Sept 29 - a couple of things to take back

Thanks so much to the many of you who are collecting legos and duplos, matchbox cars and small boys clothing for the kids when I go back. You all are such a blessing to Cornerstone!

Just thought I'd let you know a couple of other things I am looking for to take back either for the restaurant, the church or the Cornerstone Kids. Here they are:

• a small ice cream machine that makes like a quart or something. Has to be small to fit in my carry-on luggage. I can buy fresh milk/cream there, and thought with the delicious mangoes, bananas, jackfruit, and pineapple, it would be a great thing to be able to sell ice cream at the restaurant.
• printer cartridges - we have one more color (HP95) and are on the last black (HP94). We have a great copier (thanks, Toni!) that works for several hours after being charged without having to be plugged in - perfect for our electricity on-and-off situation. Anyway, looking for the printer cartridges to take back. 
• twistie ties for bread pkgs - so, when you can get bread there, they twist the end of the plastic bag, then punch a hole in the plastic and push the end through the hole. Let's just say we get lots of little bugs in our bread...So, I thought having some of those twistie ties would be great, and they don't weigh much. 
• a world map or inflatable globe (is there such a thing??). I want the kids to be able to see their part of the whole world. I want them to think bigger than just Uganda and to see the relationship Uganda has to the rest of the earth. 

I think that's the end of the wish list for things to take back. If I think of something else, I'll let you know. Thanks to all of you for your heart for my kids and the work of God in Budaka!

BTW - welcome to our 10 newcomers to these email updates. We're so glad you came on board.

Laurie

Sept 27 - In the States

Greetings from Winlock, Washington! It's so great to be back in the land of running water, English speakers and non-potholed roads!! (Okay, there are so many other things I could list, but just starting with those 3.) Now if the jet lag would just leave me alone...

We had a great weekend at Evergreen Christian Center in Hillsboro, visiting with old friends, meeting new friends and getting to show some pictures and videos of what's happening in Budaka. Thanks, Pastors Ann and Jared, for letting us be with you.

I will be in the States for about 4 weeks and will be heading to Burley (Idaho), Eugene (Oregon), Austin (Texas) and Fremont (California) and many places inbetween! Then back to my kids and the work in Uganda.

The first picture this week is of Sarah, who it looks like will be #31 - we weren't really planning to have another child yet, but there is a great need here and both Rogers and I looked at each other and felt the same thing - she is to be one of us. We met her at camp when the Sunnyside team was here. Nurse Lydia saw the wound on her leg (perhaps you can see it on her left leg near the ankle) and decided this girl needed medical attention. Sarah has had this wound for 2 years and it just wasn't getting better. So, Lydia left money for it to get fixed. Sarah's family, apparently, wouldn't let her come to get treatment for a couple of weeks. We're not sure what was happening with that, but we know that they are Muslim, so maybe it had to do with not wanting her to change religions. Anyway, she finally came last Monday and we took her to Mbale. The doctor did surgery and the leg is looking SO much better! The doctor's strong words were "this girl needs a high protein diet for this to get well!" So, she is at Cornerstone for at least 2 weeks and her grandmother, who has cared for her for the past 10 years of her life, is not able to feed or clothe her well and is glad for the opportunity for her to be with us. I'll let you know if this becomes permanent, but it is looking like it will be. We had said these things:

• we will not take any more children till we have a bigger place
• we will not take any children over 7 years old

Isn't God clever?? He goes beyond our own understanding.

The second picture is of a sunset a couple of days before I left - it was like the sun was on fire, burning up the sky. I took the picture standing outside the orphanage and looking down the road toward Pastor Rogers' house. We see so many amazing natural things like this in Uganda! I was talking with Matt on Sunday about the stars at night in Uganda - you can see stars almost to the horizon at night when the electricity is off...most of the time ;)...I wish I could get a picture to show you how incredible the sky is at night!

Abby is with me and will be traveling to all our in-the-U.S. destinations and then will be staying in the States for some time before returning to Budaka. I will miss her terribly in Budaka, and the kids are really upset she's not coming back with me. She told them she had to obey the Lord's direction, that He had shown her this was the next step for her. On her last couple of days, then, several of them came and said they were praying about it and the Lord told THEM that she was supposed to stay in Uganda. Ha! They are so going to miss her interaction throughout the days, her leading Sunday School and Saturday School, overseeing allowance time, etc, etc!!

Okay, as always, I could go on and on, but let's put a comma here and I will talk with you again next week...from Hillsboro I think, then Eugene the next week (Texas inbetween), then Burley, then Fremont, then Belgium on my way home to Budaka!

The calendars are here (thanks, Matt!), so let me know if you want some. I have many orders already...and we can reprint as necessary. They are $20 each and the proceeds all go to support Cornerstone Uganda Ministries.

Love you all and hope to see most, if not all of you before I go back. Thanks for all the love and support!

Laurie

Sep 19th - Great and scary things...

Greetings from the slow internet!! Hopefully at least one picture will upload while I am writing this, but maybe not...It's one of those days in Uganda - no internet at the usual place, 2nd place - apparently haven't paid their bill for a week, so no internet. Now, 3rd place and it's off and on. We'll see how this goes!

If you do get the picture, you will see all our children who received new clothes (gently used clothing from many of you!) on Sunday afternoon. We told the kids in the middle of August that if they kept their school shoes very well for 2 months, we would give them one additional outfit. They currently all have 5 outfits - 2 uniforms for school, 2 play outfits and 1 outfit for church. So, those who were careful with their shoes would get one more outfit for church. I'm happy to report that 20 of our 30 kids got new outfits! (You will see 21 kids in the picture - we did give Moses a new pair of pants, even though he doesn't actually have school shoes!) Any of you who are parents will recognize the positive reinforcement we are trying here - and boy, did it work well!! The other 9 children were sad...some even crying...that they did not get to have a new outfit. We first had a meeting with all the children in which we gave out the clothes. Then, while the picture was being taken by Abby, Rogers and I met with the 9 and talked with them about how they might be able to also get new clothes - we will give them some hand-me-down shoes in a month or so and if they keep them well for 2 months we will see about adding an outfit for them. So, there is hope for them, but they really learned the lesson! We will see now how they keep their shoes.

Thanks so much for the clothes you sent with us! We actually have SO many that we are starting a clothing area in our house where we will keep clothes ready for when kids outgrow theirs. We do need some smaller boys' pants and shorts, though. If any of you have like sizes 3-6 boys gently used pants, let me know.

Another thing I am wondering: do any of you have legos that your children are finished playing with? We bought some blocks like duplos here and they crack and break when you try to put them together. I'm hoping to get a lead on some legos and see how to get them here.

As I think of it, a couple other things: some matchbox cars (the boys LOVE these for allowance prizes, and we are just about out of the ones I brought) and some kids' movies.

One kind of scary thing that happened this week: we took the next 3 kids who had earned enough with allowance to go swimming in Mbale. Everything was great...well, except the rain and thunder during the swim time - way cold for Ugandan children!! and for Abby. But, on the way home, we were turning from the main road (called a tarmac here) to go to our house and a speeding matatu (mini van taxi) decided that was the time to pass on the right. As Rogers turned the car, the matatu crashed into his side. We sort of bounced off the matatu and Rogers was quite level-headed and kept control of the car. He pulled into the petrol station across the street. Charles, one of our boys, was really shaken up and began throwing up in the car. Abby quickly got the kids together and walked them up to their home. The driver of the matatu continued, but was stopped by the traffic police stop up a ways and returned. The driver got out and started yelling at me, saying I didn't have my indicator on, was on the phone while driving, was driving crazy, etc. I let him rant, then calmly said, "I wasn't driving." Anyway, as of today, the police have determined it was his fault and he is paying all expenses for the car to get fixed...front right panel, front right door, headlamps all have to be replaced. Total cost - Shs250,000=\. Okay, for all of you dollars people - that's about $115.

Please pray for all 6 of us who were in the car - Charles, Ronald and Oliver, as well as Abby, Rogers and me. We were all pretty shaken up. And pray that our future journeys will be safe!!

Thank you to all of you who prayed and continue praying for us!

BTW - before I began speaking yesterday at church, I felt the Lord nudge me that someone there needed to get saved. One of our members, George, had invited a neighbor and she raised her hand and received Jesus. She has been involved in witchcraft to try to get what she needs, and now is depending on the Lord. Please pray for this new sister - Christine.

Okay, got to go now. I sure appreciate all of you who continue to support us in so many ways!! God bless you.

Laurie

Sep 12th - Monday update

Greetings from Chat 'n' Chino cafe - a new place in Mbale that has FAST internet. So cool. It does go down occasionally (4 times in 3 hours last week), but overall is the best place I've found! Pastor Rogers is shopping with Betty (his wife) for the orphanage and then we are heading back to Budaka early today as it is time to take Mutwahiru for his 6-week check up...and hopefully when they will take the metal apparatus out of his leg. They have to leave today by 2pm to make it to Kampala, get a hotel and be at the clinic in the morning by 7 - it's first-come-first-serve, so we try to be really early!

The first picture today is of Natasha, Hellen and Brenda. They were waiting to leave for Mbale last Saturday. All 3 had saved up their allowance (Cornerstone cash) for a trip to Mbale to go out for lunch (their first time at a restaurant), then to Mt. Elgon Hotel for swimming (again, a first for all of them). It was SUCH a big thing! I have included a picture, too, of Brenda in the pool. They splashed and laughed with Abby in the pool for 1 hour - I sat on the side and encouraged them from a safe distance ;). The hotel has swimming "costumes" for rent - I think I will look for some when in the States - so they all could be in the appropriate gear. 3 of the boys get to go this weekend with us - I hope to send pics of them next week.

A reminder that we have Cornerstone calendars for 2012 available - they will be $20 each and have pictures of the work in Budaka, and individual pictures of each of our 30 kids so you can see and be reminded to pray for them during this next year. I have several orders, and will be able to deliver calendars by mid-October. Let me know if you would be willing to either buy some (they make great Christmas gifts, for those of you planning early!) or sell them at your church, school or work. This is another one of our streams of business income for Cornerstone Uganda Ministries. Please email me if you are interested!

I must go now - hoping to hear from all of you. Thanks for the emails this last week from so many. I will go now and see if I can answer most of them. God bless you! Thank you for your continued support in prayer, finances and encouragement.

In His great love,

Laurie

Sept 5th - Monday update

Greetings, Friends!

It's been awhile since I have sent out a regular Monday email - thanks to all of you who have written, wondering if everything is okay. Yes, we are okay! We had the team from Sunnyside Foursquare with us for the past 2 weeks, so didn't have time to make it to Mbale regularly. The team was such a blessing!! Here are some highlights:

• 10 people came to do camps in Kabuna and Budaka with 100 children and 113 respectively. (I have included a picture of the Budaka camp - the kids are eating their breakfast (porridge and a piece of bread) inside Soul Harvest Church - a building that is connected to our kitchen and play area. I have also included a picture of the team on their way home when we visited the equator.
• They stayed in the other side of our house during their time in Budaka, so were close for getting ready for camps, worshiping together, talking and playing games. (Thanks, Jordan, for loving Scrabble!!)
• Their leaders (Ric and Chris) were wonderful. Thanks, guys!
• All 10 either taught in church, shared their testimony for the church and/or worked with the kids in Sunday School...on both Sundays they were here. 1/2 even went to another church in Budaka and did the same things.
• They brought all the things we were unable to bring in our luggage the last time. Such a blessing for our kids, the school, the church. It was like Christmas, opening all those suitcases. Thanks to all of you who contributed stuff to our kids, the restaurant and the school. We are overwhelmed!
• All 10 of you made the experience of having a team a great one!! 

A couple of other things that are happening:

• We have received enough VIA for about 3 months. Thank you so much to all of you who have sent some - even got another 2 packages from Evergreen today! Every morning that I have coffee, I think about all of you and your great kindness to get us a little taste of home - some of you even remembered that sometimes we drink decaf. Very cool! Thank you.
• We had 115 adults in church last week and 110 kids! It maxes out the 2 rooms (well, for America, they would have been maxed long ago, but in Uganda, if you can fit another chair or mat in, you have room. No fire restrictions here!!) The kids' room is about 30'x30', the adult room is not quite double that size, 30'x50'. 
• School began today - 3rd (and last) term this year. A little more than 1/2 of the kids showed up - pretty normal for the first day in Ugandan schools.
• We harvested the maize from our field and should get about 30 100kg sacks to use and sell. As many of you know, this is one of the revenue sources we began in order to support the Cornerstone work. 
• We will be buying 200 chicks in the next week to raise for laying eggs - another revenue source.
• Inflation has hit 21.4% here in Uganda. Please pray for those in the church as this cuts their buying power by 1/4! Many are having to choose between important necessities like soap, more than one meal a day, etc. (This hits us at the orphanage and school as well: posho, one of our staple foods for the kids, has risen from Shs110,000=/ in November 2010 to Shs170,000=/ today. We go through 100kg in 1 1/2 weeks.) Please pray as we see our way forward with God in charge!
• The business man who owns the property we are in for the orphanage and school has just given us a letter (last week) saying he is raising our rent by 50% in 2012. There is no way this fits within our budget, so we are asking the Lord to give us money to build the buildings on the land we have acquired. We have the architect's work done and are waiting for the money now to be able to build. Please pray that these funds will be available in enough time to build before January. If you know of someone who might be interested in giving toward this special project, please have them contact me. We still need about $170,000 to have our kids' home and the school rooms built. My God owns the cattle on a thousand hills - I'm asking Him to sell a few...Will you join me?

I love you all so much...and as always, could keep going and going, but let me put a comma in my stories. I'd love to hear from you! Thank you for your continued prayer and financial support. We are working hard to have the businesses support the ministry - our goal of being self-supporting in 2 years culminates in January. I don't think we will be totally there, but we are definitely on our way! Thank you for continuing to support as we head to our goal.

God bless you!

Laurie