Christmas Presents

I am going over to Arusha for ONE WEEK only, and will be bringing back Christmas goodies! Please let me know QUICK if you want to place a specific order (all orders should be emailed by Nov 27th)...if you are not sure, or don't see this in time, I will be buying the scarves, coasters, and stars and will be having some Christmas shows if you want to come have a look. But it's best if you already know, to contact me to ensure you get what you want! I am also bringing home a new shipment of SANDALS for the spring. New Designs and they are so cute!! So get excited! And best of all, as always, ALL proceeds go directly back to these angels.... (hdupree@gmail.com)

(excerpt from last year)

Christmas is RIGHT AROUND the corner! Please consider purchasing one of these amazing little African gifts for not just Christmas, but maybe birthdays, shower gifts, hostess gifts, anything! All the profits will go to these children pictured below. I am raising money to help them with school fees, food in their tummies, and a roof over their head! Please see previous posts to learn a little about each of them! They are my heart and soul and let them become a part of yours too! If you are interested in an item please just email me at hdupree@gmail.com and let me know the details of what you want. I will quickly respond with how you can go about purchasing. Happy Shopping!!!

Miriam (6), Fabien (5), and Jumanne (9)

many varieties of scarves

$20 each

napkin rings $25 for six

These were a favorite item last year. Christmas ornaments (but can be used year round, key chains, home decor, etc.)

$10 each

$5 for five bracelets

little baskets $7 each or three for $20

big baskets $35

Coasters (another favorite) $30 for 6

THANK YOU!!!!!

Fabien!!

Introducing Fabien! And I like to call him Fab for short, not to make him sound feminine but because he is FABULOUS! He has the most contagious spirit! He is constantly smiling and just hammin it up for the camera. Does he know he is this delicious?! :)

Fabien's mud hut is right across from Jumanne's. Over time visiting Juma and the girls, I started getting to know Fab and his family and their situation. He is blessed to have both his mother and father still living together along with his older sister and younger brother, plus his mother's 15 year old sister. And I felt like he was doing well because his family was all still in tact. However, over time I felt like the Spirit was telling me, just because he has two parents it doesnt mean he does not need help. There are 6 people living in a tiny hut made compl

etely of mud and rats that run all over the place. The children are not in school and many times do not have enough food. 

It is so hard when you are trying to help people, because you can get trapped by the mindset of I have to help the most desperate ones! But who I am to say who is the most desperate? How can i determine who needs what the most? I have been trying to go against any of my own natural instincts and just go with who Jesus tells me to help. 

So here he is...... 

Fabien (4 years old) 

Dinner Party

Friday night I decided to have a little dinner party with soda and spaghetti. The guests included Jumanne, Hadija, Miriam, and Rehema. The children, as usual, were sooo hungry! I bought a crate of soda and they had so much fun picking out which flavors they wanted (Fanta, Sprite, Coke, etc.) It was all they could think about, but I made them wait until we sat down for dinner. Jumanne's favorite thing to do at our house is take a shower. It must be a nice change from cold bucket showers... While he was enjoying the treat of warm water pouring down on him, the girls and I had a photo shoot in my room.

Here are Miriam and Neema singing He's Got the Whole World in his hands...

Miriam rocking the cowboy boots!

The girls just laughing at who knows what...I love this picture

Then Jesus said to his host, "When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor. (Luke 14)

Miriam

After visiting Jumanne in the village yesterday I was walking back to my car when I was struck in awe by this little girl about 5 years old who ran up to me "How are youuuuu?" she says...she was literally bubbling over in personality and spunk. She was filthy dirty and in clothes that she could have been wearing for days. She had a cut on her face but was smiling from ear to ear. I asked her where she lived and to take me to her mama. When i got to her house all I found was a little old woman washing clothes. She informed me she was her grandmother and had been taking care of Miriam and her sister since they were babies. Their mother left them after their father got sick. Life is hard. Only she is left to care for them. Why do i keep encountering these same situations? Why? What do the futures look like for these babies? The girls are not in school but the grandmother is doing the best she can.

I went back to see Miriam again yesterday. She ran to me and threw her arms around me! I just met this little girl but I'm just as attached as she is. We spoke with her grandmother again and got a little more information. Both her mother and father are alcoholics. The mother left Miriam when she was 5 months old! The father is still around but is usually drunk whenever he comes home. The grandmother is struggling to care for 6 grandchildren on her own.  When I

 left yesterday Miriam chased me to the car and wanted to come with me. I can't believe how willing and desiring these children are to just go with mere strangers. Maybe even at the ages of 4 and 5 years old they realize it may be their only escape....

I am beginning to feel as though if I followed up on every child I find wandering through these villages, I would meet the same situations...its overwhelming. 

Miriam above and her sister Rehema below 

Please look at her sweet little hand on mine...

Jumanne

This is Jumanne. I met him a couple of weeks ago around 8pm outside the grocery store. It was dark and he was all alone. I was getting out of the car when this sweet face looked at me and in swahili he asked me for bread. Unfortunately I see street kids a lot and i never give to them because all it does is perpetuate the problem of begging. But for some reason God granted me His compassion for this boy. I bought him some bread, milk, and water and then insisted we take him back to his village. The next day I went to his home. If you have seen Slumdog Millionaire, that is what you can picture as his house. Complete slums. He is 8 years old and has not seen his father in three years! He lives with his mother who is a street sweeper and his three sisters. Being the only boy he is now the 'man' of the house. He is 8. It is now his responsibility to provide when his mother's $1 a day salary runs out. He is 8. He is in 4th grade but its nearly impossible for him to do any homework in this tiny shack with no electricity, no quiet, no supplies. He would rather be out playing soccer with his friends. He is 8. But his little sisters need baths, they need water to be fetched, their needs to be food. He is 8.

I could not get Jumanne off of my mind and my heart. The situation while there are so many like his was just weighing on me so heavily. There is an African circus in town this month so i decided to take him. We got there had sodas and popcorn and i watched Jumanne more than the show. He was mesmerized by the lights, the sounds, the entertainers. He was clapping and cheering! It was pure delight! After the circus we ran into his two younger sisters at the same grocery store where I met Jumanne. They were filthy dirty as usual and in the same muskybrown clothes I had met them in. We decided to pile them all in my car and take them home for dinner. (we told another kid from the village to tell their mother)

We got home and I couldnt wait to give them all baths! Afterward the water was a murky
brown color. But now they were clean! I smothered them in lotion and pulled out some of Neema's clothes and dressed them in freshness. We then fed them some rice, beans, and veggies and they ate and ate. Jumanne said they had eaten nothing but chai all day. I sting just thinking about it.

On Sunday they showed up at my gate at 7:45am. All four of them. I quickly threw on a pot of coffee (for myself) and started making some oatmeal (for them.) I took them to church and it was a sight. Neema in one arm and Umi in the other (good thing they are little.) Jumanne can read english so he really enjoyed singing the worship songs and Hadija the oldest was good at keeping eye on everyone. They went to sunday school and colored pictures of Jesus and
children. Jumanne wrote on his "Jumanne sitting with Jesus." The morning had been nothing short of complete chaos! Oatmeal everywhere.spilled juice.fighting over toys.getting everyone in the car in time. Getting to church. Getting everyone quiet for prayer. But my heart was overflowing with love.

After we dropped them off at the village and I walked in my door I took in a deep breath. But then I missed the crazy.

Jumanne, Aziza, and Umi on the street where I found them.

The babies at my house for dinner after baths!

Government Schools

The other day I went on a tour of some of the local schools and I couldn't believe what I saw and learned. When I walked into a class room of the primary school in the village Neema was born, there were three rows of desks all practically touching each other. I asked the teacher how many students were in this class. She told me 60...SIXTY?! For one teacher. 

Then I learned that many teachers at the government schools are "high school drop-outs." When a student fails at school they are often sent to teacher colleges as an alternative and then sent out to teach primary kids. They are suppose to be teaching these children english but they don't know it themselves much less other subjects. When students have a question or need help, the teacher is unable to guide them leaving only the brightest of bright children with much hope of their own advancement. 

Volunteers and child sponsorship are our biggest ways to generate money for food, clothes, and teachers salaries. LOHADA wants to make sure we are able to continue paying the qualified teachers that we have. 

Thanks for reading!! 

Bye Bye Baba (Dad)

I am sad to say that my dad has returned home. Our African adventure is over....for now. We had the greatest time! Many people wanted to know if we went on safari or climbed Kilimanjaro but the truth is we just did not have time! But my dad really got to see the best of Africa...the hearts of the people. We spent time in the village, visited several orphanages, went to two different churches, attended a Young Life club and just really embraced the people of Arusha.

One day we visited the home of my friend Calvin’s grandfather. He is probably in his eighties and lives in this tiny mud hut no bigger than most our walk-in closets. With four of us in there, he couldn’t close the door. He was cooking his lunch (maize and veggies) on an open stove. He spoke very little english but it was one of our absolute favorite memories. We prayed over his house and just spent some time with him. It might seem awkward to sit with someone in silence when you dont speak the same language but it’s not. Jesus totally fills the gap.

Another one of my favorite memories was when Calvin and his friend Vincent cooked dinner for us. We hiked around the village to gather all of the ingredients...avocados, bananas, rice, tomatoes, peas....yummmm. Then we went home and the two boys in their young twenties prepared for us a delicious african meal. Just as we were about to sit and eat there was a blackout....TIA. So we lit some candles and gathered around the small table and feasted in the dark. In Africa, its typically better to be home before dark or at least don’t be traveling on foot. However, this night the dinner went a little later than expected and there was no easy way for a taxi to get to us so we had to walk home. This meant traversing through rocky dirt roads, crossing a river, and hiking a path all the way back to the main road via the the little light our cell phones could provide. After dinner we prayed for safety and off we went...But as soon as we stepped outside I felt like I was in a movie...it was not nearly as dark as I feared. The Lord had lit the sky so brightly with the moon and stars it was amazing. My little heart was so content and full of wonder. I looked around and Calvin and my dad were holding hands (a sign of friendship in Tanzania) Neema was on the shoulders of Calvin’s best friend Vincent and I was just taking it all in. It was a moment of God’s faithfulness and his beauty...not just the surroundings which were magnificent, but of the bonding in true brother and sisterhood...relationships forming that will last into the Kingdom. 

Neema, Vincent, me, and Calvin

On Dad’s second to last day we had the opportunity to go and hear our friend Jennifer give her testimony to a group of Tanzanians at New Life Bible College. We arrived around 10am and in the parking lot all we heard was a chorus of voices singing! By the sound of it i imagined it to be around 1,000 people. Brother Paul asked my dad if he was ready to see Angels singing...when we walked in it was only about 150 people but they were singing and dancing their little hearts out! I had chill bumps all over and I looked at Jennifer who had tears in her eyes....we both knew we had just entered into a Holy place. We made our way down front and I was just mesmerized by the praise and worship. Clapping, dancing, hands held high, heads bowed in reverence, eyes to the sky, hearts in complete surrender. I wish I could describe this experience better, but God was there and He is indescribable. At the end Neema (who has obviously been to African church with her relatives) shouted “Hallelujah!” and everyone laughed and shouted back “Amen!!!!” When she realized she got such a response she kept on shouting “Hallelujahhhhhh” and then they would say back “Amen!” This went on three or four times and it was so funny!! 

Anyway, my dad and I had many many incredible moments like the ones mentioned above but these were just a few highlights. I am so thankful that he got a true glimpse of why I love this place. He truly experienced the Holy Spirit and was moved by the hearts of those who have little yet give so much! 
This week I have started work at Lohada and boy do I have my work cut out for me! Today the all the adaptors were missing, the computer caught a virus and just keeps turning on and off, and the printer wouldn’t work. We could not find pants to fit one of the children so he just runs around holding his pants up, and two days ago a little boy about four years old was just dropped off at our gate. His feet are deformed as they did not develop properly and he has open wounds all over his head. But he is safe now and his tummy is full so we are thankful for that. We are understaffed and need volunteers desperately but where we are weak He is strong!

Thanks for reading!