Posted by christine, February 13, 2009
The following is an update from Living Hope Community Centre near Cape Town, South Africa, which is a facility Mocha Club helps support for those infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS.
Living Hope hosted more than a dozen Christmas parties in December, with each event reflecting the unique personality of
the community it honored. Guests included Living Hope staff, home-based caregivers and clients, and children in Masiphumelele, Ocean View, Muizenberg/Capricorn and Red Hill. There were also
celebrations for the staff of Living Hope Capri, the staff and clients of
the Health Care Centre, and the staff and clients of Living Grace.
Adult guests dined on a hearty breakfast or lunch, played games, and
heard a moving presentation of the Ray Boltz song “Thank You (For
Giving to the Lord),” More than 1,500 children attended the afternoon
parties, where they enjoyed food, games, prizes, singing and dancing,
face painting and inflatable bounce houses. All guests went home with a special gift package of hygiene products.
The Life Skill Educators planned the children’s parties for their respective communities. The Masi party alone
drew more than 800 children and featured bounce houses and freshly popped popcorn. In Ocean View, the festivities
included water slides and rides on four-wheel all-terrain vehicles. Capricorn featured a carnival theme, complete with
clown performances by Life Skills Educators and bobbing for prizes in a juice- and jelly-filled pool. Red Hill’s party took place on
Scarborough Beach, where kids held relay races and waded into the chilly waters of the Atlantic. Every party was an
unforgettable experience for the children and a tangible expression of Christ’s love by the staff members who serve them.
Much joy, laughter and gratitude was evident throughout the week,
reflecting the widespread impact that Living Hope has on the people of the Cape Peninsula.
Posted by marisa, February 4, 2009
In Africa, a little goes a long way, and it’s so easy to help. Just ask Jessica, who recently lead her church in a make change campaign. They printed out our “Spare Change to Make Change” labels, placed them on cups, and passed them out to the church to make collections. Throw in some information about where that money is going on a powerpoint, and 4 weeks later — $1000 was raised!
The money Jessica’s church raised will go to fund our various education projects around Africa.
One of our current projects is the elementary school we’re building in Kibera, Kenya. We also have a primary school in progress at the Village of Hope in Gulu, Uganda.
Thanks to campaigns like Jessica’s, we are able to fund these projects and give an education to the future leaders of these communities.
Posted by christine, February 3, 2009
Here’s a story we wanted to share from Brad Phillips of Persecution Project, one of the organizations we’re partnered with in Sudan. Our MC Director and MC Sponsor Dave Barnes traveled to the village of War Lang, Sudan in December.
One of the Greatest Gifts I’ve Ever Received…
While we were in War Lang, a boy led in a donkey carrying a young man.
The man’s name is Maqueng Deng Mayang. We previously met him at the end of our August outreaches. He is crippled by polio. River blindness took his eyesight. At that time, we were awaiting our flight back to Nairobi, so we could only pray for him and give him a tent and some food.
When we returned to Jach last month, Maqueng came back to greet us, say thank you, pray for us and ask us to pray for him. We also learned of his urgent need for a donkey. When I found out that one could be purchased for only $75, I gave him $100, along with some food and medicine and thought I would not see him again until my next trip.
But there he was again. Riding his new donkey into War Lang.
The trip took almost 2 hours by Land Rover. It took Maqueng at least five or six hours by donkey.
Maqueng had ridden all that way to present me with the most pathetic looking chicken I have ever seen. Even more incredible than his wilderness trek was that he spent the little he had left after buying the donkey on a gift because he was so filled with gratitude to God. He acted as if he was the most blessed man in the world. It was the most humbling thing I ever experienced.
Posted by christine,
On November 19th, 2008, our team in Kibera, Kenya broke ground on our Job Creation project, the Emmanuel Vocational-Technical School. This is a unique school in the Kibera slums of Nairobi, Kenya which will provide job training to many youth in the area. 180 new high school students that may not be in school now will receive vocational training.
We wanted to share the progress of the construction, as the future students’ dreams are soon to be realized, thanks to YOU!
So far, they have completed the foundation work as you can see from these photos. Our team reported back that “…it has not been easy. It involved a lot of steel bending as you can see in the pictures, again the place is swampy hence a lot of water during digging.”
We’ll keep you updated on the progress and look forward to the day when the school can be opened!
Posted by christine,
Recently at the Mocha Club office in Nashville, TN, we welcomed a 7th grade class from the nearby Brentwood Academy who came to volunteer for the day. They did an awesome job helping stuff tshirt orders and other fun tasks! Here’s a poem that one of the students, Lexie Harvey, wrote after serving Africa with us that day. And here’s another student poem to share…
“America CAN Help” by Abbie Whitehurst
There are starving kids in Africa,
Yet kids turn their noses up at their dinner in the United States.
There are families in Africa that go hungry every night,
But families in America eat three helpings each meal.
AMERICA CAN HELP.
If every American gave up a Starbucks trip once a week,
There would not be as many aching stomachs in Africa.
AMERICA CAN HELP.
People in the United States don’t realize how far ONE dollar can go.
If every American sponsored one child,
Enabling them to go to school and eat,
Africa would be a better place and not as poverty-stricken.
AMERICA CAN HELP–
And it is about time that we do.
