After a 36-hour bus ride to Maputo, Mozambique we arrived at a cement house in the country surrounded by mango, lime and coconut trees. Our teams are sleeping on the cement floor under blue mosquito nets that will hopefully protect us against malaria. The first day we were briefed on what to do if we see a deadly cobra or momba (scream and run), how to survive 108 degree weather without air conditioning or fans, how to protect against worms that burrow in your skin and the fact that there may or may not be large rats we will come in contact with…. we are for sure not in Kansas anymore..
The house is small but our contact Angie has made it her home. Growing up in Texas, Angie became a nurse and worked in a hospital for many years. She felt God was calling her to do missions and decided to do a year long project in Mozambique. After spending a year here God gave her a vision of a small house with a garden where she would teach boys. She decided to come back and start a home for boys, giving them the opportunity to attend school and learn what it was like to be loved by a mother.
She now has built a home for the boys and currently has 10 enrolled during the school year. The boys live at her home and she teaches them how to grow their own food, learn basic skills and what it feels like to be loved by God. She gives them a bed, food and pays for their schooling. While she gives them a lot, she doesn't give them handouts, making sure they work for it. As Angie said, “I give the boys the tools for their future, but I can’t give them their future.” A couple boys have graduated and moved onto trade schools and gotten jobs from there; a huge feat since many of these boys live in the bush and their parents have either died of AIDs or are unable to care for them.
This month is holiday for the boys so they are back in their villages. Our teams are doing a lot of things that Angie simply cannot complete during the school year…
- Starting a new garden in the back
- Cleaning out the weeds
- Fixing the boys house by cleaning, fixing beds and painting
- Putting together math, English and critical thinking curriculum
- Creating a sponsorship video
- Visiting the boys at their homes in the bush (I can’t wait to go into the African bush)
- Creating a donor database (something I've started)
- Fixing her website
Our messy room with our mosquito nets
The living room
The front of the house (notice Kat tapping her weave)
