
Saturday May 9, 2009
Arrived in Dakar without a hitch! There was a slight delay in Syracuse because our plane, prior to us boarding, hit a varmit on the runway. After a maintence inspection we were off. It was smooth sailing from there. We arrived in Dakar at 5am, quickly found Matt Paschal, loaded up the luggage and headed off for the 90 minute ride to Thies.
We began preparation for the clinic and met with the Thies church Pastors. Pastors Saliou and Kwashie both are very excited that the new Pastor for the church in Ndiadiane will be installed tomorrow morning during the church service in Thies. We are planning a three day village clinic starting on Monday along with three days of kids programs.
We also discussed progess in the village over the past 17 months. Everyone is very excited about where things are going. We also spent time in prayer for the coming days in the village that God would be glorified in all we do.
The Senegal away team
Sunday May 10, 2009
Greetings from Senegal!
This morning and afternoon was spent at church in Thies and meeting with church leaders to plan the next three days in the village. The church leadership expressed excitement as they watch God work among the people in Ndiadiane.
Unfortunately the new village pastor’s grandmother passed away so he could not make the church service. We are looking forward to meeting him tomorrow in Ndiadiane.
In the evening we organized medicines for the village medical clinic, supplies for the kids club, and got our gear ready for camping in the village for the next 3 days. After 2 days of meetings and organizing; we are ready to begin the village ministry!
We will be out of touch for the next three days as we will not have internet service. We look forward to sharing pictures and stories from the Village on Wednesday.
In His mighty power
The Senegal Away Team
Tuesday May 13, 2009
This is Matt writing tonight. I came home early tonight because it was my daughter Clarisa’s 10 year birthday, also my cell phone was dead and Mike and I both had run out of cash, but I’m happy to report that the team is really doing well in the village.
The first day is always crazy – there is so much work involved in order to set up camp and a medical clinic in a village. Some men in the village came out with their hoes and rakes to clear off a place for us to pitch our 3 big tents and 2 dome tents under a huge African tree behind the rural school building. Our vehicles are really packed to the gills. We unloaded 50lbs of rice, 20lbs of beef, 80 Liters of water, 3 large foldable tables, all of the personal duffle bags, medical supplies and game equipment.
It’s hard to understand how many people we have working together until you see everyone (30+) sit down for a mid-day meal. Along with Mike Rufo and the six women from Eastern Hills, there are at least 20 other Senegalese Christian brothers and sisters who join us every day including 4 pastors, 4 translators, 4 nurses, 4 kid’s ministry leaders, 2 cooks, a driver and a village elder. Despite our late start yesterday, the medical team was able to treat over 70 patients in 2 hours and afterwards Jenn, Rebecah (sp?) and Brenda worked with over 40 children at the kid’s club that first night.
We ate a late dinner around 9:30pm and sat around swapping stories with our Senegalese team members about how we met our spouses and marriage ceremonies in Senegal, because one of our translators was just married 2 months ago. The translators are all doing a wonderful job with the team. It has also been a joy to get to know the new pastor Mbaye Ndour and his wife Celestine. They have not completely relocated yet but are waiting until the school year is over to move their three kids (10 yr old son, 9 and 3 yr old daughters). This village is about 2 hours drive from where their parents and family currently lives.
Today, the second day in the village went a lot smoother. Michele, Robin and Kateri started seeing patients this morning before the Senegalese nurses arrived and by 5:30pm tonight they estimate that over 200 more people were treated in the clinic. Each family member signs their name on a registry and they call them in order. Please pray that there is enough time to see everyone who signs up tomorrow.
Early this morning, Matt Paschall went out to the regional capital of Fatick with 3 of the pastors to talk with the head director of WorldVision to get some wisdom on building quality wells and finding the right solutions for long-term healthy water supply. He is going to talk with the head of the Water Authority in the regional government to do a formal survey of the land and assist us with some pre-field assessment in the coming weeks. So this was time well-worth spent.
In the afternoon, Francois, the village leader showed us the land given by the government and rural community for the church to use and develop. It was great to walk the perimeter of this property and envision how God may use this to build a profitable agri-business with irrigated fields and fresh vegetables ready for harvest. There were actually several pools of standing water with cat tails and green bushes all around – something you don’t see in this sandy, desert terrain. We were told that this land was prime for growing crops because it was located in a dry lake bed that fills up each rainy season, but has rich soil. We prayed with the new pastor and thanked God for giving this land to the church to use for his glory.
The team has one more complete day out in the bush tomorrow and will have plenty of stories to share, but thank you for keeping us in your hearts and minds. We are tired, but feel energized each day. Your intercession on our behalf is making a difference.
Wednesday May 14, 2009
We have just returned from 3 days in Ndiadiane. The joint EHBC/Senegal Medical team saw over 200 patients on Wednesday for a total of over 475 patients in the 3 days. The joint team was very effective even though 3 languages were used (English, French, Serer) and the villagers had many medical needs. It was exciting to see the medical people consulting each other for the most effective treatment of various ailments, working together to provide the best treatment possible. Michele, Robin, and Kateri, with help from Jenn, Brenda, and Rebecca did an awesome job serving the people.
Our hearts were broken today as we saw the desperation of the villagers to receive medical care, including a young girl who was very sick with malaria. The villagers knew that this was the last day for medical clinic until next November. Yesterday we prayed for another young girl who has been deaf and mute for the past three years after an illness that she had.
Mike met with Francois (the lay minister in the village), Pastor Mbaye Ndour (the new village pastor who will be moving into N’diadiane at the end of June), Pastor Saliou and Matt with the translators to discuss the plans for the partnership for the remainder of this year. They discussed irrigation, plans for the church’s land, plans for a home for the new pastor and microfinance for a millet grinder to support the village church.
Jenn followed up with some of the women that we met in March. Her friend Mary Faye was integral in maintaining order amidst the chaos. She welcomed us into her home and visited with us. Guiniane Diuof, another friend of Jenn’s was so happy to see her. She has been paralyzed on her right side for six years and unable to speak. In March Jenn, Matt and some of the pastors and translators prayed with her and since that time she has been able to speak! We will continue to pray for further healing in her life. Many women asked to send greetings to the other women who visited them in March. The village women had great memories of the March womens trip and remembered each of the EHBC women that were part of the trip.
Many pictures are on the photo website, http:ehbc.shutterfly.com
In His mighty power
The Senegal Travel Team
Friday May 16, 2009
Hi Everyone
We apologize for the delay in our final update. Our trip ended in a whirlwind. After 3 days in the village, we were a bit tired and some were having a little tummy trouble. The next morning was busy with packing up our things and preparing for our Talibe boy clinic. We were definitely relying on God for strength and energy to get through this day. The clinic was held in a new building their marabout had built. It was a small concrete structure with a roof but no windows and unfortunately was very infested with mosquitos. (All of our medical supplies, bags, etc were covered in mosquitos whenever we went to retrieve something.) We treated about 50 people, including all 38 talibe boys and a few adults and daughters of the marabout. Seeing these boys is always the toughest part of visiting Senegal. Their eyes always show a lack of hope or joy. Their health was surprisingly good, except for badly decaying teeth, fungal skin infections and intestinal worms. We only treated one mild case of malaria, but I’m sure that will change once the rainy season comes. The Paschall’s hope is to provide a quarterly medical clinic for the boys. After finishing the clinic, we finished packing up our supplies, cleaned up, and enjoyed fellowship with the Paschall’s and Pastor Saliou. It was then time to head to the airport for our red eye flight. We arrived safely back in Syracuse Friday morning. Thank you so much to our Senegal home team. We couldn’t do any of this without your support! We frequently realized how dependent we were on God throughout this trip, and we’re thankful that He answered our prayers. He is doing a mighty work in Senegal.
The Senegal Travel Team – May 09