Help Needed Update

It's been five days since the fire in the village next door destroyed over 30 homes. Since that time we have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of support from our friends back at home. We are encouraged that so many are responding and helping us help them!

We have joined forces with the local church to visit villages and get an accurate count of how many households and individuals were affected by this fire. During this headcount several other villages within a 5 mile radius were found to have had fires in the last week, raising the number of people now homeless to over 400. The community is coming together to help these families rebuild by donating grass for new roofs and sticks for new fences, but very few are able to help beyond that. Still, it's encouraging to see all of us, mzungus and locals alike, joining together to help.

We have already ordered supplies for the families and are planning to have them brought on Monday of this next week. As things stand now we have over $4,000 in donations pledged, and are ordering things for every family affected, trusting that God will provide the rest of the money needed. So if you plan to give but haven't yet, please do! We will more than likely stop taking donations after next week.

Please be in prayer for one family in particular. They live in the village of Lominit, the same place my son was born. As the fire took over their storage hut the mother rushed back inside to rescue the little money she was hiding there and was severely burned all over her body. She was taken to the local health center, but her burns were just too severe and she died the next week, leaving 8 children behind, one of them still nursing. Please lift up these children and their father as they try to rebuild their lives without their mother and wife. It is always difficult for children to survive here without a mother, but God is good and in control of even this, and we trust that He will use this for His glory.

Please check back next week for an update on the distribution of food and supplies for these families. We are so grateful for your donations and prayers! We, along with the families here, are so blessed by your support!