Video walkthrough of the new Lahash office

I spent some time this morning at the new Lahash office space doing a little walk-through for all who are interested. 

We are holding a cleaning + repairing party on June 5 and 6. For all who want to be a part of local Lahash service opportunities, this is a perfect time to jump in. Email Leisha Adams for how you can fit in.

Clothes for the kids in Dodoma

This past week the church community in Dodoma purchased new clothes for all of the kids in the Lahash sponsorship program. They also celebrated with Joshua Mwandisi who was one of the members of our sponsorship program. With the sponsorship we were able to get him through his teacher's college and he just graduated and got a job with the government! Pretty exciting for him.

From Dodoma in 2009

Our new office space!

Guess what? Lahash will be moving soon to a new office building!

Our friends at Berean Baptist Church recently voted to let Lahash use a home on their grounds for our offices. We are so thrilled about this kind gift and are grateful to God for providing an answer to our prayers over the past year!

The inside of this home is in pretty bad disrepair - lots of junk accumulated and the walls and floors need some love given to them. So if you - your family, church group, or friends would like to pitch in - send us an email to info@lahash.net

From New Office Upgrade!

Walking Beside Them - a Chat with Eric

DAN: You are on your third trip to East Africa to visit the vulnerable children of Sudan. What keeps you coming back?

ERIC: That is an easy question... God. Many years ago God placed these children in my heart. He has made it clear that I need to be their voice back in the U.S. To remind people that helping your neighbor is not just about the guy/gal next door, but also those who live far away. It has been an honor for me to travel here to do what God wants me to do.

DAN: There are nearly 200 kids that Susan Tabia and her team care for. Which one of the stories of the kids stands out to you and why?

ERIC: The stories that stand out are those who come to the orphanage sick and on the verge of dying. Through the love and care of the staff, these children are alive today and growing strong.

One name that comes to mind is Seme, a young boy here at AGO who was so sick that his stomach was swollen and he couldn't eat. He is now 9 and runs around here like any normal kid.

DAN:People around the world are worried about war breaking out again in Sudan. What is the feeling on the ground of the Sudanese toward the next 3 years?

ERIC: It seems to me that the refugees are not concerned. THe U.N. is moving back truck loads of refugees throughout the week back to Sudan. We have seen many, many trucks going North. My concern is that Adjumani might turn into a ghost town.

DAN: Do people assume that there will be peace - or are they ready to face whatever comes - as long as they are home?

ERIC: I did talk to many people and they think that the Peace will hold. I also think they are ready to fight back if it doesn't. The attitude is they are ready to defend instead of run.

DAN: Our brothers and sisters in Sudan and Uganda have face terrible hardships, sorrow, and death. What do you learn about hope from them?

ERIC: One thing I am taught everytime I come here is to be humble. They truly are representations of what a Christian should be. They do not whine for things, or complain of not having, they look towards God for all their needs. Even in the worse of times they STILL praise God's name. When something is given to them, they praise and thank God. It truly makes me see the importance of being content with what you have.

DAN: You mentioned that God has led you into being a voice for these children. What would you like to say to the world on their behalf?

ERIC: These children are not looking for handouts. They are happy to have whatever God provides. Although monies are needed to help them with education, food, etc. They are happy that there are people who care and love them. We need to step out in faith an show them love, encouragement and lift them up. Just as God walks beside us, we need to walk beside them

From Summer 09 Travelers!

Our Last Day At Amazing Grace

Today marks our last day at Amazing grace in northern Uganda. Steve, Christine and I will head back to Kampala. Eric, the Amazing grace advocate will remain for the next one week before he heads back home. We have had great time with the Children here. They always sing the best and you can see the love of God on thier faces and the big smile they always have. This evening Steve encouraged the children and you could see how keen they were. ofcourse they are sad that we are leaving but they are always happy that we are there for them. They always ask anyone that visits them to pray for them when they go back to thier homes.

Our Time In Sudan

Getting stuck on your way to the north is kind of a usual trend. The other day when we were travelling, we got stuck and we had to be pulled out by this monster. We are kind of used to this. The good news is that the roads are being constructed and this will make it easy for people to travel North of Uganda.

The other good news is that the roads in Sudan are way much better than they were before.From the Sudaneese Border to as far as Mogiri, this is how the road looks like.

There are alot of development in Sudan, we only need to fast and pray that it will not be destroyed again especially during the referendum in 2011.
We had a wonderful time with the kids and the staff in Sudan.

Also during our time in sudan we bought some food, Soap, cooking oil and salt for the people living with leprosy which will be distributed to them soon.This is one of the group that is negleceted by the government.Over $2000 was donated for the food.

We are now at Amazing grace orphanage in Uganda. The Kids here are always wonderful. Today we had a competition on which bed is clean and well spread. The first and the second contender got a prize. Eric and Steve replaced some mosquito nets for the ones that were worn out.

Lahash Tanzania video up!

Lahash trip to Tanzania - 2009 from Lahash International on Vimeo.

Our team went to Dodoma, Tanzania in the spring of 2009. We partnered with the Mennonite church in serving the vulnerable community (those impacted by disease and corruption - living in poverty). We were amazed at miracles taking place in that community and are glad to share our experiences with you! For more info visit: www.Lahash.net

Shirts and Dresses for Orphans

About six or seven months ago I was contacted by a woman named Darlene who asked me if any of our partners would appreciate the gift of hand-customized shirts and dresses for each of the children in the program. Having seen first hand how exciting it is for the children to receive brand new clothes (usually they get donated or second hand clothing), I jumped at the chance.

So far Darlene has donated 30 shirts and dresses for the children at Amazing Grace Orphanage, which will be delivered in September, and 70+ shirts and dresses for the children at Grace and Healing Ministry in Dodoma. The Tanzania program received their clothes from our friend, Leah Davis, who is visiting the program for a few months.

Here are Asha and Edna and Maria with Mama Bette modeling their lovely pink outfits.

Photogenic Stephano hams it up in his new shirt!

She sews the stars on the boys' shirts and hearts on the girls' dresses to personalize each one. I know we'll be seeing this shirts in many, many photos in the future! Darlene has done this for a number of other orphanages throughout the world. Send her some encouragement to keep up the good work over at her new website: http://www.dressesfororphans.org/. Thank you Darlene!!

Travel North

After three days in Kampala, the team has finally left for Amazing grace orphanage. The land cruiser that they are using had some mechanical problem which had to be fixed before the long travel.They are expecetd to be at Amazing grace today and then travel to Sudan tomorrow. We did the parking at three in the morning and they left at four. Christine and I will be travelling by bus tommorow morning to Sudan.

Lahash on Twitter

Follow us on Twitter - we're now posting life as it happens!

Eric and Steve Arrive

Our team from New Mexico Eric and Steve have just arrived in Entebbe-Uganda after long hours of travel by plane. We have just applied for our Sudanese Visas and as soon as they are out, we will head to Northern Uganda at amazing grace and later on to Southern Sudan St Bartholomew’s. We will be focusing mainly on Amazing grace. Most of the buildings are in bad condition and one of the roofs was blown off by the wind. Some money was raised by Eric Chapman and friends from Portland for the renovation process. Please pray for the team as we travel and the work that we will be doing. Pray also for good health. God bless you all.

Leah Davis in Dodoma

Leah Davis is one of our travelers this summer living and working with the church in Dodoma. She's been adjusting to the new culture and language these past couple of weeks. She's also been out on home visits with some of the Home Based Care providers.

She'll be living there in Dodoma for 3 1/2 months. You can email her or follow her on blog during those months.

From Summer 09 Travelers!

Leah also brought a whole set of new creative shirts for the kids in the sponsorship program. These were designed and hand created by a contact here in the United States!