Off to a land that I love...

My blogging record thus far has been nothing short of pitiful...but here I am, for another shot at it. Guess I am just easing into this fad rather than jumping in with both feet.
The reason I started blogging in the first place was to prepare for blogging about my summer in Zambia, Africa....I had planned to share my previous Zambian experience in 2002-2003 with blogland to give some background before heading out again this summer....but basically I never got around to it.

So here is the short story:
-Lived at Namwianga Mission from 2002-2003 -
LOVED IT! LOVED THE PEOPLE, LOVED THE WORK, LOVED THE CLIMATE, LOVED THE FRUIT (not the bugs). LOVED IT ALL!
-I have lived, breathed, talked, dreamed, planned, lived Zambia ever since returning to Canada
-I am now blessed to return this summer!

Matthew, Alisha and I will travel ahead of the Education Team (departing tomorrow) to work with Rod and Sue Calder in their orphanage for 2.5 weeks, and also reconnect with people/work that I was involved with in 2002/03 . It will be wonderful! I am especially blessed to be able to share it with two of the most special people in my life...they will finally see this place and people I have nattered on and on about for nearly 3 years. It will be great to see them experience it all for the first time.

After our time with the Calders at Seven Fountains Farm, we will stay over at Nawianga Mission and work with a group of Canadian Teachers, Nurses and regular Joes that make up the Education Team 2006. We are a part of the VBS crew that will do a week long program at 3 different rural community schools as well as other random works including, a day-long Purity workshop that address many of the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS prevention and Awareness. The teachers will work with Zambian teachers in professional development type ways as they share teacher strategies. The Nurses will work with community leaders to train them in the Stepping Stones program which will enable them to conduct similar workshops in their viallages to teach HIV/AIDS prevention and awareness. It will be so good! Here are some pictures to help make it all seem more REAL as I write this summer. I will attempt to post some current pictures at some point...but internet use might be sketchy...so we'll see how it works out.

Please take time to bring this work before our Father this summer. Many lives will be touched and He is the one who knows the time and place for that to happen.
Pray that our team may be used to His glory!

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aaahhhh...Thanks God for BEAUTY.














This was my most special baby, Eunice. This was taken shortly after she arrived at the orphanage and she is looking much better than when she arrived. Today she is thriving under the care of her Zambian family that adopted her in 2003.














This is John Boy...he was just a few months old when I was there....he is all grown up now and very happy with his new family!









Agnes is a treat! She deserves her own blog someday to tell her story...if I don't get to it this summer, remind me in the fall. She is such a fighter and has lived through some tough life circumstances. Rod and Sue take great care of this little sweetie.















The Calder family! SUCH a fun household...can't wait to be a part of it again...














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Thanks for reading. May you be blessed today!