The Big Day

Well today was the big day! The revealing day of the "WALL Washing Stations" were introduced to the children at St. Catherine's School. As each station was being put into place the children were all smiles. Then I along with help from the team began the teaching process of why it is so important. I have never seen so many smiles on so many faces, including mine. I thought of those who helped me in this quest and wished you all could have been there with me. Amazing simply, amazing. At the end of the day the Principal had ask all the children of all the thing they had learned since the team had been there and they all shouted "WASH, WASH, WASH!"

Tent City

June 1st and I have been gone a week and NO the second time around does not make it any less heart wrenching. Today was spend at a "Tent City" south of Nakuru. It is here that approximately 500 Kenyans live in tents. Two years ago most of these people had jobs, homes and land they farmed, however, when the clashes took place in Kenya this tribe was forced from their land, and their homes burned. This tribe was forced to leave with nothing more than the clothes on their backs. Yet they are the lucky ones, as many of their family members and friends were killed in the violence. They now live on a hundred acres, with each family living in a large16X18 canvas tent. The women now do hard labor in someone elses land for less than a dollar a day, barely enough to buy food and clothing, but nothing else.

When the team arrived there was an outpouring of gratitude from the start. These people are the considered to be the left overs from the violence and for us to come to them seeking those who needed help was overwhelming for all the villagers. It was here that my heartstrings were again tugged on. When half way there the day a young mother sat down with her two small girls, one who looked about two and the other about four years old. She told the story of how one month ago her tent caught on fire, falling on to the girls as the sleep. Both had suffered second and first degree burns. This young mother had taken them to the hospital, but because she had no money and was from the tent city they would not treat her children. One month after the accident the burns headed on the four year old, but have left debilitating scars and a contacted left hand. The two and half year, however had a horrible infection to her head and face and lost the tissue off several fingers. The sight of this little girl's head and face were horrible, but the anguish of this mother was overwhelming for me. As a mother and grandmother, myself I cannot imagine the heartache and anguish of watching your children in so much pain and not be able to do anything about it. Simply because she was who she was, and lived where she lived and had not a single shilling. There is no live by the golden rule in East Africa, thats for sure.

As I prepared to treat the children with IM and oral antibiotics and dressing changes the mother wept and just kept saying "God Bless You, for helping me!" Each day since that day I have wondered about this strong little family, one thing is for sure I know they will survive, as they had made it through the worst and have no place to go but up.

Just as sad as so many of the cases are, there were just as many that made me smile. Two small children came running by me with a home made truck constructed of old plastic milk jugs. I thought of TJ and the "Jimmy Rigger" he is and I could totally see him creating something like this, not from necessity, but for fun. I then thought of the toys the children have in the US, toys every where. Toys in cereal boxes, toys in Happy Meals, toys in the check out line at Wal-Mart, toys, toys and more toys. Yet I really don't think our children who have such an abundance of toys love or appreciate them any more than a "Milk Jug" truck.

African Beauty

In Africa right now it is actually winter, however, not like we know winter. All the natives wear heavy coats and continually ask why the team is'nt cold. Our winters and their's are two totally different things. They have cold spells of the low fifties, we drop to below zero, they get rain, we get snow. Here everything freezes, while in Africa everything flourishes and is so green and beautiful... Here we plant flowers, there flowers grow wild and are so amazing. Kenya has gotten a lot of rain in the past few weeks, thus making the hills and valleys so green and lush.

I thought about going to the Gardens at Thanksgiving Point where everything is labeled and meticulously manicured, fertilized and watered. However in Kenya no plants, or flowers are treated with so much care. The Kenyans do, however take great pride in their gardens. I suppose because it is what will sustain them for months.

Here are a few of the beautiful flowers I found so amazing. Though most will not find this entry to interesting I know Jeannie would have been just as amazed at the flowers as I was.

Leaning On Each Other

Happy 4th Birthday My Little Buddy!!

Hope your day is wonderful and eveything you wanted it to be...All day long I have thought about you and what you have meant to me, love, contentment, happiness.....Grandchildren really do bring a new meaning to making ones life complete. I love you so, so much and miss you terribly.

Today, the team is at a encampment giving basic medical care to several hundred Africans who were displaced two years ago, now living in a village for refuges. Even though it is hard for me to even imagine living like this the children take it all in stride. I know what our American children have, all the last and greatest gadgets, as well as parents creating fun that costs a great deal of money. Yet I see what these children have and do and it is a stark contrast. Children here are on their own at the age of 2-3, they wander through the camp with no direction or purpose, yet they have each other. Two little girls walking down the middle of the camp arm in arm, leaning on each other for everything. Older siblings taking care of several younger ones, while mothers work in the fields. Life seems a bit unfair, so much in US, so little in Africa. Some children don't have a prayers chance in hell from the start.

As we finished the day at the encampment village we all knew we'd brought hope and a little happiness to the women and children. The children were all given a rag doll, of which I am sure they will hold on to and cherish for years.

Wall Washing Stations

Before going to Kenya this time, I had a goal to incorporate some type of hand-washing hygiene for the children at St. Catherine's. My thinking was to use it as a pilot program at the school and then possibly in the next few missions make it more widely used. Worms of all kinds cause so much illness in Africa, and seem to affect the children most often. Robbing them of life, learning and happiness. Even though AILC has a program in the medical aspect of the mission to treat everyone with vitamins and de-wormer, the de-wormer only last for 4-6 months. Then sadly children are re-infected at an alarming rate. Soooooo one of the purposes for me going back to Africa was to introduce classes to teach the children WHY, WHEN, WHERE and HOW to wash. I had made flip charts as visual aides, along with stickers, soap, and an original lyrics for song. WASH, WASH, WASH YOUR HANDS, MAKE THEM REALLY CLEAN...

All I lacked was the wash stations themselves. With the help of my husband, Buck who drew up some plans for me and the generous financial donations of family and friends I was off and running. I took the plans and my idea to a local welder in Naivasha, East Africa, paid him two hundred US dollars and he delivered five of the best looking wash stations I have ever seen. When they were delivered to the school I was busy with some of the village ladies. Deb one of team members came to me and said, Lauri, we need you in medical building asap. Thinking there was a medical emergency off I ran, there they sat the final product of my brain storm. There I stood with everyone clapping and me crying. I was reminded of a card my sister Jeannie had given me with money to help with my hand hygiene mission the card said, we are so proud of all you are doing in Africa.....I had accomplished my goal of five hand washing stations, appropriately name the WALL WASHING STATIONS!

To all those who helped me, I am so proud of you all for your part in me seeing this goal through and supporting me in a new passion Thank You...

We're Back!

Back at St. Catherine's school, owned and operated by AILC, was like coming home for several of us on Team May 2010. The school complex has expanded by a partly completed library/dispensary and living quarters for the teachers of the school. I am again amazed at the strict regiment of the Kenya school system, and am convinced that we Americans could learn several things about education from the Africans. It was great to see the children from three to eighteen again, it was also great to see their respect and love for education.

As we arrived all the children in different age groups had prepared a welcome ceremony for us, of which brought tears to everyone team member. Some songs sung in English, some in Swahili and some in French. All of the children speak several languages very fluently at a young age. There was one little girl who caught my eye, and just thinking of her now makes me smile. She has such a zest for life, a zest that was contagious for the team.

I was also reunited with my girlfriends, Elizabeth, Susan, Lucy, and Mary. It was like we had sat with each other just a few days ago, not more than a year. We laughed, cry and caught up on all that has happened over the past few months. My girlfriends amaze me! Their desire to provide for their children is no different than ours, but the obstacles are huge for them. Never before have they ever had a paycheck for more than about $5.00, they have no welfare system to fall back on if their children become sick in hard times. They are also faced with hard labor everyday just to survive. I admire their determination so much......Mothers are just mother no matter their race, color or creed......Only a mother would sacrifice what we do...only a mother.

Off Again

Honestly I thought my first trip to Africa would be my one and only. However, on that first trip I left something undone and I promised myself I would return to bring closure to a life long promise. Even though I had fulfilled that promise of not allowing anyone to die alone, I had to return a gift to a young African mother.

So on May 25, 2010 at 3:00am, TJ agreed to take me to the SLC International Airport to met the AILC Team. With 138 pound of supplies I pushed and pulled my way to the United counter to check in. It would take a car, a plane, and a bus to get us all to Nairobi and then on to Naivasha and the Rafiki Lodge. One of my favorite things about getting into Naivasha is a giraffe park and home of Karen Blixen, author of "Out of Africa." Each guest is greeted by Daisy the kissing giraffe, not something you see in Utah.

Whoa--what a LONG ride, the flight is twenty-three hours, but with the layovers in San Francisco and London it took us forty four hours to finally arrive on African soil. Not to mention two team members lost their passports, four members lost their luggage claims tickets and three member became ill during our travels.... At about forty two hours my patience were wearing thin, I really wanted to say for HELL sakes people get with the program, your mother isn't here to tend you! However, I didn't and probably best as I would be spending fourteen days with twenty six people I didn't really know.