Sunday, November 7
Arrived home safely on Saturday at 1:30p to Minneapolis. All flights were on time (or early) and uneventful. The 15-hour trip from Abuja, via Ghana, to Atlanta was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be and the touch screen personal entertainment system was fabulous. Thanks, Delta!
The group was unable to post final blogs due to no wireless internet access available in Adamawa State and then no time once we got to Abuja. But I know Pastor Judy wants to post a blog about our interfaith dialogue with Muslim and Christian leaders from last Wednesday evening.
During our final noon meal last Friday in Abuja, the group shared many touching words, poems and songs with me, thanking me for my leadership of this trip. Their words and actions truly touched my heart! You must ask Carolyn to sing her song to you (captured on video, of course, by Sister Melinda), as well as John's final song in the van on the way to the airport. Pastor Judy promises to share the poem she wrote as well. In the meantime, here are some reflections that Deb wrote:
Nigeria is:
Beautiful people with smiling faces and waving hands, anxious to greet
Big cities with many vehicles, many motorbikes, scary roads
Small villages with few vehicles, few motorbikes, scary roads
Hopes, dreams, desires just like ours
Bold and connected spirituality
Bugs, bugs and more bugs
Liver for breakfast, chicken and rice
Hiking in the Atlantika Mountains in the 90 degree full sun while wearing a dress
Many Holy Spirit-filled, tireless Nigerians devoted to their people and their missions
Profusely sweating, day and (sometimes) night (i.e. Kubi)
Operating on “island time”
An invaluable driver who became a good and trusted friend in a very short time
Women’s Fellowship Group, Boys Brigade, New Life Gospel Singers
A young democracy experiencing adolescent growing pains
Beautiful fabrics – immaculately dressed people
Announcements, announcements, announcements
Busted at the market!
Cock-a-doodle-doos at 2:30 a.m.
Trick or treat, compliments of Carolyn
Miscommunications
Cattle transport, Nigerian style
Beautiful, young traditional dancers
Squirrel-shaped fish in OK sauce
Drumming and singing
Graciousness and hospitality
Psalm 65
Comings and goings
Breakfast at the Pope’s
Interfaith dialogue providing enlightenment and encouragement
Students from so many walks of life
“There’s been a change of plans…”
God at work in the world
Countless bottles of Faro water
Mango trees, banana trees, bau bob trees
Sad goodbyes
An ice cream surprise
Canoe ride, anyone?
The naira crisis
Prayers and blessings
Filling every available seat in or on a vehicle and then some
Extraordinary travel companions!
Our fearless and fabulous trip leader: Many thanks, Kris, for all your hard work and commitment to ensure that each one of us will hold our memories of Nigeria close to our heart. Deb Swanson
Praise God from whom all blessings flow, for safe travels and good health along the way, and for people who made this trip a real joy!
Check back in a week for final postings!
Blessings and joy,
Kris Perry
MAS Companion Synod Coordinator
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Busted in Yola
Busted in Yola!
Did Kris warn us not to take pictures of any government facilities? Yes. Did I know that the marketplace was a government facility? I don’t think so. But now I do, since I was busted this morning and hauled off to the police station to apologize for my transgression. Here are the facts, to the best of my recollection:
This morning, we decided to take a trip to the market, which is housed within what we would call a gated community. Anari, our driver, had to pay a small fee when we entered. What I didn’t know was that, if you want to take pictures, you are to let the official marketplace men know that when you enter. My troubles started as we were about to leave. Drew and I had arrived before the rest (being typical men shoppers) so I decided to snap a couple of pictures from the viewpoint of our van. Soon thereafter a nice gentleman in a white dashiki arrives and asks me if there is a problem—since I am taking pictures. I assure that there is not, that I am just a tourist. “No problem,” he says.
Five minutes later, when the women arrive with our faithful driver, Anari is confronted by three more gentlemen in dashikis and a policeman in uniform is called over. After a heated discussion, the police officer strolls over and admonishes me for taking pictures without permission. I ask if I should delete them, but he says no. Instead, we are to accompany him with our van to the police station on the other side of the market. When we arrive, Anari and I are accompanied inside by the police officer. After more discussion in Hausa with the officer in charge, I am lectured on making sure I get permission first the next time I want to take pictures in the market. I apologize several times, agree to the terms and we are free to go. I do not need to delete my pictures. Once again, the customary response: “No problem” or ba kome.
I have learned my lesson, and one other one from Anari: The next time I am asked what I am up to, I should tell the officer that I am a missionary, not a tourist. They get a lot more respect!
John, the scoff-law, Becker
Did Kris warn us not to take pictures of any government facilities? Yes. Did I know that the marketplace was a government facility? I don’t think so. But now I do, since I was busted this morning and hauled off to the police station to apologize for my transgression. Here are the facts, to the best of my recollection:
This morning, we decided to take a trip to the market, which is housed within what we would call a gated community. Anari, our driver, had to pay a small fee when we entered. What I didn’t know was that, if you want to take pictures, you are to let the official marketplace men know that when you enter. My troubles started as we were about to leave. Drew and I had arrived before the rest (being typical men shoppers) so I decided to snap a couple of pictures from the viewpoint of our van. Soon thereafter a nice gentleman in a white dashiki arrives and asks me if there is a problem—since I am taking pictures. I assure that there is not, that I am just a tourist. “No problem,” he says.
Five minutes later, when the women arrive with our faithful driver, Anari is confronted by three more gentlemen in dashikis and a policeman in uniform is called over. After a heated discussion, the police officer strolls over and admonishes me for taking pictures without permission. I ask if I should delete them, but he says no. Instead, we are to accompany him with our van to the police station on the other side of the market. When we arrive, Anari and I are accompanied inside by the police officer. After more discussion in Hausa with the officer in charge, I am lectured on making sure I get permission first the next time I want to take pictures in the market. I apologize several times, agree to the terms and we are free to go. I do not need to delete my pictures. Once again, the customary response: “No problem” or ba kome.
I have learned my lesson, and one other one from Anari: The next time I am asked what I am up to, I should tell the officer that I am a missionary, not a tourist. They get a lot more respect!
John, the scoff-law, Becker
Visit to Deaf Center and Remi Foundation
November 2, 2010
As the LCCN Women’s Fellowship frequently sing; “Today, today, today alleluia, is a happy day! Alleluia!” For me today was a very happy day as I was able to realize a dream to experience the Deaf community in Nigeria.
We started the day by visiting the LCCN Deaf Centre in Jimeta, Nigeria which was founded in 1985. Mrs. Ruth Ulea, a deaf woman, who manages the Centre, holds degrees in both teaching and theology. She is a real powerhouse, driven by her faith in God and the passion to serve the deaf community in countless ways! Her unflagging energy and commitment, against the odds of economic challenges, ensures that each deaf child receives a solid education. Ruth opened with an overview of the school and her professional background. (Watch for details in a future blog posting). We then moved to the classroom to meet the students and teachers. They were very happy to see us, especially someone who could communicate in American Sign Language (ASL). My ASL is a little rusty but was well received! The deaf students were studying mathematics using sticks to apply the concepts of addition and subtraction – nice hands-on learning! The teachers held the student’s focus while having fun sharing their knowledge.
Before we left the LCCN Deaf Centre, Ruth presented me with fabric created just for the National Lydia Women League of which Ruth is the president. This organization is yet another ministry lead by Ruth to support Deaf Community in Nigeria. We also were invited to purchase beaded jewelry made by the woman to support the efforts at the Centre. I plan to make a dress to wear to a future deaf community event in Nigeria! (By God’s grace it will be Ruth’s ordination as a Deaf pastor!) We bid our farewell to Ruth and the LCCN Deaf Centre filled with hopes, dreams and ideas to continue the good work being done at the Centre.
Our next stop was at the Remi Foundation, a school started in 2003 by Rehad and Michal Bongi with three enrolled students. The school was originally founded to serve children who were mentally retarded, mentally or emotionally challenged, deaf and/or blind. As the school grew, the Bongi’s adopted the “double healing” philosophy – to create a community that accepts children of all capabilities so that all are accepted and aware of the gifts each child brings to the world. Currently there are 460 students, and a total of 53 staff including 26 teachers at Remi.
Entering the school yard we were immediately surrounded by preschool children welcoming us, giving us hugs, callings us “Auntie” and sharing “high fives”. We toured the various buildings on the campus including a school and community clinic. With great joy we met many children including a visit with the primary school-age Deaf students. The children displayed their skills in signing the ASL alphabet, sharing their names, discussing the subjects they study and enjoyed much fun and laughter.
We wrapped up our time at Remi by visiting with Mrs. Michal Bongi, the founder of Remi Foundation and the principle at Luther Junior Seminary. She shared information, and answered our many questions. Check out this website for more information on the Remi Foundation – you will be blown away! www.remifoundation.org
As we left the campus the Deaf students waved their goodbyes and signed ILY (I love You) ! Another wonderful experience in Nigeria!
Child Means God ( a posting on the Remi Foundation campus)
Barb Geiger
Lake Nokomis Lutheran Church
As the LCCN Women’s Fellowship frequently sing; “Today, today, today alleluia, is a happy day! Alleluia!” For me today was a very happy day as I was able to realize a dream to experience the Deaf community in Nigeria.
We started the day by visiting the LCCN Deaf Centre in Jimeta, Nigeria which was founded in 1985. Mrs. Ruth Ulea, a deaf woman, who manages the Centre, holds degrees in both teaching and theology. She is a real powerhouse, driven by her faith in God and the passion to serve the deaf community in countless ways! Her unflagging energy and commitment, against the odds of economic challenges, ensures that each deaf child receives a solid education. Ruth opened with an overview of the school and her professional background. (Watch for details in a future blog posting). We then moved to the classroom to meet the students and teachers. They were very happy to see us, especially someone who could communicate in American Sign Language (ASL). My ASL is a little rusty but was well received! The deaf students were studying mathematics using sticks to apply the concepts of addition and subtraction – nice hands-on learning! The teachers held the student’s focus while having fun sharing their knowledge.
Before we left the LCCN Deaf Centre, Ruth presented me with fabric created just for the National Lydia Women League of which Ruth is the president. This organization is yet another ministry lead by Ruth to support Deaf Community in Nigeria. We also were invited to purchase beaded jewelry made by the woman to support the efforts at the Centre. I plan to make a dress to wear to a future deaf community event in Nigeria! (By God’s grace it will be Ruth’s ordination as a Deaf pastor!) We bid our farewell to Ruth and the LCCN Deaf Centre filled with hopes, dreams and ideas to continue the good work being done at the Centre.
Our next stop was at the Remi Foundation, a school started in 2003 by Rehad and Michal Bongi with three enrolled students. The school was originally founded to serve children who were mentally retarded, mentally or emotionally challenged, deaf and/or blind. As the school grew, the Bongi’s adopted the “double healing” philosophy – to create a community that accepts children of all capabilities so that all are accepted and aware of the gifts each child brings to the world. Currently there are 460 students, and a total of 53 staff including 26 teachers at Remi.
Entering the school yard we were immediately surrounded by preschool children welcoming us, giving us hugs, callings us “Auntie” and sharing “high fives”. We toured the various buildings on the campus including a school and community clinic. With great joy we met many children including a visit with the primary school-age Deaf students. The children displayed their skills in signing the ASL alphabet, sharing their names, discussing the subjects they study and enjoyed much fun and laughter.
We wrapped up our time at Remi by visiting with Mrs. Michal Bongi, the founder of Remi Foundation and the principle at Luther Junior Seminary. She shared information, and answered our many questions. Check out this website for more information on the Remi Foundation – you will be blown away! www.remifoundation.org
As we left the campus the Deaf students waved their goodbyes and signed ILY (I love You) ! Another wonderful experience in Nigeria!
Child Means God ( a posting on the Remi Foundation campus)
Barb Geiger
Lake Nokomis Lutheran Church
A Decade Later
My first trip to Nigeria was in 2000. This is my third, and each time I come I see progress and change. Let me share a few things.
• There are many more major roads that have been improved.
• The naira is now printed in multiple denominations instead of just N100 bills. This makes working with money a great deal easier.
• We can fly into an International Airport in Abuja.
• Abuja, the capital city, is a place of great construction and development featuring both a national Cathedral (National Christian Center) and a national Mosque.
• Cell phones! Cell phones have made communication easier and better and have been a benefit within the LCCN.
• Motorbikes are everywhere, which does allow more movement in the country and from rural areas into cities. It also makes driving an interesting experience.
• The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria keeps growing with the new Abuja diocese added in the past year and work on another within the Taraba Sate.
• 34 women have been ordained and nine have entered theological studies this year at Bronum Seminary
• There is an established partnership between the LCCN, Mission Afrika of the Danish Lutherans, The ELCA Global Missions, our Minneapolis Area Synod, and Global Health Ministry with an annual partners meeting, each partner with specific things to offer with established communication with each other.
• LCCN outreach projects have expanded to include education for children, water projects, and health initiatives.
In October, Nigeria celebrated its 50th Anniversary of Independence. One slogan we saw on banners proclaimed: “Good People, Great Nation”. I would have to say that the good people here are always working on building and strengthening their great nation.
May God continue to bless Nigeria!
Pastor Judy Burgett Winzig
• There are many more major roads that have been improved.
• The naira is now printed in multiple denominations instead of just N100 bills. This makes working with money a great deal easier.
• We can fly into an International Airport in Abuja.
• Abuja, the capital city, is a place of great construction and development featuring both a national Cathedral (National Christian Center) and a national Mosque.
• Cell phones! Cell phones have made communication easier and better and have been a benefit within the LCCN.
• Motorbikes are everywhere, which does allow more movement in the country and from rural areas into cities. It also makes driving an interesting experience.
• The Lutheran Church of Christ in Nigeria keeps growing with the new Abuja diocese added in the past year and work on another within the Taraba Sate.
• 34 women have been ordained and nine have entered theological studies this year at Bronum Seminary
• There is an established partnership between the LCCN, Mission Afrika of the Danish Lutherans, The ELCA Global Missions, our Minneapolis Area Synod, and Global Health Ministry with an annual partners meeting, each partner with specific things to offer with established communication with each other.
• LCCN outreach projects have expanded to include education for children, water projects, and health initiatives.
In October, Nigeria celebrated its 50th Anniversary of Independence. One slogan we saw on banners proclaimed: “Good People, Great Nation”. I would have to say that the good people here are always working on building and strengthening their great nation.
May God continue to bless Nigeria!
Pastor Judy Burgett Winzig
Monday, November 1, 2010
A Visit to Kubi
A visit to Kubi
Late Friday night, October 29
Tonight we are in Kubi. I am writing this from my hut, lying on a thick foam mattress (no sheets) surrounded by mosquito netting. Outside the villagers are having a lively conversation in Hausa. It’s at least 90 in here and humid. Drew somehow managed to fall asleep almost immediately, but I have not, so I take out my iPhone and start typing.
The road to here was smooth by Nigerian standards until we reached the last real city and made the turnoff to Kubi. Then it became a lot like the road to Pai but a little dryer. In the US, it would be the worst dirt road you had ever ridden on. Here, is it standard fare. The scenery was stunning as the mountains of Cameroon loomed off to our right, tall and bright green. In the foreground are fields of guinea corn and beautiful savannah trees.
When we finally arrive, we discover that the pastor had no idea we were coming or even who we were. He thinks we are with the borehole team from the government and appears less than pleased to see us, especially when Barb lets him know we were planning to stay until Sunday afternoon. We are brought into his conference hut where we sit for the next two hours while the leaders of the church sort things out. We plan for the worst, which means heading back to Yola within the next two hours. Kris has given us strict guidelines to not travel at night, when bandits may be out. After about the first half hour, the confusion is resolved as some of the tribal members remember Barb and Judy’s last visit in 2006. All is now well and we are welcomed with open arms, though still didn’t know we were coming. And so they prepare for our visit while we continue to wait in the hut.
The dean for the area pastors, Michael Abejo, arrives about an hour later and greets us all with great enthusiasm. He is happy to see Barb again and asks about Judy and the others who were there last. After a great deal more preparation we gather our bags and head to our huts. Tea is served and, as the sun goes down we are served dinner under the stars at a table next to our hut. Tomorrow we will visit other villages and take a motorcycle ride to the mountains. This should be interesting!
Saturday, October 30
Today was very busy with trips to outlying villages. The morning trip is to villages that border the mountains of Cameroon. Poor Anari, our driver, has 12 of us in the van with Michael and the other church leaders directing him down roads that are literally motorcycle paths through guinea corn fields and high grasses. Anari has the choice of straddling the path or keeping one wheel in the path and blazing a trail for the other wheel in the grass. His approach varies by road condition. We are all concerned that he’s going to bottom out and we will be stuck with a broken down van out in this most remote part of Nigeria.
The driving portion of our trip ends in a village that is primarily Muslim. From there we hop on motorcycles for the journey further up the path. Since there are only three motorcycles available, I am to wait behind while they deliver Drew, Barb and Deb then come back to get me. Instead, a Muslim gentleman offers to give me a ride on his cycle. It is quite a ride over narrow trails, through streams and down gullies. Somehow, I manage to arrive at the village first, even though they left minutes before me and we never overtook them. There are several men standing around when we pull up. I appear to be in the right place, since they have plastic lawn chairs set up for us. I just hope the others are coming soon and didn’t go to some other village instead. Finally an older gentleman walks up, welcomes me in English and hands me his student card for Bronnum Seminary and a picture of Pastor Judy Winzig’s family from four years ago. Now I know I’m in the right place!
The others arrive about ten minutes later and we hold a brief ceremony for all present. This is repeated at each village we visit—Michael explaining that the partnership is now with Lake Nokomis Lutheran, which he has them all pronounce. After the ceremony, we all head out for a twenty minute walk (which is actually 45) up to the next village. It’s a beautiful walk through a savannah surrounded by mountains. We repeat the ceremonies and head back to the motorcycles and the return trip to the Muslim village. From there it’s back into the van for the ride back to Kubi. But not for me:
A young man named Solomon who I met the night before wants me to ride back with him on his motorcycle. I eagerly accept as the ride is both faster and a lot cooler (it is at least 90 degrees in the shade). It is turns out to be a truly joyous experience. Ask me sometime about our stop to buy a cup of gasoline and the condition of the tires on that motorcycle. Over the next day I developed a nice relationship with Solomon with whom I have exchanged family photos. I am also introduced to his father and sit with him on the family front porch until the others arrive back in Kubi. The afternoon is more of the same, though the roads actually get even narrower, to the point where Anari finally says he will go no further. So we walk the last quarter mile to our last village for the day. There is so much left to tell, but this is already long, so I will end here for the day.
Sunday, October 31
Services are to begin promptly at nine in the morning, but are delayed for a while as we are taken to meet the village chief. Even though he is Muslim, Pastor Drew Flathmann is invited to lead us in prayer in his hut. It is quite a moving experience. The service is equally moving with songs of welcome from the women’s fellowship and the youth group. I have videos of each. The church is simple but of good size and fills up steadily as the service goes on. After two hours, we present our gifts for the congregation and receive ours: each of us gets an African outfit which they help us put on over our existing clothes. It’s already hot inside the church and this makes it even more so. Even I was sweating profusely, which is rare. And I wasn’t wrapped in a headscarf as Barb and Deb were. Pastor Drew then gives his sermon, which is translated into Hausa by Michael. Next is the offering, which is done separately for the men and women. First the women leave the building and re-enter from the back door, dance in single file to the front and leave their offering in a basket. Barb and Deb are near the front and, after depositing their offerings, greet each woman in the line with a handshake. Drew and I repeat this ceremony with the men. After another short, ten minute address of encouragement by a younger man (pastor in training?) the service is over, and it’s only a little after noon.
Within relatively short order, we make our way back to our huts, remove our western clothes from under our African ones, put the African ones back on and pack to leave. Shortly thereafter we are on our way! I could add so much more to this, but that will have to wait for another time. It has indeed been a life-changing experience!
John Becker
Late Friday night, October 29
Tonight we are in Kubi. I am writing this from my hut, lying on a thick foam mattress (no sheets) surrounded by mosquito netting. Outside the villagers are having a lively conversation in Hausa. It’s at least 90 in here and humid. Drew somehow managed to fall asleep almost immediately, but I have not, so I take out my iPhone and start typing.
The road to here was smooth by Nigerian standards until we reached the last real city and made the turnoff to Kubi. Then it became a lot like the road to Pai but a little dryer. In the US, it would be the worst dirt road you had ever ridden on. Here, is it standard fare. The scenery was stunning as the mountains of Cameroon loomed off to our right, tall and bright green. In the foreground are fields of guinea corn and beautiful savannah trees.
When we finally arrive, we discover that the pastor had no idea we were coming or even who we were. He thinks we are with the borehole team from the government and appears less than pleased to see us, especially when Barb lets him know we were planning to stay until Sunday afternoon. We are brought into his conference hut where we sit for the next two hours while the leaders of the church sort things out. We plan for the worst, which means heading back to Yola within the next two hours. Kris has given us strict guidelines to not travel at night, when bandits may be out. After about the first half hour, the confusion is resolved as some of the tribal members remember Barb and Judy’s last visit in 2006. All is now well and we are welcomed with open arms, though still didn’t know we were coming. And so they prepare for our visit while we continue to wait in the hut.
The dean for the area pastors, Michael Abejo, arrives about an hour later and greets us all with great enthusiasm. He is happy to see Barb again and asks about Judy and the others who were there last. After a great deal more preparation we gather our bags and head to our huts. Tea is served and, as the sun goes down we are served dinner under the stars at a table next to our hut. Tomorrow we will visit other villages and take a motorcycle ride to the mountains. This should be interesting!
Saturday, October 30
Today was very busy with trips to outlying villages. The morning trip is to villages that border the mountains of Cameroon. Poor Anari, our driver, has 12 of us in the van with Michael and the other church leaders directing him down roads that are literally motorcycle paths through guinea corn fields and high grasses. Anari has the choice of straddling the path or keeping one wheel in the path and blazing a trail for the other wheel in the grass. His approach varies by road condition. We are all concerned that he’s going to bottom out and we will be stuck with a broken down van out in this most remote part of Nigeria.
The driving portion of our trip ends in a village that is primarily Muslim. From there we hop on motorcycles for the journey further up the path. Since there are only three motorcycles available, I am to wait behind while they deliver Drew, Barb and Deb then come back to get me. Instead, a Muslim gentleman offers to give me a ride on his cycle. It is quite a ride over narrow trails, through streams and down gullies. Somehow, I manage to arrive at the village first, even though they left minutes before me and we never overtook them. There are several men standing around when we pull up. I appear to be in the right place, since they have plastic lawn chairs set up for us. I just hope the others are coming soon and didn’t go to some other village instead. Finally an older gentleman walks up, welcomes me in English and hands me his student card for Bronnum Seminary and a picture of Pastor Judy Winzig’s family from four years ago. Now I know I’m in the right place!
The others arrive about ten minutes later and we hold a brief ceremony for all present. This is repeated at each village we visit—Michael explaining that the partnership is now with Lake Nokomis Lutheran, which he has them all pronounce. After the ceremony, we all head out for a twenty minute walk (which is actually 45) up to the next village. It’s a beautiful walk through a savannah surrounded by mountains. We repeat the ceremonies and head back to the motorcycles and the return trip to the Muslim village. From there it’s back into the van for the ride back to Kubi. But not for me:
A young man named Solomon who I met the night before wants me to ride back with him on his motorcycle. I eagerly accept as the ride is both faster and a lot cooler (it is at least 90 degrees in the shade). It is turns out to be a truly joyous experience. Ask me sometime about our stop to buy a cup of gasoline and the condition of the tires on that motorcycle. Over the next day I developed a nice relationship with Solomon with whom I have exchanged family photos. I am also introduced to his father and sit with him on the family front porch until the others arrive back in Kubi. The afternoon is more of the same, though the roads actually get even narrower, to the point where Anari finally says he will go no further. So we walk the last quarter mile to our last village for the day. There is so much left to tell, but this is already long, so I will end here for the day.
Sunday, October 31
Services are to begin promptly at nine in the morning, but are delayed for a while as we are taken to meet the village chief. Even though he is Muslim, Pastor Drew Flathmann is invited to lead us in prayer in his hut. It is quite a moving experience. The service is equally moving with songs of welcome from the women’s fellowship and the youth group. I have videos of each. The church is simple but of good size and fills up steadily as the service goes on. After two hours, we present our gifts for the congregation and receive ours: each of us gets an African outfit which they help us put on over our existing clothes. It’s already hot inside the church and this makes it even more so. Even I was sweating profusely, which is rare. And I wasn’t wrapped in a headscarf as Barb and Deb were. Pastor Drew then gives his sermon, which is translated into Hausa by Michael. Next is the offering, which is done separately for the men and women. First the women leave the building and re-enter from the back door, dance in single file to the front and leave their offering in a basket. Barb and Deb are near the front and, after depositing their offerings, greet each woman in the line with a handshake. Drew and I repeat this ceremony with the men. After another short, ten minute address of encouragement by a younger man (pastor in training?) the service is over, and it’s only a little after noon.
Within relatively short order, we make our way back to our huts, remove our western clothes from under our African ones, put the African ones back on and pack to leave. Shortly thereafter we are on our way! I could add so much more to this, but that will have to wait for another time. It has indeed been a life-changing experience!
John Becker
Paul's Reflections
October 31, 2010
Nigeria trip thoughts by Paul Nelson
I think today is Halloween – although I’m not completely sure as I’m losing track of time. The past three days have really been quite amazing. I’ve split off from the group and have been off looking at water issues and potential projects. However, before I get to that I do want to note two special experiences that do not fit under the theme of water. First, whenever we stop, children gather about 5 to 10 yards (or maybe I should say 2 to 3 meters) away just out of reach as if they are not too sure about you. However, if you say hello or start shaking hands they come right up – but what I really found is that they love to look at the family picture I brought along. Within seconds there are 20 to 30 of them pressing close to get a look. They get quite excited about Angie with her bright blond hair - So Angie, if you’re reading this, you’re a hit.
Second is the traffic. I suspect others on the trip have tried to describe it, but I’m not sure you can. Today I was thinking that at any particular moment I could see 20 or more of what would be considered traffic violations in Minnesota. These range from driving at night with no lights to driving on the wrong side of the road, to piling a dozen people on top of a sack of grain in the back of a small pickup, to passing a car while it’s passing a car. I think lane striping is completely optional. With that said, I do want to say that our drivers have been very good, and they are in my prayers.
As for water issues and projects, my first two days were quite different in terms of how the local communities seem to be handling the problems – one has quite a bit in initiative while the other does not. I’m intentionally not naming the communities here in an attempt to retain some privacy for those who might have family in the USA. The first day I traveled with Steven and Adams in a small Peugeot whose tail pipe exhausted into the back seat where I was sitting. Adams is the local water consultant to the LCCN. I am very impressed with him, and most importantly he seems to care. The community we visited had three boreholes and one hand dug well. Of the three boreholes we looked at, two are currently not operational – problems with the hand pumps. One has been in disrepair for over two years and no one has fixed it. It was installed by the government, LCCN now has permission to fix, so it should get done. The other broken one appears to have been installed incorrectly… it’s too hard to pump so they finally gave up. The one that is working, however, can only be pumped for a short period of time before they have to let it recharge. They get two buckets of water and then have to wait about an hour before they can use again. Again this is probably an installation problem where the drillers stopped only a short distance into the aquifer such that the short period of pumping pulls the water down surrounding the bottom of the casing. They also tell me that they’ve had to have it repaired more than 10 times since it was drilled two years ago. So again it seems to be a construction problem. This borehole also goes dry in the dry season, as does the hand dug well. When that happens they go to the river a few kilometers away for water. When we arrived they had just finished applying new concrete around the base of the hand dug well and had it roped off. So they seem to take ownership of that structure, which make some sense since it’s been the most reliable for them.
I was also taken up hill to the medicine dispensary building. They say they get about 5 people a day. There is no water there. Nearest is one of the broken pumps about ½ mile away or the hand dug well. The young man working there also pointed out that there is a stream a few kilometers away in the opposite direction. It’s pretty dry now, but I also noticed drainage rivulets through the sandy area surrounding the dispensary. The young man said the people do sometimes get water from these to wash while they are at the dispensary. I asked if they had a latrine for people to use when they visit. The young man shrugged his shoulders and said they just use the woods. Adams sort of scolded him for not having one. They have had cholera in this area as recently as September.
The next day we went to one of the Global Health Ministry Community Based Health pilot project sites. They are just kicking it off so we got to meet all the important people in that area including the tribal chief. Lots of speeches and stuff and they had a very nice lunch for us. This was a village with about 8 small surrounding villages ranging in population from 300 to 1,800 for a total population of about 7,000. The surrounding villages range from 1 to 5 kilometers away. There are only four boreholes serving all of these villages. One was broken but a man was working on it. Turns out he has learned to do repair by watching when they have had repair people come out in the past. Same is true at one of the other villages with a borehole – two young men have a brother who works for the water board that taught them to do pump repair. Only problem is that in the one borehole that has galvanized iron piping they are not always able to put back together with all of the pipe sections. They have gone from having a hole 12 pipe sections deep to 6. A fix however may be as simple as getting them the tool to re-thread pipe when they have to cut it for any reason. They say the chain breaking is one of the most common problems so they could also use some grease and a grease gun and some training that they need to keep it greased. So the young men in this community have some initiative and some improvement could possibly be made by getting them a little more training and some additional tools. It would also be good to help them figure out a way to better finance. When asked how long the borehole is inoperable once it breaks, it sounds like it might take them a couple days to as much as 5 days to get it working again. In the interim they use the local stream water – untreated. When the local project manager asked about the disease risk, the reply was a shoulder shrug and the statement “this is Africa.” Potentially what we could do here is change the way they raise money for repairs. Instead, maybe we could get them to keep some supplies of the most common problem parts on hand, so they can get it repaired right away, and then they are only raising finances to replace supplies. The more they can keep the boreholes in operation the less exposure they’ll have to water borne diseases in the stream water.
Finally, went to church today in Pella with others from Global Health Ministry. Beautiful location in the mountains. It was a lot of fun. Services are a bit more lively than at Lyndale Lutheran. In addition, the Youth League had some sort of project competition after the service- so there was quite a gathering. We had lunch outside the pastor’s home under the mango tree and the temperature was very pleasant. All in all a very good day.
Peace,
Paul
Nigeria trip thoughts by Paul Nelson
I think today is Halloween – although I’m not completely sure as I’m losing track of time. The past three days have really been quite amazing. I’ve split off from the group and have been off looking at water issues and potential projects. However, before I get to that I do want to note two special experiences that do not fit under the theme of water. First, whenever we stop, children gather about 5 to 10 yards (or maybe I should say 2 to 3 meters) away just out of reach as if they are not too sure about you. However, if you say hello or start shaking hands they come right up – but what I really found is that they love to look at the family picture I brought along. Within seconds there are 20 to 30 of them pressing close to get a look. They get quite excited about Angie with her bright blond hair - So Angie, if you’re reading this, you’re a hit.
Second is the traffic. I suspect others on the trip have tried to describe it, but I’m not sure you can. Today I was thinking that at any particular moment I could see 20 or more of what would be considered traffic violations in Minnesota. These range from driving at night with no lights to driving on the wrong side of the road, to piling a dozen people on top of a sack of grain in the back of a small pickup, to passing a car while it’s passing a car. I think lane striping is completely optional. With that said, I do want to say that our drivers have been very good, and they are in my prayers.
As for water issues and projects, my first two days were quite different in terms of how the local communities seem to be handling the problems – one has quite a bit in initiative while the other does not. I’m intentionally not naming the communities here in an attempt to retain some privacy for those who might have family in the USA. The first day I traveled with Steven and Adams in a small Peugeot whose tail pipe exhausted into the back seat where I was sitting. Adams is the local water consultant to the LCCN. I am very impressed with him, and most importantly he seems to care. The community we visited had three boreholes and one hand dug well. Of the three boreholes we looked at, two are currently not operational – problems with the hand pumps. One has been in disrepair for over two years and no one has fixed it. It was installed by the government, LCCN now has permission to fix, so it should get done. The other broken one appears to have been installed incorrectly… it’s too hard to pump so they finally gave up. The one that is working, however, can only be pumped for a short period of time before they have to let it recharge. They get two buckets of water and then have to wait about an hour before they can use again. Again this is probably an installation problem where the drillers stopped only a short distance into the aquifer such that the short period of pumping pulls the water down surrounding the bottom of the casing. They also tell me that they’ve had to have it repaired more than 10 times since it was drilled two years ago. So again it seems to be a construction problem. This borehole also goes dry in the dry season, as does the hand dug well. When that happens they go to the river a few kilometers away for water. When we arrived they had just finished applying new concrete around the base of the hand dug well and had it roped off. So they seem to take ownership of that structure, which make some sense since it’s been the most reliable for them.
I was also taken up hill to the medicine dispensary building. They say they get about 5 people a day. There is no water there. Nearest is one of the broken pumps about ½ mile away or the hand dug well. The young man working there also pointed out that there is a stream a few kilometers away in the opposite direction. It’s pretty dry now, but I also noticed drainage rivulets through the sandy area surrounding the dispensary. The young man said the people do sometimes get water from these to wash while they are at the dispensary. I asked if they had a latrine for people to use when they visit. The young man shrugged his shoulders and said they just use the woods. Adams sort of scolded him for not having one. They have had cholera in this area as recently as September.
The next day we went to one of the Global Health Ministry Community Based Health pilot project sites. They are just kicking it off so we got to meet all the important people in that area including the tribal chief. Lots of speeches and stuff and they had a very nice lunch for us. This was a village with about 8 small surrounding villages ranging in population from 300 to 1,800 for a total population of about 7,000. The surrounding villages range from 1 to 5 kilometers away. There are only four boreholes serving all of these villages. One was broken but a man was working on it. Turns out he has learned to do repair by watching when they have had repair people come out in the past. Same is true at one of the other villages with a borehole – two young men have a brother who works for the water board that taught them to do pump repair. Only problem is that in the one borehole that has galvanized iron piping they are not always able to put back together with all of the pipe sections. They have gone from having a hole 12 pipe sections deep to 6. A fix however may be as simple as getting them the tool to re-thread pipe when they have to cut it for any reason. They say the chain breaking is one of the most common problems so they could also use some grease and a grease gun and some training that they need to keep it greased. So the young men in this community have some initiative and some improvement could possibly be made by getting them a little more training and some additional tools. It would also be good to help them figure out a way to better finance. When asked how long the borehole is inoperable once it breaks, it sounds like it might take them a couple days to as much as 5 days to get it working again. In the interim they use the local stream water – untreated. When the local project manager asked about the disease risk, the reply was a shoulder shrug and the statement “this is Africa.” Potentially what we could do here is change the way they raise money for repairs. Instead, maybe we could get them to keep some supplies of the most common problem parts on hand, so they can get it repaired right away, and then they are only raising finances to replace supplies. The more they can keep the boreholes in operation the less exposure they’ll have to water borne diseases in the stream water.
Finally, went to church today in Pella with others from Global Health Ministry. Beautiful location in the mountains. It was a lot of fun. Services are a bit more lively than at Lyndale Lutheran. In addition, the Youth League had some sort of project competition after the service- so there was quite a gathering. We had lunch outside the pastor’s home under the mango tree and the temperature was very pleasant. All in all a very good day.
Peace,
Paul
Judy's Reflections
Sunday, October 31
We estimated that the LCCN Church in Jalingo is built to seat about 2,000 people. However, when the Fellowship of Lutheran Women in Nigeria came for their annual national convention, the church is overflowing. As of Saturday, 6,165 women had registered, so the pews were crowded, the aisles packed; every bit of space was occupied with women dressed in the dresses made from the special bright yellow/orange Women’s Fellowship fabric. Women were hanging in the windows to hear, and sitting in close by rooms. The convention had the feeling of and old time reunion, mixed with passionate presentations, joyful singing, and many, many opportunities for prayer.
The Women’s Fellowship is strong and a powerhouse in here in Nigeria. They are grateful for their partnership with WELCA of our Synod and the Deaconess Community of the ELCA. Because we represented their American partners, we were the honored quests: Kris, Sister Melinda, Carolyn and I. Honored guests meant that we had seats up front, plenty of bottles of water, pink plastic hand fans, sat by a huge fan, had more food that we needed, and very often heard apologies for the high heat and humidity.
What did we experience in the day and a half that we were a part of this faith filled community of women?
Passion! Women were encouraged to practice anad teach peaceful ways in their homes and to their children, so that Nigerian Christians would be known as people of peace. They were told that they had no reason to not be about telling the Gospel story. If they could not preach, they could sing. If they could not sing, they could show God’s love in what they do daily, and how they would do it. As the mothers, sisters, daughters of Nigeria, they had an important role in the development of faith and of the nation.
Joy! Singing, singing, singing! So much wonderful singing! Songs in response to the presentations, songs to welcome and songs to thank. There was even a competition between the singers of various dioceses. Each group singing their own unique songs, complete with special hand motions, and even props. It is the tradition when the singing is good; one comes to show gratitude by showering the song leader or the singers with naira. It is especially good to see if the naira bills placed on your forehead will stick! So, if you are from the Todi Diocese for example and your group is singing, you really want to show the strength of your sisterhood by showering your sister singers with money, which of course all goes into the Fellowship’s treasury. On Saturday, Archbishop Nemuel Babba attended the morning session, and there was a great shout when he came up to shower two of the groups with naira! All is done with great joy, which bounces from the walls of the church.
Commitment to evangelism! This LCCN is committed to evangelism and this was demonstrated so clearly, as one of the women leaders spoke with great energy about the new projects and possibilities of the Women’s Fellowship for the next year. She then called for an special offering for evangelism. It seemed like everyone came forward to give something for this offering. Women came forward with happy smiling faces, rejoicing as women hugged each other while stood in line or danced forward. The offering took at least 20 minutes for everyone to come forward, and a total of 104,700 plus naira was raised! That’s about $700 in US dollars. Here is a place where we can definitely learn from our Nigerian sisters!
How important was this Convention in the life of women? Important enough not only for over 6,000 women to attend, but to attend knowing that they would have to provide their own food, sleep in the church or on the church grounds, with little of what we would consider comforts. Imagine wall to wall women, with some small children, and a few men camping out and sleeping outside, taking care to prepare their own meals; so that they could be together in Christ? We left and there was still another day and a half of singing, listening, laughing, offering, and encouragement to go. We should not wonder why the LCCN is the fastest growing Lutheran church in the world!
Happy Halloween!
Rev. Judy Burgett Winzig
P.S. Carolyn brought along glasses with a nose for all of us to wear this hallowed night, so those of us who are back at the hotel will greet our returning visitors from Kubi when they arrive.
We estimated that the LCCN Church in Jalingo is built to seat about 2,000 people. However, when the Fellowship of Lutheran Women in Nigeria came for their annual national convention, the church is overflowing. As of Saturday, 6,165 women had registered, so the pews were crowded, the aisles packed; every bit of space was occupied with women dressed in the dresses made from the special bright yellow/orange Women’s Fellowship fabric. Women were hanging in the windows to hear, and sitting in close by rooms. The convention had the feeling of and old time reunion, mixed with passionate presentations, joyful singing, and many, many opportunities for prayer.
The Women’s Fellowship is strong and a powerhouse in here in Nigeria. They are grateful for their partnership with WELCA of our Synod and the Deaconess Community of the ELCA. Because we represented their American partners, we were the honored quests: Kris, Sister Melinda, Carolyn and I. Honored guests meant that we had seats up front, plenty of bottles of water, pink plastic hand fans, sat by a huge fan, had more food that we needed, and very often heard apologies for the high heat and humidity.
What did we experience in the day and a half that we were a part of this faith filled community of women?
Passion! Women were encouraged to practice anad teach peaceful ways in their homes and to their children, so that Nigerian Christians would be known as people of peace. They were told that they had no reason to not be about telling the Gospel story. If they could not preach, they could sing. If they could not sing, they could show God’s love in what they do daily, and how they would do it. As the mothers, sisters, daughters of Nigeria, they had an important role in the development of faith and of the nation.
Joy! Singing, singing, singing! So much wonderful singing! Songs in response to the presentations, songs to welcome and songs to thank. There was even a competition between the singers of various dioceses. Each group singing their own unique songs, complete with special hand motions, and even props. It is the tradition when the singing is good; one comes to show gratitude by showering the song leader or the singers with naira. It is especially good to see if the naira bills placed on your forehead will stick! So, if you are from the Todi Diocese for example and your group is singing, you really want to show the strength of your sisterhood by showering your sister singers with money, which of course all goes into the Fellowship’s treasury. On Saturday, Archbishop Nemuel Babba attended the morning session, and there was a great shout when he came up to shower two of the groups with naira! All is done with great joy, which bounces from the walls of the church.
Commitment to evangelism! This LCCN is committed to evangelism and this was demonstrated so clearly, as one of the women leaders spoke with great energy about the new projects and possibilities of the Women’s Fellowship for the next year. She then called for an special offering for evangelism. It seemed like everyone came forward to give something for this offering. Women came forward with happy smiling faces, rejoicing as women hugged each other while stood in line or danced forward. The offering took at least 20 minutes for everyone to come forward, and a total of 104,700 plus naira was raised! That’s about $700 in US dollars. Here is a place where we can definitely learn from our Nigerian sisters!
How important was this Convention in the life of women? Important enough not only for over 6,000 women to attend, but to attend knowing that they would have to provide their own food, sleep in the church or on the church grounds, with little of what we would consider comforts. Imagine wall to wall women, with some small children, and a few men camping out and sleeping outside, taking care to prepare their own meals; so that they could be together in Christ? We left and there was still another day and a half of singing, listening, laughing, offering, and encouragement to go. We should not wonder why the LCCN is the fastest growing Lutheran church in the world!
Happy Halloween!
Rev. Judy Burgett Winzig
P.S. Carolyn brought along glasses with a nose for all of us to wear this hallowed night, so those of us who are back at the hotel will greet our returning visitors from Kubi when they arrive.
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