Saturday, December 28, 2013

Faith and mango season

Its mango season and EVERYONE loves mangos! They are bright, refreshing, so sweet and plentiful, and we don't at all mind getting sticky and orange!

Mango's are another one of God's unique creations. In the midst of the driest of driest times these sweet, juicy fruits daily grow bigger and bigger!

The rainy season just "tips" them off during their final ripening.

Faith's aunty was to come about 2 days ago to discuss discharge plans. She couldn't come.....Faith is delightful. She loves to show off - squeeling and screaming and bouncing up and down and even dancing. She is walking quite well nowadays - about 10 steps and then thump down to the ground on her well padded behind!

Christmas at Kasensa

A very merry Green Christmas from all of us at Kasensa! 
Sue, Shelly, Cleny, Lillian, Lucas, Richard, Kellon, Vigness and the others who weren't around for the photo: Mandelina, Theresa, Nelia, Jackson and Jackson! 

Babies - Fanwell, Emma and Faith 

For the next few weeks we'll have Tiffany and Layne here. While doing at least one home visit (Cornolius) and spending time with Simakakata folks, and a few other things we'll also "chill" a bit. Chilling in this context means taking a bit of down time - not cooling down! 

Thanks for appreciating the work and for sponsoring the babies and the costs to get them back to family as soon as possible. 


2013 UNZA graduates sponsored by ZMF-C

Carlos Muleya, Osco Moondooma and Dawyn Chendela all graduated last week from the University of Zambia. Osco and Dawyn are now Social Workers and Carlos's area of study is demographics and economics.

Thanks donors for sponsoring these guys, some since these guys were in high school.

They are grateful - and they have worked hard. Besides handling their academic loads they've they've had to do this in the very foreign culture of city and university. Not an easy task for a village kid where life for them is very basic: no running water, no electricity, polygamy family - many, many kids, very little spoken english, very little books and other "stuffs" needed to be on a level playing field with the other academics at the university.

So, good on them, good on you and thank you God for blessing donors and hard-working, focused "kids".

Monday, December 16, 2013

Lukas drawing on new sign post

We are making 3 sign posts. We give pretty clear directions, so we think, but inevitably folks end up at some other gate somewhere...and they're mostly all gated by blue gates. "I'm at the blue gate" they'll say...."where are you, I can't see your house!"

Richard, Lucas and Jackson Munyati have all been drawing, measuring, painting....and the verandah smells nicely of oil paint.

Should be finished by next week. The guys are also welding together frames and poles/stakes so the signs can be pushed into the ground.

Tiffany and Layne are bringing reflective tape to put along the outside borders.

Lucas is our new sponsored GAP student. Kellon is the other. That will be another blog!

Conceptor and her granny

Every 3rd monday of the month is Milk Day. This granny had apparently met me while her daughter, mother of Conceptor, was dying at Kalomo Hospital. Conceptor is the 5th child, dad is caring for the other 4 children and the grandparents are caring for the wee one. She is a sweet little baby girl - now 6 1/2 months.

Conceptor uses the milk formula and has started on solid foods now with her two new teeth!

The Kalomo District is quite large so travel for granny and baby started last night at 22 hrs. And this is the rainy season!

Granny and I discovered we were age mates - a few months apart. But there are a LOT of differences - she bore 9 children, and has lost one. She has about 30 grandchildren - we have 4!

We are kindred spirits. I'll see her again in February - I won't have her travel that distance with the baby in January. I know now how rough those roads are and with a few more months of rain, they could be nasty!




Now, this is rain!


















It rained today! So far this rainy season there has been about 140
mm. Last year, at Christmas time, I'm told there was above 400 mm! So....as of today, we're at 195 mm! God is good! The cows are happy!

Today was milk day - so I gave 3 of the mom's/grannies a ride to the tarmac in the big truck - and then they huddled in at someone's house until the rain subsided.


And while we waited for some of the rain to clear, the kids played, the babies slept, some ate mangoes!

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Collecting termites, measuring snake

After the first decent rain, the termites appear then the kids come with their collecting vessels! Only the bodies are eaten, not the wings. 

A variety of snakes are found on this farm. This curled up dead guy was killed and then thrown into valhalla (the woodburning boiler!). 

While the sponsored students were cleaning up leaves from the yard a puff adder was disturbed  ....he/she got the same treatment. 


God's interesting creatures

Dung beetle and Locust

Can't beat the colours or the jobs that some creatures get to do! 

Grab a hot coffee! Thank you donors.

Dear donors – you are all appreciated for the work you are doing! You are part of this new transforming experience for these babies and their families. Please take the time to read about what is happening now at Kasensa. You are part of something that is making a big difference – a difference that will bring long term change for the child and for some of the government systems in this country.
Please bear with me ~ as it’s difficult to describe transformation in a few short words! Grab a coffee, sit down….take time…please. This is God’s work and you are part of it!
Over the past few years ZMF-C Board members and those working “on the ground” have been soaking in information related to best practices in orphan care for developing countries. Through reading books such as “Walking with the Poor” by Bryant Myers our thinking on how to work in this country of extreme poverty has been transformed. As well, a few of us Board members have immersed ourselves in studying what best care is for baby. Best care is not just a clean, dry nappy. Best care is …..baby with family as soon as it is safe to do so!  
As a faith based organization we recognize the causes of poverty are very complex and so nowadays our approach is to respond by “Helping without Hurting”. (look that one up!) We are seeking to respond to issues with a longer term view and knowing that often answers can be found with the people themselves.
Therefore, infant care at Kasensa has been transformed over the past few years.  Each child that comes to us represents a family, a church and a community.
In the past at Kasensa it was common to have approximately 20 infants who stayed until age 2, separated from family way too long. With a focus on “God places the lonely in families” over the past 2 years the average length of stay has been reduced to 9.8 months. And home visits reveal that the children who have returned to be with family are doing just fine!
Just fine in terms of love and affection, but challenged by extreme poverty of this developing nation. They are not returning to live in cushy homes or neighborhoods like our own children. None of the families have running water, electricity, flush toilets, and sometimes no toilets at all, just the bush. Some of them scour the scrubby grass picking “delelele” – looks like a weed to me, but it becomes the vegetable of the day. Many will be challenged this year to find fertilizer for their maize that is being planted now and they will be very challenged to be able to pay for the cost of education when that hurdle comes along.
Currently, at Kasensa we have 3 infants – Emmah, Fanwell and Faith. 3 infants = 3 families!
On most Wednesdays and Fridays you’ll find us out in the village – visiting the families of those mentioned and also doing home visits of babies who have been released from Kasensa since 2011. Sitting with the family in the midst of their household of home grown brick and weathered thatch structures quickly reveals the strengths and needs of the families and gives us opportunity to assess how the family is coping with the child. For those babies who’ve not yet returned home, we assess readiness of the family and what other resources the family might be able to connect with.
In every culture there are families who do not cope well. In a country with extreme poverty, parental poor coping translates to malnutrition, no or very little education and possible neglect and abuse.
On other days I provide hands on guidance to the staff here and also educate using the child care course I’ve developed that is on power point. Last week we covered brain development and how play and nurturing contribute to that and this week we’re on to  health and safety for baby care, developmental milestones, as well as learning about the  Zambian’s government standards for child care facilities and even some of the best practice for orphan care information.
As well, weekly Richard and I try to connect with other NGO’s who are working in Southern Province. So far, we’ve visited 4 orphan homes and spoken with several other community based NGO’s. The goal is to learn what these folks are doing so that we can be known and so that we can know the resources that are out there in order to connect “our families” to. As well, it often gives us opportunity to share some of the good information on best practices for orphan care.
By the time you’ve read this far you must be wondering why social services isn’t doing this stuff. This is a developing nation….which means under-resourced – financially, human resources and in other ways that you can’t imagine. In this area, we also are attempting to help without hurting.
We have made it our role to also liaison with Social Services, to develop and keep a positive working relationship. Strides are being made in this area – such as now we are working together along with another orphan home in the area to comply with the Zambia Government Minimum Standards for Child Care Facilities on some of the paramount items: admission process, case planning and discharge planning.
The milk program continues to provide formula for up to a dozen babies.
The number tends to flux between six and twelve each month, and most mothers
are HIV positive. The World Health Organization recommends breast feeding
even when a mother is HIV positive, however, sometimes a mother’s health
begins to be compromised from nursing her baby, and sometimes the baby’s
health is compromised. When these situations arise, formula can make a
world of difference.
With this program as well, we don’t just give out cans of milk. Much time is spent in counsel and we’ve just started doing home visits to these ones! Strengthening families is our goal!

So…keep up the good work and I hope and pray that this has inspired you perhaps to go on your own journey of learning  how to best “help” those who are materially poor.


United Nations Convention on Children's rights

Osco, the ZMF-C sponsored Social Worker who lives with us has been guiding the grade 6 and 8 pupils at Siabalubi and Nalabumba schools. He engages with them about sex ed and also about various topics related to hopefully learning how to make good choices.

We're using the "Auntie Stella" package donated to us by Salon Foundation. (Auntie Stella can be found on the internet) The approach is all about very frank discussion on what to do when.....various subjects mostly about sexual health.

As well, we've done a few sessions on Children's rights. The right to education, the right to health, the right to live with your parents, the right not be abused.....

We use a very participative approach - with fairly decent participation.

These are kids....one day.....I was asking a pupil to find a date on what I thought was a cell phone that he had in his pocket. It turned out to be a dead bird in the pocket, instead. He'd been hunting, and it was to be eaten for his supper!

Seed and Fertilizer program for orphans and vulnerables


For the past several years our church family in Regina has enjoyed a potluck delicious "souper supper" of homemade soups while contributing to the seed and fertilizer program in Southern Province, Zambia.

Mrs. Mbumwae oversees the program. Several church leaders from around Kalomo gather to hear reports of the past year's activity and to listen to encouragements of how many congregations are helping the orphans and vulnerables with the seed and fertilizer. 

Churches are to pitch in funds to add to the share of seed and fertilizer that they get and the whole congregration is to join in with the planting, weeding and harvesting. 

This is an excellent way to help others! 

I encouraged the attendees to study the 40+ scriptures about orphans and widows and to feel convicted about what our role is regarding the less fortunate! 

Play time

This play mat came over in a container a few years ago. This is where tummy time and singing and other fun stuff occurs! Even sommersaults! \

Rose and Madelina with Faith (at the back) and Fanwell and Emmah - both now almost 6 months old. 

Sister Macleena

We met Sister Macleena whilst in the Canter truck in Choma. The Canter is the only vehicle that has signage indicating Zambia Mission Fund - Canada and its projects.

"You do orphan care?" she asked. "So do we" and with that we set up a time where we could visit further.

She is a fireball. She is on a sabbatical leave from her nun position because she has two "vulnerables" that she cares for. She is a government high school teacher so is self-supporting. She has built herself a nice house and as well she co-ordinates much of the activity of OVO, a NGO jointly launched by herself and an Irish Catholic priest in Mazabuka. They have strategized a community care model of orphan care finding community volunteers "caregivers" to oversee the mostly rural projects. They pay for school fees, feed and provide counsel. Sister Macleena is involved in training, guiding and oversight of the caregivers - besides her teaching job, building the house and caring for the kids in her care!

At least about 3 - 4 times a month we meet up with another NGO and spend time inquiring about what they are doing, why they are doing it, where funding comes from and how ZMF-C might possibly be able to connct the families of our released babies to their services, if its needed.

We'll be meeting up again with Macleena to share more information and we'll arrange to see the priest as we travel through Mazabuka next week.


Follow up home visit to Mikey's family in Choma

Mikey is now a big boy! He lives with his dad, Samba and siblings in Shampande compound in Choma.

Mikey is blessed! His dad is a wise man. Mikey's mom died just after delivering Mikey and his twin brother. Mikey's dad looked after the siblings while Mikey was at Kasensa for 14 months. When Mikey ret'd  home dad found help to care for Mikey while Samba worked at some "piece work".

Samba is a trained driver and has decided since he no longer has a wife that he'll not take jobs that take him out of country. He needs to be at home for his children. His daughter recently finished grade 7 and she has maintained being in the top of her class for many years.

As well, she's responsible for most of the cooking nowadays and other chores!

Samba has also decided not to remarry as he knows the wife will not be loyal to his children. He wants them to grow up secure in his love.

Mikey is very bright, but his speech is poor. We consulted some special ed teachers at St. Mulumba school close by and they've advised that Samba contact UTH for Mikey to get a full investigation.

We shall follow!


Follow up home visit to Chipo and Chabota's family

On November 27 we visited twins Chipo and Chabota. They went home to be with their father and his new wife on June 17 - at age 16 months.

The twins have adjusted and bonded well with their new mom - but since she is their mother's aunty, she really wasn't new at all and because she's a blood relative she is genuinely caring.

Looking closely, you can see that neither twin is too happy. That can happen when you've been wakened from a nice afternoon nap to see two very strange makuwa faces! They were clinging closely to their parents! The other lady in the picture is the other sister to the twin's deceased mother. The little boy is Chipo and Chabota's 3 year old brother.

We found the twins sleepy, but dressed to the nines in their matching recently purchased by family, frilly dresses. The household is typical rural - grass thatched home-made brick small sleeping structure, open kitchen, skinny dogs, chickens running around, no electricity, no running water. The dad, Henry does "piece work" by laying brick sometimes and he grows maize. Many family members live nearby.

While there we were treated very graciously and hospitably. Henry's brother arrived with a small roughly made table and samp was served!

Just less than 1 km. away is Macha Hospital with a nursing school, almost the best mosquito research in southern Africa, an airstrip for emergency medical use, and one of the best computer systems around. But...for these guys - they have little work and no conveniences. Systems are just not working so well, are they?

What they have for their family is genuine love and care. And...they have better access to medical help than any of the other babies that have been recently released. They also have good family values and are closely connected to their church.

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