a life on mission

HARMATAN!

2012-02-08T06:30:00.000-08:00

Winds from the Sahara continue to swoop down over West Africa, and with them…BLACK DIRT in the air! The “plus” is that the dirt blocks the intensity of the sun and there is less humidity. The negative impact is that people are breathing the dirt, and with the cooler temps they are experiencing more illness.

Happy February To You All!!!

2012-02-05T07:55:00.000-08:00

February 5, 2012

Greeting from Sierra Leone!

What a joy it was to spend the holidays with family in Texas! Our thanks to our church and all of you for giving us this privilege! It was nothing short of a whirlwind, but a good one. We were blessed to find our parents, children and grandchildren doing well. Our biggest regret is that we could not spend time with each of YOU as we would have liked, but we felt it important that we focus on family for this first trip back home. THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING!

VISION 2012! We are thrilled at all God did in 2011, and we expect Him to continue to grow the ministry here even more this year. With eagerness we want to share updates on some of the aspects of His work!

Mohamed (Bobo): Bo is doing well. We are grateful to those who made arrangements for us to take him to Children’s Medical Center in Dallas to the children’s dermatology department for assessment. Dr Agim believes the root cause of his 5+ year skin condition is fungal. We currently have 11 medicines, oral and topical, and are aggressively treating him. We’ve had a few setbacks since we returned. The heat and humidity here may be part of the problem, but we are hopeful that one day this precious little boy will be completely healed. We will soon start the process of expanding our one year temporary fostering status to something more indefinite.

Margaret Tucker’s Orphans: We continue to praise the Lord for a group of Sierra Leoneans and a family from Jefferson City, MO for funding the education of Margaret’s 24 school children for the 2011-2012 school year. And now we have the added assurance that they will be provided another year of school, plus food and medical needs for the family, through an Orphan Sponsorship Program at FBC McKinney, TX.

War Widows Association: The 85 widows are looking forward to 2012 as they expand their farming from 24 acres to up to 74 acres throughout the year. They are also improving the various skills that they have added since the fall of 2010: weaving, quilting, jewelry making, soap making and raising sheep & goats! We have never seen people work as hard as these women!

Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges: Construction continues on a dormitory that will house 24 children on site at the school. This will benefit children that cannot attend because of lack of transportation. The school is the only one of its kind in Sierra Leone, and we see such potential for reaching more children who are considered “the very lease of these” in this culture. Teams in May and June will focus on construction, as well as continuing teacher training and curriculum development for the staff.

Young Adult Skills Development: We currently have 14 young men training in electrical or plumbing skills, and we have 10 young women that are launching a business cooperative in March in hairdressing based on the skills they learned last year.

There are so many things we could share, but we will save those for another time. We appreciate you all so much! Thank you for your prayers and financial support! We are humbled and so grateful to God for bringing each of you into our lives!
May 2012 truly be a year of GREAT ADVENTURES for all of us!

Tom & Becky

Contributions:
Please make checks payable to:
Transform Your World Network, TYW05
Mail to:
TYW Network
PO Box 1900
McKinney, TX 75069
OR donate online: FBCmissionallife.com

Bo with the great-mamaws & great-papaw!

2011-12-31T17:35:00.000-08:00

My "baby" turns 39 in March! Unbelievable!

2011-12-31T17:28:00.000-08:00

Tuckered plumb out!

2011-12-31T17:21:00.000-08:00

A day of fishing!

2011-12-31T16:55:00.000-08:00

Bobo = 2 fish
Tom = 6 fish

Bracelets made by 6 of our War Widows & 4 Older Orphan Girls!

2011-12-31T13:01:00.000-08:00

Our thanks to Lois for starting this amazing business that benefits War Widows and Margaret Tucker's Orphans!

Bo with Paige on "G-MAN"

2011-12-31T12:52:00.000-08:00

Nerf War!

2011-12-31T12:47:00.000-08:00

The big hit...NERF GUNS!!!

2011-12-31T12:39:00.000-08:00

More of the "GRANDS" on Christmas!

2011-12-31T12:29:00.000-08:00

The "GRANDS" on Christmas!!

2011-12-31T12:18:00.000-08:00

The "GRANDS" on Christmas!

2011-12-31T12:07:00.000-08:00

More Brockelman Fun!

2011-12-31T11:34:00.000-08:00

Brockelman family fun!

2011-12-31T11:25:00.000-08:00

Bo is quite good at CHICKEN FOOT!

2011-12-31T10:58:00.000-08:00

A game of CHICKEN FOOT with Mamaw Brockelman, Uncle Andy & Aunt Lois.

Becky with her mom & dad!

2011-12-31T10:55:00.000-08:00

Tommy with his mother, brothers and sisters!

2011-12-31T10:50:00.000-08:00

First time for all to be together since Tommy's dad died in March 2007.

Bo with Pastor Chris Stull, FBC McK

2011-12-31T10:47:00.000-08:00

Jacob and Bo LOVE crab!!

2011-12-31T10:43:00.000-08:00

Bo's stitches come out!

2011-12-31T10:37:00.000-08:00

Thank you Charlie for playing doctor!

The GRANDS + Bo

2011-12-31T10:34:00.000-08:00

Lookin' good!

2011-12-20T13:49:00.000-08:00

Bo's teeth are lookin' good thanks to Gabe in Sierra Leone. We were able to confirm no hidden problems with x-rays at Dr Marshall.

Can it be????

2011-12-20T13:40:00.000-08:00

The news seems too good to be true! It may be that the root cause of Bo's trouble is fungal, which means that he can be cured! He is on a new aggressive treatment plan, and we should see results SOON!

Bo with Charlie, Jenn & Maddie!

2011-12-20T12:07:00.000-08:00

Bo meeting family...Rob, Julie & Wil

2011-12-18T13:59:00.000-08:00

Final War Widows Food Distribution!

2011-12-02T02:18:00.000-08:00

We have come to love the War Widows for Christ! Recently we distributed the final month of food parcels to end this phase of the Baptist Global Response program. The women sang and danced and thanked us again and again for the relief they have received these past 12 months. We know the end of the food supplements will mean harder times for the women and their families, but they are now doing skills in the areas of: agriculture, raising sheep and goats, soap making, quilting and tailoring, and jewelry making. May God continue to bless their efforts!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2011

2011-11-19T15:47:00.000-08:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

On the 10th of this month we celebrated our first year in Sierra Leone! How time has flown! We have watched God do MIGHTY WORKS throughout our time here, and feel such awe that He has given us this opportunity! We wouldn’t be anywhere else!

Happenings since our last update:

 Our thanks to Charles Yimbo for working tirelessly on our behalf with Mohamed’s extended family, Social Welfare and the Passport Office to secure official documents for Bobo’s trip with us to Texas for medical treatment. We also express thanks to US Ambassador Michael Owen and his staff for their help with the VISA process. In addition, we are so grateful to Dr. Mark Jackson of the University of Louisville, KY Dermatology Department for their work in determining a diagnosis and making arrangements for follow-up medical appointments in Texas. Last, but not least, we are so appreciative a Texas family for the purchase of Bobo’s airline ticket!
 Thanks to an Association of Sierra Leoneans and a family in Jefferson City, MO, Margaret Tucker’s 25 Orphans, with the exception on Martin who is severely disabled, are either in school or skills training. Amazing! Charles Yimbo has been instrumental in working with the oldest 6 to ensure that they are making wise decisions for future college or skills related work.
 In September, we had a great meeting with the Board of Directors for Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges. Work continues on the dormitory structure and we are trusting God to provide funds at every stage of construction.
 We were blessed to have our annual medical testing done in South Africa, and are happy to report that we are healthy and able to continue the ministry God has called us to in Sierra Leone! Our thanks to a Texas family that made the trip possible, and to Tim and Jeanne Mahoney, long-time friends and IMB missionaries, for making all arrangements for our appointments and having us in their home!
 In October, we enjoyed the company of Kent Jones, chairman of our missionary sending counsel at FBC McKinney. We were able to share the highlights from 2011 and look toward to the vision God is unfolding for 2012.
 In November, we welcomed Justin and Chris Duren from Jefferson City, MO, as they “walked alongside us” for a week of ministry, as well as visiting a child and caretaker family that they sponsor in the interior of SL.
 Food distributions, harvests of ground nuts and rice, and skills development have continued through the fall for 244 family units in 3 communities. God seems to be opening the door for more agricultural and skills work for 2012, as well as tarp roofing structures for 85 widow families.
 Young Adult Skills Development in the Jui Community will expand in 2012 as business cooperatives are being formed by existing students under the direction of their current instructors in the areas of electrical, plumbing and cosmetology.
 A highlight for us this fall was to provide a no-interest microloan to a young woman desiring to escape a life of prostitution. She has opened a petty trading store to support herself and her son. We wish you could have seen her face when she came by in October to make her first payment…such a sense of accomplishment!
 Above all our desire is to share the love of Christ in all that we do! We could very easily get so bogged down in the humanitarian aspect of our work that the Gospel would be completely lost. As we finish 2011, we are being more deliberate in sharing Christ as we bring several projects to a stopping place for the holidays. Jesus is why we are here! It’s all about Him!

Prayer requests:

 We will travel to Texas December 9th to spend Christmas with family and friends. Even though we have a Passport and US VISA for Mohamed, we know there could be questions as we depart Freetown, pass through London and Chicago, and arrive in Dallas. Please pray that all goes well with no delays!
 Please pray for new insight from doctors as to how to better control Mohamed’s skin condition.
 We pray for our teammates on the ground in Sierra Leone as our absence will add extra work for them.
 Teammate Gabe Herrera, Hope Centre dentist, is suffering with pain in his hands and wrists. Dental patients line up early, he works long hours, and more recently he has volunteered with Mercy Ship on his day off. He has had no rest for his hands.
 While our hope in Texas is to spend as much time as possible with family and friends, we will have a few meetings to attend, vision checkups and replace eyewear, and planning, purchasing and packing of supplies for at least the first 6 months of 2012. We pray that these things will go smoothly, and we trust that God will provide for added expenses as we close out 2011.
 We pray to return to Sierra Leone in January refreshed and ready for a wonderful 2012!

Praising our Lord,
Tom and Becky

War Widows Making Soap!

2011-11-18T01:13:00.000-08:00

Our war widows have added another area of skills development...SOAP MAKING! Twenty women were selected to participate. Their first assignment was to make nearly 1500 bars for our monthly parcel distribution. They did a wonderful job!!

Am I ever gonna miss these!!!

2011-10-13T10:39:00.000-07:00

Tommy caught a Cobb Fish in the Sundays River

2011-10-12T12:05:00.000-07:00

There is always poverty.

2011-10-12T11:39:00.000-07:00

South Africa is worlds different from what we know in Sierra Leone. It's modern! Malls everywhere, interstates, restaurants, high fashion... But there is always poverty. On the outskirts of every city and town there is an area of government housing and a squatter's camp. As we've passed many, I've thought that if I lived here, I would hope for the opportunity to minister in one of these places. I think I would love it!

Plettenberg Bay

2011-10-12T10:39:00.000-07:00

Knysna, Coast of South Africa

2011-10-12T01:55:00.000-07:00

Hiking Robberg Island

2011-10-12T01:46:00.000-07:00

Robberg Island in the background

2011-10-12T01:44:00.000-07:00

Amazing!

2011-10-12T01:34:00.000-07:00

Bird Sanctuary

2011-10-05T10:21:00.000-07:00

Bird Sanctuary, JoBurg

2011-10-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

Spring in South Africa!

2011-10-02T06:50:00.000-07:00

It's Spring here in South Africa. Mild temps, flowers and trees blooming. GORGEOUS!

Tim & Jeanne

2011-10-02T06:03:00.000-07:00

How blessed we are to have Tim & Jeanne as friends! Tim was our pastor in Sherman from 1991-94. During that time God called their family, including 3 children, as missionaries to West Africa. They spent a year in France language learning, then were in Ivory Coast for 3 years, Senegal for 10 years, and now South Africa for the last 2+ years.

Tom and I are feeling like royalty as they tote us around to doctors, labs and outpatient hospital appointments. We are chowing down on foods we have missed over the last 10 months, and squeezing in some site-seeing on the weekends and in between appointments. We would never have been able to make all these arrangements ourselves!

We have especially enjoyed meeting their church family! It's been a joy to worship with the folks of Germiston Baptist Church the last 2 Sundays! God is so good!

Playing with the CATS!

2011-10-01T11:33:00.000-07:00

Nature Reserve

2011-10-01T11:26:00.000-07:00

1200 Acre Nature Reserve, Johannesburg

2011-10-01T11:19:00.000-07:00

Amazing day at a Nature Reserve!

2011-10-01T09:19:00.000-07:00

YIKES!!! More pics to come!!!

David, Liz, Matthew & Grace!

2011-09-29T09:59:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful day visiting with the Even family in South Africa. We are fellow church members at FBC McKinney. They serve with J-LIFE AFRICA. What a blessing to spend time together!

Nelson Mandela Square!

2011-09-28T11:12:00.000-07:00

After a doctor appointment this morning, we had the chance to stop by Nelson Mandela Square. Had lunch at Mugg & Bean! Stuffed jalapenos! WooHoo!

Jeanne & Beck

2011-09-28T11:05:00.000-07:00

Having a wonderful time with old friends! Their help with Dr appointments and transportation has been amazing!!

Some of our friends!

2011-09-27T09:18:00.000-07:00

Little helper!

2011-09-27T09:11:00.000-07:00

Our little ninja!

2011-09-27T09:07:00.000-07:00

Charlotte Falls

2011-09-27T09:02:00.000-07:00

The counter guys at Raju's Electrical

2011-09-27T08:50:00.000-07:00

By the way gals, the guys said to tell you that they are all single!!

"Vickie"...one of our suppliers.

2011-09-27T08:46:00.000-07:00

Santos, Tom's trusted plumbing supplier!

2011-09-27T08:40:00.000-07:00

Taxi anyone??

2011-09-27T08:36:00.000-07:00

How long has it been since you thanked the good Lord for your neighborhood Starbucks??

2011-09-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

These Nescafe carts roll around the city of Freetown with jugs of hot water, sugar cubes and instant coffee. If you buy a cup, you have to drink it on the spot so you can give the glass or ceramic cup back for the next person. :)

Margaret's kiddos started school!!!

2011-09-26T11:24:00.000-07:00

Our thanks to an Association of Sierra Leoneans in Jefferson City, MO, and to the family of 2 of our June team members, for sponsoring 22 of Margaret's orphans for the 2011-2012 school year! Amazing how God is working!

Making Jewelry!

2011-09-19T16:25:00.000-07:00

It is such fun for 2 days each month to see 6 war widows and 4 older orphan girls gather to make bracelets! Our thanks to Lois Jacobs for setting them up in a business that generates income to help their families and Margaret Tucker's orphans. If you would like to know more about the marketing and distribution process stateside, please email us at beckbrock@yahoo.com.

Baby Isaiah at 6 months!

2011-09-10T10:53:00.000-07:00

Bo with Timothy

2011-09-02T07:40:00.000-07:00

We've been blessed over the last few weeks to have Timothy, security guard for the Hope Centre, filling in for Pa'Hassan's well-deserved vacation. In fact, it was very hard letting him go yesterday! We will miss him terribly. He has been so encouraging to all of us, and especially Bo. Timothy know Scripture like nobody's business. In the afternoons, he would take stories Tom has been reading to Bo in English and raise them to a whole new level with his animated Krio. He has prayed some of the most beautiful prayers over us at the breakfast table, and we know we've been in his prayers throughout the day as he worked around the compound. You will be missed at the apartment, Timothy, but we will see you almost daily at the Centre!

Bo and Sulaiman!

2011-09-01T06:03:00.000-07:00

We love Sulaiman! He is one of the first people we met in 2008, and our friendship with him and his kiddos has grown over the years. Earlier this year, knowing that his job would be coming to an end with the relocation of King George Compound for the Elderly, we asked him to consider working with us a couple of days a week. We call him "our partner in ministry!" He has become not only Becky's right arm, but also her left, as he helps with laundry and cleaning. There is no way we would have the freedom we do without Sulay! And...he is such a help with Bo, just like a big brother! We thank the Lord for our friend Sulaiman!

Bo with his tutor, Charles!

2011-09-01T05:35:00.001-07:00

Charles has been amazing with Mohamed! His work on the streets of Waterloo led him into relationship with this special boy around the first of 2011. In mid-January, Charles introduced us to "the bobo." The bond between these two fellas continues to grow! Charles has a degree in education and is now two semesters away from a 2nd in social work. We work alongside him with two of the projects we are involved in, and our admiration of his faith in the Lord, his dedication to the under privileged, and his utter humility that God sees fit to use him, grows weekly! He has been a godsend as he has tirelessly worked with social welfare officials in the Western Rural District of Waterloo where he found Mohamed, and now in Freetown, to help us secure documents for foster parenting and immigration as we seek a Passport and VISA for Bo. We praise the Lord for Charles!!!

Update 8.28.2011

2011-08-28T23:30:00.000-07:00

Dear friends and family,

It’s been awhile since our last update, but please know that you have been on our minds and in our prayers! We thank the Lord for you!!

God continues to amaze us at every turn. Our June team was such a blessing to us personally and to so many of our friends here in Sierra Leone! Way to go TEAM!!!

Impact of the June team: Described in a previous post

In July and August we’ve continued to work at warp speed. On July 2nd we made the decision to bring our street kid Mohamed (Bobo) to our apartment to stay. This came after 6 months of having him in-and-out of the hospital and at a street kid’s refuge. With the approval of an uncle that is ultimately responsible for him, and other extended family members, we now have foster parent status for a period of one year to pursue medical treatment outside of Sierra Leone. We are currently working on a Passport and VISA for Mohamed. We have exhausted all possibilities to come to any true medical diagnosis in this country with the limited testing that can be done. Even the only dermatologist here has encouraged us to “travel with the boy for help.” We have a doctor in Texas that we believe is willing to try to determine the root cause for Bobo’s recurring skin condition. We pray God heals this precious boy completely. The scars on his entire body may never fade, but God will certainly have a story to tell through our Bobo.

Other happenings:
• Container arrived from GCPN with electrical and plumbing supplies, so Tom is now working “fast and furious” to make much needed repairs at the Hope Centre
• Food distributions continue, but we sense that the 244 family units are realizing that the parcels will soon be over and they will once again be scrambling for enough food to feed their families
• Harvests are looking good for rice, ground nuts and vegetables with seeds being set aside to expand farms next season for the War Widows and Orphan Caretaker Families
• We lost our youngest orphan, Baby Rebecca at 2 months, and one of our widows in July…very sad
• Our Project Restore Hope Team took 4 days to retreat to the south of the country for much needed solitude and time alone with the Lord individually and as a group
• Training by Mercy Ships for the staff of 2 of our orphanages on the topic of caring for children who have suffered trauma. The Mercy Ships team consisted of mental health professionals from Liberia, Togo, Benin, South Africa and the USA
• A week long Kid’s Camp hosted by the Mercy Ships team for 30 of our orphans
• Follow up continues from our May and June teams as we will soon help 7 boys with school supplies and tuition, rice bags are delivered monthly to St George Refuge for Street Kids, new uniforms will be provided for 40 students at Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges, new metal bed frames and mattresses for Margaret and the orphans…all 27 in the household will now be off the floor

Praising the Lord:
• We are at a loss as to how to thank a Texas family for making it possible for us to travel to South Africa in September for our annual medical testing and Tom’s 3 year post-cancer evaluation. We’ve learned that an annual visit to South Africa is a common thing for missionaries on this continent since the quality of health care is outstanding, but the costs are considerably lower than in the USA. We are also blessed to have long-time missionary friends living in Johannesburg who have made all appointments for us and will have us in their home. Having these medical needs taken care of now will give us the chance to focus on family and friends while in Texas from mid-Dec to mid-January. We’d estimated that up to 10 days out of the 30 we will have in Texas would have been spent on doctor visits and tests. We praise our Lord “who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think!!!”

Our love and gratitude for your faithful prayers and support!

Rutile

2011-08-20T18:23:00.000-07:00

Sierra Rutile Mining

2011-08-20T18:03:00.000-07:00

Recently, our team (Chuck, Christine, Gabe & Sada, Baby Isaiah, Mohamed, Tom and I) spent a 4 day weekend in the south of Sierra Leone. Thanks to some missionary friends making a contact for us, we were able to stay at a mining camp that has housing for foreign employees and executives. The view as we drove into the Mokanji Hills was breathtaking! We were so blessed to have a chance to rest and spend time with the Lord in such a beautiful setting! During a walk one day, Tom picked up a long stick to use as a cane. His new nickname is, "MOSES!"

In the poda-poda!

2011-08-05T10:46:00.000-07:00

On a ride in the poda-poda, Mark and Bobo were holding hands. Precious! You can see patches of sores on the back of his head. He got better with meds while the team was here, then went from bad to worse soon after. He's just finished another round of injections, and we are determined to persevere until a cure is found! Thanks go to a Texas doctor and lab tech for their willingness to work with us! A biopsy kit is being shipped as I type. We will pray for it's speedy return to the states with viable samples in tact!

The Bobo

2011-08-05T10:39:00.001-07:00

The June team fell in love with our street kid, Mohamed. We affectionately call him The Bobo. Bobo in Krio means "boy."

Sarah & Becky on Mercy Ships

2011-08-05T10:28:00.000-07:00

Becca with Mercy Ships (on the left) was so kind to arrange a day for Sarah and me to spend on Mercy Ships. Sarah was able to observe and work in the physical therapy department! It was amazing to see the before and after x-rays and pictures of children whose lives have been transformed through orthopedic surgerys!

War Widows Food Distribution

2011-08-05T09:56:00.000-07:00

Food parcels to War Widows

2011-08-05T09:47:00.000-07:00

Mark, Tony and Sarah had the opportunity to help with our monthly food distribution to the War Widows! There was singing, dancing and thankful hearts as we passed out the rice, peanuts, palm oil, salt and soap to 85 family units.

June Team Impacts Sierra Leone!!

2011-08-05T09:34:00.000-07:00

Impact of the June team:

• Focus: curriculum development and teacher training at Hosetta School for Kids with Special Needs – one TX teacher who writes curriculum for special education for the state led 3 teachers, 2 college students training to be teachers and 2 assistants in 7 days of hands-on training with students working side-by-side with the staff of Hosetta
• An abundance of material, manipulatives and supplies were stocked in the classrooms at Hosetta
• 3 additional team members helped with a food distribution to 85 War Widow Families impacting approximately 700 people
• One team member, a physical therapist, spent a day assisting the Physical Therapy Staff on Mercy Ships
• One team member, an agriculturalist, spent a day with the Mercy Ships off-ship agricultural team in a training program for 30 nationals from all over Sierra Leone
• The agriculturalist also visited farms worked by the War Widows (about 40 miles in the interior) and by 85 orphan caretaker families (90 miles inland)
• The entire team spent one morning on the streets of Waterloo visiting street kids
• The entire team held 2 day Bible schools in the evenings for St George Refuge for Street Kids and Margaret Tucker’s Orphanage (2 evenings in each place)
• The 9 team members from Missouri spent time vision casting for future partnerships and ministry opportunities for 2012
• Sewing groups from Arkansas and Missouri provided clothing that blessed orphaned and under-privileged children in 3 locations

What a blessing the June team was to us personally and to so many of our friends here in Sierra Leone!!! Way to go TEAM!!!

Niki's Blog!

2011-07-11T10:22:00.000-07:00

Hey there! We invite you to scroll down the right side of our blog and click on "Niki Hughes" under "SOME OF MY FAVORITES." She has posted some great pictures of the work of the June Mission Team!

Hosetta School - June Teaching Team!

2011-07-11T04:14:00.000-07:00

Take a peek at Niki's blog for update on the Teaching Team at Hosetta!
http://thehugheshouseandhome.blogspot.com/2011/07/sierra-leone-two.html

JUNE TEAM ROCKS!!

2011-07-06T15:59:00.000-07:00

Our super-duper amazing June Team!! Two from Texas and nine from Missouri! Updates to follow...

from David...May team member

2011-06-20T17:55:00.000-07:00

Where is God?

When you look around and see these kids
When you look around and see the poverty
When you look around and see the illness
We ask ourselves, where could God be?
And he tells us, He's in our world, He's in our heart.

When you smell the burning trash
And you hear the honking horns
You hear the cries of the children
You ask yourself, where is God?
And he tells you, He's in your world, He's in your heart.

When kids are alone on the street
No clothes no shelter no food
Forced to steal and slave
We ask ourselves, where is God?
And he tells us, He's in our world, He's in our heart.

When I have been blessed with so much
When I don't understand why I am here
When all I can do is ask, why them and not me?
I ask myself, why isn't God here?
And He tells me, He's in my world, He's in my heart.

When I love on the kids and people
When I see their smiles and feel the hugs
When I see another project finished
All I can do is fall to my knees and.....
I thank God for being in the world and in our hearts

When friends sell all their earthly possessions
Because they listen to a call from God so clear
They take up their cross to carry and go
All I can do is fall to my knees and.....
I thank God for them being in my life and in this world.

"For I know the plans I have for you......"

2011-06-08T17:02:00.000-07:00

June 7, 2011 Update

The weeks are flying!!! We were blessed to have a team of 10 with us in May, and there are another 11 heading this way on June 20th! We can’t wait to have them here!

We wish we could sit with you and share one-on-one just how God is working in Sierra Leone! There are so many stories to tell! We are adding pictures to our blog as internet connections will allow, and we pray that the images and captions give you a feel for the wonderful people we are ministering to.

Leading up to the May team:

• Monthly food distributions continue to bless 244 orphans and their caretaker families
• Skills development is impacting about 60 young adults in the Jui community
• Agricultural work in progress to prepare fields and plant in 3 locations
• Dr Lyn Westman of Mercy Ships visited the Hope Centre, Margaret’s orphans and Inna’s orphanage as we made plans for a Kid’s Camp in August geared toward children who have experienced trauma…30 of “our kids” will attend the week-long camp
• U.S. Ambassador Michael Owen and wife, Annereike, toured the Centre and took time to encourage students in Chuck’s community health class
• We were blessed to have Olivia (Physician’s Assistant) and Jana (Physical Therapist) from Mercy Ships with us a couple of weekends
• We celebrated Easter with several missionary friends, and have now begun a monthly “international service” the 2nd Sunday of each month complete with music, Bible lesson and a meal to share

Impact of the May team:

• The focus: construction at Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges
• The team alternated between working on the facility and interacting with the students through singing, teaching sign language and setting up a playground area
• Young friends from previous years in Sierra Leone came to help with the construction and to renew relationships
• A mural was painted at Hosetta reflecting God’s desire for each child there…Jer 29:11
• A new bracelet-making skill was taught to 6 of our War Widows and 3 older orphan girls that we trust will lead to more long-term financial sustainability for their families in the future
• The 5th graders of Finch Elementary in McKinney, TX raised “pennies for polio” for the 3rd year in a row to benefit children at Leonard Cheshire School in Freetown, Sierra Leone…the school received 8 mattresses, 35 sheets, 20 pillow cases and 2 large bags of rice because of the student’s efforts
• Margaret Tucker’s orphans and numerous neighborhood children were blessed with new clothes provided by a sewing group from FBC Warren, AR
• Margaret’s roof and crumbling cement flooring have been repaired just in time for the rainy season, and she and the youngest 2 orphans now have a bed…they are no longer sleeping on a foam mattress on the floor
• Funds were left with us to provide baby formula and other necessities over the next year for Margaret’s newest orphan…a baby girl one month old
• The WMU of FBC McKinney sent frizbees and other “easy-to-pack toys” which were a blessing to the kiddos
• All team members brought “goodies” provided by their own friends and families to give away as they felt led
• Bags of rice have been distributed to several families because of close ties to team members
• A visit to street kids in Waterloo may lead to future involvement

Plans for the June team:

• The focus: curriculum development and teacher training at Hosetta School
• Evening Bible Schools at 2 locations – Margaret’s orphans and St George Refuge for Street Kids
• A visit to see street kids in Waterloo
• Investigate future agricultural opportunities
• Visits with Mercy Ships representatives for physical therapy and agriculture
• Connect with “Young Life” representatives

Prayer requests:

• June team – pray for those they are leaving behind, for packing preparations and safe travel, good health, pray for every divine encounter they will have along the way and those that God has set in motion for them once they arrive in Sierra Leone
• Rains are coming almost daily now – many of our friends here have leaky roofs and no window screens or mosquito nets, Malaria and Typhoid are on the rise, roads will soon become even more difficult to travel, people’s livelihoods will be affected

Our prayer is that God will bless you as you faithfully pray for us and give toward His work here in Sierra Leone.

Our love and gratitude,
Tom and Becky

Finch Elementary School, McKinney, Texas

2011-05-28T05:34:00.000-07:00

Bravo to the 5th grade class of Finch Elementary School in McKinney, Texas! For the 3rd year in a row, during a unit of study on polio, they have raised funds to benefit the Leonard Cheshire School for Children with Polio in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Yesterday we were able to deliver 2 full bags of rice, 35 sheets, 20 pillow cases and 3 matresses (5 additional matresses will be delivered on Monday). Pictured above are some of the grateful students along with Director Ms. Sesay. Leonard Cheshire was founded in 1961 and currently has 70 students, 40 live-in and 30 day students.

Hosetta Students!

2011-05-25T19:47:00.000-07:00

Margaret's newest orphan!

2011-05-25T19:45:00.000-07:00

Renewing relationships!

2011-05-25T19:42:00.000-07:00

It's always such a blessing to renew relationships from previous years!!!

Lois and the gals!

2011-05-25T19:05:00.000-07:00

Mayemi Baptist Fellowship

2011-05-25T18:28:00.001-07:00

Church on Sunday (the stick structure)!

Margaret's Orphanage - two bedrooms

2011-05-25T18:14:00.000-07:00

The guys on our May team helped Tom set up an new metal bed for some of the boys at Margaret's that have been sleeping on the crumbling cement floor. Thanks to the team as a whole and individually, several other things are in the works: badly needed roof and floor repairs, another metal bed frame to get Margaret and the 2 smallest children off the floor, a crib for the baby that Margaret took in just three weeks ago, formula and other baby needs for one year. Would you like to help with some of the needs? Ask us how!

Brooke & Jon!

2011-05-25T18:11:00.000-07:00

The entire vision for Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges started because of the special relationship between this wonderful pair!

Amazing sunset!

2011-05-25T17:47:00.000-07:00

For the first time our team flew in before dark. This was the view while they waited on the water taxi! Breathtaking!

Our main men!!!

2011-05-25T17:43:00.000-07:00

Love these gals!

2011-05-25T17:39:00.000-07:00

Precious memories!

2011-05-25T17:34:00.000-07:00

Our amazing May team!

2011-05-25T17:28:00.000-07:00

Our amazing May team...less David who was taking the pics!

from teammate...Lois

2011-05-24T03:21:00.000-07:00

Jewelry Making

Just a few weeks prior to leaving for the Sierra Leone trip, I was planning on helping with the construction project for the Hosetta school since that was the purpose of the trip. However, God started nudging my heart to see if it would be possible for me to teach some ladies how to make jewelry. So, I reached out to Becky to see if it would be possible for me to do this and she replied ‘ABSOLUTELY’. So, we started the plan in motion. Becky talked to Margaret who runs the war widow program to find six ladies for me to teach.

As it turned out, I ended up teaching six war widows and four orphans how to make the jewelry. The orphan’s parents were killed when Freetown was invaded in 1999. They are now young ladies in their late teens and early 20s.

While we were making the jewelry, I had my iPhone playing praise and worship music on a portable speaker. The young ladies loved the music and one girl in particular (Fatnata) would ask me what some of the different songs were trying to communicate. However, the one song she understood with no explanation needed is the song ‘Blessings’ by Laura Story. The words are pasted at the bottom of this posting.

I wrote out the words of the song for Fatnata and by the end of the trip, whenever the song would play on my iPhone, she would sing all of the words.

I thought I was going on a mission trip to be a blessing to the people of Sierra Leone but the people there blessed me so much more than words can express. Since I have been home, every time I hear the song ‘Blessings’ by Laura Story, I get a tear in my eye and I think of the special people I met in Sierra Leone – especially the young ladies I taught how to make jewelry.

Blessings by Laura Story

We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love us way too much to give us lesser things

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

We pray for wisdom
Your voice to hear
And we cry in anger when we cannot feel You near
We doubt Your goodness, we doubt Your love
As if every promise from Your Word is not enough
All the while, You hear each desperate plea
And long that we'd have faith to believe

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
And what if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

When friends betray us
When darkness seems to win
We know the pain reminds this heart
That this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

Cause what if Your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
And what if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if my greatest disappointments
Or the aching of this life
Is the revealing of a greater thirst this world can’t satisfy
And what if trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are Your mercies in disguise

Margaret's Orphans

2011-05-18T06:27:00.000-07:00

Margaret (pictured on the right in gold African outfit) brought the kiddos and some helpers over one evening to thank our team for blessing them with clothes and other goodies. They prayed over us and sang for us! If they only knew...WE WERE THE ONES THAT RECEIVED THE BLESSING each time we were with them during the 11 days the team was here! Margaret is holding her newest orphan. The baby's mother died a couple of days after giving birth. She is in a safe place now!

Great times around the table!

2011-05-17T12:47:00.000-07:00

What fun to share meals at breakfast and dinner around our table!

Tom with "Little Mama!"

2011-05-17T12:34:00.000-07:00

"Little Mama" and her family live just across the road! The team enjoyed meeting the seven kiddos!

from team member....Chris

2011-05-17T12:27:00.000-07:00

My life changing time in Sierra Leone: Unbeknownst to the rest of the team, whom I had just met, I am a ‘very’ get to A to B, work-work-work kind of Girl, my life as always resembled more Martha than Mary, with lists of things to do and what to do next. But something happened to me in Sierra Leone- all my heart longed to do was sit beside, hug a neck, & listen to the story of the beautiful African people who I fell in love with. I found myself looking for the nearest African to met, talk to and love on every moment I got. The teachers at Hosetta School, The War Widows, Tom & Becky’s neighbors, especially the amazing, God given men working around Tom & Becky, not to leave out the most beautiful children I have ever seen, God’s Children- just everywhere! I picked up, kissed & loved on as many as I could. One of the War Widow women saw my tears one day and asked me, “Why do you people love children so much?” The hard hearts, life conditions, swollen bellies from malnutrition, orphans, naked-shoeless children and even more so the kids I met who sleep on the street with no one to care for them broke me, my words would never be able to explain. One night awake during a rain storm with a broken heart, the immensity of the need in Sierra Leone overwhelmed me. The Lord gave me some scripture & a song on my ipod called Rain, a part of the song prayed: “Let your mercy rain down on me, let your love heal my heart; feed the babies who don’t have enough to eat; shoe the children with no shoes on their feet, house the people who are living in the street, oh there is a solution –Let it rain down on me.” We are commanded to love! We can’t feed or fill every need, but we can love and love deeply. Now don’t get me wrong, He has told us to take care of those orphans & widows! And to give to those in need; but he said the greatest commandment was to love. And that’s the gift I came home with and amazing eye opening love for this country, its people and my indescribable Lord who holds in all in his hands. Chris of Missouri

Our Amazing Team!!!

2011-05-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

Our May team is in the air headed back to the USA! What an amazing time we had! It will take days to share the many short stories that make up OUR BIG STORY of all that GOD did while they were here in Sierra Leone! Stay tuned!

Laughin' Our Heads Off!!

2011-05-06T13:53:00.000-07:00

So...the internet has NOT been cooperating for us to post, but the team arrived safely Tuesday evening, and we've been having a blast ever since!

Highlights:

Wed - team planning in the morning, visit to Hosetta School in the afternoon, introduction to Margaret Tucker's Orphans in the evening

Thur - work day at Hosetta, taught sign language praise & worship songs to deaf students, War Widows jewelry making, kiddos from King George came to visit, outreach to Grafton neighbors

Friday - four projects simultaneously in four locations, work day at Hosetta (playground construction & educational materials to teachers), War Widows jewelry making, mentoring older teen orphans, Leonard Cheshire School for Children with Polio (Finch Elementary School Project, McKinney, TX)

Quotes:

"Body lice?!?" ...Brooke

"It's 11am and Brooke and Lori aren't up yet???" ...David

"Are my hands swelling???" ...Janise

"These mosquito love me!!!" ...Emily

"I met an Africa man in Freetown today from Denton, TX." ...Craig

"If the generator goes out again I'll camp outside...(David's response, oh yeah, with the Cobras)" ...Chris

"Jon said YOUR name FIRST, David??" ...Brooke

"Yes, I was de-wormed a couple of weeks ago." ...Wa-ala Mama

"You know this is gonna' take all day don't ya??" ...Daddy Grumbles

TO BE CONTINUED!

Dr Lyn Westman - Mercy Ships!

2011-04-30T13:59:00.000-07:00

We are thrilled with plans for a kid's camp in August provided by Mercy Ships to benefit 30 orphans. Dr Lyn and assistant Jane were introduced to "Auntie Margaret," who has 26 orphans in her home, and to "Mama Inna," who with the help of a full staff cares for 70 orphans. Fifteen children from each location will be in for a wonderful week! THANK YOU MERCY SHIPS FOR YOUR MINISTRY ON AND OFF THE BOAT!!!

Bundu Secret Society

2011-04-27T08:27:00.000-07:00

For two weeks women have been arriving at the house just across the road. There has been a flurry of activity! At least two all night celebrations have taken place with near continuous drums throughout the night and well into the morning. Last evening seems to have been a culmination of events with an initiation ceremony followed by a dance. I won't say anymore here, but you can search online for information about the practices of the Bundu. Just type in "Bundu Secret Society, Sierra Leone."

Flowers & Veggie Gardens!

2011-04-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

I just love the vegetable gardens along river beds. So lush even in the driest season.