Undeterred (9/20/12)

I am sure you are aware of the violent unrest that has besieged the northern countries of Africa and many other in the Middle East over the past few weeks. As we have watched these events unfold, we couldn't help but wonder what impact these acts of terror would have on my plans to serve in Kenya. Shortly after it became clear that this firestorm was spreading beyond the borders of Libya, I contacted the organization's representative in Kenya to discuss the situation there:

Dear Jenn,

Thank you for your concerns! There is no course of alarm. I would
personally let you know if it is not safe to travel. At the moment,everything
is very fine and life is normal. Terrorism activities is far from our programs
and nothing has happened negatively on these programs. But even if there
were signs, I would personally let you know and change the program at our
cost. I am a father of 2 lovely boys and I know what it is to be a parent!

Best Regards,
Josh

The sad truth is that Kenya has suffered from acts of terrorism perpetrated against its citizens. Although the country's population is almost 90% Christian, the far eastern region is heavily populated with Muslims. Geographically, this region borders Somalia to the east and Sudan to the north, and unfortunately, the ethnic and religious wars in those countries have spilled across the Kenyan border. Most of the attacks that have taken place have been against the Christian population living in eastern Kenya.

Medics for Africa serves in the far western region of Kenya, near Lake Victoria and the border with Tanzania. To put the distance in perspective, the distance between the east and west is about the size of state of Texas! Nevertheless, I take my safety very seriously. I want to come home as much as I want to go serve. I trust the medical organization to make the final decision of whether or not it is safe to travel into the country in January.

Please keep the people of Kenya in your prayers, that they would be spared from the hate-filled violence on display in the countries around them. Please join me in praying for the Spirit of peace to come over the cities under seige, and especially for the protection of our brothers and sisters in Christ who live in dhimmitude in these countries under the oppressive ideology of Islam.

"Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called Sons of God." Matthew 5:9

Love,
Jenn

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. -John 14:27

The Hands of Christ - Our Great Commission (Part 1)

St. Joseph’s Hospital is located in the city of Migori, the capital of the Migori District of Nyanza Province in Western Kenya. Situated near the Kenya-Tanzania border, SJH serves a large population across a broad geographical region. 

The hospital began as a small clinic on the campus of St. Joseph’s Catholic parish in 1974 by Rev. Fr. Knap. Its mission was simple: to live out the Great Commission to reach all those in need, irrespective of faith, by bringing affordable healthcare to an impoverished region beleaguered by disease and death.  

In 1981, with assistance from the Dutch government, Dutch NGO’s, the Kenyan government, and in cooperation with the Catholic diocese of Kisii, the hospital was able to expand its operations and facilities. Land was secured, buildings erected, and the medical staff grew. The hospital became a magnet of care throughout the region. Better facilities and staff meant that more people were being cared for and more lives were being saved. 

In 1999 the hospital was completely given over to the Catholic Diocese of Homa-Bay. Currently, its operations are overseen by a Board of Governors, headed by Rt. Rev. Bishop Phillip S. Anyolo. 

Rt. Rev. Bishop Phillip S. Anyolo

Serving alongside a large team of doctors, nurses, and student volunteers, is Rev.Fr. Joseph Matiko, a Catholic priest and St. Joseph’s chaplain.

“The figure of the hospital chaplain is becoming increasingly important. Sickness does not affect only the body but the whole person, and it calls for a holistic approach,” says Rev. Fr. Matiko. The Chaplain’s job is to defend the sanctity of human life, to bring comfort and compassion to those who are sick or dying, and to counsel those who struggle in their faith.

 In addition to visiting patients on the wards, the Chaplain conducts the sacrament of Last Rights, performs the weekly Eucharist (Holy Communion) and the daily office (daily prayer). There is no chapel on campus, so he has to make due, converting a storage room and table into a place of worship.

Rev. Fr. Matiko, Chaplain

Ministering to the physical needs of the patients at St. Joseph’s will be the main purpose of my time there. But I am truly eager for the chance to join in worship with my Kenyan brothers and sisters in Christ. The liturgy of the Church unites the Body of Christ across the world and throughout history. It is our connection to those believers who came before, and it is a foretaste of our eternal joy in the life to come.

“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:26-29

Two Prayer Requests

First, the current exchange rates between the US Dollar and Kenya Schilling are in our favor. Paying program costs this week would save $150. Do you think we can raise $1200 in a week? I do! Please pray for open hearts, provision, patience, and that the Lord's will would be made clear through the work of His Church.

Luke 1:37

Second, an exciting opportunity for our music school may come out of this trip to Kenya as well. I received this email today from my Medics to Africa coordinator in Migori:

Dear Jenn,

Its such a small world! I and my wife Hannah own a music school in Kenya
and I have just noticed from facebook that you and your husband also love
music and own Providence Music Academy! I'd like to get in touch with your
husband and see if we can work out some music exchange programs. My school
is called Nyali Music School and Center and it offers the Associated
Board of the Royal Schools of Music exams(ABRSM).

Best Regards,

Josh
Medics to Africa

You can read more about Josh's work with underprivileged students here.

At first glance, this sounds like a very exciting opportunity for the students of both music academies. Please pray for discernment as Roger and Josh start conversing over the feasibility of such an idea, and that doors would begin to open if this is part of how the Lord is calling us to minister to the people of Migori.

Proverbs 16:9

PEPFAR and St. Joseph's Hospital

“As President, George W. Bush did something momentous that few of you may know about, something so momentous that it is saving millions of lives and generating goodwill for America around the world. Millions of Africans who`d been dying of AIDS are now living with AIDS, thanks to the Bush program. The U.S. is providing pills to more than two million people with HIV/AIDS, people who could never afford them and who were condemned to die. The medicine not only saves their lives, it permits them to live full lives.” -Bob Simon, 60 Minutes

The President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) was a commitment of $15 billion over five years (2003–2008) from United States President George W. Bush to fight the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. The program initially aimed to provide antiretroviral treatment (ART) to 2 million HIV-infected people in resource-limited settings, to prevent 7 million new infections, and to support care for 10 million people (the "2–7–10 goals") by 2010. PEPFAR increased the number of Africans receiving ART from 50,000 at the start of the initiative in 2004 to at least 1.2 million in early 2008. PEPFAR has been called the largest health initiative ever initiated by one country to address a disease. According to a 2009 study published in Annals of Internal Medicine, the program had averted about 1.1 million deaths in Africa and reduced the death rate due to AIDS in the countries involved by 10%.

 "You know, PEPFAR is an incredible thing just in terms of how many lives it saved. These ARVs [Antiretroviral medicines] have a Lazarus effect on people. You see a picture of them before and then you see them vibrant, alive, working. Their whole family has been dragged down by the illness and now this. I went on a trip in 2006 (to Africa) and I just had a sense of national pride going around, talking to these people, and they were so happy, they would say, "America," and I was saying, "Yeah, our president did that, and it's terrific." It's such an obvious connected thing. People aren't going to hate you when you're saving their lives... I would kiss George W. Bush on the mouth for what he did on PEPFAR." - Matt Damon, actor

St. Joseph's Role in Caring for those with HIV

In September 2004 St. Joseph's Mission Hospital was chosen as one of the sites that would be funded through PEPFAR. Besides making ARV medications available, HIV/AID screening and prevention education is offered to the local community. The hospital's circumcision programs targets uncircumcised men, as research has shown a higher HIV infection rate in uncircumcised communities.

 

St. Joseph's Community Education Program

Volunteering at St. Joseph's is an opportunity to holistically serve these needy people. Whether it is assisting with community education and vaccination programs, helping busy nurses with patient intake, walking with a laboring mother, or comforting a sick child, there are countless opportunities to be the hands and feet of Christ.

Won't you join the effort?

Update:

Today's "All Things Considered" on NPR featured circumcision programs in Kenya. The timing is uncanny. Thanks, Roger, for pointing this out. 

Migori 101

Migori is a town in the southwestern Nyanza Province of Kenya and is the capital of the Migori District. The town is located 40 mi. south of Kisii and 14 mi. north of the Tanzanian border, near Lake Victoria.

The town is home to 46,576 people. Though Swahili is the official language of Kenya, English is spoken by many.

83% of Kenyans are Christian (48% protestant, 24% Catholic). Muslims make up 12% of the population, but live mostly in concentrated areas in the costal and eastern regions.

Migori is connected by road to the Maasai Mara National Reserve, a large game reserve. Named after the Maasai people (indigenous), the park is an extension of the Serengeti of Tanzania.

 Swahili 101

Hello – jambo

How are you? –

habari gani

Please – Tafadhali

Thank you – Asante

Good-bye – kwa heri

Healthcare in Kenya

Despite major achievements in the health sector, Kenya still faces many challenges. Preventable diseases such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, pneumonia, diarrhea and malnutrition are the major child killers and responsible for much morbidity. Weak policies, inadequate health workers, weak management and poor leadership in most public health facilities are largely to blame. Gaps in Kenya’s healthcare system are filled by private and church run units, such as St. Joseph’s Mission Hospital where Medics to Africa volunteers serve year-round.

  

Infant Mortality

44 per 1000 births.

Risk of Maternal Death

1 in 38

Life Expectancy

50 years and dropping

 The need for medical volunteers is great.

“Good health care is very hard to find in this part of the world. We lived in a much bigger town just an hour and a half south [of Migori] in Tanzania, and the health care there was really shabby with women sharing beds while giving birth. The hospitals are always overcrowded. In spite of the bad conditions, desperate people come from many miles away by walking, bicycling, or catching a lift in the back of a passing pick-up truck.”             

- Kim Hill, Wycliff Missionary in Africa

Together, we can reach them.

 “Then the King will say, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, 
‘Truly I tell you, 
whatever you did for the least of these, 
you did for me.'
Matthew 25:34-40
 

Praise God! First challenge met.

I'm so happy to announce that thanks to three generous contributions, the deposit for my internship was raised! The first hurdle in this challenge has been met. I don't know why it surprises me to see the Lord's promises coming into fruition, but I confess it does. C.S. Lewis perhaps said it best, I am surprised by joy.


“It is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13

No Regrets

The story I am about to share, about why a happily married mother of four would turn around and attempt something so preposterous as going into medicine may, for some, beg the question as to why I didn't pursue such a thing in the first place. So allow me to start by stating this first premise very clearly: Even if I could do the past twelve years of my life differently, I wouldn't.

Upon leaving high school with the very best prospects a new graduate could hope for, I attended university. Two qualities could best describe me: emotionally exhausted and utterly lacking in confidence. The normal bumps one experiences while adjusting to adult life shook me to my core and my academic prospects suffered the brunt of my fear and insecurities. As my grades crashed so did my hopes of ever getting into medical school. Feeling that my time then had become a waste, I worked as hard and as fast as I could to get out of school with at least a semblance of self-respect. I completed my bachelor's program in Philosophy with a decent GPA in two and half years.

Along the way my life took two wonderful turns: I met Christ and I met Roger. My desire to go into medicine found a new expression in the possibility of going into ministry. Roger and I were married and went off to seminary where we prepared to work in the church. Eventually kids came along and our business grew. I laid aside the present possibility of a career as I turned my attention towards keeping a home and raising a family.

For the past seven years, these responsibilities have consumed my time and energy. Roger and I often discussed my desire to return to work. The idea of a working wife grew on him over time, realizing as he did that my work at home, though indispensable to him and the children, was not necessarily the best long-term fit for his wife. However, he was also very clear that the children would have to be fairly well on their way before my attentions could be spared.

The trajectory of this storyline might not have been much altered if not for the events following the birth of Joseph. It sounds cliche, but coming so close to death makes you realize just how short life is. There is an urgency, a boldness, a reordering of priorities that follows such an experience. Things that were once important lose their importance and certain dispositions, such as complacency or resignation, become intolerable.

And so it was that last summer, just as we were emerging from the valley of darkness, that Roger told me it was time that I return to my original passion for medicine. He knew full well what he was saying. With my academic background, I would have two years of full-time schooling ahead of me just to apply to a program. My previous GPA would require nothing less than a 4.0 over the course of 48 units of science and math. I would need to commit to at least 100 hours of volunteerism. Not to mention the preparation required for any entrance exams. And he knew there was a very real chance that, even after all this sacrifice, nothing may come of it in the end.

It's actually because of the infinitesimally small chance of this goal coming to fruition that I decided against telling those around me of my ambitions. I needed to first gain some quiet confidence that I could even go back to school and succeed at the level required to even consider applying to med school. I'm happy to report that my first year finished with much success. I am currently enrolled in summer classes and have a full year ahead of me. I was fortunate to receive student volunteer placement at Doctor's Hospital in the OR (the bonus of this otherwise janitorial-type job is that I get to observe various surgeries). This also explains why I desired to apply for a medical mission to Kenya -- a fitting mix of my new desire for ministry and my original desire to work in medicine.

So let it be said again: I am not pursuing this career because I wish I could undo my family. I am investing in this process precisely because of the love and support I have in them. The internal compulsion to pursue these dreams has, at last, found a safe and supportive environment in which to be expressed.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever. Amen." Ephesians 3:20-21

Top Five Questions Answered

First, a big Thank You to everyone who has emailed, subscribed, or called to share their support for this service trip to Kenya. Your notes have been rays of sunshine during what has proven to be some rather bumpy past few days.

I thought my very next post ought to address the three most common questions I've heard so far. It would not be fair for me to ask you to partner with me on a project you knew nothing about. I also hope that as you learn more about this, your excitement will grow as well. (Maybe you'd even like to come along??)

1. Is this a mission trip with your church?

No. Medics to Africa is not a religious organization. I just need to be honest about that; I can't make it something it isn't. However, I connected with them through a directory of Christian medical mission organizations, so obviously they welcome personnel who instill in these internships a faith-component. Now, the five hospitals to which they send students are mission hospitals. This particular one in Migori is a Catholic charity hospital. Some of the hospitals require a statement of faith but this isn't one of them. So you will notice that I'm careful in my choice of words, preferring to call this a service trip.

On this note, service trips meant to minister to the physical needs of others without a spiritual component are not without scriptural basis. I don't want to lose any readers in the specifics, but there are accounts of Jesus healing the sick without making it a come-to-faith moment. As the cliche goes, 'Spread the Gospel wherever you go. If necessary, use words'.

2. Is your husband supportive?

I would not be here if he wasn't! This year wouldn't have been all that it has been without his complete support. I am so blessed to have such a gracious husband. We have had many conversations about how to appropriately balance my obligations to my family and the work necessary for me to achieve my long-term goals. Family comes first. Additionally, we are fortunate to run our own business. We set our own schedule. There is actually a lot more family-time built into our lives than most families are afforded. This has remained true over this past year of school, and will continue to be the case. Roger knows he can ask me to lay these goals down if he believes they have become too much for our marriage or children. And, if it were to ever come to that, I trust him to make that decision selflessly and with wisdom and courage.

3. Why Medics to Africa?

Medics to Africa is a unique program in that it accepts students year-round for internships of any length up to a year. I'll only be gone two weeks, but it was crucial that my trip be timed for winter break so that my schooling is not interrupted. I don't know many churches that travel during the Christmas season, do you? In the end, it was the flexibility of scheduling as well as offering a program that is more hands-on for pre-med students than most medical mission trips would permit.

4. Are you well enough to travel?

I appreciate the concern of everyone who has asked after my health and whether or not I am in a place to safely travel such far distances and to a part of this world that does not enjoy the level of sanitation and health care that we have here. The short answer is: Yes. My health problems, though they were severe and so very frightening for my family to watch me go through, do not define me. They are a part of my past. They were the catalysts to the events which brought me to this point. Again, my responsibility is to my family, and I would not even consider such an endeavor if I believed I was not physically able to meet the demands.


5. Are you pre-med?

Yes.*

* But I'm keeping my options open. Let's talk about this more in another post.

 

Let's Jump In!

Welcome to my new blog! What you find here may be surprising, challenging, radical even. The story I'm about to tell you, and the opportunity I am going to ask you to join me on, will not fit into the typical storyline for the typical life of a wife, mother-of-Four, early-thirty-something. In fact, I'll have to ask you to check all preconceived notions of such people at the door.

In short, I am asking you to partner with me on an exciting journey.

Skipping over all the back-story (I'm saving it for later, so be sure to subscribe!), I have been accepted to a pre-med internship with Medics to Africa to serve at St. Joseph's Mission Hospital in Migori, Kenya. Medics To Africa is a medical outreach organization dedicated to providing much-needed healthcare to indigent and isolated people in remote villages. Lord willing, I plan to travel to Kenya in December for two weeks, where I will intern under the supervision of physicians and other clinicians on the various wards of St. Joseph's 300 bed facility. 

Coming to this place has been a year-long journey of discernment that is by no means complete. I do not know what exactly the Lord has been preparing me for over this past year of full-time schooling. (I still have one more year ahead of me.) But I pray that this service trip will offer further discernment of His will. 

I hope I can count on you for your prayers and financial support as I seek to raise $3600 for program and travel costs. Stay tuned for more posts and emails!

Gratefully Yours,
 

Jenn