Harvest Thanksgiving

Today we had Thanksgiving Day. As we have a number of crew from different nationalities we joined Liberia in celebrating it today. We had a nice BIG meal followed by a celebration harvest/thanksgiving service. The display of local fruits and vegetables was amazing. - For part of the service the school presented a "Living Cornucopia" where all the children dressed up as fruit and vegetables. As Nathanael is part of the nursery it was the first production that he has been able to take part in. He looked so cute in his costume.

(Nathanael as a pea in a pod with his "carrot" friend, Estevam)

Click play to see Nathanael modeling his costume

Click play to hear the school singing.

Remember, Remember.....

Remember, remember the 5th of November.

For most Brits this is a big tradition in the UK when the 5th of November comes along and everybody ventures out with their hats and scarfs, eating hotdogs and waving sparklers for Bonfire night.

So when you're in Africa there are certain things that the Brits miss, so we all huddled together on the dock around a pretend bonfire eating custard creams. The fireworks flashed in the sky (actually it was lightning, but it worked just aswell) and we did the customary ooooh's and aaaah's that we all do when watching fireworks in the UK.

Transformation

In a country without adequate health care your survival beyond the age of 5 makes you one of the "lucky ones". You've overcome the odds. Then one day at 16 years old, you discover a small button tumour on your face. It grows rapidly over the next 8 years. You are helpless because there is nothing you can do and no one can help you.

This is the story of Alimou Camara from Conokry, the capital of Guinea in West Africa. Alimou was born in 1984 and schooled in a catholic mission, despite his Muslim background. His parents died when he was young, and he was left with his 3 brothers and 2 sisters. Today only two of his brothers are alive and both are married.

At 16, Alimou had to stop school as the tumour grew in size and became an unsightly spectacle. His siblings supported him, but his friends abandoned him. People just laughed and rejected him.

Soon he was unable to work or eat, and he began losing weight. His nephews and nieces grew afraid of him, his sister-in-law feared contamination and ordered her children not to drink from the same cup. He began to seclude himself, hiding away from a judgmental world.

After 8 years his tumour, which hung from his lower jaw, had grown to the size of his head and had become a strain on his neck. His bottom teeth became embedded and displaced as the mass enlarged. He experienced headaches and a continuous watering of his eyes. Puss would seep from his mouth where the tumour protruded. Alimou would wipe it away, but the smell was overpowering. For the last several years he was unable to chew and forced to push the food to the back of his throat to swallow. Without medical attention benign tumours will slowly cut off a persons airway as they grow, and in many cases prevent the passage of food through the mouth. In hope, Alimou was not willing to settle began going out in public to various hospitals seeking help. Wherever he tried, no one was able to help him. In a last desperate attempt he sought help at Radio Familial, a local station known for it's humanitarian work. From there he was refered to John Erickson, a chaplain in the town of N'Zau who worked at the hope clinic. John told him about Mercy Ships that was currently in Liberia and a screening team was due in Guinea 1 week later and he was welcome to stay until then.

The Mercy Ships team determined that he was an ideal candidate for maxillo-facial surgery and he was able to fly (his first time!) to Liberia for free, thanks to the world food program. The 8 hours surgery involved removing the 3kg (6.6lb) tumour, his lower jaw and all his lower teeth. The surgeons removed the tumour and fitted Alimou with a titanium lower jaw. It was like dismantling a malfunctioning machine then reshaping it together to make it whole.

The hour finally came when Aimou was conscious, without a mass on his face for the first time he was handed a small mirror, he examined his face quietly, in awe, tears slid down his cheeks, he was unable to speak due to the tracheotomy, but actions spoke louder than any words. He was amazed.

He spent 10 days recovering on the ward and he summed up his thoughts on the care of the nurses, doctors and the surgery itself "It was Jesus who helped me because He is here". He still had no lower teeth or chin and had to continue to keep his food very soft. The remaining skin that stretched over his tumour needed time to shrink back and so he was booked for a return surgery later on in the year to have bones taken from his hip and placed around his prosthetic lower jaw to form a chin. These will naturally graft to the titanium jaw, the swelling will recede and he will be able to function better than he has in the last 8 years. His plans now: he wants to go back to school for accounting, he is also interested in economics. Given the obstacles he has already overcome in his life, we're sure he'll achieve his goal. Praise God for Alimou's life and pray for him as he returns and gets used to what normal life is like.

Walking to Benin

It's kind of weird being in one outreach and yet preparing for the next outreach that will follow within approx 2 months of this one ending. Our next outreach in 2009 will be in the country of Benin. Already, French classes have started so we can at least get by when we're out and about. Now we're walking to Benin.......ok, not literally, We know for sure Tim won't be as he has to sail the ship there!

Crew members have been challenged to get into teams of 6 and walk the 908 miles it would take to get from Liberia to Benin. It has been calculated that walking from the end of the dock to the port entrance gate and back is 1 mile so every evening their is a continuous stream of crew members clocking up their miles. Each week the teams total their miles for the past week and hand them into the organisers who are plotting our steps on a map.

Sharon has decided to join a team, plus it gives her a good excuse to shed some of the extra pounds she has gained since eating the good food that is cooked up by our chef on board the ship! So each evening she sets off with Nathanael in the stroller to walk or run 2-3 miles, listening to her favourite podcast or GCCC (Tim's church) latest church sermon.

Sharon's team is named the "Charlies Angels" due to the fact that it's one guy (named Charles) and 5 women and last week we clocked up 91 miles between us, not bad when it's often pouring down with rain here! Click on the picture below to see a close up of our team in true "Charlies Angels" style!

Charles (top),

Sharon , Patricia (back L-R),

Sally (middle),

Katharina, Annette (front L-R)

Life Without Limbs

If you have never heard of Nick Vujicic, you need to check this man out at http://www.lifewithoutlimbs.org/ or even buy his DVD. We did a search on You Tube and he is very popular there too, click HERE to see footage of him.

(Tim with Nick)

Mercy Ships had the piviledge of hosting Nick on board last week during his world tour visit to Liberia. Nick was born without any arms and legs and has such a powerful testimony. Some could feel quite uncomfortable when faced with such disability but he has such a natural ability to put you at ease in his company. He shares many jokes like not being a very good time keeper as he has no wrist watch, and his little foot is refered to as "his little chicken drumstick" which he can use to flip his mobile phone up to his ear!! Plus there were many stories where he has had fun with people, like hiding in the overhead luggage compartment on a plane waiting for the next person to open it up, imagine their surprise when there is Nick shouting "BOO". He gave us an evening of laughs and encouragement.

Nick spoke at many gatherings in Liberia where hundreds were expected and 8000 turned up to hear him speak. He was able to identify with many who were in a similar position without limbs and give them a message of hope. At the end of his farewell message the Life Without Limbs Team were approached by a lady carrying her 5 day old armless baby. The baby was brought onto the stage in front of the big crowd. The crowd watched as this armless baby was prayed for by a guy who has no arms or legs. Nick was able to show that this baby has value and not a curse as most Liberians would believe.

We pray that Nicks testimony in this country has brought hope to many lives. Continue to pray for Nick as he continues his world tour in Ghana, Egypt, South Africa, Singapore, India, Hong Kong & China.

Time in Liberia

We have finally finished adding the last of our gadgets, check out our Nathanael clock at the bottom of the side menu

New Life on Board

Just before 5am on 17th September 08 a baby girl was born on B ward of the Africa Mercy. The mother was here as a caregiver for her son who was onboard for a surgery to his hand. Though only eight months into her pregnancy, she began feeling pains at 1am. Fortunately we have a nurse on board who is a midwife and so she was called, along with the physician, to see the safe delivery of the baby. The baby arrived at 4:41, weighing 4lb 9oz. (2.08kg).

For the midwife it was a bit of a confidence boost to successfully deliver a baby without all of the tools she normally has when she is at home in Australia. During the ward devotional, the counselors gathered around the newborn and prayed a blessing over her. One declared her name to be Mercy and the mother smiled in agreement. The childs father visited in the afternoon and said it was a very nice name for her. Interestingly, their son was not even scheduled to be on board the ship, He was on a waiting list for an operation on his hand and they came on Sunday because another patient had cancelled and opened a spot for him.

As Captain, Tim has many hats to wear, and one of those jobs includes being the onboard birth and death registrar where he must record all birth and deaths that happen on the ship and issue certificates. So although it meant extra paperwork for him, it was paperwork that he enjoyed. He was able to meet and congratulate the parents on their new addition, not something he gets to do everyday!

Listen to our Blog on the Go!

You may have noticed a little "Odiogo" button above each post. This is our latest gadget for all those who like podcasts. If you're too busy to read our blog you can now subscribe and receive each blog post as a podcast to place on your iPod or MP3 player and listen on the go. You could even play it on your PC whilst doing something else constructive! but of course you might still need to view the blog page from time to time to see the photo's we post.

Happy listening!

Having the Tools for the Task!

Most of you will think of Mercy Ships as just medical work and over time we also want to share with you some of the other things that as a crew we get involved with outside the hospital area.

When Mercy Ships gets invited to a country we usually send out an advance team who will live there for a few months to get things set up for when the ship arrives. Part of their job is to seek out needs and where Mercy Ships can have an affect on lives whether business or personal. On this occasion the Ministry of Health actually aproached Mercy Ships and asked if we would be in a position to help with some training of administrative support staff. This was an amazing opportunity to come alongside the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, which will, in turn, have an affect on those working there and those needing their resources. The ultimate goal of the programe was that those who were trained would act as change agents and use the training they had received to train others within the ministry.

You might think, "is that really a need?"....oh yes!

3 candidates were selected to join the training program which included a Vital Statistics Manager, and 2 from the Administrative Department and Human Resources Department. The course ran for 3 days a week over 3 months. 2 days were spent training on the ship and 1 day at the ministry, this helped identify needs that could help in their work and also see them apply the training in their own workplace and how it worked.

Some of the things might be quite simple to you and I but are not always the "African" way. In one department people would arrive to get services and there would be a great confusion on what to do, where to go, who to talk to etc, which resulted in a crowd of people all asking the same question. So Mercy Ships helped them create clear signs to indicate the way, even form a line so people took their turn. This was quite an easy thing to do and helped tremendously to avoid the chaos that developed before.

Another man's job was to go through the payroll. He had pages and pages of lists to go through and compare, to identify those names that were duplicated, or for some employees they don't even know whether they were still alive following the war, they could be in some refugee camp This man had to work through this all the time. It would take him at least 4 hours to go through it and he would maybe come up with 2 or 3 names. Mercy Ships brought him on board and taught him how to use Microsoft Excel. They had the program at his office but he didn't know how to use it. Following that training he was producing 40 names from the list in no time at all.

Another man was a muslim and he was being taught leadership skills. The main model we used was, of course, Jesus and so this man was reading books all associated with Christianity and he was so eager to learn that I think Denise, who was training him, was running to keep up with him. It is great that the gospel can be linked in this way.

The training has finally come to a close for these 3 candidates and another 3 are due to start soon. Mercy Ships hosted a graduation ceremony for the students on board the Africa Mercy to honour all that they had achieved. Due to the success of this programme in Liberia, Mercy Ships is hoping to continue this training during our next outreach in Benin next year. Please pray that this training will have a great impact on lives.

Moody Radio Mercy Ships Broadcast

Moody Radio recently broadcasted a 9 minute piece about Mercy Ships on their Prime Time America radio program. The piece was produced onboard the Africa Mercy earlier this year and focuses on the mechanics of "doing ministry". There are many voices from our crew, some past and present and it gives you a little insight on what it's like to work onboard the Africa Mercy. Click on the play button to hear it.

How Long Does an Oxygen Bottle Last?

Last Thursday the fire alarm rang, crew fled from their cabins to gather on the dock. Thick smoke spread throughout the aft end of deck 5 on the Africa Mercy, seeping under cabin doors. Cabin checkers knocked on doors to check nobody was left. Fire teams rushed to the scene with fire hoses at the ready. At each muster station, lists of names are read out to ensure everybody is there.

Sounds dramatic eh?

Actually it's just a normal Thursday fire drill and the smoke was only pretend, although it did get one crew member worried when she saw the smoke filling up her cabin!

This is our wonderful fire team. They are ready to respond to any alarm at any time of the day or night and we could not do without them.......it makes us feel safe! Recently they did an experiment to see how long an oxygen bottle would last whilst walking up and down the dock. It was interesting to see how it varied from each person, depending on how they breath. Imagine walking in a full firemens outfit, along with mask, in the heat of the day in Monrovia....not a nice thing to do, but these guys did it and now know how much air they have!

How Much Can You Balance On Your Head?

I suppose when you run out of arm space the most sensible thing would be to put it on your head. This is a regular scene around town. Why not give it a try next time you need to carry a lot of stuff.

Where Did Tuesday Go?

Did we miss something during our time here in Liberia? Has the world cancelled Tuesdays in September and replaced them with another Thursday. That's what our family Winnie the Pooh calendar says!

Nathanael Starts Nursery

Last week Nathanael started Nursery for the first time. Unfortunately there hasn't been a nursery teacher available this year so the parents are running it. So Sharon is frantically doing a lot of googling to come up with craft ideas for under 3's.

Nathanael has certainly got into the swing of it, joining his 5 friends. They enjoy activities such as fun play, singing, stories, craft and outside play.

In the meantime, if anybody has some good ideas for nursery kids, Sharon would GREATLY appreciate it!

A New Logo

Mercy Ships has a new logo.

Mercy Ships wanted to be clear in the key aspects that bind our organization: Ships, Medical, Global and of course our Christian heritage. The logo is mainly a ship with the medical cross on the side. A Christian Cross serves as our ships antenna and a globe is transmitted from the antenna (or Cross) and envelopes our ship.

With support from the UK office, Mercy Ships were given an audience with Saatchi & Saatchi in London. This firm is a worldwide specialist in Brand Development and they provided their services at a substantial discount!

African Food

Whilst living in Africa we get to try out a lot of the local recipes. This is Nathanael's favourite food, Plantain. Plantain is a close relative of the banana. It looks like banana, but is bigger, longer and has a thicker skin and often needs to be cooked before eaten. It is sometimes called plantain banana and contains a low GI starch, excellent for weight control (that makes us happy!), slow energy release and good for diabetics, with surpassing nutritional value. It can be cooked in various ways, boiled, roasted, mashed, baked or grilled. The most popular here is frying in palm oil and they also make good chips.

So if you are ever near an international supermarket, pop in and see if they have any for sale, in the words of Nathanael it's very "yum yum"

Kidney Rumors

One of the many aspects of Tim's job is the security of the ship & it's crew. Recently the Africa Mercy has been on the receiving end of some rumors that are being spread throughout the local area in regards to Mercy Ships being involved with buying kidneys and selling them abroad. This has resulted in people approaching a Mercy Ships clinic to offer kidneys for sale and also harassment to both crew and local Liberians who are working with us. Last week the Liberian President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Health Minister, Dr. Gwenigale, got involved and arranged a press conference in the hope to put these rumors aside. After the press conference Dr. Gwenigale asked to come to the ship and brought along a huge trail of press & photographers so they could see for themselves the work that Mercy Ships does.

Tim hosting the Health Minister

They walked the wards and met with the crew. We are so grateful for the support of the government to enable us to do the work that we do. Below is a press article as a result of this. -

L-R: Min. Gwenigale, Mr. Samuel Smith and Asst. Min and Chief Medical Officer of Liberia, Dr. Bernice Dahn A. M. Johnson

Gov't Defends Mercy Ships Dismisses 'Kidney Buying' Rumors By Alaskai Moore Johnson Published: 18 August, 2008

Mr. Sam Smith: "We do not perform internal organ surgery" A. M. Johnson

MONROVIA, The Government of Liberia, through the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MoHSW), has come to the defense of Mercy Ships or Africa Mercy in the wake of rumors that the Ships was dealing in “kidney buying” from victims that fell prey to evil men. “We have an information about rumors that are going around that people on Mercy Ships are buying kidneys, and selling them in Europe or the United States; this is not true; it is blatant lie,” Dr. Walter G. Gwenigalie, Health and Social Welfare Minister stated in a very strong mood.

The medical doctor added: “Mercy Ships has served the people of Liberia since 2003 with high medical standards and distinction. It is a global charity that has operated hospital ships in developing nations since 1978.”

It can be recalled recently that a story on the FrontPageAfrica.com website, written by one of its correspondents in Monrovia, reported that there were rumors that Mercy Ships was allegedly involved in “ritualistic killing designed to extract kidneys and other human parts for commercial purposes”.

The site's story continues: “In the past four months, some bodies that were found with missing kidneys include Mack Nimbo, a deportee from the USA whose body was discovered at the Barnersville Junction, outside Monrovia with the back open and kidneys removed. “A taxi driver only identified as Sumo was also discovered with kidneys removed at Armed Bush curve in Kakata, Margibi County. An unidentified body of a man believed to be in his 50s was found with kidneys extracted, under the Gabriel Johnson Tucker Bridge (New Bridge) in Monrovia. An old lady, only known as Ma Wata was abducted from her house midnight in the Jamaica Road area, and was found in an old toilet house with kidneys removed two days later,” the report in the Frontpage maintained.

“Monrovia has been buzzing as residents debate on the allegations involving those reportedly behind the buying of kidneys. As rumors were widely spreading, some residents have been suggesting that they heard that Mercy Ships was involved in buying kidneys,” the report added. Dr. Gwenigalie, in his reaction to the story, vehemently refuted it and said the Mercy Ships was not only involved in performing life-saving operations but was also helping in building clinics and other facilities in various communities around Liberia.

Dr. Gwenigale defended Mercy Ships at a well-attended press conference jointly held by his Ministry and Mercy Ships officials on Friday, August 15, 2008 at the MoHSW.

Dr. Gwenigale trying to demonstrate the impossibility of transplanting unsterile kidneys A. M. Johnson

The international chief executive officer of Mercy Ships, Samuel T. Smith, responding to a question from a reporter as to whether they perform surgical works on kidneys, said: “Mercy Ships does not carry on or perform any internal organ operation involving the kidneys, heart, etc.” He said that they are involved in reconstructing the face, eye, tumor, among other surgeries. Journalists were barred from asking more questions to Mr. Smith by Minister Gwenigale who said, “I call you here, so ask me all the questions and leave Mercy Ships alone but if you like, you can follow us on the Ships, we are on our way there right now.”

Still trying to show the impossibility of using or transplanting unsterile kidneys and maybe other human parts, the learned Minister, who himself is a surgeon, stated: “It is of course true that in a few countries in the world it is possible for very advanced medical personnel to transplant human kidneys from a donor to a person whose own kidneys have failed. This is an exceedingly complex and risky surgical procedure, requiring specialized equipment that is found in only a few countries on this earth. Only surgeons with long years of experience are capable of even doing such transplants.

“Speaking as a surgeon myself, it is preposterous to even think that a human kidney removed by amateurs in unsterile conditions could possibly be used for a medical transplant. Organs such as kidneys used for transplants must be removed under sterile conditions by experienced surgeons, and then stored under very closely controlled conditions. They must be used very quickly - there can be no delay in transplanting the organ into the recipient.

“From this very brief description, any sensible person will clearly understand that there is no possible way that a person's kidney - or any other organ - could be removed by an amateur and still be useful for a transplant.

“There is no possible way that any representative of Mercy Ships would even consider receiving such an organ - free or for money. There is no possible way that any such organ would have any cash value for any medical purpose. There is no possible way that an organ could be carried to the recipient in time to be useful for a transplant. There is no possible way that the would-be organ seller could escape arrest and prosecution for this illegal act.”

Minister Gwenigale concluded by saying, “If anyone hears a report of the sale of any human organs, I ask you to report it immediately to the police, and to call me personally at the Ministry of Health & Social Welfare so that our own investigation can put an end to these preposterous, false, and malicious rumors.”

Mr. Smith and MOH officials listening to Dr. Gwenigale, in background are journalists who had come to cover the press conference

-

Photo by A. M. Johnson ©2008 LiberianObserver.com

African Boy

We thought you'd all like to see Nathanael's first African outfit. We saw it hanging up at a tailors shop a few weeks ago and couldn't resist it at the good price of $5. Now he's a true African boy!

Man Utd Show Room Centre

We are fascinated by the sights we see when we drive around Liberia, whether it's from a guy with a great big TV on his head, women selling chicken feet at the market, everybody seemingly walking around with English football club umbrellas (where did they get them from?), gas filling stations with, what appear to be, only glass jars with petrol in, lots of wheelbarrows with goods for sale and beauty salons which look worse then anyones backyard shed. From time to time we will share pictures of these sights. This one is particularly for Sharon's Dad, our friend, Jamie Fox and all those Manchester United fans out there. It actually says on the side of the shed that they do the following: charge phone, exchange money, cut hair and rent disc, so if you are ever stuck, you know where to come boys. (tip: if you click on the picture you can get a bigger view!)

Tim Takes Command

Today Tim took command of the Africa Mercy as he moves to the position of Captain for 2 months until the current Captain returns from his LOA. Last night, Mercy Ships current CEO, prayed over him as he took over from Capt Jon who has been filling in for a short time. It's an honour to have been chosen to fulfill this role after seeing the ship through it's construction phase and now in full operation and Tim prays that in all that he does will bring glory to God. Please pray for Tim as he takes on this added responsibility.