A new Bishop?

We received an email yesterday from Stephen Kaziimba, the Provost we have been working with since the first time we went to Uganda.

A few days ago he and another man were in an article in a newspaper in Uganda. The article stated that one of those two men would soon be the new Bishop of the largest Diocese in Uganda and it is not in Mukono. While this is a wonderful opportunity for Stephen, I do wonder (selfishly) what we would do without his guidance and wise counsel. This is when I remember that all this mission work for us in Uganda is not in our hands and not in Stephen's hands, but in His almighty hands.

So where am I trusting today? I am trusting that wherever He leads, He will provide....for us as well as for the Kaziimba family. They are a blessing to so many people. Would you pray for them today?

website

To help us reach more people, we will be starting up a website. We are working to get as much information on it as possible. If there is something you would like to see on the website, please let us know. When it is up and running, we'll give the address here and let you know it's ready.

In the mean time, we've heard from Patrick in the Lugazi area. Ken went with him to his home village in the Masaka area (Feb'06) with some people from the youth group. They spent 5 days there, having open crusades, visiting people in their homes, conducting church services on Sunday and also had a fire to destroy witchcraft items after a family turned to God.

One thing in his letter to Ken that struck us was when he talked about it being the first time visitors had ever gone to people's homes. It seems natural for us to go to those who can't make it out to the large gatherings. It was surprising to hear it was a first for people to be ministered to that way.

That's all for now, keep an eye out for the web address

A friend of mine who is interested in going on a mission trip to Uganda recently asked me what are the needs of the people there. Wow, after stopping to think on that, I really couldn't nail down just a few answers for her because of the great need of so many things. I would like to tell you about one in particular for now.
On our last trip in March of 2007, we met with the Bishop of the cathedral we work with. He inquired about getting medical equipment in the area. Ken has been looking into a few different packages that International Aid carry. There are people in the area who have the knowledge to put the items we have found out about to great use. They would not only use the equipment to help people medically, but they would also be ministering to them with sharing the Word of God.
The cost of this equipment is $8,214, (plus shipping). A large undertaking it seems, but I know it is possible.
If you feel you could help with this, (all donations are now tax-exempt) please contact us at:
vanderwk@gvsu.edu
Thanks for your consideration!

News we've been waiting for....

We are excited to announce that our 501c 3 has been approved. Liberty is now officially a charitable organization. It has been a long time since we started working on all the paperwork, getting the information compiled and approved. Sometimes it seemed like this day wasn't coming, but we had to keep remembering that it works out in His timing, not ours or even the IRS's.

In the last post, I talked about the Kaziimba boys singing at Unity Festival. It was great to see them here and hear them on stage. They will be leaving for home next week Tuesday, the 28th. Please pray for safety in their travels, it takes a long time to get there:)

Letters and emails keep coming from Uganda. Some are praises for prayers answered, some are inquiring when we will return for mission work and some include requests for help, both prayer requests and financial requests. One paticular request came for Ken to return to the area where he spent 5 days in 2006 on a short mission with a group from Lugazi. It was a fantastic time of people coming to Christ so of course he looks forward to returning to the area to do more.





Please be in prayer for us to know when to return and what areas to visit with the Gospel!


Thanks!

Hard to believe it is August already! We have been busy this summer with many activites, including having a guest from Spain during July. Alvaro stayed with us last summer with a student exchange program and this year he visited on his own. This week we had to say good-bye to him but we will also be saying hello to Provost Stephen Kaziimba and his sons. They have come to the States for a few weeks. They will be singing at this year's Unity Festival in Muskegon Michigan, August 9, 10 and 11. This family is very talented and we are excited to have them here to sing for many, many people. If you plan on being there, don't miss them on the Lakes stage!

what's new for Liberty?

Wow, it's been a long time since I've been on the computer to update the blog. Sorry about that if you've been looking for something. Ken says it's time for an update on what we are doing now, so here goes.

We are currently working on getting the organization "organized". Let me back-track a little and explain. When Ken and I were in Uganda this past March, we learned it would be at least 5 years before we would be able to move to Uganda, (according to those who live there and know how their government works). We came home wondering what God had planned for us, wondering if we were to even continue in any kind of mission in Uganda at all.
We weren't able to finish some paperwork to get our 501 -c 3 (charitable approval) and let the deadline pass for sending in our paperwork. Ken and I were thinking we were done with Liberty as a charitable organization when we didn't send in the paperwork. We really didn't know what were in His plans for us. I had been talking to friends and saying that I just wanted God to send me a letter in the mail and let me know! Well, that is exactly what He did.

The letter came in the mail from the IRS (of all places, HE works there too!) It was basically an extension of our deadline to finish up the details and changes needed for them to be able to approve Liberty as a charitable organization.

We now have a Board of directors together and are getting the paperwork nailed down to send back to the IRS. Please pray for us to keep ourselves on track and within His plan for all of this!
After we get it sent in, we will continue visiting Uganda and going about the mission as has been these past years.

I am thankful God did answer my request in the form I actually asked for. It makes me believe even more of the sense of humor in store for us in Heaven.

Until next time........

Starting a new day in Seeta

I'm sure that telling you about this day will be a 2- part entry again, but let's get started.

As always we enjoyed a great breakfast with Provost Stephen and a few others in the house. My favorite is the samosas. A bit hard to describe, but I'll be trying to make them soon. Also served for breakfast is usually chapati bread (another favorite, similar to flour tortillas), small bananas, coffee, bread slices, eggs. These aren't all served on the same days, just depends on what they have, but whatever it is, it's always a great meal.

Provost took us to a nearby town called Seeta, pronounce 'say-ta'. We were to meet up with Rev. Samuel Wasswa, but am sorry to say we did not get to see him or his wife Sylvia on this trip. He has started a new job in Seeta and is very busy from what I hear!

We met with Rev. Wilson Kisekka and talked with students at the primary school there. I was told there are 600-700 students. A small choir of 6 teenage girls led everyone in singing with their beautiful voices. Sometimes I think everyone there has been given a beautiful singing voice. After speaking to the students and having some come forward to accept Christ, we were treated to a snack of soda, cookies, g-nuts (a kind of peanut) and a hard boiled egg.

I asked about a Special needs class they have since I work with developmental disabled adults. They are one of the two schools I have seen to have a class for these people. I was very happy they took us to the classroom and introduced us to the students and staff. All of the students and one of the teachers in the classroom are deaf, a few with mental disabilites along with deafness. We had so much fun. Last year we went to a deaf class and they gave Ken and I names in sign language. Ken's name was about his "open roof" (as a bit of baldness is called in Uganda) and mine was about my longer hair. We signed our names and shocked some of them that we knew just a little sign language and they all agreed with our names.

The next school we went to is called Kwagalakwe which means, "God is Love". We were there a few hours, got a tour of their large school yard and one of their dorm buildings. It has day students who attend only during the day and students who board there. It is blessed with a van which is used to pick up some students. This is becoming more popular and is the first time I have seen a vehicle used to pick up students like we have buses. On this trip I did see a few more. We met with the students in the partially constructed new building they have. Some of their teachers were introduced according to which religion they belong to, or at least a group of students of those religions that they are responsible for. It was nice to have all the different groups with us, listening and singing the Christian songs.

Our ride back to Mukono was delayed in traffic back in Kampala so we had to get a "hired car" to take us back. While waiting for our ride, I went out to the yard where the students were having their lunch and playing. I was warned to be careful so that I didn't get mobbed. They even sent out a teacher to check on us (right when the kids were seriously crowding in on me). But it is fun to meet them, talk with them and hear what they have to say. Sometimes they have the best questions!


After returning "home", we trekked up the hill to the guest house of Uganda Christian University where our friend, Rebecca works. It was great to see her again. We checked our
e-mails there. It was our first chance since leaving the U.S. 8 days earlier.







Later in the evening, Provost Stephen took Ken and I along with Jeremiah and his sister Sarah to Besanyi Orphanage. We went to Rev. Festo's house on the grounds while waiting for the kids to get ready. We met Joy there, where these next few pictures were taken.





-above: Joy's view of Mukono!

















top left: sunset over Mukono top right: Jeremiah, Joy, and Provost Stephen



The rest of the evening will be part two.
Bye for now!

Another full day in Mukono -part 2

It was great fun to be able to spend some time playing and talking with the children after we did our speaking. We don't usually see playgrounds at schools.
While we were waiting for lunch to be prepared, the headmistress (principal) took us around the school and their grounds. We went around the back of the school where their lunches are made in the typical outside kitchen. One woman works almost all morning to make lunch for many students. We then went to another part of the school grounds, past their garden area and got an up close look at how they make bricks.


Here is a picture of a man making bricks. He is digging up the mud, putting it into a form that will hold two bricks, smashing it in, scraping the excess off and taking the formed clay/mud out. The second picture shows these bricks stacked to dry in the sun. They put straw on top so the sun won't burn the bricks. They then take the bricks, stack them up so they can put a fire inside to bake them. It's a much longer process than what we have in the States, as most things in life are in Africa.

After lunch, Rev. Henry took us to a school right up the "road". Ken has pictures from being there in the past few years. They have been able to build a few new classroom buildings so it looked a little different from the old pictures I've seen. Here are a couple of pictures of these great students. They had some great questions for us. If anyone in Uganda reading this knows the name of this school, please let me know. It's the one school where I didn't write down the name!



After our lunch was served, we went to our property. Right away a few children came to see us. Being white, we always get noticed quickly. Last year I took a picture of two girls who talked with us. This year I took last year's picture to them and got their names. The older girl is Margret and the younger is Sikola. They live next to the property. We took a picture of Jack fruit on the tree. We don't have these fruit trees where we live so most people haven't heard of it before. The trees grow tall, similar to Oaks or Maple trees and have large fruits on them the size of watermelons. Very stange the first time you see them, but taste melon-ish and good.


Rev. Henry, Ken and I went to the next school, Central View Secondary. We had an interesting discussion with the headmaster who grew up attending church, but quit attending as an adult. He agreed to let Rev. Henry come on Sunday mornings to have a worship service for the students who live there (boarding school). When we speak to the students, if we are in a classroom or other building, it is usually very crowded. Today was no exception. Some students looked in the open windows to see and hear.

After speaking at the Cental View, we went back down their drive to the area of the previous school, but instead went to the church for a fellowship time. Rev. Henry said we would be leaving at 4:30. Ken spoke and tried to leave some time for discussion. I looked at the clock and saw we had about 5-10 minutes for question and answer time but, an hour and a half later we left the church. They had great questions and Rev. Henry and Ken had great answers. It was a fantastic day.
One more picture to add here. On our way to the car we saw a boy wearing a University of Michigan t-shirt. Since our youngest son is a BIG fan, we asked if we could take his picture.

another full day in Mukono

Ken and I started out after breakfast with Provost Stephen again. We were going to Bishop East Primary. The day before we went just outside the gate of Miracle House and maybe 100 feet up the road to Bishop Tucker. This day we went across the road, about the same distance. Often when I sit outside at the back of the house, these students will see me and sometimes call out to me when they are coming and going from school. After talking with the large crowd there, we went back home and waited for Rev. Henry to pick us up. First he took us to a dress maker to have me measured for the traditional gomesi. It's a scary thought to get measured for anything these days, but it was even scarier when the young women said she did not have to measure me, she would know the size just by looking at me. (of course it fits perfectly!) Rev. Henry then took us to an area called Nakabago. It's fun just to say the name of the place. There we spent quite some time at a school called Nezikokolima Primary. It has children in Nursery (ages 2-4) and classes up to what they call "P-7" if I remember right. Their uniforms all are different colors on this day because they had a sports day scheduled.

The picture above shows some of the younger ones and the picture below shows the older students.

This was the first school to provide us a lunch. They practically had a feast for us. Too bad I didn't take a picture of the spread they put out for our small group. It was wonderful to spend more time with the children and the Headmistress here at Nezikokolima.

Here is one of the classrooms. They usually have a chalkboard and bench seats. If they use anything to put on the walls or string across the room to study, they use any paper or cardboard.

I will add a "part two" to this day in Uganda in the next day or two.

Thanks for reading about this ministry.

Be blessed and a blessing to others!

Deanna

Part 1

starting the school ministry, part 2

After visiting the two schools in the morning, we went with Provost Stephen Kaziimba to the Bishop's house. It was just a "stop in" visit and we made plans to meet with him later in the week. Ken and I walked down the hill back to Miracle House. This is where the Kaziimba family lives. We had a few hours open and decided to walk into town to pick up a few items we needed to bring home and also to get me a Fanta Lemon. We have the Fanta brand of soda around here, but not this flavor. It is a favorite of mine and I look for it almost every time we are in town.

This is some typical traffic on the main road through Mukono. I like to joke about them driving on the wrong side of the road. The driver sits on the opposite side of the vehicles also. It can make for a few scares if you're not paying attention to the road and then all of a sudden you look up and in front of you, where you should be on the road, is another vehicle coming right at you.

After spending some time in town, Provost and Richard took us with them to a funeral. A 16 year old boy was "knocked" by a car and killed. The driver's mother and the victim's mother were very good friends which made this tragedy all the worse for the families. There were about 4 to 5 more funerals in the following week and a half that the Kaziimba family were connected to.

Later in the afternoon, we met up with Allan for a late lunch. He was going with us to Kampala to help find the necessary garments we needed for his Introduction ceremony. Richard, Allan and Ken actually picked out the material and accessories for my traditional dress, the gomesi. All the things needed to make it, cost way more than getting it made. It was scary to let men pick out the material, but it's Africa! What do I know about their traditional dresses? Allan, Ken, Joy and I squeezed in the care to go to Kampala with Richard. We also needed to get our money exchanged into Ugandan Schillings. It was interesting to get there and to also find a place to park. It is very crowded and busy in Kampala. You can count on getting stuck in traffic somewhere along the way or all the way through. Good thing God is abundant in giving out patience, especially to Richard while he drives. We met up with Annet, who is marrying Allan. she helped pick out shoes for me. I was having fun shopping and not have to pick out much.

This picture is from driving the road between Mukono and Kampala.

On the way back to Mukono, we were diverted down a "road" with about a few hundred other cars. We found out later that there was a problem that involved tear gas just up the road where we had been driving towards. Just another interesting day.......

starting the school ministry-part 1 of 2

After breakfast Monday morning, the 5th of March, we went next door to Bishop Tucker Secondary School. After meeting the new headmaster, we talked to the crowd of students. Seriously, it was a large crowd. They have about 1500 students. It was a large sea of faces when they were all lined up to listen.

It was just a little intimidating to step up in front of this crowd, but after we got to talking, it went pretty easy!

We then went to Mirembe primary school (similar to our elementary schools). It was much smaller and we even could find a few girls we knew in the group. Lillian and Peace attend there. They live at Provost Kaziimba's house where we stay in Mukono. This school is undergoing a building phase. They are adding on a second floor to some of their buildings.

To be continued tomorrow.....

starting our day with the "English service"

As lively as a church service can occasionally get back home, there seems to be so much more joy in a church service in Uganda. We spent the morning going to the English service at 8:30. They also have an earlier service and another following the English service. All of these are full, most people walking great distances to attend. If you were to take a few seconds to count the few cars in the area around the church grounds, you might find about ten or so. Let me tell you there are several hundred people in attendance at each service and the church is near the top of a hill. I have wondered how many people in the U.S. would walk to church in whatever weather is occuring, whatever distances needing to be covered, in all instances. The level of commitment to the Lord and the JOY that they find in the Lord is incredible.

I had been looking forward to seeing a handful of people that I met a year ago. After enjoying a great Spirit-filled service, it was great to talk again to those I had been missing. We even had a nice time catching up with the German in charge of building the Mukono house project. It has come such a long way in such a short time (Ugandan standards). Of course, as I sit here, I cannot remember his name, but it was wonderful to meet his wife this time.

We missed seeing Joy at this service but caught up with her later in the day. I do want to explain that after all the traveling and time change, I tend to crash after a half day's worth of anything. It was a surprise I lasted as long as I did. I felt bad leaving Joy with Issac and Ken at the end of the day. They walked her home (up another hill I didn't want to conquer). Bed was all I could handle at that point. Here are a few pictures from the day before at the Nile.




Joy and I are sitting on what is left of a bridge over the Nile. Richard later told me he was in a panic when he saw Joy and I walk along the beams to get where we sat down. He doesn't swim and couldn't imagine what would happen if we fell in. Ken explained we would really enjoy the cooler water and swim to shore.

Dear Friends,
It is time of preparing again. We will travel to Uganda on March 1st. The program has been worked on for some time, deciding which schools we can fit into the schedule and then sending letters of introductions. In between different ministries, we will work on preparations of building our house. The deed is now complete, I will try to take a copy home, it is nothing like what you would expect. A portion of the lot will need to be cleared, this work and that of construction will be hired out to the locals.
Next on our list is raising support for both the cost of construction and continued support when we live and minister in Uganda fulltime.
Joyce and myself at the Brotherhood of St Andrews. I have been speaking there a number of times. This takes about three hours of traveling over some poor roads north of the area where we stay in Mukono.
This is a group of kids who wanted their picture taken with Deanna at an open-air crusade in Lugazi during our February 2006 trip. It was the first time we used sound equipment. The crowd continued to grow as the evening progressed. There were about 300 to 400 in the crowd by nights end.