The women have begun to help the elderly weed and care for their Maize.
In this are two very positive steps; 1. The women are learning to make decisions this is not part of their upbringing; 2. they are taking steps to care for a larger circle of need in the village, together these two are very encouraging
I am sorry for the delay in an update on the village, leadership and the issues of life in Rionchogu. This is not because of any lack of activity or challenges facing the day to day life there. Rather a result of changes and opportunities directly related to the face of Go and Do Likewise and the variety of challenges of sharing the news and presenting to heart of who we are. We have redefined our purpose and have adopted a new mission Statement which is much more focused on today and the work in Kenya.
We spent much of the past two months in an attempt to redesign our Web presence. Our hope was to engage people visually and replace some of the text and difficulty of use. While we have a new look a recent effort to fine tune our focus has brought us to a new place of web focus, so look for more change. All this to say it all takes time and focus, the partial cost has been to put off new updates, for that I am truly sorry.
Village life has been greatly affected over the past few months by the election of a representative. Much like our House of Representatives, each local district elects a person to participate in the Government process to move forward and frankly this elected position carries with it the opportunity to raise monies, supporters and political clout. So not unlike our elections, however maybe not as sophisticated, the process can be fraught with conflict. While this is a good thing and a positive process there are still those who take advantage of times of election to attempt intimidation and extortion. During the recent election these practices were used on the leadership in Rionchogu through attempts to take from them some of the blessing that has come. Particularly the vehicle, Edward, Kiefa and their families were threatened and in danger, including threats on life itself, but the constant efforts of the leadership and others protected everyone and everything affecting the village and now life is back to normal.
I share this all with you because sometimes I think we take for granted that daily life of the rural poor is simply to find food. This is in fact true but so much more as well. The purpose of my updates is to attempt to share what life is like and frankly to create a greater awareness and willingness to become partners with us in this effort. What we are doing in Kenya is assisting local leadership in their efforts to bring transformation to this area. As I have shared the main channels of this assistance have been connected with Education, Health and Economic opportunity. Opportunities have presented themselves and we have tried to be responsible to this people and purpose. Opportunities continue to be presented our response depends on our commitment to step forward and your support.
Some of you have made the determination to support what is happening financially, I could never find the words to tell you how much your support means. Simple without it, there is no new future for many in the village area.
Education brings light to a community, a generation and to a people; for education to be accessed, light for reading and studying is a huge advantage. In a rural poor environment where electricity is available to very, very few and is so very expensive, light to read by after the Sun goes down has been provided by kerosene, not only is it poor light and un-healthy light but also consumes a large part of their family budget. The opportunities for the village opened by this new partnership are almost unlimited they affect the area of education, health, improve the family economy and are environmentally friendly.
The special request for prayer support from the village is for the primary students who are about to take the national test for secondary school admittance. They are currently studying specifically for the test and will begin the testing on November 5th. We hope for them peace during the testing process, rest before and during and for clear minds as they go through the process.
Pray for all of us, for the village and for those who are called to come with us. If you have been thinking about getting involved in something that will change lives and find some sense of common identity or purpose, take the big step to join our support network.
Support Go and Do Likewise – Acceptiva is a secure site and the easiest way to get funds to us.
You can also send checks to; Go and Do Likewise, 10408 La Cebra Ave, Fountain Valley, CA. 92708