September 6, 2005
Embangweni #29
Dear Friends and Family,
We have been hearing news of the huge catastrophe in New Orleans
and of the problems in coping with it. And we also have heard
about the stampede on the bridge in Iraq and the loss of life
there. These, along with the tsunami disasters, have been so huge
as to be unimaginable. It makes our problems here at Embangweni
seem small in comparison.
This week has been quite sad here at the hospital. The hospital
staff is a close-knit group. Everyone knows everyone, and everyone
knows everyone’s family in most cases. When there is a death
in the hospital “family” it is mourned by all. Last
week we had five deaths in one week. The last two were particularly
close to us, and we have felt the grief for their families. For
those of you who have been to Embangweni, the latest funeral was
for our electrician, Mr. Kennedy Mkandawiri, who has been ill
for a while. He leaves a wife and six children, the youngest of
which is 6 years old. They live inside the hospital compound in
the small house that you pass when coming in the gate towards
the hospital. Little Kennedy Junior is the one that we called
the little guy with the big name and have enjoyed watching him
play with little Henry Soko Junior who lives next door to him.
I had a long talk with Mrs. Mkandawiri, who is very concerned
for the future of her family. She has no way of earning money
and will be eventually moving back to her home in Rumphi. A friend
from Leesburg Presbyterian in the United States has sent some
assistance funds, which we will use to help her with fertilizer,
and she is so relieved. She will be able to raise the next crop
of maize for her family for next year.
The good news is that the AIDS clinic is growing rapidly. We
now have 60 patients and about six more coming on board each week.
Already the staff are feeling stressed with the increase in numbers,
but it is so gratifying to watch people gain weight and improve
their health as they realize that they may not die soon after
all. The building is beginning: they’re moving the laundry
and preparing the ground. I feel like Moses, only being able to
glimpse the promised land but not able to go there. We plan to
come back for the dedication of the building. Funding is still
needed to complete the building, but there is plenty to start
it now.
Bill and I are preparing for our two months separation as I leave
next week for the United States and Bill stays on for two more
months. We have planned for his needs and packed much of our things
either to send home or to give to others here. There is a storage
room of “missionary things” that we will contribute
to when Bill leaves. Martha
Sommers (next door neighbor) has been given a list of things
to remind him about and things to watch out for. Andrew at TKRB’s
restaurant has been given a notebook of Bill’s favorite
recipes for suppers. He still needs jokes for the joke a day that
Martha always asks him for.
Bill is really enjoying the class he is teaching on basic electronics
and computer maintenance and repair. The class meets from 5:00
to 7:00 every evening, and the students are representing all the
institutions on the station—some very able, interested,
and motivated people.
Bill went to a meeting of the heads of the grain projects in
the area and found that they are progressing well in buying up
maize with the funds that many of you have sent. They have all
designated storage space and people to manage the grain. It is
being handled through the Loudon Presbytery with pastors providing
the leadership. The price is going up as sellers realize that
they are buying, but they are still finding maize to buy at a
reasonable price.
Well, for the first time since we came here, there was no chapel!
Yesterday morning when we walked to chapel (10 minutes late) we
found that half of the chapel benches were set up outside the
Mkandawiri house with people already there for condolences. When
we got to the chapel, there were only a couple of people there
and no one to lead a service so one of the ward maids, Pacharo
Mumba, got up and led the small group in prayer and singing. I
later joined the condolence oine around the house, and then went
to the clinic to staff it so that everyone else could go to the
funeral. One of our nurses, Mercy Ngwira, lost her husband yesterday
also, so a large group of people had gone by ambulance to her
home village for that funeral. There was only a skeleton staff,
no ambulances, and only one vehicle left behind for emergency
patient transport. A very strange and sad day indeed!
On a brighter note, we have greatly enjoyed and hugely benefited
from visits by two large and very active groups, one from Lynchburg,
Virginia, and one from Monacacy Valley Church in Maryland. The
Lynchburg group—many were veterans of previous visits to
Embangweni—undertook a tremendous project at Robert Laws
Secondary School rehabilitating two of the boys dormitory buildings
that had fallen into such a dilapidated state of disrepair that
the boys were virtually camping out in the shell of building without
doors, windows, electricity, plumbing or even beds! The group
convened every afternoon (after mornings of teaching in the schools
and visitation in the hospital) with brushes, hammers, and saws
in hand, and worked alongside students and teachers to re-electrify,
paint, refurbish lockers and cabinets, replace window glass, repair
doors, etc. For those of you whose churches participate in “Christmas
in April” or other similar programs, like Habitat, this
was a model “international Christmas in April” program
that others might think of emulating in future mission visits.
In addition (among other projects too numerous to list in complete
detail), they initiated a very innovative business training class
for budding young entrepreneurs at Robert Laws Secondary School
and have upgraded and improved our ham radio-based email system
to the everlasting gratitude of everyone here at Embangweni who
has felt so isolated for so many years!
By contrast, the group from Monacacy were visiting Embangweni
for the first time and we had great fun exposing them not only
to work in the mobile clinics, hospital wards and HIV/AIDS/ARV
clinic, but also to extensive choir work and rigorous teaching
schedules (computer, science, and English classes) in both local
secondary schools as well as Mr. Jere’s award-winning Loudon
Full Primary School. Yes, that’s right—recognized
as the best primary school in northern Malawi! This group also
provided key assistance in extending the hospital’s computer
network to include the guesthouse, the station office, and the
primary school.
The other great modern technical advance that has come recently
to Embangweni is reliable telephone service. For those who may
have an urgent message, requiring an international telephone call
rather than email, here are a few numbers. After dialing whatever
you dial for access to an overseas line, the Malawi country code
is 265, which should be followed by a 1. Then the next three digits
apply to all Embangweni numbers: 348. Following that, some of
our numbers are as follows: hospital 709 or 744, Station Office
752, Guest House 700, Rules 783, Dr. Martha Sommers 785, Loudon
Projects 702, Primary School 750, Deaf School 740, Robert Laws710.
As we prepare for our departure(s), we would like, once again,
to thank all of you for your support of us with your prayers,
your letters, email, and donations to the projects here. We are
looking forward to seeing many of you soon.
God bless you all,
Beth and Bill
The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p.
337
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