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We've made it!

We can celebrate our Orphan Encouragement day, knowing that every child is taken care of! Today we got our final 3 donations!

We got $60 from our friends Craig and Abby Brotherston in N-Ireland! He wrote me the following email:

“… but it was cool, because they had never taken offerings before we came, and we have just started it - so this week I put your picture up, and told them what it was for and they gave!  These are also all teenagers, most of whom don't have jobs and I didn't get the chance to tell them in advance!”

How cool is that! Thank you guys, and thanks to all our friends around the world! On December 6^th we will have a day they’ll never forget! Pray with us that all children will receive not just physical encouragement, but also emotional encouragement.

We’ll make sure we take lots of pictures, and we’ll have a great report on this blog!

 

My playmates peripety!

An old interns from NY, Andrea G., gave me an awesome tip few weeks ago... To help fix our playmates dilemma for Maelle, we started to volunteer at a faith based orphanage http://www.amanibabycottage.org/

We went there several afternoons already and we honestly LOVE it. It has been such a great alternative! It's clean, it's safe and Maelle gets to interact, play and learn from 50ish little ones. She loves it! She loves riding one of their baby cars! All afternoon she can sit in it, waves goodbye and blows her horn :-)


Last time we went though, something happened! I was playing soccer with Junior --actually we were just kicking a soccer ball back and forth-- but I noticed that a group of young kids were staring at the orphans from behind the fence... The look on their faces forced me to wonder if they wished to be on the other side of the fence -- inside of the orphanage where they will be embraced with love , care and have the opportunity to play with some really cool toys...

Few minutes later a kid ran down the hill screaming "Come eat cake! Come eat cake!" In no time the garden was left deserted! I kept on looking at my "envious" children behind the fence... I was sure they would have love come and eat some cake too... but instead they pick up rocks and THROW THEM AT US! Nooo just kidding! :-) They started to throw their rocks up into a mango tree hoping that some will get hit and fall...


At that moment my heart was broken with this incident. I wanted to join the kids who were behind the fence... Just chat, chill and play with them.
I have to confess that latly I have been reminded and challenged by what Mother Theressa used to say: "It has become fashionable to talk about the poor but it's not that fashionable to talk to the poor". In other words it's fashionable for me to talk about how the poor are poor here in Uganda but when the poor come talk to me, ask me for money, food and clothes... It's not that fashionable at all and I hate all of it!
I'm not sure where all of this is going to lead me... I'm being challenged, streched and PUSHED out of my comfort zone. I keep on asking myself why am I here for? Am I here because I will have some great missionary stories (fasionable) or do I simply but truly love God and love people (not so fasionable)...
I am being refined for sure!
Tatie

Devotions with the Street kids.

As we are preparing for our own ministry here in Uganda, we've been visiting Children Restoration Outreach (CRO) twice a week.

Besides giving haircuts, Tatiana has been training and coaching the staff on how to give effective morning devotions.

Just coming early in the morning, and seeing these kids -who have absolutely nothing - worship Jesus! It's really humbling... Knowing that we - who have everything - struggle to worship...

We should look at these examples more often...than you realize it's not just about giving to these streetkids, it's about receiving from them as well.

Encouragment Day!

In our last newsletter we told you about our ENCOURAGMENT DAY here in Jinja, Uganda.

So far we have about 23 of our kids sponsored! It’s a bit hard to say for sure, for some gifts might have been sent by mail or directly to our churches in Europe. But we know we need a few more kids sponsored.

On December 6 (new date!) we’ve invited all 28 orphans for a full day of ENCOURAGEMENT and EMPOWERMENT. New School supplies, new school uniforms, a big buffet, and lots of FUN and ENCOURAGEMENT.

With every $20 we can do this for 1 child. Can you help us sponsor the last 5 kids? You can do it right here:

or click here for other options.

Thank you so much for your responds!
Gods Best,



Ferdi, Tatiana and Maëlle

Your $20 is spent like this:
-

New School Uniform $ 10
Book Bag: $ 2.75
School Supplies
- 4 Notebooks
- Mathematical set
- 3 Pencils
- 3 Pens
- 1 eraser
- 1 pencil sharpener $ 5
Buffet $ 2
Soda $ 0.25
Facility Rent Free!
Games etc: Free!
Encouragement Priceless :)

TOTAL: $20 !!!

Last Saturday we went to Lingira Island – the island where I staid 9 years ago during my time with Youth with a Mission! Those weeks back than left an everlasting impression – living on an island with no electricity, among people of which some have never said foot on the mainland… wow… Back then we went from island to island, helping with whatever was needed, but mostly evangelism and medical immunizations.

This time I got to bring Tatiana and Maëlle for a ‘touristic’ outing! It was great! Maëlle seemed to love the boat, even though it was her first time ever. It took us 1,5 hour to get there, and 1,5 hour back, but Maëlle loved every minute of it. On the island we were welcomed by MANY MANY children… all just excited to see something happen!

When you walk through the ‘streets’ of this little village you keep thinking you’re in a museum!
I did see some major improvements compared to the first time I was there, one of which were big solar-panels, giving electricity to several community buildings.

Well – I don’t think we’ll ever MOVE to the island – it was just nice for a day-trip…Maybe a other one in – let’s say – 9 years…?

__________________________________________
Empowering people to transform their communities

·       www.1moreChild.org

·       www.ferdiandtatiana.com

·       Partner with us now!

 

Return to Lingira Island...

Little Obama...

It has been really interesting to follow up on the US elections from Africa.

Obama has been extremely popular here in Uganda... Before the elections people kept on asking us for who we will vote, thinking that Ferdi and I were American :-) but now that Obama is officially the winner we see a new thing going on...

Maëlle is being called "little Obama!" "little Obama" up and down the streets... I guess because she is mixed?!

It's quite funny to us because few days ago she was still a Muzungu (white) but now she is a potential future president of the US -- a "little Obama!"

Fact is she could be! She's American after all!

Maëlle van den Bergh - potenial mini Obama :)