We had heard but we did not know - 6th update

This is how the African American women responded when they visited the Rescue Center at CT. I was suprised at their response as they had seen so much this week. I think this update from them shows sometimes we never know what will touch us the most.

From Kenya,

Connie

Sent via Cingular Xpress Mail with Blackberry



-----Original Message-----

From: ccheren@aol.com

Date: Mon, 19 Oct 2009 02:40:46

To: Dan Kellenberger<kellenberger.dan@gmail.com>

Subject: We had heard but we did not know - 6th update



It isn't that Connie hadn't told us. And we know poverty - we have been to the neighborhoods. Some of us had been to Haitti. But, nothing Connie told us prepared our hearts, our minds, our very souls for what we encountered. It was our time to visit the Rescue Center run by Nick and Charles from Community Transformers. We drove through Mathare Slum feeling confident we were prepared. We walked into a one of the two rooms where 34 precious African children live with their six Aunties who care for them. It was the smell of the garbage from the slum outside, the smoke from the small cooker in the corner of one of the bedrooms that affected us first. We really don't completely understand but we suddenly felt overwhelmed and unprepared. We wondered what conditions these children could have been rescued from. We couldn't imagine any worse place. Then we realized many were rescued from the streets. There was one toliet for all of them and everyone else who lived on this floor of this tentament house. There were two sinks at the end of the hall where clothes and dishes were washed and people bathed. A narrow balcony overlooked the slum - we could see mounds of garbage and the Nairobi river and we understood why people die from drinking the water. Connie said we could go buy bananas to give to the children. When we didn't come back she came looking for us. We had an uncontrollable desire to buy these children shoes which we did. We returned and met the children, gave them their shoes and their bananas. Then the children stood as a group and worshipped - praising God. Oh, little children living in a slum praising and thanking God. We were humbled at their faithfulness. Stephen one of the children gave the closing prayer. We left, our hearts touched by the joy and believe in God by little children living in a slum.
We then walked through Mathare Slum to CT to meet the women we met earlier ths week who were bringing us their jewlery for us to take to the US to sell for them. On the way we met some of the women who greeted us with laughter and smiles proudly showing us their MorseLife shirts they were wearing that we gave them. The women were so happy to see us. We bought their jewlery and ordered more. Then we said our goodbyes.
Forever we shall remember those we have met,
Sisters from Kenya

Sent via Cingular Xpress Mail with Blackberry