Our Last Day and Departure (8/1)

We’re so sad that this day has come. Our time in Lukulu went by way too fast. All of the missionaries are so thankful for the friendships and bonds that we created while we were here. On Monday, we had a lot of free time to pack our bags and play with the children for the last time. We also had our farewell mass and party, were exchanged gifts, danced and had so much fun! Yesterday morning, our journey back to Michigan began. We left Lukulu, bright and early, at 6am. After a long and bumpy journey, we made it to Lusaka around 5pm. We all relaxed and shared stories about the incredible experiences we’ve had in the past 2 weeks. Today, we will shop around a little bit at the local market and get ready for our departure. Our flight leaves at 9:25pm (Lusaka time). We all can’t wait to see our family and friends! Please pray for our safe travels in the next few days. 

Update! (7/29)

Hello everyone! Our missionaries have had an amazing past couple of days. We have not been updating the blog everyday, because we ran out of WiFi and are unable to get access. We’ve visited the local hospital, radio station and finished the painting project. Today we went to mass and got a special thank you from the parish for our work the past couple of weeks. We depart on Tuesday, so we are getting ready to say our goodbyes. We are so thankful that we’ve have the opportunity to experience the joy and love from all of the people of Lukulu. The team can’t wait to see their family and friends soon! 

Finished project work! (7/25/18)

Today our missionaries woke up and did the rosary around the grotto again. After we ate breakfast and we continued our project work. We completed painting the parish hall and it looks awesome! The missionaries competed against the Lukulu boys in a game of volleyball. It was a tough game but we lost :( We then attended mass and danced and sung with the parishioners. It was a blast! 

(Backup) Mother’s milk outpost and more painting

Our morning started with church, where we celebrated St. James. One of our missionaries, Joseph, lectored at the mass. After that, we had breakfast and then continued to work on painting the parish hall. We worked for the first half of the morning and got the second coat of paint done on half of the building. Shortly after lunch, we took a trip to Simbakumba, which is another outpost. There is also a Mother’s Milk program there, so we got to meet different mothers and their babies. We learned the stories about why they are in the program and got to see some of the older kids that have been discharged. In Simbakumba, we also visited a church which past years donations helped to finish. They sang for us and we danced. We came back for dinner and will have a bonfire tonight!

Mother’s Milk (7/24)

Today was quite the busy day! We started this morning with saying the rosary around the grotto. At breakfast, we learned that the people of Lukulu were in such a desperate need for glasses. Last year, after the mission group came, they distributed over 312 pairs of glasses in just 2 short months. Shortly after, we went to visit the Mother’s Milk program. Our group also didn’t realize how much this program helped these women. Some of them come as far as 112 km (69.5 miles) walking 2 days, every single week, just to receive formula for their babies. We got to meet the mothers and their babies, as well as toddlers who have graduated from the program. The women were beyond grateful for our continuous support every year, so they sang us a song and gave us a chicken, oranges and rice for appreciation. After lunch, we got to visit St. Columbus school, which is a catholic school here in Lukulu. We learned about the history of the school and some of the challenges they are facing. We also got to visit some of the students while they were in class. We also got to see first hand what donations in the past years have helped with. The computer lab was one of the major contributions. After the school visit, we attended evening mass where one of our missionaries, Noelle, lectured. As we were leaving church we caught the beautiful sunset and headed in to dinner. We are off to enjoy a bonfire. See you tomorrow!

Project work (7/23)

Our day started with morning prayer around the grotto. After breakfast we went with Father Chris to meet the District Court of Lukulu at the palace. They make all of the decisions about family, land, and any other disputes that may occur. We also got to visit the Lepersy house and they were beyond excited to see us! We began our painting project on a church building used for meetings, classes, and practices. We will continue working on it the rest of the week. At 5:15 we attended a small evening mass, followed by dinner. Thank you all for continuing  to keep us in your prayers!

Our first Lukulu mass (7/22)

Our Sunday morning started bright and early with English mass, followed by Silozi. The energy that the parish had during the service blew us away. It was nothing short of amazing! We went on a walk after lunch to the market to buy oranges and chitenge’s (long wrap shirts) for the girls. After, we took a ride in a canoe across the Zambezi river to play many different games with the locals. We got to enjoy the beautiful sunset at the beach. Tomorrow we will begin our big project!