The team: Clint and Emily, Andrew and Michelle, Ali and Rena, Gwen, Megan and Tony, Lisa, and Cheryl
The view from our mini-bus as we drove through Rwanda. The way they terrace the hills and moutains is incredible.
World Relief Congo office
When we finally arrived in Goma Michelle was surprised with a cake from the staff!
It was hard to capture just how beautiful the landscape of Congo is!
One of the many IDP camps we passed.
I couldn't get all of the “houses” in the picture. This was an incredible sight.
One our way to Rutshuru we stopped at the home of Isabelle, a widow, for whom a previous team had built a house. Isabelle is in the center or the doorframe, wearing a yellow head scarf. She and I had an “interesting” conversation - both in our own languages. Just going on her hand motions, I had a preeettttty good idea of what she was talking about.
The whole village wanted to know what was going on!
Isabelle's bed - some sticks and a bamboo mat. The two packages on the bed are the blanket and fabric that we gave her. Rice, beans, salt, a washing bin, and other supplies were also given.
The church in Nyiragongo
After doing follow-up with the pastors and taking their prayer requests, we had a wonderful lunch.
The children came to the church and wanted to know what was going on!
Absolutely amazing. If you look very closely you can see one of the volcanos in the background.
Megan and I were the first ones to brave the “bathroom”
A better shot
Stunning.
The road to Rutshuru
Whenever we would drive past people they would shout and wave
Downtown Rutshuru
Another street in Rutshuru
Our Guest House in Rutshuru. Home away from home. The brown building to the right is the kitchen.
This is my room. Every door was a different letter, named after a Biblical city
My little room at the Guest House
My safety net. Ha.
The staff that ran the guest house. They were so good to us - fed us, helped clean our shoes, did our laundry, and dealt with all of our craziness.
Someone banged on this drum at 5:45am every single morning. I wish I had the opportunity to personally “thank” them.
The frame for one of the houses we built for a widow. First step, put up large tree trunks and branches.
No fancy tools here - another stick and your hands will work just fine!
Next step, till the ground to make mud.
MUD! (and plenty of Mamas making sure the job gets done correctly)
The kids loved watching us work. The boy in the back, with his arm up, was a rebel and liked to chase our trucks and jump on the back.
The Mamas who helped bring the water for the mud. These women worked HARD.
We had a crowd all day.
Emily and I decided to help the Mamas out. Little did we know what we were getting into...
Everyone had a say in helping us!
Little did Megan know that we were carrying 35-40lbs when she said she wanted to help!
Blackmail.
Third step, tie bamboo poles with banana leaves to the inside and outside of the frame.
Myal had some help getting clean
We didn't work quite as quickly as the Mamas wanted us to!
At our second location of the day. By this point, Myal was really good at making mud.
After the bamboo poles are in place, mud is used to fill them in. To say that I was covered in mud up to my knees would be an understatement. It took me three days to get clean again!
Almost done with the mud!
The final step in creating the houses is to put on the medal sheet roof.
What the widow and her three children were living in before.
The finished product - complete with a metal sheet roof, a door, and windows.
The beautiful widow thanking us for her new home. She is the woman I used as an example in my blog.
The dedication of the home
Everyone wanted to be a part of the ceremony
The widow and her children in front of their new home. The boys worked so hard with us and did an amazing job.
This was the widow at the third worksite
The widow with her son
I love this face.
Isn't she cute? This is another one of the widows. She came up to my shoulder!
I had SO much fun with these kids. Every time they would come up to shake my hand I would pretend to bite their fingers. In no time we were all screaming and chasing each other. One of my very favorite times.
As we were going to the final house for it's dedication, these two little girls came up beside me and took my hands.
The streets of Rutshuru
Medecins Sans Frontieres
The pots of food the women at the church had stayed up all night to prepare for the patients at the hospital. Unfortunately, we were turned away from the hospital and not allowed to serve there. However, it was a blessing because the food was then taken to the local prisons and the impact was far greater than we could have ever imagined. A wonderful example that Plan B is not subservient to Plan A.
Meals on Wheels
Because we were not able to be a part of the team that served food at the prison (security issues), the team and I went back to the guest house where we bonded with some of the Mamas over pictuers of our families.
The day that we went to cultivate the field we had at least 100 children walking with us. It was like the Pied Piper was in town.
Getting ready to till. Clint liked to give high-fives to the kids.
The field we were to cultivate. The churches had rented about half of this lot from the government. When the powers-that-be heard that the churches were going to use the field to earn money to take care of orphans and widows, they gave them double the land for the same price!
Getting our instructions from one of the Mamas
HARD work
Making progress!
About half-way through
I was not about to let those Mamas think that I was weak!
They kept laughing at me because I would grunt every time I hit the ground.
Almost to the finish line!
After the tilling was completed, we gathered together to pray, sing, and enjoy the company.
This guy was great! He sang the entire day and was so animated. I can still hear his voice.
Pastor Jonas' church - it was right outside of the Guest House gates
Inside the church
One of the days the churches held a large celebration of the work that had been accomplished. Four or five different choirs sang - including the team from FMC!
Pastor Jonas - one of our favorites.
One of the choirs
Christ for all
This choir was full of dancers!
Up the aisles they come
FMC choir (or not)
Mama Gwen giving a word
The Pastors of the church and Jonas' wife, Christine
Pretty girl
One night these woman fasted and prayed for our team. How humbling. Here they are singing “How Great Thou Art” in Swahili
It didn't take long before everyone was dancing and singing
Myal and I being introduced after Myal had shared about what WR does. Our translator, Modest, is in the green shirt.
Our favorite widow sharing just how thankful she is
The WR symbol put into action - Hands of the Partnering churches, WR, the pastors, and the community
Some of the Mamas who had prayed for us
You can come home with me too
Oh, they worked so hard
Ah, these men will be eligible bachelors...
Not quite sure...
Typical houses
A camp
There are two ways to transport things...
Sorgum
Downtown Goma
Yes, that is a My Little Pony on the dashboard
Our Guest House in Goma
Marcel's family sang for us after lunch
What a beautiful family! Marcel works so hard and is a wonderful asset to WRCongo.
Marcel's home
The church where Marcel is the pastor
