Sunday, September 05, 2010
Helping Christians Grow, Helping Grow Christians
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Mission to South Africa 2008Work Camp Team Reports
We've finally arrived! After two full days of traveling (3 hours to Dulles, 14 hours to S.A and another 2 hours to the Akkerlaan Guesthouse) we are all pretty tired! We were greeted at the "Jo-Burg" ( Johannesburg) airport by Deon Kitching and Jen Lisowski. Once we left the airport for Akkerlaan we all had a taste of the true South Africa. Scenes from our bus windows showed us what life is like here. People were walking along the highways and riding with eight people in a four seater car. It is definitely a culture shock for us but it will only help us to understand the difficult lives of these wonderful people.
Once we arrived in Akkerlaan we were greeted with beautiful rooms and a delicious meal. Another surprise waiting for us: three singers named Joseph, Thami and Johannes. They sang us beautiful songs before our meal and then joined us after for chicken over rice with vegetables. Now we are relaxing and playing games to wind down from our long journey. We are all having a blast and we miss our Hopewell family terribly! --Carly Ridge
Today was the beginning of a life changing journey at the Ikageng Daycare Center for the Aged. We began our work to improve the facility and to help them grow. We will be painting a fence, building a bathroom and adding on some storage space for their supplies. When we got there we were happy to find the elderly women singing and getting ready for a clothing sale that they have weekly. They sang us many songs and did a lovely job! The lyrics from the second song really stuck with me, "There is a race to be run, There is a victory to be won. Give me power every hour to go through. O Lord give me power every hour to go through." This is what Aunt Suzie has been basing her ministry on. She has not given up and has had to ask God to provide for her on more than one occasion. I know that this week will help her to expand her ministry and to give her hope for a better tomorrow.
Once we were done at our worksite we went to visit one of the local communities. I was shocked by what we saw. There were houses made out of metal sheets within five feet of each other for miles. People were walking around and coming home from school. The little kids would wave and run after our buses. We received friendly smiles from almost everyone we passed. They are surrounded by devastation and fields of burning garbage yet they are still grateful for what they have and find it in their hearts to wave to complete strangers who are much more fortunate than them. I am really excited to see the changes that will be made in us and others over the next week and I think we are in for a big journey!
"We will never give up. We will never give up in the middle of the road until we reach our goal."
-Elderly women of the Ikagen Daycare Center for the Aged
Read more about Ikageng Daycare Center for the Aged
--Carly Ridge
Another day in the lovely country of South Africa! We worked a lot more today and got a lot accomplished. Even though our building plans keep on changing, we are all staying on task and not getting side-tracked...except when children come to visit! There were three little kids on the other side of the fence this afternoon and some of us couldn't resist visiting with them. I could tell that the kids were just as excited to see us as we were to see them!
After a long, productive work day we cleaned up and then went to a restaurant named Garnish. The food was wonderful and we had a great time! When we came back to Akkerlaan we had a devotional given by Heather Collete about giving thanks. She used Psalm 92 and talked about how she was so thankful to God that she could come on this trip and that the money was provided for her. I know that everyone on this trip is extremely grateful that we were given such a wonderful opportunity!
--Carly Ridge
Today we attended a church service for the students at a boarding school in Potchefstroom. The energy that came from their dancing and singing is still overwhelming! After the service we talked to some of the students about how their schools work. Their teachers are very strict and they have mandatory study halls (where you actually have to study!). They were really fun to hang out with and talk to.
After church we went back to Akkerlaan to get our bags so we could drive to Pilanesburg for the Game Park Adventure. At the end of a two and a half hour bus ride, we arrived at the game park. Green monkeys and baboons were running around like they owned the place! On our night time game drive we saw a warthog, giraffes, zebras, rhinos, hippos, elephants, impalas, spring bok, an owl, and we followed a male lion for at least a mile! Our driver, Themba (meaning hope in Afrikaans), took us to a traditional african braai (barbecue). We ate lamb, kudu, steak and many other african dishes as we sat under the stars in the savannah.
Courtney Wilkinson gave the devotional on how God has a plan for everything, and that we are part of His plan to help Potchefstroom. The rest of the week we will be working at Aunt Suzie's and playing with the children at the AIDS hospice.
--Carly Ridge
Having survived two close encounters with the King of the Jungle - African lions walking right by our open-air jeep! - the mission continues, assured that God is with us. The work camp group has already done some marvelous design and actual construction on a new shower facility and storage area at Aunt Suzie’s Center for the Elderly (Ladies), plus a good bit of fence-fixing and fence-painting.
You should be so proud of your Hopewell team! They are working hard, eating courageously, getting along well, not always sleeping well - but Africa is not for sissies. Tonight Deon and I left them behind in J-burg as the two of us headed south to Cape Town to meet with Dr. Kevin Dean’s students from West Chester University on Tuesday. Pray for continued productivity, safety, and personal enjoyment by the Potchefstroom team. And pray for safe travel for the incoming Mission-Vision group which departs from Hopewell on Thursday and will be met in the Cape Town airport on Friday night by Deon, Shauna, Jen, and me. (By the way, Jen looks terrific - and is doing fantastic work on your behalf. I am so proud of her and you should be, too.)
For now, from way BEYOND THE WALLS...
--Pastor Steve
Aunt Suzie's daycare center is really coming along! We have almost finished all of the brick work and now we have to install the bathroom. There is a big fence around the property that we are going to decorate with painted flowers and vegetables to highlight their garden. The women plant all of their own vegetables and then use them in soups. Today was a real treat for them because a woman stopped by with a huge fish for their lunches. Aunt Suzie and the other women were very grateful for this gift!
About eight of us headed over to the Promosa AIDS Hospice to visit with the children in the morning. When we arrived, all of them jumped on us and wanted us to play with them on their playground. One little girl I played with will probably be a hairdresser when she grows up! She played with my hair for at least half an hour and was singing the whole time. Another girl who spoke English, Afrikaans and Tswana was swinging when she started singing "You Raise Me Up" in English. While playing with these children it was easy to forget that they are living with HIV/AIDS. You don't want to believe that it is true. Prayer is the answer to everything and I hope you will pray for these children!
--Carly Ridge
My return to the Cape is a stark reminder of the two South Africas: absolute beauty and charm on the one hand, a delightful place for an American tourist to visit!….seemingly side-by-side with incredible poverty and distress on the other - an unsolvable dilemma for any person of compassion simply to experience and share.
My time here in the south was spent with the West Chester University students and faculty, lingering once again at one of my favorite spots in the world: the Nederberg Primary School. These beautiful children and their solidly qualified teachers teach me about resilience and joy in the midst of embarrassingly primitive conditions. Today from my knees on the playground, I asked a group of just-beginning-to-speak-English second graders to say, “The sun is shining.” Instead of words, in response I got toothy smiles and four kisses on the cheek. Clearly they didn’t understand; clearly the Son was shining.
Up at the northern work camp site, it is reported by Deon that the Hopewell over-achievers (no longer burdened by the presence of their skill-less Senior Pastor) have already put a roof onto the new storage shed and tied in the new bathroom plumbing to the old. The surprising and truly encouraging development is that some of the white folks from the local community, befriended by these Hopewellers, have themselves made personal appearances and meaningful contributions to the project - something which never would have happened without the spiritual magnetism of your church witnessing in this place. God is working in mysterious ways here in Africa.
Soon I will welcome the Mission-Vision tourists/pilgrims. Again I ask that you pray for their safe travel, and for their openness to having their lives both wrecked and recovered because of their visit to this land.
From far BEYOND THE WALLS...
Pastor Steve
Day 7 Update from Potchefstroom
Another day at the worksite. About half of us went to the AIDS hospice to play with the children again while the rest stayed behind. With so many expert builders with us, I am sure that we can get everything done. The eight people who visited the kids had a lot of fun and took many photos (which you will see when we get back!). When we were finished with our day, Aunt Suzie and the elderlies sang to us again and were so full of joy and thankfulness.
Surita, a woman bound to live in a wheelchair for the rest of her life, came to visit us after our dinner. Injured in an auto accident 17 years ago, she talked about the challenge of being in a wheelchair and how at first she thought it was a punishment but later realized it was a gift. Surita has started a home for people who are in wheelchairs and need assistance to take care of themselves called Moving Wheels. The home opened six weeks ago and right now she is living in it with one other person and someone to take care of them. She really needs our prayers right now because money is tight and they hope to buy the house they are renting by the end of the year. Surita seemed very motivated and excited to be helping other people with physical disadvantages.
Once devotions were done a few of us visited a coffee shop near the local university. Our waitress, also named Carli, was asking a lot of questions like "Where are you from? What are you doing here?" When we told her we were on a mission trip, Carli shared that she too goes on mission trips to Mozambique. One thing she said that really stuck with me was, "It's really neat how you grow closer to God when you do work for others."
--Carly Ridge
Many of us visited the AIDS hospice today and we had a blast with the children! The worksite at Ikageng Daycare Center looks great and we are close to being finished. Tomorrow is our last work day and we are going to sing to the ladies just as they have for us many times.
Before devotions tonight, which were given by Glenn Wadel and Tony Brantzeg, a young man named Meyer Conradie came to talk to us about Hope Village. Hope Village is his vision from God that will help South African children who have been orphaned by AIDS grow up in a safe and healthy environment. He is hoping to build one hundred houses in the first stage of his plan to house the orphans and their caretakers. Meyer told us all about how he and his fiancé have really been feeling God's call to create a ministry such as this one. With prayers and motivation, I am sure he will achieve his goals!
--Carly Ridge
I'm so sad that we're leaving! Today was so emotional and wonderful that none of us want to leave! But of course we can't wait to see all of you. This morning we had a "closing ceremony" with the elderlies and they gave us presents. They all donated money to buy the youth pencil holders and the adults soap dispensers. It was so cute! We gave them pillow cases with crosses inside of them and they were so grateful. The elderlies sang us songs in Tswana and we sang them Lord I Lift Your Name On High. It was very hard to watch them give us all that they have. I know that no one will forget today for the rest of their lives.
At the AIDS hospice we played with the kids one last time. I think they were even more rambunctious than the first day we visited them! It was very sad playing with them knowing that some of them may not see adulthood.
When the end of the day came the elderlies sang to us again and gave us another present. Aunt Suzie stayed up until midnight baking cookies for our flight. We were all teary eyed. When we drove away for the last time I looked back at the work we've done and the lives we've touched. Our lives have been equally touched by these wonderful people. God had a plan for us on this trip and we all hope we have fulfilled it.
"There is a race to be run, There is a victory to be won. Give me power every hour to go through. O Lord give me power every hour to go through." Elderlies of Ikageng Daycare Center for the Aged
--Carly Ridge
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 South Africa Missionary
 Jen Lisowski, formerly assistant youth director, has felt a strong calling toward mission in South Africa since first traveling there with a Hopewell team in 2006. She has been in South Africa since early January of this year working closely with several of our ministry partners.
If you are interested in keeping up with Jen's mission work in South Africa, check out her WEEKLY BLOG. |