Fantastic! Gunnar Jonsson (69) an ”old” friend since many years, Erik Hellström (24) a new friend since this summer, my two nephews Mattias (30) and Erik (22) have made themselves available. Gunnar and Erik 1 (that’s how we call him) are here for 3 months and Mattias and Erik 2 for one month. Sent from heaven! KeA not least is happy for getting practical help. There are lots of tasks and challenges not least at the school. A quite different way of living for all four and much hotter than they are used to. But they seem to enjoy the heat as well as hard-to-flush toilets, rats on the roof, to be surrounded by children when working and to eat  ugali, sukumawiki, kihimo and chapati. They don’t shun the challenge of molding work tops for the new school kitchen, put up partition walls between the classrooms, welding grids to put on drainage gullies and much more.

Erik 1 is welding grids for the drainage gully

Gunnar and Erik 2 are carrying one of the boards that will be put between the classrooms

Mattias is putting the grids in place

The slab is being put!

The cement is being mixed to put the slab for the assembly hall. This will be a great contribution to the school’s facilities and we hope to use it for seminars, courses and conferences of different kinds. Teaching is one of the most important things when it comes to change negative attitudes and behaviors.

School desk ”KeA”!

KeA has made a prototype for a new school desk. He has spent quite a lot of time to produce something nice, functional and durable. The desks you see in schools here are most of the times in very poor condition, ready to fall apart any time. But with the desk ”KeA” there will be a change (we hope). The dream is to start a production of desks so that even other schools could buy them. That will have a second effect in creating new jobs for some people.

ANA is taking new steps!

I am spending a lot of time working with the women’s project ANA. On Monay, Tuesday and Friday mornings I am at the ”shanga” (bead-work) and the bakery and on Wednesday mornings I am leading a course in management, business and computer for 11 of the 20 women.  6 women became jobless when ANA Hotel had to shut down because ends didn’t meet. Three of these women have been given a grant to start their own businesses and they will be couched and guided on Wednesdays when they also will give reports to the group of how their businesses are going. The other three women are working for the group with a small salary. They are trying to promote and market our bakery goods as well as bead-work locally and they help out wherever there is a need. Every Monday I and all the women meet together for prayer and bible study. The bible studies are led by Sarah Edapal, a fantastic Turkana woman. She is a pastor’s wife with a great gift to teach the Word of God. Breanna, a missionary from the US and Renate, a missionary from Germany who have been in Loki for more than 30 years, are also helping out in teaching the women.  It is wonderful with people who are willing to help.

Bread, rolls, cookies, cakes and other goodies!

The ANA Bakery is doing well. The women are  baking all days in the week. Martin, our bread distributer, is going everywhere with his bike and assure that people get what they want. He is a widower and ave two cute children who are in our school. Right now he is making his own home, a simple hut for himself and his children. It seemed very right to give him some extra money so he could by a door and put a tarpaulin on the roof to prevent the rain to come in.

Fransisca is making  ”brown bread” that we the wazungus (white people) like a lot

Martin with his children Tito and Pricilla

Martin’s new home being built