BUT....
This team was AMAZING. Steve and Dee are married, Steve's brother is Larry, and Larry's wife Sue all live in Nebraska. Larry and Sue's daughter, Amber, lives in New York City and joined them on the trip. Donny, from Iowa, joined them, and Laurie's cousin, Herb from Nebraska, came along as well. It was an awesome group that God put together, and we saw from the beginning how this trip could have been a disaster. From floods and washed out bridges, to major parts of the electrical transformer that were broken, to a table saw and air compressor not working, to a major water problem in our house, things just could have been terrible. But, thanks to your prayers, and thanks to the fact that this team got up and made it a priority every morning to set aside one hour for a team Bible study, it was an AMAZING 10 days in Mapanza!
A few things we did:
Electricity: Mulenga accidentally dropped a hammer on a major part of our transformer. When Donny got here and saw it, he said that IF Zesco had come and hooked up our electricity, the whole transformer would have blown. We didn't think we would get the part here, so Donny and Wes were ready to get on the 24 hour bus to South Africa to get the part. Long story short, they went to Lusaka, found the part at a Zesco warehouse, and the man from Zesco GAVE them the part...for free... God is GOOD. Donny got the secondary poles up and lines run to the orphan houses, workers houses, and kitchen/dining facility...MEANING that as soon as Zesco comes to turn on the electricity, all of New Day's building will have power :)
This is the part that was broken
Water: The water pressure in our house is really bad, which is something we just thought was not fixable. About halfway through the 10 days, our tank ran out of water and air got in the lines. We had no water and thought maybe the whole submersible pump was broken. Over a two day period, Donny and Blu figured out the water problem, and Donny hooked up a pump to pump the water faster into the pipes and now I can take a REAL shower!!
Kitchen/Dining: Larry, Herb, and Steve (along with Wes and Kalenga) built all of our upper kitchen cabinets for New Day. They also built under counter cabinets, including some with drawers. They got handles and trim on the cabinets, and spent their last day building a large island for the kitchen. It looks amazing in there!! I'm not a builder, so I don't know, but apparently to do all of this without a table saw is a pretty big deal ;)
Studying the plans...and seeing if they need to be adjusted...and adjusted...and adjusted... :)
Larry & Wes working together
Larry admiring his work!
My House: Steve and Herb spent their last day building me a set of 3 drawers for one of my under counter cabinets! They also got cabinet doors on one of mine! My house is looking awesome!
Herb sawed..and sawed...and sawed!
The drawers were a tight fit, but they went in!
Painting: Us girls spent SIX mornings painting ceilings and priming walls!! We got 7 rooms completely done! I'll finish out the other 4 rooms next week and we'll be ready to paint color on walls!!
Washing brushes in the borehole
Ladies Ministry: We spent seven afternoons helping Laurie to teach a Basic English class to about 12 ladies in the area. It was such a fun time to develop relationships with the women that I didn't know very well. Laurie is such a gifted ESL teacher and made it so fun for all of us. The highlight was probably when we sang the hokey pokey to teach the ladies Right and Left, and a Zambian woman, Catherine, yelled "I am coming to America!" after the song. I think she liked the song :) Stemming from this class, I am beginning a Women's Bible study starting next Thursday--I can't wait!
The ESL class
Since Amber was a nurse, she also got the opportunity to do some really gross nursing things and teach a health class!
Hospital/Village Visit: A group of the team got to visit a headman's house (with two wives) and Macha Hospital, which were great cultural experiences!
The female ward at Macha Hospital
Paul, a vice-Headman
Bridet, who is wife #1..or maybe #2?
Church: And of course, there's no better place on earth than Mapanza Baptist Church. :)
But first, you have to get there by crossing the river....
This was the truck as it went through the river...No, it's not an illusion..you really can't see the truck!
Maybe church choirs in America should try matching skirts, shirts, and even hairstyles! :)
Steve enjoying church
Us with Wes & Lala at church
Dee singing Tonga hymns
Larry & Steve (brothers) with Pastor Max
All of the men on the team with Mulenga
Rows and rows of tomato fields at New Day!
Amber, Sue, and Darbi taking a break in the schoolroom
Shupa
Praise music with Kalenga
Larry fixed my kitchen sink within 30 minutes of stepping into our house!
Happy Birthday to Sue! She celebrated her birthday with a Zambian meal of nshima....what a woman!
Yes, the dirt is really that orange here in Mapanza... And it turns to mud when it rains. But look, we're growing some grass!
A fun group pic of the ladies and kids
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Just some fellowship
Dee flipping pancakes
Have you ever seen an old man as cute as Herb?! Love him! And he did an amazing job leading devotionals every morning for the team!
Amber really bonded with Racheal
At the end of it all, the kids were worn out!
I can't say enough how much we appreciate the sacrifices people make to raise money, take off of work, buy us silly things like baby wipes and chocolate chips, and come and spend 2 weeks with us in Zambia. We made relationships that will last a lifetime, and we did ministry that will affect Zambians for the rest of their lives.
Come and see us at New Day! It will change your life! :)
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