Bushfire Demonstration Garden Aug 17, 07
I’m so happy that we have finally started to train the Bushfire staff in using the oxen to plant in rows. This is a major step towards organizing all farm activities from weeding and spraying up to harvesting. We made the various planting yokes over the past few months and were now waiting for the second growing season to start using the yokes for planting this season’s crops. The rains have come and we are now using the yokes for planting this season’s crops. We started planting a couple weeks ago on a plot which is just across from the Children’s home. This field will be used for a demonstration garden. We have shown in the garden that the yokes can be used for intercropping (planting two crops together- such as maize and beans as in the picture shown above) as well as for mono- cropping (just planting one crop, such as only maize, as in the picture below). The locals like to intercrop so this will work well for them.We are hoping and praying that our demonstration garden will be not only a learning tool for the children and staff but also a stepping stone to reach out to the community. We have already had many curious onlookers – especially with the maize yoke which is seven feet wide (twice as long as the regular yoke used for plowing).



OKM Seed Give Away
With OKM we have also been doing an improved seed distribution recently along with a distribution of Water Guard which is a water purification tablet. Jane and I distributed these to most of the families about a week ago. This will help the families to have more food from their gardens and clean drinking water. The tablets will help the families to reduce on the amount of fuel (charcoal or firewood in most cases) they use in boiling drinking water.


House Update: We are also so happy to tell you about the progress on our house. We are about to put the iron sheets on the roof. We will also start on the plumbing, electrical and installing doors and windows within the next few weeks.
Family Update. We have had two malaria patients lately. Both Jane and Isaiah have been on treatment for malaria and are recovering now. The boys are on Holidays now for three weeks. We are eagerly awaiting my cousin Kerri to come and help us with the boys schooling in September. Please continue praying for our health and safety. Road accidents are SO common and there is so much disease as well. We thank God for all of his protection so far. Please also pray success in our work – we trust God to add his blessing to our efforts. As always, thanks to you all for your prayers, letters and support.
God Bless you all, Chris and Jane, Andrew, Kenny, Albert, and Isaiah

A Hot Day in Wangobo

This week I made the long journey to Bushfire's new site in Wangobo village. It is a log trip - not only because of the distance but mostly because of the condition of the roads. It takes a long time from the Bushfire Home to Wangobo. Although the land is near as the bee flies it takes almost an hour to circumnavigate a swamp via a very bumpy road.

We are planting low maintenance food crops such as cassava and sweet potatoes. My brother in-law Masiu Fine also came with me for a day of sweating it out in the hot sun. He is used to manual labour, being a Tongan where they also grow a lot of the similar crops a Uganda. We were also with our farm workers Wilson, Peter and Mutale. The Local government leader also helped us (as he usually does) to plant. We get lots of good time in the gardens chatting with the locals who come out to watch or to help. They get surprised to see Masiu and I digging -- thinking that most whites are the "softy" type. We often discuss many issues -- anything from witchcraft to politics. Our Ugandan guys are good at helping interpret and are good witnesses too. I speak Luganda to the locals which they understand, as the local language, Lusoga, is similar. They have lots of questions about what Canada is like and what we eat and what we do. It always amazes them to hear about polar regions that get periods of no light and continuous light.

We are now entering the next growing season so I will probably start teaching them to use the planting yokes in a week or so.

With OKM, Jane and I recently visited some of the families in Kangalumira but unfortunately some were not home. We also had a check on the poultry operation. It was good to see the birds are starting to lay but it seems we will have to find a new manager as the current one does not seem to be faithful and thus the operation is suffering. We will be again giving out improved seed to the families this season. We are in the process of also purchasing land (through OKM) for a community garden for a few of the families in the Kangalumira area. Pray that all of this goes well.

Thanks again to all of you for your faithful love and support.

July Newsletter

July Newsletter

Dear Friends and Family, July 2 2007

Greetings from Uganda and from Buganda! We have moved just a few miles to a place called Njeru (Google it – you’ll find it!) but this means we are now west of the Nile so we are in Central Uganda, Mukono District. We have also changed from living within the Busoga Kingdom to the Buganda Kingdom. We are enjoying our new home and the rare blessing of having power that hasn’t gone off in a month! This is probably due to the fact that we are on one of the main lines coming directly from the Dam. The move was necessary as there was no more room at the YWAM base.

Before we go into what we have been doing the last few months, we would like to thank all of you for your faithful prayers, letters, e-mails and support. We have been able to make a good start on the house and also purchase a family vehicle thanks to your generosity. We bought a 1993 Isuzu Big Horn in May and have been so blesses with the vehicle. The house will probably be up to the ring beam (top of the wall) by the time you get this letter. Thanks for your generous giving!
Since settling into our new place here in Njeru we have settled into more of a regular routine. Monday and Friday we have set aside for Orphans Know More work and Tuesday and Thursday we have set aside to go to Bushfire.

Recently we had the founder of OKM, John Peachy (along with his lovely family) at our home and we were able to get a really good idea of what the ideals and goals are of the project. The project actually originates from their daughter (she’s about 10) who felt God speaking to her about ministering and caring for orphans. We have a number of micro-finance projects lined up, including a community garden. We are now starting to work on a HELP (Home Economy Life Plan) plan for each family. This is an individualized plan for each family in the network which is holistic in nature. It’s goal is to help enable each family to reduce their living costs and increase their income.

With Bushfire I have been working with some of the Farm staff on making planting yokes for planting crops in rows. So far the people in the community (and Bushfire) are only using the plow for breaking land which still leaves a lot of work when it comes to planting, weeding and harvesting. We have also been working on developing a large piece of land in a nearby village called Wangobo. We will mainly growing basic food crops such as cassava (manioc) and sweet potatoes until we build some structures and are able to have staff to care for crops that need more intensive care. We have secured enough planting stock to have a 10 acre garden of improved cassava. This garden will serve as food for the children and a multiplication garden so that farmers in the district can benefit from the improved varieties.

This next week I will spend most of my time touring the Agriculture Show with various groups from Bushfire. I hope there will be some good ideas to stimulate some good thoughts and ideas about farming with the children.

Recently, when I was driving the VERY bumpy road (it takes 1 hour to drive the 20km) from Bushfire to Wangobo I was talking with Apollo (Bushfire Farm Manager) about why the locals seemed to be decent farmers yet their homesteads are so unkempt and do not reflect the apparent prosperity that should be a result of their good farming. He explained that witchcraft is extremely high. When someone develops a bit (maybe builds a permanent structure) they are put under witchcraft by jealous neighbors, so people fear to develop their homesteads. This has lead to a very backward way of living. In addition to this, it seems that when a farmer starts to do well, instead of putting the money into his home or family, he goes and marries another wife, largely neglecting the state of his original wife and children. Please pray for these people, that we will not just merely communicate better methods of farming but that the Holy Spirit will convict them as we preach the Gospel in various ways.

Also pray for Jane as she gets time with some of the girls in OKM and Bushfire. Many of them have big struggles with their past, difficulties handling the present and needing wisdom for the future. This is a very important aspect of our work, we want these girls who are “on the edge” to make wise and wholehearted decisions for God.

By the time we write our nest (3rd Quarter) Newsletter we will have my cousin Kerri living with us. Kerri has just finished grade 12 and will be helping to school and care for the boys a bit as well as helping out with the ministry we are doing as well. We are so excited to have her coming.

Other exciting news is that my sister April and her husband Masiu and children Sione and Ane have joined us in the work with Bushfire. They have been here a week and settling back into life in Uganda (April and Masiu have worked in Uganda several years before they were married)

Before we say goodbye we would like to let you know that we still need more monthly supporters. We have had very generous donations to help us with the vehicle and the house but we still need more money coming in monthly to keep up our salary and keep a reserve for any emergencies. We also need more fiancés for the house so that we can complete it by he time our rental agreement expires in December.

Again, we love you all and thank God for all of you.
Love, Chris and Jane, Andrew, Kenny, Albert and Isaiah as well as Adrienne and Deborah

*Financial contributions can be sent to:
Equip Canada PO Box 683
Duncan, B.C.
V9L 3Y1
*In the US donations can be sent to:
Equip, Inc.
PO Box 1126, Marion, N.C.
USA, 28752-1126

Making Yokes

Yesterday I went to Bushfire as part of my weekly routine of visiting the children's centre on Tuesday and Thursdays. I co-ordinate this with dropping Kenny and Albert off at preshcool and then continue heading east and then north to Busembatia.

The road to Bushfire is very bad. The tarmac section just east of Jinja has been under repair for several years under different construction companies. The current company looks like they have a handle on what they are doing so hopefully we will be driving on a good road before we head back to Canada in 2009. The village road is also very bumpy and can be a bit slick in the rain too. Last week when we went with the whole family, the normal 2 hr journy took us 5 hrs because of a large traffic jam caused by one way traffic due to road construction. It was also raining so the dirt road part of the journey was also very adventuresome as it was more like driving in a river bed than on a road. The water was splashing so heavily onto the windscreen that I was having a hard time seeing the road. When the road is completed it should take just over an hour from Jinja to get to the children's home. The journey is about 80km from Jinja (90km from where we live now and will be 70km from our new place when it is built).

Bad roads aside, I had a good day at Bushfire. We were able to work more on the various yokes for planting different crops such as maize, peanuts and beans (our widest yoke is about 7 feet long). I worked with Mutale on the yokes and he will finish them within this week hopefully. We also were able to plan for moving the oxen and Peter and Mutale for a week or so to our nearby farm at Wangobo. There they will plough and get ready for planting a large garden (about 10acres) of cassava and sweet potatoes. We are getting free improved seed from NAADS (gov't extension agent) so we hope to have lots of food around Christmas.

We were also able to find parts for our plough that fit! We found them in a village shop near Bushfire -- the ones in the major trading centers did not fit properly.

Going to the Village

"Going to the Village" is a phrase often used in Uganda when someone is going to go to the rural areas of the country. From a western perspective we may not understand what is meant by a "village" although we may think we know. A village, in the African context, means a rural area of people living in relative proximity to each other but each family having their own piece of land. The homes on this piece of land are located along a village path which may be only big enough to accompany foot traffic but sometimes a rural access road that may be well maintained but is usually a muddied pot-hole filled road only negotiable by skilled drivers and/or 4WD vehicles. Each home is about 50 - 200 metres to the next. The villager's land may extend far behind the mud hut to their gardens of maize, beans and bananas and other crops. The land may be from about 1 -20 acres in size. The compounds (yards) are well swept, level dirt areas where the locals can dry their crops during harvest season. If you want to buy goods such as soap or paraffin you will have to go to the local trading centre (town) where there are a few shops, perhaps a school and a church or mosque.

"Going to the Village" means leaving most of the modern benefits of civilization and entering a much more primitive way of living. Light is provided by hurricane lanterns but more often home-made open-flame lanterns that are a piece of cloth twisted into a wick and inserted into an old metal tin that has been modified to hold the wick. Cooking is done on open fires using the three-stone cooking stove or perhaps on a charcoal stove (called a sigiri) if you are a bit better off. Housewives and children suffer from chronic eye problems due to their continual contact with the smoke from cooking. There is no running water in most rural areas so people get their water from a hand-pump bore-hole. Many carry their water for over 1km, so it is used sparingly at home. Homes are built of mud walls and a straw roof but may be built with local fired bricks and iron sheets if someone has a bit more money.

"Going to the Village" also involves a change in mentalities as much as it involves a change in living standard. Villagers are infamous for their inability to keep time. A wedding scheduled to take place at 1pm may not start until after dark. Also, the concepts of direction and distance are also very difficult to get used to. Some one may say that the home you are looking for is "just ahead" which may mean 100meters or several kilometres in front of you. It is also difficult to hear someone use the terms left or right. They may say "the other side" or "there,there" or "near the other mango tree" (of which there may be more than one in the area). There is also a prevalent attitude of dependence on those who are white or who may be a rich local working in the city. I recently heard of a wealthy Ugandan who distributes over $1000 during his trip to the village during Christmas to acquiesce the locals demand for beer and other giveaways which may help the rich man gain a reputation as a someone great.

Leaving alone some of the more negative or interesting aspects of going to the village there are many positives. Villagers tend to be very kind and welcoming to most visitors. The visitor is King in the village setting. People greet each other as they pass in the local trading centres and along the village pathways. All village functions are accompanied by ample amounts of food and sodas and/or beer. Whether a burial or a wedding great hospitality is extended to all guests.

The population of Uganda villages is deceivingly high. You may not see many people around although they are always scattered along roadways and gathered in the evenings to enjoy life of the life of their small towns. Each home may have 5-10 children and other relatives as well as the parents. The population density of Uganda is well over 100 people per square km. A lot lower than our Canadian rate of about 3 per square km.

I've only scratched the surface of what it means to "Go to the Village" but, maybe one time you will have the chance to "go to the Village " with us...

Africa Update 4

Hello to our Dear Friends and Family,

We're sorry it has been long since we last sent an update. This has been mainly due to the fact that we have moved. This involved quited a bit of time looking for a house, then packing and cleaning the place at the YWAM base and then moving in and settling at our new place.

We have moved a bit to the west. We are closer to Jinja but further from Bushfire by about 12km. We are living just on the west side of the Nile in a place called Njeru which means "white". It has been an adjustment moving out of a community like YWAM into a regular town setting. We will still try to bring the boys to YWAM for there pre-school two days a week. They love their teachers Susan and Janet (Ugandans) who have been so loving and nice to our overly sensitive boys.

We recently had our nephew, Tugume David, with us who is more like a son to Jane and I and a brother to the boys. He lives at New Hope in Luweero in the family group I used to care for. He had so much fun with our boys -- five boys was quite a bit for us but we love them so much. He cried quite a bit when Jane's brother Augustine took him back to Nerw Hope.

We have not been so busy with work as the housing has been quite consuming but we will be getting back into things quickly now. I have been in charge of getting a bunch of t-shirts made for the OKM network as they wanted to have some nice shirts for the HIV/AIDS conference that YWAM is now hosting. This meant a number of trips to the city but the t-shirts look good and hopefully we can sell some to pay for their cost.

I am continuing with ox-work in Bushfire and we should have some planting yokes finished soon and will start planing in lines this coming season. We will also be training a few young guys in the ox-ploughing techniques so that we can conduct seminars in the village starting in the new year.

We have successfully introduced water purification tablets to the OKM group which seems to be going very well. This is saving them a lot of money as they do not have to boil all their drinking water now. It is amazing how simple things can change life so much!!

We are also happy to announce that we have a new vehicle thanks to you, our faithfull supporters. We have a Isuzu Big Horn which a 7-pasenger SUV. We are so happy with it as it has A/C which will help so much with all of the dust that plagues most of our travels here.

The boys have recently had very bad colds again and Isaiah developed pneumonia again. They are recovering now and are enjoying their new home.

I should go now and get the boys from pre-school.

We love you and appreciate all you do for us.

Chris and Jane and boyssss

Jinja - Kampala Road

We often travel from Jinja to Kampala for a lot of our business and official work. This road is very bad for accidents and we often see at least one accident per trip. Last time we saw a dead body near a lorry and a large crane putting aright another lorry we had seen flipped over last week. We have seen too many dead bodies on this road. Most accident are caused by overspeeding and carelss or aggressive driving. This is the main road that services all of Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Southern Sudan and Eastern Congo with petrol and imported goods. So there are many overloaded, overspeeding, and undermaintained lorries let alone the crazy matatu (taxi) drivers.

Please coninue to pray for our safety as we travel this road often.

Attached is a recent Newspaper article from the New Vision ( a Ugandan Daily newspaper)


35 die in Jinja road accidents
Monday, 28th May, 2007

E-mail article



By Esther Mukyala -- THIRTY five people died in motor accidents between January and April in Jinja town and the surrounding areas. The Police indicated that 51 serious and 32 minor accidents were recorded in the same time. Fifty-six people were seriously injured and eight sustained slight injuries. The traffic chief, Constantine Tarasi, said 43 pedestrians, 20 pedal-cyclists and 24 motorcycles were also involved in the accidents. He said speeding, overloading, old vehicles and the poor road network were some of the causes of the accidents. Tarasi urged drivers to be careful and respect the traffic rules and regulations. He advised passengers to shun vehicles in dangerous mechanical condition.

BIG HORN

We're SO happy to tell all of our faithfull friends and supporters that we have been able to purchase an 1995 Isuzu Big Horn. This is a seven passenger SUV which allows us to now all fit in our vehicle. We
got it at a very good price and have been so happy with it so far.

It's so different owning a "nice" vehicle as my pick-up is more of a bush vehicle and I normally wouldn't worry so much about the paint scratching in the bush or fender-benders in the city, but now my mind-set has to change! It is a diesel which we like as petrol is so expensive. It has working A/C which is also a HUGE plus in coping with the hot weather and the un-ending dust of Jinja. Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support which allowed us to get the vehicle. Some of you may recognise is as a GMC Yukon/Sub-urban - I'm guessing it is a Isuzu/GMC joint product (it is direct from Japan).

Thanks again!!

Above is a pic of Jane in her seat and another of the vehicle on a trip to a traditional wedding ceremony "in the bush".

OKM Poultry Project

We now have a poultry operation with over 500 young layers in Kangalumira Village. This project is being overseen by Sam Kibwika who works with the YWAM base in that village. The plan is for the chicken operation to raise money for some of the OKM families so they can have additional income to feed and care for the children they have taken in. Currently OKM is mainly paying school fees for the children along with some other money for starting up small businesses and building houses for those in urgent need of housing.





Sam was willing to brood the chicks in one of the small rooms of his house.





We are soon moving the chicks into the main chicken house as they are now over 2 months old.





We will need to build a store and a brooding room to keep the poultry operation centralised and efficient.





We are also wanting to mix our own feeds so that we can reduce on the input costs.





I (Chris) will be helping make sure the mangement is done properly and that the business plan and technical aspects are properly executed so that a profit may be realised by the families.

The Sperling Jerrry Can

...carrying Living Water in practical ways…

Dear Friends and Family, April, 2007

“More Fat and Sugar” reads the slogan on a loaf of Uganda-made bread. This is one of the many differences we find of between Uganda and Canada. Who would think of telling people that your product has more fat and sugar in the West? Yet, here, where many people are undernourished and underfed, the prospect of getting some extra sugar and fat in their diet is an attractive idea. One of the less humorous differences is the increased amount of corruption within all aspects of Ugandan society. The roads seems almost as bad as they were when I came in 1995 (this may be due to the heavy rains that prevailed well into the dry season and brought much flooding and destruction to roads). Of course, we still see our share of overloaded and under maintained lorries. Although we knew about many of these changes we would face, it is still difficult to actually make these adjustments and live with many of the difficulties that people face on a day to day basis in Uganda.

We have also had a struggle with a lot of sickness in our family which started about a month after arriving. We had gone to Luweero to visit friends and family and as we were packing to come back home we noticed Andrew was breathing very rapidly yet did not have a temperature. We took him to the hospital and discovered he was having an asthma attack (his first). Upon returning back to where we were staying we found that Albert had a very high temperature so we brought him back to the hospital immediately. Since that time we have struggled with some parasites and a very bad chest cold. As well, Isaiah has had pneumonia twice now and is still on treatment.

Kenny and Albert started their first year at school at Hope Land Preschool here at the YWAM base where we are living. They love “Teacher Susan” and “Teacher Janet” who are very good with them. They are the only non-Ugandans in the school but they have many friends already. They have often shed a lot of tears when we drop them off in the morning but they end up really enjoying their time there. Andrew is at a nearby Christian school called JOY primary school (JOY stands for Jesus first, then Others, lastly You.) He is enjoying school and adjusting to the new school environment.

We have had two maids so far but we are hoping that the current young lady, Adrienne, will continue with us as she is quite good with the children. Our first girl, Vicki ended up leaving us abruptly and had quite a problem taking instructions well. The kids all love Adrienne and she has fit in quite well as she is easier to instruct and has a loving heart.

Our work is going well and we enjoy getting to know the various staff, families and children in OKM (Orphans Know More) and Bushfire Children’s Home.

With the OKM ministry we have set out three basic goals in our work with these families: 1) to increase household income 2) to reduce household expenditures 3) to add moral support to the families (through counseling, praying and relating with the families and their children). We have already started with two general programs of introducing improved seed to those families who have gardens and introducing a water purification program that will eliminate the expensive and time-consuming task of boiling drinking water. The families will be submitting brief reports to us soon so that we can start working together on reaching specific plans for accomplishing our three goals. So far, the families have been very receptive and enthusiastic about the help we are offering. The families have many challenges and difficulties they face so we are glad to help them in any way.

With Bushfire Children’s Home we have been working on a long term agriculture plan for their 80 acre piece of land. About 20 acres are plowed and ready for planting now. We want to help Bushfire accomplish their goals of being food self-sufficient and training the children and the surrounding villagers in improved agricultural techniques. Jane will start training some of the staff in housekeeping and hospitality tomorrow as they want to improve their hospitality services as they have many teams they host from the UK and US. We are also introducing some improved farming practices with the oxen that they currently use for plowing the land. I would like to get to the place where the oxen are also used for planting, weeding, and harrowing.

Thanks to some generous supporters we are planning to start building our house this coming month. We have fenced off our land (not without some disputes form our neighbors-to-be) and are ready to bring piped water and start bringing in building materials. Please pray that our neighbors will be receptive to us and that we will bring light and life into the community.

We would love it if you would join in prayer with us in the following areas.
Effectiveness in our work – that God would give us both good ideas and the ability to implement them.
Good Witness – that our lives would be a witness of God’s faithfulness, goodness and righteousness as we minister to Ugandans
Good Relationships – that God would give us the right people to disciple in each of these ministries so that the work we are doing will be multiplied among the Ugandan staff for long term results.
Good health and Safety – that God would protect us and heal us so that we may continue to serve effectively.
Financial Support – that we would have all that we need to continue effectively working here in Jinja.

We also have the following financial needs if any of you feel led to contribute to them:
Family Van – we are in need of a larger vehicle now. Our pick-up is 22 and gives us a reliable but very bouncy ride. We are estimating about CAD$10,000 for an 8-10 passenger 4WD van.

Thanks to all of you who have loved and supported us in so many ways,
God Bless, Chris and Jane, Andrew, Kenny, Albert and Isaiah

A Visit to Papa

Africa Update –March 12, 2007

We’re sorry that there has been a prolonged gap between our updates. We have been away in the village to visit Jane’s dad and some other close relatives who we had not seen yet. Being in the village basically means we have also been away from electricity and other civilities such as running water and the internet.

Before going into our village adventures we would first like to update you on what’s going on with our work. With OKM we have been continuing to meet with the various families and start planning how we can reduce their expenditures, increase their income and help in the counseling and care of the young people. We met with Topista who is a widow that heads a satellite family of the Wamakales. The children she cares for are all her own. She sells fruit and vegetables at a roadside market in a nearby town called Bugembe. OKM helps with the children’s school fees but she is left to care for the rest of the needs of her family. She is HIV+ and faces difficulties with her health and energy as a result. We are seeing how we can help her to gain more from her market business. We will be helping her make a business plan so she can perhaps get a micro loan or grant through OKM or another organization to increase her business. She would like to have a better place to sell her things and increase her inventory to attract more customers. She is a lovely lady but faces difficulties such as a 14 year old son who does not want to go to school. He is starting to develop some bad habits as he has time on his hands and doesn’t like to listen to his mother. She has 6 children between 12 and 18. Please pray that she will have the courage and energy to be open about her sickness as well as that the children would want to all contribute to the well-being of their family.

We also met with the Kironde family who have 20 children, 3 of them biological and the rest of them “adopted”. They have children all the way from 1 year old up to University. They have a few things they are doing to earn money such as making necklaces and growing Aloe Vera. They seem to be quite motivated so we pray that we will be able to help them succeed in their projects. Most of their adopted kids are young ladies so there will be lots of work for Jane in having time to talk with them and encourage them in their lives. Many of them are in boarding schools so they face many pressures there.

We have been warmly welcomed by the OKM families and Topista, the social worker for OKM (yes, there are two Topistas). We feel challenged and encouraged when we visit these families as they have taken on such a huge task in looking after these children. Please pray that we will really be helpful in supporting these families. These families are fighting the front line battles – we feel like the supporting crew. We really want top make their job easier and for them to feel that there are people supporting them in prayer and action in what they are doing.

I am planning a water purification plan for the families so they can filter and treat their water instead of boiling it which will be much cheaper.

With Bushfire we are waiting to start in earnest with plowing and planting the farmland they have (around 100acres). The tractor we have been using has been far from reliable so we hope that the other one we have lined up will be better. The rains have started so we are anxious to get going on the planting. Pray that we will get the land planted on time.

Francis at the Sheraton…back to our trip to the village. We left on a Wednesday for Entebbe which is about 120 km from our place. We went with Jane's sister Paullina and her husband, George and their young daughter who were visiting us from Hoima. We were 10 people squeezed into our truck (5 of them were kids so each adult had a kid except for Andrew who had his own place on the squishy back seat). We stopped a bit in the city (Kampala) while George and I took care of some business while the rest waited for us at the Sheraton Gardens. There we met up with our friend Francis, who has a ministry to disabled people. Francis himself is in a wheelchair and is trying to help many other disabled people whose lives are very restricted without wheelchairs. He is working through churches in Kampala. We were able to deliver a wheelchair to him on behalf of some friends in Canada. He has already selected a young person who will the wheelchair will be assigned to.

That evening we went to Jane’s brother Bizi’s place in Entebbe. We arrived at night at the high school where he works as the cattle keeper for the school. The school is right on the shores of Lake Victoria. It was good to see them but we were again very squeezed when it came to sleeping quarters which resulted in a hot, claustrophobic night. Were 16 people sleeping in a two room house – most of us were crammed two or three to a bed. It was amazing how their son Elisha had grown since we saw him last a year ago.

The next day we made our way to Kampala and on to Luweero. It took a very long time to get through the city as there were very bad traffic jams. Uganda has SO many vehicles but such poor road infrastructure. The taxis and boda-bodas (motorcycles) are especially troublesome as they are very numerous and tend to ignore most, if not all the rules of the road.

We finally arrived in Luweero town and decided to sleep there for the night as it was getting late. We went to a local hotel where we seemed to have to wait for well over an hour for “fast food” of fried fish and chicken with chips. I think we were finally finished supper near 11pm. We had a less claustrophobic but still stuffy night in a local guest house.

The next morning we visited our nephew Stephen who is going to school in Luweero town. Stephen is in S6 which is sort of like grade 12/college. The conditions are quite difficult (as they are in many Ugandan schools) as the owner is still building and doing renovations while the students are there in class and in their dorms. There were piles of building materials here and there with the sounds and sights of workers plastering various buildings. Stephen’s dorm was full of dust and sand – it’s hard to believe that people can live in such conditions let alone be able to concentrate on their studies, but such is the situation of many schools in Uganda. It is such a struggle for many to finish their high school studies that students are willing to sacrifice many things in order to finish school.
Papa’s placeLater that day we finally arrived at Papa’s. He was very happy to see us. It was nice to see the place where we spent a good chunk of 2002 and 2003. We were also glad that we were just visiting as life there is very difficult with no power or running water plus a lot of dust and a very small house. Jane and I enjoyed a nice rest on “our” bed after the two previous very uncomfortable nights. We spent most of the time trying to visit a few of our many friends and catch up with Papa. We saw our good friends, the Clays, who have a farm in the area and work at New Hope Uganda (where we used to live and work). We also had some good time with my former family group, Pacific Family. It was great to see how my children have grown – they also enjoyed time with our kids as they had not seen them for a while. We enjoyed late night conversing at Papas outside in the full moon with a nice cool breeze keeping away the mosquitoes.

We also had the privilege of being with our nephew Tugume who we used to live with us previously. Tugume is 5 years old and lives at New Hope in Pacific family. He was so happy to come over to Papas for a couple days and be with his “brothers”. It was really cute one night as he fell asleep hugging Kenny. The boys had lots of fun running around and playing in the dirt and watching Papas cows. He was so upset on Sunday when we had to part with him. He would love him to come and live with us but we do not feel settled yet about taking him back with us as it would be difficult to part from him when going back on furlough.

We had a good time at Kasana Community Church on Sunday and then visited Jane’s good friend Addie and her family (although her husband Sam was not around). Addie noticed that Andrew was making funny noises as he tried to clear his throat and chest. Later that afternoon, just as we were going to pack the truck to head back to Jinja, I noticed that Andrew was breathing very quickly and the area between his ribs was being sucked in the same way as someone with pneumonia, however he had no fever. We took him immediately to Kiwoko Hospital where they diagnosed him with asthma. This was the first time Andrew has ever had an attack so it took us off guard. Upon reaching home we discovered Albert had a very high temperature so we immediately returned back to the Hospital with him. It is not good to leave a fever unchecked here as diseases such as malaria can kill very quickly if they go untreated. They could not find any malaria parasites but we treated him for malaria anyways and put him on treatment for his cough as well.

Finally, the next morning we left for Jinja after a night of constant waking to check that the boys were OK. It has been a tough week as almost all of us have had a fever and /or the runs. We are on some treatment now so we hope we will be better soon. Also, Vicki, our maid, decided to leave us abruptly so we are again looking for house help. Jane has been one of the sickest members of the family so we have gotten behind again on house work. We trust that the next time we communicate we will be in better health.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support.
God Bless,
The Sperlings

African Update #2

Kenny and Albert at the EntebbeZoo under a very intersting tree and admiring the chimps playing around in the trees.

Dear Friends and family, Feb 12, 2007

It is almost a month since arriving and we are still going through major adjustments. One of the biggest adjustments is going without water and electricity for long periods of time. We were without water for the last few weeks which, we are told, has been quite rare here. It was quite a trial with bathing, flushing toilets and all of the other daily chores and activities that a family has. Fortunately there was water nearby that we could fetch. We are SO thankful to have our water back. Life is so much easier. Of course there are also the usual power outages (it’s called load shedding here as I think they don’t have enough electrical capacity for the whole country). It’s usually about 48 hours on then 12-24 hrs off.

We are happy to tell you about an answered prayer. We had been praying for a good helper for around the home. Jane has been burdened with a lot of work – especially washing clothes. On last Thursday Vicki came with a friend from her church, Judith, who brought her after hearing that we were looking for house help. Vicki comes with her Pastors recommendation so we trust that she will be a trustworthy and reliable helper. So far she has been just that. We are praising God for her. Pray that she will remain reliable and upright. She fell sick last night with malaria, she had a temperature of 103.5F. So far she is recovering well, although she has very little energy. Please pray that she will feel well soon.

We also thank God for keeping us generally in good health. So far the boys have been quite healthy although we have noticed again how easily wounds become infected. Please keep Jane in your prayers as she still has some of her same health struggles.

We have started in with our work with OKM and Bushfire. We went with the OKM families to the Entebbe Zoo for their annual family gathering. It was quite an adventure (sometimes closer to a trial) with being packed into a crowded bus with the all the kids on our laps. We enjoyed watching the beautiful countryside as we drove west from Jinja towards Kampala and Entebbe (Entebbe is just south of Kampala). We showed the kids the beautiful sugar cane and tea plantations as well as the national forest that we pass through called Mabira Forest. Another adventure was our trip through the city. We really got different view as we passed through residential and industrial areas in order to avoid the chronic traffic jams of the city’s main routes. However we ended up having to back track at one point after coming upon a street wide pothole that was about threefeet deep at it’s center ( we couldn’t see just how bad it was as it was filled with muddy water, but other vehicles that went through were definitely at risk of taking water into their engines). Upon arriving the children were organized into age group w and we washed our hands and began lining up for our lunch. It was the boys first time to eat with their hands since coming back so it was another new thing for them to get used to. We then sang some worship songs and then we had a chance to share with the families our vision for Orphans Know More and to tell them about ourselves. Then the

families had a chance to introduce themselves which was quite a process with many of the families being between 15 – 25 members (this includes satellite families which are widows’ families that are attached to the main families). After the introductions we had a chance to go into the zoo with the family. WE had a great time watching the lion, the chimps, zebras, ostriches and many other animals including the monkeys that had free range of the zoo grounds. Then we had another long trek home, reaching at about 9pm.

I also had a chance to go to Bushfire and start planning for the upcoming growing season. Bushfire recently bought a piece of land that is 75 acres. This will be possible a future site of another children’s home but for now we will be using it for growing food for the current Bushfire Home. Over half of the land is lowland /swamp which we plan to rice and vegetables but for now the heavy Elnino rains have flooded the swamp. We will develop that land during the next
dry season when it will hopefully dry out. I also had a chance to tour this land and we made arrangements to hire a tractor to start plowing as soon as possible. The rains will begin seriously just before the spring Equinox. photo: At the new Bushfire land with (l>r) Apollo (in charge of farming,), Moses (Home Manager) and a local official.

As we mentioned to some of you we would like to purchase a newer, larger vehicle for our family. Our pick-up is now 22 years old, although it is in relatively good condition it is in need of more mechanical work and it is too small for our family and quite a rough vehicle to travel in for the family (leaf springs all around). If you would like to donate towards a newer vehicle we already have a vehicle sub-account (fund) with Equip to which you can direct funds.

We want to really thank all of you for all of your prayers. We have already passed through many trials and difficulties and we want to remain focused and positive despite what we may see around us.Photo: the dusty road to and from Bushfire

We would love it if you could continue for the following
Safety in our travels
Health and protection from disease
effectiveness in our ministry
good relationships with our Ugandan friends and workers
Closeness to our Lord Jesus
Wisdom in handling the many complicated situations we encounter

We love you and thank you all for your love and prayers. We’d love to hear from any of you who have time to write.

Orphans Know More visits Entebbe Zoo

Last Saturday we had the pleasure of joining with the OKM families for their annual meeting which we had at the Zoo in Entebbe. It was quite an adventurous day. Jane was suffering from an eye that had mysteriously become very swollen. She looked like someone had boxed her in the eye (not me!!). We had a crouded and bumpy 3 hr trip tpo Entebbe (which is aout 130km from our place), We had to hold the kids in our arms -- one of the girls held Isaiah and Jane and I held Kenny and Albert. We were sitting on the jump seats that fill the aisle up between the main seets. It was definitely a Ugandan inititiation for us and the kids (if we hadn't had enough initiations already). It was nice to watch the passing scenery with the kids and explain to them about tea and sugar plantations and Mabira forrest which we passed through. We had to pass through Kampala which was also an adventure as our buses were trying to avois the ever present traffic jams in the heart of the city. We ended up on one road that we had to turn around when we discovered that there was a street-wide pot-hole which the center part looked to be two to three feet deep (it was hard to tell with the muddy water it waas filled with, but it seemed to be quite deep as other vehicles seemed to swimming thru the pothole).

We finally arrived in Entebbe at around 1pm. We startd by having lunch, which was the boys first time to eat with hands since coming back.Then we sang a few songs led by our friend Sosthanes(who is from Central Africa Republic). Then Jane and I shared our heart for the ministry and were formally introduced to the families. After that all of the families introduced themselves. These were big introductions as some families were well over 20 people.

After our introductions we went in to the zoo, The boys really loved the animals - especially the lion and chimps. There were lots of other animals to see including a shoebill stork, ostriches, a croc and monkeys who had free run of the whole zoo.

We had another long trek back but it seemed to go a bit better. We got home at around 9pm and were very tired. It was a good but exhausting day.

We now know many of the families and kids in OKM and we will now be meeting the families individually.