Cattlekeepers

Although I was brought up in rural Suffolk - it has taken me 33 years and several thousand miles before I get the chance to milk a cow.

Thank you Sheck!!

As you can see having milked the cows we then stopped for a cup of tea - I am assured by Henry (Sheck's brother) that the milk we used for the tea was the same that we had just got from the cow!

Emily

Emily is a lady in the local hospital in Rukungiri. She has heart failure and high blood pressure, it is also probable that she is in kidney failure as a reult of the medication for her heart condition.

Emily needed some tests to confirm her kidney condition and also to test her for AIDS. If AIDS is confirmed then she is entitled to free treatment but her medical bills are soaring and there is no way she can afford them. The tests she needed could not be carried out until she had paid some of her bills.

Mission Direct was able to both pay her outstanding bills and the cost of the tests she needed - all this came to less than £50, yet to most of the population this is an impossible amount of money to raise.

"Ann Open Door" -2

This is Elijah Steven. He is about 6 weeks old and abandoned by his mother. It is unlikely that his family will ever be traced. Babies are usually abandoned by unmarried mothers whose families are too poor to feed another mouth. Elijah was lucky - he was found by someone who knew about "An Open Door" - some children are not so lucky.

To see more of "An Open Door"s work look at thier website on: http://www.anopendoor.org/

"An Open Door"

This picture is some of team 2 playing with the children from this project. "An Open Door" takes children off the streets (mainly boys), rehabilitates and them and tries to re-house them with parents, family or fostor carers. Finding foster/ adoptive parents is hard as families have many children of their own and in addition they often look after other relatives whose parents have died. Sometimes children cannot be found homes and they stay at "An Open Door" until they complete their education.

Team 2

Team 2 have safely returned (with much less hassle than they arrived - having spent 24 hours in Cairo and arriving here 30 hours late going via Nairobi).

As well as doing some building and painting at the school, they were able to run a holiday club for 100 orphans. As well as teaching bible stories, verses and songs they were able to pray (and play!) with the children. I think Colin had more fun than the children did!!




As a result of running the club, the children were well fed for the week - this would not have happened if they had gone to their homes or guardians.

In addition, they left clothes, shoes, sheets and school equipment for use at the Modern Primary School.
"..when did we see you hungry and feed you?...when did we see you naked and clothe you? He replied .. whatever you did for the least of these you did for me" Matthew 25:37-40


THANK YOU TEAM 2

Rukungiri Growers Orphams and Disabled Childrens Project - 5

Learning Life Skills for Brain Damaged Children - Evas is an occupatrional therapist. She visits villages to teach parents how to help their children who have cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus, stroke, epilepsy...... She teaches them washing and feeding skills initially with the overall aim to teach them a skill that will help the family eg a child with only one useful hand can be taught to use a knitting machine. Learning aids are in short supply and are expensive so only the most needy children recieve them. A very few are set to the countries' only special needs school in Kampala but school fees here are very high.

The picture shows Evas teaching a parent how to stretch the child's muscles to prevent contracture. The parent will then do this at home and attend clinic again in a month for the next exercise. The group is good support for the parents as well as the child as many parents do not know anyone else with a disabled child.

Rukungiri Growers Orphams and Disabled Childrens Project - 4

Deaf School Support - This part of the project pays fees for very poor children with severe learning difficulties to attend the school with specialist teachers. The salary of a cook and matron are paid as well as food, firewood, water, school materials, boarding school fees for secondary children.
The pictures show the team playing with the children and also their joy at the presents we gave.

Rukungiri Growers Orphans and Disabled Childrens Project (RGODCP) - 3

Surgical Camps -
The project organises paediatric orthopaedic and plastic surgery camps for children with cleft lip/ palate, tumour, cancer, hydrocephalis and heart problems. The project organises the camps and pays for surgery, scans, lab tests, rehabilitation, transport, food and accomodation.

The team has paid for 3 children to have heart surgery and for a child to have a course of radiotherapy following an operation to remove a tumour.

Rukungiri Growers Orphans and Disabled Childrens Project (RGODCP) - 2

Club foot -

The club foot clinic uses manipulation rather than surgery to help babies born with club foot. In the UK if manipulation does not work the child is operated on at months - her the programme takes 1 year. The feet are manipulated and put into plaster casts every week for 5 weeks and then the child wears special boots for 9 months - if this is not successful then an operation may be needed. However, gemerally manipulation does work and it is obviously much cheaper for these families.

The picture shows Jones manipulating and casting the feet.

Rukungiri Growers Orphans and Disabled Childrens Project (RGODCP) - 1

This local project supports orphans and disabled children - it has a 5-fold purpose. Chilli-growing for income, club foot programme, surgical camps, deaf school suport and "life-skills" clinic.
Chilli growing - parents and guardians of orphans and diaabled children grow chillis. This is a high cash crop which is not used locally but is transported to Kampala. 85% of the profit goes to the grower and the rest is used for transportation. Growers are encouraged to use the income for school fees and materials, roopfing, medicine etc. If a disabled child is given an aid ie wheelchair, commode, the profit can be used for maintenance.
The picture shows Tim and Pam chilli-picking.

New Website

MISSION DIRECT

Joining Hands Across the World

The Mission Direct website has been up dated.

Please follow the link on this blog (just to your right!!) and have a little look at what we are up to and what we stand for.

End of team 1

We are exhausted - however, there has been so much achieved this week - here are the edited highlights:
- 2 classrooms are built up to one storey
- we have taught art or games in 8 classes
- some children have had individual music lessons and they will be able to teach others
- we have taught knitting at the vocational training centre
- we showed a film of Luke's gospel and about 30 people were saved
- Tim & Nic have bought a cow, Den a goat and Marina a chicken!!
- we have had some fun with Billy and his band and at Bunyonyi

Needless to say we are all shattered. However, despite the hard work the team was great fun - a hard act to follow.