Does the Easter Bunny go to Africa?

Special Easter breakfast eggs.

Yesterday I was asked if we were going to have an Easter Egg hunt for our kids?  I spent some time thinking about that, and wondered if we should do it for the big kids living at Emseni or do one for the toddlers too?  Would we use chocolate in the 90F heat or would we have an infestation of ants by hiding candy?  But the question provoked more thought and a bigger discussion. 

Like any family we have to decide which religious holidays we are going to observe, and how we are going to celebrate them with our children.  Which icons will we use and which ones will we not include?  What traditions do we want to start and which ones are left behind?

For example, at Christmas, we have made the collective decision to not introduce Santa Claus or snowmen (we live in Africa) and we don’t decorate with snowflakes, icicles or reindeer.  We do decorate with stars, angels and a manager and we did decide to put up a Christmas tree for the children – a western tradition for sure, but one that we chose to include.

This week we have had to think through Easter and what we want to include for our children.  Thinking about the Easter Egg hunt I was puzzled as to how I would explain to our Caregivers why we would take nice candy and hide it in corners with dust and dirt.  What did the candy egg have to do with the death and resurrection of Jesus?  I could make the link between the eggs and new life, but I wasn’t sure I could explain the candy eggs and the rabbit.

My next step was to sit down with a few of our staff and ask how they were raised and what did most Swazi’s do for Easter.  I was told most of them spent four days in church (!), celebrating the resurrection of Christ.  Every family brings whatever food they can find, and together the women cook for the congregation while they sing songs of praise and worship.  I asked if there was candy involved or did a bunny rabbit make an appearance at any time, and I got a perplexed look. The answer was no, but everyone would enjoy a large plate of cooked maize (like grits) and with some stew on top, hopefully with a few pieces of grizzly meat to enjoy and chew on (the more fat and bone, the better!).

This weekend we will not be introducing the Easter bunny to our children, but we will be sharing the good news about why we celebrate Easter.  We will tell them about how Jesus died on the cross for our sins and then three days later he rose from the dead.  We will make special food (fun eggs that represent new life), have a special church service, play with bubbles, balloons and have lots of water games to stay cool (stay tuned for some cute photos tomorrow!).  

Afternoon snack on Easter

PLEASE do not think I am criticizing anyone who is doing an Easter egg hunt for their own children or handing out chocolate bunnies. I am only telling you what we are doing here, since we do have the opportunity to do it differently than we did for Spencer and Chloe.  

Thank you to all of you who have given this month to help us feed children in our community. If you haven’t spent your entire Easter budget yet, please consider buying the gift of food for the orphaned and vulnerable children of Swaziland.  You can purchase eggs (the perfect protein!), maize, sugar beans or even a goat and we will deliver them to our church partners to feed the children.

To donate in Canada click here.

To donate in the US click here.

Or if you would like to shop for diapers and wipes for the babies at Project Canaan you can go to our amazon.com Baby Registry by clicking here.

Happy Easter from our family to yours!

Live from Swaziland … Jesus is risen indeed!

Janine

PS - I added a fun "kid" photo since you read all the way to the end :)

A fun weekend for all!

Water crisis causes us to close down our vegetable production

This week tough decisions had to be made.  Ian and I are not afraid of making tough decisions, but that doesn’t make them any easier.

On Tuesday, Ian sent this letter out to our US and Canadian Boards of Directors.  It read,

“Dear Boards Members,

Due to the current drought that southern Africa is suffering through right now we have had to prayerfully make the decision to stop all vegetable growing on Project Canaan, effective immediately.

There have been a few days of light rain, for which we give thanks, but it is not nearly enough to moisten the land or fill our dams. 

We stretched the water as far as we felt reasonable, without jeopardizing the domestic use from the borehole (dam #2 is an indicator of the water in the domestic use borehole), and we now know that we must stop growing vegetables.  The dairy and egg laying projects will continue.

This decision has not been made lightly as it will not only impact 40 employees (and their 13+ each dependents), but it impacts our income projections for 2016 and beyond.  

Living on a farm with nothing growing in the fields is discouraging to all and hard on morale, but it is a direct reflection of what the whole country (region) is going through.  Our people are suffering, food prices are escalating (the maize staple have increased by 66% this year!), and there is still no food in the school system.  

There is no doubt that our focus now must be raising the funds to bring the water from the springs at the top of the mountain in order for us to become “water secure”.  There is no guarantee that the rains will fall in the next rainy season (which starts in November) so we must direct the water that the Lord has provided on this land for His work.

Please keep us all in your prayers. This is a tough week at Project Canaan and surrounding communities.

Thanks,

Ian”

The line from the natural, year-round springs and the dams that we need to fill.

That’s what is happening here.  Please pray for all involved and please pray for the funding needed to bring the water down from the top of the mountain so that we can become “water secure”. We need a total of $800,000 (yep, a BIG number) to install 8,000 yards of piping and it will take us 6-8 months to build the pipeline once we have the funding. In the meantime, we pray daily that our last borehole does not go dry.

Live from Swaziland … I will never take water for granted again.

Janine

PS  Update on last week's blog. We got all the funding needed for Isaiah and Seth's ear surgeries!  Here is a photo of them with their passports!  Their surgery is April 6th in South Africa.  Thank you Lord for your provision!

Isaiah and Seth

Two of our children going deaf

Seth. Photo credit:  Brooke Sleeper

As I sit in my home on the side of a mountain in Swaziland, Africa, I am often frustrated by hearing the complaints about the healthcare in the US and in Canada.  This is not going to be a politically charged blog, I assure you, but rather a different twist on “health care” (or lack thereof) from where I sit.

We have a little boy named Seth. He is the cutest little guy, but has been sick from the day his mother dropped him in an outdoor toilet on January 4^th, 2014.   Among other long-term illnesses he has reoccurring ear infections, which result in his eardrums rupturing followed by puss and blood pouring out.    This has happened at least 20 times in his short two years of life, but they never really heal completely before the next one.

We have treated the infections, taken him to our own pediatrician and the only reasonable, and simple solution (if we lived in the US or Canada) is to have tubes put in his ears.  This is not a complicated procedure, in fact even Spencer had them put in when he was a small boy and had lots of ear infections. It does require surgery, but it’s day surgery and when complete the ears have a way to drain and not end up bursting and creating scar tissue that can eventually lead to deafness.

Last year we finally found the ONLY ENT (Ear Nose Throat specialist) in the country to examine him, but he refused to put tubes in his ears.  Why? Because he doesn’t believe in putting in tubes.  He says that when the eardrum bursts, it is “nature’s way of removing the infection” (!!!).  

When Brooke’s father was here last month he examined Seth and said that he believed he was already deaf in one ear, and would certainly lose the hearing in his other ear if something wasn’t done urgently.  He needs surgery, but that BASIC surgery is not available in our country. 

Our only solution is to take him to South Africa for surgery, but that is a huge challenge.  You see, we have a big problem with child trafficking between South Africa and Swaziland and getting a passport for one of our children is very complicated AND then we have to have the correct government paper work to take him out of the county.  

This week was filled with blessings and breakthroughs, and we found just the right person, who was willing to write just the right letter, that will allow us to get a passport and take Seth to South Africa within the next week or two.

Once we realized that this dream was becoming a reality, Brooke asked if we could take Isaiah too?  Isaiah has had at least 10 ear infections in his short life and he too has a lot of permanent damage and scar tissue.  The good news is that Isaiah already has a passport because he had to go to South Africa when he was a baby because he was near death and needed a myriad of specialists.  (As an aside, they all told us that Isaiah wouldn't live, and we should take him home and put him in hospice.  Today he still struggles with mal-absorption of food, but is doing well and a very happy boy).

So, in the next two weeks we plan to take Seth and Isaiah to South Africa for surgery on their ears.  We anticipate tubes and some reconstructive surgery to be required.

Here’s the challenge.  We have a quote from the surgeon to do each child, and including transportation and two nights hotel rooms for our driver and an Auntie, we are looking at a whopping $2,300 per child!

I don’t know what that would cost in the US or Canada, but I do know that if we lived there we wouldn’t have to leave the country to get the care that is needed for these two children.

Two days ago I put out a request on Facebook to raise funds for four washing machines needed for the Children’s Campus. Within two days we had them all!  Today I find myself asking again, but this time for Seth and Isaiah’s ears, so that they will not go deaf in the months or years to come.

We need a total of $4,600 and we know that HE will provide for HIS children.  Will you be a part of HIS solution?  If yes, please give to our Emergency Medical Fund today.  Thank you.

In the US:  https://heartforafrica.secure.force.com/pmtx/cmpgn__donations?id=701C00000018szo

In Canada:  https://www.heartforafrica.ca/Emergency%20Funds.aspx

Live from Swaziland … I am thankful that I have ears to hear!

Janine

PS – if you didn’t read last week’s blog, we are looking for a Nurse or Nurse Practitioner to come and work alongside Brooke.  Please pass this along to anyone whom you know might be interested - http://janinemaxwell.blogspot.com/2016/03/are-you-or-someone-you-know-thinking.html

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

Four new babies

At last, I am home in Swaziland after burying my dear mom this past Monday.  I did a mid-week post with a Eulogy to her, so if you are interested in knowing about the amazing woman who changed my life’s trajectory when she adopted me then please go to: http://janinemaxwell.blogspot.com/2016/02/dear-mom.html

I am physically and emotionally exhausted.  I have travelled to the US and Canada twice in the past month and have spent 23 of the past 35 days coming or going. Today and tomorrow I will rest and try to remember where I left off with my job over a month ago.

Today’s blog will be short, but it will tell you about four new babies that are either here or that we believe are coming soon.

#1 and #2 – a set of male twins, born May 10, 2015 (and they are our 8th set of twins).  They were named Samson and Samuel by their mother. Their father ran away when he heard the mother was pregnant and then shortly after birth the mother dumped the babies with their Grandmother leaving them to starve in a very rural homestead.  They have been in and out of hospital for malnutrition and finally we were called to help the life-threatening situation.  On Wednesday they were placed at the El Roi Baby home and on Friday we received a call from some neighbors thanking us for helping with the babies. They said that the Grandmother was looking better already as she was now able to eat again because she didn’t have to give all of her food to the babies (“all of her food” was thin porridge made of ground maize – nothing else).

Note the size difference between the twins.

This is Samuel - 10 pounds at 9-months old

This is Samson - 18 pounds at 9-months old

#3 – is a 2-month old whose mother is mentally ill.  The newborn is in danger and the police were to take the mother to the Psychiatric hospital and the baby was to come to us. Unfortunately, the police went on strike this weekend so all plans were put on hold. We are unable to find/receive the baby without the assistance of the police. So we wait, and we pray that this tiny little one is alive on Monday and will come home to us.

#4 – I got a phone call while in Canada from a woman who said that a baby had been dumped and she needed my help.  I directed her to the proper government office for assistance, but she said she had been there and was turned away. I put my Swazi team on the case and have learned that the woman who called is the mother of the 3-month old baby. She was diagnosed with cancer and send to South Africa, where they removed both of her breasts.  I don’t know the order that this all happened in, but she says her baby is starving to death because she can’t breast feed.  We will meet with her on Monday and see if she needs bottles and formulas or if there is more to the story that is causing her to want to give away her newborn baby.

And that’s how it goes here.  No babies for a month and then calls about four of them in 18 hours. 

I will update you on them all next Saturday.

February has been ANGEL month at Heart for Africa and all of our posts have been geared towards getting ALL of the children at the baby home fully funded. This is the last time I will ask for a while, but would you consider becoming a monthly donor today to help support Sampson, Samuel of the other two who may arrive any day?  I thank you for any support you can give.

In the US: https://heartforafrica.secure.force.com/pmtx/cmpgn__donations?id=701C0000000VFWR

In Canada: http://www.heartforafrica.ca/Project%20Canaan%20Children.aspx

Live from Swaziland… I am going back to bed.

Janine

Dear Mom

Today I buried my mom.  My heart hurts and I am exhausted.  I know that there are many emails of condolence waiting to be read.  I am told there are hundreds of kind words on Facebook and I look forward to reading them tomorrow.  But for tonight, I wanted to share a few photos for friends and family who were unable to attend the funeral today, and to share the memorial I wrote to my mom. Spencer read it for me today as I didn't have the courage to do it.  Again, thank you for your prayers- they got me through the last seven day.

Dear Mom,

I always knew that this day would come, but then again, I often wondered if you might just outlive us all. 

Mom, you were the smartest person that I know.  You were a genius, with all the charm and quirkiness that comes with being a genius.  You were always ahead of your time.  You were the only Pharmacist in the 1970’s who was also into holistic Medicine. Your goal was to find a solution to any and all heath issues   

Dad was the perfect partner for you for 50 years, and he was a wonderful father for me.  As I recall he supported most of your crazy ideas, and even admitted that they were good ideas after they were complete.  The only time that I can remember him putting his foot down, for real, was when you wanted to by a hovercraft for the cottage at Watebeag Lake. That was a firm NO, and you were not pleased by his decision, but submitted to his wishes and lived with the remorse of not having had the only hovercraft in Northern Ontario.

I know that you didn’t like to cook at all and felt it was a necessary evil to keep us all alive.  But even in cooking you were ahead of your time. I remember back in the 1960’s you were mixing butter and olive oil to make a healthier spread. You were mixing 2% milk with skim milk to make 1% - 25 years before it was done for grocery stores.

Mom as a toddler and then as a University Graduate.

You might have cooked 90% of our meals in a pressure cooker, because the day slipped away on you and you needed to make dinner in under 10 minutes, but after dinner you would make up for it by serving pastry swans that you had made earlier in the day, complete with fresh lemon curd topped with whip cream. The dessert always made the main course a distance memory. I think my love for cooking may have spawned out of necessity.

After dinner it wouldn’t be unusual for you to go downstairs in to the back of the Drug Store to continue rebuilding the engine of our 1965 Sno-Jet (snowmobile) that you had taken apart at the back of the Pharmacy.   You always loved to see and know how things worked, whether it was mechanically or scientifically.  

Spencer read this memorial and did a wonderful job.

As I look back at my own life I can’t imagine how different it would be if you and Dad hadn’t adopted me in 1963.  You taught me to be strong, courageous and compassionate. You made sure that I had the best formal education, but then also made sure I knew how to do things like attend funerals, speak truth to people in power, or send an anonymous gift to someone in need.  You taught me to do the right thing, even when it required personal sacrifice or when it was not popular.  You taught me who Jesus is and my faith in Him was nurtured by your example. 

There isn’t a week that goes by in Swaziland that I don’t find myself talking about you. With so many babies coming to us from young girls who have been sexually assaulted, resulting in pregnancy I find myself being able to encourage them with my own story. 

It’s easy for me to tell them that my birth mother was 15-years old when she got pregnant. I share that her family was humiliated and didn’t want anyone in the community to know, and so I was given up for adoption right after birth.  When I tell my Swazi friends that total “strangers” became my parents, they are shocked, as that doesn’t happen in their culture.  But there I am, a total stranger, being the one to accept a newborn baby who was dumped in an outdoor pit latrine or outhouse because there was no hospital or government agency to help her in her time of need, like my birth mother had.  

With each and every one of these conversations I can see the hand of God on my life – and it all started with you Mom

It’s funny, I can’t even count the number of times that people would comment and say how much I looked like you, which made us both smile.  Of course there was always an awkward silence when I would say,  “Thank you. That’s interesting since I am adopted.” 

Mom was buried beside Dad.  The headstone at the back on the left has both their names on it.

But adopted or not, there is no doubt that am your daughter.  There is no question that I got my tenacity, my drive, my ambition and my commitment to fight against injustice directly from you.  I remember Kim hosting a birthday party for me many years ago and we all had name tags that said, “Where there’s a Willis, there’s a way.” And ANYONE who knew you mom, knew that if there was a Willis, there WAS a way.

The past six years in the nursing home was like a prison sentence for you - my highly intelligent, defiantly independent mom.  And even though you were unable to move anything other one arm, and your hearing was very bad, you were still able to dial the phone and order product from the Television shopping channel.

This past week the staff at Riverside Glen were fondly remembering the items that had arrived at the front door of the nursing home including:  the total gym, a full set of pots and pans, THREE sets of 50 knives, complete with wooden storage blocks.  Then there was the portable fireplace, the “NoNo” hair removal kit and the monthly delivery of the Victoria Principle beauty regime.  I promise, that is only naming a few.

Last Saturday I got “the call” from Kim and I knew that it was time for me to fly to Canada from Swaziland to say “goodbye” for the last time.  After a 40-hour trip filled with cancelled flight(s), cancelled car rental reservations and lost luggage I was finally able to join Chloe by your side on Tuesday night. I wasn’t sure if you knew we were there, but when I put a cold cloth on your hot head, you opened your eyes, and I knew then that we were together.  Oh, how many times did you sit beside me and put cold cloths on my feverish forehead?  Too many to count.

Nice to have cousins from across the country come and celebrate Mom's life.

Early Friday morning you went to be with the Lord, and I was thankful that you were finally out of pain.  You were no longer trapped in your own body.

Death is a part of life and it is something we will ALL face.  But as I reflect on your life, I can't imagine where my life would be if you and dad hadn’t adopted me, raised me in the knowledge of Christ and encouraged me to follow Him. Because of your example and support, Ian and I now have 107 Swazi babies whom we are legally responsible.  Why? Because we can, and it is the right thing to do.

The circle of life was once again completed this week.

Thank you Mom.  I love you.

Jan

Who was my mother, really?

 

My mom and Dad would have been married for 60 years if he were alive today. They were married on June 10, 1955 and they were each other’s best friends.

In 1963 they decided to adopt a little baby girl – that was me.  My 15-year-old birth mother did not want her newborn child and my biological Grandparents were ashamed by the pregnancy.  That decision to adopt changed the trajectory of my life, and impacted many lives in the years to follow. 

My parents committed their lives to making sure that I was brought up caring with proper manners, a solid education, a good work ethic, that I was aware of the world around me and they hoped that I would have a faith in Jesus Christ, which I do.

My mom was a renaissance woman.  She was one of the first women in Canada to graduate from the University of Toronto with her degree in Pharmacy (which is where she met my dad, a third generation pharmacist). Mom was one of the smartest people I knew, and as I was adopted, it became clear early on that we didn’t share the same gene pool.  Mom was a scientist, a physicist, a researcher, and I wasn’t.  But I could write a story about all of those things.

University of Toronto Pharmacy 1954.

I remember doing a 7^th grade project called, “My Life: Welcome to it”.   I didn’t dream of becoming the 4^th generation of Pharmacist in the Willis family, but rather my fictitious story told of me rescuing a homeless child who was living on the streets of New York.  What?  Where did THAT come from in 7^th grade? 

While there has always been debate about “nature” vs “nuture”, there is no doubt that I got my tenacity, determination and calling to fight against injustice came from my mom.  In fact, Ian often says that when I hear the word “no”, it’s just a “cry for more information.”  I got that from my mom.

She didn’t like to cook at all and would often serve corned beef and cabbage (cooked in a pressure cooker) and supplement that with a can of green peas. But for dessert, oh, she loved dessert and it was not uncommon for her to make handmade pastry swans, complete with fresh lemon curd topped with whip cream. I think my love for cooking may have spawned out of necessity.

The famous dessert.

After dinner she would go downstairs (we lived in an apartment on top of the Drug Store) and would continue to rebuild the engine of our 1965 Snow-Jet (snowmobile) that she had taken apart at the back of the Pharmacy. 

Mom welcomed Ian in to the family in 1991 and was even more welcoming when Spencer and Chloe arrived.  In fact, it was she and Dad that pulled them out of school to play "hookie" and go horseback riding on that fateful day in September 2001 when the planes crashed in to the towers in NYC and our lives were changed forever.

Grandma with Spencer.

Grandpa and Grandma with Chloe

Mom was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis 1991, Dad passed away in 2005 and by 2010 mom was in the Riverside Glen Nursing home in Guelph, with my cousin Kim as her advocate.

The past six years in the nursing home was like a prison sentence to my highly intelligent, defiantly independent mom.  The team at Riverside Glen could not have been more gracious, caring or understanding to her needs and wants, and I give thanks for them all.

On Saturday I got “the call” from my cousin Kim. It was time for me to fly to Canada from Swaziland to say “goodbye” for the last time.  After a 40-hour trip filled with cancelled flight(s), cancelled car rental reservations and lost luggage I was able to join Chloe at my mom’s side on Tuesday night.  Although she was not entirely conscious, she did know who we were and tried her best to smile and acknowledge our presence. 

On Friday, February 19th, 2016 my mom went to be with Jesus.  I have no doubt that there was a huge welcome party when she arrived with my Dad at the front of the line, followed by many loved ones who went on long before her.  What a day of rejoicing that would have been. 

Death is a part of life and it is something we will ALL face.  I can't imagine where my life would be if my mom and dad hadn’t adopted me in 1963, raised me in the knowledge of Christ and encouraged me to follow Him. Because of their example and support we have 107 Swazi babies whom we are legally responsible for because they had mothers who were not able to care for them.  I believe that it was not an accident, but rather it was by design, and I am thankful. 

The circle of life was once again completed this week.

Live from Canada … “Blessed are those who mourn; for they will be comforted.”  Matthew 5:4

Janine