Hopefully, I haven't procrastinated too long on giving you the last entry of my recent trip. Procrastination does 2 dangerous things: 1. It builds anticipation and 2. It decreases interest. I'm prepared for and desirous of neither. At first I was procastinating because the entry was difficult to write; too much emotion to properly convey and then began to get in the way. No more excuses today...here it is...

We began our day by visiting the AIDS baby homes--2 in Joburg that are managed by Mosiek and the SA social services. The first home, the Sun-Child home is a newer house under the care of Mosiek. It just opened about 6 months ago and can house 6 babies under the care of full-time house parents. There were only 4 babies at home that morning as 2 of them had been taken home by families at Mosiek for the weekend. It was a delightful place and full of all the things we, in the States, would have had in our nurseries. Of the four babies there were twins (a boy and girl) who were orphaned by AIDS and the boy was negative and the girl, positive. They are extremely well cared for and their adoption rate is incredibly high to both domestic and overseas locations (including the US!). We also visited the Florida Home which is quite a bit larger, housing 15 babies. Unfortunately, for us, only one baby was still at home, waiting to get picked up by his weekend family in order to give the house parents a break. This house was beautiful and gave me much hope for future Chosen Hope projects!

Also on Saturday, we visited the squatter village of Zandspruidt and Enthomjeni, the community development center managed by Moseik. We were told that we would receive a guided tour of Zanspruidt from Pastor Sepho who grew up in that township and is now a pastor, employed by Mosiek, but working in the infomal settlements. He explained to us that because it was a Saturday and that we would be a rather obivous crowd of people that we would be joined by 2 of his teammates that are employed by Enthomjeni--Naphtali & Happy. These 2 young men would walk behind our group as a second form of protection and also to answer any questions we may have. Also, because it was a Saturday we were told that we would see things that would not be normal on a given weekday including many more displays of public drunkeness and just more men out and about than normal.

When we began our walk through the very crowded settlement I thought of all of you, who faithfully read this blog and care so much about what Jane and I are doing. I thought of you for a couple of reasons: 1. There is no way I can possibly convey to you what an informal settlement smells like...raw sewage, burning trash, rotten vegetables, mud, coal and so many other foreign odors mixed together. 2. I cannot begin to describe the atmosphere of what it feels like to be a white, american woman walking through a poor, black, shack neighborhood that was previously oppressed by white South Africans. It is clausterphobic in many ways, but mainly emotionally.

We saw a population that, as Sepho had forwarned, was made up of mostly men in their late teens -- late 20's. With very few exceptions, the men were either gambling or drunk...or both. Many were not happy that we were there and twice Sepho has contrantations with men who openly voiced in Zulu that we did not belong there. (This was a very large contrast to our visits to both Masipumalele and Kayamandi were the populations were mainly women and children and nearly always welcoming). As we walked Sepho explained to us a few of the things that were were seeing including the dumpster of burning trash. Because the sanitation companies refuse to pick up the dumpsters when they are either overflowing or filled with things such as large branches that they have communicated will not be picked up, the dumpster becomes so full that they must burn it until it is empty. We also visited the site of his first church where he proudly told us of the overcrowding issue they had which forced them to a new site on the other side of the settlement. Uinfortunately, this story was clouded by the truth he also told that because rape is such a huge factor in this environment, a woman was raped just outside the church door during a service. Because of the hostility in the neighborhood and complicated political emotions, the perpatrator was not stopped nor was he prosicuted. This is hard for us to imagine (especially when it happend, literally, 4 feet from the church door) but the it is even harder for us to imagine daily lives in a place such as this.

On our final leg through the settlement we stopped at a bizarrly placed turn-stile gate that sat in the middle of the path. At first we laughed and could not imagine why someone would have placed the gate in the middle of a regular walkway. Sepho told us the unfortunate truth, however, that the slum lords would charge a tax for a person to walk from one side to the other for no other reason than exploitation.

Our afternoon in Zanspruidt ended with a cultural experince--a taxi ride! There were 15 of us crammed into a 15 passnger van with the techno music blaring for our ride back to Enthomjeni. It was a great way to end a difficult and over stimulating day.

Please watch your mailboxes (both snail & email) for more information on our upcoming project with Mars Hill! We have been very busy formulating ways to integrate our non-Mars partners and making sure that everyone has a chance to help change the world this Christmas. Thank you, again, for your partnership with us through everything up to this point. We couldnt' do it without you!

When was the last time I did a post? Wednesday night? Today is Tuesday and I arrived home from my travels yesterday afternoon and 4 days of extreme busy-ness and full days. I was mourning the loss of opportunity to write to all of you but as we would say every day..."the window of opportunity is closing"...

I wil do my best to summarize for you what I saw and learned Thursday -- Sunday.

Thursday
As I mentioned, we did a home visit with Charlie and a couple of other friends from Prochorus to visit a woman that has recently been enrolled in an ARV program. Before she met Charlie and learned about ARV's, she was dying--quite visably according to Charlie. She has a son and daughter in 7th & 3rd grades respectively. Once she was taken to the doctor, confirmed that she was positive and enrolled in the ARV program, she began to see immediate improvements in her health. She is very healthy now and even teased Charlie that when she was sick all she had to do was ask for fish & chips and he brought it for her and now she gets none. We laughed a lot with her and were able to pray for her as well. What an encouragement it was see the visable effects of ARV's being used properly in someone's life!

Also on Thursday we visited the Legacy Center that is managed by SC and their volunteers. We learned about the garden training program where adults learn the skills necessary in planting, designing, and growing an effective garden. These adult students graduate after 6 months are almost always hired either in a domestic situation or with a company because of the reputation of the instructor and the success of the program. We also were able to see some performances from the kids & teens who are trained by the music & dance director. The singing was so beautiful that I couldn't help but cry because of the truly unique sound of the blending of their voices. I thought of Jane and how she is always moved by the sound as well...

The Legacy Center also runs a sewing project for adult women and a day care center that I am curious about the possibilities of future CH involvement.

Friday
More flying... Once we arrived in Joburg we were taken to the church that MH has a partnership with called Mosiek. We were introduced to members of their staff and given an orientation to the partnerships and ministries they have with the informal settlement called Zandspradt. (spelling is definitely off on that!) Mosiek also has a great ministry with AIDS baby homes that has an incredibly high adoption rate. Despite our incredible tiredness we were excited for what Saturday would bring--visits to both the Baby Homes and Zandsradt.

Speaking of tiredness--I think I must abbreviate my entry for today and keep you anxiously waiting for the remainder of my journey. Saturday was so full or emotion for our team that I would rather wait until tomorrow to tell you all about it. Thank you for praying me home safely!

Well, it's nearly midnight here in South Africa...which means most of you back home are probably eating dinner and enjoying the longest day of the year! I hope it's beautiful...
Yesterday and today were SO BUSY that I just knew I couldn't let 2 full days go by without sending you an update.

Yesterday (Tuesday) I went with David to pick the the remaining 3 menbers of our team from the airport. I wanted to check on my luggage and claim the BA voucher that I had turned down on Monday. (Since when do I turn down free money? Clearly, I was delusional and over-tired at the time.) After some frustrating conversations (some of which I will actually blame on the language barrier) I discovered that my luggage had actually been sent to London and was scheduled to be on the overnight flight that night--arriving Wednesday. I crossed my fingers and continued wearing Ruth's clothes. (One could have worse problems!)

Around 1 pm we met with the staff from SC for lunch which was a lot of fun. They are so much like MH in language, staff community and passion for "doing church" differently. After lunch we headed to Kayamundi to meet with Jennie Cartsents who is running a community development program (and has been for some time). She explained to us all of their programs from sewing education to mentoring to children's choirs to after-school programs. We were able to stop in on the gym where a drama lesson was being taught to students ranging in age from 7 -- 10. They were learning what it means to properly be on a stage...not putting your back to the audience, speaking loudly, etc. They were rapt with attention despite the 8 of us starring at them. They were SO eager to be part of this program!

In order to get to the gym we had to walk back through the shacks of Kayamundi through mud and trash, in between people's homes made of aluminum scraps. It smelled of sewage and burning paper and we received many stares. There are no adequate words to describe to you what it' s like to visit this place...there's poverty & AIDS & children & hope & so many contrasting things mixed into one place. I'm not sure it's ever something I will grasp or be comfortable with.

After our visit to Kayamundi we met some additional staff members from SC for dinner before heading to bed. (For those of you who are curious, the food here is deluxe! I have eaten linefish (the difficult to catch 'fish of the day', prawns, pork lion, calamari, and tonight our dessert was a yummy blueberry & lime tart. mmmm!)

Today our day was full! We began by taking a drive down the cape coast to visit a ministry associated with Living Hope Ministries (where we were to spend the morning) but because of a schedule miscommunication we really just hung out in a parking lot in a town that starts with an 'M' (I thought I would think of the name by the time I got to the end of the sentence. No such luck). After realizing that were weren't going to have time to visit the homeless mission in 'M', we left for Fish Hoek to meet with Anne who runs Living Hope. She is an incredible woman who is comepletly changing the world! We met her in the Hospice clinic that was just opened in November of 2004 where she shared with us the process of raising funds, staffing the orgnization and all the programs they are running in the 2 settlements (squatter villages) nearby. After our complete tour of the Hospice Clinic (amazing...no time to tell you the details here...unforuntately...) we were taken to the first village where we visited both the government clinic and the wound-dressing clinic operated by LH. We were then taken to the second village known as Ocean View, a village that Anne told us is full of hatred from being displaced by the government and up until recently denied that HIV exsisted in their community. Although their housing situation was better that the first village, the underlying emotions made it a much worse place to live. LH had purchased a house that was being rennovated into another clinic for HIV and counseling for the community of Ocean View. The story of the house is incredible! It was previously own by a Nigerian drug lord who introduced hard drugs to Ocean View. He also used the house as a brothel for young and older girls. A man had been murdered right outside the slider door where we stood she told us. When the drug lord was finally arrested and put in jail and the community found out what he had been doing in the house, they broke in and destroyed everything in the house--I mean, stripped it down to nothing--no floors, windows or anything that had been left in the house. LH bought it for $10. What a great way the Lord works to redeem what Satan meant for evil! That will be a house were so many are loved, healed and treated for their hurts--both physical and otherwise.

To wrap up our day we were tourists and visited Cape Point--the furthest southwest point in Africa. We climbed to the top to look over the Indian Ocean (The Cape of Good Hope was too far west, but is the place where the Atlantic meets the Indian). It was incredible...no words adequate for God's creation of this magnitude.

After getting slightly lost trying to find our restaurant for dinner, we enjoyed a leisurly dinner of fish before returning to our hotel.

Tomorrow will be a full day in Kayamundi where we will do both home visits for the sick and a visit to the Legacy Center--the child care facility owned by SC.

Hopefully, I will have a chance to make another entry before heading off to JoBurg on Friday!
PS My luggage was sitting in my room when we retuned from Cape Point! It's funny to think of your bag and your things traveling the world without you...oh, the stories it must have! (Thank you for your prayers!!)

Hi everyone! Thank you SO much for checking in on me, the team and our travels! Jeff, Ruth and I arrived safely this morning (Monday, June 20) in Cape Town after 2.5 days of l-o-n-g flights. Unfortunately, WE arrived, but my luggage did not. (insert hand over mouth and gasp of 'oh no!' here). It's true. Right now I'm wearing Ruth's jeans, long sleeve shirt & vest...we won't get into the particulars of the rest of my outfit. British Airways "hasn't located my luggage yet", which leaves me little hope that it will arrive by Friday when we leave for Johannesburg. However, prayer toward this end would be much appreciated. (I know , I know, it's only STUFF, but remember those 'particulars' I didn't mention earlier? Let's just say I'm 'done' with certain articles of clothing. Ok! Enough disctractions from luggage! South Africa is a beautiful place...mountains, vineyards, valleys of green grass (unlike the very brown Lusaka!). and as I am reading in 'Cry, the Beloved Country' it is also littered with squatter villages--remnants of aparteid and a torn society. In our only afternoon thus far we have had lunch at a quaint downtown Stellenbosch restaurant with some staff members from Stellenbosch Community and visited 'Prochorus' a community development organization within Kayamundi. At Prochurus one of the ways they help support the people of Kayamundi is their bead project. All day, each week day women take shifts making bead necklaces, earrings, bracelets and AIDS ribbons from beads. Ruth and I used Jeff & David as our test subjects for mens necklaces to be (hopefully!) sold at MH at Christmas among many choices for women (not tested on Jeff & David). We are also hoping to receive 1000 of their beaded AIDS ribbons in time for the AIDS Walk in October. Some lovely women tried to each us some of the local tribe language and I think Ruth and I have already forgotten everything we learned only 30 minutes ago. (It's jet lag. yeah, that's it). Tonight we will go to dinner with a couple other staff members from SC and then I plan on sleeping. Tomorrow the remainder of our team arrives and then it's more visits to partner organizations. I will do my best to visit this desk at SC each day (a short walk from our hotel!) and update you on how we are doing. Again, thank you for checking in and each and every prayer that is offered on my (& our) behalf. It is so comforting to know that I take you all with me! Until tomorrow...!

Lori and I are excited to have been given the opportunity to join Hope College and the Veritas Forum (veritas.org) this weekend to speak on the topic, "Africa: Engaging AIDS, Poverty and Human Rights Issues." Veritas is a traveling, national lecture series with roots at Harvard University, and which seeks to explore truth and justice for Christians. This year the umbrella topic is entitled, "A Return to Discernment." All lectures presented will probe how we use truth as disciples of Jesus in a post-modern culture.
If you would like to join us:
Saturday, Jan. 15, 10:45-11:45 am AND/OR 12-1pm
Phelps Hall Otte Room (10th Street/Columbia), Hope College

Lori and I have both been reading "The aWAKE Project," a compilation of essays written by prominent figures on both global and national levels--Christian and non-Christian--who have a heart for the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa. If you are looking to educate yourself with a quick, easy-to-read book, this one deserves your attention. I have been quite moved to read personal reflections amid stories of survival and loss. You can find this book online at Christian Book Distributors (cbd.com)

Furthermore, Chosen Hope will be partnering with Hope College and Veritas for a follow-up event on January 26. We will be showing the intensely moving documentary, "A Closer Walk," narrated by Glenn Close and Will Smith (closerwalk.com). For anyone with a heart for this issue, in Africa and beyond, this really is a must. Let this film be the fork in the road that forces you to take action. I promise you will come away with a new perspective on this terrible disease and with a deepened heart of love for the people suffering.
If you would like to join us:
Wednesday, Jan. 26, 7 pm.
Hope College, ROOM--TBA

Check back for a location update, or call our office at 616.392.2769 for info.
Chosen Hope partners will receive an invitation in the mail.
If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please indicate as such by emailing us:
info@chosenhope.org

Please be in prayer for our work this month!
To God be the Glory!

Dear Friends,

Through the past several months--nearly a year, in fact--we have clung to God's promise that "He who began a good work will be faithful to complete it." Besides offering us a promise of faithfulness, God reminds us in Philippians 1 that it is HE who began it in the first place! Lest we think of ourselves more highly than we ought, Paul tells us that these good works originate with our Mighty God, *our originator.*

And so, we thank God, who began this good work of Chosen Hope, for his faithfulness and for this vision of bringing hope to orphaned children. Last night, Lori and I received news from the IRS that they have accepted our application for official 501c3 status!! We are now a government-recognized non-profit agency! This means that we will be able to provide tax-deductable receipts to our donors for any gift given in 2004. WOW!! We believe that this status will also open new doors to us when approaching companies who may be willing to donate items to non-profit groups. We pray that the Lord will provide connections with people who have a heart for what we're doing and are able to gift us with goods-in-kind that we can then pour into a project. The possibilities are immense!

For those of you have have been wondering about our next project, we are currently solidifying plans to partner with Hope College to support their Spring Break Trips in March. Possible recipients of your financial gifts include children in the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Mexico. Additionally, we are awaiting details about a possible follow-up project in Zambia for the spring of 2005.

While we praise God for clearing the hurdle of obtaining 501c3 status, we know that many more hurdles lie in our path. Before the demands of the holidays set upon you, please pray about how you might share your treasure with the children of the world by giving a gift to Chosen Hope. It's tax-deductable! :) See the "giving" section of our website to learn how you can impact a life.

Dear Friends and Family, September 27, 2004


It has been two months now since returning from a trip that will forever change the way we look at the world. Lusaka, a sprawling brown capsule of poverty, offers its citizens a 50% unemployment rate coupled with no government assistance whatsoever. Mothers hover along the roadside hoping to sell their dozen marginally-fresh tomatoes and a bag of charcoal, while three small children cling to her skirts in the heat of the autumn day. Street children eat rats grilled over a barrel of fire as van loads of passersby look through them, searching for a vanishing happiness somewhere on the other side.

The population of the capital approaches 2 million; astonishingly, a full 30-40% are street kids. Imagine, if you can! 800,000 children roaming the streets, sniffing glue to mask the endless rumble of their empty bellies, trying to forget the home they once knew before AIDS robbed them of their mother, or father...or both. AIDS takes a life every 10 seconds. In the time it will take you to read this letter, six people will die. Maybe twelve. At that rate, how long would it take for your family to disappear? Your church community? Your son’s football team? The thought is an inconceivable reality.

And so we are left to ponder: What is our response in the face of such a crisis? At Chosen Hope, we believe that this issue is at the very heart of who God is and what He cares about. In fact, the Psalmist says these issues form the identity of our God: “Father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, IS GOD...” (68:5) Such verses are sprinkled throughout scripture, leaving us no room to doubt that Christ would want us to go to great lengths to offer hope to the children of Africa and beyond.

THANK YOU for heeding this call with us! With your help, we were able to bring $4,500 with us to Zambia to bless the children in the orphanages and schools. Half of the money was spent on teacher textbooks, ensuring that the Faith-Works Schools have prepared teachers who are ready to educate. Until now, no teacher has ever had a textbook from which to teach his/her class! The other half of your gifts went to bless the children in the nurseries with fans, heaters, irons (used to kill flies that lay eggs in clothing and then burrow into the skin), computer monitors, CD players for audio stimulation, as well as small gifts that filled 180 backpacks given to the older school children. Additionally, we were given 16 fleece blankets that we left with the 3-5 yr. old nursery and newly hand-knit scarves which thrilled the 5-9 yr. olds at the Kanyama nursery. THANK YOU!

We are pleased to announce that our work continues! We are exploring plans to send 2,700 pairs of flip-flops to the school children we visited this July. Also exciting is an opportunity to support the Hope College Spring Break Mission Trips heading into the world in March. Our hope is to send gifts of love and hope along with the student-missionaries to possible locations such as a clinic in Honduras and a school for the deaf in Jamaica. More information will be coming to you in the next month or so. Please pray for guidance and wisdom as we make these plans and decisions with God’s help. Thank you for your continued prayers and for sharing this vision with us!