Happy Birthday Mom!

Hello All,

Happy Birthday Mom!! We sure love you!  Hopefully you were surprised by the "visitors" you had last night.  Wish we could have been there, but skyping in was definitely a cheaper option!

We have had a very busy week.  We got to go on a "field trip" last week to see some things in Nairobi.  We saw an interlocking brick making machine.  It uses local soil and a bit of cement and you compact it to make bricks.  Not sure if we will use that option for one of our new buildings or not.  But it was interesting.  We also went to a place where their septic system was a wet lands design.  Here are some pictures to the right.  It uses plants and a terraced system to treat the effluent.  Again, not sure if we can incorporate something like that here, but it is worth looking at.

We had a very interesting discussion at our last bible study.  One of the care givers at the hospital brought up an issue that they deal with everyday.  It concerns babies born with spinabifida and other crippling issues.  When this happens sometimes the families will disown the woman.  This is because of the bills and what it will do to the community.  Africans will help each other in paying big bills like this.  So, they will often have a Hambaree, which is like a fund raising gathering.  All of the surrounding neighbors and community will come and give money for the cause.  Sometimes because the need is ongoing, with the crippled children, this will bankrupt a whole community.  All for a child that will have a limited existence.  This is not an easy issue.  When you look at the ramifications, when it comes to resuscitating a child in this condition, these nurses and care givers face huge moral dilemmas.  Not sure if there is an answer here.  Just please pray for those who are in that position and for the mothers that are involved.

Here are some pictures of the kids that I was saving till after Mom got her's for her birthday:

In His Hands,

Jullie T.