Dova the Dragon

 Meet Dova.

She is a bearded dragon, and she spontaneously appeared one day in October

when Hank came home from work.

She quickly established her role as a snuggly friend, as strange as that may seem for a spiny reptile.

She enjoys eating mealworms and cockroaches.

 

 Feeding time is most entertaining!

 She can be fed a cockroach from tongs

or she can snatch it from in front of her. 

 We all agree--she's the perfect pet!  She doesn't make noise, doesn't stink, doesn't lick (with the exception of going after Jude's toes once), doesn't bite, doesn't dig, and generally just behaves herself (which is more than can be said for any of the other creatures in this house). 

 

Tickets to Burundi

We have our tickets!  The whole family will be headed to Burundi for three weeks this spring.  We will spend time at Kibuye with the McCropder team, in Bujumbura (the capital city) meeting other Hope Africa University personnel, visiting with some of the other physicians, missionaries, and World Harvest team members, and possibly giving some dental care. 

We have so many questions about how our family could fit and be used with HAU's vision for dentistry in Burundi.  Our prayer is that God would clearly direct us!  We have had a picture in our minds for the past year plus as to our idea of living, teaching, serving, and learning in Burundi.  We realize that some aspects of this vision are spun from our own chaff-like desires, and some have been nurtured by God's plan for us.  Deciphering the difference feels impossible at times, but we have confidence that we won't be left to flounder halfway between Bonners and Bujumbura. 

Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.

 

O Tannenbaum

Time to get a Christmas tree!  We have a tradition of heading up into the mountains with some friends of ours to search out the perfect spruce.  Jude spotted one he thought would be just right, and he wasted no time getting to work.

Even though it was 5 degrees and our breath was turning to ice before it left our noses, we had to stick around and enjoy the beautiful sunny day. 

Since this year there was only a few inches of snow and there didn't seem to be a promise of at least one vehicle getting stuck (which is traditionally a required element of the Christmas tree hunt), some of the kids put a little extra effort into upping the danger and suspense aspect to the day.  There was a flying squirrel act by Judah (which didn't end up quite as he had planned), and an impressive tree chopping event by Gage.

  

There were breaks in the car to warm up, camaraderie around the fire, and red rosy cheeks to show for all the fun. 

 

 

Oh yes, and we even ended up with a gorgeous tree!

Addendum to Dental Shipping Container

I've just been informed that the shipping container full of dental equipment (and many other things) bound for Burundi is scheduled to leave the US today, but the funding is about $7,500 short for shipping costs ($13,000 total). Apparently a church had committed to $8,000 but had to back out at the last moment.  If you're inclined to donate towards this need you could send a check (write "Dental Shipping Container" on the memo line) here:

Friends of Hope Africa University
PO Box 580
Spring Arbor, MI 49283

Alternately, you could contact Friends of Hope Africa University directly: help@haufriends.org.  I'm sure they could take donations by phone or online.

All donations are tax deductible.

Thanks for your consideration and prayers.

Hank

Burundi bound dental equipment

One of the people who has been instrumental in our interest in Burundi is Norm Carlson, a retired periodontist from Wenatchee, Washington.  The way we met Dr Norm is really neat.  Early this past Spring on a whim I emailed an American medical doctor I'd heard about who was serving in Burundi.  This was at a point when we were exploring the options of how and when to visit Burundi.  He emailed back and said, "You should talk to Dr Norm since he's already been in touch with Hope Africa University and has already sent a dental chair.  It's sitting here in Bujumbura in a crate."  As it turns out Dr Norm lives a mere 4 hour drive from us and he came to visit us on a Saturday morning in May.  He was thrilled to hear of our interest in Burundi--he'd been asked by Friends of HAU to coordinate sending dental equipment for the start-up dental school.  Norm has lots of experience with short term dental missions and he knows who to contact to get dental manufacturers and suppliers to donate equipment.  He'd been praying and waiting for people like us to be on the receiving and utilizing end of it!

Since that visit in May we met again in Spokane with Dr Norm, his wife Sue, and their daughter (a dental hygiene student) along with Dr Frank Ogden and his wife Carol.  Dr Ogden spent many many years teaching surgery in Burundi, and the medical school there bears his namesake.

Dr Norm has been busy procuring a host of dental equipment to go on a shipping container bound for Burundi.  Just last month he went down to Oklahoma to the headquarters of World Dental Relief to get the equipment and drive it on a Ryder truck to Indiana where it would load on the shipping container.  World Dental Relief is a charitable supplier of dental supplies and equipment to 3rd world missions.  Dr Norm came away with 5 dental chairs, lights, stools, other small equipment, and a load of small supplies such as gloves, gauze, scalpels, sutures, etc.

Here are a few pictures of the process (Dr Norm in plaid, Dr Ron Lamb, owner of WDR, in white shirt). Pray that all of this valuable equipment makes it safely to it's destination and that customs officials in Burundi will allow it to pass through quickly and without high tariffs.

The Kibuye Hope Website is Up!

http://kibuyehope.com/
From the website, you can get a glimpse of Burundi in general, learn about the Frank Ogden School of Medicine, and become acquainted with the growing Kibuye Hope Hosptital.  This is where the McCropder team is settling in and preparing to teach.

They have a Christmas giving catalog too!  http://kibuyehope.com/christmas-catalogue/  Even if you don't spend the time to choose a particular machine or renovation project to aid, please consider being a part of the growth of this inspiring work. 

Newborn Hope

The World Health Organization reports that out of 1000 live births in Burundi, 104 of those children will die before their 5th birthday.  That's more than one out of ten.  Many of those don't even make it a few months.  To compare, 7 children out of 1000 born alive in the United States won't make it past five years old.

I know it's hard to process that.  It's hard to imagine the pain and loss in those statistics.  It's hard to translate that from numbers into hearts aching.

The Carlson family is working to establish a fair trade coffee industry in Burundi.  Besides being a mom in a place without car seats or chicken nuggets, Kristy also eloquently captures and expresses some of the struggle and beauty of the Burundian people through her stunning photography.

This morning, after snuggling my almost three-year-old in my cozy bed for what I felt was a little too long, I finally got my coffee and soon saw these images of brand new life.  Even if you don't have time to read all about her experience at the clinic, please at least view her photos.

Don't look at these statistics and despair.  I know we all have a tendency to hear the numbers and feel that the situation is so dire that nothing we can do could possibly make a difference.  But that's not true!  The good news is that there is hope!

Here Dr. Alyssa Pfister (pediatrician with the McCropder team in Kibuye) instructs midwifery students on how to properly examine a newborn.  Isn't this exciting?  A whole new generation of health care providers is being trained right now--and the work is only going to grow.  Oh, I hope we get to be a part of that!