Since our last post, we have once again returned to Togo. We actually arrived back in Mango in early March.
Our time stateside went very quickly, but it was encouraging in many ways. We enjoyed the chance to connect with some churches, families and friends, though we missed seeing many others. It was also very productive for our children with Andrew getting his drivers license and Elliahna visiting several colleges and taking both the SAT and ACT. We are thankful for the growth we see in all of our children, but it's also hard to come to grips with the fact that we have an 18 and 16 year old now! Josiah our 3 year old definitely keeps us on our toes, but even he hit the landmark of being out of diapers and is now riding a 'big boy' bike! They are all growing and changing so quickly.
Our return here to Mango in March coincided with the hot season, a big change from early spring in the US. It was a bit of a challenging time to return. We are thankful for the grace of God that sustains us despite circumstances and challenges whatever they may be. It has been good to be back with our team here and to see how God has been at work in our absence. Our colleagues, the Muepeps and Fergusons, who we have mentioned previously, were thriving in ministry. This was a big encouragement. It was great to meet Arung, one of our two newest residents, and to see growth in Yannick. Please continue to pray for all 4 of our current residents. As they grow and are competent to do more, it allows us time to focus on a variety of other tasks. We are starting to get a glimpse of a future when we have a full complement of residents including those in their 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th years of training. Each year they gain more experience and competence and along with that comes more responsibility. We also had a chance to host 2 senior residents (4th and 5th year) from another PAACS program in Egypt. They were leaders and a big help, despite the fact that they were not used to some of the pathology and types of problems seen in subsaharan Africa. This gave us yet another glimpse of the benefits we see now of investing in training and discipleship. We also are excited for the impact they can have wherever the Lord leads them to serve in the future. Their impact on the continent in the sense of meeting spiritual and physical needs of the people could be great. We truly appreciate your prayers for our residents, our faculty and the entire PAACS family spread across Africa.
Here in Mango we have the joy of sharing life along with friends from a variety of backgrounds. Daoud has been working with us as a nurse since 2018. We were able to participate in his wedding to Yasmine back in 2021. It was fun to be able to rejoice with them as they welcomed their first child, Ryan, this past month.
Since being back, we have gone through some major changes with our friends who have worked in our home alongside us these past 7 years. Change is never easy, but in this case, we can see God's hand at work and are excited to see one of our friends realize a long term desire of opening her own bakery. Odile began working with our family when we first arrived in Mango in 2017. She has become a special part of our family and over the years has grown greatly in her culinary skills. This year she was able to start a new work of opening and running her own bakery in town. Her baked items are delicious and word is quickly spreading throughout town that there is a place where burgers, fries, shawarmas, and other treats can be ordered. We missing seeing her in our home each week but are delighted to see her finally putting her cooking and entrepreneurial skills to work in new and exciting ways.
In April, we had an opportunity to go to Greece for a medical conference and for a time of rest (and cooler temperatures) for our family. The conference was held on the island of Kos (the birthplace of Hippocrates). It was put on by the Christian Medical and Dental Association and allowed us to learn and grow in our medical knowledge as the field of medicine is ever evolving. We've already been able to put some of what we've learned into practice in our context. One piece of information was actually used to help save the life of a surgical patient shortly after our return. We are grateful for the organization of CMDE who not only values providing a well rounded medical conference for global health care workers but who also values providing spiritual care and encouragement. While at the conference, we were able to reconnect with friends and fellow co-laborers from our days in language school and hear about what God is doing in other parts of the world. After the conference, our family was able to enjoy some R&R by exploring some of the beauty of a few greek islands. The Bible came to life a bit more for our kids as we explored the ancient city of Corinth and some historical sites in Athens to include Areopagus Hill (Mars Hill).
Some of you may remember the patient with a facial mass named Nafi that traveled with us to Kenya in 2023 for a surgical procedure. There is another young woman whose face has been destroyed by a similar but larger non malignant mass. We have once again worked with the team at Kijabe hospital in Kenya, and Natasha will be traveling with her in July for the operation. The cost of her surgery and travel will likely be around $5000. If you would be interested in helping financially with her care, you can give from the following link. https://give.abwe.org/projects/togo-north-benevolence-surgical-care-beyond-mango
Prayer Requests:
Our Family: Praise for the Lord's continued work in our lives despite some challenges including the clutch going out on our van and a broken washing machine. We continue to thank the Lord for the privilege of serving here in northern Togo. Please pray for Natasha who will travel around July 21st to help get the patient to Kenya. Please pray for the rest of us staying in Togo as well while mom is away.
Our Team: Our team had vision meetings shortly after our return to the field in March. Please continue to pray for the unity of our northern Togo team. We are blessed with teammates from a variety of backgrounds and giftings. While this is a blessing, it can also be challenging when working so closely together. Please pray as we continue to unpack the ways that God is working and ways to better minister together in a place with many stresses and challenges.
Our PAACS Team: Our PAACS faculty comprised of the hospital here, HOH, and the southern Togo hospital, HBB, will be conducting interviews together for 2 more residents who would start in January of 2025. This year we are interviewing 8 candidates from 4 different countries. We spend a lot of time with these young doctors, and this can be a challenging decision with interviews over zoom in a limited amount time. Please pray for wisdom to select the right candidates to invest in for the next 5 years.
