Mission Wide Baptism

Last week we had our Area welfare manager come from Johannesburg to see several of our projects.  

While checking on Kaminembe School, we visited their community milling station.  All the families in the area bring their maize here to be ground.  Some goes to feed cattle but the fine stuff goes to feed their families.  Usually they harvest enough to sell about 3/4ths of it but this year because of poor rains, it will mostly be used by the local families. 

While checking on the Chainda Clinic, they were having a handover celebration for an internet/satellite system
 that China had donated to the community.  This was their school band.

At the Nchute school where we just finished getting water piped in,
the students were planting a garden for their science project.  

At the Mugurameno clinic the church flushed out this borehole and a lot of mud and rocks came out.
 So now the new solar pump that we bought can be inserted to provide the clinic with good running water.  

This is for our Grand kids to show them how bananas grow upside down in clusters.  This tree is at our Mission Office.

The church is providing the Jolly Horizon school that serves about 200 kids here in Lusaka, with materials for them to make desks.  To get the wood, they took us to a wood-shop where they planed the wood with large machines.
 OSHA would have a fit.  

5 high stack of sawdust sacks being carried by a worker on his head

The wood for the desk tops and seats being unloaded at the school.  

Father's Day cinnamon rolls!  Yummy!  The picture had to wait until we ate a few.  

The highlight of this week was the Mission Wide Baptism.  These pictures were from the Lusaka zones but similar numbers were baptized in Kitwe, Ndola, Blantyre, and Lilongwe districts. 

 It was an exciting day!

Members and Converts arrived on buses to participate.  The faithful Musonda family from our ward.

Just a portion of the crowd for the baptismal service. It was held at the mission office.
 You can spot Grandma standing by the bush in the very back. 

The Stake President and his wife seated with all the baptismal candidates.  

President Kupu spoke.  This is their last event and he was quite emotional.
 After 3 great years they are headed home to Tonga next week.  

What a sight!   There were 19 baptisms.  The few extra were the baptizers.   

Many young adults but a wide variety.  A 71 year old man who was a refugee from Angola was baptized.
 When he came up out of the water, he said "Praise God".  He said had waited a long time to find the church.  

These are some of the pioneers of the church here in Zambia.
 They will be amazed at how blessed they are as they continue to be faithful.  

Two of our referrals were baptized with this group.  Martin on the left has a shop around the corner from us and Grandpa has had several meetings with him to answer questions and read the Book of Mormon together.  Josphat Banda on the right is our guard.  His wife and children are also being taught but she doesn't speak much English so it is hard for her to understand.  We were very proud of these two.  Mr. Banda's son Joseph (4) is also shown. 

The missionaries serving in Lusaka with the new converts.  

After the baptisms, each new member bore their testimony.  Some very interesting stories.  

After the baptismal service, they fed everyone hot dogs and cake.  

They baked 26 cakes for this.

Members spread out eating.

New converts eating. 

Project Progress Checks

This week we checked on the progress of several projects and started exploring new projects.  

Finished Water tank and solar panels for Nchute school.  

Clean water now for the Nchute school community. 
We had to get a booster pump so water could be boosted up to the health clinic that sits on a hill there.  

Mulenje teachers house is coming along.  Floors just cemented this day.

Kaminembe School 3 classroom building being roofed. Window and door frames all in.

Youth at Mpango secondary school (where the church put in a new solar powered borehole) having their science and technology class project.  Learning woodwork.  

Newly planted school garden at Mpango school.  Being watered by new borehole the church put in.
They have 60 students that live there and the garden provides food for them.

We love the homemade toys they have here. 
This is made out of milk containers and lids and they just push them down the road.  

After a request by our mission president to seek to strengthen the areas where the church is established, we have been praying to be guided to projects in Lusaka.  We visited 3 schools and each needs many more classrooms.  This school has 7000 students Grades 1-9 and as is shown, the teachers have a huge challenge with 125 to 195 students per classroom/teacher.  They have to hold 3 sessions during the day to get all the grades covered.  We hope to provide more classrooms and desks (notice many children seated on the floors).

Ended the week with the baptisms of the Daka family. 

Victoria Falls and Botswana

We had a fantastic week!  For our Senior Couples Conference, we were able to go to Livingstone and Victoria Falls and see one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World along with several other great activities.  Unfortunately the pictures do not do it justice.   

Started off with a dinner and conference session at President & Sister Kupus home.
(Us, Jones, Rowans, Fakalatas),  We had another session one morning in Livingstone.  

Drove to Livingstone then took a cruise on the Zambezi river.  It was very relaxing after the long drive. 

We were welcomed aboard the cruise boat with a live marimba band. 

During the ride they served finger food snacks.  

Ended the cruise with a beautiful sunset over the river.  

 The next day we went to Victoria Falls and viewed it from the Zimbabwe side.  The Falls is 1.7 km wide and falls 100 meters down.  We could only take pictures of just portions of the Falls because it was so long.  We were greeted by these dancers so Grandpa joined in.

Devils Cataract.  Very fast moving section that is slowly eroding away a section.  

Another section of the Falls from the Zimbabwe side

We went on a game drive and saw a few different animals but the white rhinos were the highlight.  

 The next day we drove about an hour to cross over into Botswana.  There we went on a river safari on the Chobe river.  We saw a ton of animals within a short distance.  

Grandpa wanted to go water skiing on this river but unfortunately it is infested with these critters.  

Cape buffaloes lounging on an island.  They and the elephants are good swimmers so can easily go to the islands.

Lots of Elephants.  The baby elephants were the so cute!  

Our tour guide, Ben, in the middle.  He seemed to take to Grandma because in every group picture he wanted to stand next to her.  

 That afternoon we drove back to Zambia where we viewed the falls from the Zambia side.  To see the whole Falls, you have to view it from both Zambia and Zimbabwe.  We were awed by the majesty and beauty of it all.

The perpetual rainbow in the mist from the Falls

 We all had raincoats on for these Falls tours.  The mist would spray so much that large sheets of rain would fall on us.  Whatever the raincoat didn't cover was absolutely soaked.  The second video below was at the edge of the Zambia side looking across to the edge of the Zimbabwe side separated by the river in the gorge.

Sun setting over the Falls

Grandpa bought a plate of Crocodile for everyone to sample.  It was actually very good.  Like chicken but more dense.  

Maternal and Newborn Care - Solwezi

On May 17th we drove 10 hours to Solwezi with our truck packed full of equipment for the Maternal and Newborn Care training for Midwives.  A group from Utah came to conduct the training and we just helped some.  It was a great trip and the training will result in saved mothers and babies here.  

A beautiful tree on our drive

We went through the Copperbelt where copper is mined and processed

On Sunday we were able to have Sacrament Meeting with some local members that live there in Solwezi (no branch).  They would like to form a Group there so they can meet each Sunday together and partake of the Sacrament. Two of the men were members but the rest were not yet members of the Church, excluding the folks from Utah.

On Monday, Grandma registering participants for the MNC training. 

Grandpa entering registration information into the computer.  

The Midwife organization started with this song about "There's no one like Jesus" 

then had an opening prayer.  It is so nice to see them freely sing, talk about, 

and pray openly about Christ and God.  

Sister Smith teaching a group about issues with the birthing process

Practicing with the Mama Natalie and Baby Natalie.  They had to perform many steps within the first 60 seconds after birth if the baby was not breathing.  Dr. Stanley watching. 

Four leaders from the Midwife Association and 3 of the US team did the training for everyone.   Grandpa even learned a lot about birthing and babies.  Now I can deliver a baby in a car if needed (Hope that never happens!)

They are teaching how to help babies breathe.  Too many babies die because they aren't breathing and some midwifes sometimes don't know what to do or how to use the breathing aid equipment correctly.  

For the closing ceremony, they made up a song that had 3 parts.  First "What a Joy to Be a Mother",  "What a Joy to Have a Baby", then "What a Joy to Save a Life".  

Dr. Groberg with the Doctor representing the District of Health and
 Ruth, head of the MAZ organization at the closing ceremony.
The banner is the Midwives Association's goal. 

Closing Ceremony receiving certificates of completion

The team from Utah and the Midwives.  These midwives are from all over the Province. They will each train at least 10 more Midwifes in their areas.  The Church gives them all the training supplies including the Mama and Baby Natalies.

Another song they started the day off with about keeping the Golden Rule

On the last two days, students from the local nursing college came and were trained by those who had been trained at the first of the week.  It really cements their knowledge and training skills. 

This sweet lady was preparing dinner just outside the training room.
It was held at a Lodge.

Just waiting their turn...  If they only knew!!!

We also were able to visit their hospital.  This boy was in a room with about 6 other little children (he looked the worst of all).  When I took his picture, then the mothers of all the other children wanted me to take their pictures too, even if their little one was sleeping.  The Hospitals in Zambia do not provide any food for the patient so a member of the family usually sleeps and cooks outside for them.   But the team from Utah said the hospital had a lot of the same equipment, just not as nice and modern perhaps.