An Amazing Week

Their time here was too short, but today we thank the South Carolina church team for coming and helping to make a difference in Red Hill. I had a chance to spend time with them during some of their outreach events. My fondest memory is when the team organized a “Celebration” event one evening, after days of spreading the word about it in the community. There was a local choir, worship songs, and an inspiring message by one of the pastors in the community. Attendance, at first glance, was okay. But then as I looked around the hillside, I saw all kinds of people watching it all from outside their homes or from the makeshift shops. Keeping a “safe distance,” I suppose, these people effectively doubled the number of spectators. It was as if the people watching from a distance were in the place of curiosity, perhaps a critical moment of deliberation about life. It brought me a great feeling of anticipation to what’s going to happen in Red Hill in the future. The Lord is certainly there, and that evening at sunset, it was as if I caught a glimpse of a community full of people who love God and each other. A huge thanks to the team for helping  to get Red Hill closer to that place!

Back to the States

Today I leave for the US for a very quick trip. It is one of my dear friend’s wedding and when she asked me a year ago: “If I get married next year, would you be there?” and I said without a doubt “of course I would”, I had no idea I was going to a full-time missionary! LOL So, I made the commitment and God was going to have to come through one way or another as I am one of her bridesmaids. And he did! Miraculously our taxes came back with a lot more than what we expected – that money covered my plane ticket back to the States. So I am off for a very quick visit and to support m dear friend as she prepares for this amazing dream day!

Full Circle

Today we said good-bye to someone who’s been volunteering with Living Hope for more than a year. Among many other things, Kendra has been a faithful part of the Life Skills Education team, particularly in Red Hill, a poor informal settlement not far from Cape Point. We (actually Natasha) first met Kendra in London back in August 2009, when she was on her way to Cape Town. We had just finished our annual short-term work with Living Hope in the previous month when we were told of Kendra’s impending arrival and the opportunity to meet her during a long layover in London! Even though we weren’t here for most of Kendra’s volunteer time, it is cool to see how much she’s grown through it – and how much she’ll be missed by the staff with whom she worked. May God bless you in your next chapter, Kendra!

Red Hill Team

Today we welcomed an outreach team sent from one of our church partners based in South Carolina. Over the past few years, the teams that the church sends have worked in the Hill community, and have developed relationships with the Living Hope staff based there, as well as with the locals. This year continues to build on that investment as the team will be doing outreach events with staff, through door-to-door visits and praying, kids clubs, crafts and leadership development for the women in the community. They will also be helping LH staff conduct free health screening, including HIV testing, in the community. 

Family Wedding

My mom with all her kids!

This past weekend was an amazing and brief getaway to visit with my family and friends in Pretoria. My mom flew us up for a family wedding and this gave us a great opportunity to visit with everyone there. The time away was also good for us – lots of time for much-needed reflection.  

The Construction Team

The Construction Team 

The finished product!

Earlier today we took the new missionary family (Joey, Courtney and their kids) and Granny, an 80 year-old lady who joined the Construction team – all from Tennessee, US – on a tour of Living Hope as a whole. It was so sweet to see Granny (who has never left the US in her entire life) and the kids ‘reactions to the extreme poverty they were exposed to. They tried to make sense of it all, but also trying to be in it. The kids got right involved at Kids Club and Granny was extremely observant and asking all the right questions. But as much fun as we had on the tour, we sadly had to say goodbye to the Construction Team that has been working tirelessly to replace the roof of the multi-purpose. We had dinner with them at the Team House tonight and had some incredible conversation about purpose and calling and how to discern God’s calling through desires. Deep, right? But that is one of my and Tim’s favorite topics. We truly enjoyed having this manly group here and look forward to see what God is going to do in all their lives! Thank you all and God bless

New Missionaries!

New Living Hope Missionaries!

Today we welcomed new long-term additions to the Living Hope volunteer family. It’s an entire family from Tennessee – all six of them! The father, Joey, a former business owner, will play a key role at Living Way, specifically in entrepreneurship/enterprise development. The mother, Courtney, will help the family settle in over the next few months and possibly help in palliative care ministries, as she is a registered nurse. They come with four kids, aged 1 to 9. They are a riot, and we already love them dearly, and know that they will also be an important part of Living Hope’s ministries over the next 3 years or more.