I can’t make this stuff up.

Newest land map for Project Canaan.

Brooke and Ben Sleeper have been volunteering with us since November 2012 and both of their contributions have been invaluable.  Their time with us is coming to an end (and Brooke is expecting their second child on July 8^th) and they will be moving back to the US in August.  We are so sad to see them go, but we want them to be exactly where the Lord wants them to be.

Finding a western trained Nurse to replace Brooke has been a challenge.  Western training is important to us, and the training in the US and Canada is different to that in African nursing schools. Not the one is right or wrong, but they are different. Brooke will be the first to tell you that even though she is an experience Nurse Practitioner from the US, her learning curve on pediatric health in Swaziland was steep.  The first 18-months were tough dealing with conditions, diseases and plagues that she had no experience with at all (pediatric AIDS, multiple-drug resistant tuberculosis and severe malnutrition to name a few).  Finding someone with a heart like Brooke’s, her diagnostic ability and someone who could continue the health and wellness program that Brooke has put in place was a huge task to fill. A God-sized task.

Last Monday I was asked, again, who would be taking over from Brooke when her last day arrived on June 24^rd   (only 19 work days from her imminent departure!).  I didn’t have an answer, other than, every time I prayed about it I felt the Lord telling me not to worry about it. He’s got it.  While I don’t doubt that “God’s got it”, there are times when I wish He would share it with me.

The very next morning I got a call from our friend Dr. Pawelos who said that he was standing with a young woman who was an RN, trained in the US and was looking for a job as a nurse in a ministry environment.  What??  I immediately called her to find out who she was and what her work/living status was etc.  This is where I say again, “You can’t make this stuff up.”

This young woman was born in the US and her parents were missionaries in Zambia for most of her childhood. She went to school at the Rift Valley Academy in Kenya for grades 7-12. She then went back to the US to complete University and became a Registered Nurse. During that time her parents moved to Swaziland to do pastor training at a local bible college. 

During visits home to her parents she met and fell in love with a young Swazi pastor and they married last year.  She will have her Swazi citizenship next week and her heart is to serve in a ministry, using her education as an RN. 

The very next day after we spoke she came out and spent the day with Brooke to interview, shadow, and see if the fit was right. She loved Project Canaan and we loved her.  By Saturday we met again and presented her with a job offer, she resigned her position at a private clinic in town on Monday and started work on Tuesday of this past week. On Thursday we received a 6-month-old baby girl and on Friday we received a severely malnourished 2-year-old boy and a 3-month-old girl.  I sat for a couple of hours and watched Nurse Brooke train Nurse Hannah in assessing these new children, diagnosing pneumonia in one and creating a nutrition plan for another.  It was a beautiful thing.

A combination of chicken pox scars and skin condition due to poverty and malnutrition.

We now have a full time nurse from Zimbabwe who runs our clinic, handles all our vaccinations, medications and does so much with government relations, AND we have a full time “Swazi-American” nurse who will focus on the health of our 123 children. 

God is good and His plans are perfect.  Let us all be patient, even in times of uncertainty, to listen for His voice and to not get ahead of Him.   We see the hand of God and His provision every single day, and while “patience” is not my greatest attribute, I have learned that He is always faithful and that patience is a good thing.

Live from Swaziland …giving thanks for Ben, Brooke, Koa and baby Sleeper.

Janine

Are you (or someone you know) thinking about serving in Africa?

Many of you know that the focus of Heart for Africa is bringing HOPE to the people of Swaziland in the areas of Hunger, Orphans, Poverty and Education.  Part of our poverty initiative is employment.  With 280+ people employed on Project Canaan we help provide for 3,640+ people in the community.    So when people ask about coming and volunteering to do things that we can (and should) hire Swazi’s to do, we explain our philosophy.

But there are times when we need specialty help that can ideally come through long-term volunteers.  Packing up and moving to Africa to serve is a HUGE commitment, but if the Lord is calling someone to move it is filled with excitement and anticipation rather than fear and trepidation. 

We are in need of a few long-term volunteers and so if you or anyone you know is interested in filling these specific positions, we ask that you prayerfully send us an email this week.  The positions are:

Nurse or Nurse Practitioner:  The El Rofi Medical team is looking for a person who is a follower of Jesus to manage the care of the children living at Project Canaan including childhood illness, wellness checks, developmental milestones, long-term illnesses (HIV) or disability needs and overall health and wellness of the Children’s Campuses. This person would be trained by and work directly with Brooke Sleeper and the need is immediate for a minimum of one year.

Kindergarten Teacher: The Project Canaan Academy is looking for an enthusiastic kindergarten teacher to foster and facilitate the intellectual, spiritual and social development of the children of Project Canaan.  This person will plan, implement, and assess lessons and will teach childcare with manipulatives, patience, creativity and the love of Jesus. This person would work directly with Amber VanWinkle and is needed from January – December 2017 or beyond.

Fine Arts Teacher: The Project Canaan Academy is looking for an enthusiastic, diverse fine arts teacher to foster and facilitate the intellectual, spiritual and social development of the children on Project Canaan.  You will plan, implement, and assess lessons and you will teach childcare with manipulatives, patience, creativity and the love of Jesus. This person would work directly with Amber VanWinkle and is needed from January – December 2017 or beyond.

House parents (mother and father) for ages 4-6: The Project Canaan Children’s Campus is looking for a mature couple with experience in child rearing who would live in a private room with ensuite in the children’s housing. They would be working directly with Emseni Senior Supervisors and staff to bring encouragement, discipline, patience and the love of Jesus to our older children (who are leading the younger ones by example).   This need is immediate and for a minimum of one year.

Mechanic: The Lusito Mechanic Shop is looking for an experience mechanic who is a follower of Jesus and would be focused on training, equipping and encouraging the people working at the mechanic shop as well as working on the maintenance and repair of all vehicles on the Farm (ATV’s, cars, trucks, tractors, JCB, bulldozer).  This need is immediate and would be for a minimum of one year.

For more information on each on the Nurse or teaching positions please go to: http://www.heartforafrica.org/Long%20Term%20Volunteers%20Needed.aspx or email info@heartforafrica.org.

Each volunteer is required to raise their own funds for travel and a minimal amount for accommodation and food as well as the purchase of a vehicle.

Serving in Africa is not for the faint of heart, but for those called, it is an adventure beyond our wildest imagination and it is for all ages.  When Ben and Brooke Sleeper moved to Swaziland three years ago they were a young couple with no children.  Now they have 2-year-old Koa and baby #2 on the way.  Chris Cheek turns 60-years-old today (Happy Birthday Gogo Chris!) and walked away from an incredible job to serve as the Grandmother to our toddlers. 

I won’t list all of our amazing volunteers, but will say that each and every one of them has come to serve the Lord using the skills and experience that the Lord has given them.  We are so thankful for their selflessness, sacrifice and service.

Those of us living here see miracles each and every day, and it is truly “exceedingly and abundantly more than we could ask for or imagine”.

Is God calling you to Swaziland, Africa?  If He is, just say “YES”!

Live from Swaziland … loving the adventure!

Janine

Project Canaan Green Bean Picker delivers baby on the side of the road

Yesterday was a typical day in Swaziland.   It’s incredible how so many human emotions can be felt in one day, always leaving you emotionally exhausted.  Yesterday was just another one of those days.

It started scary.  Ian and I were having breakfast when I suddenly choked on a piece of toast.  There was no air going in to my lungs and we looked at each other in a panic. He asked me if I was okay and I shook my head “no”. He asked if I needed help and I nodded, unable to get an ounce of air in to my lungs.  Ian quickly starting doing the Heimlich maneuver and after 6 or 7 tries finally dislodged the bread.  It took me at least 10 minutes of terrible coughing to get to a place of normal breathing, and I was left with a splitting headache (even as I type this a day later).  I am thankful to be alive and thankful that Ian was there and knew what to do.

Shortly after that I got a call from Brooke saying that a woman from the farm had just given birth and the newborn was tiny, alive and at the El Rofi Medical Clinic. What??  I jumped on an ATV, flew down to the baby home to pick up clothes, diapers, blankets etc, and then proceeded (at the speed of light) to the clinic.

Sure enough, there was a brand spankin’ new baby boy weighing 2.46 KG (5.4 lbs – which is a good sized baby here).  The mother was working picking green beans on the farm on a very hot sunny day.  She was dizzy and thirsty so went to her Supervisor for some water.  The Supervisor sent her to the medical clinic located about one mile from where she was picking.  As she walked along the new Living Water Dam when she had to stop because a baby was coming out.  She delivered the baby on to the dirt (alone), wrapped the baby in the skirt that she had wrapped around her pants/trousers then delivered the placenta.  She found a hole in the ground and dumped the placenta in the hole, then proceeded to walk to the clinic.

As she passed the Kufundza Carpentry center one of the workers (named Fortunate) saw the woman and came out to help her. She carried the baby while the two made their way to the clinic.  When she arrived Brooke and Sister Grace were there. Grace pointed at the wet child wrapped in a skirt and said, “What is that?? Is that a baby?!”  The answer was yes.  The mother thought she was only 3-months pregnant.  Nope, she was wrong.

Beth Blaisdell also just happened to be giving a tour of the clinic to Ali and MacKensie from Cox-Curry who are visiting from Georgia.  It’s always fun to have outside “witnesses” to the crazy things that happen here. 

Brooke carefully wiped the dirt off the baby and clamped the umbilical cord, weighed him and then called me.  The calmness and professionalism that Brooke ALWAYS exudes, never ceases to amaze me.  She is a rock star.

The mother went and washed while we all looked at the baby.  I congratulated her, called Ken to drive her to home and then realized I was almost late for my next appointment.

I hopped back on my ATV and flew up to the Project Canaan Academy Primary School where the foundation was being poured.   Our wonderful friends at WLA (Women Leaders in Action) provided the funds to get the Primary School underway and we were honored to have the founder of WLA, Pam Joseph, here for the laying of the foundation.  WLA also funded the Preschool and Kindergarten buildings.

We had Head teacher, Amber VanWinkle, along with the children who are currently in the Kindergarten class, all present for the big event.  They all got to put their hands in the wet cement and then write their names on the first classroom floor.  Next we moved them to a separate piece of wet concrete where the first 3 students who will attend Primary School placed their right hand in the concrete.  Amber, Pam and Ian followed and that piece will be designed in to the wall or walkway of the Primary School.

From there Ian and I made a quick drive in to town to buy 5 buckets of KFC and 66 chicken strips for the Emseni kids and all the Children’s Campus staff, a treat for all thanks to Pam.  The chicken was delivered, the big kids settled in with our guests for movie night  at The Oasis and Ian and I came home, closed the gates, turned on the electric fencing, let out the dogs and crashed on the couch.

Live from Swaziland … every day is a gift from God.

Janine

Baby “River” in emergency surgery, twice this week.

Some of you have heard about Baby River from my blog http://janinemaxwell.blogspot.com/2015/03/river-baby-suicidal-mom-tuberculosis-of.html.  River was born on March 2^nd, and was immediately put in a plastic bag and left on the side of the river to die.  Fortunately he was found, but not before his backside was badly eaten by river crabs.

After having a double-colostomy he came to live at the El Roi Baby Home and healed in record time!  Several weeks later he went back to the hospital to have his colostomy reversed, and the surgery happened without a glitch last week. A few days later, things took a turn for the worst.  There was a breakdown at the surgical site and River had a belly filled with infection.   The surgeon called to tell us that he needed to open up the baby again and try to close up the intestines.

Here is a challenge for us.  We are the legal guardians of the baby, and so we wanted to move the child to a private hospital in Manzini (complete with ICU and Pediatrician), but the baby came to us through a different hospital, and the surgeon responsible for that child wanted to do his very best to help make the child well again.  I totally get that, but what if we could do “better” than that by moving him? 

We had a team (Brooke, Ken and Shongwe) in the car driving to the hospital to transfer the baby to the private hospital for the corrective surgery, but what if the baby died in the car under our care (against the advice of the attending surgeon/hospital)?    We were in a tricky spot.

Thankfully, everyone involved truly does have the best interest of the child at heart. Brooke spoke directly with the Superintendent of the hospital attending to River and he assured us that River was getting good care and asked that we leave him there for the “clean up” surgery.  Our team turned the around, crossed our fingers and prayed for the surgical team.

Three days later (yesterday) I got a call from the surgeon saying that the baby was not well at all.  He needed to do a third abdominal surgery because puss was oozing out of the baby’s belly - the surgical site had broken down, again.  He would clean up the wound, but also give the baby a new colostomy so that the internal wounds would have a better chance at healing.

I “just happen” to have the best surgeon in Swaziland on “speed dial” and I had him “on call” this whole week in case we could transfer the baby.  I called him right away and while he agreed that the child should be moved to the private hospital and agreed that a new colostomy must be done right away, but in order to save the baby’s life the third surgery needed to be done before transferring the baby to the private hospital.  I wanted to pull my hair out.

There was nothing we could do, but pray, and ask El Rofi (the God who heals), to be with the surgeon and guide his hands.  Three hours later, I was called by the surgeon to say that the surgery went well, and he agreed to release the baby to us to be taken to the private hospital.

At first I planned on making the two-hour drive (each way) with Brooke, but the thought of having a 2-hour post-Operation baby in the back seat freaked me out. What if … ?  Getting an ambulance and nurse is not an easy feat in Swaziland, but we had people at two hospitals (and me) working on it.  Within an hour we literally had THREE ambulance options (ranging from $350US to free) and the child was on his way to the private hospital 75 minutes after surgery.  The hospital staff in BOTH hospitals worked together beautifully and I was thrilled to see his little face when I arrived in Manzini.

River is in ICU now and we should hear from a Doctor today on his care plan, but for now, they are keeping him hydrated and treating for infection and we have an Auntie with him 24/7. 

We are thankful for all who are praying for this little guy. We are thankful for all the nurses, doctors and Social workers in both hospitals who helped keep River alive.  He is very strong and even 3-hours out of surgery was holding my finger tightly and talking up a storm.  The cost to have him in the private hospital is close to $500 US per day.  He has a large incision across his belly and has a new colostomy that will need to be reversed (again) in the future. If you can help us with his hospital costs we would be very thankful.

To donate in the US please click here.

To donate in Canada please click here.

Live from Swaziland … it has been an eventful week.

Janine

Not a good way to start the New Year, or maybe it was the best way?

 

Our family in enjoying a much needed, long overdue holiday, together on the beach in Durban, South Africa.  Each day starts with a view of the Indian Ocean and ends with a delicious meal, Cribbage games and watching Scandal Season 2 together.  The reason we can go away worry free is because we have such an incredible team of people living and serving at Project Canaan.  They only contact us when there is something that we need to know or that they know we would want to know.  That is how the day started.

Today, my first FaceBook message was from Kenny VanWinkle. He and Amber graciously offered to live in our house while we are away taking care of chickens, dogs and security.  Kenny’s message to me read something like this:

“Hey Janine. Hope your vacation is going great. We had a couple of visitors last night. Came out of the bedroom and there was a 3.5 foot long snake coming out of the pantry. Chased it and cornered it under the stove. At the same time saw another one come from under a chair in the living room and go down the hallway. Called Denis and we killed the one under the stove. Not sure what kind of snake it was. Kinda looks like a Puff Adder, but it hissed at me really loud, and it long and skinny. Haven't found the other one yet. And we have looked like crazy. Just curious if you guys have had this problem before. We haven't left any doors or windows open. Anyway just wanted to let you know what's going on. We are still searching for the second intruder. Other than that all is well. Pretty sure I lost a few years off my life last night! Haha”

I know lots of you (Beth, Penny etc) hate when I talk about snakes, but I have a point. I will get to it.

After that I was looking through friends FaceBook posts and saw this photo from Brooke Sleeper of little Esther’s foot with a hookworm working its way through her skin.  We try to get the Aunties to make the children wear shoes, but heck, its Africa.  Everyone is in bare feet, right?  I wonder how many other people have hookworms making tracts that no one sees? Probably many.  I was able to contact Brooke to find out what she was going to do and she said that Esther’s foot is very itchy and after 3 days of treatment the worm(s) will die.  YUCK!!  Again, I have a point to why I am telling you this, and will get to it.

After reading my morning news, we got up and headed to the lobby at 5:45AM where we were getting a car to take us Deep Sea Fishing. We were all so excited for another great Maxwell family adventure. One of our favorites from the past was White Water Rafting down the Great Zambizi River in Zimbabwe. Maybe today would be even better than that?  We arrived at the chartered boat, hopped in and off we went. Simple.  I had packed lunches, water, cold drinks, lots of sunscreen and cameras.  It would be a perfect day (other than how it had started).  But I knew I had forgotten something. What was it?

It wasn’t until we left the harbor and we headed in to the open water that I remembered what I forgot, but it was too late. You see, I get really, really, REALLY motion sick.  And it started.  We had traveled out in the Indian Ocean about 2.5 miles and then stopped. We were all handled fishing rods and told to drop the lines to the bottom. Immediately fish were on Chloe’s and my line and up we successfully caught 8” fish. I did that once, and then things started to spin.  I moved in to the shade and sat down in the breeze. I was in a full body sweat. My head was sweating and even my upper lip and I knew I wasn’t going to make it.  I moved to the front of the boat to get more breeze and see the shoreline and tried to regroup.  What was I thinking? This was my idea to go Deep Sea Fishing!  How could I have forgotten such an important thing!

I didn’t want to tell Ian how sick I was getting for fear of ruining this great adventure.  It turns out we were only fishing for bait at that stop and soon we were heading back out to the open sea.  The swells were high as we crashed into and over each wave.  After 15 minutes of debating if I could call a helicopter to be evacuated or if I could just jump in the water and sink or swim (didn’t care which at that point), I went to the skipper and asked how much farther were were going.  He said, “Only another 9 miles out to sea”. I panicked.

He, and my family saw my panic and he gave me a anti-nausea pill.  Chloe was looking “green around the gills” too and so she took one too.  Fast-forwarding to the end of this terrible morning, by 7:30AM I was begging God to take me home.  Spencer and Ian were reeling in big Dorado fish (Mahi Mahi), I was power puking off the side of the boat and Chloe was curled up in the fetal position trying to “find her happy place.”   

The adventure was to last until 2PM, but we were back on shore by 10:08AM, much to my joy (and thanks to the understanding men in our family).  Oh my, my, my we were SO SICK.  But we have some great fish to show for it and will be eating it at dinner tonight (if I ever get this blog posted).

Near the end of the day I got a message on my phone from a Child Protection Police officer. He message read, “Good afternoon Janine.  We have yet another discovery of a dumped baby who has been rushed to the hospital.  Do you sill have space at the El Roi Baby Home?”

My reply was, “Yes, we hope to always have room for babies that you find dumped”. 

We are awaiting the details of this newborn baby, our first of 2014.

So, how do the snakes in our house, the hookworm in Esther’s foot, the adventure at sea and a newborn baby possibly all fit together?  It’s easy.  If we were too afraid of snakes to have said “yes” to this calling (and I HATE SNAKES!), I wouldn’t have had the privilege of receiving the phone message about a dumped baby. While I am totally grossed out by Esther’s hookworm (and may have wanted to cut my own foot off), we have an awesome Nurse Practitioner who said “yes” to the calling on her life and she can treat Esther and do another “teaching” on the importance of wearing shoes outside (oh, and we have shoes for all of them – we are blessed).  If we had said “no” to God’s calling on our life we wouldn’t have had the amazing opportunity to drive to Durban, stay on the beach and go Deep Sea Fishing in the Indian Ocean.  Sick or not sick, I got to be a part of a really cool adventure that our family will not soon forget.  And, at the end of the day, I got a message about a baby whose day was much worse than mine, and yet I could be a part of making his/her day better.

It’s January 2014 and we all are starting a new year.  I pray that you will not let your fears, your phobias or your excuses rob you of the huge blessings that the Lord has in store for you because you are thinking about saying “no” to what HE is asking you to do.  Today was a great day in my life – not an easy one, but another great one. I am so very thankful that we said “yes”.  You will be too.

Live from South Africa … it’s Saturday evening and time to eat Mahi Mahi.

Janine