Comido, elephants, the Nest and stuff

At Comido school, after driving for 2 hrs and 45 minutes, we walked in about a mile into the Kwanjenga slum. We got there just in time to pass out gifts to the students who excelled this year, be blessed by some dancing and then watch them get dismissed. It was a bit of a let down. We did get to see the finished well and try some of the water (no one got sick!!!!!) They sell the water at a discounted rate (3Ksh compared to 5 or 6 much farther away). They average about 300 customers a morning. After paying a local lady to man the kiosk, the remainder of the money goes to pay for kitchen needs, which frees up money for the school and paying a librarian. Pastor James says that the community is so  appreciative for the well and the clean water. It has also helped their standing in with the local people. After such an ordeal to get it up and running, it was very rewarding to see the fruit of Lighthouse’s faithfulness and contribution to the Kingdom.

 Erika enjoying a clean glass of water

 Derek and Jesse sharing a glass of clean water

 The girls drinking and waiting...for clean water

 A picture of the team at Comido on the stairs of a building they no longer use

 Not sure how Erika always gets these super cute little ones to come and sit on her lap...oh I know, cuz super cute attracts super cute. 

 Here are the students waving their hands and getting ready to clap for a fellow classmate. This was the crowd we sat in front of. 

The Nest orphanage…is for people and the elephant orphanage is for baby elephants. The elephant orphanage is not the name of an orphanage for little babies. But scheduling them in the same day seemed to create a bit of confusion. We’ll chalk it up to jet lag.

Oh yeah! A soccer playing elephant. It doesn't get any better than that. Also, notice the view Dan? 

We spent the afternoon at the Nest and played with some familiar children. We sang songs, they performed for us and they loved our ‘lonely zebra skit’. Afterwards we helped them make the animal craft which they just as quickly took apart. It was fun anyway. One of our team shared that the thought of them not having parents and growing up not knowing them was difficult. I think it is true. We talk about orphans, almost nonchalantly these days, as if it is no big deal. But to think of not knowing the love of your parents and the security they can provide. Never growing up with their hugs and kisses or them telling you that they love you. We talked about the church being our family and God being our father, but the fact still remains that for some of these little ones, they will grow up never having known the love of their earthly family. Thank God for the work that these Followers of Jesus are doing to love those that are alone and provide them with a ‘family’ that cares for them.

Dan...I told Joshua you said hi and that you miss him. He is doing really well and was happy to see the team again. 

I guess I’ll mention the shopping day too…my least favorite part. Dan I miss you, for many reasons, but on this day because I didn’t have anyone to sit with. Here I am...in our spot.