Experiencing Sudan

Thoughts on time in Sudan by Lahash Traveler Caleb Brown

As you enter into South Sudan you are bombarded with an entourage of emotions. You see the bombed out homes, land mines and burned vehicles; one cannot help but think of the insane struggles that these people have faced, trekking uncountable miles with almost nothing to reach "safety". As you continue on, another feeling overtakes you; seeing the beautiful land stretching far out in any direction, you think that, "this must be God's land," for the beauty and majestic nature is only something that his hands could have created. And at any point that you come across a group of children, their innocent joy will lift your spirit beyond the war, poverty, hatred and injustice that has long plagued Sudan.


My time here has been unexplainable, there is only experiencing to understand. I have been stretched to exhaustion, pushed to the emotional breaking point time and time again, seen birth and felt death, danced with elation, sang glories to God, cried tears of pain and tears of joy, prayed as if it were a last resort, rejoiced in the opportunity for healing, cursed the system and injustice, questioned the practices, learned about life, and feared the future. Sudan will not let you be a bystander; she pulls you into the mix with disregard to skin color, social class or religious views. As soon as you step foot into her realm, you are at the mercy of her will.


I thank God for allowing me to be here, more specifically to be in the middle of all the change that is taking place; I'll update you on some of these happenings. Early last month, the Charlotte Baby's home was opened to the enjoyment of the 19 babies that we currently have. The project was initiated by Glenn Winter, a lawyer from the UK. By mid November the boy's homes will be finished and house almost thirty young boys. The buildings were supported by Fritz Brown, a businessman from the US. We recently were given more land by the Episcopal Church of Sudan (ECS), who generously allowed us to take over a large piece of property. This was absolutely necessary given the upcoming projects and daily growing number of children.

We have four projects in the works; they include: the tailoring building (John and Elizabeth Harrelson & International Teams Canada), two girl's dormitories, a dispensary (The Ross Foundation), and a nursery school. God has continually been providing faithful servants to come alongside the children and offer a hand of help. We have also had positive movement in the care for the lepers; John and Julie Hamer from Canada have provided positive direction and support in reviving the leper colony in Mogiri. With their help and our efforts to reestablish the flow of medicine to the lepers, we believe that it's possible to end leprosy in the Kajo Keji County. Our farm and agriculture project has also taken positive strides. We were approached by Joshua Machinga, a man from Kenya who runs a biodiversity project and was interested in training us in their practices. We currently have a representative there (Edwin Angote) who will bring that knowledge back and help cultivate our farming expertise.

God is great and has mighty plans in store for the children and our community. Let us continue to stand together as a family and push for opportunities as the children grow to be young men and women of God.

More Dodoma Children need sponsors

Our partners in Dodoma have made 29 more children available to sponsor! These are kids living in Tanzania's capital city who are primarily vulnerable due to AIDS and poverty. Many are orphaned or living with guardians.

Sponsoring these children gives them hope in life. Their poor backgrounds often mean that they have little access to health care, nutrition, school fees, and community support. Many times they will drop out of school and begin caring for parents who are sick or begin working to help support the family. By choosing to support the kids, you enable the church in Dodoma to give them a second chance in life by providing the following:

• School uniforms, shoes, and school fees - so that the children can continue with their education and future. The kids also receive tutoring support at the local church in the afternoons.
  
• Food - many family units will receive food support to help with HIV care and the nutrition of the children. The kids also have a meal on Friday served to them.
• Family visits - your support will enable the staff at the Dodoma church to make home visits caring for families and ensuring the child is relieving proper care.
• Medical care - visits to the hospital and access to medicine when needed.
  
• Community - The kids get together for games and songs each week at the church.
  
• Spiritual Development - the kids get a chance to receive teaching, prayer, and mentoring from the church staff.

If you would like to sponsor one of these kids, please click on over to our Dodoma sponsorship page and choose a child.

We'll send out a packet to you with the information on your child, a photo, and then you'll be able to correspond with the child throughout the year.

Dr. Ron Sider Poverty Talk

Dr. Ron Sider spoke recently here in Portland, Oregon on the issue of Poverty and specifically on God's call to care for the vulnerable. His book Rich Christians In An Age of Hunger is now in its 5th revision.

Babies!

Susan Tabia in Sudan has seen the need for a Babies home for many years. With her 3 orphan homes, she had a limited staff and limited funding which meant caring for babies
was not possible.
Last year a new friend contacted us from the U.K. to help construct such a home and keep it open. The Charlotte babies home is now open, and Susan just sent the photo above of the infants and toddlers. Please pray for the kids and the staff as they make this transition in care this year.

Sudanese Baby Home now open!

The brand new babies home in Southern Sudan just opened! The St. Bartholomew's orphanage had been accepting children under the age of 3 for several months now, and now that the babies home is complete they were able to move in!