This morning we had breakfast yet again at the Heart House and it was delicious. Our day was going to be a busy one so we had to stock up on some good calories. Today was the day we were to get as much done at the FOCUS center as possible. We loaded up the bus and headed out to the center.
When we arrived, the kids were all at school so there wasn't a super big reception like the past couple of days. The preschoolers were there because they are there every day. FOCUS provides preschool to all the kids and then the kids go to elementary school for free as apart of their education system. After elementary, the kids then go to high school and they must pay for it, so Project Lucas and FOCUS pay for a portion of their fees. When the elementary kids are at school, they don't show up at FOCUS until 4 or 4:30pm so we only get to see them for about an hour.
After we got off the bus, we started jumping on the projects that we knew needed to be done. We are working on a lot of different projects at FOCUS. Part of us are framing walls in what will be their new cafeteria room; others are repainting the two classrooms, repainting the entry gate, rebuilding the stairs to get to the workers office, weeding the new garden planted by Debbie Johannes, and finishing a new gutter system. There is a lot to do in other words. We had about 5 teams spread out over the building to start these projects. My team was working on finishing up the framing of the new cafeteria and it was an experience. FOCUS hired what they call a "Fundi" which is a craftsman or jack-of-all-trades. He didn't speak much English and neither did his helper. It was fun trying to interpret and to know whether they were laughing at my hammering skills or cutting skills. By the end of the day, we were done with the framing and the wall and we had just started painting it as well. The other teams had made a lot of progress as well on their projects. The stairs were coming along great, the rooms had been painted, and the garden/landscaping were done...for the most part!
We worked for about 2-2.5 hours and then gathered to eat lunch. After eating lunch, we got the call to go to something new this year that none of had ever done. We loaded the bus and headed there very quickly! You're probably wondering what I am talking about...well prepare yourself for an awesome story. There is a boy named Jolly (well, he's been called that for years but now that he is going into middle school, he wants to be called John). He has been playing soccer for a very long time and had been chosen in his school as one of the top four soccer, or futbol, players. Since he was chosen to be on this team, he had a game TODAY and were on our way to see him play. He is a very quite and shy boy at heart so this was really awesome for him. Scott had told us that this, in fact, might be one of the most memorable moments in his life. Think about it this way...if a little boy is playing futbol on the field and 31 Mzungos (white people) come see you. This never happens. This would be so awesome for you to experience and it was for John. He thanked Scott after the game and said it was so great to have us there. For me, I have seen John grow up over the past 6 years and to be able to see him play soccer and be so excited was such an encouraging moment! John has been through a lot in the past 2 years including the loss of his sister and his mother going to prison for a stint. And now, we got to be a blessing to him just by showing up and cheering for him. They won by the way with a score of 3-0.
The sad thing was that John experienced an injury while we were watching him play. He went to bicycle kick the ball and landed weird on his arm. He was favoring it the whole game but finished playing. When he got back to FOCUS, we investigated a little bit to find out what was wrong. By God's hand, we have 2 medical professionals here with us. They found out that he had broken his arm in two places. He went to the hospital very shortly after that. This was a God thing because we happened to be here during his injury. Scott said that if we weren't here, John probably would have just excused the pain and not told anyone so that he didn't bother them. Plus, he wouldn't have had the money to go to the hospital anyway. The good news is, he's in a cast and will hopefully recover very nicely!
After all of this, we got back to work and finished out the day. Some of the kids started coming in from school so we got to hang out with them. I hadn't seen Mallory and I's sponsor child yet this trip and today was the first day we got to hang out. If there is one thing that I would encourage all Project Lucas sponsors to do, it's to come on one of these trips and meet your child. We have been Yvonne's sponsors for over 2 years now and it is such an incredible blessing to be able to see her and hang out with her. I got to play and hang out with her for the last hour of the day! She is so precious and sweet. She is shy but she has become a little less apprehensive than she was 2 years ago. We took like 100 pictures because I gave her my camera to play with. It's so awesome to know that my wife and I sponsor this little, precious girl and she is taken care of. She melts my heart and makes me want to pack her away in my suitcase and carry her home! All the kids do this!All in all, today was an incredible day of ups and downs emotionally for me! Someone who has been coming to Kenya for the past 6 years. It was such a joy and also such a blessing to see what and why we invest in Project Lucas as a ministry and as a church. This organization is all about meeting the needs of the 59 kids in their program and investing in their lives and the community year after year. You can see how the involvement over time has made a difference and is making a difference in this area!
Our team is doing very well. Just an update for everyone back home as well, we are all safe and healthy. There haven't been any medical issues except for some scrapes, cuts, and minor sun reactions/burns. It's been a great trip and it's been safe so keep praying that it will continue as we move through the next week and then return home! We love we all and can't wait to get home and share all our stories with you!
Kwaheri (that means goodbye)!
I love you with all my heart, mind, strength, and soul Mallory Lee Barker!!
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