Hope Children's Center

(This post was written by Jen G. in Serenje on April 30th. Although it was written a while ago, you'll enjoy the story and the "updated" pictures.)

Multi-Purpose Building

Wow! It is hard to believe that this is the last day at the orphanage. There is still work to do and the men will continue once we are gone, but SO much has been accomplished in the last 6 months. Of course, the final day was a little stressful trying to complete all the last minute things. Men were working on getting glass in the windows, hanging doors, installing latches and locks, building and varnishing picnic tables, putting up shelves, ceiling strips, and finishing the rock planters around the buildings. The two big projects of the day were to get the water running and the electricity working. About noon when the tank was hoisted onto the water tower and the last pipes were connected, there was running water in the sinks and toilets! What an accomplishment.

In the midst of the crazy day, one of the workers approached Zack to see if he would be willing to go to the hospital to drive his wife home - she had delivered twin girls the day before (The doctor had never detected two babies during the pregnancy so they were only prepared for one baby. What a surprise!) Otherwise, the new mother would need to walk the 2 km to their home. We pulled into the hospital and they brought out the two girls (it is customary in the African culture to wait several days or even weeks before naming a baby - to ensure they survive, etc.), so the mother and I each held one of the babies in the cab on the way to their home. Both babies looked healthy and weighed about 2.5 kg each at birth. The mother and I carried the babies into the family’s two room home that barely fit the mother, myself and two chairs in the first room. It was quite a humbling experience to be a part of life’s little miracles! I will be excited to visit them when I return in a couple months to see how much the babies have grown!

We got back to the site just as it was time to knock off and Pastor Navice and the workers had gathered to say their goodbye’s. He was just in tears as he expressed his gratitude for everyone who had been a part of the project and for everything that had been accomplished. The workers were also thankful for all the skills that they learned and the bonds that were formed between themselves and the Americans and also amongst each other. A lot of good has been done in this community and I hope they are all proud of what they were able to accomplish it! Some of the workers stayed around to help finish some of the projects. Right at dusk the electricity from the generator started and all the buildings lit up! That brought tears to my eyes! All in all this was probably one of the best days in Serenje! Here are some of the final pictures I took around the site.

Men Putting in Window Panels, Flower Boxes