Kenya Missions Trip 2009

We're home!

2009-01-31T13:53:00.002-05:00

We (Doris, Karen, Laura, Matt, Dennis, Ryan) arrived safely back to Lancaster around 6:00 Wednesday evening. Thanks for your prayers and interest in our Kenya experience. We look forward to sharing with you what we learned! You are also welcome to attend one or both of our public sharing times:
February 15, 10 a.m., Mellinger Mennonite Church
March 1, 10 a.m., Stumptown Mennonite Church

Chris and Joe will return to Lancaster on February 5.

One more "last" post!

2009-01-27T06:39:00.001-05:00

by Laura Livengood

Today, Doris, Karen, and I had the privilege of accompanying Cindy to the English class that she leads for a small group of Somali ladies. The class began with us all singing several songs in Somali and then Karen, Doris, and I sang "Come Thou Fount" in English for them. After Cindy led the group in a bit of a review, we each paired up with a lady and engaged in a full hour of practicing conversational English and working together through some ABC picture books with the women. It was a tiring but fulfilling experience! Afterwards, some of us bought bags that the women sewed in their sewing class.

One last posting before one long plane ride

2009-01-26T23:25:00.000-05:00

By Dennis Diller

Our group along with the Brislens and Chris Peifer’s three adult children visited the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust outside of Nairobi. This park takes care of orphaned young elephants and rhinos. Orphaned elephant younger than three years can not survive without milk. To a baby elephant, family is very important. A replacement family (human keeper) must be with the infant elephant at all times, even during the night with the keeper sleeping next to the calf. This park has successfully hand-reared over 80 elephants since 1987.

Thirty years ago the elephant population of Africa stood at approximately 3 million. Today less than 250,000 remain due to ivory poaching and other human pressures.

We had lunch at an Ethiopian restaurant and did some shopping at Triangle Market in the afternoon. Tomorrow Joe Miller, Chris Peifer and his three children leave for Tanzania while the rest of our group head back to Pennsylvania.

2009-01-26T08:42:00.005-05:00

Olepolos Mennonite Church

Joe with a Masai friend

The fancy "tents" at Masai Mara game park

Masai Mara and Olepolos Mennonite Church

2009-01-26T01:44:00.000-05:00

By Joe Miller

I am sitting outside and enjoying the African early morning by myself and this seems like the perfect time to reflect on the last several days. I am smelling the sweet fragrance of Easter lilies and flowering bushes and think of all you dear folks back in Lancaster County facing another winter day. Our group will soon enough be joining you.

On Friday morning we loaded into two vans for the five hour trip to visit a Game Park and to worship at the Olepolos Mennonite Church. Nate and Jill Milton and Mike, Cindy, and their six-year old Alia were a part of the group. After a very bumpy ride through the Rift Valley we arrived at the Masai Mara Game Park. The park is in the Rift Valley and has a large variety of landscapes. Mike had made reservations for us at a small lodge that had fifteen tents that slept two people each. Tent is hardly the description that defines the tents at the lodge. See the photos for a view of what a luxury tent can be like. Each tent had a bathroom with a shower/bath, sink, and toilet. People in our group said that their beds in the tents were the best they had slept in since leaving home.

Upon our arrival we were each given hot towels to wipe away the dust from the road. We had about 45 minutes to relax before starting our first safari. We divided into two vehicles that had tops that lifted up so we could stand and watch animals and take pictures. We drove through the park from 3:30 in the afternoon until 7:00 and saw elephants, zebra, lions, all kinds of antlered animals, Cape buffalo, cheetah, wart hog.

When we returned to the lodge we relaxed and sat by a fire outside a dining hall tent. The super was amazingly good and was prepared and served by Masai men.

The next morning we set out for our second safari drive at 6:30. We were served coffee and chai (tea with milk and sugar) and promised that at 9:30 when we return to the lodge we would be served a large breakfast. The morning drive was even more interesting and productive than the earlier drive. We saw cheetah, hyena, and more of the animals from the evening before. After a wonderful breakfast we spent time enjoying the lodge before leaving for Oleoplis.

Olepolos is a mainly Masai congregation. Clair and Beth Good were a part of the congregation when they served in Kenya. We were welcomed by church and school leaders and given a tour of their work as a congregation that involves a health clinic, school and of course the church. We divided up in twos and were taken by local families to their homes for the evening and overnight. This was a stretching experience for many of us because of the basic facilities of our host families. For most of us, there was no electric and no toilet. Some of us were being hosted in sod/mud homes. All of us were deeply grateful for our hosts’ generous spirits and willingness to host us. Children and adults were eager to connect and to interact even when we did not share a common language. The worship service on Sunday was very special and meaningful. Again the hospitality was overwhelming. Our time at Olepolos was an important part of our growing and appreciating different cultures. Before we left the United States we read a number of books and articles about how different cultural values shape the choices people make. We have been repeatedly challenged to not assume everyone in the world has the same values or desires for life. The Masai value traditional ways of life, family, and community and shared life more than enlarging their homes. They see value in their herds of cattle, sheep, and goats and see less value and importance in their homes. Their pastoral traditions of temporary shelter remain in their simple homes and lean material possessions. As one guidebook observes about being invited to visit a Masai home: “Do go in if invited into a person’s home. Don’t be put off by the smell or the size of the quarters. These people don’t want or deserve our pity! They have chosen to live this way because they believe it is what brings them joy and true happiness. In fact, they feel sorry for us!”

We left for Nairobi after church and arrived very tried but glad for the weekend trip and also glad to get back to the Mennonite guest house. We ordered pizza and had a wonderful evening with Mike, Cindy, and Alia looking at pictures and videos of our weekend and sharing stories of our adventure.

2009-01-26T01:20:00.002-05:00

Masai Mara safari

Noah's Ark wood carving

Another wonderful day the Lord has made.

2009-01-22T12:26:00.001-05:00

By Chris Peifer and Ryan Ebersole

This day was again quite an experience. A bit different than all other days. Not as emotional for me, but still at the same time a learning experience. Which is the whole point of this trip. This morning we started out thinking that today was going to be a lighter day with some time in the afternoon to relax and unwind. Wrong again. We met a nice french canadian named Jonathon. He works with MCC working hand in hand with artisans and crafts people. First we went to a whole village of crafts people. In part to do a little shopping, but also to see how they work and carve. They are amazingly talented people who have been doing their trade for years. The Artisans that Jonathon works with are some of the craftsman who sell their product to ten-thousan villages. Their were a lot of other crafts people that we were able to barter with, but Jonathon told us the ones working for ten-thousand villages were fairly priced and we should not attempt to barter. All of us got a little crash course in African bartering.

After the artisans village we went to the head MCC Africa office. We had a wonderful and relaxing lunch with the Millers, Nate Milton, and about 15 others. After that we took a vehicle tour of downtown Nairobi. One stop we did make while in downtown was at the high court area, which also had a statue of Jomo Kenyatta who was the first president of Kenya. We did the vehicle tour while we were headed to see where Mike Brislen works. Mike is a professor at Nairobi International School of Theology. After taking the tour of the school, we stopped at the local Nakumac, which I have learned is the Wal-Mart of Kenya. We stopped to get some water and supplies for our time out at Masai Mara, and Olepolos. That time away from Nairobi starts tomorrow (Friday) morning. We were all so tired after the day that we ended up laughing about virtually nothing for a while this evening.

God's working in many ways

2009-01-21T13:16:00.001-05:00

By Ryan Ebersole

At the end of each day we are encouraged to sit back and think about how we saw God today in our travels. This morning we visited Menno Kids Academy. The academy was located in a slum called Mathere. One way I saw God at work today was in the teachers at the school. The school had about 250 students and was run by a man named Enoch. He is definetly a servent of God, and spends everyday teaching the kids about God. The whole school gathered together and sang Blessed Assurance for us. It was amazing to see the kids from age 3 through grade 8 singing about God.

I saw God again this afternoon when we traveled to Eastleigh Community Center. Here is a little background information for you. Eastleigh is a slum that is populated primarily by Somali refugee’s, and is very strongly Muslim. The director of the center is man named David. After a brief background on the center he introduced us to a lady named Ruth. One of her main duties at the center is to work with correspondence courses for Muslims who come to the center and are interested in learning more about Christ. The Muslim culture is very different from Kenyan and it takes a little different approach toward leading them to Christ. The center also has a very energetic man named Sonny that is the athletic director. The center has a competitive basketball team, as well as a weightlifting gym. Sonny is the basketball team coach. Judging by the trophies in his office, I would say he is a good one. He shared with us that winning and losing is not his priority. His priority is winning lives for Christ. His energy and enthusiasm for Christ was evident in his testimony. Sonny and David recommended a place for us to have lunch together. We walked to a small Somali restaurant and were served Camel and Goat meat along with some pasta and beans. We ate with our hands and ended up making quite a mess on the tables and on our faces.

We left Eastleigh and headed to a craft shop that benefits refugees from all over Africa. We spent a few minutes shopping, then were taken on a tour of the facility. After the craft shop, we headed to Harold and Annetta Miller’s house. They treated us to an Enlgish/African tea and snacks. It was enjoyable and educational to sit and listen to them share about their time and experiences in Kenya. After our relaxing time with the Miller’s we parted ways and headed back to the guest house for dinner and the rest of the evening. It seemed that today we saw God working in many different ways and through many different people.

2009-01-20T22:48:00.001-05:00

We were invited to enter this house in Mukuru. 10-15 people sleep in this two room house.

Mukuru Menno Academy - Jan 20

2009-01-20T13:20:00.001-05:00

by Doris Nolt

Today dawned bright and as beautiful as the last several days have been. After another delicious breakfast, our group headed out with our very capable van driver Joseph. (How thankful we are for Joseph’s expertise in maneuvering through traffic!) Our destination was a visit to the Mukuru Menno Academy, located in a slum area of Nairobi called Embakasi.

Although nearly all of us had visited needy areas when we attended worship services on Sunday, none of us was prepared for the total impoverishment with which we were confronted. About 60 children, some in school uniforms but all cleanly dressed, cheered and shouted as we arrived. Their little faces beamed, some smiling shyly and others crowding eagerly around us. They were having their morning ugi, a porridge provided by MCC’s World Food Basket program, and each of us was soon served a cup too. The children clamored to have their pictures taken, then smiled from ear to ear when they looked at their digital images.

We then moved into the tin structure which doubles as a school room on weekdays and a church on Sundays, where we were welcomed by the school administrator, 3 teachers, the school board treasurer, and the excited children. The older students (grade 2 & 3) gave a program for us, including singing, poems, and dancing. We had the joy of presenting the pencils, books and 2 soccer balls which had been donated, along with a gift of money to be used to add more desks to one of the classrooms.

The teachers then invited us to walk with them into the housing area where the children live with their families. There are not words to adequately describe what we saw, yet there were smiles of welcome on the faces of the many people we met. This evening, as we processed our day together, we acknowledged that we might never be the same.

Later, as this day held very special meaning for both the U.S. and Kenya, we watched the inauguration of our 44th president on CNN as he was sworn into office. At the end of the ceremony, Nairobi was alive with fireworks and cheers. What a time to be guests in Kenya!

2009-01-20T13:10:00.001-05:00

Our group singing for the Makuru Menno Academy.

2009-01-20T13:01:00.000-05:00

A little boy crawled onto Doris' lap and eventually fell asleep.

2009-01-20T12:50:00.000-05:00

Matt with a young friend at Mukuru Menno Academy.

2009-01-20T02:37:00.001-05:00

Enjoying lunch at the tea plantation.

Joe feeding a banana to a Colobus monkey...our pastor likes to feed the hungry! This was at the tea plantation.

A tea picker at the Kiambethu Plantation.

Saturday

2009-01-19T14:44:00.002-05:00

by Matt Hess

1. At approximately 6:45 a.m., Pastor Joe woke the men who shared a room consisting of
a bunk bed, two single beds and a separate room designed for loud snorers or sleep talkers (Dennis Diller). Most of us got our first shower in 2 days which was well needed.

2. At approximately 7:30 a.m., the “ding-dong man” (guest house employee) walked around the facility playing an instrument similar to a xylophone alerting all of the guests that breakfast had been prepared and is ready to be served. A wonderful casserole dish of egg, bread, and cheese was prepared and set on the table for “family-style” service along with sliced papaya and honey dew. Debbie DiJenaro (sp?) introduced herself to the group as the Mennonite Guest Manager.

3. The morning consisted of light rain off and on with bursts of sunshine peeping through the clouds. Jill and Nate Milton visited our group to exchange welcomes and greetings.

4. Our host (Mike and Cindy Brislen) sat down with the group and provided an updated schedule outlining the activities for the upcoming week. Cindy advised she didn’t know if the KMC leaders were going to be able to meet us today or not.

5. Monoa Opula (pastor of Embakasi church) arrived at the MGH after breakfast and spoke with our group about the Menno Academy at the church / school that he is involved with (approximately 63 children). An outreach to the community has been teaching the children and in turn being able to evangelize to their parents.

6. Monoa shared how difficult it was for the children to complete homework assignments due to the living conditions (sharing a 10 X 10 room with the entire family). Manoa is hoping to in the future provide a study room so the children can focus on their studies. When asked the question, “How do you reach out to the community?” Monoa thought for a moment and then stated, “Through a secret……Prayer”. Monoa stated it is not through our human knowledge or strength that helps us, it is through prayer. Monoa stated the gospel gives hope to the hopeless in a time of need both physically and emotionally. Many people do not have basic needs being met and the church reaches out and tries to help with those.

7. A short while later, David Amara (Head Administrator) and Enoch Mwanja (Mathare church treasurer) joined our group in conversation. David and Enoch both work with the Mathare church and private primary school which enrolls approximately 200 children in grades K – 8. David advised secondary school consisted of 9 – 12 grades.

8. After morning tea, approximately 10:00 a.m., the group gathered again but outdoors under a small open air structure on the guest house property. Ideas of evangelism through small local projects, door to door personal connections by training church members in discipleship and being a living example were shared with the group. Christ is also shared in the Kenya public schools through a program called PPI which is local pastors teaching and praying in schools on Fridays.

9. Late morning, Bishop Philip Okeyo, Bishop Moses Otieno, Zephaniah Osogo, Samson Oniondi, Malachis Oyoo, and David Amara joined our group discussion. Bishop Philip stated they were running a little late, which is the “African Way”. Apparently, the group got stuck in the mud for about an hour trying to get the Mennonite Guest House to meet us. Some of the members had to travel approximately 600 kilometers to make the trip.

10. Bishop Philip stated the new vision for the Kenyan Mennonite Church is aggressive evangelism. Bishop Philip stated they are currently tossing around the idea of going more public with the message of Christ through media outlets. Bishop Philip stated that is attracting more attention than local churches trying to invite the community into their churches.

11. One of the most memorable events of the day occurred when the large group divided into smaller groups (naturally, not upon request) and shared stories, concerns, and encouragement openly. The Kenyans are a delightful people full of joy, smiles, and warmth. True friendship and brotherly / sisterly love was forged in a quick period of time.

12. A common theme for the time of discussion seemed to be that God gives hope everywhere people don’t have the solutions, GOD DOES.

13. At approximately 12:00 p.m., the group broke for a delicious lunch of cornbread, beans and salad finished off with a cake topped with vanilla and chocolate ice cream.

14. The KMC leaders stated they needed to break off from the group for a meeting, and we said our good byes.

15. The early afternoon consisted of a few of the church pastors hanging around for more conversation and fellowship in the gathering room.

16. The rest of the afternoon our group mingled with other Mennonite Guest House guest’s, exchanging American Currency for the Kenyan Shillings, and strolling around in the neighborhood. There were by far more people walking around on the streets than there were vehicles, which ranged from Range Rovers to small beat up Toyotas. The local neighborhood appeared to be up-scale and even sometimes luxurious. Many apartment complexes had gates with security personnel manning posts. It was really strange to see litter (trash) strewn about the up-scale area. A few open air market people could be seen along the streets peddling wares and selling produce.

17. Supper was held at the Brislen residence which attaches to the grounds of the MGH. A meal of Chapati (similar to a flat bread or soft tortilla) was served with spinach and mashed peas. A delicious salad of tomato, avocado and cilantro was served as well. Dessert was fresh pineapple, papaya and mango.

18. The day ended with a group meeting where we shared reflections of the day and the enjoyment of meeting Kenyan pastors. We were truly blessed beyond our imagination with the hospitality shown by the Mennonite Guest House employees and our new found Kenyan friends.

2009-01-19T09:50:00.003-05:00

Local vendor roasting corn on a dried mud grill/oven.

2009-01-19T09:47:00.002-05:00

A young child at Mathre North church.

Mathare North worship service.

The "ding-dong man" at the guest house lets us know that a meal is ready.

A child of a guest house worker playing with a plastic bottle.

Hunter Mennonite Church

2009-01-19T09:45:00.002-05:00

Airplane food!

Choir at Mathre North.

Ryan, David, and Joe

Meeting with Manoah, a pastor at Embakasi.

2009-01-19T09:43:00.009-05:00

Jill Milton sharing a fun moment with Chris.

Church leaders at Eastleigh Mennonite Fellowship.

Sunday morning breakfast in the guesthouse dining room.

2009-01-19T09:43:00.008-05:00

A common scene - Matt making a new friend. This is Cosmas who is from the Maasai tribe.

Chickens, Tea, and Fellowship

2009-01-19T08:09:00.004-05:00

by Laura Livengood

Amazing. Wow. That’s beautiful. These are just a few words or phrases that I expressed frequently today. It was a lighter day mentally (meaning we were not exposed to poverty or other hard issues like some of us have witnessed in slum areas), but it was very full of beautiful surroundings and blessings with friends.

We began the day by visiting a farm that is owned by acquaintances of the Brislens. It was great to see how a Kenyan farm operates. The owners are British and employ about 20 Kenyan workers to run the farm. Julius, the Kenyan farm manager, gave us a tour of their animals and fields. I discovered that Kenyan chickens must know English because they talked just like Mom’s chickens!

Our next stop was at the Kiambethu Plantation (“Kiambethu” means “traditional dancing ground.”) The elevation of the farm and tea plantation is about 7000 feet. We were treated to hot tea or coffee and the hostess shared some interesting facts about the plantation and tea. Some of us enjoyed feeding bananas to monkeys. We ended our stay with a delicious buffet lunch.

We enjoyed seeing Jill Milton’s kindergarten classroom at Rosslyn Academy and she gave us a grand tour of the campus. Nate and Jill treated us to a delicious curry supper in their home and we were blessed by some good a capella singing out of The Mennonite Hymnal, followed by a time of prayer for Nate and Jill.

Swollen Eyes and Ankles

2009-01-19T08:01:00.005-05:00

by Karen Fretz

Sunday morning. Time to go to church! Little did we know THIS church experience would touch our hearts in such a profound way. Our group of eight divided into four groups to be taxied to various Mennonite churches, some in the poorest sections of Nairobi. Mike and Joe had both prepared sermons to preach at their respective locations and the rest of us mustered up the courage to speak or sing when asked.

Bounce, bump, scrrraaaape! John, our Kenyan taxi driver politely asked the four of us – Matt, Karen, and Cindy - to get out of the car and walk, while light-weight Doris and Alia remained in the back seat. This allowed the compact car to navigate its way over the muddy potholed path which led to Mathare Mennonite Church, passing through one of the most crowded and poor slum areas of Nairobi.

Warmly greeting us at the door of the plywood tin-roofed church structure was pastor Caleb, who led us to our seats in the third row. Singing every verse of every song in Swahili, the melodies were familiar and we joined right in. “For God So Loved Us” and “Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus” were just two of about eight songs we sang, with some repeated in their entirety throughout the service. These songs must have been brought by the missionaries decades ago.

Dark-skinned and tightly braided hair drawn into a tassle adorning the top of her head, a chubby faced Kenyan child in the front row caught my eye and we exchanged smiles. Before I knew it, she had walked back and into our row of plastic lawn chairs, lifting her little arms, inviting me to hold her. She remained on my lap for most of the service, her forehead against my cheek, until she drifted off to sleep. I whispered to Cindy, “Which one is her mother?” and was reminded she could be an orphan of AIDS. There must have been forty children politely sitting on either side of the preacher, some of them innocent victims of a disease which claimed the lives of parents. My heart was grateful that the blessing of holding this toddler lasted long. “Asante sana”, thank you very much, was all I could manage to say when her father introduced himself at the end of the service.

“Will you join us for lunch?” they asked. We crowded into the small cubicle across from the church office with four of our new-found rafikis (friends) – spiritual and financial leaders of Mathare Mennonite Church, Enoch, David, Caleb, and our female server. After enjoying the refreshment of having our hands washed, we broke bread, or rather chapatis, and dipped this pancake shaped Kenyan food staple into a delicious meat stew broth, tasty beans and rice, with beverages of glass bottled sodas.

Elevating my swollen ankles and feet this evening, I am reminded of the long flight which brought me to this ghetto paradise of hospitality. Today swollen eyes resulted from the cleansing tears which flowed freely from weary eyes. God speaks so loudly through his children who are poor in material goods, but rich in spirituality and love.

2009-01-17T02:42:00.002-05:00

Here is our group, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, on our first morning at the guesthouse.

We have finally arrived

2009-01-17T02:13:00.002-05:00

Here is the latest info from our travels. We took off from Philadelphia International Airport at 1:15 pm on Jan 15th. We had a very smooth flight to Detroit and had about 2 1/2 hours to relax before getting on to the next flight to Amsterdam. The overnight flight to Amsterdam went very well. Most of us were able to at least get a little sleep before landing at 7:40 Amsterdam time. Our flight to Nairobi took off at 10:30. We all were very impressed with the food service while on our longer flights. We landed around 8:00 Kenyan time which is 8 hours ahead of eastern time. After waiting in line for over an hour to get our visa's, we were able to go get our bags and head for the guest house. We praise the Lord for getting through customs and all of our baggage arriving. Thank you for your continued prayers