Life at Missions of Hope

Missions of Hope (MoH) is the name of the ministry with which I have the privilege of working. Every day I walk up three flights of stairs to get to my office (which is right next door to a classroom!). One day as I was headed downstairs this is what I encountered...the kids were taking furniture from the classrooms down the stairs. I was perplexed, but of course had to take some photos!I made it down the stairs and here is what I saw...kids playing! On anything they can find the climb on, swing in and run with!

Ah! I discovered that this day was registration day for all six schools that are run by MoH - I just loved looking out over this sea of kids and parents! This is the heart of our ministry...the students who attend our schools and their parents who live in various communities within the Mathare slums...it is said that the children are the door into the family. Once a child is sponsored to attend one of the schools a social worker begins visiting the family on a regular basis. The most urgent needs of that family are then determined and the social worker can then recommend appropriate resources as offered through the ministry.

Just outside the door to the office where I work is a balcony...these two photos are the views from that balcony...if I look directly down I can watch the children playing - inside and outside of the compound.

Did I tell you they serve us a hot lunch every day? That is one of my favorite perks of this job!
One of my co-workers, Henry. I would love to develop this posture while working! Actually I tried it, but found that I was too far from the computer screen to be able to read the tiny print!
This is Virginia. She is the one I work most closely with...I think she is the Assistant to Paul who is the department head. When I took these photos he was out of town (actually on a mission trip to Northern Kenya) but if you look at a previous entry you will see his photo...beyond that open door you see behind Virginia is his office.
This is Jane - she is called Mrs. Gacau by the staff. When I asked about that, what I received was - well, she is married...and I guess also her age...kind of vague, but I tend to just call her Jane - although the way they pronounce the name it sounds to me like 'Jenn'...
I am still enjoying my time here at Missions of Hope and am gaining the sense that this is to be my ministry "home" during my stay in Kenya. I am a bit surprised that I 'ended up' in a business office doing computer work! But that mystery is a bit more clear now that I know this department has been praying for help for quite some time. Virginia has told me on several occasions that I am an answer to prayer...God is so good! He certainly does hear all of our prayers. I was praying to be used on a team and they were praying for someone to join their team...

Two New Homes!

First is my new church home...Nairobi Pentecostal Church (NPC) Valley Road. This is actually the "mother church" to my 'old church' NPC Buruburu. I was eager to visit this one and see if I enjoy it as much as Buruburu and the answer is YES! The best part (well maybe not the best - but very very good) is the commute is very easy - 5 minute walk to the stage, 5 minute ride to the church - and they drop me right there at the gate...what could be better!This photo does not really give you a sense of the building, but it's the best I could do!
Out back, there was much activity as the church was preparing for Teen Week...
This is a shot of the praise band...and below are shots of the kids. They just finished VBS and our praise and worship time was led by the kids - so much fun! The sermon was based on the 23rd Psalm because the theme of VBS was "The Lord is Our Shepherd"...a message that is welcome anytime and it truly ministered to me...I left refreshed and looking forward to going back next Sunday...

Okay - I just had to shoot a picture of the road being built near my house...this is actually a short cut I take every day to pick up the bus to town...you may not be able to see it, but these guys are actually breaking the rocks with sledge hammers!
Now for my new house - this is the outside...

And this is the kitchen, complete with cookware, flatware, plates, bowls, rolling pin (in case I want to make chapatis...yeah right!) and a wooden spoon for stirring ugali (yeah right, again!)

My balcony with Rachel posing...
Razor wire on the block wall - I took this one for those of you who are concerned about my safety!
Here is the sofa bed...Rachel tried it out and reports that it is quite comfortable - so you can come visit any time!
Here I am trying to look Kenyan...NOT!
Now my kitchen is complete...bananas, tomatoes, onions, eggs and chili sauce!

Moving day...
I have rearranged the front room...actually this is not exactly how it looks now, but you get the idea...

My bedroom - I like the lamp high...so either I buy a new lamp or I improvise!
My office which doubles as the dining table...
I am beginning to feel at home here...and immediately felt at home at NPC. My next blog will be more about the work I am doing with Missions of Hope...thanks so so much for your continued prayers for what God is doing in Kenya.

BDS, Sewing, Kittens and Kids...

You have probably figured out by now that this is a random post! If you have read previous entries you know what BDS is...if not, go back and read! :)

BDS stands for Business Development Services and is Missions of Hope's version of micro-enterprise. In my opinion the real power of this program is the weekly group meetings. I had the privilege of sitting in on 3 of them this week...the name of this group is "Precious".The idea is that the members of the group keep each other accountable. Group meetings consist of prayer, reading scripture, collecting fees (that go into individual savings accounts) and loan payments, and discussing issues. The books are completely open...with their loan info being passed from hand to hand as the payments and balances are recorded in two ledgers - one held by the treasurer of the group and one held by the staff person responsible for the group...
Following are two photos I snapped in the middle of a heated discussion about how to handle a loan that is in default. The members had agreed in writing to take care of any past due balance if the loan went into default...now they are 'discussing' whether that is necessary and/or how to track down the person in default to see if they can get him to pay or take his possessions (collateral at the time of the loan) until he gets caught up on his payments or pays the loan off.

This is the largest group, and is named "Glorious".
They had 3 significant issues to discuss and resolve, so I left early to take lunch!

Missions of Hope also has a sewing class. The resident tailor teaches two classes per day, with six students in each class (that is the number of machines available)...the classes run five 1/2 days per week for about 6 months. Then the ladies receive a certificate and are able to then go into business for themselves, using their new skill.
Pictured at her machine is Teresia Wanja. She is the 'early bird' of the class...I had chosen a back pack earlier in the week and was there this day to pay for it and pick it up...I decided to purchase one made by Teresia...and below is a photo of Teresia with my back pack. The tailor (sorry, I forgot her name!) is holding another purchase I made...which is a terry cloth head wrap for after I wash my hair!
The resident cat had a litter of kittens and decided that the chair in the sewing room was the perfect nursery! She hisses when people get too close, but obviously is not too concerned since she chose a spot that has several people around all day long!
Kids! The building houses a school with almost 1,000 children...as I was on my way to the ladies room, I heard the children in this classroom singing a song and marching in place, so I snapped their photo - just as a little boy was running up the stairs!
Now that I have completed my first week at 'work' I will report to you that I love it here! There is so much going on all the time...with kids running up and down the stairs, short-term teams coming and going, staff never too busy to give an encouraging word or just a warm greeting, and plenty of work to do!

Touring Missions of Hope

Missions of Hope is the name of the Kenyan ministry with which Christian Mission Fellowship (CMF) partners in the Mathare Slums. Today I toured four of the six centers that have been established since the year 2000. I have done two home visits in the main center (now called the headquarters) Pangani Center. Pangani was the first center to be established and today we visited four of the five other centers - as it turns out we visited them in the order of their "age"!

But first I paid a visit to Paul who heads the micro-enterprise department. They call it Business Development Services (BDS) because this program does much more than just loan money for people to start or expand their businesses. The photo is of Paul and his assistant Virginia. Virginia is working with a computer programmer to learn a new software that will help them track all their clients' personal and financial information more effectively than Excel, which is what they are currently using.
Some of the aspects of this program that I am impressed with are:
* They have accountability groups - with up to 36 members in each one.
* The groups meet weekly to check in with each other, get to know each other, share needs, etc.
* When a person desires to enter the program, they first join a group. They must spend at least 7 weeks attending meetings and depositing money into a savings account. Once the person has 'proved' to the group that they are trustworthy, they can apply for a loan.
* Every member of the group signs the loan application and agrees to hold the person accountable and even pledges to pay the loan payment if the applicant defaults.
* BDS offers a training program; including how to run a business, how to keep records, how to manage money. In this way the participants gain the skills needed to succeed.
* Members of the group with a member of the office staff visit the various businesses to see how they are doing and to offer counsel if necessary.

There are other safeguards and features to this program but I have highlighted just a few to give you an idea of how comprehensive and powerful this ministry is...can you tell I am excited?
Isaac, one of the social workers (he is pictured in a previous blog entry) took me on a tour of the other centers. The first one we visited was Kosovo - the second center to be established by Missions of Hope. Above is the church on the grounds - this is where the directors, Wallace & Mary Kamau and Keith & Kathy Ham worship on Sundays.
Above and below are signs that were posted just outside the Class One (First Grade) classroom at Kosovo...I got a kick out of them and thought you might also!

Above is the empty classroom and below is the same room full of kids singing for us!
Below is the church, which is converted into three nursery classes Monday through Friday - to the left is one class, in the center is another, and the third is behind the partition to the right.
This is the kitchen - they feed 360 kids plus teachers and staff - pretty impressive!
This is a class in the second center we visited, Bondeni Center. We visited all the classes in each of the centers and in every one, the kids sang at least one song and recited memory verses - I LOVED IT!
Walking from Madoya Center to Mathare North Center, we walked through this pile of garbage...you can see kids and adults picking through to find 'treasures'...
...these boys found an old bush and asked for me to snap their photo...as they passed by they were saying "fence" so perhaps they will use this material to make a fence...
I took this photo on the way to Mathare North Center, looking back at Madoya village...through the barbed wire fence...
I loved today - meeting the social workers, teachers, and children at each center; learning about their greatest challenges and greatest joys; and finding in each of them a love for the Lord and dependence on God for everything that was truly inspiring.