Summer Newsletter 2009
June started with glorious weather and it was Titi, our Romanian leader who reminded me how fortunate we are to have lush green fields and green trees. In Romania just now everything is brown and they are all worried that their harvest will be ruined as they have had no rain this last month. He depends on the crop of potatoes, wheat and maize to feed the Rehab young people and his own six children. However the news of our house building is good. The four houses now have rooves and soon the windows should be in. Water supplies and even radiators have been added, thanks to the visit of a team of Dutch water engineers, and the electricity supply for each house has also been fitted. There is still much to do but it is a very good start.
Ionel
It was a big surprise when we heard that Ionel, one of our Rehab boys, has decided to marry a girl from Mitoc, the village where we have a charity shop. Helping Brindusa to deliver clothes to the shop paid dividends for him and found him a wife. The wedding will be mid-August, just before our next sponsored bike ride - yes we are doing it all again! If you would like to join us please let us know soon. The Dutch Jacob’s Well group are progressing well with the new school building for the handicapped which now has its first floor and the water engineer went there also!
When Romford Hospital offered us the contents of one ward I couldn’t refuse it. With the help of the Prescott family, three strong farmers who also drive big trucks, we cleared the lot and it is now on the way to Moldova along with some medicines and disposables. Since the elections in Moldova there have been some political problems and the Romanian Embassy is now closed. Visas are difficult for Titi and we hope and pray that our work there will be allowed to continue as the hospitals really do need help.
This spring two containers have been safely delivered to Ghana, the first to Nadowli Hospital and Jrapa where there is an orphanage and a hospital. The Directors had asked for our help and they are in the same region as Nandom which I knew was a poor area. We also received a cry for help from Sister Justina who now has a new job as headmistress of a school for 600 older teenagers who board at the Queen of Peace School in Nadowli. It is out in the bush and they are very short of food. Many of the families are struggling to pay the fees needed to keep the children in school. These are the brightest children who are trying to get acceptance into universities. Books are needed for the school but food is the greatest need and I bought some sacks of rice but I must admit to thinking that they would not last long with so many to feed. I am thanking God for sending me Sandra, a VSO teacher from Manchester with a placement in this school. She has really helped us to get our container safely delivered and we now have had two beautiful cards from Sister Justina and all the staff with their thanks for the gifts. Next month we shall be helping the staff of Westcott School in Hull to send help to a school in Tema, not far from Accra, the capital. One of their staff visited this school and saw the poor situation there and came back determined to do something about it. They are busy gathering supplies and fund raising but will be linking with us to safely deliver the supplies. We are glad to help.
Just before Easter Malet Lambert School in Hull also asked us to help them as they had a group of teachers from Sierra Leone and they needed some medicines for their sick families and friends and for their local clinics. They were also poor but brought a glow of joy and radiance that we rarely see here. They were very happy with their visit to England and the opportunities that they had to learn about our culture and they were not complaining about their poverty. We were able to fill their suitcases for their return journey and I hope they survived the check in! Last but not least I am reporting our news from Afghanistan and Pakistan. We had much trouble moving our last container as the Taliban blew up a bridge on the Khyber Pass just as it arrived in Peshawar. It was off loaded and stood for a month in the dry port. When the bridge was repaired a different truck came to take it so the papers were not accepted when it tried to leave Pakistan. It was a bureaucratic mountain to be climbed and we only got there when we involved the British Embassy. It takes several months after its arrival in customs in Kabul before we can get the medicines out to distribute. We are giving thanks that it was not blown up by the Taliban on its way in. The security situation in Kabul is deteriorating as the elections are approaching and we are not sure how it will be there after the elections. Having been refused visas to go last year perhaps we should just give thanks to God for keeping us safe to do his work which is so needed, though this was not my immediate reaction after receiving the refusal! Dr Farid has managed to continue to input help to the three Diabetic Centres of Excellence and we shall be sending another container before the end of June.
The situation in Pakistan’s northern regions is causing us some concern and there are many people who have fled the Swat valley and Buner region who are now in tents. However the local villages around this region that are not affected by the fighting have taken in whole families to share their homes temporarily and are helping to care for them. The families left trapped in their homes in the areas where there is fighting are really starving and in great need of water and food. We hope and pray that the situation will soon improve. We have been able to send some further help to the areas which suffered in the earthquake thanks to some more generous donations. The political instability is a cause for concern.
One thing we are gave thanks for was the beautiful weather for our last car boot sale and the book sale before it. Long may it last as we have one of each now for the next four months. The disruption that these events cause to our weekends off seems nothing when you look around to see how badly the lives of others are disrupted by wars, famine and sickness. We are thankful that we are able to do our bit. Thanks to all of you who help us to make it possible.
Beryl Beynon, Medical Director
The First Four Houses Under Construction For The Rehabilitation Unit
Toddlers in Jrapa Orphanage
Please note our new email address which is;
office@thejacobswell.org