First Wes Team Prepares for 4th Trip to Zambia

For months now, we've been preparing for the next trip to Zimba, Zambia. There will be eight of us going this time. As in the three previous trips, the group is a combination of medical and construction personnel. Six of the people going this time have been to Zimba on at least one of the previous trips. This will be the fourth trip for Dr. Kari and Larry, the third trip for Barb (nurse anesthetist) and Ann (nurse), the second trip for Bud and Glen, and the first trip for Mark and Diane. The group includes three married couples, one of which will celebrate a wedding anniversary in the middle of the trip.

We try to make plans as to what we'll work on or accomplish while we're there and we gather supplies accordingly, but in the end, what we really do is what God is ready to have us do -- sometimes its quite different from what we planned. But we make plans nonetheless. Tonight we met to divide up the medical supplies among the eight of us so we each can carry a share of all we're taking. Now we just have to get it all packed in the suitcases -- we hope it all fits.

This time, the medical team plans to do patient care much as it has previously, although nurse Ann will likely spend more time shadowing some of the other nurses to get a better feel for what and how they manage patients. We hope she is able through this to get a better sense of their needs, protocols, training and challenges.

The construction team plans to install glass panes in the window frames of the new operating theater, finish installation of some of the electrical fixtures, install a float-based auto start/shutoff for the water pump in the storage tanks, complete a number of other repairs, and continue work on the larger water project. The water project involves building a new water and sewer distribution system for the hospital and installation of a new water treatment plant. Glen has been working with information Larry sent/brought back from previous trips to design the new systems and has been working with an engineer on the water treatment facility. We'll be bringing 'final' blue prints and plans to get approval from the hospital administration. Then we can proceed with finding sources of the materials, a contractor, labor and equipment and coordination of schedules to get this done. We think it could be completed in a year.

We also hope to make progress on planning for adding toileting and wash facilities in each of the patient wards.

During the last trip, several people we talked to indicated that one of the most serious problems facing the community was the numbers of AIDS orphans. A number of people have spoken to us about the magnitude and severity of the problem. Some of us have visited Sons of Thunder which is a mission orphanage near Livingstone, but we still lack information and a good idea as to how we might help. That's another issue we intend to explore.

The team is getting excited about going. We leave Friday evening. This trip, we'll fly through Frankfurt, Germany, to Johannesburg, South Africa, and then on to Livingstone, Zambia -- half a planet away, the other side of the globe, the other hemisphere, a whole different night sky, about as far away from life in the U.S. as you can imagine in many ways. And at the same time, the locals we work with believe in the same Bible, the same God, Son and Holy Ghost, the same salvation, they sing some of the same songs (different language), and they too are trying to reach out to the lost and broken.

We're trying to help brothers and sisters, trying share some of the many blessing we've been given with some of those in need. Its what Jesus said we were to do. Its the same as doing it for Christ (Matthew 25:31-46).

The team would great appreciate your prayers that

• We have safe travel to and from Zambia
• Each of the team members is protected from illness, disease and injury on the trip
• All the supplies get to Zimba with us, that they are things that are needed to be most helpful
• The team functions well together and gets along under close and challenging circumstances
• We each grow in our personal walk with Christ and represent him in a way that honors and glorifies Him
• The people of Zambia we go to serve are open to our assistance
• We communicate in ways that are not offensive or overbearing, but rather demonstrate our intent to come alongside the Zambians to reduce their struggle and help them move forward
• The families and businesses we leave behind at home thrive even in our absences
• Our sons leaving or possibly leaving for military service are kept safe and healthy

There are lots of other things to pray for, but this would be a good start for this trip.