The Walker Family Visits SA

  
       These past two and a half weeks, I had the amazing blessing of touring the Garden Route with my parents and my older brother Nathan who came to South Africa to see what all the fuss was about. After a grueling two days of traveling from Seattle and Santa Barbara, respectively, they arrived safely in Cape Town, where Nate and I had arranged to meet them after taking the 7-hour bus ride from George.
       As a family, we spent a long weekend touring the Cape, wine tasting, visiting with a wonderful missionary family from our home church in Seattle, seeing the African penguins at Boulder's beach, seeing the view from the Cape of Good Hope, taking the cable car to the top of Table Mountain, and much more. It's a spectacular city, unlike any other, and it left quite an impression on the Walker family.
       From there, driver Nate, navigator Nathan, and tour-guide Kristen directed the party east, past Hermanus and Cape Agulhas (the Southern Most tip in Africa), to the small city of George that has been home to the Life Academy students for the past four months. It was the perfect base from which we could explore the entire garden route. Some of the highlights were the two days of safaris at Schotia game reserve and Addo Elephant reserve, surfing the waves at Jeffery's Bay, kayaking and hiking through the eden-like jungle near Wilderness and picnicking at the waterfall at the top, a trip over the Outeniqua mountain passes for spectacular views, and watching the sunset over the Knysna Heads. It was truly an unforgettable few weeks, and an absolute blessing to have my family be a part of this wonderful, African experience.
       Below are just a few pictures of our travels!

Wendy and Kristen overlooking the Knysna Heads at dusk

Walker family at the Ebb and Flow waterfalls in Wilderness, after a breathtaking hike and kayak trip through the western cape jungle.

Hippos outside the lodge at Schotia Game Park. The "yawn" of this female hippo, contrary to popular belief, is not a sign of fatigue, but rather a warning to us onlookers: "This mouth full of powerful teeth is what I have for you if you get any closer."

The Walker family in the Safari Land Cruiser with our game driver, George.

Wildlife crossing the road in front of our truck.

 Nathan taking a photo of the lioness resting beside out safari truck.

 A close encounter with the mother lioness of the pride. She seemed completely unconcerned by the fact that she was blocking the road, and we were in no hurry to challenge her.

 Nate and Nathan watching an elephant graze in Addo Elephant Sanctuary.

 The surfers take on Jeffery's Bay, the second best waves in the world

 Nathan catches a wave

 Walking back along the beach after a successful afternoon of surfing.

 The Walker family overlooking Plettenburg bay, about half-way between Port Elizabeth and George.

Nathan and Dad explore the rocky coastline.

Nathan overlooking the Little Karoo on our way over the Outeniqua Mountains towards the small, quaint town of Prince Albert. The dirt mountain road wound its way through one of the most breathtaking passes any of us had seen.

 Kristen and Wendy watching for Whales in Hermanus.

Mozambique

        First, let me apologize for the long delay in posting. We've been away as a group and have just this week returned to George (and the luxury of internet access). I wish I knew how to describe the past month in a way that would adequately convey our experience, but I just don't think it's possible.

        Late Monday night three weeks ago, all eight members of Life Academy climbed into a small, extended cab pickup truck with all our suitcases, sleeping bags and pads, as well as supplies. With three crammed in the bed of the truck with the luggage, three in the back of the cab, and two up front, we rotated positions as we drove the 15 hour journey overnight to Johannesburg. After relaxing for a day in the biggest city in South Africa, we took off again for the remaining 8 hour trip across the border to Mozambique. The border crossing itself took almost three hours; 10 minutes to leave the well-organized South African side, and the rest spent waiting in limbo land to get visas on the chaotic, crowded Mozambique side. It took a great deal of patience and cunning for Mitch to get us all approved, but once we finally drove past the gate and the half dozen guards with AK-47 machine guns, we entered an entirely different world.

        While the road was noticeably worse, the beautiful scenery took our breath away. As we approached the capital city of Maputo, the streets became crowded with old, imported cars overloaded with people. A two-lane road accommodated five lanes of traffic: three for speeding cars and taxi vans, one for big trucks slowly chugging along in clouds of black smoke, one for motor-scooter taxis, pull carts, and donkeys, and one on the far outside for crowds of local women carrying baskets and buckets of water on their heads.

        Just outside Maputo we met Kate, the director of Project Purpose, at her home in the suburb of Matola. She is an amazing woman, with a passion and love for God that overflows into her service ministry. Project Purpose works with young inner-city girls who have been forced into prostitution either by their families or to be able to feed themselves and their children. Kate has spent the last 10 years or so building relationships with these young women (ages 12-25 on average), providing medical help, teaching job skills and helping them go back to school (many never even make it past 3^rd grade). She shares with them that Christ loves them and wants to have a relationship with them, that God has a plan and purpose for their life, and that they are worth far more than just their bodies. It was an amazing experience for all of us to get to meet a number of the young ladies, to see where and how they live, and to help Kate in her work. Maputo is an amazing city: dirty, crowded, loud, vibrant, and poor. The young prostitutes find shelter in old bombed out buildings downtown, or in shabby reed shacks in the lowest parts of the biaros (ghettos). It would be impossible to find them if it weren't for Kate's excellent knowledge of the winding back roads of the city and her impressive 4-wheel driving skill. There are pot holes and mud puddles on those dirt roads that would eat small cars whole!

        In addition to the inter-city outreach, Project Purpose also has a ministry base in a nearby suburb, a safe distance from the craziness of Maputo. There, Project Purpose staff run a safe house for almost 20 of the young children of a number of the street girls. (In order to protect the kids, we've been asked to keep details about the safe house's location to a minimum, and to not share the names of any of the children currently living there.) The end goal of Project Purpose for the young women trapped in prostitution is to get them out of danger, off the street, and into a new life of freedom where they can live in safety with their children. Many of them struggle, however, to escape their current situations. A number of the young prostitutes have entered their children into the Project Purpose safe house where they know they'll be safe from the dangers of street life. There, Kate's ministry team works to ensure that the kids get regular food and schooling, not to mention the love and care of a whole team of supportive Project Purpose educators. As a group, we got to spend a great deal of time playing with this group of wonderful kids. They are so full of energy and life, and boy, how they love to be held and cuddled and tickled! We all enjoyed learning new dances and worship songs with the kids, as well as getting the opportunity to lead afternoon activities.

        In the evenings, our group would gather back at Kate's house for dinner and group devotions. Some of the most challenging conversations and the deepest personal and spiritual growth happened around that veranda table as the sun was setting and the mosquitos were beginning to stir. We grew closer as a team for sure, sharing our stories and our struggles and growing together through the eye-opening experiences of the day. Needless to say, we were all sad to leave, but none of us left empty handed. We've come back to George with changed hearts and opened eyes, and we continue to pray that our work here in the local townships will make a difference in the lives of the kids. We are ever grateful for the experiences and adventures of the past four months and we can't wait to see where God takes us next. Thank you all for your continued prayer and support!

        Stay tuned for the next post detailing our return car trip from Mozambique and our stop in Kruger National Park!

Another Fantastic Week

It's been another wonderful week here in South Africa!

This past weekend we had the opportunity to travel to Cape Town to see, explore, and learn about one of the biggest cities in South Africa. It was a great trip, and we enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the country as a whole! The two of us had several awesome opportunities to see Cape Town harbor, visit the local V.O.C. (Dutch East India Trading Company) Castle (that is one of the oldest "modern" buildings in the whole of Africa), explore downtown, go to a rugby game, and travel up to the base of Table Mountain. We had a wonderful time and thoroughly enjoyed growing as a group (through traveling together) and enjoying new experiences a as couple.

Early in the week we also had the joy of working both at Protea Park (through Life Community Services) and helping to cultivate a local school garden in Blanco. It's was great to work alongside the kids, and we have continued to learn about what it is like to live in the townships as well as how these programs work to make a difference in the lives of the children living there.

Here's some pics from our week!

 

 The Cape Town Harbor (R to L: Nathan (from America and a Graduate Seminary student here for the next 4 months), Catherine, Kristen, Rosy, Emma, and Shauna

Kristen and Nate in the courtyard of the Castle with Table Mountain behind us (with cloudy table cloth too!)

The two of us at the rugby match (Western Cape Stomers and New Zeland Hurricanes)

Kristen and Nate at the bast of Table Mountain with view out over Cape Town

Having fun in Protea Park

Several other kids we worked with at Protea Park

The view from outside the classroom in Protea Park looking up towards the mountains surrounding George

Working in the gardens at a local school just outside Blanco. Here we're working on re-weeding (which we did a lot of the week before), turning up the soil, and planting.

Thanks again for all your prayers and support. Blessings on your week!

Loving It - by Nate Dreesmann

Hello again from George!

It's been a fantastic but challenging past several weeks as we have been continuing to expand our horizons, grow, and learn. We have continued to work in several areas including the Badorchard, Blanco, and Protea Park townships, Kid's Stop, and even a bit in the Thembalethu township. This last week we also began our first week of work in the Parkdene township as well. I think we are steadily getting used to a lot of the unsaid culture differences, as well as growing more bold as to take chances and put ourselves out there more and more. 

I'm realizing that it is less of me trying to say or do the right things, and more of just stepping out and being willing to be open and honest with those I am around – whether that be with people in our group, those we work with and alongside, and even with the kids. Being willing to share my time, play, or just talk are all so much more important that finishing a project or doing things my way or within my time schedule.

To be honest, I feel as if a lot of living in community and working in a foreign country is learning to see things and do things from a different perspective. The more I give-up my preconceived notions on how things “must” be done, often the smoother a project goes. This not to say that there's something wrong about doing things a certain way to be effective or getting things done in a timely manner, rather, I think I'm reevaluating my priorities and realizing (as I have before) the need to keep growing and being willing to grow throughout my life.

It has been incredible to work with the kids, and here's some pics of what we've been doing:

Playing "Sharks and Minnows" with the kids at Kid's Stop

One of the kids at Kid's Stop

Adorable son of Trudy, one of the workers at Kid's Stop

Two girls Kristen got to play games with in Blanco. (Also notice the wall and divide between the nicer housing beyond and the township)

Another one of the little girls with a view of the Blanco township behind her

Kristen and another one of the young women

Some of the kids in the meal line at Blanco

A better view of the meal line at Blanco

Serving the kids their meal for the day (this guy was awesome, totally polite, and always says "thank you")

 

A view from behind the Parkdene Baptist Church out over the township

Thanks again for all your love and support!

Kid's Stop - by Nate Dreesmann

Hello again from South Africa!

It's been another week of challenges, learning, and growth, and I am happy to say that life goes on. I think the hardest thing has been seeing the utter poverty that many of these kids live in, and then being able to just go back to a place where we have running water, hot showers, a refrigerator, and even carpeted floors. I feel like if I had to live like that, I would be so miserable, uncomfortable, and sad... yet in the midst of living in utter poverty, the kids are happy. They can smile, have fun, and make the best of it.

This last week we worked at Kid's Stop and actually ran a program for the kids. Jason lead some warm-up activities, Kristen gave a message about honoring your own body and respecting others', Shauna read a bible passage that pertained to the lesson, and Catherine closed with prayer for the kids. After this Kristen and the other ladies led several games of “Four-Corners” while Jason started up a game of soccer down on the field with the kids. We had to step out of our comfort zones, teach a little and learn a lot, and just make some stuff work, but we did it, and coming out the other end I think it was a fantastic experience for all of us.
 

 

Jason and Kristen getting ready to lead the "warm-up" activity

From R to L - Jason, Kristen, Emma, Shauna, and Catherine leading the warm-up!

 

Kristen teaching

 

The kids playing "Four Corners"

Jason (bottom left) leading/reffing soccer

  

A view out over Borchads (a township in George) from the Kid's Stop building

Thanks again for all your prayers and support!
Best Wishes,
-nate

Rain and Abseiling

It's a rainy Monday here in George, and while we students are a little bummed to be cooped up inside, the whole town in rejoicing. The garden route area has been experiencing the worst drought in the 130 years since they started recording rain fall. The town of George gets its water from a reservoir in the hills above the city. As of Saturday, the water level had dropped to 18% of its regular capacity. If the dam level drops to 16%, the city has to stop pumping water, and everyone's on their own to buy bottled water or dig wells or find water wherever they can. The implications for the cities poorest residents is catastrophic, since many of the families in the townships cannot even afford basic necessities. But God is answering prayers here as we speak because its been raining straight for almost 24 hours. It's not enough to refill the dam yet, but its enough to tie the city over for a little while longer.

This past week has been pretty eventful for the Life Academy students. Our resident director, Mitch, left for a two week visit to see his family in Durban, so we're on our own in many ways. We have a pretty regular schedule that we follow, involving our discipleship and personal development classes in the mornings and several volunteer services in the afternoons, and it's been neat to bond as a group as we figure out our way around George. Normally Mondays are quite full. We spend the day with LIFE Community Services, working in the soup kitchen preparing meals for hundreds of underprivileged school children in the townships, helping to watch over and play with kids at one of the 10 or so outreach centers, and leading after-school activities to help keep kids and teens off the streets and out of gangs. 

Today, however, we're a bit stranded. This past Friday, our Volkswagen Van (aka the Combi) simply wouldn't start. We towed it to the shop, and the diagnosis was grim: “We have no idea what's wrong with it.” We're meeting as a group with the ministry director Jono to work out a game plan to help us get to our service ministry commitments this next week, and we're praying God will open a door and provide OAM with the physical transportation it needs to be able to serve the community.

Thank you so much for your continued prayer and support, and we are so blessed by all the encouraging letters and emails.

I'll leave you with a few photos from this past weekends adventure activity: abseiling!

The group heading up the trail towards the top of the cliff face

Kristen descending down towards the lagoon

 

Safe in the raft below!

 

The cliff face we abseiled down (approx. 30 meters high)

Nate about to leap into the salty water to cool off after everyone had made it down the rock face