Hana

This is Hana:

We met Hana on our first trip to Shanto in June 2011.  While Ryan was working cattle, she appeared and proceeded to not let go of Bev.  They brought her back to the FOVC campus and everyone immediately fell in love with little Hana.  She's a gem!  But she was also really struggling from some health issues including Hep B and malnutrition.  Hana got to join the FOVC family that day along with her siblings.  She was treated for Hep B, began receiving a meal each day, and started school.

When I returned to Ethiopia in October, she was still well loved.  In fact, I got to see a little more of her attitude.  No more the quiet little thing, Hana was growing and doing well.  She was the center of attention and knew it.  She was quite surprised in October when she didn't get spoiled rotten by us!

Hana is one of many faces I look forward to seeing when I return to Shanto.  When I saw this picture on the Hope Chest Shanto site, it broke my heart.

Gone is her sweet smile, her ringlet hair, and her bright sparkle in her eye.  Hana is need of someone to sponsor her.  When you sponsor Hana, you commit monthly support and ongoing encouragement through prayer, letter writing, and relationship.  You can even go on a sponsor trip where you can meet her and get to know this gem of a child.

Would you consider sponsoring Hana?  It's $34 per month.  You can sign up here through hopchest.org

Postponed

I just got off the phone with Wil at Hope Chest.  The Vision trip planned for December is postponed.   I'm certainly bummed about not being able to go but I'm thankful for the wise decision making on their part.  It's been a year since I've been in Ethiopia and I am so looking forward to getting back there.  Hopefully the March trip works out!
 
In the mean time, I should be getting a better idea of development plans for Shanto in the next few weeks.  I'm looking forward to how Hope Chest will help Shanto become self-sustaining.  I'm also looking forward to how you might be willing to partner with Hope Chest in one of the development areas or by sponsoring a child.

it's okay

I'm getting excited for Ethiopia.  At the same time, a commitment to serve in Ethiopia is difficult.  It was my plan for us to return to California as a family in 2013, 5 years after our last family trip.  I was hoping for a long weekend getaway with Ryan.  Those are things we can't make happen when we're invested in Ethiopia.  I spoke to my dad tonight.  He's coming out to visit for Christmas.  I'm so thankful.  It's been over a year since he's seen the kids and since we're not getting out there, I'm so thankful he's coming out here.  It stinks that my kids don't really know their cousins and other family in California.  It's sad that I can't sit at my grandma's bed side when she falls and breaks her hip and has surgery like last week.  In that sadness, I continue to thank God for choosing us to play a small part in Ethiopia.  In that sadness, I continue to ask God to use us to be the hands and feet as we seek to serve the widows and the orphans.  

This week is the first team conference call.  I'm looking forward to meeting the others over the phone and hearing a little more about what we're doing.  I don't yet know a lot of specifics on the schedule, locations, etc.  In the next 4 weeks life will be busy, both of our work environments will get busier and more hectic, holidays will be on the door step, followed by dermatologist appointments (for my itching skin) and then leaving for Ethiopia.  I'm trying to be well rested... we'll see how that goes in the coming 4 weeks.

Application

With today being a federal holiday, I'm trying to catch up on a few things at home.  One of those things relates to my love for Ethiopia.  I've mostly filled out my application to do a visioning trip with Children's Hope Chest December 1-8.  I need to dig out my passport, knock the dust off it and grab some info that needs to go on my application.  I'm super excited to see how Hope Chest works and functions.  To see how the developmental side of things works in carepoints that are in various stages.  I'm excited to meet the staff - both the local Ethiopians and those travelling.

I haven't written much about the transition from FOVC in the US to Hope Chest.  For those of you who are curious, there's a couple reasons for the transfer.  FOVC in Ethiopia exists.  Desalegn and his staff continue to work diligently to provide for the needs of the locals.  The reach, and therefore the impact, of FOVC will increase with the partnership with Hope Chest.  Check out this picture:

Taken at Shanto. June 2011.

See Rick with those cute little kids?  It's such a joy to love on and support those children.  But it's heart-breaking to see the kids in the background.  The ones on the other side of the fence.  The ones who are in desperate need.  The ones that are hungry.  The difference between the kids snuggled around Rick and the kids outside the FOVC campus is fortune.  FOVC can only spread it's resources so far.  They aren't able to reach all the kids like this one

Partnering with Hope Chest is going to change some of that.  Hope Chest has gone in and studied the needs and written a developmental plan for the WHOLE town of Shanto.  I'm excited.  That includes adding a bunch more children to the sponsorship program (See Ingrid's blog for more info on that).  It will also include  agriculture programs as part of the development program.  I'm excited to see how God might continue to use Ryan and I in this journey.

Now back to that application...

Crops Pics & Update

I've not had communication from Desalegn for the past few months but today I saw that he posted an update about the Crops for Widows.  When I was there last year, the widows were requesting improved seed to plant and fertilizer.  It was difficult because I wanted them to have heirloom seed and make use of compost.  Their viewpoint is that the improved seed (genetically modified) gives them more to harvest - something they need to make it through the coming months.  The fertilizer helps grow the crop of course.  The drawback is that it's short sighted.  But how do you teach them to plan long term when they don't even have food for the next 3 months?  Heirloom seed is something they can harvest for food but also save some to harvest for seed.  They could store the seed and then plant it the next season without having the expense of buying bags of seed.  Harvesting crops for seed is time consuming, I know.  I've been doing it recently with herbs that I planted this past spring.  Likewise, the use of compost would provide nutrients to grow the crops without the expense.  Both, the improved seed and the chemical fertilizers are expensive.

Regardless of them doing it different than what I had planned, I'm thankful that it was done.  Crops planted and ready to harvest.  Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU friends who so generously donated towards the crops program in the past.  Please take a few minutes and check out the link to Desalegn's blog post.

click here to read more 

In December I'm planning to return to Ethiopia on a visioning trip with Children's Hope Chest.  I'll get to meet their staff and see various sites at different places in development.  I'm eager to see the development plan for Shanto and how it might include livestock and crops!

Long Overdue, I know

While I haven't posted lately, it doesn't mean that we're not involved with Ethiopia.  In fact, with each passing month, I desire to be more involved in Ethiopia.  I know the need.  I've seen it with my own eyes.  I am daily reminded of the choices women have to make because they don't have options.  He is my son:

But it's not just about my son.  It's about this lady, Judah's birth mom:

And about women like her.  These faces are the motivation for what we do.  Not just what we do, but what we ask God to do.  Bethany prays regularly for people in Ethiopia to have enough food.  From what I know, people are wonderful about supporting children to go to school.  And I'm thankful for that.  In fact, in November, friends of Ethiopia FOVC will looking for more sponsors for children like this:  

In the village of Shanto, where we've done most of our work with FOVC, they'll be adding 80-some kids.  Ethiopia FOVC will be partnering with Children's Hope Chest to impact more kids.  If you can spare $34 a month, it will be money well spent.  One of the things I love about Hope Chest is that you can go on trips and see YOUR sponsored child.  How cool is that?!?!?  You can see your impact!  If you're interested, leave a comment and I'll connect you with Ingrid, our sponsorship coordinator.  

Like I said, many people help with child sponsorships, or building schools/libraries, or digging wells.  These are all good things.  All things we've personally and financially supported.  But what happens when those kids are done with secondary school and ready for college?  They don't have the means to afford college and so they don't go.  Friends, it's not like here in the US where you get scholarships or financial aid or take out loans.  No money = no opportunity.  But, some friends are helping out with that.  Cliff and Mary have a non-profit that help older orphans go to college.  If you scroll back up to that pic of Judah's mom, you'll see two boys - soon to be teenagers.  They're in school and even learning ENGLISH.  But they have no hope for college.  How cool if they had that opportunity through an organization like Cliff and Mary's.  Through Higher Education 4 Ethiopia's Orphans, you can help sponsor a student to go to college.   I can't remember the exact dollar amount but I think it's something like $500 a year sends them to university!  Cliff and Mary are in Ethiopia right now with 3 students graduating and 10 more getting started.  I can't wait to hear about their trip when they get back

And then there's our work with widowed women.  Specifically in the field of agriculture since most the country is agriculture based.  That has been on hold for a bit but we're hoping to get that going in the coming months.  I'm starting discussions with Children's Hope Chest on that too.  I'm excited to see how that might progress once we get the children's sponsorships taken care of.

More in the months to come...

On Hold

The June trip never happened.  It was delayed until October.  Since that delay, I haven't written or updated much.  Instead, Ryan and I have done a lot of praying, searching, chatting, and praying some more.  We desire to serve in Ethiopia helping women keep their families together.


For now, I continue to save up some vacation time to utilize to best serve.  The next trip may be to Ethiopia to work with the widows.  But I'm also considering using some time to get better training so that I can be better help.  My journey 4 hope might be seeking partners who can better serve in the actual training in Ethiopia.  Just so you know, I am committed to being in Ethiopia and helping.  I love my time in Ethiopia.  I find great joy in serving the widows.  I could even live there for an extended period of time.  But, I want to help.  I want for these women's lives to really be impacted.  So, I want to make sure we're doing this the best way possible.


What that means?  I don't know yet.  What I do know is that Ryan and I will continue to pray and search.   And for now, that's all I know.