Maria's Project 
 

UPDATE:  The evaluation went really well.  The staff were very receptive to it and some of the points were confirmations of what God was already speaking to some of them.  In addition, one of the women told me that when I said to them "These are just recommendations -- you are now responsible for the future of the Project and you have to do the work of praying into what is next and hearing what God is saying." -- it broke something in her that she had felt about Americans always telling them what to do next.   That made me feel like the whole thing was worth any effort I put into it!  What a nice affirmation from the Lord.

Marvelhosa (Wonder) and Niteroi are the two villages I visited today.  They are in the midst of the jungle and lie on the edge of the Maderia River about 15 kilometers from each other.  Having no roads, we arrived by motor boat.   These two small communities are where some of the girls live who are part of the “Maria’s Project”.  This is the YWAM ministry project that I am evaluating.  Their moto is: "Respect, Love, Dignity: Full Attention to a Healthy Adolescent”.  For about 1 ½ years now they have been meeting with about 45 girls ages 12 to 18.  The ministry aim is to boost their self-esteem, confidence, and health -- and to show them that their dreams can be a reality.  As I understand and hear more about how the project has impacted these underprivileged girls, I am amazed to see what this ministry has done.  It actually is impacting not just the girls themselves, but their whole families.  Some of the girls have kids already and even so, they are daring to look to a future with hope and a new view of the world -- one they never quite saw before or gave up for the community norm.  Today when we arrived to have the girls fill out a questionnaire, they embraced the staff that came with us and it was obvious that the whole family thought highly of those involved.  We were welcomed warmly by all ages.  I can’t wait to read the translated versions of the girl’s answers to our questions.  I look forward to writing this evaluation and making suggestions for improvement while encouraging the staff to carry on in those areas that worked well. 

IPHC School 

UPDATE

My last week in Brazil, I taught in a YWAM school for a few days.  The school is Introduction to Primary Healthcare (which I took and staffed in Kona).  My topic was normal child development of children 5 and under.  There were 12 students – most Brazilian and one from Sweden.  After teaching, the feedback I received was from a man with two kids of his own who said that in Brazil, the doctors just tell the parents that the child is doing well, but never explain any of the stages the kids go through or what to expect next.  They said it was really helpful to learn these things.  That blessed me so much as I had felt like a lot of what I had to say was so simple and might not be what they needed.

I can hardly believe it!  The Thursday night community gatherings which are full of Brazilian worship and testimonies of the YWAM missionaries in the Amazon tribes have been inspiring.  I’m going to miss all the wonderful and friendly people I’ve met over these three months – the spiders and the weather . . . feeling like 109 degrees with 50% humidity . . .on the other hand are not things I’ll miss!

Thank you for your part in this partnership – once again!   You have made a difference and with all your prayers and guiding of the Holy Spirit – I believe that the seeds that have been planted here will sprout in the years to come for health and prosperity.

See the next column over at the top for more from this update. . .

_________________

INFANTICIDE

Children Buried Alive:
One of the major pushes of the base at this time is to fight the infanticide that occurs in many of the tribes.  Apparently any child who is not exactly normal is believed to have no soul and even twins are thought to be without one and will bring bad things to the tribe.  Parents are forced to bury them alive.  It is an awful thing and even many from the tribes think it is wrong.  YWAM Brazil has taken a stand for the children against much criticism from the Brazilian government who would prefer that the Amerindians continue to die out and leave the vast Amazonian forest and all its resources.  It is a very touchy issue here.  The government is forcing the missionaries out of the tribes and causing a lot of trouble.  Last year, a docudrama, called Hakani, about infanticide was made by David Cunningham (our YWAM founder’s son) which you can view online for a time at http://www.hakani.org/en/premiere.asp.  Hakani means smile and is the name of a little girl (in the photo above) who was finally brought to the missionaries after several years struggling to live with her barely older brother who rescued her from death but she was badly malnourished and looked much younger than her actual years.  Hakani had a thyroid disease which was treated and now she is an active, smiling teen adopted by the missionaries.  However, the Brazilian government is trying to take Hakani away from them and send her back to the tribe.  YWAM is taking a step for justice and the value of all life by introducing a law addressing this issue called Muwaji’s Law.  Please pray that this law is presented to the House of Representatives here in Brazil.  It is beginning to gather momentum but needs even more attention and public outcry. 

Here’s what YOU can do . . .

1.       Visit the Hakani clip at www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbjRU6_ZjOU.  Rate it and send the link to others.  Post it on your own website and blog.

2.       If you’re on facebook . . . find the “Hakani” group.  Join the group and invite all your contacts to join. 

3.       Email your approval of Muwaji’s Law to
Arlindo Chinaglia (Ppresident of the Congress) at dep.arlindochinaglia@camara.gov.br
and
Pompeo De Mattos (President of the Congress’ Human Rights and Minorities Committee) at
dep.pompeodemattos@camara.gov.br
and
Tarso Genro (Minister of Justice) at gabinetemj@mj.gov.br

4.       Write to Janete Pieta who promised to present the law to the House of Representatives at dep.janeterochapieta@camara.gov.br .

5.       PRAY!!!

Villa Princesa 
 

The other main ministry I’ve been working hard to realize is community health development in a squatter village that resides next to the city dump and has about 170 families.  My translator, Berenice, and I travel about 5 hours round trip for a day there – including walking, 2 busses and sometimes a ride or taxi.  We go two to three times a week.  The first day we were told it was a pretty rough place so for protection, they arranged for a 14-year old boy to walk us around and because he knew everyone we wouldn’t be approached with hostility.  That was reassuring – haha!  

Most people in Villa Princesa are recyclers.  They go to the dump everyday to find their income.  They recycle plastic, iron, aluminum, glass, paper and other items – often finding supplies to build their own home or to use as assorted furniture.  They seem very creative although this is far from the ideal life they all want.  It appears that there is a lot of depression and although the people are organized in their recycling businesses, they seem to lack vision and a sense of community.  Unfortunately, they have somewhat of a poverty mentality and are rather reliant on the government and others for anything community related.

                My role has been to assess the community through interviews to see what health care they may want work together on changing for the benefit of all.  Many of the villagers want change, but are not so willing to work together for it.  For some it is a matter of money, for some I think there is a spirit of independence and for others there are political and relational issues.  Many of the health problems are related to the dump – smoke from fires at the dump causing respiratory problems, malaria & dengue which breed easily there, poor hygiene and drug and alcohol problems within the community. 

After my assessment, it seemed that the best place to begin was at the primary school.  It is the only school in the village and was built by YWAM years ago.  The principal gave me permission to teach some of the older classes.  Berenice & I taught on just saying “NO” to drugs and alcohol as well as the rollercoaster way their emotions will be as teenagers and making wise choices.  The teaching wrapped up with each one making the choice to sign a certificate saying “No” to drugs and alcohol.

                Next week I’ll be teaching 7 and 8 year olds on good hygiene.  It has been fun to teach the kids and so many of them seem starved for attention and hugs, it has been a delight to give and receive huge hugs from them.  It is hard for me to think of what goes on in the homes of some of these kids.  Please pray with me for them to escape the worst of what man can do to them – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, etc.  (more prayer requests . . . )

                In the afternoons I’ve been teaching an adult health class at the home of Bellu & Rai, YWAMers who live in Villa Princesa.  I’m encouraging one of the ladies to go on to become a nurse as she’s very interested in health care and helping her neighbors and they could use a local nurse.  It has been good to teach them on the basics such as diarrhea, worms, allergies, hygiene and respiratory diseases like pneumonia.  They are happy for the teaching and a delight to work with.  I wish I could spend more time with them and teach an actual health seminar.  However, their time does not allow for it.  Some of them work in their own bakery and when they aren’t baking, they are taking care of kids, washing all their family’s clothes by hand and making their meals – all from scratch – no microwaves in this village folks.  TVs & cell phones-- yes, microwaves, no.

Porto Velho, Rôndondia

July

Bom Dia!  (sounds like “bon gia”) Good Morning!

I arrived safe and sound with no problems and have had adjusted to the life on the YWAM base here in Porto Velho.  Everyone I’ve met is very friendly and gracious.  There are more people here who speak English than I anticipated, but they are happy I am learning Portuguese. 

Surroundings:
The base owns quite a bit of property a good twenty minutes from the city.  I rented a bike to use on the base to get around.  It is 3-showers-a-day hot, humid and dusty as the rainy season is over.  Malaria is a bit of a problem here: I spray down each evening about 6.  I am looking forward to working in the govt. approved Malaria lab they run on base.  It is open every day – 365.  If someone suspects they may have it, they come in, are tested and in an hour they have their results and free treatment if required.  That is reassuring.  Poisonous snakes are said to be around so I take my flashlight everywhere at night.  The monkeys keep to themselves and the spiders are huge!  There are lots of interesting sounding birds and even fresh water dolphins in the river which I caught a brief glimpse of the other day.  

Base Mission:
I was wrong in thinking that the base was on the Amazon, it is not, but is on the Madeira River, a main tributary that brings goods the farthest into Brazil via the Amazon from the Atlantic.  Porto Velho is the last stop and the capital of the state of Rondônia.  This base has quite a history of working with the Amerindians and are now working with 13 Amazonian tribes and several local communities.  One community is of about 80 families living on a garbage dump, two are villages of River People who are rather isolated and another in the area near the base as well as across the river with the very poor of Porto Velho.  Several ministries have come out of working in these areas and YWAM is well known and respected here.  Because the tribes don’t have roads or landing strips, the base has a float plane and our YWAM bush pilot makes a lot of drops to villages – sometimes for the missionaries living in the villages and sometimes for the villagers themselves. 

What I’m Doing:
July

It is an exciting place to be and although right now I am taking the time to learn Portuguese for a couple of weeks, I am looking forward to hearing more about these ministries and working with some of them.  I have already been involved with the very beginnings of a proposal to replicate the malaria lab and training school for technicians.  The goal of the ministry is to expand into all the countries where malaria is prevalent through the YWAM bases and be able to attack it head on with quick diagnosis and treatment while the malaria vaccine is being developed.  It is a huge proposal and with God directing it, I expect it to happen but it will not be quickly completed. 

Other plans to work in existing community ministries are being prayed into, communicated and worked out logistically.  Even though I know some language, I will have to have a translator each place I go.  Please pray for these things as they take a lot of time and relationships are a bigger priority than tasks -- not that things don't get done, but it is all relational first, then the work begins.

Please take the time to read the next column over on Infanticide if you haven't already done so.  Your prayers are needed!

Until my next update . . . tchau!