Mukisa Kindergarten since July 2010

Mukisa Kindergarten has been in operation since July 2010.  This is a huge answer to prayer that has continued in our absence!  We hope to expand this in the future to be able to provide a meal to the children before they return home, provide a more consistent salary for the teacher (she currently relies on the tuition paid by students which is equivalent to about US$5 per student) and to be able to send her for training.

Kindergarten is not something provided by the government and therefore not usually something a child is able to participate in. We were able to send almost a whole suitcase full of school materials!

They are currently meeting in the house Elton lived in as a bachelor and where we lived for the first few weeks after we returned from our honeymoon.  It is the school's prayer to be able to build a new structure closer to the road.  Many children hesitate to come to school because of the long walk into the village past the dogs. 

Week Two

After a 14 hour bus ride, Elton & Luke arrived in Katima Mulilo.  They stayed in the village in the home of one of Elton's uncles.  Praise the Lord! All the luggage made it intact!

To begin the project, the land must be cleared. This is a BIG job! This is all done the old-fashioned way with axes, scythe, shovels, etc. 

 A trip into Katima to purchase supplies.

Breakfast was provided the first day on the job. One of my favorite homemade donuts called vetkoek.

If you ever wanted to try to make them, it is worth the effort: recipe

 Big boss on the job holding up the poles...

 Each hole is dug by hand.

 Also chopping down the trees is done by hand with a simple axe.

 Here is a pile of poles that have been collected and prepared by some of the men before Elton's arrival.

 The bark is burned off to make the poles last longer.  Here is a photo of the burning process.

 The initial fence in starting to take shape by the end of the second week.

Week One

After a drive from Albany to JFK, a flight from JFK to Johannesburg, a flight from Johannesburg to Windhoek, Elton and Luke arrived. 

They spent a week in the capital of Namibia purchasing supplies for the project, networking, filing paperwork and getting acclimated to the change of time zone. 

Also high on the list was spending time with Elton's sister, Sophie-Lee and her family.  They were gracious to host Elton and Luke while they were in the city. 

Operation get Elton & Luke packed for Africa...all 275 lbs worth of luggage to haul half way across the world

taken by Becca