Good Byes are hard

Hello All,
School is finally out!!  The kids finished up on Thurs and I finished work on Friday and Jim just has one more meeting on Monday morning and we will head home on Monday afternoon.  We are so ready to have a break and hopefully rest for a bit.  We are so grateful for the work here and the feeling that God has put us here for a reason.  He has provided so much!  Today was graduation at RVA and we saw a man that works up in Samburu.  He knows us a bit and was so kind to compliment what we are doing.  His comment was that the work we are trying to do is difficult at best in America or Europe, but here it is so much more then that!  He said he would continue to pray for us!

We went to dinner last Saturday night at a friend's house.  This is a special friend who we helped build a house for last year when she was being funded by a church in Pennsylvania.  There was another couple here that was instrumental in connecting her with those supporters.  She continues to be so grateful.  She is overwhelmed with the fact that there are people in the world who don't know her but want to help her and changed her life!  She now has a home and takes in many people and children with needs.

Three boys looking like trouble!

 

Me, Njoki and Trevor

She and the girls made a wonderful dinner!

Me and Njoki

 

Beautiful sky at her place

More trouble!

 

We also saw our friend Patrick Graduate last week.  I mentioned him in last week's blog.  Here are just a few more pictures.

 

Patrick is on the left

Getting his diploma

 

Good byes are always hard.  We have lived with those for many years.  This year sees many friends parting ways for who knows how long.  We have made more friendships here and have grown our Christmas list for sure!  We had to say goodbye to our dog of a year - Pepper.  She is a great dog and we will miss her.  She has reunited with her family that has been gone for almost 2 years!  They were so happy to see her.

We will miss you Pep Pep.





Last Monday, the school had the yearly awards ceremony.  Trevor was inducted into the National Honor Society.  He also got the highest honor in his Current World Issues class.  We are very proud of him and not sure where he gets his smarts!

Inductees for the NHS

 

Timothy had Sixth Grade graduation this past week.  They honor the 6th graders as they pass from elementary school to Junior High.  It was a great celebration as well as a concert band performance. 

 

He is doing so well on the French Horn.

Timothy is on the far left in the light green shirt.

 

Timothy getting his diploma

 

Timothy with his diploma

 

 

The RVA graduation ceremony was this morning.  It was a wonderful event!  I don't know how I am going to get through it next year when Trevor is graduating without a pocket full of tissues!  This afternoon it is so quiet up at the school.  Everyone is packing and heading out.  People sometimes leave the night of grad or wait a few days so that they can think and pack a few things.  We are very glad we have tomorrow and Monday morning to get things together as things have been crazy up till now.

As we get ready to go, our Kenyan friends all know it and want to come by to "talk."  This mostly means that they have troubles and need help (usually in the form of money).  I have 6 (as of now) people that want to come and see me!  It is very difficult.  We want to help and most of the needs are very valid.  But, we don't always want to just give money.  The book "When Helping Hurts" is a great walk through why money is not always the solution.  Just stopping what we are doing to listen to their stories is hard because it really breaks up the day, but it is the best way to be sympathetic and to do whatever we can.  When you live on about $4 a day, life can be very challenging.

Jim has one last meeting on Monday morning.  He agreed to do it because it is something we have been working towards for the last 2 years.  The treasurer of the Board of AIC wants a presentation about the septic system.  He put together a 1/2 hour presentation that will hopefully get him all the information he needs to understand what it will cost and the scope of it all.  We really need someone to get the message and move forward on the project or Bethany Kids may not be able to open next year.  Please pray for that one!

Here are some lyrics that we sang today (not sure the author):


Give me one pure and holy passion
Give me one magnificent obsession
Give me one glorious ambition for my life
To know and follow hard after You

These are to the song One Pure and Holy Passion.  That is the hope I have for all of us!

Thank you all and hope we get to see some of you as we travel home.

In His Hands,
Jullie T.

Here is a picture I should not show.  It is something we can do here in Africa (one of the perks)!

The kids riding on top of the car!