RENEWED HOPE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, INC.
Working Together For Zimbabwe's Future
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RENEWED HOPE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, INC. Working Together For Zimbabwe's Future |
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| August 26, 2006 Dear Readers, Ashley is safely home and we are lonesome. All we know is that she arrived in Denver nearly six hours late but she was safe. We talked to Bryan, Ashley’s father, several times by phone trying to decide the advisability of sending her home during the threat of terrorist attacks. If we kept her here, the earliest we could have gotten a ticket home for her was August 30. We hated for her to miss so much school. Ashley was also primed to go home. It was finally decided that with stepped up security she probably would be as safe as she could ever be. Because of increased security, flights were running late. She had a very long layover in London that we would have liked for her not to have. When we sent Ashley home, security was tighter than we have ever known it to be. She was allowed no carry-on luggage. Here in Harare she boarded the plane with her ticket and her passport. She had a crossword puzzle book and a pen to write with, also a little pocket clock, both of which she had to give up when boarding the plane in Johannesburg. Security was taking no chances. We hugged her good-bye and said a prayer asking God to surround her with His loving arms and deliver her home safely. We Praise God that He took care of her. The children in the area are missing Ashley. Everywhere we go the children ask where is Ashley. One of the children wrote a letter to her and we mailed it. The cost of a stamp was $650 ZD in the new revalued currency. Summer is coming. The weather is beginning to warm up. It was in the mid-80’s yesterday and we find we need fewer blankets at night. Soon it will be very hot and humid when the rains begin. The Denver Presbytery sent several delegates to visit the Zimbabwe Presbytery during part of August. They returned to Denver on the 21st after spending two weeks in this country. The last day and a half we were fortunate to have two of the delegates spend some time with us. We gave them a quick tour of the mission and filled them in on the way things operate here. The two delegates were able to attend a meeting of the Advisory Board on Saturday prior to moving on to other commitments. The rest of the time was spent visiting orphans in their homes, particularly sick orphans One of the children we visited was Jessca. We have been caring for her since the OCC opened in 2001. She was one of six children who were living alone. Since that time one has passed away and one has left home. Jessca is very ill. She has TB and complains of her chest hurting. She acts like she wants to talk to us but is unable to communicate. We did learn that she wanted a pair of shoes. Ralph and I purchased a pair when we were in Harare that we hope will fit her. Tomorrow we will take them to her. The other family we visited was Oswald and Lynia. Oswald is too ill to come to the center for help. The vehicle has to go to his home to pick him up to go to the Dr. We were not aware of how ill he was until we went to his home with our visitors. We discovered that he had, had his cheek lanced on Thursday at the hospital. The clinic said they had nothing with which to dress the wound. I don’t believe this. So after the tour with our visitors, I came home and collected medical supplies and went back to Oswald’s home. Oswald’s face was terribly swollen and very tender. I knew it had to be as swollen inside as out. He said he could not swallow. As I prepared to remove the dressing the Dr. had put on, I discovered it was stuck and Oswald was in serious pain. I boiled water and then soaked the bandage until it began to loosen. The final bit I had to pull even though I knew it hurt him. The core was stuck to the bandage and I had to pull it out. It was as big around as a lead pencil and at least an inch long. When it came out, the blood and puss shot everywhere. I was lucky none got on me. It continued to drain for some time before I could attempt to redress the incision. Fortunately I had sterile gauze to soak up the drainage. We continue to redress it daily and each day it is some better but Oswald is a very sick boy. He is 16 but looks about 9 years old. He is HIV positive and is just a skeleton walking. On Wednesday when we visited him, he indicated he was unable to swallow. He said that everything stuck half way down. However, a sip of water drained down slowly. He said that tea burned his throat and so it must be raw. I sent an egg to him and asked that the care-giver poach it. The OCC nurse reported to me today that he was able to eat the egg and so tomorrow I will send another egg. I took medicine to Lynia for her diarrhea when I went to dress Oswald’s wound the first time. When Lynia went to the clinic, they had given her some tablets that are equivalent to our aspirin. I knew that it probably was more serious than I could treat and the clinic had done nothing significant for her. She said that the medicine I gave her helped for a day or two but then the diarrhea continued. I suspected it was dysentery. Lynia passed away Tuesday morning. She was buried the following day in the blanket that she and Oswald shared. We took a new blanket to Oswald because he complained of being cold. It happened to be a new King Sized blanket that was still in the wrapper and so he could double it for additional warmth. When we delivered the blanket, the family was still gathered following the funeral. We were invited inside and this is always awkward since most spoke no English. Before we left I offered a prayer that I am sure they didn’t understand. However, they thanked us over and over. Oswald sent an uncle to us the following day to say thank you for the blanket and that he was warm and dry all night. We were told by the uncle how much the family appreciated the prayer. Simple little acts of kindness mean so very much. However, such situations are emotionally draining on us. Today, Tuesday, August 29, 2006 Mr. Bondeponde is at the hospital in Murewa today. He took five orphans for appointments with the Dr. Most of the orphans are HIV positive and are suffering from sores, TB and the like. Daily vitamins and good nutrition would go a long way to help some. Others are in advanced stages and have limited time to live. I wish that there was a way we could source bulk vitamins for the orphans. It would go a long way to prevent so much illness and suffering. Working with the children that are so sick and suffering is emotionally draining. Ralph and I are finding it more difficult to deal with some of the situations than in the past. Perhaps it is that the serious cases are becoming more numerous as the children get older and their diet is so lacking in basic nutrients. The limited nutrition is more apparent this year than ever before due to the sky rocketing food prices. Teachers’ families are not getting even close to basic nutrition. They just can’t afford it. Top teacher salaries are about 40,000 ZD per month. If one Kg of meat costs upwards of 1,000 ZD and that is hardly a meal for a family, you can see that meat is a rare treat. Chickens are selling for 1,600 ZD ea. One chicken stewed barely feeds a family of six or eight. Eggs cost 60 ZD each. You may wonder why the people don’t raise hens for eggs and meat. Consider that a 100 lb of laying concentrated feed costs 20,000 ZD and a family earns only 40,000 ZD per month. The families all over the country are trapped and are struggling to survive. Just imagine the plight of the orphans that have no one to care for them. We are doing our best for the children registered with Heather Chimhoga Orphan Care but sometimes our resources limit what we can do. As I close, please pray that a donor will come forth to provide bulk multi-vitamins for daily use for our thousand orphaned children. I might add that this number is growing each school term. With the increase in the number of orphans being served, our budget is skyrocketing. It is imperative that new sources of funding be found. We need your ideas and support. In His Service, Ralph and Roberta |
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Renewed Hope Charitable Foundation, Inc. | a 501(c)(3) charity | P.O. Box 1476 | Castle Rock, Colorado | 80104-1476 2006 Journal 04 |