About Time there was a new Message!!

My humble appologies. I had heard others say it was hard to keep up a decent flow of blogging, but I never REALLY understood until we came to Africa. There is very little time really, and the dial up speed is SO SLOW. We get high speed internet on December first then we can Skype, send pictures etc. HURRAY!!!!

Anyway, we are not only busy with the day to day work, but we have a team of ten from Calgary who have been here for nearly two weeks, and go home this Friday. This is the first time we have been exposed to having a team and let me tell you it is a lot of extra work. However, VERY worthwhile and rewarding for all.

We also had Gilles and Lucille Chaput with us. WHAT A TREAT!! We really looked forward to them coming and it was like old home week. We also gave them a look at Africa that they might not of expected but seem to certainly enjoy.

On the work side, we started the new outreach clinics in the North. We expected 200 people to come each day, there was 500!! Both days in different places. The team was exausted but happy, we have been very well received and there is a lot of need in the area. The actual clinic building has its wall rising, and will have windows and doors in a week or two. Pictures of all of these things to follow.

It was so sad one day last week in the clinic. One of the nurses called me over and asked if I wanted to see her patient, who was in bad shape. It was a little girl, about one years old. She had pulled over a pot of boiling water and had third degree burns to her face and arms. She was hurt so badly that she could not even suckle on her moms breast, and we were worried she would be at great risk if she did not get some help and in a hurry. It was beyond our ability at the clinic so we called the ambulance from Salima hospital and they came to get her. The mom told us it had happened five days ago and she had gone to another clinic and they had just given her ointment and sent her home. Unbelieveable.

Anyway, we are well, we are busy and we are learning a lot. We really feel African now as we sleep under a mosquito net!! Jesse the dog is a great blessing, even the Azungu have a healthy respect for her, and she barks at all of the right times, and few of the wrong times. The stupid dog next door barks at leaves being blown around which is ALWAYS in Africa!!

We are FINALLY getting to move in!!

Hi all;

We have been in the house for over three weeks but it has been the life of a gypsy anyway. First, the kitchen had to be emptied for two days to do the semi-annual bug spraying, then the painters came and were here every day for two weeks. All of our stuff had to come out of closets, put onto beds and tables and wait for the paint to dry.

This week, they were finished. We spent the weekend finally putting things in place and getting organized. Anyone who knows Ann will know it has been really bugging her to have everything all over the place. This really ends a chapter that started back in JUNE!! When we decided to move to Africa, Ann started to pack, move things, throw things out etc. and it has been like that up until this weekend.

The place looks great, and even the grounds are coming along with some loving care.

We had our first "really missing the family" day on Sunday. We miss them all most of the time, like anyone would, but it was kind of hard this Sunday. We got a call from them and they were getting ready for Thanksgiving. We had sort of lost touch with the dates, and when we realized that everyone was getting together for Turkey and the works it really brought it home that we are not going to be there for those events. With such a big family they have always been times we would all look forward to the food and the conversation and the friendship.

The kids ave been great about calling, and that has really helped. Tova found a calling card that she pays $2.70 for and she can talk to us for 70 minutes! good deal or what.

I am going to figure out how to put pictures into this blog, because I took some today that you just will not believe until you see them! More on that next time.

Best regards

Pat and Ann

Three Weeks in Africa Already - WOW

Whoever said time flies, was NOT kidding. Having the internet down for the last FIVE DAYS did NOT help!

We are settling into our house, and Ann is busy putting her mark on the place. She turned into Martha Stewart overnight! We are about half way through the painting, and we made kitchen and dining room curtains, and have started improving the small things. We cannot wait until they get to painting the bedroom, it is a mid-green and it has to go.

Ann has been attending a Small group bible study and is enjoying it a lot. Every day she passes on some small fact or piece of information about the country or habits or laws. We feel like we are settling in. I only look at the map a few times per journey. This place does not have one straight road! it was complex to get a sense of direction but that is coming along well.

Chris Brooks is going to Canada for a fund raising trip in a few weeks so preparations are well under way. He will be in Toronto for a full week and will be available at least one Sunday. Look forward to that and bring your friends!!

I have been up north to the new clinic site, and we have our work cut out for us in this project, that is for sure! Originally it was supposed to be budgeted so we would get a contractor to build it and we just get progress updates. Yea, right! We are now our own contractors and it is a very complex job, the finished building will measure 25 meters by 40 meters (about 80 feet by 130 feet for you old folks)it will be great when it will be finished, and I hope it will be complete in December. We are not waiting for it to start work. We have already hired most of the staff, so training has begun, we are searching for houses for them to live in and we plan to have our first outreach clinic on Oct.17, 2006. Real soon.

We just got our visas extended by 90 days while we wait for my work visa. our container, originally scheduled for Sept. 29, will now be in mid-Oct or Christmas, we are not quite sure over here.

We witnessed a miracle this Sunday in the villages. One of the PAOC churches was doing a crusade to plant a church in a village and we went for the Sunday wrap up. Ann gave the message in the Sunday service, and did a great job, I might add. One of the recent converts had a testimony that was amazing. He was a village headman, which means he has some stature in the leadership ranks, he was registered as a Muslim, but was secretly a senior guy in the Gullie Wamkulu sect which is based on witchcraft and many evil things. He not only gave his life to Christ, but has been making very powerful public testimonies to that fact which is causing quite a stir.

God does work in mysterious ways. Sorry it was so long between posts, we will get more regular with a little All-Bran!!

Love to all

Pat and Ann Laforet