--posted by Regina (Zambia travels July/August 08)
A lookout spies us as we approach on the dusty road, and scurries back to alert the others.
The sea of excited children breaks into song to greet us, and in a moment we are surrounded by happy mayhem. We come from a world they can only imagine, and their lives are just as incomprehensible to us.We are in Luanshya, Zambia, visiting One World Vision, a fledgling orphan-care work that feeds 165 children daily and plans to open a school in September. Luanshya is located in the Copperbelt, a mining area whose economy went south a few years back as the mines closed due to mismanagement. The children come from a squatters' camp of 17,000 people. Fifty percent of those are considered the poorest of the poor, with no income at all.
The leaders here are local men and women who have deep concern for the children of their community and serve out of love for Jesus. They come from various churches and volunteer their time around other responsibilities. Vincent Chumya retired from a government job as an electrician a year ago. He and his wife Petronella now pastor a church and care for a household of 22 persons. Morgan Mumba is a school teacher, and an energetic creative thinker. Partially because of his experiences as the parent of a handicapped child, he volunteers with several ministries to children. Katherine Banda's heart for children is obvious in her banter with them--she plays a daily supervisory role. Aaron Mulenga, founder of the group and the youngest at age 25, is a man of passion and sacrifice. Because of his own struggles as an orphan, he is touched by the plight of those around him. As a single man, he cares for eight
orphans in a very poor area of town. Their dilapidated rental home has a roof only over the bedrooms. We are exploring income-generating options with Aaron.What does this ministry need? They need everything! Large cooking pots, school furniture and supplies, sewing machines, carpentry and gardening tools, school teachers and tutors, builders, nurses. But even more, they need people with a vision for transforming a community through the love of Jesus--people who will mentor and share life with others, who will in turn pass that love on further. Is this you? We're looking for a few good men and women who will commit to three to six months, who will trade in McDonalds and Starbucks in order to share the lives of the many desperate children of Zambia.
These are the ones who pull on me--children in tattered clothing, children with ringworm on their heads, with hard bloated bellies because of intestinal worms, with leathery reptilian skin from lack of bathing. These are the same children who are overjoyed to see us, who are fascinated to trace the dark blood vessels in our arms, who fight for the privilege of holding my white hand. Aaron Mulenga's group dreams of nurturing, caring for, providing a solid foundation for these. If you'd like to donate or volunteer, contact us to become a part of this venture of faith.
