Lahash Blog: March 2010

Project 34.8 Takes Off!

Karin Rosain has officially left for her ultramarathon in Cape Town, South Africa! She left from Seattle on March 29, and will arrive in Cape Town on the 31st. The ultramarathon will take place on April 3, where she will run the 34.8 mile (56K) marathon in an effort to raise $4,800 (which, as of now, has grown to $4,940!) for the school fees of 12 Sudanese orphans.

Please continue to pray for her! To see her complete itinerary and see updates, visit http://project34point8.wordpress.com.

Blue Like The Sky.

There is a great progress with the Tenderfeet School. The roofing is done which makes the building look so beautiful. There is still a lot to be done for the building to be complete.

20ft hole was dug for the toilet

Inside the building looks like this awaiting for ceiling boards.

Doors and Windows made of metal ready to be installed.

New Board Member!

This past Saturday, the Lahash board met with Emmanuel Sitaki , and voted to confirm him as our newest board member! Emmanuel is from Rwanda, and founded a ministry called ERM that is serving his home country and the vulnerable people that live there.

Emmanuel lives with his family in Portland, Oregon. ERM is a ministry that serves widows, orphans, and pastors in his home country. Emmanuel is a survivor of the Rwandan Genocide, and was called by God to serve the vulnerable people that were suffering from the violence that devastated the country in 1994.

"We are so pleased to have the expertise and presence of Emmanuel on our board. It is critical to Lahash to be guided by the voices and experiences of East Africans, not just in East Africa, but on our Portland team as well. Emmanuel brings a wealth of passion and compassion and understands our desire for holistic ministry. His model of pairing widows and orphans in his home country into new family units is something that Lahash is eager to learn from." -- Dan Holcomb, Executive Director, Lahash International

For more information about ERM, visit Emmanuel's website:
http://www.ermrwanda.org/about-erm

Overhaul to the Rice & Beans website

We've just done a redesign of the Rice & Beans website to allow all of the feeds and new information to filter into the site. The website now has a section for recipes, our latest photos, the videos, reflections, and a link to donate your savings for the kids' nutritional needs at the end of the month.

Urgent need for donations for food at Amazing Grace

We recently received an email from Mama Susan from East Africa. Susan is our Sudanese partner who runs the Sudanese children's homes in Uganda and Sudan. She let us know of a budget shortfall at the home, and is requesting some immediate funds from Lahash and the friends of Amazing Grace. In January a couple of the children passed their exams from Junior High (primary school) which enabled them to go into High School (secondary school). Secondary School in Northern Uganda is done primarily at boarding schools and costs a lot for room and board as well as uniforms, books, and other school fees.

Because of the great progress of these kids, Susan spent ahead some of the funds that would have been used for food during February and March as well as the staff salaries to help pay for the kids entry into secondary school.

So we are currently left with a shortfall of $1,500 for their budget. Our advocate in New Mexico, Eric Chapman, was able to raise $860, and we've received another donation that puts our total at nearly $900. We still need an additional $600 for the kids.

Would you be willing to help out? If so, please visit our online donation page at: lahash.net/donate.html. Click on online donations, and write "Amazing Grace Needs" in the Donation Destination box.

Thank you!

UPDATE: All the funds have come in at this point for the food and salaries gap. Thanks to all who contributed! For those still interested in helping, Susan has made a secondary request for assistance with some new blankets and bedsheets.

Almost There!

The past week has been a very busy with the new Tenderfeet construction building. Despite the heavy rains, We have been able to make a great step with the building. the contractors and the workers are doing a great job with the building.