Remembering Uganda

This taxi stand is downtown Kampala. What is so facinating, is that there is a rhyme and reason to the parking and everyone in Kampala understands it.

In the market near the eMi office.



"In your face chicken place" Yep, that's what its called. You don't have to get out of your car....no waiting...and the BBQ'd chicken was done to perfection. Yummy.



Patrick and Jonathon, swimming in the Source of the Nile, at Lake Victoria.

Jackson Hole, WY, eMi Conference

Our 4 staff members from Canada, Steve - the director, Kevin - staff engineer, Patrick - Intern Co-ordinator, and Greg - staff archetect.

The Canadian contingent all wore hockey jerseys and cowboy hats.

eMi staff around the world.....from our 5 offices in Colorado Springs (HO), Guatemala - soon to be moving to Costa Rica, Uganda, India, Canada, and a future office in Jordan.

Our time in Jackson Hole, WY, was spent in workshops learning about disaster responce in the developing world and how eMi can best partner with NGO's like Samaritan's Purse and World Vision to best accelerate the process of re-forming infastructure in countries devastated by disaster.

Animals we saw

Lots and lots of baboons.

Wart hogs......I didn't know that they kneeled down to eat.

Antelope and a water buffalo.

Giraffe....so majestic...they even run in slow motion.

Ugandan Cox

Elephants..incredible

Yes....that a wart hog....in fact a family of them continually wondered the camp. That is not our tent....but even from our little cabin, I could hear them russtling and snorting about in the middle of the night. Afraid to go out at night, oh YES!

"Goin on a lion hunt" Well we did but did not see one that day.

Yep, those nasty crocs got all excited when the boat went by. They stopped their sunning with their mouths wide open to scampering into the water looking for their next meal.

We probably saw over a hundred hippos easily. They were afraid of our BIG boat and moved quite quickly away when we got near.

Momma and baby. Cute

Serving ROTOM in Uganda - reflections

There Patrick is again goofing off again.





Lots of work is accomplished in 1 week .





Engineering staff working hard.



Archecture staff also working hard.

The presentation on Friday night to the Board of ROTOM and friends. That's Steve, eMiC's director, who will speak first on all the drawings completed during the week. Still, there is much work to be accomplished yet and most design professionals will complete the work after they get home. The finished project report will then be sent to ROTOM to being the next phase......construction.

Home Again - with reflections

Remembering our time in Uganda, the beautiful people and the sharing of a vision with ROTOM.

Patrick goofing off with some kids from a local orphanage.

Joan enjoying a moment with the case workers Edith, Sarah, and Admin asst. Elizabeth of ROTOM.

Joan goofing off with her Canada stickers. One Big Family.

Yep....that's a live goat on the back of this bike.

At another orphanage for babies-toddlers.....these little ones were desparate to be picked up and loved.

More Stories from Africa - Fellowshipping with the Seniors

I am going back in time to include more stories from Uganda. These pictures below are the once a week fellowship that ROTOM supports and encourages in its ministry to the elderly. As they gather in small places.....as you can see from the pictures below, they have a time of prayer, weaving baskets to sell at the markets, and lunch is provided which insures at least one really healthy meal. We were greeted by singing and dancing. They were all dressed in their finery and swinging to the beat of a classic African song. The harmonies of their singing is so primal and different than anything I've ever heard. No other word for it but WOW.

















You can see how crowded it was in that little room. Somehow we managed to mostly find a little space to call our own.



















Just before lunch, one of the care workers brought in a wash bowl so that the ladies could wash their hands. The staff of ROTOM show so much compassion and respect for the seniors.

We also did a worship time with Sarah on the guitar. Steve, Jon, Evangeline and I sang songs, then, after having lunch with them, we gave out our gifts brought from Canada. They included lotions, vitamins, latex gloves, shampoos, razors and toothbrushes.

We ended the day with a war with a boa constrictor? NO!!!!! Just a hunk of wood that looked like a big snake. Amongst the seriousness of our work for eMi, there's still time to play and laugh.

In His Service

On the road again

Life is moving along at a breakneck pace. Since my last blog, we have moved into our new home on the Elbow River in Calgary. As quickly as we unpacked our belongings, we were again packing for our trip to Jackson Hole, WY for the World Conference for eMi. To read more about Celebrate Hope Conference :

http://www.emiusa.org/conference2007.html

Pat and I are both taking the disaster responce courses here and the speakers and teachers have been great. We listened to Ken Isaacs of Samaritan's Purse relate his stories of the past 20 years in relief work and of the important things he's learned. We now see how first responders like Samaritan's Purse and World Vision have a role that eMi can fulfill as we come along side these outreach agencies in rebuilding the infastructure of an area hit by disaster.

We ask that you pray for us here, that people be empowered by all that they learn and that God's good works be commissioned through this conference.

In His Grace and Service