Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 11th, 2011
Carol found her friends almost the moment she walked into the worship service in Matara! The Saturday gathering is one hosted in the village center by our Batwa friends, welcoming their neighbors for a time of shared worship and prayer. We were welcomed into the dancing, praying and sharing.
Everyone was there – including [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 10th, 2011
Tonight we joined Life Center, a large and growing church in the heart of Bujumbura, for their weekly night of worship. Donald was invited to lead a worship set. When he put down his guitar… and just sang… it was like he was free to soar! Wonderful to witness him leading a [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 10th, 2011
We began the work day by jumping right in! The guys began working on laying bricks for two new homes in the community.
Garrett got right to work moving bricks. This is pretty much what he did all day long – with strength, stamina and a huge smile!
Trevor shared in both the heavy lifting [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 9th, 2011
We were welcomed to Matara by friends. We danced. We then were invited to listen to them tell their own story in their own words. They shared about life before and after Matara, about feeling inhuman and now living a fully human existence. They said that once their stomachs were filled, [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 8th, 2011
We entered Bubanza this afternoon and were greeted by singing and dancing!
We could not contain our laughter with the smiling kids that lined our informal parade route through their community.
We sat as welcomed guests among our friends and listened to their words of welcome, celebration and appreciation for our continued friendship.
And then gifts were shared… [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 8th, 2011
Your family and loved ones from COF have arrived safely in Bujumbura, Burundi! They all have their luggage, visas and a clean, cool room for the night. They are a bit tired and ready for bed, needless to say! This above picture is not a glamor shot, but proof of their arrival. [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on May 23rd, 2011
Matara has become a land flowing with milk and honey! The cows are now producing milk, milk enough to to pour into cups for each child each morning. The families are so proud of having milk, knowing that it provides crucial nutrients for their children. They see this as another indicator of [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Mar 15th, 2011
Friends, this is a more sobering update. Today we learned that a cow in Matara died due to a sudden and undiagnosed illness.
Only recently, after much dreaming and planning, the families of Matara purchased 4 cows premium milking cows. The selected one male and three females. Just last week a [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Mar 4th, 2011
Good News! The first calf was born in Matara this week!
Many months ago Claude and Little Claude spoke with the Batwa families about livestock in Matara. The families were very excited to include animals in their burgeoning village! They began with some goats, then rabbits… but were dreaming of the day they [...]
Posted in Uncategorized on Mar 2nd, 2011
Last July when the Batwa families celebrated the wedding of ten couples, they made a stunning announcement. They were donating some of their land to build a road from the main road to the surrounding villages. More stunning still, they volunteered to help make the road with their neighbors. What a great [...]