Mobile Medical Clinic- Aveho

One evangelistic outreach the hospital has is Mobile Medical Clinics.  The purpose of these clinics is to get into villages to provide medical care with the intent of sharing the Gospel.  We have these clinics once a month in different villages.  This village, Aveho, was a little less than a hour drive from the hospital.  John usually goes, but this time Dr. Gayle invited the whole family to come along. 

First things first- John and Dr. Gayle(the doc who started mobile clinics) meet the chief of the village along with his wife.  Introductions are made and Dr. Gayle explains to the chief that we came not only to take care of physical needs but also to help take care of spiritual needs. The chief was delighted that we came to his village.

 Next, comes setting things up.  John & Dr. Gayle unload the van with the supplies we brought.

 This is a "pharmacy in a box" loaded up with various meds that we might need for patients.  While we are setting up, people begin to arrive.

Dr. Gayle was great with the kids.  He was explaining different meds to Olivia and Aiden.  Sometimes I think our kids know way more than should about things like malaria, surgery, and traumas....it is obvious they come from a medical family! :)

 The whole family got involved setting things up.  Here, John and the girls are making little bags of meds(antibiotics, vitamins, antimalarials) to send home with patients.

 Aiden enjoyed sorting the little bags.

Olivia helped John count pills...

 ...while Eliza helped Dr. Gayle label the bags.

 The makeshift pharmacy ready for patients.

 As we are setting up, Gnoyi (one of the Togolese nurses who has been trained like a physician assistant) does some teaching on high blood pressure and also some teaching on Ebola which has recently broke out in West Africa.

Once all the patients have arrived, Pastor Jeremie shares the Gospel message with those waiting. That is the Chief sitting to the right of Jeremie.

He does a great job using the EvangaCube to explain our separation from God through sin and our chance for restoration to God through Jesus Christ.

After the preaching, the medical clinic begins.  Eliza & Olivia helped check people in and show them where to go.

Checking the village Chief's vital signs. 

Dr. Gayle manning the pharmacy.

 

Several years ago, he and his wife gave up their practice in the States to serve in missions.

I'm sure when he first started med school with his sights set on being a doctor he never imagined that one day he would be practicing medicine from the back of an old van!  But this ministry really is his doing!

John seeing patients on the front porch of the chief's house.

His line of patients waiting to be seen and treated.

Luke 9:2  And he(Jesus) sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick

 

Pastor Jeremie talking one on one with an older man

 

 And while the adults did the serious work, the kids did what kids do best...they played!

 



 The played with a soccer ball and a Frisbee and they played in the dirt...for hours. 

I made a picnic lunch and brought it along.

 

 

 I was so very proud of Eliza, Olivia and Aiden.  We were there until 5pm and they didn't complain once about the heat or the lack of a working toilet.  They really had a great time serving others.

 I just love these 2 pictures of Aiden playing with some Togolese boys.  They couldn't speak to each other but they played together all day.  They laughed, they ran, they played ball, they dug in the dirt.....really, they bonded without ever saying a word. 

 

 
After all the patients were seen, John was able to have some fun too.  The kids loved him playing Frisbee.  I think I took 50 pictures of them playing Frisbee because their little faces were just lit with joy and laughter.  It really is the simple things.
 

We had such a great day working together as a family.  It was hot, sweaty, dirty and tiring but when we drove away that day our hearts were overflowing with joy.  I am so thankful we were able to do this together as a family and experience the reward of serving others.



Immunization Clinic

Every month the hospital has an immunization clinic for babies and children.  There really is no such thing as "well baby check ups" here.  You only bring your child to the doctor when they are sick.  So every month, mothers from all over Togo bring their babies to be weighed and to receive their immunizations.  Diseases like hepatitis, mumps, pertussis and polio are still fairly common here so vaccines are so very important.

So everyone shows up at about the same time. There are no appointments.  And you hope you get a waiting spot in the shade....because you may have to wait a few hours.  And no one complains about the wait.  Everyone is just thankful their child can get immunized.
One side note: do you notice how all the other babies are wrapped in blankets with hats on but there is Anlsey in just a cloth diaper!?  All the other moms kept telling me to wrap her up because she was cold.  Maybe they were right....it had to have been a cool 90+ degrees in the shade that morning.  Downright chilly!

While you wait, Mensah (the Nursing Supervisor) does some great teaching for all the moms.  Here he was teaching about how important it is to give babies and children clean water to avoid deadly dehydration from dairrhea.  He was also teaching about hygiene...you know, things like handwashing, keeping the chickens and pigs away from where the children play and eat, how to keep mosquitoes away, etc.  Normal things that every mom deals with here in Africa. Most moms in America (myself included) worry about planning the next Pinterest inspired birthday party or what the sports their child can play; however, mothers here worry about how they are going to feed their child and how they are simply going to keep them healthy and alive.

After he teaches for a while he begins to check everyone in, which includes my favorite part...weighing all the babies in a meat scale hanging off the roof of the clinic!  As he begins to call names, everyone in unison begins to strip their babies down.  Then he passes around some cloth bag like things that you slip your baby into.  And you wait again with your baby diaper-less in this cloth thing (that countless of other babies have been diaper-less in) until he calls your name.



Ansley getting weighed.  You can't see it in this picture, but there was quite the crowd watching.  They were all just fascinated by her.

Ansley just hanging out. 

What!!??  Isn't this how all babies get weighed, hanging in a bag on a meat scale, hanging off the side of a building? :)

 

After she was weighed, we waited again for the not so fun part, the shots.  Mensah called 5 or 6 of us in at a time, lined up all the babies and gave them all their shots in an assembly line!  Thankfully Eliza was a big helper and stayed close by all morning. 

Ansley wasn't too happy about the shots and it was a long hot morning, but one day she will thank me and she'll have some pretty neat stories to tell her own children! 

 

Eliza & Olivia go to Togolese School

Waaaay back in September the girls came to John and me and expressed a desire to go to the local Christian Togolese school.  This school was started by a former missionary along with 2 of our Togolese churches.  John and I talked and prayed about it, and sensing how excited the girls were about the possibility, we agreed it would be a good opportunity for them to develop relationships and to develop some of the French and Ewe language skills.

But in order to attend schools in Togo, a uniform is required.  Sadly, that is what often keeps children from being able to attend school.  Their family just can't afford the uniforms which are less than $10.  So we found out which fabric color the girls needed to attend La Lumiere, and it just so happened to be PINK!  Some schools wear green or blue, but we lucked out with pink!!  Now if Aiden goes to school there next year, we might have a problem.  I don't think he will be too fond of wearing pink.

So, of course we went to Hobby Lobby to find some fabric...well, not exactly.  We went to Adeta (the next biggest village) to look for fabric and we found this little shack.

It was surprising what all the lady had.  I found buttons, zippers, elastic and the pink fabric we needed for their uniforms.  

 

Then we had to walk to the seamstress.  This is the little footpath leading to her home.

This isn't related to school, but I thought it was pretty neat.  In the little compound where the seamstress lives was a massive clay oven.  Every morning one of the other ladies who lives there gets up around 4 am to make bread to sell.  No electricity, it uses charcoal and wood.

Olivia getting measured by Belmonde, the seamstress.

The girls had fun playing with the other kids.  They wanted to stay longer and play, but it was getting dark and I didn't have a flashlight and we had a little ways to walk home!

A few days later, Belmonde brought their little uniforms.

Aren't they cute?

Eliza and Olivia really are so very close.  I can't take any credit for it, to be honest!  

On their first days of school back in the States I always wrote a message on their hands.  Then if they became scared or missed home, they could just look at the message and know that I am praying for them all throughout the day.  Well, I knew this was an even bigger adventure than school in America so I was sure to write a message for each of them.

Apparently, the next few days they went the other kids would ask to see their hands to see what the message said that day.

A few of the other kids walking to school.  Some of the children walk 30 minutes or more each way to school in the scorching sun.  Maybe I should make the girls walk so that they can tell their own kids, "When I was a kids, I had to walk to school in Africa in the scorching sun...."  :)



It's hard to tell in the picture, but Olivia is actually kind of pulling Eliza along.  They were both super excited, but Eliza is definitely the more timid of the two.  Olivia is the brave one and she helped Eliza get over her nervousness.

The kids getting ready to head into their classrooms.

Eliza and Oliva with their teacher, Madame Henga, who they just love!  She has an 18 month old little boy that she keeps in the class with her while she teaches.  Can you imagine trying to take care of your baby and teach 63 kids in one class!  She is amazing.

Here, Madame Henga and Annie (one of the other missionaries who helps in the school) are introducing the girls to the class.  Annie is holding Madame Henga's little boy.

Can you spot Liza and Livi?

This is just some of the kids in the CP2 class which is like 2nd grade.  We put both girls in that class because that is the grade where the teacher speaks all in French.  In the earlier grades they teach mainly in Ewe, which is a tribal language.  The girls also like being in the class together.

This is the junior high building.

These ladies set up little tables and cook food for the kids to buy.  There are no Lunchables,  Hot Pockets or insulated lunch boxes here!  The girls have started buying food there at school.  Last week, Eliza bought some rice and sauce and apparently the sauce was VERY spicy!  She said, "My lips were burning and one of the other teachers saw me and gave me some water!!".  Needless to say, I don't think she will buy that again.  One day, Olivia bought some bread that had an avocado and tomato on it.  She really liked that.  Usually, lunch is 20 cents.

We are so very thankful that a few years ago one of the other missionaries had a burden to begin Christian schools.  It is such a tremendous ministry that is pouring into the lives of the Togolese children from our churches and many that do not go to our churches.  It is kind of interesting...the little shop in Adeta where I buy flour and rice is owned by a Muslim man.  Where do you think he sends his kids to school?  Not to the Togolese schools.   Not to the Catholic private schools.  He sends them to our Baptist Christian schools and he even says he enjoys it when they sing songs about Jesus and memorize Bible verses!   And we are thankful that now, our children are able to attend too.