Good start to the trip. Ed was working today at KLM so able to take two extra bags without charge so am able to bring some of the medical supplies donated by Med Share International. I am in Amsterdam boarding flight for Nairobi. As last time there many empty seats on the flight.
Goals for this trip include:
1. Assessing situation on the ground, in the IDP camps in respect to food, water and shelter. GOA social workers and I will visit with Kenya Red Cross as they are the designated agency for coordinating relief.
2. Travelling to Pastor Simon’s area to provide food, medical care, PEACE balls, worship and whatever supplies GOA has been able to purchase to the people in the displaced camps.
3. Travel on the PEACE bus to Marsabit. From the report sent by the new Partners for Care/GOA social worker in Marsabit and Pastor Hirbo there 125 orphans with several in need of immediate interventions. We are taking the GOA nurses and medications. We will have almost 1000 nets to distribute. Also we have 4 VCT counsellors who will test as many people as possible for HIV/AIDS. People are dying in this area from malaria and probably AIDS. There are very few nets in the area and very little testing for HIV/AIDS. GOA hopes to not only care for the orphans but to stop people from dying creating more orphans.
3. We will visit other IDP camps as funds allow.
We have not raised enough funds to take the Lorry with us this time. We do hope to buy food at both Simon’s and in Marsabit. ILI is keeping up with the donations and if more donations come in early this week they will wire them to GOA and we can still fill it with food and take it with us.
We are very blesed to have the nets. They are donated to us from our partner Vickie Winkler of HEART. And we have thousands of test kits donated to us from OraSure.
Pray for the Kenya Peace Team. They are going where others are not going. They are doing what God calls them to do – feed the hungry, cloth the naked and care for the orphans and widows. Thank you to so many who have donated funds – they know it is because of your financial support they are able to serve.
Blessed to be going to Kenya, Connie Sent via Cingular Xpress Mail with Blackberry