Endeleeni kupendana kama ndugu. Msiache kuwakaribisha
wageni, maana kwa kufanya hivyo watu wengine waliwakaribisha
mal aika pasipo kujua.

Waebrania 13:1-2 (Swahili New Testament)

   "Stay on good terms with each other, held together by love. Be
ready with a meal or a bed when it's needed. Why, some have extended
hospitality to angels without ever knowing it!"

Hebrews 13: 1-2 (The Message)

Kenya 2010 Team Members

Kenya 2010 Team Members
Our team members preparing for our Mission in Kenya

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Machakos Medical Clinic

MACHAKOS CLINIC

PREPARATION DAY


We began the day with devotions at 8:00 am at Beacon of Hope.  In the 2 hour wait prior to leaving for Machakos, we sorted out and inventoried school supplies we brought from home - they will be used at BOH.

We departed for Machakos at 11:00 AM - loaded up all our overnight gear once again and headed for the mountains (elevation: 6000 FT - does that count as a mountain??).  Machakos is a 2-3 hour drive south east of Nairobi.  The views were beautiful as we headed up the mountainside.  It certainly isn't the vision we think of as Americans when we think of Aftrica.  But then again, Africa is a very large continent with many different terrains.  This area of Kenya is breathtaking.




This side trip, in particular, is a special treat as we are staying with Ken Wathome's mother at his childhood home. She has been so gracious to take 30 people into her home and not only feed us but provide a place to sleep under the heavens in the mountains of Machakos. We praise God for the provisions and fellowship at the Wathome home.

The Wathome Home
See that black "tank" on the left?
That's what supplies the clean water to the house.

Sleeping quarters for "the boys."

There were quite a few boys!


A huge lunch was prepared for us upon arrival.  We find it amazing the amount of food that is prepared with so few resources - no kitchen - just a charcoal firepit to cook on.  Kortney, Jody and Christine spent some time out back with the cooks and tried our hand at peeling potatoes.


Hangin' with the cooks :)

Jody peeling potatos


Soon after lunch Mama Wathome invited Maggie, Kortney, Jody & Christine to go for a ride and visit her sister. Everyone in the village knows when Mama Wathome emerges from home...she is the only person up here who has a car.  Cute as can be, Mama Wathome sat behind the wheel of her Toyota all wheel drive and headed down the rain gutted dirt road to our destination.  Like a boat parting a path amongst a swarm of water bugs, pedestrians would part to the sides of the road as Mama honked her horn, not slowing down for anything.

Mama Wathome driving :)

What a treat to meet Mama's sister.  Everywhere we go we are greated with pure joy.  Terasea (tear-ah-see-ah) lives just up the road from Mama Wathome on the mountainside.  After enjoying some oranges together, Kortney and I (Jody) were invited to walk down into the valley to harvest some sugar cane to bring back with us. Terasea's helper made Kortney and I look like "white city folk" as, at 50-60 years old, she walked down into the valley as though she were a 6 year old bouncing down the hillside.  Meanwhile...we were slipping and sliding doing everything we could to stay upright!

"Mama" and Maggie

View outside Terasea's front door.

We harvested six 10 foot stalks of sugar cane to bring back up.  Terasea's helper also showed us a papaya tree and guava tree...as well as some banana plants. These were beautiful.  The flowers on the banana plants were HUGE - at least 12-18 inches in length.  Time to head back up the hillside...we each carried two sugar cane stalks - one on each shoulder, making sure the back ends criss-crossed to help them stay steady.  Kortney and I were huffing and puffing and dripping with sweat by the time we got up there and Terasea's helper wasn't even tired!!  She definitely made us look whimpy!

Cutting down the sugar cane

Banana plant.
The purple thing is the flower.
Look closely at the top of the flower....
The bananas are just starting to grow.

They're growing.....

Ready to be picked!

Kortney showing off her prize sugar cane :)

Walking back up the hillside

We made it!!

After another great dinner, we sat around a fire singing songs and fellowshipping together.  Well into the evening, as the singing began to feed our hearts, the dancing began.  Kenyans teaching Americans dances and Americans teaching Kenyans dances.  Much laughter filled the night air as 8 people cramed into a space no larger than 8x6 and attempted to do an American dance to a Kenyan beat.  Music and dance is a language that has no boundaries and there certainly weren't any on this night as a group of Kenyans and Americans joined together for a night never to be forgotten.

Andrea, Kortney & Amy singing

Dennis trying his hand at the guitar.
Everyone loves Dennis!

Jess must be saying something pretty interesting!

Just how many people are you going to try and fit in there??
Amy showing off her dancing skills :)



CLINIC DAY

The waiting line at Bisil pales in comparison to the line here at Machakos.  We were expecting 7 providers (doctors & nurses) and ended up with only our six for the first hour. However, when the local providers from the Machakos hospital joined us, patients were being shuffled through the lines in warp speed sending the pharmacy into overdrive!  Even though the pharmacy had 4 people dispensing medications along with 3 people filling the prescriptions, they struggled to keep up with the pace.


Looonnnnnnggggg waiting line!


Kayla taking a blood pressure

Allison waiting for her next injection or wound care patient.

Pam at the weigh in station.

One of the sick children treated today.

Maggie tending to the last wound of the day.


The VCT (Voluntary Counseling Therapy) lines were much longer here than at Bisil.  VCT is counseling given to those patients that are HIV positive and teaches them about healthy living and eliminating as much of the stigma and myths as possible.  They are so grateful for the information they learn here.

VCT Tents

By 1:00 PM the pharmacy was starting to run out of many medications.  Mostly pain and fever reducers and antibiotics.  Many substitutions had to be made.  Just before 4:00 PM the last of the Ibuprofen and Tylenol was dispensed, the tent for the waiting line was taken down and we packed up the remaining medications to return to BOH.  Final count for patients seen was 797 Adults and 289 Children for a grand total of 1086!! Today was a good day.  Praise God for providing all the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, medications and all the behind the scenes support personal for a very triumphant day.

Saying our goodbyes....

2 comments:

  1. Way to go, team! So glad you were all able to experience the beauty of Machakos. Two down, one to go...we're praying =)

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  2. Sounds so fun!! You are such an encouragment to the people there, and then God uses them to encourage you!!! Love all the pics and hearing the great stories. We are praying for you for strength, wisdom, endurance, health, but most of all, that you see clearly how deep and wide is the love of God!!

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