You can send donations for the clinic or toward a maternity ward by clicking on African Bible College which is under Donations on the right of this post. Then click on give now and mark your donations for :ABC Clinic, Michelle's Maternity Project.
If you want to send new baby blankets, and towels, cloth diapers, pins and baby clothes send them to ABC USA PO Box 103 Clinton MS 39060. Anything you would send to Malawi directly is hightly taxed so it is better to send it via container when they are sent out which is twice yearly and it is far better to send new items than used for this same reason.
Thankyou Charlene for asking about how to give, I'm sure others are thinking the same way.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Thursday, December 13, 2007
No room in the INN or Hospital.
The staff was all at the College Christmas banquet, and the program had started when our head Dr came to me and said:"We have a pregnant mother in the ward taking care of her 6 year old child malnurished child, who is now in labor her self. She has had two cecerians so she must have a third. And she is in labor. Please take her to the national hospital to have it done. We do not have a trained surgeon on staff and the risks are two high here. Go now."
I rushed to the ward with one of the men on staff who would do the driving. We picked her up and the nurse told us to take her to "Bottom Hospital" which we did. Apon arrival this young mother was given a black plastic bag and told to proceed to the ward. I went with her to see what the situation was like. As we walked down the halls I was struck by a smell that reminded me of a cattle milking stall. The futher we walked in the more women we saw and the more humid it became. The smell was more like a sweat box than anything else. Their were pregnant women lineing the halls, lieing on bentches and lying on the floor. Some facing the aisle and some toward the wall. Then we came apon a room that was packed solidly with pregant women. All the beds were full and under the beds were others lying like boards on a deck, with barely enough room to turn over. The floor was solid concreate. I began to panic. What is this, how can this be that people would be in such a place as this to bare their children. Has no one seen this situation, does no one care? My heart was torn in two. I finally reach the place where the babies were to be born and their was a nurse. The nurse told me she would take care of the ladie I had brought and perhaps the baby would be delivered in the morning. I turned and walked toward the car. As I got there I asked the driver if there wasn't a better hospital in town where this child could be delivered. He told me we could try central hospital. There was no way I could leave this lady here I would feel responsible for her death if she didnot make it and I felt it was likely she wouldn't make it in these conditions.
I walked back in to the delivery area past all the women in labor, and took the lady I had brought by the hand leading her out. The nurses asked me why and I told them there are to many people waiting for delivery. How could I tell her what I was really thinking. Mainly that this was no place for anyone to deliver a child.
Arriving at central. As we walked down the dark hall ways we came apon a couple men, with rain boots, masks plastic aprons and surgery caps on. They were moping the floor. The sight reminded me of the bird flu movie I saw on TV last year. Great I thought, I have brought her to an even more dangerous place. However as we moved along it was evident that this was a better place for this lady. The nurse wasn't very friendly, but she saw it it that my friend was taken care of and seen by a clinical officer/Doctor. He told me he would have her operated on in the morning and that she would be in a semi private room with two other ladies. I would have to pay about 50 USD for this but to me this was worth it. How could I in good concious leave anyone in the other place. I was so depressed yesterday that I went home to try to process all that I had seen. WE MUST DO SOMETHING. In America we treat our dogs better than these ladies are being treated. We need doctors and we need a hospital wing to take care of these women.
When I went back to the hospital to check if the delivery had taken place and If my friend survived she was coming out of surgery and they told me she had delivered a beautiful baby girl. As I walked down the halls of this hospital I could see that the moppers I had seen the previous night were simply moving mud arround. Please pray that something will be done on behalf of the Malawian people.
Merry Christ Mas. A child is born today!
I rushed to the ward with one of the men on staff who would do the driving. We picked her up and the nurse told us to take her to "Bottom Hospital" which we did. Apon arrival this young mother was given a black plastic bag and told to proceed to the ward. I went with her to see what the situation was like. As we walked down the halls I was struck by a smell that reminded me of a cattle milking stall. The futher we walked in the more women we saw and the more humid it became. The smell was more like a sweat box than anything else. Their were pregnant women lineing the halls, lieing on bentches and lying on the floor. Some facing the aisle and some toward the wall. Then we came apon a room that was packed solidly with pregant women. All the beds were full and under the beds were others lying like boards on a deck, with barely enough room to turn over. The floor was solid concreate. I began to panic. What is this, how can this be that people would be in such a place as this to bare their children. Has no one seen this situation, does no one care? My heart was torn in two. I finally reach the place where the babies were to be born and their was a nurse. The nurse told me she would take care of the ladie I had brought and perhaps the baby would be delivered in the morning. I turned and walked toward the car. As I got there I asked the driver if there wasn't a better hospital in town where this child could be delivered. He told me we could try central hospital. There was no way I could leave this lady here I would feel responsible for her death if she didnot make it and I felt it was likely she wouldn't make it in these conditions.
I walked back in to the delivery area past all the women in labor, and took the lady I had brought by the hand leading her out. The nurses asked me why and I told them there are to many people waiting for delivery. How could I tell her what I was really thinking. Mainly that this was no place for anyone to deliver a child.
Arriving at central. As we walked down the dark hall ways we came apon a couple men, with rain boots, masks plastic aprons and surgery caps on. They were moping the floor. The sight reminded me of the bird flu movie I saw on TV last year. Great I thought, I have brought her to an even more dangerous place. However as we moved along it was evident that this was a better place for this lady. The nurse wasn't very friendly, but she saw it it that my friend was taken care of and seen by a clinical officer/Doctor. He told me he would have her operated on in the morning and that she would be in a semi private room with two other ladies. I would have to pay about 50 USD for this but to me this was worth it. How could I in good concious leave anyone in the other place. I was so depressed yesterday that I went home to try to process all that I had seen. WE MUST DO SOMETHING. In America we treat our dogs better than these ladies are being treated. We need doctors and we need a hospital wing to take care of these women.
When I went back to the hospital to check if the delivery had taken place and If my friend survived she was coming out of surgery and they told me she had delivered a beautiful baby girl. As I walked down the halls of this hospital I could see that the moppers I had seen the previous night were simply moving mud arround. Please pray that something will be done on behalf of the Malawian people.
Merry Christ Mas. A child is born today!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Pancakes with flying Ants or Without Ants
On Friday the College students put on a lovely Coral. It was a mixture of Jazz and Malawian Christmas songs. All in all it was beautifully done.
Sunday night as the church service came to a close, their were flying ants swarming all over the place. This usually happends after rains and praise the Lord rainy season has come.
How refreshing it is to sleep in cool of the night rather than in such heat. Anyway after the service on sunday nite the children ran to collect the ants because they are a favorite treat to eat. Free flying protein. Even the missionary children were collecting their ants for eating.
After church on sunday nites the staff generally have waffles and pancakes. A friend of my from toastmasters speaking club gave me a grill for Valentines day, so I have been putting that grill to good use frying pancakes on Sunday nites. As I was frying pancakes the children came in and asked me if I could grill some ants. Of course I said yes and so their on my grill were pancakes and gumi or ants. The strange thing was that it didn't bother anyone that I was frying ants on the grill and to tell you the truth it didn't bother me either. They seemed very compatible together there on my grill. One of the older missionaries suggested I fry some pancakes with Ants for Bob Stauffacher one of the newest missionaries. But I decided we better wait until he has at least ventured out to try a raw ant first. Besides poor Bob and his family has been sick for over a month now and they are just now on the mend, so I didn't want to take any chances.
By the way, my face is on the mend and slowly but surely it should recover. Blessings to all as Christmas draws near. Don't forget it's about Jesus.
Love, Michelle
Sunday night as the church service came to a close, their were flying ants swarming all over the place. This usually happends after rains and praise the Lord rainy season has come.
How refreshing it is to sleep in cool of the night rather than in such heat. Anyway after the service on sunday nite the children ran to collect the ants because they are a favorite treat to eat. Free flying protein. Even the missionary children were collecting their ants for eating.
After church on sunday nites the staff generally have waffles and pancakes. A friend of my from toastmasters speaking club gave me a grill for Valentines day, so I have been putting that grill to good use frying pancakes on Sunday nites. As I was frying pancakes the children came in and asked me if I could grill some ants. Of course I said yes and so their on my grill were pancakes and gumi or ants. The strange thing was that it didn't bother anyone that I was frying ants on the grill and to tell you the truth it didn't bother me either. They seemed very compatible together there on my grill. One of the older missionaries suggested I fry some pancakes with Ants for Bob Stauffacher one of the newest missionaries. But I decided we better wait until he has at least ventured out to try a raw ant first. Besides poor Bob and his family has been sick for over a month now and they are just now on the mend, so I didn't want to take any chances.
By the way, my face is on the mend and slowly but surely it should recover. Blessings to all as Christmas draws near. Don't forget it's about Jesus.
Love, Michelle
Monday, December 3, 2007
Mission Accomplished
Praise the Lord I have done it. You know the project I have been working on for the past month that should have taken a day. It would be easy to be discouraged but I decided that I should be happy because at least one thing got done and who knows maybe it will only take me a few months to get the staff to follow the work schedule two days in a row. Perhaps we are progressing, but at a snails pace. Sometimes I wish I could just forget the projects and enjoy relating to the people without trying to get them to get some work done. Life would be so much more pleasant.
We had a lovely little music program the other night done by the students at ABC College. They are new students so the songs are elementary, but never the less thay are trying to play music on these strange new instraments. They also did a stomp which was quite good. The music teacher had shown them a video of one in the states and they made their own up with broom sticks,pots, cans and other things. The president of the college had refreshments served afterwards so we had quite a turnout. Food will do it every time. My friends and I didn't quite make it to the table in time to join in on the tackeling of the refreshment person in order to get out drinks and donut,so we decided to go to a place where there was to be a jazz concert. However the players of the concert didn't show up so there was no concert. This is life in Africa. No use getting up set or you'd be mad all the time.
My Friend Maggy came by today to see the Dr so I had her come in and use my computer, the network was down all last week so we are catching up. Any way she was encouraging. She is a Malawian, but she says the people seem to have some serious mental or spiritual blocks. I think we need to be praying for the ability to think clearly.
Sure hope you are enjoying your cool wheather, cuz we are being steam cooked around here. Blessings to all. Michelle
We had a lovely little music program the other night done by the students at ABC College. They are new students so the songs are elementary, but never the less thay are trying to play music on these strange new instraments. They also did a stomp which was quite good. The music teacher had shown them a video of one in the states and they made their own up with broom sticks,pots, cans and other things. The president of the college had refreshments served afterwards so we had quite a turnout. Food will do it every time. My friends and I didn't quite make it to the table in time to join in on the tackeling of the refreshment person in order to get out drinks and donut,so we decided to go to a place where there was to be a jazz concert. However the players of the concert didn't show up so there was no concert. This is life in Africa. No use getting up set or you'd be mad all the time.
My Friend Maggy came by today to see the Dr so I had her come in and use my computer, the network was down all last week so we are catching up. Any way she was encouraging. She is a Malawian, but she says the people seem to have some serious mental or spiritual blocks. I think we need to be praying for the ability to think clearly.
Sure hope you are enjoying your cool wheather, cuz we are being steam cooked around here. Blessings to all. Michelle
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
