Abejue (Abeejue) (I know I spelled that wrong. I know she will forgive me.) came in my room and stayed with me a little while and then prayed for me. Kevin took some pictures and just thanked her for coming. It was pretty sweet. After she came by and prayed about 10 min. later I had some energy and wasn't running to the restroom, so I helped with the shoes. I was able to help out with 6 more boxes. I was so glad and I thanked God for giving me the energy. Kevin went to the feeding and I stayed in bed. I wanted to go with him since that would have been our last time, but it wasn't going to happen. So I just took another nap. When I woke up it was about time or at least close to going to dinner. So I took a shower and decided that I wasn't going to go too Bible Study tonight. Everyone was ok with it and they understood. Besides we needed to pack yet. Kevin decided he wanted to stay with me. So we ate dinner and again another wonderful meal. It was beef stew. Just a great meal. I loved it. My parents would be proud because of the veggies I ate. LOL Lowell brought us back to our guest house while the others left for bible study. We started packing and then I was back in bed. I did call my Mom though. When I am sick I want my Mom. Doesn't everyone? :) She told me that it was raining there and that they were suppose to get 1-3 inches of snow over night. She told me that our dogs (kids) were doing well. Mickey was staying with Sheri and her parents. Mickey took up with Sheri's dad and sits with him and she was eating but doing well. Buddy and Lacie were fitting in with Jerry's family and they were doing well also. While we were calling my Mom and packing we started a load of laundry. Just before the spin cycle was about to happen, we lost power. We were with power for at least 24 hours. No need to complain it wouldn't do any good. It is just the way it was over there. So we were running on a generator. So we took the clothes out of the washer and we hung them to dry. Then we went to bed. We tried staying up for the others but we were so tired. All though I did hear them come home and I got myself up. I wanted to make sure Steve and JoAnn had their clothes. I was starting to feel better too. :)

February 19, 2009

Our last morning at Joy in the Harvest. We had our bags packed and just waiting for Mwenga to tell us it was time to go. We ate breakfast and then we took pictures of everyone. Then I was able to do one more bag of shoes. Then we got a call from Claudia saying we needed to be ready in 5-10 min. Mwenga was coming to get us. So we got our stuff and set outside our house and said our goodbyes. It was a quick goodbye but we made it. Claudia, Mwenga, and Terry took us to the Kigoma Airport. We went through security and all that jazz and we were on the plane to Dar Es Salaam. When we landed into Dar Es Salaam we met up with John Frances. He then took us to the Penal Costal guest house and we stayed the night there. We ate at a Catholic restaurant with Charles. He is the manager at the Penal Costal place. He showed us where to go and we invited him to eat with us. Three of us had chicken and rice and Kevin had fish and rice. We really praised and thanked God for sending Charles our way. Charles was our guide and our security. If we didn't have him with us we would not have found the restaurant and who knows what else would have happened. Again, Lord, Thank you. :) We then left the restaurant and went back to the guest house. We took showers and went to bed. We are getting up early the next morning to leave for Mikumi National Park for our Safari.

February 20, 2009

Today we were leaving for the safari. All of us didn't have a good nights sleep, but we were ready to see some animals. John Frances came to pick us up. We drove through Dar Es Salaam and saw more of the city. I have to tell you, I would be dead driving in that city or just anywhere in Africa. Most likely the city though. There is no concept and it is just crazy. I think there were only 2 stop lights we stopped at and no stop signs. To me you drive the way you want to drive and just pray you make it to where you are going. There were tons of people around and if you wanted some eggs, or souvenirs or whatever you wanted, you could stay in your car and they will bring it to you as you wait to go where you want to go. It was just crazy. I will have to say there were a lot of speed bumps though. Sometimes I thought, that was a good idea, other times I thought it was annoying especially when you were really going and no one was slowing you down. John Francis was an excellent driver and we gave him kudos for it too. :) Then we left the city and more into what I would call the country. We see more mud huts and how they lived and the farmers working. There was one time I looked up and I saw a woman outside sitting down with her child breast feeding it. I thought oh, ok then. LOL We went by some markets and some other villages selling all kinds of stuff on the side of the road. We did stop at one place to use the restroom and we looked at some souvenirs. Of course when we stepped out we were bombarded by the villagers to buy something. They wouldn't leave us alone unless you bought something or you just drove off. We did manage to buy two signs that say Karibu and one that said Karibu and Welcome under it. JoAnn and Steve took that one. We took the one that said Karibu. :) We were then off to our destination. It took us 5-6 hours to get to Mikumi. We drove into the park and John Frances said in 20 min. you will start seeing animals. Well we saw our first one. It was a baboon. Boy was he big. He came right up to the van or at least close enough. It was pretty cool, but a little scary. Then we drove up to where we were staying at. What a beautiful place it was. Our room was a tent that sit on top of a hill. It was just awesome. You would have to see the picture of it. We put our bags in our room or tent and then went to lunch. We left at 2:30 for our first experience of the safari. It was just amazing. We saw lots of different birds, giraffe's, elephants, wort hogs, zebras, impalas, wildebeest, a jackal, and water buffalo. Towards the end we were charged by some elephants. It was a mama protecting her baby and plus she injured her foot. But our guide Houston, and our driver (I don't remember his name) got us through. Houston has been doing this for 5 years and he was very educated and had a good eye too. He showed us some lizards on trees that were far away. I know for sure I wouldn't have seen it. Kevin was taking pictures like crazy, I even took some. He loved it when the elephant charged at us. He thought it was cool. I told him sure you did, she wasn't on your side. LOL We then went to supper. What a great meal it was. I had mostly the veggies. I was tired of chicken. So I had the green beans, cauliflower, and potatoes. Just awesome. While waiting for our dinner we actually saw a porcupine and honey badgers. The porcupine was huge and the honey badgers I have never seen before but they were cool too. They looked like skunks with an attitude of a badger. We were told it was a blessing to see these animals, because they don't come out often. We were also told that after dinner and everyone leaves that a bush baby comes and jumps on the tables to get the table scraps. We never did see one but we heard them jump on the roof. I did see a picture of them and they are cute looking. After dinner we went back to our tents, we were escorted back to our tents by a Masai. They are there to protect us from the animals. They are very tall and they have a stick with them to protect us. We were going on our last of the safari the next day at 6:45am.

February 21, 2009

We all had a wonderful night sleep. It was nice to hear the night sounds and just relax. We left at 6:45 for our second trip out. It was raining but it didn't last long. We saw pretty much the same thing but more hippos and 2 more lizards. We didn't get to see any lions but we did see his tracks. That was pretty neat. We believe that Houston was upset that we didn't see any but I am sure they are out there. We just didn't come at the right time or something. We came back to the site around 9:30 and we went to have breakfast. Then we got our stuff together and we met up with John Frances again. He then took us back to Dar. Of course though we stopped back at the stop we stopped at before and bought a couple of necklaces. John Frances then dropped us off at the Penal Costal place for one more night. We stayed in a better room this time all though we had separate beds. Kevin had his bed and I had mine. We didn't like that but what do you do. :) there was no way to put them together either. LOL Trust me Kevin was trying. LOL Too funny. So we got our selves ready for dinner and walked to the kitchen. They had cooked us a wonderful meal and so much. We were hoping they would share this with others. We had spaghetti their style, chicken, rice, cabbage of some sort, chips, cucumbers on top of tomatoes, and pineapple. I had the spaghetti, chicken, rice, and pineapple. After dinner we went back to our rooms and started getting everything organized and ready to go for the next day. We were heading back home. :) Yes I was getting excited and anxious.

February 22, 2009
We were going home! We all slept well and we were ready to go home. We ate breakfast and then started headed back to our rooms to get our stuff. As we were walking back we did talk to some visitors that were from Minnesota. They were leaving that night. We told them about our adventures as well as theirs. They were very interested in what we saw at the orphanage in Kigoma. So we told them what we had saw and what we new, then we had to leave. John Frances came to pick us up and we were off to the airport. He told us that he enjoyed our company and wished us a good and safe trip home and asked when we were coming back. We laughed but we told him we hope soon. We thanked him for all that he did and wished him well. He then left the airport and we bought more souvenirs. Then we checked in and waited to get on the plane. We then got on the plane and we were headed to London. Kevin did get to see Mt. Kilimanjaro on our way out. He was so glad. I was very glad for him. I was trying to get over to the left side where you could see it but it didn't work out. The flight attendants were in the way. Oh well you have to eat you know. LOL So after he saw the mountain he came back and sat with me. We originally weren't suppose to sit together but the person that I was suppose to sit with didn't show up. So Kevin sat with me. I was glad of that. It was a long flight that is for sure. But British Airways was a wonderful flight. The hospitality was tremendous. While were on this flight, we both couldn't help but replay all that we saw, experienced, and what it had done to us. It was truly an amazing trip. So on that note, I am going to leave you with that for now. Oh but there is more. You will have to wait till tomorrow though. :) God Bless and stay warm.

Love,

Julie and Kevin and the Mission Buddies

We are Home Safe :)

Hello everyone,



I have so much to fill you in on. Especially since the last time I wrote was the 16th and if you have been reading actually all that I told you on the 16th happened on the 12th and 13th. With trying to do what you can when you get electric and when you can't, you do what what you can and quick. So I am looking at my journal and I will go by that to keep you totally up to date. I hope I don't confuse you. Sorry if I do.

On February 12th we were still without power. I helped Cindi grade papers for students that were learning excel in Computer School. Joy in the Harvest built a place where the Africans can learn computers and programs. When they were taught Excel while we were there it was free for these students. How cool is that? They also have been working on the well to get water. We were hoping that on this day they would get water, but we didn't. We were still praying. At 3:30 the ladies and I went to Claudia and Lowell's for Bible Study and we would stay there till 9:00. That way they didn't have to drop us off and pick us back up for dinner. Bible Study was very nice. Cindi's discussion was about ourselves, how are we doing? What are we doing for God. There were 5 key points she focused on. Worship, Fellowship, Becoming Like Jesus, Service, Missions/Evangelism, and Extravagant Generosity. I learned that I need to really focus on all of these. I don't do as well in any of them, but I hope to be better at it and I learn from all of it. So my question for you is; How do you fit in there? Have you accepted Jesus as your saviour? I know I have. :)

Then at 2:15pm we had power, so we rushed to the washing machine and put our Clothes in the washer. So then the power went out again. So we had our wet clothes in the washer. But, Praise God, the power kicked on again at 2:43pm. :) Since we had power I then did a draft on Steve and JoAnn's computer of what I wanted to write on our this blog and that is where you have the information for the 16th. If that makes sense. Have I lost you yet? LOL In a nut shell what I wanted to put on the computer on the 12th I wasn't able to do it till the 16th.

So on the 13th, we did a lot. I helped with matching shoes that were sent over from the States. They are from donations from other churches and other organizations. There were at least 20-30 boxes and garbage bags just filled with shoes. It was amazing. Then as I have told you on the 16th we went to the Gazebo for Friday people. Still a memory in my head that will stay with me forever. Just sad situations, but happy endings. I told you of some that impacted me while I was there. There is one that I wanted to mention and wasn't able to. There was this lady that needed to pay her rent, needed food, clothes, and wanted to get her daughter to school. Now since this has been a little while ago, I am trying to remember. What I do remember is that Lowell did help her with what she wanted but also asked her to find a job as well. She then asked if there was an opening. He said they needed some help with carrying water. She was all for it. She was told to come back on Monday and they would put her to work. So they talked with Matthew (Matao) who would hire the ladies for this and she showed up on Monday. So when we saw her she would smile at us. It was awesome!

February 14th, 2009 Happy Valentine's Day! I am sorry to report that they don't celebrate Valentine's Day here. I must say it did feel like another day too. But we still had fun. Lowell took us to some land that they bought where they are going to build the hospital. There is a lot of land and they also hope to build a supermarket close by as well. Then we went through a town called Igu Ngu and this is just like 2 miles away from where we are staying at. This town has a lot of crime in it. This is also where they built their church. They built the church there so they can make a difference in this town. For what they are doing and what they have done already for these people, they are making a difference. Then we left to go fishing and swimming. We didn't catch any fish but the water was 81-82 degrees and it was clear and clean and it was great. The scenery was beautiful and the stories Lowell told were so amazing. We all enjoyed Lowell's stories from his past and how he led the people from the Congo to the Lord. Just awesome.

February 15, 2009. Another awesome day. I will admit that, that morning I was getting home sick. I was missing my family and my dogs. I even called my Dad after we came back from Church. I was so glad to hear his voice and I know he was happy to hear mine too. It was awesome to see how they worshiped in Church. They were singing, dancing, and just having a good old time. I even learned a few dancing steps and they learned some from me. It was awesome. The Youth put on the service and all. They had lunch fixed for everyone after the service and we all just enjoyed the day. They had chicken, rice, beans, potatoes, bananas, pop, water, beef stew I believe, salad stuff, and peanuts. Claudia showed me how to eat peanuts with bananas. That was neat. All though you have more peanuts left then banana. Then the rest of the day we did nothing but relax.

February 16th, I felt that I didn't do a whole lot. Kevin told me at breakfast that we had a whole in our net. So between doing other things, I was fixing our net. It needed to be done especially before we went to bed. Still not sure how the whole got there but it is fixed now. Mwenga took us to the Livingston memorial. You know the famous "Dr. Livingston I presume" quote don't you? Well Ujji which is an hour away from Kigoma said those words here. So we learned more of this history of Dr. Livingston. The story was told by a little african man in english, well what you understood in english. Now if you asked him questions then he would start all over again. So you don't want to ask him questions. Just let him speak and laugh when he says "The British are Coming, The British are coming." He cracks up when you do that. After the history lesson we came back to our houses and then went to the feeding. Well the people that help out with the feeding were at Church on Sunday. So they all remembered me and they were dancing with me and it was just neat. I was getting hugs and claps and it was just so special. The kids were teaching us the sign language they were doing for some of their songs. It was cool. They were so cute and you just couldn't help but have a smile on your face. The gown ups were so appreciative for what we were doing and they thanked us all. Just an awesome feeling. Then we came back and Kevin, Cindi, and I worked on the shoes some more. Oh one of the other memorable moments for me here and on this day was this. I was asked to do a devotional. Each of us were doing one a day around lunch time. I have never done this before, but when I was asked to do it, I new what one I was going to do. I read Matthew Chapter 6:25-34 Do Not Worry. We worry so much about so many things and you take a look around you, and God has it under control. He will not let you down or leave you stray. There are no worries. Put your worries on God's shoulders and he will take care of it. So on this note, I am going to stop there and I will finish the rest of what we did tomorrow, I hope anyways. I think what I have written so far may take you sometime to read. I hope you enjoy. Until tomorrow. :) God Bless all of you.

Love,

Julie, Kevin, and the Mission Buddies.

Hello everyone,

We are still doing good and we are learning so much. Most of all we are seeing God work everyday at every minute. I feel that in the states, you don't pay attention to what God is doing or what you are doing for him. Out here it obvious. It is amazing! A couple of days ago we went to an orphanage. It was a sad sight to see, but a humble site as well. Some of the beds did not have mattresses and then the nets around the beds had holes in them and the conditions there were just nasty. I don't know how else to say it. But what was humbling to me was when we went to where they have school. The children were full of smiles and they were learning math and their ABC's and they sang us a song welcoming us to their place. It was just sweet to see them smile and they seemed to be happy. We have pictures and you will just drop your jaw. I did and thought,are you kidding me. Then Yesterday we had what is called Friday people. This is where the poor come to tell Lowell, the grand pumba, what they need. Like food, shelter, debts, clothes, and medical assistance. There were 15 yesterday that came. Mostley women and they were divorced or widows. The life expectantcy is only 45 here in Kigoma. It might be in all of Africa but I am not sure. Lowell gave money, food, medical assistance, and paid their debts to most of them. One of them was a girl that had TB she wanted to go to the border of Tanzania and Mozanbique to be with her family. She came up here with her husband, but 2 months ago her husband was in a boat accident and didn't make it. She has 3 or 5 kids and Lowell paid her way to go back to her family. The other story that hit me was a lady that had Diabetes and High blood pressure. Her request was medical assistance, food, clothes and most of the request was for her daughter. She wanted her daughter to have school supplies, clothes, and shoes. She was granted those requests and even money. All I can say is WOW! This has really opened our eyes. Please pray for all of these people and the churches, water, and electric. We have been without electric for a long time now. It is about noon now or close to it and the power has been out since Wednesday, but it goes in spurts. All though since Wednesday we have had no electric. We are using generators but those are limited to what can be used on it. We need your prayers and we look forward to seeing you all soon.

Love,

Julie, Kevin and the Mission Buddies

Hi!
We're some of Kevin & Julie's Mission Buddies - a name Julie dubbed us - and wanted to say HELLO to all of you and to Steve's and my family and friends who are checking this blog, too. We have seen and experienced so many things since arriving here last Sunday. One day we took kerosene and laundry supplies to an orphanage that Joy in the Harvest supports. The deeply rutted road led us up the hillside to an open area between weathered, broken buildings that housed classrooms, boys dormitory rooms, charcoal making fires, and outhouses. Lack was the key descriptive word for everything we saw, although the children were polite and sang songs for us before we left.
God bless you all for your prayers and support,
Steve & JoAnn

The feeding

Hello everyone,

We are still doing great and learning so much. This picture is one of the three feedings they do during the week. This was taken on Monday the 9th. What an experience. They do this on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Some of these people only eat on these days and at this time which is at 3 in the afternoon. Most of the children are without parents and they all live on the streets. It is just so sad to see. We have been having issues with the electic and the water. Today we have been without electric since 8:00 of last night. It came back on around 2 then went out again at 2:30 and then back on again at 2:45 and off at 2:47. We have been out ever since. It is now like 7:53 p.m. Please pray that we get electric soon and that we get water too. They are digging a well to get water and that has been going on for quite sometime now. We will be home soon. Love you all very much.

Love,

Julie and Kevin and the Mission Buddies

"Jumbo" (hello) everyone,

I finally am able to write on our blog. Yea! So I will make this quick. We have arrived in Kigoma Tanzania. We arrived on Sunday and what a flight it was. To see Africa and see that you really are not home. It has been a hard time to see what we are seeing and to know that this goes on everyday. We sure do take so much for granted in the States. We have gone to the market and wow what an experience. We fed to the homeless on Monday afternoon. That was also an experience. It is very overwhelming but you just try so hard to take it in and just suck up the stuff that upsets you. Kevin has been taking a lot of pictures and has been working on a Studio for a radio station they are working on. I have helped the ladies get clothes for the poor and doing some sewing. It has just been a learning experience for all of us. The people we have been working with have been so nice and very sweet. Let alone they are very helpful. They just enjoy life. It is amazing. I would love to write more, but we are about to have a meeting. I hope to get on here again soon. We love you all very much and we have so much to tell you and show you with pictures. Talk to you soon.

Love,

Julie and Kevin and the rest of the Mission Buddies. :)

It is now just 2 days away and we leave for Africa. Let me see how can I describe the emotions we are feeling? Hmmm... you name they are all there. That is the best way. See I new I could do it. LOL Kevin and I still have a lot to pack yet and then the sad part. Our kids will be going to their sitters. This is really tearing us up. We are still undecided if Mickey (the Yorkie 13yrs of age) will be going tonight or tomorrow night. Right now my feeling is it might be tonight. That way I can still see my Dad before we leave. But not sure. Lacie (miniture Schnauzer a little over a year old) and Buddy (the mix of a Westie and something else, also the one that came and found us, we think he is over an year as well) will be leaving tomorrow for sure. So emotions are on high no matter what is going on. All though I know that I will be fine. So tonight I leave work and pack and get everything around for the dogs. Kevin will make sure we are packing and getting done what needs to be done. Well I would love to write more, but it is the end of the day here at work and I am about to head home. Write back soon. It just might be when we are in Africa. Talk to you soon.

God Bless you all,

Julie and Kevin

Just 9 more days to go. We have our shots done, we are getting our Visa's in Dar Es Salaam, and we have started packing. I went to Goodwill to get me some skirts and I made a skirt. I still ended up with too much. So I am not bringing some. LOL At least I have some for work now. LOL Our Dogs will be staying with some wonderful people and they will be loved and spoiled. No worries right? :) You always worry about your kids. With Fur or not. LOL I have pretty much everything set at work for when I leave. There shouldn't be any problems. I guess if there is I will know when I get back. So far though I think I am good. I do have to clean the house and do some laundry before we leave. All natural stuff there. I haven't heard anything about Billy's appt. I believe he had one on Monday. They were going to go over his MRI results on his wrist then talk about his ankle. Still waiting to hear about that. We know that God has that taken care of as well as everything else. We are so fortunate to be going on this trip. We would like to thank all our friends and family for their support and the prayers. Keep the prayers coming. Talk to you soon.

Love and God Bless,

Julie and Kevin

As of today we have just 19 more days till we leave for Kigoma Tanzania. We are very excited and with the weather we have been having, the thought of 80 degrees sounds really good right now. Today the Mission Buddies gathered together for our last Africa meeting. The meeting went very well, but there was a part of the meeting we did not expect and we are praying for. Pastor Billy (our Brother in Law) fell off of a ladder this past week and messed up his ankle and his wrist. As of now he doesn't think he will be going on the trip with us. He goes back in two weeks (the monday before we leave) to get a progress report. He hasn't cancelled anything yet, because he would like to see how that report goes. So we are all praying that God will heal him or get him where he would be able to go. Kevin and I and I am sure so was everyone else, was looking froward to him going. He is a wonderful person and just so easy to talk too. Not to mention he is a wonderful leader and a great Pastor. I don't want to sound negative, but if it is not in God plans and he is unable to go he will truely be missed. What we talked about in our meeting was getting to the airport, Malaria pills, Visa's and learning how to crochet. Which I have yet to accomplish. That is something I am going to do too. I just need more patience. LOL God has asked each one of us to be on this mission trip for a reason. We know that we are to do his work. That is a given. I also feel that there is more and each one of us is going to learn, experiance, and achieve the one or more goals that God has intended for us to do. I just feel there is more to this trip then just the Mission itself. This is what makes this trip for me more exciting. We are so glad and blessed to take you all along with us on this wonderful journey. As you read this please keep Pastor Bill in your thoughts and prayers and his family too. And of course please keep our Mission Buddies in your thoughts and prayers too as we take this journey together. The Mission Buddies are JoAnn, Steve, Terry, RuthAnn, Kevin, Julie, and Pastor Bill. Talk to you all soon.

Love, and God Bless you all,

Julie and Kevin and the rest of the Mission Buddies

Happy New Year to all of you. Kevin and I wish you all a safe and prosperous New Year. I have looked at my calendar and we have just 3 more weeks to go till we leave for Africa. I believe I am going to start packing so I know what I have and what we still need to get. I have so much running through my head as to what we need to be doing and what needs to be done. I feel like a chicken with it's head cut off. We were going to send for our visa's but decided to get the visa's there in Dar Salam. We believe we will make it on time to get these and have no worries. I did however go to Dick's sporting goods and I was so proud of myself for what I have bought. I have a swim suit now, a great deal on some sandals, and found a hat that protects your neck for Kevin. Still need more things but I am sure we will we have them bought and taken care of. I believe we are done with clothes. Just the essentials now. Like razors, shampoo, lotion, purell, etc. LOL you get the drift. I am not sure if I had told you but we found some friends that are going to look after our dogs Buddy and Lacie. Mickey our Yorkie is going to stay with some other friends. She is 13 and is going to be put where she won't be around so many other dogs and just get the love she needs for her. Buddy and Lacie of course still need the love but they need to be together. They can handle other dogs. They are going to be taking a trip themselves. They are going to Ohio and they are going to be staying with 4 other dogs. But they will have a yard to run around in and they will get the same loving they get here. These friends of ours are wonderful. I feel so at peace to know my kids are going to be loved and well taken care of. God has blessed us with wonderful friends and yes of course family. We truley believe that God was looking out for our kids to make sure they will be safe and loved while we are gone doing his work. I have also learned how to crochet. All though I am not good at it but I am learning and looking forward to more teachings. I know I will learn from villagers there. I hope they have the patience for me. LOL My blankets are nothing compared to crochet. LOL My goal is to keep you all up to date with our travels but as for pictures those will wait till we get back. I don't want to take up too much of the computer time we have there. I did buy some journals so I am good there. Talk to you all soon.

Julie and Kevin