Last day of project work (7/27/19)

Smiles only this big in Lukulu!! Yesterday morning we continued to work on our project work. We headed to the work site and started backfilling. Following this, we went back to the mission ground and loaded up more bricks for the hut. We went and delivered these to the site. Our bags finally arrived, so the girls spent part of the day organizing all of the supplies. We went to the basketball court later in the afternoon and painted nails! We had evening mass, and spent the rest of the night roasting marshmallows with the children! Today we started with morning mass at 7:30am. We then headed back to continue working on the hut. We spent the morning laying almost 6 layers of bricks with some of the locals and boys from the training center! After lunch, the boys went back to finish up, and the girls went to deliver blankets, swaddles and hats to the babies at the hospital. They got to hold 2 of premature babies and the mother’s were so thankful for the gifts we brought! They also spent some time talking to the midwife. We also got to watch the sun set over the amazing Zambezi river! We will have our last bonfire with the youth group tonight. It’s so hard to believe our time Lukulu is coming to an end. We are so grateful for the memories that we are continuing to make and all of the love that is shown to us!

Project work (7/25/19)

We got to start our project work yesterday morning! We first went and checked out one of the huts that was recently built. The members within the community look for the elderly that are in most need of a home and those who don’t have family members to take care of them. With the help of our donors, they have already built 3 huts, and we are currently starting on the 4th! We headed to the work site after we got to see what the huts look like. They are made of bricks and mortar, with iron sheets for the roof. When we got to the work site, Emily, Claire, Jess and Bob started moving bricks. Tom, John and Steve went with father Godfrey to get mortar. The local man who graduated from the brick laying class showed us what to do, and we got to work. We also got to meet the elderly man who will be benefiting from our project. He was 98 years old, but didn’t look a day over 60! Following our project work for the day, we headed to the hospital, because we requested to deliver the 2 wheelchairs that we brought. We got to meet some of the staff at the hospital, including one of the two doctors working there. From him, we got an idea of some of the supplies they are in need of, which included antibiotics, nose/ear/eye drops for children, and other medications for children and adults. They are also in desperate need of equipment for premature babies, like scales and an incubator. Speaking of, we got to see new born, premature twins. We had evening mass, and spent the rest of the night relaxing. 

Training center and feeding program (7/24/19)

We started our morning with prayer and reflection around the grotto. The group talked about the trip so far and how it has impacted our life! Following this, we headed to the Lukulu training center. The training center started in the 1995 under the Christian brothers. The oblate brothers then took over it over in 2017. We got to meet with brother Max, and learn all about the programs that they offer. Currently, they have carpentry, masonry/brick laying, computer skills, tailoring and auto mechanic! Tomorrow we will be beginning our project work, and some of the boys from the training center will be assisting us, as well as some of the men who completed the program! From there, we headed to St. Columbus, which is the catholic secondary school here in Lukulu. One of our main programs that we sponsor is the lunch feeding program. This program has been around for many years, and continues to help hundreds of children each year. We got to join in on the lunch preparation, which was beans and nshima! We also got to help wash dishes and serve the lunch. Some of the beneficiaries from this program spoke about how it has impacted their lives. Their stories were touching, and we realized how important this program really is. The students also put entertainment on for us and performed some of the local dances from provinces around Zambia! We attended mass this evening. We continue to pray each day for our donors during the eucharist. To end our night, we had a bonfire with the choir from church! 

Also, we’d like to give a shout out to Kathy Hutchinson. Happy birthday!!

A good day! (7/23/19)

Today was a very informative and emotional day for all of us! We started with mass at the oblate community chapel bright and early. Afterwards, we visited the mother’s milk program on the mission grounds. We heard many stories of how the program began from Father Kennedy. The holy cross sisters were the one’s that originally started the program in the 1940’s at the hospital. In 2002, it became independent from the hospital, and brother Max and Father Kennedy began running it until 2007, when the Loretto sisters took it over. It continues to grow to this day! The program helps babies for many different reasons, including mother’s who have sores on their breast, mother’s who have passed away and those who may be affected by HIV/AIDS. There are currently about 80-100 babies in the program, but they are continuously being admitted and discharged. All of the babies and parents were introduced to us, and there was one story that really impacted us. There was a father and the maternal grandmother that were caring for the baby. They walked 7 DAYS, there AND back. That is 14 days of travel to receive formula for their baby that would last them 3 weeks. They will have 1 week of rest before having to make the long, tiring journey again. Jess, Jenna, Emily and Claire spent most of the day in heaven holding babies. Thanks to our donors, mother’s milk will be able to continue helping hundreds of babies each year. This program will always hold a special place in our hearts! After lunch, we traveled to Kalambwe to see the church that was built by the mission team in 2015. We were greeted in the road as we pulled in! They sang to us and we all danced together. We were gifted with a goat and a chicken! We then traveled down the road to Simakumba, where we attended mother’s milk yesterday. We got to see the church that was built there. Recently, the Love for Lukulu donors helped provide a new iron sheet roof for this building. We were also gifted a chicken in this village! Steve got to accept it! Following this, we travel to our last stop for the day, Kayeo. This is a small village in the bush. The locals are currently building a church there and this is one of the more recent projects that our donors have sponsored. They are about half way done with the church and we can’t wait to one day see the finished product! The girls got to hold 2 different sets of twins from this village! Overall, it was a very touching day and we can’t wait to see what the rest of the trip has to offer!

Scholarship program and mother’s milk (7/22/19)

2 for 1 on the blog posts today! We started the morning with mass at 7:30am. After mass, we attended the scholarship program. The mission started this program in September/October of 2018 to help students attend school that are in need of assistance. The teachers look for the students that have potential and are in need the most. We got to meet with the recipients of the scholarships, as well as inform them of how we raise the funds for the program and encourage them that education is the key to success! The program is already helping 17 students in secondary school. We can’t wait to see how the students of this program succeed in life! After lunch, we traveled to Simakumba, an out station of Lukulu. This is where the other mother’s milk post is located. We got to meet at the mothers and babies/children that receive milk and HEPS. Mother’s milk is one of the main programs that our donors help us sponsor. Although our bags are still missing and we had no gifts for them, they were still so welcoming and showered us with gratitude. We are so excited to continue making lifelong friendships with the people of Lukulu. It’s hard to put into words how we are feeling, but we are so blessed to be able to do God’s work!

Sunday funday! (7/21/19)

Good morning! We are sorry for the late blog post, as yesterday was a fun and busy day! We started yesterday morning with Silozi mass. It was nothing short of amazing and our new members got to experience the joy of this mass for the first time! We were reminded to practice hospitality and to see everyone as our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, sons and daughters. After church, we crossed the Zambezi river in a canoe with about 30 other locals. We played volleyball and the girls went swimming in the river with Michael and the children. The river is so low this year, that you can swim to the island in the middle of the river! Following this, we cleaned up and headed to the priests house for dinner. Originally, we were supposed to have dinner at the sisters house, but they had to leave suddenly for an emergency in South Africa on the day we arrived 🙁 We enjoyed a nice meal with the priests, brothers and members of the parish council! We talked, laughed (a lot), danced and sang! Today, we will visit the scholarship program that we started here. That’s all for now!