We wanted to say THANK YOU!! to the St Rose Church Catholic Youth Ministry (CYM), located in St Rose, IL.
This past Sunday, the students presented Greg (Gil and Ronda's son) with a check for $100 that will go toward the new school in Macha.
During the Lent season, the CYM held Friday night fish frys. They have generously decided to support the construction of the new school in Macha with the proceeds from their weeks of hard work.
It continually amazes us how the Lord works and how He has gotten so many people from so many different places involved with MICS. We have never been to St Rose, and we have never met any of the people involved in this donation, yet they were generous enough to want to help the children of Macha. A special thank you to Rita Jansen (the mother of Darla, Greg's girlfriend) for telling the people of St Rose Church about Macha and also a special thank you to Pat Henrichs and Lisa Schrage, the leaders of the CYM for their commitment to these young people of St Rose.
The second term for MICS has begun. On the first day, the 2nd grade students were introduced to their new teacher, Mrs. Hammes.
Mrs. Sakala has taken an early maternity leave and will return after the birth of their new baby. Fortunately we have Deb (Mrs. Hammes) here to help and fill in during this time.
We also have a new student in grade 1.
Her name is Sevina and she had previously been at a school without books, desks or supplies. She is an orphan and is currently living with her grandparents. MICS goal is to have 30% of the students be orphans. If anyone is interested in assisting with the orphans of Macha by sponsoring a student, please contact us. Thank you to all who have been assisting with all the aspects of the new school. Without you...we would not be able to contiue!
Our friends from Botswana, Doug and Deb Hammes, finally arrived in Macha after an extended stay in the border city of Livingstone. There were problems dealing with customs and immigration...so they were delayed and their car was impounded. You never know what is going to happen when crossing a border here in Africa. Perhaps the immigration officer just did not have his morning cup of coffee that day or maybe he was just bored and wanted a little excitement. Whatever the reason, they chose to make things very difficult for Doug and Deb.
Initially they had to leave their car and belongings behind. 
Then they traveled by taxi to Macha (Yes, by taxi! who knew you could get her that way!!).
Finally after 2 weeks of prayer and patience, their car and belongings were released and they are now able to get settled into their new home in Macha.
Doug works for Flying Mission and will be the 1st full time FM employee in Macha. Deb will be teaching and helping with the school. It is truly the Lords timing on all of this, as Mid Sakala has just left on maternity leave. Deb will be able to take over while Mid is gone.
After all the difficulties over the past couple of weeks, Doug and Deb finally get to join us for a relaxing dinner at the Macha Vision Cafe.
Our good friends and helpers with the school have taken a leave of absence from MICS. We had a staff farewell party for them at our home. Mid Sakala is pregnant and has taken some time to return to her home village of Ndola for the birth of their new child. They will be returning later this fall. Our prayers are with them during this exciting time for their family. Their assistance with the school will definitely be missed during this absence.
We have had the deWinter family staying in our home. Joel deWinter is an IT expert from Holland working on the internet and computer system here in Macha. During their time here, we helped them celebrate the Dutch holiday "Queens Day". Our friend Dorien (also from Holland) got into the festivities by painting the Dutch flag on her cheeks!
We just wanted to show you just how rough the "Road to Macha" really is...
The village of Macha is a 2+ hour drive from the closest paved road. This is supposed to be a bridge on the road from Pemba to Macha. Fortunately the water level is low and good thing we have 4 wheel drive! This also explains why we have had to get the car frame re-welded and the gas tank replaced so many times. No matter how careful you are, the car takes a beating...
It is always an adventure!
