Chidamoyo Hospital in Zimbabwe

MERRY CHRISTMAS ! Thank you for your support this year.  As we gather to celebrate with our friends and family the birth of our Lord, Jesus Christ, may you have fun, laughs and a great time.  No stress just JOY! It hardly seems like Christmas here with 90+ degree weather and fans blowing to make us survive!  Tuesday this week, Carolyn and Nancy (Major’s daughter and niece) came to make Christmas cookies for our present opening on Christmas Eve. The presents are wrapped and stocking filled--except for the chocolate which has to be in the fridge here because of the heat! Our Lake Union Crew lost one member Wednesday (returning to Seattle)  and 5 more are joining us the same day.  They have been hard at work on the roof and trusses this week.  A crane came on Monday to help lift up the heavy metal trusses.  They have really made progress and are working so hard in this heat!!  I think they pray hard for cloudy skies each day but so far ...

On late Sunday evening last week our first two visitors from Lake Union Crew in Seattle, WA arrived.  Rome and Ann are the leaders of the group and they came a couple of days earlier than their group to get things in order. They have been busy unpacking the container they sent and getting ready for the building of the new Waiting Mothers Shelter. Their group arrived on Wednesday--9 of them.  We also welcomed back Major who had been in Seattle to do a wedding for Kevin and Rachel Tananguchi.  The wedding went well and we so appreciate that instead of gifts they requested people give money to Chidamoyo Christian Hospital!  That was so nice.  We were so shocked that this young couple just starting out would do that for us! Since the group from Seattle arrived they brought their rain with us and it has rained everyday for the past 4 days they have been here.  Yeah!  Our rains are 2 months late and people were panicking about food supplies for next ...

I arrived safely in Zimbabwe after a 10 hour flight to Paris--13 hours of lay over, then 10 1/2 flight to Johannesburg, South Africa with a 8 hour lay over there  and finally arrived at 9:30 p.m. on the 2nd of December in Harare, Zimbabwe! It felt good to be home when the Immigration officer welcomed me with “welcome home!” Michael Mereki came to meet me and take me to my townhouse.  On Thursday I had an 8 a.m. breakfast meeting with a group we are doing research with from Stanford University in California, so no time for jet lag!   Then had time to run around and do some shopping to prepare to go home to Chidamoyo. Dr. and Mrs. Kajese came to the townhouse on Thursday night and I got to meet their new daughter Alexis who was born in September.  She is so cute and very tiny so far!  We had to send out for pizza because we had no electricity from 7 a.m. that morning.  It finally came on at 12:30 a.m. and was off by 6:30 a.m. the next day! Major and h...

My brother Don and his daughter arrived from NJ and NYC on the 18th of November.  We went and spent the day in San Francisco on the 20th with Kathy Rose, Marc, Derekca, Don and Hannah and I.  Don had lived in SF for many years and so we looked for his old houses where he stayed, ate on Fisherman's wharf and walked Pier 39. On the 19th of November some nurses I used to work with at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital (1989-1990) met together at Judy Lindburg's house in Santa Rosa.  It was so great to see the group--many have retired and some are continuing on.  We had many great times together in Labor and Delivery and were able to share many of those stories laughing about them now! Our family met together on the 21st of November for our first Thanksgiving--the Saturday before Thanksgiving.  My oldest brother Don came from NJ with his daughter Hannah from NYC.  Then my oldest sister's husband Mike from Reno, my niece Tracy from San Jose and her son Nic and t...

It has been 2 weeks since Major left and I have been busy everyday.  My sister, Sylvia, who I am staying with, told me I need to go back because I am wearing here out on her off days!  We are going to every store and checking out all the sales.  We have also been enjoying lunch and dinner with friends and family. Major arrived back well and running!  He has been calling and texting me and he has been so busy sorting out problems and issues that arose when we were gone!  The good news is that the rebuild of the burnt hospital is mostly done.  We now are looking to buy the appliances and get cabinets and tile floors in and hopefully get the final money to finish it all from the government. We traveled to San Jose this past weekend to visit Sylvia's son, Mapi, who graduated from law school in May and is now working for KPMG in Santa Clara.  The McCarty clan traveled down to celebrate his birthday and his new apartment.  We had a great time! M...