Closure

Quiet Moments

Last week we had a good evening returning to the Praia lighthouse with Elder and Sister Anderson, the office couple who keep the mission running.  I caught this photo at sunset.

Last week we also traveled to the northern island nearly every day.  So it was a great day when we traveled for housing inspections together with President and Sister Amo, and President Amo drove!  You can see how relaxed we are in these photos taken from the rooftop apartment in which the Sisters in Assomada live.

During the final stage of the chicken project we had a class on caring for chickens, which we coordinated for the families who were receiving them.   A technician from a local company, UPR Animal, taught the class, and it was well received.
















Here is a link to the movie the church made about the chicken project.  We know most of the people in this short clip.  The humanitarian couple are the Carnell's, who proceeded us here and proposed this project.

https://www.lds.org.uk/stand-in-need

Closure

And this week we completed the chicken project on Santiago, and said goodbye to the last of our sweet galinhas.  We made three trips to the northern island in our car, loaded with 42 chickens each time, all bound for their new homes.  We had miracles, a grower lent us two cages to safely transport more birds in our car.  The count of the birds was so important, we would drive to the far ends of the island for deliveries and there needed to be exactly 21 birds for each family.  On one occasion we unloaded the first carrier and we were one short.  How did we miscount?  And the we unloaded the second carrier for that location and somehow there was an extra bird in it, we were ok.

At the end of the project we went to the home of Dina, the owner of the farm, to give her the last rent payment.  She had gone out of her way on multiple occasions to help us, novices that we were.  We had called ahead to see if we could drop by, so when we arrived we were surprised that Dina's family was having a holiday meal.  We were invited in and she insisted that we join them at the table.  It was a beautiful, beautiful hour as we made small talk in Portuguese, and thanked her for the help she gave to the 18 families who received chickens through the project.  It was such a pleasant thing to sit with her family and enjoy the delicious food.  Humbly, there are missionaries who go home from this mission having never eaten a meal with a local family.  It seems hard to comprehend, coming from the United States where missionaries get meals most evenings with members.  Food and water are simply very dear/expensive here, and many homes do not have running water or kitchens so many families have very little to share with missionaries.  And yet we had the blessing of a meal with a local family.  They even let me take a photo.  We will treasure the memory of this experience for a long time.



On Wednesday, we said goodbye to our friend Elder Teela, from Liberty.  He was pretty excited to go home.  It was nice having him in this mission, as I worked with the missionaries, taking their calls and helping them with medical problems, it was just good to be connected to Elder Teela.  We wish him well.

Chicken Deliveries

Going to Assomada

So this was the big week for delivering the first 187 chickens to their new homes. The logistics have been incredible, lots of details and personnel, and of course birds and trucks, all to be managed. We got 61 delivered here in Praia Tuesday evening.  It was exciting getting the birds into the covered truck. Then six stops around Praia.  What we learned was, move FAST because the truck gets hot when it is stopped.  In Portuguese galinhas are hens and frango is cooked chicken . . . . .a stopped truck turns galinhas into frango so Keep Moving!

Manuel Helping Load Chickens into Truck

then Saturday afternoon we loaded 126 birds into the back of a truck, using feed bags to space them out and keep them from smothering each other.  We moved quickly, there were four of us.  I stayed in the back of the truck as we loaded, working to keep the hens calm.  Finally we are loaded and we head to Assomada-- about 40 km over mostly mountainous roads.  Things seem to go well.  We have been blessed with a cool day-- a heavenly miracle, because we need cool to keep the birds alive.  And the wind in the truck helps.  

Pushing the Truck to the Gas Pump

About 10 km from Assomada we begin to head up an incline into switchbacks on the mountain.  The truck, which we are following in our missionary car, sputters and dies.  It sputters and dies again. They are stopped on the road ahead of us. The driver gets out and smiles at us . . . . they are out of gas.

I am certain this is a death sentence for our birds.  It's over.  But, truly miraculously, we are able to back the truck down the hill 100 yards and into a small bar/gas station that we had not noticed.  I help push the truck to the pump because Elder Biven is on the phone with the man in Assomada who will show us how to get to the houses. We purchase gas.  It takes WAY TOO LONG.  We need to get MOVING.  I can't get into the truck to check on them because the cover is tied closed.  We need to get MOVING.

Finally we are back on the road.  We go to the first house and and I get into the back of the truck and start working with the birds.  I pull them apart, they are hot and exhausted and three are dead.  But I put 21 in baskets for delivery to the first house and I work with them, I talk to them, I keep them off each other, I hold them on my lap and I sit in the back of the truck for the next five stops.  And at each stop I send the most exhausted ones to their new homes while Elder Biven works with the new owners to get the birds safely settled.  He quickly fills the water feeders we have provided with vitamin enriched water.  The hens perk up when they are out of the truck and in their new place.

Preparing to Put chickens in Coop

And at the last stop I perk up too.  An older woman, dressed in traditional black clothing,  comes to the back of the truck and thanks me for the chickens.  I get out with the very last basket of birds and follow a narrow walkway to the back of the house where the coop is.  Six younger children are in the coop, happy and excited.  Elder Biven is showing the oldest girl, who is perhaps ten, how to feed the birds with the feed that he and Paolo had delivered the day before (on a major expedition).  It is all worth it. To see the happy children so delighted about their galinhas.

Associação Nos Saúde - Work Begins

Water Tank

We were very excited when our proposal for the Nós Saude health clinic was approved.   In Cabo Verde access to an assured source of water can be problematic.  Therefore every building has its own water reservoir located on top of the building.  Associação Nos Saúde, needed a water tank to put on their roof to support the new bathroom. 

Here is what purchasing a water tank looks like:

Raimundo Monteiro, President of Associação Nos Saúde, and Elder Biven discussing the merits of various water reservoirs.

To the right, a workman inside the tank cleaning debris from the drilling of holes for various connections.

Raimundo with truck driver and helper discussing the best way to load the tank onto the truck.

Later, moving the water reservoir onto the roof of Pilorinho Community Center.  Like most things, this was a group effort.

Easy!

Cement Blocks

After purchasing the water tank and getting it on the roof, we went to buy cement blocks, cement and sand for the interior construction.  

Cement blocks are manufactured here in Cape Verde.  Cement can be made from volcanic ash and lime, so there isn't much of a shortage of supplies to make the new blocks.  They mix the elements up and then use a kind of block pressing machine, it creates blocks using molds.





After the blocks are formed, they are left dry in the warm Cape Verde sun.













Raimundo and our construction supervisor unloading 50kg sacks of cement.

This week, Raimundo, and volunteers from Pilorinho will begin construction.  Raimundo has already secured firm commitments from volunteer doctors and nurses for staffing the "Consultório Social" 


In addition, we have commitments from other NGOs, local companies and the local municipality to provide needed furniture, equipment and supplies for the operation of the clinic.

Two Busy Weeks

Delivering Chicken Coop Materials

What an exciting two weeks.  On a wet Cape Verdean Friday, Elder Biven and Paolo delivered supplies to the eight remaining homes in the Assomada District which will have coops built.













It was a day to witness generous acts.  And what a tender experience entering homes with great love inside them and very little in the way of comforts or possessions.  
















At one of the locations the mother was outside deep frying fish for her family.  She generously offered some to Elder Biven, Paolo, and the truck driver and his assistant.  The first two bites were good, it was kind of chewy....then it was crunchy.....the woman smiled as she watched Elder Biven eat and he told her how delicious it was...."Moray" she said.   She showed him the crushed head with all the sharp teeth (and Elder Biven is thinking, how did they catch a moray eel?  Those are mean little devils). Elder Biven continued to smile as he was given a second piece of the freshly cooked eel and he wandered over to the truck.  Where he can discretely give his second piece to the truck driver who ate it with relish.  But he kept the sweetness of her kindness in his heart.



At the end of the long day, with two more homes to deliver supplies to, one family was not home.  A neighbor approached, offering to store the supplies for his neighbor.  Gratefully Elder Biven and Paolo unloaded the goods into the neighbors humble three room house, taking the 'chapas' or large boards and well as the wire and smaller boards, into the neighbor's small bedroom for safe keeping.  Amazing.

Wood to Fogo

Following delivery of Materials to the Assomada District, the remainder of the wood, 1000kg, could be shipped to Fogo for framing the coops to be built as part of the Sao Filipe Member Welfare Project.  The wood would be shipped by boat, of course.  

So Paolo, NeNe (Paulo's assistant) and Elder Biven strapped the wood into bundles and got it on a truck and down to the dock.   

The bundles of wood were 350 lbs a piece, so Elder Biven was extremely happy to see the crane on the boat for loading the wood off the dock!  And it was funny, as he and Paolo and the truck driver pushed the bundles of wood off the truck onto the dock the dock workers shooed Elder Biven away........ they could handle this...... we looked at each other and laughed, perhaps it was our gray hair that caused the dock workers so much concern.  :). What a blessing that they helped us.

Nos Saude Project

Towards the end of the week, we received news that our project proposal to help with materials for a health clinic in Achada Grande was approved.  What joy we feel at being able to help prepare a small clinic for delivery of health services to this humble area.  We attended a celebration at the clinic location-- Pilorinho-- which included dance and song and shaking hands with the community group president.  We have enjoyed our time with the members of this small community and look forward to working with them on this project.

Tarrafal Wedding (Elder Biven)

Finally, this past Friday, we were invited to the wedding of President Mendonca's Mother in Tarrafal. President Mendonca is the 2nd Counselor in the Mission Presidency.  He is also the Director of Self Reliance for the Southern Cabo Verdean islands.  President Mendonca was one of the first people that we met when we arrived and has reached out to help us on multiple occasions.

It is common in Cabo Verde for couples to live together for their entire lifetimes without being married.  Of course without being married, a couple cannot join the church.  So this was a doubly joyous occasion.  The marriage was to be Friday followed by a baptism on Saturday.

Tarrafal is a lovely town on the northeast coast of Santiago.  Just perfect for a tired nurse to go walking in the sand.

Beautiful Place. . . . . . . . Beautiful Sister

Pastor João's Farm

Last week Elder Biven felt we should go tracting.  As humanitarian missionaries, that means we go out and look for NGOs(non-government organizations) who are doing good work that we would like to partner with.  In a country with no addresses and no phone book, tracting for NGOs could be challenging.  But Elder Biven has kept his radar on, as have I, and as we have driven through Praia to inspect missionary apartments, or to run errands for the chicken farm, etc. we have watched for signs with phone numbers.  That's how we find NGOs (and medical services, many times).

So last Friday we went tracting.  We went to an organization in Varzea that LDS Charities helped a few years ago.  At that time they were just getting started and they needed kitchen equipment for their services for the elderly.  We visited their site.  It appeared to be locked up tight, but as we approached I felt I should ask the guy across the street sitting on a bench about the organization.  He said he didn't know anything, but a fellow walking a few yards away overhead my question and nodded his head and took us in.  The manager was happy to see us, remembering the work we had previously done, and readily set up and appointment with the president.  I felt we were very blessed that this happened so easily.  (We actually returned and they have a playground project they would like help with.  It was good to reconnect with them).

Following our first success with tracting that day we tried another organization, Remar.  An international group, in 70 countries, they are seeing success in a faith based approach to overcoming addiction.  We had seen a sign not too far from where we live so we walked over to check things out.  It was the heat of the day on Friday, and once again, the location appeared to be locked up tight.  We lingered in front, then as we turned to walk back home a truck pulled up.  A man jumped out and spoke to us in English "I know you!  I know you!"  Elder Biven began to introduce himself but once again the man said "I know you!"  He had a story to tell.  Twenty six years ago he was a cocaine addict.  He was beginning to turn his life around and he was visited by two young elders.   In his words "they came to my house in Lisbon, and they prayed for me.  A week later I got the job with Remar.  Every time I see them on the street I remember, they prayed for me."  He was so happy to see us.  I wonder if those Elders know how they helped him change his life.  He is married and has four children.  His life has been good, filled with tremendous service to others.

We don't yet know everything about the Remar organization, or Pastor João whom we met that hot afternoon.   But we learned that Remar is building a halfway house on a rented farm in the mountains north of Praia.  This week we had the privilege of returning to visit João in his home,  meeting his wife, and then following him up into the mountains to see the farm.  It is quite a place.  The future residents are working to rebuild the interior, which is hard work, it is good work.  And perhaps we saw opportunities where we can help.   But the most precious moment of all was at the end of our tour.  Pastor João asked Elder Biven if he would like to say a prayer.  And so he did, blessing the farm and those who will live there, while such a sweet spirit attended!  We have felt such joy interacting with these incredible people who are working very hard to bless the lives of the people of Cape Verde.

Front View of the Farm.

Agricultural Areas

These two boys were playing in an abandoned car nearby, getting in and out and pretending to drive it.  What fun.  They allowed me to take their photo.

One tired missionary.

Farewell President Mathews

Leadership Change

This week a new mission president arrived, Presidente de Amo.  He is from Brazil and has a military background, indeed, he retired as a three star general from the Brazilian Air Force.  We are so very happy he accepted the call to serve as mission president, a three year calling for which, just as the young missionaries who labor here, he is not paid.  President Amo shared with us that he and his wife are from Compinas, Brazil, and they had retired to the mountains where they had a strawberry and honey farm.  In his own words, he said he was "hiding from the Lord, if the Lord wanted me to serve a mission He would have to find me."  And I guess find him He did.

On LDS.org this week there were quotes from the speakers at the mission president training seminar last week in Provo.  One of the speakers said something to the effect that the new mission presidents "did not ask for this calling and it represents a significant sacrifice".  It does.  President Amo and his wife have two daughters, one lives in Brazil and one in Houston, whom they will likely not see much during their tenure here.  They have our complete love and respect.

Prior to President Amo's arrival we said goodbye to dear President and Sister Mathews (First Couple on the right) at a farewell dinner on the Alvarez's patio overlooking the sea.  The Mathews have now returned to their family in the US after five years of service here.  Five grandchildren were born during that time, whom they had not yet met.  We pray that they, and their family, will be greatly blessed because of their work here.

Humility of the Sincerest Kind

So it's embarrassing to confess that the Lord's most reliable tool for humbling me, personally, is with our food supply.  Yes, it comes down to that, what's for dinner is what I care about the most.   Maybe it was obvious when I whined--on the blog, no less-- the first time there was no peanut butter on the island.  This time, when we realized our situation, we ate our last jar slowly and decided to "Let it Go".  It was time to worry about more important things.

And then this morning in the grocery store it happened......... whether angels delivered it or Danish ships, there is peanut butter again.  We have grateful hearts tonight.

Boa Entrada

More Chicken Coops

This past Tuesday we drove up to Assomada to check on the progress of chicken coops that Paulo is building.  We also had a meeting with President Torres of Assomada district. Here are the photos of two of the chicken coops!  The first is on a rooftop, and the family came outside and greeted us and we went up to take a look.  I enjoyed walking through the house to the back yard where the roof stairs were.  It was a beautiful small home.

The photo on the left shows the roof top chicken coop, the family, and Paolo, the carpenter, in a white T-shirt.

Here is Elder Biven taking a look at the new coop - - no door yet; that is what Paulo was working on.  That and the nesting boxes

Below is the other coop in Assomada. The family had obtained a rooster and a hen from somewhere and they were inside, testing it out.

The Boa Entrada Kapoc Tree

On Tuesday, after our meetings, we took a "p-day" or preparation day, as the young missionaries do.  They have a day to do their laundry and shop and just kind of rest, or go do fun stuff like play soccer or sight-see.  So we went to see the BIG Kapok tree near the village of Boa Entrada which is just outside of Assomada.  It was like something out of a Disney Movie.  It was the hugest living thing I have ever seen.  And it was beautiful, it was extraordinary and beautiful.  First photo is from a distance, something big towering over everything else.

This second photo is climbing up the steep hill it grows against, Elder Biven standing next to it.















This third photo is of Sister Biven after coming around the base of the Kapok tree to where we were above the tree on the hill.

And this fourth photo is looking up.  Doesn't do it justice, but looking up.  There is something awesome about seeing a natural wonder like this.  And the fact that it was healthy and alive..... what an experience.  We lingered for a few moments, just looking at it.  Then we hiked back to our car and drove back up the cobblestone trek with hairpin turns on a very steep cliff face, back into Assomada and on to Praia.