Bethany Lutheran Church, Slidell, LA

I had a wonderful visit on November 15 with the congregation at Bethany Lutheran Church in Slidell, Louisiana. They are the congregation that is sponsoring the Kuwaa Mission. I gave them a short presentation about what we are doing this year.

During the month of January, we will walk from village to village and do an assessment. We need to determine the needs, the best locations for wells and latrines, and the pulse of the villagers. They will need to do a lot of work to get the wells and latrines installed. There are no roads into the villages, so they will have to carry materials on their backs. After we complete the assessment, we will return to Monrovia and report to the Kuwaa Mission Board. They will decide upon our plan. Bekki and Stan will go home at the end of January, and I will return with Pastor Chris Kowula to the Kuwaa Chiefdom. We hope to get 2 wells and some latrines installed.

We are bringing 100 portable water filters to the villagers. We will use the filters to clean the water before we use it, and we'll show them how to use them. They are called Sawyer Point One Filters. They remove bacteria and protozoa, using membrane technology. The filters can be backwashed and re-used, so they will last for a long time. Everything that we do will be low-tech, since the villagers will have to maintain it when we leave. If you would like to buy a filter for a family, send a check to Bethany Lutheran Church and earmark it for filters. They cost $40 each. There is a link at the bottom of my blog to the Kuwaa Mission website, where you can find Bethany's address.

The main thing we want to accomplish this year is to give the Kuwaa people hope for a better future. I am really thankful that I have this opportunity to make a difference in their lives.

Spaghetti

Spaghetti is what I think about the Interstate Highway system. Without my GPS, I would be in trouble. It has been 20 years since I lived in the lower 48 states, and there are a lot more traffic and a lot more roads. I'm suprised at how bad the roads have become. They are so bumpy, especially the concrete insterstates. Some have huge holes in them. I'm glad to see the stimulus money being spent to repair them. And, I have seen lots of construction.

I'm thankful that the weather has been so good. And, I have been able to time my travels to miss big cities during rush hour. I hope the weather holds out until I get back to Bilings.

Traveling in the motorhome has gone well. It's nice to carry my bed along with me. And being able to cook is great. I have had 2 close calls. I stopped at a rest area, and I heard a hissing noise from the back tire when I got out. I called the Good Sam Emergency Road Service, and it was going to cost me $500 to buy a new tire. Along came a truck driver and he aired up the tire, and told me that he thought I could make it the 20 miles into Memphis, because it was a dual tire, on the rear. So, with a prayer, I slowly went into Memphis, where they fixed the tire for $37.05. I'm so glad that I stopped at that rest area when I did, I'm glad I heard that hissing, and I'm glad that the truck driver came along. It could have turned out much worse.

Walking a tightrope

I finally got used to driving the motorhome. It took some getting used to, though. The first hurdle was the radio. I had brought some audio books from the library, to entertain myself during the long drive. I accidentally got the CD player on shuffle, and I couldn't quite understand what was going on in that book!

My biggest hurdle was at a toll booth in Oklahoma. It wasn't really a hurdle, it was more like a tightrope or a balance beam. Yes, most like a balance beam. I came up to an unmanned toll booth to get a ticket, and when I opened my window, I realized that there is a screen on it. That's different. And, no door by the driver. That's different, too. So, I had to go out the side door, as it's the only door to the motorhome. Well, they don't make those toll lanes very wide, and I couldn't even open the door all of the way. There was a 2.5 ft high concrete barrier in the way. I sucked in my gut, squeezed through the door, and stepped on top of the balance beam. I walked along it to the end, jumped off, and got my ticket. Jumping off proved to be easier than climbing back up, but I made it. By that time, there was a long line of traffic behind me at the toll booth. No wonder that people hate motorhomes!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
I am at my sister's house in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, and we're going to my Aunt & Uncle's house tomorrow for dinner. Of course, we will have turkey and all the fixings. If the weather is good, I'll drive the motorhome up and then head out from there towards home on Friday. However, the weather isn't looking that good. It's been 35 degrees and raining all day, and it's supposed to get colder tonight. That sounds like snow to me. And, I'm not driving the motorhome on snowy roads. So far, I've been lucky with the weather and road conditions (except for bumps).
I hope that you all have a great holiday.

Trinity Lutheran Church presentation in Boulder

I had a wonderful time visiting Don and Karen at their home near Nederland, CO, and on Sunday, I gave a presentation to their church in Boulder. It was at Trinity Lutheran Church, and they had a lot of interest in the mission. I want to thank Don and Karen, Pastor Mark, and all of them for giving me the opportunity to speak to them. Stan Olsen, a Mission Board member from Anchorage, also was there. He had been visiting his brother in Denver and came up for the presentation. Thanks, Stan. He brought me one of the filters that we are taking to the Kuwaa people. I'm impressed that it is so small. It will be easy to carry. And, it removes bacteria, cryptosporidium, and giardia. It's approved by the EPA. I want to buy one for myself. We will take the filters with us and use them while we're there. We have 100 to distribute. That will go a long way towards keeping people healthy. Such a simple thing! It's called a Sawyer Point One filter, and it uses membrane technology.

Boulder, Colorado

I have arrived in Nederland, Colorado, and am staying with my friends from Anchorage, the Lamprechts. What great weather we're having - in the 70s, and their 2 ft of snow from last week is almost gone. I'm glad that I missed that. The trip down went fine, although a little windy. I have climbed to an elevation of 8650 ft, so it's downhill from here.

Tomorrow I will give a presentation about the Kuwaa Mission at the Trinity Lutheran Church in Boulder. Then, I'll be on the road again. They are expecting another storm on Sunday night, and I need to miss that. Maybe the wind will blow me right to Oklahoma.

Road Trip

I'm leaving tomorrow on a road trip to raise funds for the Mission. I bought a motorhome (since I don't own a home any more!), and I'm driving it to Louisiana and places in between. The organizing congregation of the mission is in Slidell - across Lake Pontchatrain from New Orleans. I'm giving a presentation on this Sunday in Boulder, Colorado, at the Trinity Lutheran Church. My friends, Don and Karen Lamprecht, set that up for me. Thanks, Don & Karen! I'm looking forward to seeing them. The weather has been great for the last few days, and most of their snow has melted. This area of the country had snow very early - the first week of October. But in the usual fashion, it has melted already. It's supposed to be 70 deg. tomorrow. A great day to start a road trip! I don't know when I'll have Internet access again. I plan to spend the night tomorrow at Walmart in Casper, Wyoming. But, I will catch up with you again. Please pray that I have safe travels.

Supplies

I have been busy acquiring the supplies that we will need in the bush. One thing is a mosquito net. I found one at the Army Navy store in Billings. I also got some light weight, water proof, breathable backpacks for both Bekki and I. The backpacks we have are more book bags and probably not tough enough to withstand the trip. We will be walking between villages, through the tropical forest. I'd better get some more mosquito repellant, too. And sun screen. I have a hat and some sun-blocking clothing from Orvis and Eddie Bauer. It's strange to think that not all clothing is sun-blocking. I'll know more about that when we get back.