Trailers Leave, Funding Needed

     The three trailers containing 30,000 school textbooks have left Austin, Texas on the way to schools all over Malawi. Briele has done her job. She obtained the books from the Austin School System, and the Western Hill Church of Christ has raised over $20,000.00 in spite of being a congregation of only a little over 100. The total cost for shipping is $38,000.00.

     Now we need your help. Most often the size of the programs of the Malawi Project leave many people feeling their contribution will not amount to much. This is not true. The Project does not have contributors that fund massive parts of the program. The funds that come to the Malawi Project come from donations of $25,00, $50,00 or $100.00. Sometimes someone will send $500.00, but this is an exception. Your check, along with others, is the life blood of what we do. Please consider helping with the textbook shipping. Send your contribution to Malawi Project, 1365  5th Ave, Terre Haute, IN 47807 and mark it  "textbooks". Thanks for your help.

Somedays Just Wear a Guy Out

Did you ever notice that some days are harder than others, and by the end of the day you just feel all washed out? This guy seems to be presenting that tired out feeling as he stops to take a break.

Dug Out on Lake Malawi

It is a calm day on the lake. A fisherman paddles up near the short in one of the dugouts used extensively on the lake.

30,000 Textbooks for Malawi

It started on a recent trip to Austin, Texas where the plight of the children of Malawi was discussed with a small group of Christians one Saturday night. Among the group was a teenager by the name of Brielle.

She asked, “Can they use school textbooks?”

The answer was “yes”.

One could not imagine at the time that Brielle would be so successful that two 40-foot trailers are being prepared for shipment to Malawi. The trailers will contain 30,000 school textbooks. Brielle has done her part. The textbooks are in a warehouse awaiting shipment to Malawi.

Now it is up to the rest of us to step up and help her reach her goal. It will cost nearly $33,000.00 to send the trailers halfway around the world with the much needed school books. The Western Hills Church of Christ, 6211 Parkwood Dr., Austin, TX 78735 has determined to find a way to raise the funds and make the shipment possible. They are asking for your help to accomplish this, and you can make your contribution directly to their address or go to the MalawiProject.org site and send a contribution through PayPal.

Blog Malawi Travel

The Malawi Project has a blog relating to travel in Malawi. Go to: http://www.malawi-travel.blogspot.com/

Little Dresses on NBC News

          Little Dresses for Africa is planning to send a shipment of dresses and shoes to Malawi. The Malawi Project is assisting in this effort. NBC Nightly News will carry a story about Little Dresses on Tuesday December 20. Tune in. Part of the report was filmed recently in Malawi.

The Right of Way?

We are on land safari in the Liwonde National Park in the southeastern part of Malawi, Central Africa.

Coming around a curve we come face to face with a very large elephant walking directly toward us. He is hogging the road, and it appears he has no intention of changing his course. For a moment I wonder who has the right of way in a case like this. But only for a moment. In what seems like an instant the driver answers my unasked question, and immediately draws a conclusion. He stops the Land Rover, and with the speed of light has us in reverse and moving rapidly backward, and away from the elephant. There seems little question as to whether we, or the elephant, has the right of way.

The Race is On

          The boat is moving along the shoreline of the Shire River in the Liwonde National Park in southeastern Malawi.

               Unnoticed by those on the boat is the bird coming up rapidly behind them. It appears to be a race to the finish.

Becoming a Citizen

          The judge welcomed the 75 people sitting in the Federal Courtroom directly in front of him with these words, “This is a good day. Today everyone in the courtroom will be happy with the decisions. That does not happen very often.” He was able to draw this conclusion because the people gathered in the front of the courtroom in Indianapolis, Indiana were about to become American citizens. The smiles on their faces reflected their excitement, and their approval of the judge’s words.

          Each person’s name was called, and each of them gave the name of their country of origin. They were from all over the world, and it was easy to speculate why most of them had come. America, the land of opportunity and prosperity, was a door through which so many of the world’s poor and downtrodden wished to enter. These 75 were at the threshold. A lot of time. A lot of study. A lot of work. But they had made it, and in a time when so many are entering America through the back door, it was exceptionally pleasant to see these people, who had worked hard to make it, coming in through the front door, legally, properly, lawfully.

          They placed their hands over their hearts, and recited the pledge of allegiance. Somehow it sounded different when spoken through so many different accents, and with such enthusiasm and excitement. It was new, and for the first time, they were saying it as American citizens. It had been a long time since I had heard it with such commitment and focus.

It is Official

His American name is now Benedict Adams, and today he is one day old as an American. The pictures that capture the moment he stepped out of the federal building in Indianapolis, and posed for pictures are reflective of his excitement and pride. His smile as he repeats, “I am an American”, makes me proud to be one, and reminds me of what so many of us take for granted. We shouldn’t be so presumous. Benedict’s excitement will serve as a reminder for some time as to the value of being able to say, “I am an American.”

Hospital Groundbreaking

A number of pictures have now been posted showing the ground breaking ceremony for the new hospital to be constructed north of the Dedza Trading Center, in central Malawi. These pictures can be seen at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/malawiproject

"Right Girl", "Wrong Village"

Chitakula Village, Malawi… It was 2002, and Malawi was suffering famine in a way this generation of young people had never seen. We stopped our work on the construction of a major hospital project, and turned to food distribution. On this particular day we went to deliver food at the height of the famine. Everywhere we went people were starving. Malawi had not seen this kind of suffering in 50 years.

Somewhere along the way we got separated from the 10-ton truck carrying the food we were going to distribute. Our small pick up truck filled with the distribution team, actually traveled down the wrong road to another location. At the time we were unaware we were on the wrong road to the wrong place. While the big truck went to the main village where the chief resided, we ended up in one of the 300 smaller villages under his jurisdiction. We had only a small portion of the ration we intended to deliver, and in short order we were out of food and heading back to the compound to find out what had happened to the big truck. In the camera were scenes from this, “wrong village.”

That night I downloaded the day’s pictures, and there was the little girl. Although that year I saw thousands of other children, this little girl and her picture stayed with me. It sank deep into my heart. Before leaving Malawi that year I commissioned a Malawi painter to capture her on canvas. He did a masterful job. Little did I know how helpful this little girl, and the image of her sitting in the dust with a near empty bowl, would be to me in subsequent years when the work would grow heavy, and discouragement would often appeal for us to give up and end our effort.

We have not given up and the little girl in the blue dress has had a lot to do with it. After all, she is so helpless, and she represents all that is good about the work we are doing. I often wonder where that little girl is today. I will never know, but one thing I know for sure. Everywhere I go she goes with me in my heart. To me she will always be “the right girl, in the wrong village.” We had gone to the wrong place, but this little girl gave me the “right picture.” She is the heart of Malawi, and its future.

Finding the Cave Drawings

          For a number of years we heard and read about the little people of Africa. Some called them the sand people, others the pygmies, and still others simply the little ones. We were told some settled in the land that is now called Malawi. After hearing there was evidence of their existence in the caves near Dedza Mountain we determined to see for ourselves. Suzi and I, along with our son Jason, made the trip to Dedza and stopped at a remote school. We asked the teacher if he could help us find the little people, or at least evidence they had lived in this area. He dismissed school for the day, and along with two of his students, we started up the mountain. There were no markings and we thought that strange, if in fact, such a historic find was nearby. We didn't question him. We just kept on climbing. Finally, we made our way around a sharp cleft of rock and stepped into an unmarked cave. What we found will surprise you. We have posted the story on the Malawi Travel blog, along with the pictures. 

See it for yourself: http://malawi-travel.blogspot.com/