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The Grace Journal is a place where Rev. Wambugu, and perhaps occasionally others of the Grace Ministries staff, will summarize the work of the day or week. We want you to feel that you are an active part of our work and our lives, and hope that this on-going journal of our activities – our joys, our sorrows, and our day-to-day work – will help to bring you more closely into our world.
God bless you for your interest and your support!
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Author: Jane Njenga (Head Teacher)
Saturday, March 25, 2006 at 5:01 P.M. (Limuru time)
WEEK ENDING 25TH March 2006:
Grace School is doing well. The week had no incidents. Children and Teachers are staying busy preparing for the examinations, which are due in three weeks. Term 1 will be ending by 12th April and then there will be a three weeks break. The teachers use the 1st two weeks to give remedial help to the children who will not perform satisfactorily in their examinations.
The week was extremely busy for Samuel. Samuel's day begins quite early for he is always in class by 7 a.m. either in Class 5 or 6 giving help in Mathematics. From Wednesday Samuels has been very busy with Church matters. He will be taking Pastoral responsibilities from their current Pastor who is proceeding to another Parish effective April 1st. Samuel will need Gods grace to enable him manage another extra load on top of an already busy schedule. Samuel is attending a Church meeting today and he requested me to write the weeks journal.
Miriam (the school business manager) is still having a problem with her foot. The Doctors were of the opinion that she should be put a plaster because she has a bone fracture. They refrained to do this and opted for a bracelet at the ankle. Our prayer is that she will recover soon.
The food situation has not improved. We are struggling to give the much-needed lunch to Grace Children. We thank God for the way he always provides just before we give up. We are very happy to have received a gift of $ 500 this week from the Korean Church of Knoxville. This was in response to Samuels telephone appeal to the Church through its Church Pastor Rev. Dan Park. There is need for more help. The one-day meal at School is the only hope for food for some children.
Remember to pray for Grace School ministry.
Mrs. Jane Njenga
(Head Teacher)
| Author: Samuel Wambugu
Saturday, March 18, 2006 at 3:53 P.M. (Limuru time)
WEEK ENDING 18TH MARCH 2006:
The week started on high note for both Teachers and Pupils. The two-day break from the school routine was very helpful. The children were very early in School Monday. 80% of the children and all the teachers were in School by 6.45 a.m. This reflects commitments on the part of the teachers and parents who prepare these children so that they can be in school on time. The learning went on well without any interruptions.
The one computer we have installed has become a center of interest to both teachers and pupils. It has turned to be very hardy tool as some teachers are using it to write their thesis, others want to learn and the pupils want to see the many school photographs that were stored in CDS and they have not had an opportunity to see them.
The weather is changing and there are signs of rain coming in the next one week. There were light showers in the mornings this week and children used various innovative ways in order to stay dry and arrive at school on time. There are very few children with umbrellas. When the rain period properly comes in, many children become very wet and cold. It is for this reason that we introduced mid morning tea and bread last year. The best way to handle this problem is for each child to have an umbrella.
Miriam (the school business manager) slid and hurt her ankle Sunday. She has been to the hospital three days this week. She has returned to her office and she will need two days each week for physiotherapy.
Other issues of concern are the Political events unfolding in our country and the expected transition in our church. The country politics affects us indirectly because when the economy hurts it hurts us. The prices of sugar, bread and meat have gone up by 15% this week. This has reduced the purchasing power of the little money we have.
I had mentioned briefly that Rev. Paul Kinyanjui our pastor at Community Presbyterian Church is moving to another Parish effective 1st April. The Church has requested me to take up the pulpit ministry. I have agreed to their request for a period of three years as we pray for another minister to come. This is an extra load on my already plateful. I will be sharing more about this in the future, but I need your prayers.
The Lord bless you.
Rev. Samuel Wambugu.
| Author: Samuel Wambugu
Monday, March 13, 2006 at 09:56 A.M. (Limuru time)
WEEK ENDING 11TH MARCH:
We continued to enjoy the unexpected rain showers in the early part of the week, which have now subsided. This has made the crops to sprout and the gardens looks green. These showers are in very scattered areas of the country and most of the country has remained dry.
We have installed a word processor in our School office. This computer is very old and very slow. We would like to make maximum use of electricity that was installed after along struggle. One way we envisage is by appealing from friends who have good used computers to donate to the school. Our power supply of 240v may limit us using American computers which use 110v. If we are anticipating that if we can initially get four, the teachers can learn computer skills first before they can start teaching the children. A good used desktop computer would cost $ 500. Children with computer skills have a high advantage to job markets as well as to good opportunity of joining good High Schools.
On Friday 10th the teachers had a retreat at a place called paradise Lost. There are waterfalls, caves, horse and Carmel riding and boating. It is a clean picnic site where teachers make their own food. We were a group of 13 including Josphat who helped to cook the food. We opened our session with a 15-minute devotion led by Rev. Samuel Wambugu before we went into the days business. Many issues like, Academics, discipline, parents meeting, teachers support and many others. An interesting agenda was the strong feeling by the teachers for us to seek means of making our school semi boarding. This means offering boarding facilities to the extremely needy and vulnerable children and in particular the girl child. We have lost extremely potential girls like Rachel for living in an atmosphere that is luring to promiscuous living in order to get a weekend meal that resulted in pregnancy and dropping out of school. This situation is serious and needs urgent intervention. We are continuing to think on the way forward. It was a very rewarding day both in contribution to the way forward and teachers relaxation after strenuous hard work.
A family that is a friend of Grace School financially supported this one-day retreat and may the Lord bless this family.
Proper rain period is expected to set in by the mid of the month. We are apprehensive that this may affect the children in the top floor since the classrooms are not properly roofed but has only concrete which allows water to percolate. We need to work a way of letting this water run down quickly without stagnating at the top of the building and this implies money, which we do not have. We would however have that water disturb us than the current drought to continue and we continue being hungry.
I have had a busy Saturday morning. My 1st client was Mary a mother of two of our pupils. Mary is the lady that we raised money to have under go a surgery for overgrown goiter. Her problem was that her children have no food. Their last meal was the one they took at School on Thursday. There was no school yesterday. We were had an equivalent of three dollars in our coffer and that is what we gave her. Mary is a representative of many families going hungry.
I also wrote a recommendation for Rev. Bedan M. Kamau a retired minister who wants to do a one-year CPE at Hospital of St. Raphael, New Haven. CT.
Have a good week
Samuel.
| Author: Samuel Wambugu
Saturday, March 04, 2006 at 12:33 A.M. (Limuru time)
WEEK ENDING MARCH 4TH:
We praise God for unexpected three days rainfall. The weather people have been proved wrong in their forecasting. The future belongs to God who knows the end from the beginning. This means that in a months time we shall have vegetables in our gardens and this will reduce the wide spread famine.
We (Samuels home) depend on harvested rainwater from the roof of our house and stored in corrugated iron storage tank. It was very frustrating to discover that our tank has holes on the bottom and it is not retaining any water. We live in a rented house and the owner is in the USA. We have tried to communicate with him concerning the need for another water tank but we have not succeeded. We will continue to observe much needed water go down the drain.
We celebrate the visit of Dr. Ruth Cook who the Lord touched and bought a pair of School Uniform to Cleopas our latest AID orphan. Cleopas is in class four and he stays with his uncle Francis who works as a grounds man at Grace School. The mother died in November last year and after much thought to Francis request of having his nephew join Grace, Cleopas was admitted to class four in Mid February. Cleopas is intelligent, humble and with potential of becoming a significant person to the glory of God.
I (Samuel) had a Counseling session with teacher Jennifer who is going through grief period after loosing her aunt. Jennifer is the senior with two other siblings who depends on her. Her greatest concern is her youngest sister who is in 2nd year in High School and facing the threat of dropping from school because of School Fees. Pray for teacher Jennifer that the Lord will give her wisdom and the means to support her sister and aged grandmother.
The School we have a break on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th. We intend to have a one-day teachers retreat on Friday. This is subject to availability of funds. We have found this retreat to be very helpful to teachers in the past. It is a time of critical reflection of our performance as individuals and as a group and planning the way forward for the year. We shall think together about the concerns and suggestions that were aired by the parents during the Teachers-Parents meeting of Saturday 25th February. This makes teachers, parents and administration to work as a team striving towards the same goal, which is Excelling in all our endeavors by the grace of God.
We are trying to increase our funding base by appealing for individual sponsorship for the extremely needy children. We are hearing positive interest and pray that this will bear fruits. Our financial base is very small in relation to the needs. We are however thankful for Churches and individuals who have continued to faithfully praying and tangibly supporting Grace School.
God's peace
Samuel.
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Please know that your donation can help, not only to save the life of a child in Limuru, but to guide that life in such a way as to loosen the stranglehold of despair and death that threatens so much of Kenya's population. Thank you, in advance, for your compassionate support!
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