Blog

Hello Prayer Folks,

Sorry about the very long gap. My guess is that many of you have been much more steady in your praying for the project than I have been in writing to you about it while I was in the US.

My stay in the US was about twice as long as I planned, mostly because of the situation in Kenya after the December elections. Things now are quiet again and moving back toward normalcy, a very long and tough road, but safety is not at all an issue for me here now. All quiet. Thanks for those of you who prayed for this.

Here are some current things to pray about, and first off to be thankful for:

• We found a twenty foot container which we can get about 25% cheaper than the going rate. A missionary is leaving the country and doesn’t need it anymore. This will provide crucial secure storage for all the stuff we have and what we will have, especially during the upcoming construction phase.

• We are buying an 11 ton truck. A British army vehicle, with four wheel drive. My friend Joel’s truck. It will cost about $11,000.00. Less than our pick up. It will save us more than its price in the construction of the buildings as transport of materials is so very expensive. For example 11 tons of hardcore, a rock material we will use hundreds of loads for road improvement and foundation excavation back-fill for the buildings, costs 400 Kenya shillings (about $4.50) loaded on the truck from the quarry near here and 4500 Kenya shillings about ($72.50) delivered to our property. It is impossible to find used truck of this size in this country, (Joel looked for a year before he found this one five years ago), let alone one that has been meticulously maintained and more than fairly priced. We can, if we like, use it for a year or two and then sell it, in all likelihood, for what we paid for it. This falls into the very, very rare category. A little motorized miracle.

• Fundraising: The past few months have been good. We got $75,000.00 from one donor, a few $10,000.00 gifts and great cooperation and generosity from Presentation and Annunciation parishes and their parishioners. We still have a ways to go, but we made real progress this go round.

Things to pray for:

• Mildred, Gilbert’s wife is pregnant, but has had to go back to her homeland, upcountry, and is in hospital there because of some complications. It looks like things will be ok, hopefully. Being in hospital in a rural area like the one where Mildred is from is quite different from we might envision. It might be more accurate to think of being in a library with a nurses aid.

• Figuring out the specifics of rainwater collection and storage: a fairly complicated affair.
• The continuing revision of the building plans. We got an enormous amount of invaluable help from a wonderful architect in Stockton, without any fee.

• For me finding time to do everything that needs doing here, and some wisdom to make the right choices on the million things that require them

Okay for now. Lots more to come. But enough for now. Thank you for your loving, prayerful support. The real brick and mortar of the project.

David