Togo Honours

When it came to the time to leave Togo, our hearts weren't ready. It's been amazing how our lives have been wovened into this country in such a short time. How they have embraced us into their country and called us friends. This friendship was portrayed to us on the last Friday/Saturday we were there. We say two days because we started out on Friday only to find that it might not happen and then we started out again on the Saturday! The ways of Africa just don't surprise us any more and we just accept it, whereas if this way of life was the norm back home we would lead a very frustrated life.

During our last week the health minister visited the ship to say "thank you" and presented the crew with a beautiful wood carving.

During this visit it was hinted that somebody higher up wanted to honour them. Immediately panic set in as visions of the president wanting to visit the ship as we were trying to pack everything up, could delay our departure time. It soon became clear, we would go to him and we did not expect what was going to happen next.

A local hotel was the venue and as the time went on and we were briefed on standing positions and protocol. We lined up to meet the Health Minister and we proceeded into a big room, half occupied by a full military band! Members of our senior management team lined up, and the wives stood on the side lines, looking pretty! 9 medals sat on cushions - it soon became clear that this was more than just a thank you dinner. 1 Officer Mono, 4 Chevalier Mono and 4 Chevalier Merit were awarded.

(Tim receiving the Chevalier Mono Medal)

(Saluting for the USA National Anthem)

(Even a full Military band)

The event was followed by a dinner with various Government Ministers.

(Tim and Sharon with Madame Adjei - a remarkable lady)

We feel humbled that when we felt honoured to be serving in Togo, that they would want to honour us, but it's not just about the Senior Managment Team, these medals represent the work and dedication of the entire crew of Mercy Ships, both on the ship and those on shore in our land based offices, because it's not just one person that does all the work, it is a joint effort and without each other and the Lord working through us, nothing would be accomplished and complete. So we say well done good and faithful servants, the Lord honours your work and servant hearts, and so does Togo!

(Medal recipients)

(the wives)

Potty Handover

Today we witnessed the historic event of Nathanael handing over his potty to his friend, Xavier, as Xavier embarks on his own potty training quest. So they sealed it with a hand shake and Xavier knows that Nathanael is always on hand to give advice, if needed.

Meanwhile Nathanael has now started target practice at floating cheerio's in the toilet.

Mighty Ships on UK Quest TV Channel

Remember Mighty Ships?

QUEST TV CHANNEL - UK VIEWING

Freeview Channel: 38

Sky Channel: 154

Quest TV Listing Schedule: Click Here

We are now calling all those who have sky or freeview in the UK to check out this listing for Quest TV channel over the next month or so as it looks like the Africa Mercy episode is due to be shown. At the moment the series 3 of Mighty Ships is being shown on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, the only problem is that the website only lists the schedule for the next 2 weeks so you'll have to keep your eye out for us as we might not be able to remind you due to our limited internet connection over the next few weeks as we move of the ship, then go on holiday!

Series 3 includes ships: Africa Mercy Cristobal Colon, aka, Christopher Columbus G.O. SARS Oasis of the Seas Solitaire U.S.S. Kentucky

Click Here for episode write ups

Please try and take a moment to watch it-they did a really good job and it shows a little more of what goes on, on the technical side that supports the programs ministry we have here.

Would You Shop Here?

.......Because we did and were very happy with our products!

With different functions going on, we thought it would be a good idea to expand our "African wardrobe" so on good recommendations we ventured out to Samuel the Tailor. This is his tailors shop. (thanks Marty for the picture!)

It doesn't look much, but what goes on in here is the work of a great designer and tailor. He measures nearly every part of your body and says in his limited english "it is ok, I do something good" and you trust him. Sounds easy doesn't it? So we thought we'd give you a glimpse of our outfits so you know what the latest trends are in Africa if you ever come this way.

Tim's shirt - if you look too long at it you might get dizzy, we almost expect one of those 3D pictures to come out of it, but it looks great on him, in Africa!

Nathanael's shorts in the left over material from Tim's shirt.

And Sharon's 2 piece

Please know that we won't be offended if you would like to follow our fashion trends, we just need to add a disclaimer that, folk might laugh at you at home.

Knitting for Mercy

Theresa Rowntree, (75) from Braintree in Essex, who recently lost her sight, is part of a knitting team producing teddy bears for child patients onboard the Africa Mercy.

Rebecca Bond from Bassingbourn, Hertfordshire, was deeply touched by stories from her sister, who volunteered onboard the Africa Mercy in Togo earlier this year. Rebecca wanted to do something to help. She had heard how comforting the teddy bears were when children would come onboard the ship to receive treatment, and so created an advert, asking for knitters, to produce as many teddy bears as they can.

Theresa’s daughter read the advert and thought that knitting teddies for Mercy Ships using a simple pattern was a way to re-ignite her mother’s interest in knitting. Friends and family had always said that Theresa could knit with her eyes closed.

Rebecca is keen for as many people in the local area to help in her knitting mission. She said: “Anyone who can knit will find this pattern easy to do and the joy it brings to children is beyond imaginable. These young children are often very frightened and also very poor so to receive a gift like this means a great deal to them and sees them through a difficult time. “I am surprised at the amount of people who have responded to the appeal and delighted by the number of teddies that arrive almost daily.” Judy Polkinhorn, Executive Director of Mercy Ships UK, said: “This is an amazing gesture by Rebecca and all the knitters. Donations like this make such a difference to the child patients on board the Africa Mercy who love teddies just as much as children here. We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that had kindly given their time to knit teddies for the children on the ship. Their efforts show real compassion and commitment”.

If you would like to help Rebecca in her knitting mission and would like details or the pattern please ‘phone her on 01763 246556 (leave a message) or email beccibond@hotmail.com

Pink Slips

As we wrapped up the field service in Togo the hospital still had lots of pink slips. Pink slips belonging to many who we could not help or couldn't make contact with. We wanted to share this blog that is written by one of our nurses, Ali. Please read it, it will tug at your heart! Ali was involved in praying for everyone of those written on those slips. They didn't stop there, they got others to pray and now have 600 people over the world praying for those we left behind.

A New Lip

Amavi and her baby sister, Kossinovi, are from a family of eight children. They share a distinctive characteristic – they were both born with a cleft lip. In the West African culture, such deformities are viewed with superstition and ridicule.

Little Kossinovi is only seven months old – too young to suffer from the harsh remarks of unfeeling friends. But Amavi is twelve and has felt the sting of sharp tongues all too often. An 8th grade student, she has struggled to make friends. But her classmates find her disfigured upper lip a good reason to belittle her and call her names. Her mother says when she sends Amavi out to play, there is always a fight, and she comes home crying. Amavi has coped by becoming shy and retiring, keeping to herself to avoid hurtful remarks. The children's mother has been very concerned about their future, but surgical repair has been out of reach because of the cost. So when a friend at the local hospital told her that the volunteer doctors with Mercy Ships would do the surgery without charge, she quickly made arrangements to get Amavi and Kossinovi to the Africa Mercy . Following a medical screening, both children were admitted to the hospital ward. They received successful surgeries and went home the next day. They returned to the ship for post-operative care until they were totally healed and released. Amavi, who usually says very little, expressed her happiness about the successful procedure. She hopes to train to be a nurse after she graduates from secondary school. And the children's very relieved mother said, “ Thank you Mercy Ships for what you have done for my children.”

(leaving the ship fully healed!)

Story by Elaine B. Winn (Africa Mercy Communications Department) Edited by Nancy Predaina Photos by Liz Cantu

What You See Is Not Always What You Get!

This weekend proved to be a treat for us, we got to go out as a family for the day. A couple of times we've driven on the road towards Benin and have noticed a huge sign "HOTEL LE LAC" but however much we tried, we could never find it. We had heard others had been and we were told that it was right on Togo Lake. Sounds wonderful. So last weekend we thought, this is it, we are going on the hunt for hotel le lac. A nice relaxing day near the pool, over looking the lake. Some friends came along with extra pairs of eyes to help us find the hidden haven. We had even looked up the website, www.hotellelactogo.com, kindly translated for us by google:

"For lovers of swimming, a large well-maintained pool is available in the heart of the hotel with views of Lake Togo. The lifeguards are there to teach you to swim or watch your children. We also welcome the swimming competitions under the supervision of our highly experienced lifeguards. The pool is free for hotel guests with room and pay for everything else. Forever you serve, we set foot on a monthly subscription with very competitive prices to help you to swim at any time according to your wishes"

sounds promising?!

We were successful, we found it, after a detour to a craft shop on the way. We parked up and walked in. From afar we thought this could be good and quiet.

But then we got closer to the swimming pool-hmmmm we have a problem!

it was VERY green.

So green we couldn't see the bottom and wouldn't be surprised if toads or something were living in the bottom of it. As you can imagine we promptly got back in the car and made our way back to a pool that we knew would be good. See if you can spot the colour difference in this video of Nathanael swimming.

Church - African Style

Ever thought about broadcasting your church service over really loud speakers so the local community can hear it. In many countries we would probably have the police or local council knocking on our door telling us to turn the noise down. Here in Africa it's a different story. In fact the louder the better. The church we visited last week has really grown since Mercy Ships crew members have been encouraging them in their meetings, whether it's just turning up and worshiping with them or preaching God's word. Even so, the village has built a small mosque directly across the road during our time here. Is God impacting this village? we ask ourselves.

We thought we'd share a video clip with you so you can experience "church" in Africa.

Are you dancing yet?...we can't help but dance!

Twins

Following on from our visit to Gape Aloyi we have come to learn that they have a high percentage of twins and even whilst we were there on our first visit a set of twin boys were born.

The Yoruba people boast a twin birth rate of 4.5-5%. They believe that the twin that emerges first from the womb is considered to be the younger of the two. Whether male or female, this twin is named Taiwo, which literally means, “experiencing the first taste of the world.” Taiwo is believed to be directed by the older twin, Kehinde (also male or female), to explore the world outside the womb and confirm whether it is okay to come out. Taiwo’s cry, after he or she emerges, is a sign to the older twin that it is safe to come out; Kehinde, which means “comes last”, then makes his or her way out of the womb and is considered to be wiser and more cautious than his or her younger sibling. With such a high rate, twins are perceived as a sign of fertility, they are believed to possess powers over wealth, health, and happiness, as well as over suffering and destruction. So care is often taken in giving them respect, love, and care. Parents will often seek the blessings of the “Babalawo" (the divination priest) 3 days after their twins are born. He supposedly drives out any evil spirits that may harm the children and educates the parents on how to raise them, including instructions on the color and type of clothing or jewellery for them to wear, foods that they should eat and animals they should avoid.

According to tradition, twins have two halves of the same soul. If one twin dies they believe that the balance of the soul is upset. Subsequently the Babalawo would direct a carver to sculpt a small figure that symbolizes the dead child, or in rare cases, 2, if both twins die. They believe that the sculptures house the soul of the dead twin and are called “Ibeji” which means, the sacred image of twins. They are believed to possess as much powers as the twins and are treated with a lot of respect. Like real children, these statues are bathed, fed, clothed and carried around. They are particularly special to mothers who pamper them and keep them close to their beds, occasionally rubbing them with red wood powder in order to give them a glossy look. They are caressed frequently and their birthdays are celebrated with rituals and prayers.

Here are some twin sculptures that we saw in a local museum in Lome.

Why the high birth rate? There are many conclusions, the favourite one is the large consumption of yams. So if you want twins, try eating yams for breakfast, lunch and dinner!

Special Delivery to Gape Aloyi

Last weekend we made another visit to the village, Gape Aloyi. (You may remember reading our last post "Gape Aloyi Village Visit" back in May). This time we were there to see another historic occasion for the village and also deliver medical supplies. Having loaded up 2 landrovers full of supplies the night before, our trip started at 06:30 in the morning, along with some fellow crew members. The hospital supply on the ship were amazing in helping us find things that they could do without. We embarked on our very bumpy journey, having to take a different route due to recent heavy rain and potential flooding on the other road. We arrived to a sea of kids, excited at seeing us again and it was nice to see familiar faces from the last time. After greetings with the village chief we proceded to a grass roof shelter for a meeting. Everybody from the village gathered around, peering over the wall to hear the news that had been brought by our friends Eric and Fabienne. Eric and Fabienne have really taken this village into their hearts and are currently working to raise money to build a school. This is the site where the school will be built.

Already they have seen a clinic finished and the village are willing to help work to build it. This meeting was to see the start of this as they announced the sponsorship from the Air France foundation which will provide half of the money for the school. The school foundations can be started and as you can see by the video they were very happy with the news.

A contract was set up so that the village would agree to provide things like sand, water and workers to help the builder so that the cost can be kept down and they would take ownership of the project. This was signed by the chief.

Tim also gave a speech and he had the added pleasure of sharing that the Africa Mercy Crew had made a collection of just over $700 which will be put towards half of the toilet block or for the complete appatame (african style circular yard) When the builder got up to talk we found that we were talking in 3 different languages. The builder in the local language Ewe, then translated to French (one of the languages of Togo) then into English for us. This is often how a lot of people have to work on the wards in the hospital, you sometimes wonder if anything is lost in the translation.

The next item on the agenda was to present prizes to those that had passed their exams in the school. The students were delighted with their gifts and we hope that it inspires others to do well in the school.

Lunch followed with goat and fufu on the menu, cooked by the chief's, 4 wives!

We then proceeded over to the clinic to deliver the supplies.

The nurse was speechless, stunned, tearful, to put it in a few words, yet he beamed from ear to ear, as more and more boxes were carried in. He could not believe all the things that came in through the door.

We will never forget the look on his face when he discovered a set of baby weighing scales, something he had wanted for a long time. Many things like syringes etc have to be reused as they haven't got the supplies and our boxes of about 1000 syringes was just what he needed. 6 mosquito nets were the perfect match for the 6 beds in the little ward and gauzes galore will help cover healing wounds.

This is a visit we will never forget. It's great when God can make a difference in people's lives.

For Nathanael, the girls loved our little "Yovo" (name for white person) and he had a few marriage proposals whilst he was there, mainly from Mum's eyeing him up as a future son-in-law (we must say, one 2 year old was very cute!). At least he knows where to go when he's older and stuck for a wife.

Mistral Visit

Recently we had a visit by a French Navy Ship, The Mistral. The Mistral is one of the French Navy's new 21,300t amphibious assault, command and power projection ships and was commissioned in 2006. It has the capacity to carry up to 16 medium or heavy helicopters below deck, e.g. the NH90, SA 330 Puma, AS 532 U2 Cougar or AS 665 Tigre helicopters.

The flight deck has six landing spots and a 1,800m² hangar. The 5,000m² flight deck can accommodate up to six helicopter movements simultaneously. They have an Amphibious assault capability and can carry either four CTM, landing craft utility (LCU) or two air-cushion landing craft (LCACs).

They also have a 69 bed, 750m² hospital, equipped with two operating theatres. If additional hospital or medevac space is required, the hangar can also be converted into a modular field hospital. Seeing the hospital and then pictures of past evacuation on the walls really brought the reality of war to our minds.

As you can imagine our ship looked very small compared with this.

Tim and Sharon had the pleasure of being invited to lunch with the Captain and his officers with a delicious 4 course meal, including duck for the main course and a "melt in the mouth" mousse for dessert. Visits were also arranged for our crew to have tours and then they in turn came over to us. We were also able to attend an official function and spend time with a few of the officers over a Togolese meal at a friends house in Lome.

The Navy crew were able to use their skills ashore by helping to renovate a local school by painting, putting in electric lighting and making desks etc for the classrooms. They did an amazing job and the school of 800 kids are certainly enjoying it. We had the opportunity to visit and see the improvements just as they were finishing. The school, is run by a French man and has an amazing story behind how he has built it up to what it is now. He has a heart to provide the opportunity for schooling to kids and only charges a small amount so those who can't afford the big expensive schools in Lome can still have an education. So the French Navy has really added a lot to help this cause.

Africa Mercy on Discovery Channel Tomorrow!

**AFRICA MERCY - WEDNESDAY 23rd JUNE - MIGHTY SHIPS**

You might remember at the beginning of the year Tim was wearing his film star hat and doing lots of filming with the Canadian Discovery Channel for a new series of Mighty Ships.

Well the day has arrived for all our Canadian friends who will have the opportunity to see the first showing of the "Africa Mercy" episode on the Canadian Discovery Channel, scheduled to broadcast on Wednesday night (23rd June)...that's tomorrow! To check your viewing times click on this link to see the schedule for your area. http://www.discoverychannel.ca/Schedule.aspx

Alternatively, according to this link, it looks like you can download it from itunes, you might want to try that out if you want to see it but don't have access to the Discovery Channel. http://www.discoverychannel.ca/Showpage.aspx?sid=13057

If anybody is able to record it for us, we would really appreciate it. As you can imagine we are really looking forward to seeing how it comes out after seeing behind the scenes of what it takes to film a show like this.

Enjoy the show!

Tim's Photo's

We thought we'd share these great photo's that the ship's photographer recently took of Tim.