Hey All!!!
The internet is down in our section of town so we have been unable to update the blog and will be unable to for a few days. We are still doing great!!
We will be heading south into the interior of the country on Thursday to spend a few days at the Bongolo Evangelical Jungle Hospital. We will be back on Monday, hopefully with lots of awesome stories to share with you all!
Peace and Love,
Dan and Alicia
Sunday, July 26, 2009
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
A Few More Pictures
(dan typing)
hi All,
I had a few minites so I decided to throw up a few pictures i didnt get to the last time. the first picture is the back door, as you can tell you would need a battering ram to get through it...i had fun doing that, made me feel like i was in a zombie movie getting ready for an attack. next picture is of the footer freshly poured.
things are still going great! I stayed back at the house today and started building shelving to organize the bins in the storage room. and fixed a doorhandle while i was at it. so far so good, they should be done with another half day of work, pictures will come later.
(Alicia typing)
Hello Everyone!!!
In the picture above, I am holding a 2-week old ènfant. So cute. The mother told me the little girl liked me because I got her to stop crying and rocked her to sleep. Did you happen to notice the shelves in the background. (sorry....for some reason I can`t type in question marks) At the clinic today, Mama Francias kept saying ``merci dan, merci dan`` to no one. It was quite hilarious and awesome at the same time to see her so grateful, she was thanking the air. haha
Working at the clinic has been different everyday and I seem to always be seeing new things, but I also see a lot of the same things. Malaria and stomach pains due to parasites or worms are just a few.
God is doing awesome things here....thanks for all the prayers and support!
Love,
Alicia and Dan
Monday, July 20, 2009
Great News for Hope House!!!
Great news for Hope House! last week the church had it's national general council. the needs of hope house were brought to light and a motion was passed stating that every alliance church in the country will now have a representative for Hope House so that the churches will be notified of future needs and send support. already pastor Isreal has gotten alot of positive feedback and it seems that help is on the way. there is still howeaver alot to be done, the house they are currently renitng is on the market and may be sold soon making developing the land they were given even more imortant. the first things that need to happen is a well be dug to get fresh water to the land and a source of electricity which may have to be a generator until the power company expands it grid in the coming year or so.
keep on praying that Hope House gains the support that those kids need in the coming months.
-Dan
keep on praying that Hope House gains the support that those kids need in the coming months.
-Dan
Friday, July 17, 2009
Some work Alicia's been doing...
(Alicia's typing...)Hello All!!!! I decided to bring my first aid kit to Hope House to repair some wounds I had seen from previous visits. This wound was majorly infected and it was fixed by some simple peroxide and neosporin! All the kids were very interested, and I had many eyes watching me. I guess first aid is something they don't see very often!
I have continued my work at the clinic this past week, and I start consulting on my own on Monday. Please pray for wisdom! It is still hard to see cases that I know would easily be "fixed" in the United States. A 26-year old came in the other day who could barely walk he was so hunched over. He could hardly urinate without screaming in pain. He could not afford an ultrasound to search for kidney stones, so the most we could do was give him medicine for the pain and infection...a treatment he had already recieved that had not been working. It was sad to see, but we ended up praying over him and he left the clinic walking a little straighter and with a bigger smile.
God has been showing us amazing things down here ... Psalm 77 has been a huge encouragement to me when I get discouraged towards the health care here in Gabon.
Love,
Alicia
Dan Dan the Handyman
(Dan typing...)
hey guys!! finailly got some pictures up!
I have been busy doing handyman projects on top of helping with the big projects the teams are working on. last week the teams sterted the foundation for a new church, this week we are working on finishing a pastors house and sunday school building alongside members of the congregation.
side project i have been doing include designing and building the bunkbeds for the guys bunkhouse (pictured above) fabricating shelving for the medical clinic Alicia is working in, updating the security on the back door to the bunkhouse, and small jobs at Hope house. my next jobs will be putting in the tolitet paper dispenser in the boys bathroom (I know it sounds complicated) and then designing and building shelving for the cluttered stoage room.
in a crazy turn of events on sunday the church we attended had me be a guest speaker so I was able to give a message about following Gods calling to 180 Gaboneese!
God is good and he is working all the time!
-Dan
Hi all!
Monday, July 13, 2009
Sooooooo it's been quite a while since we have updated the blog and we apologize for that. It gets really busy around here and the internet is real sketchy.
-
(Alicia's typing here:)
I started working at the clinic last Tuesday. The first day was quite an experience. They started me off right away with consulting several patients. It was very frustrating because I had not even been given a tour of the clinic yet and was unsure of what it had to offer. I felt like God had totally thrown me in the middle of no where and uncapable of doing what was expected of me.
I talked over my concerns with Tim (our site coordinator) and he explained that in the Gabonese culture, instead of starting a person at the bottom of the totem pole and working their way up, they start them as high as possible and work them down the totem pole from there. This is so that someone does not feel disrespected.
So starting that next Wednesday...I went into the clinic with a completely different attitude. I know God has me here for a reason, and it may or may not be for my medical experience. It has been different for me to fall into the supportive role instead of the active role. I shadow a nurse everyday and by the end of this current week I will be consulting patient's on my own. I was also informed today that I will be the main consultor the first week of August because the nurse is going on vacation. Talk about trusting in God!
Working in the clinic has opened my eyes to many things so far. I am still trying to compile them and organize them in my head. The thing that people really need the most is a loving smile and someone to truly listen to them.
(dan now) Hi all! since getting back from the bush I have been busy being a handyman around the complex building bunks to house the incoming tems and other small projects. today we spend the morning at a place called hope house which is a home for abandoned children. the house is in total disrepair and while the teams played with the kids some of the men and i adressed some issues with security fixing doors and windows, some minor plumbing, and fixing a bed that was badly needed. there are 23 chldren living in a house that should really only hold 8 max. Hope of a new place for them is on the horizon, a woman from a local church donated land for them to build a complex. be praying for hope house, the kids there and the future of that ministry.
tomorrow I will start work building the foundation for a new church about 30 minutes outside of the city with a team from ohio, between that and ongoing work at hope house i should be busy the next few days.
Thank you again for all of the prayers and support, I love being here showing these kids and people we help that somebody cares about them and by doing so spreading the love of christ.
in his service,
Dan and Alicia
-
(Alicia's typing here:)
I started working at the clinic last Tuesday. The first day was quite an experience. They started me off right away with consulting several patients. It was very frustrating because I had not even been given a tour of the clinic yet and was unsure of what it had to offer. I felt like God had totally thrown me in the middle of no where and uncapable of doing what was expected of me.
I talked over my concerns with Tim (our site coordinator) and he explained that in the Gabonese culture, instead of starting a person at the bottom of the totem pole and working their way up, they start them as high as possible and work them down the totem pole from there. This is so that someone does not feel disrespected.
So starting that next Wednesday...I went into the clinic with a completely different attitude. I know God has me here for a reason, and it may or may not be for my medical experience. It has been different for me to fall into the supportive role instead of the active role. I shadow a nurse everyday and by the end of this current week I will be consulting patient's on my own. I was also informed today that I will be the main consultor the first week of August because the nurse is going on vacation. Talk about trusting in God!
Working in the clinic has opened my eyes to many things so far. I am still trying to compile them and organize them in my head. The thing that people really need the most is a loving smile and someone to truly listen to them.
(dan now) Hi all! since getting back from the bush I have been busy being a handyman around the complex building bunks to house the incoming tems and other small projects. today we spend the morning at a place called hope house which is a home for abandoned children. the house is in total disrepair and while the teams played with the kids some of the men and i adressed some issues with security fixing doors and windows, some minor plumbing, and fixing a bed that was badly needed. there are 23 chldren living in a house that should really only hold 8 max. Hope of a new place for them is on the horizon, a woman from a local church donated land for them to build a complex. be praying for hope house, the kids there and the future of that ministry.
tomorrow I will start work building the foundation for a new church about 30 minutes outside of the city with a team from ohio, between that and ongoing work at hope house i should be busy the next few days.
Thank you again for all of the prayers and support, I love being here showing these kids and people we help that somebody cares about them and by doing so spreading the love of christ.
in his service,
Dan and Alicia
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Monday, July 6, 2009
Back from the Bush
Wow! Is all we can say as far as first impressions go. We were literally dumped into the African rainforest with a few Africans to trust to guide us. They were amazing, AMAZING people.
The first village we arrived at was very.....African. There were goats running around everywhere (which is a common theme in any African village). The goats and dogs live their own lives with humans living around them. There were no "toilettes", and getting used to mosquitoes (breeding malaria) biting your butt while trying to use the bathroom took some getting used to.
We then moved into our next village via a ferry (with large tractors) where we would be staying for the next 3 nights called Makouke. We were so blessed to have a place to stay that had a toilet and a running water....even if the water was brown.
The first night, we ate GAZELLE. How many people can say that? We had some fermented banas root....it was alittle rough keeping that down. In this culture, what you take on your plate you must eat. After dinner, we had a random worship session with the Africans. We sang in English and they sang in French. It was so amazing to see the love of God, even if we couldn't understand what each other was singing about.
The next day, we started the medical clinic...Alicia was sent to consult and diagnose! while Dan took blood pressure and body weight. Most people here have hypertension...mostly from their lack of water and their high intake of salt and animal fats in their diet. A lot of people have STD's and most children and older men and women have malaria or tchikungunya (which is the same as malaria but they also have such a hard time walking because of extreme pain in their hips). Also, many people have tumors that would have been taken care of in seconds in America.
A really sad thing was to see an 18-year old woman, who most likely has breast cancer. There were so many tumors in her breasts, and we had to send her to hospital for a mammogram. Who knows if she will actually be able to make it?
Later on that night, we ate ANTELOPE....gazelle was better (it reminds us of goose meat).
we went to the CMA church here in Makouke, the church only had about 50 people but i have never heard people worship the Lord any louder! it was awesome to see them worshiping God with such passion.
Riding around here is......Interesting. That is for sure. You either feel like you are going to die or hit the pedestrians. It is really fun though to ride in the back of a truck and feel the African breeze.
this next week Alicia will be working 9-2 in a clinic about 5 min. away with the aid of an hired interpreter, while Dan builds bunks and unloads a shipping container filled with supplies for Bongolo hospital.
a few pictures from the last few days should be soon to follow.
-Until next time,
-Dan and Alicia
The first village we arrived at was very.....African. There were goats running around everywhere (which is a common theme in any African village). The goats and dogs live their own lives with humans living around them. There were no "toilettes", and getting used to mosquitoes (breeding malaria) biting your butt while trying to use the bathroom took some getting used to.
We then moved into our next village via a ferry (with large tractors) where we would be staying for the next 3 nights called Makouke. We were so blessed to have a place to stay that had a toilet and a running water....even if the water was brown.
The first night, we ate GAZELLE. How many people can say that? We had some fermented banas root....it was alittle rough keeping that down. In this culture, what you take on your plate you must eat. After dinner, we had a random worship session with the Africans. We sang in English and they sang in French. It was so amazing to see the love of God, even if we couldn't understand what each other was singing about.
The next day, we started the medical clinic...Alicia was sent to consult and diagnose! while Dan took blood pressure and body weight. Most people here have hypertension...mostly from their lack of water and their high intake of salt and animal fats in their diet. A lot of people have STD's and most children and older men and women have malaria or tchikungunya (which is the same as malaria but they also have such a hard time walking because of extreme pain in their hips). Also, many people have tumors that would have been taken care of in seconds in America.
A really sad thing was to see an 18-year old woman, who most likely has breast cancer. There were so many tumors in her breasts, and we had to send her to hospital for a mammogram. Who knows if she will actually be able to make it?
Later on that night, we ate ANTELOPE....gazelle was better (it reminds us of goose meat).
we went to the CMA church here in Makouke, the church only had about 50 people but i have never heard people worship the Lord any louder! it was awesome to see them worshiping God with such passion.
Riding around here is......Interesting. That is for sure. You either feel like you are going to die or hit the pedestrians. It is really fun though to ride in the back of a truck and feel the African breeze.
this next week Alicia will be working 9-2 in a clinic about 5 min. away with the aid of an hired interpreter, while Dan builds bunks and unloads a shipping container filled with supplies for Bongolo hospital.
a few pictures from the last few days should be soon to follow.
-Until next time,
-Dan and Alicia
Thursday, July 2, 2009
We are Finally HERE!
After leaving Detroit at 11:00 AM on July 1st, we arrived in Gabon on July 2nd, at 12:00 PM Michigan time. Over 24 hours of traveling can be lots of fun when you are traveling with the right person. :)
We are now in the process of settling into our homestead, and we are off for our 4-day trip into the Jungle (Ebel Abanga) for a mobile medical trip. There will be no running water or electricity. Dan will be doing construction, and Alicia will be helping out in the clinic. Talk about jumping in right away.
We are PUMPED!
We are now in the process of settling into our homestead, and we are off for our 4-day trip into the Jungle (Ebel Abanga) for a mobile medical trip. There will be no running water or electricity. Dan will be doing construction, and Alicia will be helping out in the clinic. Talk about jumping in right away.
We are PUMPED!
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