2009 Christmas Giving Guides

The weather is getting colder here in Portland and we are beginning to see our breath in the mornings. This means that in a couple of months Christmas will be upon us. Our East African partners continue their struggle to care for and love the people in their communities affected by war, disease, and corruption. We've created a great little Giving Guide this year with 8 options of ways to share with our global family in need. You can check out these options online or you can also email info@lahash.net to get 1 or more copies mailed to you.

Two blogs to mention

Two of our volunteers are in East Africa blogging right now, and the links below will take you to their latest posts:

Leah Burkholder is writing over at LiveJournal and has some good insights into her time in Dodoma.

Jeff Angote is volunteering at Amazing Grace for a couple of months and is posting updates on the Amazing Grace blog.

Head on over and leave some comments and follow their posts! Peace.

Back from Sudan - and full of thanks

We rolled into town today after another long journey from Sudan to Kampala, Uganda. We were on a quick tour of our northern partners who care for Sudanese kids and vulnerable widows. We were thanked over and over for our work there, and all those thanks go to you, our community that enables these trips and generosity, and to God for giving us life and hope to share.

In the picture above, Casey Schilperoort is filming at the Nsambya children's home. Casey and I have been shooting with a couple of HD cameras and capturing the courageous lives of these kids and staff. It's unbelievable what some people have lived through - and yet at the end of the day they can smile, dance, and give thanks to God.

(Above: the kids at Nsambya children's home)

(Above: Moi George getting his art set given by Catherine Haygood)

From Conference2009

(Above: Enjoying a night of lanterns, dancing, and laughing at Amazing Grace).

Only 6 weeks until the Lahash Banquet!

We rejoice that the fundraising banquet has been coming together well! We’ve been busy meeting with tables hosts and sponsors, finding businesses to lend financial support, and collecting video footage in Uganda and Sudan. While we still need 10 table sponsors, we rejoice that we are over 70% funded for the event! We admit to being amazed by how well the planning process has been coming together, and thank our Father for guiding us through this new territory.

The banquet is 6 weeks away, and we’re still looking for people to become involved in various stages of the event. If you interested in sponsoring, hosting, or attending the banquet, please contact Mandi (mlstonehouse@gmail.com). We are also looking for volunteers the night of the event for the following activities:

• Greeters/Ushers: Greet arriving guests and help with check-in; collect donation baskets at the end of the evening.
• Seating Coordinator: Oversee guest registration and help unregistered guests obtain seats; solve seating and guest problems.
• Set-up Team: Arrive early to set-up and decorate the banquet room.
• Tear-down Team: Stay after the dinner to tear down from the event.

If you would like to serve in any of these ways, please contact our Banquet Director, Karin (karinrosain@gmail.com). We are so grateful that people have come alongside the planning team in prayer. If you would like to receive periodic updates about ways that you can be prayerfully supporting the event, please contact Dana (dbertemann@hotmail.com).

Thank you for your continued support. We are so excited to watch as the banquet comes together!

The Lahash Staff Rides Again! (Update 2 of 2)

Early Tuesday morning (a bit too early for me!), we boarded a Zawadi Bus for Adjumani, Uganda, the site of Amazing Grace Orphanage. Reflecting back on some of the earlier trips to Amazing Grace, we were impressed with how smooth the roads were, the cleanliness and timeliness of the bus, and no breakdowns! (If we did endorsements, we would highly endorse Zawadi…wait, I think I just did...) At the same time that improved roads and transportation speak of recovering communities in Northern Uganda, the camps of people displaced by the LRA and the remaining Sudanese refugees are a reminder of the volatile and violent history of this place.

Arriving at Amazing Grace is always like coming home. It has been ten months since I (Leisha) was last here, and while some things have changed – a wonderful new compound manager named Lupai, and a wonderful new building to replace the one that was damaged last spring – some things remain sadly the same. There are still difficulties feeding the children a balanced diet, given the food prices increasing in recent months, and many of the tukuls where the children live are in desperate need of disrepair. Due to some gifts from the communities of our friends the Cremisinos and Ashley Eggerts, there will soon be construction of new latrines for the children, which will be a huge blessing.

As the staff of Lahash, Dan, Casey, Edwin, and I are relishing this opportunity to travel together, and see our individual gifts complement one another in various projects. Having Edwin’s wife and brother and Dan’s wife along is a huge help as we prepare sponsor letters, Christmas greetings, and various banquet-related materials, do video interviews of many of the staff and children, and conduct meetings with Lupai and his staff members.

Tomorrow we will be heading up to St. Bartholomew’s Orphanage to visit a few friends briefly. We will only be there for one day, just long enough to visit Leya Poni, a woman with leprosy who is dying, and do one or two video interviews and greet some friends. We will be returning to Amazing Grace by way of Metu Secondary, where the older children from Amazing Grace are boarding.

We appreciate your prayers for safety on the roads and that we will be an encouragement to the staff and children of IWASSRU.

I say “En-sahm-bee-yah”, you say “Zambia” (Update 1 of 2)

On Monday we got to spend a good part of the day at Nsambya Children’s Home with Mama Susan and the children who live there. We distributed gifts from sponsors, as well as custom embroidered shirts and dresses for the kids made by our friend “Grandma C.” in New Mexico. The kids were so delighted with their new clothes, which come with little cards stating that they are loved by Jesus and that they are being prayed for.

Casey did a long video interview with Mama Susan, footage which is very rare, as it is extremely difficult to get Mama Susan to sit still long enough to be filmed! She is so humble, but has lots of wisdom to share, and a profound and impacting life story. The footage will be used for several upcoming video projects, including footage for Lahash’s first fundraising banquet in November. We are hoping that Mama Susan’s health and visa will permit her to come be the keynote speaker at that event. Please pray for favor as her visa is being considered and for strength and good health as she has been very ill the past few months, although much recovered now. (Also, if you are interested in attending the banquet, please contact Mandi at mstonehouse@lahash.net for details on sponsoring a table.)