Burundi Humanitarian Trip May 11-14, 2014

This has truly been an amazing experience for us in Burundi, a new country in Africa.  Before we came, Jesse and I read a book that was recommended to us about the ethnic war in Burundi/Rwanda.

It is called, "Strength in What Remains" by Tracy Kidder.  It really opened our eyes to what actually happened here and in Rwanda twenty years ago when the Hutu/Tutsi wars broke out. Genocide has taken its toll on many areas of the world, and in Burundi, it has taken much longer to recover than in Rwanda.  This has been the result of governmental leaders, extreme poverty, and fear of more violence.  

We were given the name of Dr. Levi Kandeke from our friend and Dr. in the DR Congo, Janvier Kilangalanga.  Jesse contacted Dr. Levi by email, and he was very excited to have us come to Burundi.  Dr. Levi was trained in Switerzerland, spending 10 years there.  A very wise mother convinced him to come back to Burundi to help his homeland.  He has established a good business model with three outreach eye clinics, and wants to do two more.  His organization provides a "package" for patients who live in the outlying villages to take a bus to Bujumbura for their eye surgery.  They spend the night and then return the next day after an examination.  Food is also provided.  The patients are asked to pay what they can, but no one is turned away.  Dr. Levi wants to start a new clinic in the eastern part of the country, as this area is lacking in medical care.  He told us about Marguerite Barankiste who is a champion for children in Burundi, starting with saving orphans during the genocide. She has been intrumental in starting a hospital among other community facilities in the eastern part of the country.  Dr. Levi suggested we work with this hospital to provide eye care there.  

The food here has been very good.  I have enjoyed fish for three nights from Lake Tanganyika, Mukeke, and Sangala.  They prepare their squash and vegetables in delicious sauces.  We enjoy trying new, tasty food, and the tropical fruits never  disappoint us.  We have been without our Humanitarian missionary couple due to a scheduling conflict with the Area welfare people in  South Africa where they are at meetings. The Member-Leadership-Support couple, the Neeleys took us on their errands yesterday so we were not left sitting at the Hotel all day.  Dr. Levi had surgeries to perform all day yesterday, so we understand.  Our last day was slow, waiting to wrap things up with Dr. Kandeke before our night flight back to Europe.  

 A selfie with Dr.Levi Kandeke,  he is 40 years old, and has two children, but he looks 20!

This is his eye clinic in Rumonge.  It serves 300,000 people.  Burundi is quite densely populated for the size of the country; 9,000,000 people.

This is the MLS couple, the Neeleys from SLC.  We enjoyed a delicious meal on the shore of Lake Tanganyika at a resort.  

This is a funeral procession we came upon while driving from the border.  

The church in Bujumbura and four of the ten elders in the country.  Burundi is part of the D R Congo, Lubumbashi mission.  Notice the bars on the windows and the huge gate to get into the building.  They have had several robberies, with chairs, microphones, and other things stolen.  

A beautiful sunset  on the D.R. Congo side of Lake Tanganyika.  

On our way home, we stopped in our favorite city, Paris to make a visit to Giverny, where

Monet's home and garden resides.  The spring garden couldn't have been more beautiful in springtime!

Romania Humanitarian Trip May 6-10, 2014

This particular trip has required much forethought in the travel arrangements.  We began with an eleven hour flight to Paris, four hour layover there, then followed by a three hour flight to Bucharest.  We arrived just in time to meet with the missionary couple, the Dodges, Dr. Grecu, and his colleague, Dr. Alexandra and a resident student.  That meeting lasted only 30 minutes, but was very effective in planning details for the upcoming project in September.  Dr. Alexandra spent January, February, March in SLC doing an observership at the Moran Eye Center in Corneal procedures.  Dad helped to facilitate this opportunity for her.  She is very excited to have our next project for Romania focus on Cornea issues.  On Friday morning, we met Dr. Alexandra at Regina Maria clinic for the homeless where she showed us their equipment and we discussed what to bring in September.  We also had a good meeting with Dr. Raed Arafat who is in the ministry of health and a champion for the work the Church is doing in Romania.  His background is Palestinian, but he has done very well for Romania in helping their country with emergency medicine, and preparedness.  It is so interesting to see the good relationships with government officials which each humanitarian couple continues to foster as the turnovers occur with new couples every 18 months.

Clinic at Regina Maria

The history of Romania is full of very tragic and horrific events as is so common among third world countries.  The Romanians are still trying to recover from the post WWII communist oppression.  This monument in front of the government building depicts the heart of the executed communist dictator, Nicolae Ceausescu which occurred on this spot in the picture on December 25, 1989.  The apartment building depicts the housing which was built when Ceausescu relocated many people to Bucharest to work on his economically disasterous projects.  It is estimated that 2,000,000 people were direct victims of communist era repression.  This church was moved to this location in order to build the People's Palace and create Ceausescu's "little Paris" in Bucharest.  These ambitious projects helped to plunge the country into economic chaos and starvation.  So when the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, the timing was right for the revolution.  

This is a picture of the People's Palace from our Hotel.  We are standing on the balcony of the Palace with the mini "Champs Elysee" or Paris Main Street in the background.  The Palace is used for Parliament meetings currently.  The fountains of the steet are in total dis-repair.  

We enjoyed our time with the Dodges, Martin and Charlotte very much.  The church is growing slowly and losing members due to many young Romanians leaving the country to find better pay and employment. Joining the European Union has allowed freedom of movement for citizens. The Dodges are doing much good in futhering the humanitarian goals of the church in providing Christlike service to those in Romania, and in bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ out of obscurity.  

Village museum in Romania.  Very interesting about life in 1700-1900.

Welcoming Tanner Martin Clegg in Cincinnati, Ohio

We have a beauitiful, robust, smiley, new grandson to welcome to the family! Tanner Martin Clegg arrived on April 25, 2014 at 1:05 a.m.  Holly had been dilated to a 5 for almost a week, so her labor was about 1 hour, with Grammy just barely making it to the hospital to see the delivery.  He weighed 8 lbs. 4 oz.  and was 21 inches long.  

He looks like Shelby and Spencer with his dark hair and eyes.  The whole family brought gifts and treats to the hospital to welcome little Tanner.

Precious  moments with little Tanner.  He is a smiley baby for only one week old!  He has a Clegg son appetite.   Carter is getting used to the idea of sharing Mom with his new baby brother.  He couldn't quite warm up to Grammy, but he loved following Grandpa around with the lawn mower and using the laptops together.

 With a family of seven,  we had a busy week attending baseball games, having a belated Easter Egg hunt, and a piano recital at the Clegg home on Sunday.  It was difficult to say good-bye to that sweet family!  They have wonderful friends and neighbors who will take good care of them.