"BUSH BUNNY BRENDA"

FROM "BUSH BUNNY BRENDA"

DATE: OCTOBER 24, 2015

20 WATER WELLS BEING REPAIRED THANKS TO MANY GENEROUS HEARTS         Manuel loads the water well parts from the MFA aircraft.   With the help of multiple donors, we were able to meet the $1,700 parts bill for the water wells in Meluco District,  pay transport costs, AND provide the 3 man team’s food expenses for 5 days in the bush!  Unknown to me, the “2015 price list” that I quoted from was not correct due to the massive foreign exchange “turmoil” that took place Oct. 1st.  This caused ALL imported parts prices to sky rocketed throughout Mozambique in the last few weeks!  (these water well parts are imported from India)   BUT GOD KNEW THAT, and provided through multiple donors to make up the difference!   WE EVEN HAD ENOUGH FUNDS TO BUY 15 EXTRA BASIC REPAIR KITS!    These are much needed, as we just received requests to repair ANOTHER 4 WELLS in Balama that that have broken. Oct. and November are the driest of the dry months, and our busiest with water wells.  The rubber water well rings usually only last about a year. Keeps Manuel and his 2 man team hopping for sure! THANK YOU, THANK YOU to all who gave so generously so that more than 40,000 people can have clean water in the next 2 weeks.   BUSH BUNNY AND CREW HOPPED AT FULL SPEED THIS WEEK   Our week jumped out of the starting gate on Monday with a 4:30a.m. drive for Layla and I to Pemba.    Layla left for RSA on a commercial flight, and MAF fetched me in their 6 seater Cessna for the 1 hr. 20 min. flight to Nampula City, 7 hours drive to the south of us.   With the water well parts being the priority, MAF (Missions Aviation Fellowship) offered Manuel and I a helping hand, sparing me the long, bumpy, and VERY exhausting  14 hour round trip drive to Nampula.       Thanks to Steve, our MFA pilot, for these pics from his iphone.   Manuel is my “right hand man”, as Eric Dry trained him to be our “handy man”.  Besides maintaining the vehicles at our base, he is our WATER WELL FIX IT MAN!  One of the best around, as his “fix it” skills are requested by multiple districts each dry season.   He went with me to Nampula to make sure we received the right parts needed to repair the 20 water wells in Meluco. (Was a good thing, as he discovered several errors in the order which he corrected.)   MONDAY NIGHT, in  Nampula: Capena, our Balama office manager, called to say we had a team of orphanage inspectors coming from Pemba on Wednesday at 11 a.m.  That meant I had to cancel all plans for Tuesday shopping in Pemba, and race to Balama instead of fetching the much needed baby formula, and fabric for making clothes for our orphans.   TUESDAY in Nampula: Manuel left by taxi at 6:30 a.m. to fetch the water well parts.  At 8:30 a.m., I renewed my passport and was ready to go. MAF was very accommodating, and had us out of the airport by 10:30 a.m.   We were back in Pemba by 12 NOON and made the 4 hour drive to Balama, arriving before dark!   WEDNESDAY: Our entire Staff showed up early to help organize the food and equipment for the food distribution for the inspectors to observe on Thursday.  Watching “HOW” we distribute the food to the widows was a main item on their agenda.  They arrived at 11, and we were in meetings with them until almost 4pm that afternoon, as they read every detail of our children’s files.   (All was found in order, PTL!)   THURSDAY:  The inspection team left with smiles on their faces, as they were happy with our food distribution process.   They wanted radios in the 2 houses of younger children, so they could listening to music and the news.  (The 8 boys in the dorm have had a radio since day one for this purpose.)  They also wanted more “traditional food” added to their diet, so that correction was made immediately on their weekly menus.   Since we corrected these problems within that same day, the inspectors were extremely pleased.   FRIDAY:   2 a.m.  Pastor Alberto, Evangelist/Bible School teacher working with the 830 new converts in Namuno District, called me to say he was very sick and needed immediate transport to the hospital.  Our 2nd driver, Genito, was fetched by bicycle by one of my guards, and was on his way to Namuno District to fetch him by 4 a.m. (Alberto is now recovering at home from a hernia attack.)   At 5 a.m., I drove to Pemba to fetch LAYLA, who received her Residency Visa, AND to purchase the much needed BABY FORMULA and FABRIC for the children’s clothing.    UNKNOWN TO US, BABY FORMULA PRICES  greatly increased as it is also imported.  Most stores were sold out because the store owners don’t have enough money to buy at the higher price in RSA. My 2 man team and I spent 4 hours going to every store and tiny market stall in Pemba, buying up the few cans that each had in stock.   PTL! We managed to obtain a 5 week supply (160 cans) for the 32 babies currently in the program!  One of the major importers has promised to save us 15 cases when her November shipment comes in.  For this we are most grateful!   Our motto:  We do what it takes to provide for our children, and QUIT is not in our vocabulary.   Keep your prayers coming that the “promised formula” arrives on time in November. Never a dull moment around here for sure.   AWANA LEADER SETS ANOTHER NEW RECORD     CARLITOS JORGE AND AMBROSIO, showing off new bike and AWANA game materials after setting new attendance record in Marica Village. These 2 are the “dynamic duo” when it comes to Children’s Evangelism     Carlitos Jorge and assistant,  “now grown up orphan” Ambrosio, did their 3 normal AWANA programs in NQUIDE Village on Saturday.   They then traveled on their new motorbike to MARICA Village to start a new program. 596 children and 46 adults attended this meeting, with all hearing the GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST for the FIRST TIME!   In a village of 4,000, this is AMAZING!   DE BUNNY is “bushed” after all that happened this week, but it’s amazing to watch as “Jesus’ plan” provided our needs and brought many to know about HIM at the same time.  Perseverance and persistence.  Much needed qualities for all those who serve JESUS, no matter what country you are in.   Blessings,   Bush Bunny Brenda Lange   Layla Silva (happy to be “home” again).     I know someone is truly “called” to serve when they look forward to returning to “remote” Balama.