So much to report-- July, 2008

Dear Family and Friends, 30 July 2008

School News—
The end of the 2007-2008 school year brought smiles and celebration to the Sheltering Wings Primary School. Of the 87 children enrolled in our school all of the children except 3 passed to the next class. All of our sixth graders passed and 18 out of the 19 students in the class passed the standardized test which allows them to continue to the 7th grade.

As a reward for their hard work, we took our sixth graders on a field trip to the zoo about 20 kilometers outside of Ouagadougou. Many of our children had never even been to Ouaga and none of them had ever been to the zoo. The children saw elephants, hippos, monkeys, baboons, tigers, ostriches, and many other animals. After visiting the zoo, they feasted on rice and sauce and a bottle of Fanta Orange soft drink. At the end of the day everyone was happy and content.

A hippo at the zoo. Lunch in Ouagadougou

Enrollment for the 2008-2009 scholastic year has already started and two of our five classes are already full. With the wonderful achievements of our teachers and students last year, the word is out and parents are coming to enroll their children in our school.

We are thankful to the Lord for what he has done for us this year. Everyone worked hard and the Lord blessed us with success.

Orphanage notes—
One thing that is difficult to deal with but is part of running an orphanage is change. We have had several children integrate back into their families and we have also received several new children.

Ousmane, Sarata, Joseph, and Harouna have all integrated back into their families. Each of these children’s mothers died shortly after they were born and we took them and cared for them until they were no longer needing formula, were eating table food and were walking.

Baby Daniel came to us as a tiny newborn weighing just 3 ½ pounds. Daniel’s mother was not well mentally and it is not known who his father is and because of this, Social Action took Daniel immediately after birth and brought him to us. Daniel was doing well and gaining weight but he became sick with malaria and died just this past week. A side effect of malaria is that it kills red blood cells and because Daniel was so small, his little body was not able to replenish his red blood cells fast enough and he died of anemia.

We received a pair of twin girls from the region of Ouayaghuia and although they also are very small they are slowly gaining weight. Their mother died shortly after their birth and there is only an elderly grandmother to care for them in the village. We will care for Fatimata and Mariam until they are 12 months of age and then their grandmother will be able to care for them.

Sponsorship News—
June 28th was the quarterly distribution for the sponsorship program and it was a day of joy. Everyone arrived early and each family was given a sac of millet and several other food items.

Already we are preparing lists of school age children so that all who are eligible can be enrolled in school and their school fees paid.

We have a team visiting us from Columbia, MO right now and one of the team members brought a gift for the child that her family sponsors.

Mary Moe, Rodgigue, Martinier receiving his gift, and his mother.

Widow’s Basket—
This program is a great blessing both to us who administer it and to the widows themselves. Once each month we go to the home of each widow taking her a small gift of food and visiting for a short time with her. We pray with each one of them before leaving and we are always blessed by the smiles on their faces.

The Columbia team asked if there were any small repairs that they could do for any of the widows and this is a picture of a new door for the house of this widow to protect her from theft and also from the cold evening temperatures.

Anna, Dan, Valentin, Widow, Mary, Aaron, family member

Short-Term Team visit—
I’ve already mentioned the team from Columbia and some of their ministry but also wanted to include a few more pictures of them as they ministered to all they came in contact with. They were an energetic group who came with hearts to help and to serve. Among other things. . . they ministered to the orphanage by taking care of babies and painting 3 of the rooms of our older children, they held a day of child evangelism where over 200 children sang and danced and heard about Jesus as well as received suckers and mangoes, and they ministered to the sick at the hospital praying for children very sick with malaria and one little girl recovering from a snake bite.

If you ever feel the Lord tugging at your heart concerning a trip to Burkina, please let us know. We welcome visitors. This team was a tremendous blessing to us and we hope and pray that we also were a blessing to them.

Mary caring for our babies. Mary and Jenni painting the girls’ room.

Mary, Dan and Evance praying at the hospital. Child evangelism in a village.

Such an eventful week!

Dear Family and Friends,

The clinic is finished! This is the latest and greatest photo. This past week we held a final walkthrough of the building and signed papers agreeing that the work was finished. We have a beautiful new building and two young nurses who are excited and ready to move into this new phase of their commitment to our children.

This next week we will start moving in furniture and supplies and very shortly our nurses will be moved out of their small room in the orphanage dormitory and into the clinic.

This is Ferdinand and his new parents, Richard and Rebecca. Ferdinand came to the orphanage almost 3 years ago. He was abandoned by his mother when he was about 18 months old and his father is not known.

Ferdinand's mother left him with the mother of one of her friends saying that she would be back later to pick him up. . . and she just never came back.

Richard and Rebecca have been married for 8 years with no natural children and from the very first time that they met Ferdinand, they asked to take him as their own.

This is one of my favorite photos of Ferdinand not because he is

crying but because it reveals his sweet and gentle spirit. Ferdinand is no longer crying. Jesus has given him a home!

Blessings to you!

Ruth