The HOPE Project...up & running...

Saturdays in Majengo Mjimpya (area just outside 'downtown' Moshi where the church we are partnering with is located) are now filled with activity, as all the orphans come for a day of food, fun, singing, teaching and training. Two weeks ago marked the beginning of the Saturday venture. Training will include life skills (cooking/baking, basic mechanics, sewing, etc.), health (HIV/AIDS awareness, malaria prevention, etc.), personal hygiene (brushing of teeth, flossing, etc.) and more. Next Saturday will hopefully include complete medical exams/screenings for all the children, testing everything from eyesight and hearing to checking for malaria, worms, TB and HIV. During the week, the older children (ages 7-18) are in school most of the day, while the younger children (ages 3-6) come to the church building for a preschool that currently runs 8 a.m. - 12 noon (but hopefully will extend until 5 p.m. soon).

Who's that giving a short HIV/AIDS seminar...none other than Moshi's very own Zachariah Oloo! A man of many talents...from sharing about God's love to teaching children on the intricacies of HIV - how it works and how it's spread (and yes, kids are kids around the world, the minute he mentioned the big 'S' word, all broke out in the 'You just said _______ giggle').

Faces of Moshi...

Tito, Neema & baby Grace...a young family we connected with on our last trip who we've sort of taken under our wings. Baby Grace is doing great...amazing how much they grow in 2 months. Tito is still smiling...always smiling...except for last week when he had Typhoid fever...don't think he was smiling quite so much during that...but all's well now.

Neema...what a trooper...after a VERY slow 3 month recovery from an African-style C-section that I don't even want to go into (without any pain killers mind you - try that one on for size), she's up and mobile again and loving every minute of being a mom.



Sophie & Irene (both on the left)...the 2 kids we would adopt if we could. Of course, Sophie's here helping and has a family, but we love her still. She became part of our family last October as she joined us for a family vacation. Our girls absolutely love her...and she loves them. And Irene...oh how we wish the adoption laws in Tanzania were different (currently not very favorable to 'outside' adoptions...unless you have a few years, a lot of patience and a bit of cash).

Steve & his wife...new friends...filled with so much joy & zeal for life. Next month (February) they are eagerly expecting the birth of their 1st child, as well as preparing for major surgery. Steve flies to Dar es Salaam mid-February to have the tumor removed from his face. It will be the 2nd of 2 operations necessary in order to safely remove it - the 1st operation, last month, was to remove all the fluid along with several of his teeth. Life is about the change drastically for Steve...like a child before Christmas, he can't wait for February to come.

Baby Frank...this one's for you Kristen. Adorable. Enough said.

Home away from home...

As the plane descended to Kilimanjaro Airport, I couldn't believe how much snow was covering the top of Kili...obvious evidence of the amount of rain that has fallen since we left last November. This is very abnormal, as typically the short rains run late October through early December, but this year they went all the way into January. A welcomed reprieve from the past 7 years in which the short rains did not come at all. Stepping off the plane, I took a deep breath and stepped into what's become a home away from home.

The view from my temporary home...what a way to wake up every morning...in sheer amazement at the beauty & workmanship of God's creation...a true painter at work. Any thoughts of climbing it this trip were squelched by reports of waist deep snow due to the heavy rains these past 2 months. Call me a sissie...but I just left 6 weeks of sub-zero (celsius) weather and am more than happy to enjoy the 85 degree blue sky, sunny weather in Moshi...shorts, t-shirts & flipflops...what more do you need? (Thankfully, nothing, which is great as both my bags are still MIA...sure glad I left 2 shorts & a few t-shirts behind when we left last November.)

So green! I was amazed to find the lush greenery on this visit...as typically everything is very dry and dust abounds. Green and dustless...what a gift to the Tanzanian people. This is the courtyard just outside the two buildings the church uses for their gatherings in Majengo Mjimpya...needless to say, this is by far & away the most lush I've even seen it.

My new sidekick...

Traveling without the family on this trip, I'm not flying completely solo. Right on my heels is Mr. Kenny Lard, whose African journey is about to begin! Kenny will be staying for 3 months, continuing the movement that's begun in The HOPE Project, along with the rest of our work together with Zachariah Oloo & the church (Yesu Anaweza = Jesus is Able) in Moshi. Who knows where it will lead him...but rumor has it that it may just lead him up the slopes of Mt. Meru (little brother to Mt. Kilimanjaro...althought at over 15,000 ft...it's not so little) together with Peter (Zachariah's right hand man) and I for a few days (pics to come if/when it happens).

A few last things...

As the sun set on 2006 and 2007 began, so too came the next step of our journey...Dave is traveling back to Moshi, Tanzania for 3 weeks to continue working on The HOPE Project (http://hope.thryve.com), one of the many things that has come out of our time living there, while Cindy, Shay & Jadyn enjoy another few weeks in toasty North Idaho (5 degrees I believe was the last report). But before he went, there we a few things to attend to...

A kid-less night in Coeur d'Alene, enjoying the beauty of North Idaho & the always enjoyable Wine Cellar. 5 1/2 years from the day we said 'I DO'...and still running strong! Looking back at what's happened so far...we've lived in 9 different places across Idaho, Washington & Tanzania (East Africa)...owned 8 different vehicles...had 2 beautiful girls...snorkeled in 3 different ocenas (Pacific, Atlantic & Indian)...experienced 2 IronMan Triathlons...we can honestly say we have loved every minute of the journey. (Okay, so the cockroach in Cindy's ugali was borderline, but hey, it makes for a great lifelong story!) Through it all, one thing we know...[contrary to popular opinion] following Christ is definitely NOT boring.

And what would the new year be without a Seahawk home playoff game...together with the bros and pops...we watched the end of another Cowboys season...10 years without a playoff victory...must be rough! (Trust me, as a Hawk fan, I know!)



Cousins...together again. Not sure exactly who gave this gift to who, but they sure enjoyed opening it together! Shay has been more than excited to see and play with her cousin again. How life is changing...from growing up playing with my bros...to raising our kids together.