THE MITCHELL'S

Happy New Year!

2012-01-02T17:45:00.002-05:00

Dear Family and Friends,
As we start the New Year appreciative for the opportunities to have visited with many of you, we’ve also begun to identify a familiar twinge of sadness as we are not being able to take you with us when we leave. Yet we know and are excited about the ways God uses the times and places He situates each us in His sovereignty! It also helps that we are able to anticipate seeing some of you in Uganda in the not so distant future. Again, thank you for your continued support of us, and please know how grateful we are for the year end gifts many of you sent in.
Our time in the States presented an incredible chance to reconnect with family and friends, and to introduce the boys to loved ones that will again, be so far away once we arrive back in Uganda. This Christmas season was filled with sweet times with our families, times that have been etched in our minds and hearts, and times we will surely recall when we have settled back into life in Uganda. One of the many blessings we received while in Indiana was our time with County Line Church of God, our sending church Blackhawk Ministries, and Auburn Baptist church. All three churches have been an enormous encouragement to us and we are very thankful to be in partnership with them. Not only have they supported us finically but they have been prayer warriors on our behalf.
It was amazing to see God’s provision specifically through County Line Church of God as they took their once a year Christmas time offering which they call the “Joy to the World” offering. This year the funds raised were designated for New Hope in order to outfit 6 of our family groups with solar powered lighting. On a daily basis, solar light is practical way to meet a need that directly impacts the lives of approximately 140 children who call New Hope, “home”. Often the children are interrupted while studying, and their nightly activities are complicated when power goes out. The church’s goal was to raise $12,000 to accomplish this project. Not only was that goal met, but because of the outpouring of God’s generous people there, the goal was far surpassed with a total of $27,000 given. We hope that each time government power goes out in our district and the solar lights at New Hope are turned on, the children will be reminded of God’s provision for them, and the love of the body of Christ half way around the world. The extra funds will allow other vital projects to the ministry to be completed (solar power for additional buildings, much needed text books for our schools, and general supplies for the children at New Hope).
Our flight is scheduled to depart out of Chicago on the 6th with a lay-over in London, then to arrive in Uganda late evening of the 7th. Please continue to pray for us as we have begun to pack and to say some of the many “good-byes” that will fill this week. Pray for health, safety, and the anxiety that often accompanies continent and culture hopping. We know and serve a God who sees our every need and gives peace that surpasses all understanding. Pray also for our financial support. Currently, we are under budget in the area of “non cost of living” expenses such as adoption fees, health insurance, and vehicle expenses, flights between Uganda and the U.S. along with travel costs while in the States. We plan a 30 month budget and are short around $400 a month. Be assured that we are adjusting our budget like everyone else in this economy and are doing our best to be good stewards of the gifts that have been given.
Thank you again and we praise God for you all!
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate
www.newhopeuganda.org
www.calebalair.blogspot.com
Psalm 68:5, 6

First Snow

2011-12-14T10:21:00.003-05:00

Last month the boys experienced snow for the first time. Nico was bouncing off the walls when he saw it coming down. Up to that point he had only seen it on TV. Needless to say they were so excited!

Kobwin Update

2011-12-12T14:07:00.002-05:00

Eight years ago, one of our Kobwin daughters was abducted from her family in Amuria by the LRA. At nine-years-old, she became one of “Kony’s” wives. This is the name abducted girls are given. She continues to struggle in almost every way, academically, spiritually, and physically, especially in regards to her health. She still wonders what is”"wrong ” with her. BUT after being with us for almost two years at Kobwin, she now smiles. She now has a glimmer of hope, because of Jesus.
Another son we work with in Amuria, just escaped last year from Central African Republic. Eight years, four countries and five languages later, he has been reunited with his twin brother and is helping to care for his mother. We will bring him to Kobwin in January to be part of our second family group. He is already saved and trusting God to provide care for his ailing mother so he can begin building his future, the future the Father has always had for him.

Who is that? Simply put, family, by God’s grace and blessing. Ask anyone who visits Kobwin even for a short time and they will tell you that there is something very special going on with our family there.

At the age of seven, one of our sons now at Kobwin, witnessed the brutal torture and murder of his mother. The LRA rebels then took his father and until two months ago, our son never knew if his father lived or not. For the last eight years, this young man has had repeated nightmares reliving his mothers death and grieving the unknown fate of his father. We recently received a call that his father was living only an hour from Kobwin! What a joyful, yet tearful reunion it was!!! God, our Father does work in mysterious and amazing ways.

During my recent visit, I had the privilege of leading a number of the nightly devotions as we examined the book of Acts. In just one week, God met us and spoke to us profoundly. We saw how the early church came to be and how they lived and worked together. WE realized that that was us! Young believers, in general, living as family, praying and sharing the word daily, breaking bread together daily – having everything in common with no one in need. The kids were amazed and challenged. The challenge is to go on in the same way and to go out into the Kobwin community and even return to their own community to share the Gospel – to bring life to those who know no life and share the hope they now have. In December, the opportunity is coming. Our kids all go back to Amuria for the holidays and to be with relatives and friends. Please be praying with us for these young ambassadors!

The fact that our Kobwin children are growing is a real testimony to the Father’s amazing ability to change lives. But there is still much work to be done, much healing that needs to take place. And for this, we also need your prayers! As staff we need wisdom and strength to pursue these special children to the depths of their need. Some of them will be “repairers of the breech” (Isaiah 58:12) for their people and their community. Others, I believe, will go to our local community in Kobwin, and beyond.

We are thankful for our current partners and all that have come alongside of us in one way or another, very thankful! We trust that the others who will join us are on the way!
BY CONSTANCE DOBBS

November News

2011-11-21T19:58:00.000-05:00

Dear Friends and Family,
As we approach Thanksgiving, we have much to be thankful for, from Caleb’s health, to our time in the States with family and opportunities to spend time with many of you. We have been blessed this past year by the outpouring of love, concern, care, and prayers on our behalf by the family of God here in the U.S. and by our community of believers in Uganda. We have rejoiced with one of our Pacific family young man who received the gift of salvation and has committed to becoming a disciple of Christ, and we thank God in advance as we proudly anticipate the graduation of 5 secondary school (high school) students in our family next month. We have also seen our Father’s hand of grace and provision in countless ways in the lives of so many of you… we remember and celebrate the works of His hand!
There is indeed a time and season for every purpose under heaven, and we have been blessed this season to have spent 2 ½ months in California and look forward to our remaining 2 months in Indiana. We continue to enjoy watching our boys get to know their grandparents, aunts, uncles, and some of our dear friends. Here in Indiana Caleb is working part time for the YMCA, Nicolas loves attending preschool 2 days a week, and Nate and Mama are reveling in their together time (a direct result of the activity of Daddy and big brother). We are very aware that the next 2 months will go by fast, and so we are preparing for our return to Uganda, by speaking at churches, with small groups, and Sunday school classes.
We are currently raising support for a solar powered water pump for New Hope’s secondary site and for the ministry to equip our family units with solar powered lighting. If you would like to help with either of those projects please contact us via email at calebandalair@hotmail.com You can also give to support us personally by going to the website at www.newhopeuganda.org and clicking the donate button on the top right hand corner. Select the appropriate giving category and write our names in the comment box.
Please pray that we would… look carefully then how we walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of our time (Ephesians 5:15&16). Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:20).
The Mitchells,
Caleb, Alair, Nicolas, and Nathaniel
Ps 68:5-6

Through It All

2011-11-10T16:49:00.003-05:00

Psalm 124:1-8

”If it had not been the LORD who was on our side,” Let Israel now say––
“If it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when men rose up against us,
Then they would have swallowed us alive, when their wrath was kindled against us;
Then the waters would have overwhelmed us, the stream would have gone over our soul;
Then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul.”
Blessed be the LORD, Who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
Our soul has escaped as a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the LORD, Who made heaven and earth.”
The words of the Psalmist above, make lots of meaning to us as Musana Radio as we come to the close of our second year of service. We praise God for your love and support through the prayers, encouragement, counsel, giving and the many ways in which you have been part of what God is doing here at Musana Radio.

If it had not been for the Lord, Musana would not have survived this year.
Twice last year, our station was hit by lightening and our consuls were damaged. We are so thankful to God that some of you responded and we got urgent help to replace them. What we did not realize was that the transmitter had been affected and was gradually losing power. By the time we realized this, it had dropped from 1000KW to 15%, literary only reaching that fraction of broadcast. We had to close the station. Experts took it for repair and found out that the damages were big and that we needed to replace it. This was a big blow to us and to our listeners who had become so used to their Radio that it had made them one big family of Musana. Incredibly, we were off air

for three weeks ONLY and through your very generous support the Lord provided for us and we replaced the transmitter. This was a miracle!

By the time we went off air, we had started a teaching on witchcraft which stirred a lot of issues and many people were being set free. This has been a big issue in our country and there has not been a clear voice to address this matter. Musana Radio has been a tremendous tool in addressing this and many are testifying of how they have been set free from witchcraft ever since these teachings started. The teachings have been very vital in preparing the Nation for the 49th Independence celebrations which we had on October 9th as we ushered in the year of Jubilee for our country.

For the big part of the year we have not had enough electrification. We have mostly depended on a generator and fuel to power our station. This has also been very costly.

But through it all we want to thank God for you, our esteemed supporters. Thank you very much for standing with us in our mission of “SHINE AND TRANSFORM”. Through your prayers, encouragements and financial support, we can say, Ebenezer!

We are also thankful for our listenership. Despite the circumstances of being on and off air, our listenership has continued to grow. And more so in terms of what the Lord is doing in their lives. Again and again we hear stories of how people have learnt how to work hard, invest money and start up small projects like poetry, fish farming and others. All as a result of the teachings that we do on Radio, in which we promote three main values, that is, Hard work, Integrity and Love.

To mention but a few, we cannot fail to be thankful for our team that has worked tirelessly and patiently with little pay but believing in the growth of the station. This team of young men and women, most of whom were not believers by the time we took them on, we are grateful for what the Lord is doing in each of their lives. Some have come to know the Lord from there, some have sanctified their marriages, others have got married and others are continuing to amaze the community in which they live because of the big change those who knew them before are seeing in their lives.
By Godfrey Kyazze, Head of Curriculum Development

Construction Help Needed

2011-11-08T10:05:00.001-05:00

Praise God that we have almost completed our Standard of Living Matching Funds grant. This grant is already starting to be used to help in providing some much-deserved raises for our national staff and to do some home improvements. Unfortunately, we have had to go very slowly on the home improvements simply because we currently have a serious shortage of construction staff.

While we continue to look in-country for construction help, we could really use construction experts and handy-man types help over this next year. We have 40+ solar units to install (this reduce our reliance on the unreliable grid system here) and a number of water tanks and indoor plumbing to install. If could help us install these items or do general maintenance and would be available to volunteer here for a week, one month, three months, six months etc., we would love to talk to you.

Please contact us through our website.

Restoration at Kobwin

2011-10-31T12:45:00.001-04:00

Recently, a team from Moorpark, CA spent a week serving at our Kobwin Children’s Centre. The team worked alongside the kids to help fence the property. This helped in developing relationship. As our week at Kobwin progressed, I saw hearts open and real transformation happen. Each day that we were there, we covered a certain topic. Faith, Hope, Forgiveness and Love. In the mornings, small groups would assemble to pray and discuss how we see fruit from each of these issues. Then, in the evening, each of the men from the team would reflect on it with a story from the Bible and personal illustrations.

One night that really stand out to me was the night we spoke about forgiveness. Many of the kids, especially boys, came to a point where they faced the fact that they hadn’t forgiven someone for taking their childhood and forcing them into a war driven society.

Their stories and testimonies were heart-breaking, but in the end they were thankful the Lord brought them through those times. For without turmoil, they may never have turn to Him for strength!
Mallari Page, Assistant Teams Coordiator

Musana Camps First Baptism

2011-09-22T10:24:00.006-04:00

Alea Haywood (age 10) and her family who go to Andrea Spark’s home church in Williams Bay, WI, have been praying for Musana Camps since it’s humble beginnings. A few months before her family left for a 5-week trip to Africa, Alea felt God prompting her to get baptized in Africa. She thought the perfect spot would be Lake Victoria! But after talking with Syd and Andrea about the Bilhartzia parasite, her parents were a little hesitant. They agreed to play it by ear and follow the Spirit’s prompting….maybe there would be a baptism service in one of the churches they were visiting along the way.
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit....
Well the Spirit led them down a steep hill, past a little fishing village, and down to the water’s edge of beautiful Lake Victoria. Joey, her father read Acts 2:37-41, Alea shared her testimony, they prayed, then waded out past the seaweed to where it was deep enough. When they got back to shore, everyone sang “Our God is bigger, our God is stronger, God you are higher than any other, Our God is healer, awesome in power, our God, our God….” (that was Alea’s special song of choice). Then the Haywood kids swam with the Bouffard kids for about an hour! A very sweet, simple baptism, for a very sweet, simple, shy young girl who followed the Holy Spirit’s prompting…parasites and all!

Emmanuel Youth Outreach

2011-09-02T10:40:00.007-04:00

Emmanuel Youth Outreach, in short EYO, is a youth ministry at Kasana Community Church with the sole purpose of reaching out to the youths in our community and Uganda at large (to be a blessing as we have been blessed). We believe that the young people are the future of our nation and if they are reached with the word of God and trained in the ways of God, Uganda has a bright future. We are a chosen generation to change the world and changing the world starts with reaching individuals who will not compromise with evil.

EYO ministry began in 2008 and has touched the lives of many youths both here at Kasana and across Uganda. These young people are reached out to in several ways which include youth camps, youth seminars, youth debates, discipleship and outreaches. In EYO we believe in being practical with the Gospel such that whatever is learnt is required to be put into practice. Therefore, opportunities are provided for these youths to be involved in building the Kingdom of God. After reaching out to the youth they are required to reach out to other people too. We normally have community outreaches where we go and weed people’s gardens, build houses for widows and orphans, share the word of God with other people and also share physical things such as clothes, shoes , soap etc with the needy.

We thank God that each time he has provided amazingly and we can gladly say we have never failed to reach out to people because we didn’t have provision. The youths here at Kasana have always worked hard to see to it that they raise money to support this ministry in several ways. One of them is the EYO bazaar. The EYO Bazaar is more like a market that is held at Kasana once every year. In order to have this bazaar, different people give things from their homes that they may not need but yet are still usable. As time has gone on, people no longer give only what they do not need but out of a heart that is filled with love toward the needy, they now even give their valuable things.

When we have finished collecting this stuff, we then buy some more and top it up in order to satisfy our customers and then we sell all of it at the bazaar. We invite all people from Kasana and those who are interested from the community around Kasana. When the bazaar is over, we evaluate how much profit we have made and all of is used to fund our annual outreach to the poor, lowly and those who have not yet been reached with the good news of the gospel.

This year, we held the bazaar on the 16th of July 2011 at Kasana. We invested Shs 1.5million and made a profit of Shs 2.2 million. This was a very big improvement in comparison to the past years and we thank God for that improvement.

The money we made from this bazaar will be used for funding an outreach which is going to be carried out in Masaka. We will be preaching the good news of the gospel and doing community work helping the poor and the needy in this place. This will run from the 21st to 26th of August.
By Ronald Mugabi, New Hope Son and Recent University Graduate

2011-08-06T22:19:00.006-04:00

WE MADE IT TO AMERICA

2011-07-30T11:17:00.007-04:00

Boys helping daddy change oil

We made it to America. The transition has been smooth and the boys are doing well.

Mitchell Update

2011-07-07T04:11:00.002-04:00

The highlights of the past few months have been moving into our new home, which was completed at the end of April, and spending four days at Musana Camps with our Pacific family. It was exciting to watch our kids enjoy each other, the beauty of God’s creation, practice swimming in Lake Victoria, laugh hard, play hard, hike, sing, and delve into the word of God!
The rest of this News Letter will be a photo collage of our time there and, upon request; this and subsequent news letters will introduce you to our family members and help you get to know our Pacific family better. As many of you know, New Hope Kasana Children’s Centre is all about family. Well here’s ours… at least the immediate family:) Our family is made up crucial members. Our family father is Uncle Rukundo William (front right in orange & a blue hat). Rukundo is not married, but co-parents with Aunt Christine, (front, near center in a purple). To date, we have 21 children. Uncles and Aunties (like ourselves) assist the family parents, and love on these children! That’s the reason we are here! As a child, Uncle Rukundo was in one of the original families. He is now 32 years old, and has been a family father for 8 years, YES he became a father to 20+ kids at age 24! Auntie Christine, has been parenting in Pacific family for 5 years, and has two of her biological grandchildren with her in our family. Auntie Marian (middle row, left in pink) has been an Auntie for Pacific family for 12 years now, and heads our sponsorship program. Auntie Jenny (front, on the rock, in blue) is our newest acquired Auntie who serves as a nurse in our clinic, and the Jackson family Nathan, Kendra and 2 kiddos John & Hannah (in the back row) are working at Musana Camps. The other Uncle and Aunties (attached to different Kasana family groups) are the Boufard family (on the far left & kids scattered throughout the group) who are leading the Musana Camps team, & two short term camp staff members.

This will be our last news letter from Uganda as we leave for furlough in just a couple of weeks. We have mixed emotions as we pack and prepare to leave. It seems to have taken a full three years to see freedom of relationship with many of our Pacific Family kids, and leaving for an extended period makes us wonder how challenging it might be to get back to this point when we return! We are, however, very aware that our Father spares no expense when it comes to the lives of his children (Is. 43:1-7) and we are sure He has just the right people in place for this season of their lives and ours!
What a loving God!
With love from The Mitchell’s!
Address for online Donations www.newhopeuganda.org
Or
New Hope Uganda
PO Box 154
Belle Fourche, SD 57717-0154

My First Visit to Kobwin

2011-06-15T23:33:00.009-04:00

By Brevin Anderson, 15-year-old NHUM Missionary Family Member

My first trip to Kobwin Children’s Center was not exactly a dream ride. To start, my computer battery was no match for the seven hour trip. My movie watching was postponed indefinitely. The car we were going in was not a luxury vehicle. Like a lot of cars here, it was dusty, dirty, dented, and scratched. The shocks on the car were interesting too. I feel I got to know them really well, as I discovered the front shocks were the equivalent of rocks, and you felt every jar and rattle, while the back wheel shocks were more like springs. They, I found, were also very interesting. With only two hours to go, we managed to find a town with plenty of speed bumps. In Uganda, these speed bumps are thin, steep, and clustered lines of cement that go across the road. The ones we met were in sets of four or five; and there were a lot of sets. After a lot of banging and thumping my head on various parts of the car, we pulled off the tarmac onto a dirt road, and began to approach Kobwin. The bad beginning didn’t help my expectations; they were low to begin with as I had heard of the oppressive heat, the lack of water and electric power, and the sporadic internet.
One exciting part of the trip was my first sighting of Mount Elgon. At first, when we entered Mbale, the last big town on the way to Kobwin, we weren’t sure if it was Elgon, but we found out soon, because every other store had a name containing “Elgon”.
As I now write, I am listening to a portable voice recorder that contains all my notes of the trip. I must say, though my voice annoys me, I am glad to have this, for everything that I write is from experiences recorded when they happened.
As we approached Kobwin, it became obviously more barren, with more space between each of the trees or bushes. Large boulders began to appear all over the landscape, and the bedrock appeared to poke through the ground in many places. The road got significantly rougher, and I hugged the seat to try and prevent injury. I largely succeeded, I think, but I missed some of the sights on the way in. As we pulled in to the Kobwin Children’s Centre, the first thing I saw was the main staff housing, which was a cluster of round huts made of concrete and bricks with papyrus roofs. A little distance away were two other clusters of huts, which were the children’s living area and the guesthouse/clinic/school. We stopped near the guesthouse cluster and got out. I was pleasantly surprised by the coolness, but it was the evening, and I wouldn’t know the real heat until the next day.
Most of the kids were outside, and they and the staff members around all greeted Uncle Tal (my dad), Uncle Dan (our driver) and I with handshakes. I got called “uncle” more than once, hopefully because I am obviously so mature and not because of my height or muzungu status.
I was able to hang out with the Kobwin kids for a short time before their devotions and dinner, which my dad and I had with Uncle Charles and Uncle Dan. That night the moon was the brightest I had ever seen it. I later found out that it was the pre-super moon, the brightest the moon will be for 18 years. After lying on a raised boulder in the moonlight for a bit, it was time for sleep. This dad and I proceeded to do, and we soon drifted off.
The next day I was able to meet and learn about the staff members in greater detail. Uncle Allan and Auntie Hope have been here since the beginning, and rest have come along the line. Uncle Shadrach, the Kobwin family father, and I met while he was making a pen for his piglets that had just been weaned from their mother.
Later in the day, around 8:00am, the kids made their way to their classrooms. As there is not a real school house at Kobwin, school is done in the covered, open areas that are used to eat and work in. The children divide according to grade, not age, so the diversity in the ages of the kids in the classes is radical. As some missed a lot of school time, some kids are twice as old and tall as their peers in the same class.
One of the first difficulties I noticed was the Kobwin water situation. Since their well has stopped working, they have to walk or drive down to the lake nearby for water. They use the lake water for bathing, and cleaning, but to get drinking and cooking water they have to walk two kilometers. There is a place closer, but the locals who own the land don’t let the Kobwin kids get water from there. The reasons I have heard for this include the fact that the kids here were involved as child soldiers or were affected by the war, and so are “untouchables”. The other one is that, because Kobwin is involved with Bazungus (whites), locals think the Kobwin kids should have enough money to build their own well. To get water for bathing and cleaning, the truck goes to the lake every other day to fill up lots of buckets and barrels. To get drinking water, the kids have to walk the two kilometers every single day; two there with empty jerry-cans, and two back with 50lb jerry-cans full of water.
One cool thing I have briefly mentioned about the Kobwin site is that there all these huge boulders around. Some are big enough to be little cliffs. I and Uncle Dan, who I hung out with before I twisted my ankle, had the goal of climbing every rock we could see. We were making a good time of it too, and only had had to give up on one impassable one and to turn back on another because we saw a snakeskin in a wonderful area for snakes. We got some great views from the tops of some of the rocks. I had my good tennis shoes with traction, but he had (sadly) slip-in shoes, so his feet would slide out of them unless he careful. I showed him how to climb backwards, and then we didn’t have as much of a problem. We had a good time.
At nine forty a.m. I made another entry into my little voice recorder. “It is now 9:40, kids are still doing school. Just finished conquering a bunch of large boulders. Got most of them, but a couple were impassable. But we got most of them.”
Another entry a little later begins talking about a pigpen, but then switches to this, “The kids here seem really…I don’t know how you’d say it…really devoted, I guess, I mean they are just quiet and I mean I haven’t seen any fights or anything. Just doing their school.…seem to listening. And the teaching seems to be good too.. . it is just really, really beautiful here, a really beautiful place. Thankfully, I am here on a day when it isn’t hot. So that is definitely a blessing. Think I might try to go interview a staff member.”
Now, back to the pig thing. When we had arrived, Uncle Shadrach had just finished a pig pen for some piglets he had. Dan and I were taking a break from climbing, when I went to check on them. I got down there just as some were climbing up and out, and were making their escape. I tried unsuccessfully to catch one, but it escaped. I went back to the guesthouse area, running, and brought back Uncle Dan and another Kobwin boy who had heard me. We tried herding them around back to the pen, and even caught one or two, but once we put them back into the pen, they just hopped out again. We figured out that were heading to their mommy pig. They headed across a field that had been prepared for planting and had holes everywhere. I, in my brilliance, decided to sprint across this field and try to head them off. I got about a fourth of the way when I stepped in a hole, tripped, and fell face-first into the dirt.
At first I thought nothing was bruised but my pride. However, as I tried to get up, I collapsed back down, as my ankle was sending failure notices and giving way beneath my weight. As I was helped up by Uncle Dan and the boy, whose name I will give as George, I figured out a little too late that my ankle was sprained.
For the next few hours I wallowed in pain and self-pity. When it was time for lunch, I barely was able to get over across the courtyard to the table, but I managed with my Dad’s help.
After lunch, I went to do a lengthy interview with Uncle Charles (Kobwin Manager) and his wife Aunt Felistus (Head Mistress of the school).
In the interview I learned how they were brought to New Hope in the first place, how they met, and how they ended up at Kobwin.
Uncle Charles was the first drawn to New Hope. He had wanted to work with children and knowing that New Hope was a Christian organization brought him to it as a teacher.
As for Auntie Felistus, Uncle Charles was at New Hope for six years before they met. At a Christmas holiday Uncle Charles attended a conference and met Aunt Felistus. “It was where I saw somebody unique in the crowd,” he said. “And after that I was like ‘who is this one, I need to meet her’ and after that it was like maybe there is something, but I didn’t take it so seriously. But it leaned on my heart. I started praying about it, I shared with some other people who were counseling me and that’s how things worked out.”
As I went on to ask them Uncle Charles and Aunt Felistus about the kids at Kobwin, their successes and difficulties, and other things. One success they talked about was a boy named Vincent (not his real name).
“One has come out very clear as somebody who is committed, and who is serious, we see him playing the responsibility as a big brother in the family,” said Uncle Charles. “He helps the other children, the brothers and the sisters, and that is Vincent, Vincent Afamo; he is in S3 (9th grade) now, and in his secondary school he is the Head Boy. At home, when the family father is not around he can lead devotions, he can lead programs on Sunday. He really helps counseling the friends, and the rest of the children. Yeah, we have really seen him come out, and really taking the Word of God seriously. [He helps] the other children that are still not seeing life so clearly. We have seen him counseling his fellow children. We see the way he interacts. Vincent is really someone who is committed, responsible, who is honest and hardworking, so I really am proud of talking about Vincent. He is someone who is taking responsibility as someone we can trust, even when we are not around.”
I actually met Vincent later that day, when, bored from putting my foot up in my room, I went out to meet up with the kids.
Uncle Charles had given me a pair of crutches that, though a bit small, did the job. I was now semi-mobile, and with my new freedom I decided to put the Blink card game that my mom sent along for me to give to someone to good use.
After checking with some of the staff members to make sure it was okay, I made my way over to the kids’ compound. There, I found some willing players, and, starting with one, then moving up to three, I taught the kids Blink. They really enjoyed the game. The cards, however, didn’t. With the power that they were slapping the cards down, I don’t think that those cards have a good life expectancy.
One of the boys who came to play the game was fast, really fast. Later on, when I decided to get a few kids’ names down, I asked this boy his. He replied, “I am Vincent.” It was fun to meet the guy who I had heard such good things about.
I played with them for an hour and a half. Their enthusiasm was fun to watch. I didn’t play the whole time, but I stayed there. I left the cards with one of the kids, and then went for dinner.
The last meal I had at Kobwin was uneventful enough, as I remember it. We mostly talked about tribal conflicts in Uganda.
I recorded in my audio journal, as one of the last entries, this; “One other thing that I can say is that God, I mean, he really took what started as a really bad trip; my expectations weren’t that good, I really didn’t want to go, and I missed my [Online] English class that I really enjoy, but I was able to meet some new kids, see a new part of Uganda, see some lives that have been changed, you know, from beyond what you could really expect…I had a great time with some of the boys playing Blink…”
The very final entry talks about the conversation at dinner. One thing that Uncle Charles said was this, “The beginning is better than the end,” referring to the fact that we were leaving tomorrow before sunrise. I however, took it a different way. For me, at least, on my first and hopefully not last, trip I found the opposite was true. The End, was better than the Beginning, for though it was sad to leave, the End happened with understanding and was with the expectation of another trip, My Second Trip to Kobwin.

Coming to America

2011-06-13T07:56:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone,
Many of you have asked about the process with our work permits and the boy’s visas to America. We wanted to update you and thank you all for your prayers. Uganda Immigration has granted us two year work permits. Praise God! Since that approval we were able to process the boy’s visas quite simply with the US Embassy in Kampala. We want to thank all of you for your prayers and notes of encouragement. WE WILL SEE YOU SOON!
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate

Holiday with Pacific Family at Musana Camp

2011-05-28T04:34:00.007-04:00

Games

Ladder ball

On a hike at Musana Camp

Swim time in Lake Victoria. (Caleb did not participate)
Kayesu blowing the lunch horn.

New Hopes Kobwin Center

2011-03-26T12:22:00.003-04:00

Nabulungi Scovia*, 16, was abducted by the rebel group “Lord’s Resistance Army” (LRA) when she was nine. She escaped after six months but the scars from that time run deep. Scovia came to Kobwin with a lot of anger. Though she enjoys living in a place where she is not referred to by the demeaning label “Kony’s Wife” that she has often heard, she is still very insecure and affected by the trauma of her ordeal. The Kobwin staff continue to love her and look forward to seeing her freed from the chains that bind her.
14-year-old Latolo John*, one of 15 boys now living full-time at New Hope’s Kobwin Children’s Centre, spent significant time in Interally Displaced Person (IDP) camps following the chaos and atrocities of the LRA. Such camps can be quite dehumanizing as those there have no work opportunities nor hope of providing for themselves. The only option often seems to be to sit and wait for the next relief agency to come and provide food.
John’s father had died and his mother was unable to pay for any schooling. There seemed to be no future. John enjoyed getting to know New Hope teams who would come to his area and offer camps. When Kobwin officially opened in March, John and his mother jumped at the opportunity. Now, receiving daily remediation schooling, John is preparing for his P7 exam. He talks about being so thankful for the opportunity to go to school and looks forward to one day being able to help his family with the skills he is now acquiring. Though he is still fairly quiet, he has started to develop into praise and worship leader among his peers, even though he is one of the youngest at Kobwin. John is very much still developing, but God is transforming his life and he now lives with hope.
*Names have been changed
Our Kobwin Centre opened officially with the first 21 children like Scovia and John and coming to live with us in mid- March of 2010. All of these
Water color pics of scriptures
children came from Amuria District and where each of them either lived in an Internally Dispaced Persons (IDP) Camp for a prolonged period of time and had been either traumatized by the war in the North or had actually been abducted by members of the LRA and consequently, had become a part of them.
Kobwin Centre was a long time in the making, but God’s timing is always perfect! In 2003 while members of New Hope Uganda’s Kasana Children’s Centre were part of a month-long relief effort in Soroti, the vision for Kobwin Centre was birthed. We actually took possession of the land at Kobwin in 2005, after having moved from what we thought would be the start up site in nearby Bugondo. From 2005-the end of 2009 only a skeleton staff of two couples and their children were in Kobwin, developing the gardens, planning for the future, building the existing structures. Those two couples are still with us as part of the current Kobwin staff and have had the joy of seeing their long wait pay off this year.
In August of 2007, after having identified Amuria as the area that we would bring our first children from
the group of 50 children from Amuria, came to Kobwin to attend our first camp held for them. Thus we slowly began building relationship with a large of traumatized children from whom we would eventually chose the first 21 children from 2 ½ years later. These camps continued as our relationship with the children continued to blossom so that when they arrived in March of 2010 it was more like a homecoming than a coming to a new place. The two years of camps was one of the best investments we could have ever made in these children and really was testimony to how waiting on the Father’s perfect timing has great rewards!
Our ChildrenWe currently have 21 children from Amuria lining in the family group headed by one of our own sons with his wife and three young boys. The children range in age from 14 – 18 years plus one 21 year old. Of the 21, 10 are former abductees. They were each with the LRA for varying amounts of time, from 2 months to 1 ½ years. The other 11 had their lives tremendously disrupted by the life in various IDP camps. All are behind where they would be in school if not for the war in the North. There are six boys who attend a nearby (walking distance) secondary school and are in S1 and S2. The remaining 15 attend our primary school on the Kobwin site and are in P4, P6and P7. We have 5 girls and 16 boys.
In their time outside of school hours, our kids can be found in the normal activities of the people of Uganda. They dig in the gardens, maintain our compound, fetch water, clean their houses, wash their clothing, help with the family parent’s children, play football and other games, develop their artistic talents attend family devotions, small group mentoring and counseling and just enjoy one another, in general!
We currently have maize, cassava, ground nuts, sweet potatoes, and vegetables growing in our gardens. We are yet to be self sufficient but should produce 40% of our own food this year.
We praise God for all He is doing at Kobwin and for all of the prayers and support that have made it possible.

By Constance Dobbs

Hope Family

2011-03-25T08:02:00.003-04:00

Back in 1999 Matthew and Julie Shorack took seven babies into their home, into their family and shared the hope of Jesus. Since that day, over 40 babies have passed through the unique place that is Hope House. Some of them have been reunited with their family, some have been adopted and some have joined our family groups here at New Hope.
Last June, we had the privilege of joining the New Hope family here at Kasana. We are now overseeing the work of Hope Family and look forward to developing the care and provision that we can offer to these precious babies.
Hope House is now Hope FamilyWe have changed the name from Hope House to Hope Family and this is because we recognise that words are amazing things!!! We all know that words whether spoken or written can wield unusual power, they can be both positive and negative. We desire to speak positively and truthfully over these little ones and let them know that when they join Hope Family, they are no longer alone but are in a family that will love, care and protect them. Here at New Hope we know that family is important to God, we had seven families, now we have eight!
As this new year began Hope Family had a pretty large growth spurt! We had 3 new babies join us all in a very short time – Carol came to us having spent five weeks in hospital being treated for severe malnutrition. She was found by a visiting New Hope team in the nearby village having been abandoned by her mother. Elderly, sick grandparents were struggling to take care of her and she weighed in at just 3.4Kg, being 12 months of age. Here at Hope Family, she is making good progress and putting on plenty of weight! We are delighted that her father, although very young, has taken some responsibility for her. He is coming on a weekly basis to Hope Family to work in the compound and spend time with his little girl!
Mary came to us over the Christmas period. She is 5 months old and currently with us because her mother is critically ill in hospital with a heart condition. There are no other family members to care for mother or baby and the church here at Kasana is supporting with medical bills as well as spiritual support. We have been taking Mary regularly into the hospital to see her mother!
Our youngest member of the family is Saul who came to us at just one week old. He was collected from the local police station just before New Year’s Eve following a dispute and disagreement about who the mother was. Sadly as more information came it seemed that the mother was ‘lending’ out her new baby to another woman in order to made some money and both women have now been charged with 64 months in custody.
As you can tell we are pretty busy here at Hope Family and now up to our maximum number of babies. We have had to turn abandoned babies away in the past when we had no room and we are praying that we will not have to do that again in the near future. More importantly we are looking forward to the completion of our new baby home for Hope Family, which will house up to 20 little ones, as well as accommodating more staff members. We still have a long way to go with fund raising although the building work is progressing well. We are praying in faith that the money will arrive over the next few weeks and months so that construction work can be completed by August!
A very big thank you to all of our existing supporters and all those who sponsor Hope Family. We are also so grateful to all those who have made donations towards the new build. Thank you!
Stu & Sarah Dendy – Hope Family

Injury working on the house

2011-03-16T04:21:00.003-04:00

Caleb was helping to install the water tower at the new house and he fell into the hole where the tower was going. The legs of the tower had several sharp pieces of metal welded on for the cement to adhere to. One of those pieces gouged his left leg. Our friend Shawn Zimmerman drove us to the local hospital where the surgeon worked to clean, and straighten the cut up a bit. We go back on Friday to have the wound closed(repairing the muscle then stiching the skin).

God has a purpose for every life

2011-03-12T09:38:00.002-05:00

For you created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother`s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well….. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be" Ps. 139:13-16

Every individual was created by God, in His image. We are all ‘treasures in jars of clay,’ in need of restoration which only God can bring. Our Father has plans and purposes for each person he has given life to. Every one of us can glorify God despite our imperfections and limitations.

In 2002, a baby boy called Hassan was brought to New Hope having suffered from serious head injuries which had caused significant damage to his brain. At that time it was not evident how much damage had been done and what disabilities had been caused, but as Hassan grew up in the loving environment of Hope house, it became clear that this little boy would be able to do little for himself.

Hassan is now 8 years old and is reliant on a carer for all of his personal care needs. He is unable to walk or talk and has feeding difficulties which have required him to have a gastrostomy tube fitted through which he now receives the majority of his food and drink. When people meet Hassan, and hear his story, they are often overwhelmed with sorrow, pity and sometimes even hopelessness. Perhaps they ask themselves ‘why did God allow this to happen?’ or ‘Does God really have plans and purposes for Hassan`s life?’

However, as someone who spends the majority of my days with him, I can confidently answer this last question with a YES! God does have plans and purposes for Hassan`s life and he IS using him to bring glory to His name. Hassan brings joy into many people`s lives when they see him laugh and smile or when he tries to sing during praise and worship at church.

Hassan now lives in one of the 7 family groups at Kasana children`s centre where a special house was built for him and his carer(s) [caregivers] in 2009. He loves to be part of the family and attends the family devotions every evening. His brothers and sisters often take him out on walks delivering bread or just visiting other family groups or staff members. In the week, Hassan goes to pre-school and always responds with big smiles and laughter when he is welcomed by his classmates.

Hassan has been a catalyst in the beginning of the New Hope Special Needs Programme. As well as caring for Hassan, we want to reach out to other children and adults with disabilities in the local community. At the moment we are also providing care for a man who has significant learning difficulties and has a history of being abused and taken advantage of in the village where he stays.

During school term time, two other seven year old boys (Kakulu and Ivan) come in to visit Hassan`s house and also spend time within the pre-school classroom. Once a month we have been holding a community outreach session where people in the local community who have children with disabilities are able to come for lunch at Hassan`s house and are given support and advice about caring for their disabled child. At the most recent session, we had a visit from the community physiotherapist who was able to assess each child and show their parents/carers exercises and activities to do that would aid their development.

We are aiming towards starting a special needs class at our primary school in February 2011. Initially the class will be located in the new clinic building but eventually we hope to move down onto the main primary site. The class will run from Monday to Thursday with Fridays left open for home visits and a monthly ‘Community Outreach’ session. We hope to start with five students and we will focus mainly on teaching them independent life skills. Basically, we want to enable each child to fulfil his/her God given potential and to grow in their relationship with God.

As well as reaching out to the children and their families, we also want to challenge the community as a whole to reconsider their attitudes and beliefs concerning disability and suffering in general; does what they believe line up with what God says in his word? Here in Uganda, many people believe that disability is caused by sin or by witchcraft.

Others believe that disabilities are catching and are therefore fearful of those affected. As is the case worldwide, people with disabilities are considered by many as being of less worth than an ‘able’ person.

We want to replace these beliefs with God`s truth and challenge the people who live in our community to see people with disability through God`s eyes and to play their part in caring for them and enabling them to fulfil the purpose God has for each of their lives; to live in a way which brings glory to the name of our Father God.

New Hope Uganda are commencing the Special Needs Programme officially in January 2011 and are opening their special needs class at EEVPS at the start of the new school year. If you are interested in giving to the special needs programme in general or in sponsoring one of the children with disabilities who will be part of the class, please contact us either via our website.

By Kate Tolhurst Special needs corrdinator

Musana Radio

2011-03-10T23:34:00.001-05:00

New Hope Uganda feels called to help end fatherlessness in the Nakaseke District by 2027. We believe we need to get at the roots of fatherlessness, not just the end-result of it. In 2009, by God’s grace, New Hope was given an incredibly opportunity to reach the Nakaseke District and beyond on a daily basis through a very powerful medium: radio.

With very limited funding and a staff of 30+ who are mostly volunteers, 107.8 Musana FM has been on the air since December of 2009. The impact in the region has been immediate and profound. Listeners have given their lives to Christ and families reunited because they were challenged by the message on Musana FM. In addition, listeners are forming “Fun Clubs” throughout the region. At the last “Fun Club” event, nearly 1000 people came to spend time with Musana FM and hear more of its message. It is so clear that people here are hungry for the Biblical Truth that the station is communicating.

The vision of the station is to be the leading providers of relevant and timely information and education to the communities of the Luwero Triangle to transform the individual, the family and the community. By God’s grace, Musana FM is beginning to fulfill that vision. Musana’s programming impacts the community by providing godly principles in family, farming, business, healthcare and entertainment for the glory of God. Responsible citizenship and integrity are constant messages on the station as it reaches out to affect listener’s beliefs, creating a biblical worldview and seeking tangible transformation.
Through the radio, a family is being built, with love for each other at its center.

1 More Child at Musana Camp

2011-03-05T03:06:00.003-05:00

“Sam” was one of about 40 street boys from a slum outside of Jinja who came for a Musana Camps program with an organization based out of the UK called “1 More Child.” He comes from a tribe in the harsh northeast of the country called the “Karamojong” – a tribe scorned by all others in Uganda. Sam had a blast while at the camp swimming in Lake Victoria, hiking all over our 900 acres, participating in initiative games, singing around the campfire, chasing monkeys, playing football (soccer), and more.
At the end of the camp, he jokingly threatened to hide in the jungle when the bus came so he could stay longer! In fact, all of the boys were begging us to let them come back over Christmas. The Spirit was truly working in the lives of those boys during their stay. We shared devotions with them each day focusing on making good choices that will lead them on a path towards God and bring him glory, rather than living merely out of self-obsession and self-protection. The boys learned that making good choices involves faith, wisdom, integrity, and love. They also learned that all of that is gained through a relationship with God, studying his Word, and learning from other Christ followers.
Most of these boys have endured very harsh conditions in the slum they live in. It is easier for them to beg for money or food than to try to earn money somehow due to the extreme poverty and lack of opportunity they have. Yet during their camp, we challenged them to choose to work hard instead of begging on the streets of Jinja, and to live in relationship with Christ and others, all of which God desires for them. Work is part of God’s plan for our lives, and these boys are beginning to see how begging is not. We are praying that Sam is making good choices back in Jinja, and that we will see him again when his group returns to Musana Camps. Experiences like Sam’s are what Musana Camps is all about and it was such a blessing to host those boys.

Dave Bouffard, Musana Camp Director

IY Buisness Dinner

2011-02-26T23:26:00.003-05:00

“Investment Year is an institution of its own” said one of the IY members during the public speaking practice. This greatly struck and I agree with it. Many people have joined different institutions, but if you critically follow what is behind all this is, it is to get training about the life coming or what is going on.
This business dinner was prepared long before we got to know about it by our teachers. We had to pick from a list of 15 careers they had chosen (e.g. Doctor, lawyer, film producer, agriculturist etc.) and we were to act as that person through the dinner.
The day which seemed too far away came closer and closer up to when it happened. It was amazing seeing how beautifully all the business people showed up at the ‘Palm Restaurant’. Men putting on full suits and ladies as well not forgetting the risky high heels which made them taller for a moment!
‘Palm Restaurant’ was opened at 7pm as the senior chef welcomed us in and we had to interact with each other getting to know about where different ones of us were coming from and what job we did. The restaurant had good customer care services as the staff seemed to know what they were doing (The IY staff served).
This time has been really a training of its own because however much we credit schools as being training centres, no teacher will ever come to class with a knife and fork and teach you how to use it! We need these skills if we are to interact publically.
As we were taking our last course which was coffee and chocolate cake, we heard from our guest speaker, Aunty Judith Goddard. Her speech was so strong but easy for some one with little faith and slow to responding to God’s call. For many of us fear failure but we were encouraged to hear about Aunty Judith has dealt with them in her life and kept going. There were many lessons to learn from her words and one of them is knowing and clearly following what the Lord requires of you, persistence being the key. Remember he who started a good work in you will fulfill it.
Zam-zam. IY student 2011.

Kampala Day

2011-02-22T02:59:00.002-05:00

I remember the first time I visited my capital city (many years ago!) I think I wandered around wide eyed and stunned at the amount of people, all seemingly going somewhere very important and in a rush. Part of Investment Year is helping our children to develop life skills and to be able to live and operate in different settings. As we live in the village it is important to be able to move around the city safely and confidently, so this week as a group we travelled to Kampala (Capital City).
We split them into 4 groups and gave them a map, a phone with a camera and a list of useful buildings, sites and monuments (eg. Taxi park, post office, parliament, independence monument etc) that they had to find with the final place being the leaders with lunch! As each team drifted off into the chaos of a busy city, there was nervous excitement from each of our children as they headed, for most of them into the unknown! We went to the final meeting place, hoping that no one would get too lost…80 minutes later the team who headed off last reached their destination after successfully finding all their places. The other teams were not far behind. It was a fun day and I believe our children learnt a lot about themselves, working as a team, asking for help, reading maps and being in Kampala. A few of them also learnt how to deal with being stuck in a lift (elevator) for 15 minutes!!We left Kasana with 15 of our children and happily returned with 15!

- Steve Brown, Early Adulthood Coordinator, Staff since 2006

Uganda 2011 Elections

2011-02-19T00:12:00.004-05:00

Ugandans have voted in a presidential election on Friday which saw a low turnout despite what diplomats described as big state spending to woo voters.
Some European Union observers put the turnout as low as 30 per cent at many polling stations in a ballot pitching Yoweri Museveni, in power since 1986, against his arch rival Kizza Besigye for the third straight election.
Polls closed at 1400 GMT. The country's electoral commission says it will announce the results within 48 hours of the closing.
The election was held after a bitter campaign in east Africa's third largest economy. There have been widespread allegations that Museveni's party has been paying voters to back him for a fourth term.
While the election is expected to extend Yoweri Museveni's term in office to three decades, opposition parties in the country have threatened that they will take to the streets if the polls are deemed to have been rigged.
Museveni has given warning that large-scale protests such as those being threatened will not be tolerated, and anyone taking part will be arrested.
Kizza Besigye, the opposition front-runner, has already lost two previous elections to Museveni, a former ally.
Many Ugandans complain of rampant corruption and a lack of investment in basic public services and infrastructure under Museveni, but others respect him for bringing stability to the country.
Rigging suspicions
One of the major issues on the agenda for whoever wins the election will be managing the country's newly discovered oil reserves, which are estimated to be in the billions of barrels.
The country's last two elections, in 2001 and 2006, ended in dispute, after Besigye unsuccessfully appealed to the supreme court both times to overturn the results.
The time, he says that he is producing his own results tally, and if it does not match the official outcome, he has threatened mass protests.
"If the electoral commission releases results that we know to be fraudulent, at that stage we shall recommend the Ugandan people deal with the matter directly," Besigye said earlier this week.
Museveni appeared confident in the lead-up to the polls, however. "It will be a big win," he said on Wednesday.
His government has deployed thousands of security-forces personnel to oversee the holding of elections, and he has cautioned bodies other than the electoral commission against declaring results.
Suspicions of rigging were already rife on Friday, particularly in the Rubaga area, an opposition stronghold. Voters there said that ballot papers had not been delivered to polling stations by the time that voting was due to start.
Polling stations across the capital, Kampala, also reported delays.
'Bribes offered'
European Union observers said voting had so far been peaceful, but were concerned some voters were being turned away from polling stations despite being registered and that they had seen a number of improperly sealed ballot boxes.
The EU's chief observer, Edward Scitluna, said that in three out of five polling stations visited by midday ballot boxes had not been sealed correctly and their lids could be lifted.
"My impression is that's a lack of training, not systemic rigging," said Scitluna, adding some voters were being told they had not registered despite thinking otherwise.
Voters in the village of Wii-Aworanga said candidates from all parties had offered bribes of up to 100,000 shillings ($40) per village ahead of the election to secure votes.
"Bribes came from everybody ... but of course the NRM (ruling National Resistance Movement) are the government and they offered more," one voter who did not want to be named told Reuters news agency.
Deadly clashes
Al Jazeera's Mohammed Adow reporting from Kampala said the voting has gone well in most places but in eastern Uganda there were clashes between two opposing candidates in one of the parliamentary constituencies.
"Supporters of the minister of defence and supporters of her opponent clashed in and around the town of Mbale," he said.
"Two people are confirmed dead and up to 30 injured, including a journalist. The military has been deployed to quell the situation."
Analysts have said that a public uprising is unlikely to succeed in Uganda, where the population is less educated and has less access to the internet than in Egypt, which Besigye cited as being the kind of uprising Uganda would witness.

Aljazeera News

Pastoral Training Institute

2011-02-18T01:56:00.001-05:00

Though there are hundreds of churches in the villages around New Hope, very few are having a significant impact on their communities. Most pastors and lay leaders have had little to no Biblical education, churches are mired in syncretism, and the Gospel is not understood in its fullness. New Hope Uganda’s Pastoral Training Institute (PTI) is geared to bring community transformation by impacting pastors and their families who, in turn, will impact their churches and communities.
PTI will help provide local pastors with a solid Biblical foundation. In addition, it will provide agricultural and animal husbandry training. This training is designed not only to equip pastors to sustain their families, but also as a way for churches to provide self-sustainable orphan care through the local church.
PTI brings local pastors and lay leaders to Kasana for one week (five weekdays) each month over a period of three years. This enables them to receive thorough training while continuing to lead their home congregations. Each participant demonstrates his commitment to the program by contributing a small amount towards the costs but otherwise all costs are covered through scholarships.
The initial PTI class of 12 began in March, 2010. As of May 14, these pastors and lay leaders have now completed three full weeks of training.

Mamma enjoying her boys

2011-02-17T04:52:00.003-05:00

First day of School

2011-02-10T23:34:00.003-05:00

Monday Jan. 31 was the first day of the 2011 school year here in Uganda. December and January are summer vacation for our kids.
I had an opportunity to see at least a bit of several of our school’s first day. I did not make it out to our vocational institute but was able to briefly visit New Hope Academy (see brief video NHA First Day taken by my sons who are attending for some classes) and spend a bit more time at Essuubi Epya Vocational Primary School and our new special needs classroom that is associated with it.
At EEVPS, Headmaster Simon Katabazi was very welcoming. After having all the teachers lead the student assembly in praise songs, the Ugandan national anthem, the Ugandan pledge of allegiance, and the pledge to the Bible, Uncle Simon introduced all the new teachers and prayed for them. Next he called forward new students and we all prayed for them. Then we had a prayer of dedication for the school year. It was very clear we are looking to God as our source of learning.
I was also able to stop by our new special needs classroom headed up by Kate Tolhurst – for now, their classroom is one of the rooms in our new Clinic. For most, if not all of the students there, this was there first day ever in a school. It was so clear that they were pleased to be there and are very comfortable around Kate and the other staff.
We would love your prayers for all of these students and their teachers.
- Tal Anderson

2011-02-09T06:22:00.002-05:00

We normally try to fit our bimonthly newsletter on one page, but January was so full that we have decided to bring you the special expanded edition of our update. First, thank you for so many of your prayers during this challenging time in our lives. For those of you who escaped the prayer chains we’ll catch you up to speed…. Caleb fell very sick the beginning of January (identically to what he went through last Feb.) with fevers (up to 105.4), night sweats, a rash, and complete exhaustion. This went undiagnosed for almost three weeks in which time Nathaniel was found to have Guardia AND an amoeba and had boil like wounds on body, meanwhile Alair was bit by an insect that caused her foot/ ankle to swell almost three times its normal size leaving her unable to walk on it for a few days. By the end of the month Caleb was finally diagnosed with Katayama Syndrome which stemmed from a parasite called Bilharzia (contracted from contaminated water- like Lake Victoria). We decided if Caleb had been exposed to this parasite, the whole family had, and should be boys tested. At that point, it wasn’t surprising when we found out that both boys had it as well. We believe it was caught and they were put on treatment early enough that they should be fine shortly.
It seems that when it rains it pours... We are pushing forward and although Caleb could think of a million other places he would have rather spent four nights than the hospital, we are thankful for the medical care we have received here in Uganda. Even as we looked outside the hospital window in Kampala, we were reminded that there are so many people that do not have access to good medical care.
We know we serve a good God who not only loves us and sees all that we are going through but who walks with us and has prepared the path for us to walk in. We continue to learn to trust Him more, and as the Lord revealed to Paul in 2Cor. 12 "My [HIS] grace is sufficient for you, for my [HIS] power is made perfect in weakness.” It is only by His grace that we live and move and have our being! Alair is doing much better after a strong antibiotic and the insect bite has healed quite well. Caleb is still weak, but recovering slowly. The fevers are gone, but it will be at least a two month regimen of treatment and testing. The boys are settling back into a daily routine and Nicolas, who in the midst of it all, turned three on Jan. 17th, and is learning to ride his new bike with training wheels.
The body of Christ both here in Uganda and in the States have proved to be a blessing beyond measure. From prayers on our behalf, to watching our children and bringing us meals, from a timely surprise visit from our dear friend Laurie just as Caleb was being discharged from the hospital, to the care package she brought, put together by family, friends and our Blackhawk family, we have been reminded again and again of the importance of the body of Christ and how much we need each other as we move through life. Laurie was a huge encouragement to us- we were so blessed to have her with us, even if for just a few short days. It was just what we needed as we fought back wanting to “throw in the towel.” Some days we long for home and the comfort it brings. We cannot tell you how overwhelmed we were to hear that so many people at home and at Blackhawk were praying for us... it brought us to tears. Three years ago, as we were raising support and getting ready to leave for Uganda, we were told how important it was to have people praying for us back home. God has shown us the amazing truth of that reality. Without your prayers we are not sure where we would be right now (emotionally AND physically)!
It is true that during every season of our lives, it is God’s desire to see us gaining the resemblance of His Son in whose image we were created. During this difficult season we have gained a deeper understanding of how suffering brings us into maturity. We have come to count ourselves blessed to have had these challenges even though we would not have ever welcomed them. God has faithfully used this time to revealed sin in our lives that desperately needed to be repented of and turned from. It reminds us of the nation of Israel and how God tested them so that "He would know what was in their hearts." God already knew what was in their hearts, but they didn't. Jeremiah talks about how the heart is deceitfully wicked… who can understand it? We have learned that through difficulty and trials God clears away many of the distractions in our lives in order for us to see the true state of our hearts and give opportunity for repentance. Some areas of sin were places in our hearts where idols of self reliance needed to be removed from their “high places” in order for the LORD to have His rightful place- Amen!
We have also recognized that we have not merely been involved in a physical battle but a spiritual one as well. We have sensed the enemy at work against our family, and have had several other New Hope staff and friends say the same thing. We are depending on the blood of Christ who covers all and has authority over all. And we have clearly seen the body of Christ at work! It is for that reason we are eliciting your prayers on the “sleep front.” Many of you have been praying for “sweet sleep” (Proverbs 3:24) for us and specifically for Nate- our youngest. As we are more and more aware that this is not an area we can “train” him through (and believe me we have tried everything shy of flying Super nanny to Uganda), but rather that this is a battle God must win for us, we are more than ready to request your prayers… that the God who “grants sleep to those He loves” (Psalm 127:2), would not allow the enemy to rob Nathaniel or the rest of us of that precious gift!
Caleb’s Aunt Donna reminded us that prayer is also an act of worship for the person saying the prayer. Prayer connects us with our God and to each other! We praise God that He is using our struggles to produce a lot of prayer, praise and connecting! Glory be to God! We are excited to see Him work in a mighty way in our lives and the lives of those who are praying!
Thanks again for your love for us! We have been so encouraged by you all! We look forward seeing you face to face when we are on home assignment (tentatively end of July through the beginning of Jan.) and telling you of His wonderful grace in our lives. Thank you again for your love toward us and your continued prayers!
In His service for his name and renown,
The Mitchells

Celebrating Jesus

2011-01-02T07:53:00.002-05:00

For the past two years we have celebrated Christmas using an menorah. A Menorah is one of the oldest symbols of the Jewish faith, a eight-branched candelabrum used in the Temple. So we made up our own Hanukkah celebrating who Jesus is and what he has done for us. Each night we talked about a character of God and gave thanks as we see these displayed in our family. We talked about God as our Father, Protector, Provider, Mercy, Forgiveness, Peace, Love, and Truth. The boys also opened up one small gift during that time. The picture of Nate is the bubbles he opened on night #4.

S4 Banquet

2010-12-23T07:50:00.003-05:00

Every year we celebrate the S4 students by honoring them at a graduation banquet. This year the S4 boys did a rap for all those who attended.

Our House

2010-12-16T21:39:00.002-05:00

We are nearing the end of the construction process of our home. We consider ourselves so blessed to have such a nice home and are thankful for all who have committed to support us in the building process. We have almost raised the entire amount needed to finish construction. Our goal was $7,000 and we have currently received $4,000. Thank you again to those who have given to this need.
Blessings,
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate

Hungry anyone?

2010-12-03T05:52:00.001-05:00

Fried grasshoppers are back on the menu. December is the month for this great delicacy. They make a great topping for your pizza! =)

When Hippos Attack

2010-11-30T09:38:00.001-05:00

This is the place we take our teams and visitors when they want to see Ugandan wildlife. This park employee got a little too close to the hippo that was grazing near the lodge.

Games

2010-11-21T10:54:00.000-05:00

Games at a school in the village

Local School

2010-11-02T01:08:00.002-04:00

Here in Uganda most schools are private. You must pay out of your own pocket to attend school. This is why so many kids love going to school. It is a privilege to be educated. Please pray for our students we have over 600 that New Hope is responsible for.

Medical/Water Outreach

2010-10-09T14:46:00.005-04:00

Currently we are hosting a medical and water outreach team. Each day we have have gone out with them to the various communities that surround New Hope. As we treat them medically we are sharing the gospel with them. There have been some that have received Christ through these outreaches. I have also had the privilege helping with our water team. Bad water kills people! Diseases such as cholera, hepatitis, typhoid, and many more are a result of contaminated water. According to the USA Today, "More people die from unsafe water than from all forms of violence, including war." One out of six people live without regular access to safe drinking water. The need is sometimes overwhelming as we reach the remote parts of Uganda. With the Newlife International water equipment we have been able to train and equip the local people on how to chlorinate their drinking water. After the training we leave the equipment with them. Not only have we given them access to clean water we have shared the truth of the "living water" of Christ and how they will thirst no more. It has been exciting to see lives transformed through this ministry.

Hope House (New Hope Baby House)

2010-09-12T10:22:00.002-04:00

We praise God that we have 17 regular sponsors of Hope House. 13 more sponsors are needed to fully fund our current operating costs.Note: These costs can and do change as we take in more babies and when we move into our new Hope House (currently under construction) this number will increase as we will be able to care for more babies.

House Progress

2010-09-05T01:41:00.002-04:00

A trip to Kampala

2010-08-13T10:42:00.002-04:00

Often times our friends and family from America ask us what our typical day looks like. It’s hard to answer that question because we experience so many changes throughout any given week. However, this picture of the boys describes what their day looks like while driving to and from Kampala. We only wish they would sleep like this at night.

Daily Bible Reading

2010-08-06T10:48:00.002-04:00

Keep reading, keep reading…
This new slogan, which has recently replaced the traditional “they say”, is now the talk of many of our secondary school students. I have picked it up myself because it is a mark of history in our nation.
This is the result of the ongoing campaign here in the New Hope community to all read through the Bible chronologically over the next year and a half. When it clock strikes 10:30, a reminder bell rings and all work and school comes to a stop; its Bible reading time… Amazing.
Children and staff all get out their Bible.
I mean, everyone gets down to serious reading of the Word. Even the pre-schoolers look out their classroom windows waiting for who is coming to tell them the story of the Bible for that day.
You may wonder how and why this a big deal and worth of sharing. Culturally, as Africans, we are not so keen with reading. I mean, we read maybe for exams and things like that, but it is much easier for us to sit and listen to a speech or sermon for three hours than to sit and do focused reading for 30 minutes. Secondly, we usually get facts of life and truths (even the Word) passed on to us through other people, like elders.
It is easier to believe something because “they say” than to take the trouble to find out for oneself.
But this is not the case anymore here, especially with the children. They are now eagerly digging into the Word and getting amazed by the truth they are discovering for themselves. They are so proud about the new venture whereby they do not have to believe something from the Word of God because so-and-so said so… but because they have beheld it themselves.
Please pray for us that the Word of God does not stay in our heads but gets to our hearts; pray for a Godly people in a Godly nation as we keep reading, keep reading…

By Nabagesera Jessica, Investment Year Coordinator, NHU Staff since July 2005

Parents Day

2010-08-03T01:46:00.002-04:00

Once a year our primary school has a Parents’ Day in which we invite the parents to school. In recent years we have made this a more active day by starting out with races between the various color groups the primary school is divided into. The kids love the competition and they also enjoy watching their parents compete in each race after the students have competed. The race I like to watch the best is when we carry a soda bottle full of water on the head. It takes real skill and grace to do this. For some reason our Ugandan brothers and sisters are much better at this than those of us from other places. After the races at the field we went back to the primary school so that parents could visit the classrooms, meet the teachers, and look at mid-term exam results. The day ends with the announcement of the winning color group. This year the pink team won. In Isaiah 9:6 one of the names given to the Messiah is “Everlasting Father.” What a comfort to know that even as we parent our children here we have Father God to go to when we need help and need a parent ourselves.
NHU

Our Home

2010-07-28T06:58:00.002-04:00

Our house in under way. We hope to be in by Christmas...

May-July Updates

2010-07-24T01:30:00.009-04:00

How do we let the months slip by so fast without sending an update!?! Since we last wrote in April so much has happened it’s hard to know just how best to share it all with you, but they say a picture is worth a thousand words, so with that in mind, here’s our best shot at it!
At the end of April we had a wonderful time with our Pacific family on our Family Vacation to a hotel in Jinja for swimming and then on the YWAM base on Lake Victoria where we conquered the challenge course and enjoyed team building games and activities.
May began with our annual foreign staff retreat. It was a sweet time of fellowship and encouragement for the missionaries/ families who were there. In May we also helped our Kobwin site host a medical outreach team, and hosted the Alpine Church team as well as two family teams at Kasana and welcomed several new staff members/ families.
We also added Caleb’s cousin Julia to our household, Pacific family and the greater Kasana family (until the beginning of July). Julz was not only a help and joy to have in our home, but a true blessing to the girls in Pacific family (who miss her terribly already), to Hope House (and each little life she touched with her care), and to her P3 class at Esubi Eppia Primary School.
The months of June and July were filled with more than World Cup mania! We had the unexpected blessing of a team from John Brown University, and the long awaited blessing of the Raber family from Blackhawk Ministries (our sending church) in Fort Wayne, with the Solar Powered Water Pump equipment! The work they came to do was a huge service to New Hope and the surrounding community, as we now have water pumping to our tower even when the electricity is out thanks to God’s power- the sun and to all those who made it possible for the Raber’s to come and donated many items! Their family’s visit meant even more to us because of the timing and circumstances surrounding their service, fellowship, and encouragement to us and our boys!
From June until July we welcomed two more teams, another family team and still more staff to our ministry! We celebrated the fourth of July in Uganda as a group of Americans from an assortment of states and we even allowed couple from Canada to join in the only alternative to celebrating Canada Day (July 1)… close enough, eh? If that isn’t enough many of our kids, decked in RED, WHITE, and BLUE even took a ride in a Chinese fire truck!
The second week of July we had an “intimate” ground breaking ceremony (just the four of us, the construction director and our contractor) on the land that construction of our house has now begun!
Most of you probably couldn’t have missed our most recent event that made a top story on major news stations around the world- the bombings in Kampala the night of the final World Cup match. What a stark reminder to thank you for your ongoing prayers for our safety. We drove through Kampala the afternoon of the 11th with the Raber family to take them to the Entebbe airport. After dropping them off the next morning we learned of the terrorist attack. Entebbe is about 20 miles from Kampala so we were well out of the way of any threat. A text came through from New Hope telling us to stay put in Entebbe until the next day. Please pray that there will not be any more terrorist attacks- especially as Somalia has declared that Uganda is its enemy, and in the words of one of its Sheiks "anything that makes Uganda cry makes us smile." We are praying for reconciliation, for God's intervention, and for many to come to know Him through this time.
The Mitchells are about to celebrate two major events in our family, and one belated event- the first being “God Made You a Mitchell- Day” for Nicolas on July 17th and Nathaniel’s 1st Birthday on July 28th! A third noteworthy event (that both of us forgot) was our 13th anniversary (July 1st). You “facebookers” may have gotten the full story on that one. As teams slow down for a bit we are taking a weekend away- a perfect way for us to have some focused marriage/family time. Praying all is well and would love to hear about what’s going on with you!
The Mitchell’s- Caleb, Alair, Nico & Nate

Uganda Bombings

2010-07-13T23:14:00.002-04:00

I'm sure many of you have heard of the bombings in Kampala. Thank you for your prayers for our safety. Alair and I drove through Kampala that afternoon as we were taking the Raber family to the Entebbe airport. After dropping them off early the next morning we got the news of a terrorist attack in Kampala. Entebbe is about 20 miles from Kampala so we were well out of the way of any threat. A text came through from New Hopes manager telling us to stay put in Entebbe until the next day. We are listening to the Embassy's advice on travel and places to steer clear of, and will continue to be as careful as we can. Please pray that there will not be any more terrorist attacks- especially as Somalia has declared that Uganda is it's enemy and in the words of one of its Sheiks "anything that makes Uganda cry makes us smile." We are praying for reconciliation, for God's intervention, and for many to come to know Him through this time.

Kobwin Children's Center

2010-06-27T05:10:00.001-04:00

KOBWIN_PROJECT from Dathan Graham on Vimeo.

We are very excited that after years of preparation, we have officially opened our Kobwin Children’s Center. By His grace, we are now helping to bring the Fatherhood of God on a full-time basis to former child soldiers and other affected (“Invisible Children”) by the Lord’s Resistance Army atrocities in northern Uganda. Twenty-one of these young people, sometimes called “returnees”, are now living at our Kobwin Center. The returnees receive intense educational remediation and discipleship in the context of family. The next step will be to build a vocational school.
The vision to establish a center in the east of Uganda grew out of the desperate situation observed when New Hope Uganda staff and children went to Soroti as Mission Hope Soroti. New Hope ministered there to those suffering in the aftermath of the invasion of the area by Kony and his Lord’s Resistance Army in 2003.
From that time to now, New Hope staff have been reaching out to the region. New Hope has been very involved in the reconciliation movement that has helped bring healing to many.In 2008, New Hope narrowed its focus to returnees from the area of Amuria. A series of week-long camp experiences knitted us together with the Amuria community and nearly 60 of the returnees living there. Today, the returnees who have not moved to the Kobwin Center are provided counseling and tutoring by New Hope staff in Amuria. This presence enables New Hope to be a part of the healing process in both the returnees and the communities they live in.

2010-06-27T01:08:00.002-04:00

Football (soccer) is the unquestioned king of sports in Uganda (probably in everywhere but the US it seems). The World Cup is always a big deal but the fact that it is being held in Africa makes it even a bigger deal here.
One thing we have been trying to do at New Hope is to “play” together more. Saturday night we had a time of recreation enjoying the World Cup.
Joseph Ruyondo, our head of Childcare, and his family hooked up a TV, projector and some speakers so that we could all watch the England-US game together. It started at 9:30pm but a large crowd turned up anyway (church starts at 10:30am here so there was still time to sleep after:).
I’m not quite sure yet who the favorite team at New Hope is for the World Cup. But on this night all the US staff were trying to recruit as many as possible to the US side while the UK staff was doing the same. We all had a great time and ending in a tie was just fine (at least it was for the US supporters:)
- Tal Anderson

Fish Anyone?

2010-06-26T07:11:00.002-04:00

Pacific Family Holiday

2010-05-02T08:46:00.014-04:00

Hill overlooking YWAM and Global Theological Seminary

Alair making bracletts with the girls

At Busoga High School overlooking Golbal Outreach and Lake Victoria.
Nico wanted to go down the zip line.

Games

Challenge Course

Challenge Course

Pacific Family

King Fisher Swimming

Playing musical chairs

The building Caleb helped construct in 1994

Inside the seminary building

April was a full month. We hosted a team from the UK who ended up staying in Uganda almost a week longer than expected because of the volcanic eruption that shut down all European airports and cancelled so many flights around the globe. They like all the teams who grace our Centre, were a blessing to New Hope as well as to us personally.
The last week in April we received the with great anticipation the long awaited approval from the High Court of Uganda to be legal guardians of Nicolas- how exciting to have official documents in our hands at last! Now we can begin the passport and U.S. visa process for him and start all over from square one with Nathaniel. The whole process is challenging, and seems to take forever, but no amount of work is too much when it comes to your children, nor can it compare to the cost paid for our own adoptions as sons and daughters of the Father, brothers, sisters, and now co-heirs with Christ! (Ephesians 1:3-6, Galatians 4:6, Romans 8:17)
We had a great time with our family group (Pacific Family) last week as we traveled to Jinja for a holiday. The students are on a school break and once a year our family group takes a few days away from New Hope to enjoy time together apart from studies and regular work. The first day we took the kids to a place called the King Fisher Hotel for swim time. Swimming is a special event as many of them have never stepped foot in a pool and the ones who have only have done so on family vacation! After that we headed to the YWAM Discovery Center. The youth camp staff had several activities planned for the children, the highlight being the challenge course. The family vacation was a great time to continue building relationships on a more one to one basis. Nico and Nate enjoyed the extra attention they received from our family.
One unexpected side trip came about as we were sitting on the veranda the first night. Caleb thought this place to be very familiar. He asked a YWAM staff member where Global Theological Seminary was. The staff said it was the just next property over. The following day we drove to the seminary to check out the progress. In 1994 Caleb spent a summer in Jinja with Teen Missions International working on a building that would be used for training pastors. This organization was called Global Outreach. It had been nearly 16 years ago that Caleb was last there. And it was exciting to seeing the building that he had helped start to build, now not only in its completion, but several other buildings in addition being used by eager teachers and students of the word of God!

Who let the snakes out!

2010-03-13T13:06:00.002-05:00

Last Monday we found two friends on our back porch where Nico plays regularly. God protected him as two boys from our family group found them before Nico. However, Nico did try to pick one of them up.

From Death to Life

2010-02-26T23:01:00.002-05:00

What a month it has been. With Caleb being sick for over two weeks in and out of hospitals it defiantly has not been the norm. We are so thankful for God’s grace during that time. We are so thankful for the friendships we have with those here at New Hope and are continually amazed at the willingness of the body of Christ to come along side us as we were going through this rough period. God is teaching us so much about the need for Him and is showing us areas in our marriage that need improvement. We are excited about the opportunities He has for us here and will continue to give thanks to Him for all that He is doing and has done!

Coffee, Coffee, Coffee

2010-01-20T12:22:00.006-05:00

Our first coffee sale

Mount Ruwenzori Coffee

Mwine packing the first coffee bag

Baby Nate

Nico playing with Papa

“ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart. I will be found by you,” declares the LORD...
Greetings from Uganda and Happy 2010! What a year it has been for us. As we look back on the year these verses, as have many times in the past, proved so true! We have been so blessed to see the Lord prosper, bring hope, and a future to our lives. As many of you know Alair’s mom passed away almost a year ago. As we mourned her loss we celebrated her new life in heaven. As emotional as it was we where continually reminded of God’s faithfulness to our family and the grace He so generously pours out on our lives. With the loss of life came the reunion of with our son Nicolas and as this year came to an end we were so blessed to receive our second son Nathaniel.
December was exciting for us as we were able to spend Christmas with Alair’s dad and sister. It was wonderful to have family in Uganda during the holidays. As January comes to an end we are gearing up for the season of teams. We will welcome a team from North Dakota and in February a team from Washington. Both teams will be working with our camp on Lake Victoria. Some will be helping develop the road systems and others will be doing much needed medical outreaches. We pray that relationships with the local people will strengthen and the gospel with go forth.
A very exciting note for Caleb is the new coffee business that started this month. He has made the 2 hour trek to Kampala with Steve Brown (the head of our early adulthood program) several times this month to help bring New Hope’s Uganda coffee distributing company to fruition. They have purchased coffee from the Mount Elgon and Mount Ruwenzori region of Uganda to be roasted in Kampala and then packaged for resale. There has been a growing coffee market in Kampala and we are hopeful that this business will be a success. We have already sold the coffee to short term teams that visit New Hope and then eventually to hotels and stores in Kampala. The long term goal will be exporting it to the US and European markets. The pictures below are of IY (Investment Year) students from New Hope who will be learning to run the business. All the profits will feed into that program and will help make it self sufficient.
While the world often sees the growing number of fatherless and orphaned children as a problem or burden, New Hope Uganda believes they are an unprecedented opportunity. Our mission is to work with this generation to “bring the Fatherhood of God to the fatherless” children of Uganda for generations to come. One way we can do this is to prepare our young adults to enter the market place if that is where the Lord takes them. New Hope is now roasting, and distributing coffee in a growing economy in Kampala, Uganda for the purpose of generating income and providing opportunities for the IY (Investment Year) students to learn new business skills and to help offset the IY programs expenses. New Hope Uganda Coffee Roasters' will become a self sustaining business after the first year of operation.

• IY students will learn vital business skills of marketing, sales, and accounting
• Income generation to help offset the cost of the IY program
• IY students will learn how to work as a team
• Project will help expose New Hope to potential partners
We want to thank each one of you for your finical and prayer support as we continue to serve here at new hope. Please continue to pray for the finalization of guardianship for Nico and the beginning processes with our new son Nate. We also plan to start the building process next month for our home.
We love and miss you all!
Caleb, Alair, Nico and Nate

More Photos

2009-12-19T09:19:00.000-05:00

BABY NATE

2009-11-28T22:31:00.003-05:00

A Mitchell Thanksgiving Update (2009): Introducing Baby Nate!
What a Thanksgiving it has been! As I write, it is Saturday morning (about 5:am). I couldn’t sleep, although our two boys are fast asleep. Praise God! I couldn’t sleep probably due to excitement and also because I just knew that my God deserved a lot more than a “Face book status change” =) plus you all needed to know (or know more)!
Thursday afternoon I (Alair) received word from a friend of an abandoned baby in a nearby district- she was 3-4 months old and in need of a foster placement. As soon as Caleb walk in the door from his “American Football” game with the other U.S. missionary guys, I began my mile a minute- “We could do this”, “We should do this”, “Should we do this?” rambling. The same friend, who had informed me of the desperate situation of the baby being cared for @ the Luwero police station, had already alerted Caleb. As Caleb went to clean up for our awaiting feast (about 50 of us gathered to enjoy food and fellowship and offer thanks to our Lord), I asked “Would you pray about it in the shower and then tell me what God says?”
Over the next hour or so we talked, reminding ourselves that this baby’s birthmother could be found at any time, that we were just “fostering” unless or until God tells us otherwise. And so it was decided, after dinner I would call the probation officer and inquire about the baby girl. As we went round the circle announcing what one thing we were most thankful for I couldn’t help but think “family.” Not just in the casual way we sometimes say we are thankful for those we love and call family, but as we, the Mitchells, and even our friends the Zimmermans stood at the edge of a possible growing family, my heart was overwhelmed with thanksgiving for how God uniquely creates family.
After the meal, and as Caleb limped off (due to a football injury just a bit earlier) to put Nico to bed, and down some Ibuprofen, he said, “Hey, let me know if we’re getting a baby tomorrow.” =). I made the call- yes the next morning we’d pick her up! I was so excited as I told everyone we had shared our Thanksgiving with that we’d be picking up a baby girl. So excited that someone had to remind me to call Caleb!
We were up late trying to get in touch with family and deciding on 2 name options. I was to decide if she was an Alaina Jean or an Abrielle Renee, once I saw her. I could hardly sleep. Up at 4: am, I cleaned the house and picked out the dress I would change her into when I would pick her up. Since we started praying about a second addition to our family I had begun buying boy clothes (thinking Nico needed a brother=), so a few girl items, courtesy of a friend, were much appreciated.
After a bit of organization and a stop to purchase formula, I arrived with two dear friends who had volunteered to drive and be a support as Caleb would be gone on Safari until late Saturday evening with a team. My first two days with Nico and the new baby would be as a single mom with an incredible group of friends as supports. (Every time Caleb is gone I say many prayers of blessing and for encouragement for my friends who are single moms.
Jehovah Shammh- He is with you!
I never thought it would happen so fast, but before I knew it we had some questions answered by the police officer who was caring for her, and she was in my arms. This fat, breast fed- looking baby was darling, but as I announced “She is definitely not an Abrielle (far too dainty of a name). Lainy it would be! After a minute or so of Courtney & Constance snapping pictures and asking a few more questions (thanks you two for being my brain for me when I could hardly think straight let alone ask any relative and possibly crucial questions), Constance glanced at a paper on the desk in the small office that said the words “baby boy,” and asked in a surprised voice, “Is it a boy?” “Yes, she’s a boy,” the officer said. In the Ugandan languages, the descriptive terms: she, he, him or her, are not used, rather a more generic “that one there” type of statement is used. So when many Ugandans attempt to use gender specific tags while speaking English (most often a second language to a tribal language, although it is the national language) the words are often used incorrectly.
So after a moment of, “Oh… Um… O.K.” type of thinking I said, “She’s a He. I guess he shouldn’t be Alaina or Abrielle!” I didn’t think twice, he was Nathaniel James, a name we had discussed years ago and decided on while filling out our application and paperwork for a baby house in Kampala ready and waiting for this coming Monday morning when we had planned to turn it in.
And so there it is the story to introduce to you our smiley, laughing, cuddly Nate, now in my arms as I type with one hand! But there is more to the story of what our God who desires our intimacy with Him above all else, has been doing in my heart. If you’re interested more than an introduction to baby Nate read on.
I am sure that many of you know that we have, over several years prayed for a baby, and as I think of my sweet, sweet, Nico, still sleeping and recovering from being sick again, I with tears in my eyes, I thank God for Kisakye (Nicolas’ middle name which means God’s grace). What an immense joy the Lord’s answer to prayer has been to us both! But when we first began to pray for a baby, biology played a much bigger element than it did in our later years.
Recently I was challenged to pray that God would give me a baby “born from my womb,” (Thanks friends who challenge me and who have prayed with and for me!) I did not pray in this way because of any feelings of dissatisfaction with God’s answer to our prayers, on the contrary I “masked” my unwillingness to pray, with my absolute gratitude for His answer to my heart’s desire for Caleb and me to be parents. I began rather, to pray in this way because of my symptomatic calloused heart, that had begun to doubt that God was attentive to the desires of my heart, or was a God who actively, personally, and recognizably works and answers prayer(s). Instead I had allowed a view of the omnipotence and sovereignty God to overshadow His love.
He is a God who lovingly answered the prayers of Hagar (Gen. 21), and Hannah (I Sam. 1) and who intimately loves us (John 15) who became Emanuel, God with us, who’s love for us determined that Christ would suffer death “so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone,” and who, because of His love refused to “leave us as orphans,” (John 14: 18). My God is love (I John 4: 16). My God who, with His perfect love, “casts out fear,” even would cast out the fear of unanswered prayers. In casting out that fear in me that had begun causing me to follow in the steps of my “Mother Eve” and doubt His goodness to me, He has freed my heart to trust Him more.
As we began making steps to adopt a 2nd Mitchell boy, I began, with freedom to pray for God to bring us our next child, I didn’t hide my desire for a baby from my womb, or a child born of my heart, for a brother for Nicolas, or even specifically for a baby, if brought to us through adoption, that was 3-6 months old and in our home before my sister and dad come to visit (on Christmas=).
I am praising God because He reveals Himself as a listening and loving Father who has blessed us with Nathaniel, who as Nicolas is, a child born of my heart!
I am praising God who met my fear and encroaching doubt with specific answers to my prayers-We have another son, for however long God lends him to us as with Nicolas, or any of our children.
I am praising God that Nate is brother for Nico, who is 3 or 4 months old and is in our family before my dad and sister come to visit!

“Praise the Lord, O my soul; all my inmost being praise his holy name.” Ps. 103:1

Alair Mitchell

Malaria

2009-11-13T06:10:00.002-05:00

The results are positive! Caleb came down with malaria Wednesday at around 3 am. He woke up in a pool of sweat and knew something just was not right. He administered the quick test we had in our medical supplies and the test came back positive. We also had the treatment at home so he started on that right away.

This past month we have enjoyed a two teams from California. They were a big encouragement to New Hope and were very generous in bringing items for the ministry. This Monday Caleb will be heading back to Kampala to pick up a team from Alaska. This team are experts in water purification. The team will travel to the different New Hope sites to help set up new water systems and repair some of the old ones.

Please pray with us this month as we are moving forward with finalizing the legal guardianship of Nico as we will be heading to Kampala to go before the High Court of Uganda. We are also praying for the second addition to the Mitchell family.

Many Blessing!

Caleb, Alair, and Nico

Coke

2009-11-02T14:29:00.004-05:00

Nico enjoying a Coke

Nico after his coke was finished

Computer Lessons

2009-10-08T00:35:00.003-04:00

Caleb has been teaching several of the children here the valuable skills of typing and computer knowledge. Here he is with Majok, a boy from Sudan who now lives at New Hope.

NHU Gift Shop

2009-09-27T01:11:00.005-04:00

Pictured above is Alair with Joanna who lives here New Hope. Joanna has made jewelery for the gift shop. Many students, the New Hope’s Vocational Institute, staff members and local artists/craftsmen have sold their woven baskets, paintings, cards, jewelry etc. to short term teams that come to visit New Hope throughout the year. We have seasons of time that teams come virtually every week out of the year. With the gift shop we have sold local crafts, and have promoted craftsmanship. The gift shop has helped organize small businesses on site, generated income for the ministry, and has ensured quality and “fair trade” prices for both the individuals buying and selling. We have thoroughly enjoyed starting this business and are looking forward to the IY (investment year) students taking on as their responsibility in the coming year.

Our Home

2009-09-24T02:23:00.013-04:00

Caleb's office. He shares office with Tal Anderson

Our Garden

Our Bedroom

Bathroom

Nico's Room

Living/Dinning Room

Kitchen

Back door/water tank on upper left

Many of you have asked what our home looks like. I have posted the pictures above of our house and garden. We have flushing toilets and running water from a cistern that pumps rain water into a 250 liter tank. We pump water every other day from the cistern into the tank. We have electricity most of the days from 9-1am and 7-10pm. Those are the generator hours. We also have government power but we do not know when it will be on or off.

New Hope Uganda Radio

2009-09-22T05:31:00.009-04:00

New Hope's Radio Tower in Kiwoko

New Hope Students playing music at the 20 year Anniversary

Vision/Mission: While the world often sees the growing number of fatherless and orphaned children as a problem or burden, New Hope Uganda believes they are an unprecedented opportunity. Our mission is to work with this generation to “bring the Fatherhood of God to the fatherless” children of Uganda for generations to come. The increasing impact of media on even rural areas like Kasana is undeniable. New Hope believes God has opened the door to impact the local community and well beyond with radio programming (arguably the most influential media source in rural Uganda). NHU believes that this medium will play a major role in its efforts to help eliminate fatherlessness in the Nakaseke District and beyond. For more information on New Hope's raidio station you can contact us at calebandalair@hotmail.com

Happenings

2009-09-17T05:11:00.005-04:00

The New Hope Family

Vocational Training at New Hope

Recent Activities in our Family and at Kasana
Our “shift” (move) to our semi-permanent residence happened the second week of Aug. We will most likely be in this house for one year until we can build our house (which we hope to begin this coming January). If we live in the house we are in now for one year as planned, it will be the longest we have lived in any given place since we sold our house in Auburn three years ago. What a reminder it has been that this earth is not our home instead, “our citizenship is in heaven” Phil. 3:20.
Needless to say we are thankful for the prospect of one full year without moving, and we were eager begin to settle in (with the great expectation of no longer living out of suit cases bins and crates). We painted and varnished the cabinets in the kitchen and bathroom prior to moving in. We’ve finished hanging curtains in the sitting room and planted sweet corn and other veggies in our garden (in time for the rains). In Uganda there are two seasons that happen twice a year: wet and dry. We are saying goodbye to a long dry season and welcoming the rains.
The students have returned to school after a 3 week holiday break in between the second and final terms of the school year. During their time off, they have been working in their family gardens, doing odd jobs to earn extra money, and visiting relatives when able. A group of students also went on a week-long outreach to Kumi (a town north of us, whose people have struggled to regain confidence, motivation, and prosperity after years of attacks, raids, and kidnappings by Joseph Koney and the LRA). Our youth understand that they have been blessed to be a blessing (Gen.12:2-3, 22:17-18), and along with hands prepared to work, they have taken the truest blessing to those in need- the love and knowledge of Jesus Christ. This past dry season (which coordinates with your summer) we had a large number of teams from the US, and the UK who were busy serving the children and staff, running VBS camps, and working on projects at all three New Hope sites. Along with fundraising and business planning, visitors have kept Caleb occupied with trips to and from the airport, orientating teams to cultural aspects of life here in Uganda and more specifically life and all that goes on here at Kasana. September will slow down for Caleb a bit as no teams will be visiting until Oct. As you can guess Nicolas (who has been sick quite a bit the past few months) and settling into our new place has kept Alair pretty busy as well.
One Way You Can Support Us:
It seems that as soon as school begins, Christmas is just around the corner. One way you can plan ahead for Christmas (or any occasion) and support us at the same time is to participate in our gift card campaign found on this blog. Using it allows you to support us financially without changing your normal spending habits, but it gives you the ability to save the time and fuel that would be spent going to multiple stores to purchase gift cards! Every time you purchase a card from this store, up to 8% of every dollar spent will be given back. 100% of your purchase is placed on the gift card to be mailed (FREE SHIPPING) to you or directly to the recipient of the gift. Purchase from stores like Starbucks, Chipotle, Bath and Body Works, Barnes and Noble, Boarders, iTunes, Amazon, Best Buy, Williams Sonoma, Pottery Barn, J Crew and many more!
As always your prayer support is indispensable. Please pray for:
· Nicolas’ health
· Depth of relationships with fellow staff members and children
· Favor as we continue in the process for legal guardianship of Nicolas and wisdom in our family’s (Mitchell family) development
· Eternal perspective every day in each relationship, in how we give council, and in our daily tasks at work and at home
Thank you again for all your support!
Blessings,
Caleb, Alair and Nico

Riots In Kampala

2009-09-11T05:01:00.004-04:00

There have been riots in Kampala the last two days...We do not notice the differnce living out here in the villiage. However, it did detour us from going into Kampala this weekend.

Below was taken from New Vision report.

At least seven people have been killed in Uganda's capital, Kampala, in clashes between police and rioting supporters of a traditional king.
Police fired tear gas at the protesters who hurled stones and burned tyres. One report said at least seven people died.
The demonstrators protested against the government's attempts to stop the king of Buganda from visiting a region near Kampala where violence was feared.
The king has a big influence among the Baganda, Uganda's largest ethnic group.
The protesters fought police from behind burning barricades
King Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II - who is constitutionally barred from taking part in national politics - had wanted to visit a hostile part of his community to the north-east of Kampala.
The issue is so sensitive that ethnic Baganda members of parliament walked out of the legislature on Wednesday.
There has also been a long history of tension between the king and central government, particularly over land reform proposals that the Baganda say threaten their community, the BBC's Peter Greste reports.
Buganda is one of four ancient kingdoms in Uganda. It was abolished in 1966 but then restored in the 1990s.

I love my oats!

2009-09-04T01:56:00.002-04:00

MORE UPDATES COMING SOON!

2009-07-27T08:57:00.002-04:00

July 09’ News from the Mitchells,
We hope this letter finds you enjoying the summer months. Here in Uganda we are smack in the middle of a dry season and with a near empty cistern we are seeing the reality of and understanding more and more what daily physical dependency on the LORD looks like as we wait on the LORD with eager expectancy for rain. But with the dry season we are also celebrating the gift of the harvest as we prepare to close up shop tomorrow (everything comes to a screeching halt at harvest time, even the admin. offices shut down for a day) to harvest this season’s crop of maize.
On July 1st as Caleb’s parents celebrated their 37th anniversary we celebrated our 12th. Interestingly enough we spent last year’s anniversary on New Hope’s Lake Victoria Property and this year we were there just two days after our anniversary. The biggest difference was that this year we had Nicolas with us. We enjoyed touring the property with Jay Dangers (New Hope Director) and Steve & Angela Annett (a couple from the U.K. who were here for four weeks as business consultants). It was also great to spend a few hours with Syd and Andrea Sparks who are pioneering both life on the property and the beginnings of camp work- hosting teams, overseeing projects, and building relationships within the community. The highlight of Nico’s time was petting their puppy Nala, who didn’t frighten the living daylights out of him (probably because he was the first dog he’s been in contact with that was actually smaller than him.)
Nicolas is now 18 months old and talking! (At least we call it talking=) He is saying words like: De-Da (Lydia), boots, and Hallelujah (when it rains or when he sees the stars). Caleb pointed out the other day that he is talking in complete sentences: “I love you” and “I love De-Du” (Jesus). He even tries to sing “The B-I-B-L-E,” (taught to him by Kizza the mother of his good friend Andrew), as well as and the song Great Grandma Smith (Nico calls her G.G.) sings, “I Love You a Bushel and a Peck,” (famous to all Caleb’s cousins on the Smith side of the family). He’s getting taller by the day and acting more and more like his dad- mimicking almost everything he says and does.
Saying Goodbye to Lydia was bitter sweet, and I say that because although she is missed, we are fully anticipating what God has for her as she begins this term at Anderson. Right away Lydia found a special place in the hearts of the youngest members and the older girls of Pacific Family (who, by the way “send their greetings” to you Lydia). I (Alair) told her quite a few times that although her time here at New Hope looked completely different from her experiences with the team she was a part of in Kampala, she has blessed us more than she will know. You are missed (tremendously by Nico and Andrew)!
Just days before Lydia boarded her plane back to the States; she was able to observe New Hope’s Thanksgiving celebration with us. Right away you might be saying to yourself, “I thought the U.S. was the only country that commemorates the pilgrims and Indians first feast.” Well you’re right, but the Kasana family has much to be thankful for and has for many years celebrated a different version of the holiday by recalling the immense blessings LORD has shown throughout the year. With banners raised, banana and palm branches waving and voices loud and strong we sang, shouted, and danced our praises to God. This year each of the seven families, all the department heads, every tribe, and community represented at church that Sunday had opportunity to share (even in various languages) what they were most thankful for, among which “new family members” was at the top of Pacific Family’s list. Which of course is at the top of the our own family’s list too, as last July was the month we met Nicolas, and now he has become part of our family! Also high on our personal praise list this year is the “hope of glory” and our future home! It was a full day of remembering the works of the LORD’s hands.
For the next several months Caleb will be involved in helping with the teams that come to visit and serve here at NHU. The Teams Coordinator Nancy Kirsch is doing much of the organizational work involved with hosting teams, but while she is attending the Institute of Child Care and Family (the same five month training we were in last July) Caleb will be assisting with the ground work (pick-ups and drop-offs at the airport, leading orientations and tours, and being available to do various tasks that are needed. It has been a joy to see how these teams and individuals have been a blessing to the ministry.
Here are some tidbits about New Hope’s development and even a couple new ventures… You are already aware of the camp on Lake Victoria which now officially has a name: Musana Camps (Musana meaning “sunshine” and referring to walking in the light that is accompanied by growing in truth). Musana Camps has a first family overseeing its development: Syd, Andrea and baby Sparks (on the way in September). In addition to a few permanent structures, Musana has also been graced by many hardworking, hands that have helped to make it all possible, including EMI (Engineering Ministries
International) who completed a week-long visit to Musana and have completed design plans.
Other ways we are growing and changing include building projects. The Clinic Expansion is nearly finished. Upon completion the clinic will have more than tripled in size and will include a wing for dentistry and vision care as well as men’s and women’s general reception. Hope House Extension is New Hope’s baby house project. While the original baby house building (on the secondary site) is still caring for babies, the anticipated move to a new building and location (on the primary site where the church, primary school, clinic, administration offices and family groups are situated) will also triple the capacity to care for babies (infants- toddlers).
As a part of New Hope Uganda’s endeavor to see the villages and communities around us transformed through the power of the Gospel, we are excited to announce the beginning of our Pastoral Training Program. NHICF Pastoral Training Program’s vision is to mentor and disciple village pastors (most of whom have little to no biblical education) in a God-centered, worldview-confronting, Bible-saturated, Spirit-empowered, theologically-practical education that will provide a holistic foundation for life and ministry. The training will be centered on the Gospel and the Glory of God as it relates to all areas of life including agriculture, work and God-centered self-sufficiency.

Much love to all,
Caleb, Alair & Nico

Go Cubs!

2009-07-18T06:12:00.003-04:00

Nico wearing a Cubs hat for Brent...

Thanksgiving Day

2009-07-17T00:30:00.005-04:00

June News

2009-06-09T08:35:00.008-04:00

Alair and Lydia having fun doing dishes

Family Pic at the Source of the Nile

Frog on Alair's hand

Dan with Caleb harvesting maze.

Sarah with Kayesu (Pacific Family)

Family and Friends,

What a joy it has been this month working for New Hope. We are both engaging the children that we work with in Pacific family. Caleb is leading Tuesday night devotions and Alair is leading Thursday night devotions. We are also planning game night every other Friday and Alair is baking with the girls on Friday afternoons. Caleb has been teaching computer to several Ugandan students and has been able to build some significant relationships as he teaches the vital skill of typing. It seems like we are busier than bees these days, and as each week passes new responsibilities come our way and new relationships are being formed. We are thankful to see God growing and deepening our relationships as we plan our involvement with our family group. Now we have to maintain a balance with ministering inside and outside our own family.
Poor Nico got malaria as many of you know but he is doing better and is back to himself. Caleb’s cousin Lydia Smith has now joined us here at New Hope and we are excited that she is now part of the family. We picked her up from Kampala last Saturday. She was with a team from Anderson University working with the Stevenson’s who are part of the Church of God. Lydia has been such a blessing to us during the past couple of weeks helping with Nico, and jumping in right away with Pacific Family, and what timing as we have been “in transit…”
MOVING! MOVING! MOVING! Or as they say in Uganda we “shifted” out of the one bedroom we were stating in into a two-bedroom house that is empty right now because the our friends the Zimmerman’s are on furlough back in the U.S. We shifted because Desire, a new missionary from the states who has come to run the guest house is staying in the one bedroom apt. The hope was to shift into a three-bedroom house however that move is contingent on a new house being completed so that the family that is in the three-bedroom house can shift into their new house and we can move into their old one. Well you may have guessed it, the house is not finished, hence this second temporary shift. (We’re not counting all the temporary moves back in the states over the past couple years=). Pray with us and everyone involved in the “wait and shift game.” What a blessing to see New Hope growing, and with it the growing pains; the opportunity to grow in patience and flexibility… needed, but not always our favorite blessing in disguise is it?
Caleb has been excited about some of the new ventures New Hope is getting into. As I’m sure you all know Caleb is very passionate about coffee and all that it entails. He had the opportunity a few weeks ago to go on a “coffee safari.” Joel, a student accompanied Caleb on the day’s journey. While on the safari they learned a great deal about Ugandan coffee and made many valuable contacts. The trip include a trip to the Ugandan Coffee Authority, a major coffee processing plant, a coffee roasting plant, the Ugandan Coffee Research Center, and last stop was a beautiful farm in Mukono where he learned how to wet process the coffee bean. Caleb also planted his first coffee tree. While we were in the Institute last summer, Caleb helped Joel start a small business roasting coffee to sell at New Hope. Since then Joel has shown great interested in learning the process in more depth and doing it for a full time job. After their safari Joel announced, “Wow, what an exciting day, I am ready to start growing coffee.”
Caleb has been helping promote New Hopes book The Long Road to Hope by going to the many different Kampala book stores to follow up on sales and make new sales. Have you read it yet? Information on purchasing a copy can be found on New Hope’s website at http://www.newhopeuganda.org/ 100% of the sales go to fund the IY (Investment Year) program.
Caleb is also excited about his temporary job with New Hope starting next month. He will be working with the short term teams that come to visit New Hope. Nancy Kirsh who is the team’s coordinator will be attending the New Hope Institute of Child Care and Family in July and will need help with teams. Caleb is excited about the relationships he will get to build and he is also looking forward to learning a different aspect of what happens here at New Hope. During these several months he will continue working on special projects and fundraising.
In the midst of all the busyness May 6th-9th was New Hope's 3rd annual foreign staff retreat, but our first. It was held in beautiful Jinja on Lake Victoria at the source of the Nile River. It was a joy for us to better get to know and fellowship with the whole team of foreign staff both old and new, which includes Christ followers from the U.S. and the U.K. who all have hearts to see the fatherless come to know our Father and experience His fatherhood. The retreat was a refreshing time of rest and of hearing Gods word from facilitators George and Donna, former missionaries in Venezuela for many years who now have a ministry of encouraging other missionaries around the world. We praise God for the time we had together!
Love to each of you,
Caleb, Alair & Nicolas

The Foreign Staff Retreat

2009-05-26T04:18:00.010-04:00

Foreign Staff Retreat in Jinja

Dinner time

May 6th-9th was New Hope's 3rd annual foreign staff retreat, but our first. It was held in beautiful Jinja on Lake Victoria at the source of the Nile river. It was a joy for us to better get to know and fellowship with the whole team of foreign staff both old and new, which includes Christ followers from the U.S. and the U.K. who all have hearts to see the fatherless come to know our Father and experience His fatherhood. It was refreshing to have facilitators George and Donna, former missionaries in Venezuela for many years who now have a ministry of encouraging other missionaries around the world.
On May 23 we picked up my cousin Lydia from Kampala. Lydia was with the Anderson University team working with the Stevenson's in their childcare ministries and will be with us at New Hope helping in a variety of ministry aspects through mid July.

Familar Faces

2009-05-02T12:53:00.004-04:00

Arlin, Whitney, Nancy, Steve and Dave with Nico

Trip to the Lake Victoria site with the Master Works Team

What a joy it was to have our friends from Master Works come visit this past week. It was truly a blessing and a big encouragment to have time with them.

April News from Uganda

2009-04-22T05:52:00.009-04:00

Dodiveco saying goodbuy to JT

JT giving testimony at church service his last Sunday

Hanging out with Pacific family during game/movie night
We showed the movie Swiss Family Robinson.

Nico's 1st birthday a few months late.

Dear Family and Friends,
Greetings from Uganda! We cannot believe that it has been over a month since we arrived (in early March). God has been good to us as our transition has gone smoothly. We are very thankful for the temporary house that has been provide and are anticipating the next move to our more “permanent” home in May.
Much has happened during the past few weeks and many things have moved quickly for us. We received our foster care order for Nicolas, so he is now able to stay with us full time. Praise the Lord! The process went rather speedily. Many of you may not know that things in Uganda usually take much longer than expected. We filled out many forms, created a portfolio of ourselves, met several times with the probation officer (social worker) and twice with the magistrate (judge) from Luwero. It was truly a blessing to get things processed and all of the paper work through.
Nico is doing very well…walking and talking (well, mimicking extremely efficiently… he doesn’t miss a syllable). We just had fun celebrating his “un-birthday” on March 17th as we missed his 1st birthday (January 17th). Needless to say the cake was a hit! He is very attached to mama (the name “mama” is a rare occurrence though, as he calls both Caleb and I “daddy”). Clingy is healthy however, in adoptive situations (it means he is bonding well and we haven’t had to “force” bonding- which would entail me wearing this 25 lb. boy on my back all day). But, clingy also means a tired mama who sounds like a parrot every time she sets him down-“no fuss Nico.” One of his favorite times during the day is wrestling with Caleb on the bed while I finish making lunch. I can hear laughter and squeals in the outdoor kitchen!
I am fully aware of God’s healing hand during this time as each remembrance of my mom that is often accompanied by tears of sadness has ended with tears of joy as I rejoice in the truth that she is residing in the presence of the Lord! Pray for both my dad and sister as they continue to adjust to this new reality.
Since we returned much has changed including Caleb’s role. He has been given the role of Special Projects/Fundraising. He has been working on several different aspects of fundraising and a wide range of projects to generate income, all that require research and a lot of footwork. The first week we arrived Uncle Jay asked if Caleb could research staring a mini biodiesel processing center. Shortly after starting the research for that, he was given the task of writing and submitting grants to the different embassies here in Uganda. There is money available it is just a matter of finding the right avenue to pursue. Caleb has already submitted two proposals for ten new bore holes (wells) to be dug. If we receive the money for this project, one bore hole will be on New Hope property and the other nine in surrounding communities. One grant was submitted to the US embassy and the other to the Italian embassy.
We are excited about another project that both Caleb and I are working on together. We just recently opened the official New Hope Gift shop. Many students, the New Hope’s Vocational Institute, staff members and local artists/craftsmen have sold their woven baskets, paintings, cards, jewelry etc. to short term teams that come to visit New Hope throughout the year. We have seasons of time that teams come virtually every week out of the year. With this new gift shop we hope to market local crafts, and promote craftsmanship. The gift shop was much needed as it will help organize small businesses on site, generate income for the ministry, and ensure quality and “fair trade” prices for both the individuals buying and selling. Caleb has already traveled to Kampala to negotiate and do business with some local wood carvers. We are excited to expand the merchandise we will have to offer and are extremely happy about the countless benefits a venture like the gift shop will create.
Another blessing has been reconnecting with our family group, reestablishing trusts and continuing to build relationships. It has been difficult, but a blessing to talk through the healing process God has faithfully begun in hearts that have been wounded. But we have also seen the joy brought by the addition of a family member, three year old Kiasu, whose smile can melt any heart in an instance. Kiasu’s lighthearted, playful spirit and contagious giggle has added warmth to the family.
Another much loved addition to Pacific and the greater Kasana family was J.T. King, (Caleb’s 21 year old cousin from Indiana) who has worked for three months with teams and New Hope staff welding water towers, swing sets, repairing almost anything that has been broken, and who has put much sweat equity into this place. The highlight of J.T.’s time here was a trip with young adults to work at Masana Camps (New Hope’s youth camp and some day retreat center). There God brought him to a place of full surrender and we are rejoicing with him because of God’s great mercy, grace, and relentless love ever drawing us to Himself.
We are thrilled to have another one of Caleb’s cousins Lydia Smith join us toward the end of May for three months. Pray for journey mercies as she travels with a short term team from Anderson University and for a strong sense of God’s presence as they serve in Kampala and throughout Lydia’s continued service here at New Hope.
We are also excited to see Steve and Nancy Longbrake from our Blackhawk family who will be visiting New Hope next week! We are thankful for the friendships we are building with staff members here at New Hope, and we are equally thankful for the encouragement that dear familiar faces bring!
Praising God for each of you as well,
Caleb, Alair & Nicolas

More Pics

2009-04-15T23:55:00.007-04:00

JT playing football (soccer)

Baby House expantion

Clinic expantion

Caleb and Nico holding camellian

Back To Uganda

2009-03-15T08:28:00.004-04:00

We promised more so here’s just a bit of what’s going on with us here at NHU.

It was so good to see Nicholas the day we arrived- not sure if he recognized us or not, but when we picked him up for the weekend he started being a cuddle-bug right away and was even clingy with both of us when we were around other people.
Nico's not walking yet (J) - we're glad we will get to see him take his first steps. His right leg turns out a bit so we'll have to keep an eye out, do some stretching and turning for now.

We met with the social worker yesterday. It was pretty intense, but we were assured by Uncle Joseph (the head of the Child Care department here at Kasana) not to worry, and that all went well. We have an appointment with her on Monday to pick up the foster parenting forms from her office. Getting "fostership" could be relatively quick (about a month). For now we just get him on the weekends (three days) and visits during the week of course.

We're slowly getting settled into our one bedroom house until a two bedroom comes available (probably in May) - living out of bins at the moment. Friends had all the immediate necessities ready and waiting for us (i.e. a mattress to sleep on, borrowed couches and most importantly “Doom”- ant and roach spray). We’re planning to go into Kampala tomorrow to pick up a few things- cleaning supplies, standing shelves for organizing, and a bed for J.T. who will be sleeping in our “sitting room” for the next two months. Caleb’s cousin J.T. King has been a HUGE blessing to New Hope the past month. He has been busy welding playground equipment for the primary school, and a water tower for the Sparks who are hosting teams already at the camp property, just to mention a few things. J.T. has quickly won the hearts of EVERYONE he has met! Next on his “To Do List” is to help Caleb make some shelving unit for the outdoor kitchen- hurray!

So far we haven’t needed to use the kitchen (besides the need for multiple cups of coffeeJ) because of the “meal rota” that was organized providing lunch and dinners for us for over a week. This has truly been a blessing. Not only is it a huge help in transitioning back to life here, but it has provided many opportunities to catch up with friends over meals, share with many people all that God has done over the last few months of caring for Alair’s mom, and even getting to know some staff members better. Needless to say our welcome back has been very warm.

When we first arrived in Entebbe, besides the disappointment of not receiving our luggage, which, by the way, all arrived safely two days later, we we’re thrilled to see J.T. and Jay & Vikki Dangers waiting for us. Due to jet lag, my (Alair’s) brain was a bit like mush so I don’t remember much of our conversations the first day or so, but I do remember telling Vikki when she asked how I was feeling being back, that when the plane was landing, it felt like I was coming home. She wisely said- home is being where God wants you to be.
So, we are happy to be home.

We’ll update our blog and send an “official” update soon.

Much love,

Caleb & Alair

In Loving Memory Averill Brown

2009-02-10T07:15:00.009-05:00

“I’ll love Thee in life and I’ll love Thee in death
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath.
And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus tis now.”

On February 10th, 2009 at 6:35am Averill Brown’s faith became sight. After a bout with breast cancer in 1994 and a painful battle with bone cancer for the past 5 years, the Lord called her home to rest. She endured faithfully until the end and the entire family was able to be there by her bedside when she passed on to glory.
We’ve spent the last few months taking care of Averill as the cancer left her bedridden and unable to move. As a family we’ve experienced many ups and downs during this time, but a constant theme resonated—TRUST THE LORD! James--trust the Lord to provide. You are the man and provider, but I can provide for your family’s every need better than you. Caleb, Alair---trust the Lord with Nicholas. I am the father to the fatherless. (Nicholas is the adorable little boy Caleb and Alair are adopting and had to leave in Uganda). Janea--you won’t find security anywhere but in me. Trust the Lord with your future.
We are thankful for all of the love and support so many have shown us these last few years and especially these last few months. We have seen the hand of the Lord throughout it all. We write this letter, not as those who mourn without hope, but as those who have a glorious hope realized in Christ Jesus. And we trust that you will rejoice with us as we celebrate the home-going of a vessel of God’s glory.
James, Caleb and Alair, and Janea

A memorial service will be held at Grace Community Church
13248 Roscoe Blvd. Sun Valley, CA 91352 on
Friday, February 20 at 5:00 pm. in the chapel

A

February News

2009-02-07T07:53:00.003-05:00

Dear family and friends,

It’s hard to believe our last update was back in November. As most of you know, we returned to the U.S. in mid November to help care for Alair’s mom who is suffering from terminal bone cancer. We are still in Connecticut with Alair’s dad and sister, walking through this journey together.

There have been many ups and downs in this process but we are constantly reminded of Christ’s suffering for us--He promises to never leave us or forsake us. The Lord continues to sustain Averill’s life and we’ve seen spiritual victory--peace and freedom. We are learning to lay aside our needs and wants, which is difficult as we desire and long to be back in Uganda, continue the work we began, and most of all to complete the process of adopting Nicholas. The separation process has not been easy.

New Hope is extremely supportive of us staying in the states until Alair’s mom goes home to be with the Lord. We are tentatively scheduled to return to Uganda on February 19, but it appears we may have to change our plane tickets again. Please pray for us as we make these important decisions.

Even though we are in America, the work at the camp site in Uganda continues. The first staff house (which will be our house temporarily) is complete along with the store house and pit latrines. It’s exciting to see pictures of the development as we keep in contact with our partners Syd and Andrea Sparks.

Today (February 4th) is a big day for a couple of reasons! The first short-term team dedicated specifically to working at the camp site left for Uganda today. The team will clear bush, work on perimeter fencing, and clear the fresh water spring (which will be our water source). Also Caleb’s cousin, J.T., left for Uganda today. He will be serving at New Hope for three months. We are so excited J.T. has this opportunity and we can’t wait to join him in Africa.

Thank you for the emails, love, support, and encouragement you’ve shown. We’ve been overwhelmed as we’ve watched the body of Christ work during this time.

Blessings,

Caleb and Alair

-Psalm 27:13-14
“I would have despaired unless I had believed I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; yes wait for the Lord.”

Camp Housing

2009-01-30T12:27:00.004-05:00

Here is the latest update on the building progress at the camp. The structure above will be staff housing. This is where we will temporarily live.

Camp Site Construction in Progress

2009-01-16T20:31:00.011-05:00

We are so excited to see all the work that is being done on the camp land even though we are not in Uganda. This post is from our friends and partners Syd and Andrea Sparks.

Construction Site/Camp Land
Construction continues and we are making some good progress. It is exciting to see things go up. Here are a few pictures of what is happening. The photo above is the house in progress on the left hand side of the photo, the nearly completed bathing shelters which are a little hard to see but are right in the middle, and then the nearly completed pit toilets. The photos below are of our store room. The first one is before they roofed it and the second one after.

Storage Room

Pit Latrine
Construction has finally begun. Last week we broke ground and began working on the foundation for our first building. One thing that is quite different about the construction process over here is that there are no big machines to do the work for you. So everything that you see dug out in the photo was dug by hand. All of the rocks that are being used in our concrete mixture are broken by the man in the picture below. He has used a hammer to break most of it. How would you like to sit and break rock with a hammer and have to fill a dump truck full. Not my idea of fun but it is a job and he is earning money. The bottom picture is a 12’ long x 8’ wide hole that will eventually be a 10’ deep holding tank to collect rainwater (cistern). As you can see they ran into a big problem as they were digging. There is a very large boulder that they couldn’t just dig out. So they brought in the rock crusher and he went to work.

New Hope Uganda Promo Video

2008-12-29T17:25:00.004-05:00

Letter From The Director

2008-12-18T11:34:00.007-05:00

Jay Dangers (New Hope Uganda Ministries Director)

Dear Family and Friends of the Mitchells,

Greetings from New Hope Uganda! I trust you are all well! On behalf of the New Hope family, I would like to thank you for your support of Caleb and Alair. By faithfully supporting and caring for them, you are supporting the work and the children here, and we are so grateful for that!

Caleb and Alair have come to help with a new and very special project- developing a camp facility that will be used by children from New Hope Uganda and many others from around the country. In preparation for this, not long after they arrived, Caleb and Alair began attending the New Hope Institute of Childcare and Family. NHICF is a five-month training course conducted here at New Hope that offers intensive training on caring for fatherless and abandoned children, on serving in a foreign culture, on counseling, worldview, and so much more. In addition to attending NHICF, Caleb and Alair have spent their time investing in the children in Pacific family- spending evenings with them, working in the gardens with them, and more. They have also begun working hard to learn Luganda, and Caleb has made many Ugandan’s days by using every Luganda word he has learned as he visits with them! On the weekends, the Mitchells have been an immense help to the Baby House staff by caring for baby Nicholas. Rumor has it he might be with them more than just weekends in the future!

Thank you for your faithful support of Caleb and Alair! Faithful and sufficient funds are an immense blessing to anyone out on the “field,” and do much towards alleviating stress. Please do pray that the Lord will continue to provide the remaining monthly and start up funds they need. We pray that the Lord will bless you all richly for the sacrifices you make that enable the Mitchells to serve with us here!

Life can be very difficult out here- with constant challenges, cultural differences, uncertainties, and the never-ending work of raising children. Please do continue to pray for Caleb and Alair, that God will give them strength and wisdom for all that they will encounter as they continue the work with the camp. As you are able, I know the occasional email, letter, package, or even phone call would be a great encouragement as well! As you also know, Caleb and Alair came back to the U.S. recently, as Alair’s mom has been very ill. Please do lift them up in prayer during this very difficult time.

As a way to better care for our foreign staff we have held two Foreign Staff Retreats in the last two years. We would like to continue this as an annual event. Although we would love to pay for each member’s time, New Hope Uganda does not have the funds available, so we have asked each individual or family to pay for their own way. If you are looking for an extra way to bless the Mitchells, please consider contributing towards this annual retreat for them. Thank you!

Indeed we believe that the part you play as you serve by sending the Mitchells is vitally important- and is of equal value to that of those of us on foreign soil’s “front lines.” As David told his men in 1 Samuel 30:24,“…as his part is who goes down to the battle, so shall his part be who stays by the supplies; they shall share alike.” I Samuel 30:24 Also, as the writer of Hebrews writes, we are confident on your behalf that “God is not unjust; He will not forget your work and the love you have shown Him as you have helped His people and continue to help them.” Hebrews 6:10

As the Lord notices your service in this way, we too say thank you for the role you have played here at New Hope through your continued support for and care of Caleb and Alair. They are a blessing, and we are thankful to have them as part of the Kasana family. May the Lord bless each of you richly!

In Christ,

Jay Dangers
New Hope Uganda, Director

Caleb Having Fun With Nico

2008-11-28T21:01:00.002-05:00

Mitchell's October News

2008-10-26T01:27:00.012-04:00

Training: Our five month training is coming to an end, and we have been reflecting on much of the teaching we have received here at NHICF (New Hope’s Institute of Child Care and Family). It has either centered around or in some way been related to “family”- our belonging to the family of God, and identity as children of our heavenly Father, the brotherhood of the believers in this family, as well as the roles of men and woman in marriage as husband and wife, and most recently as father and mother in the families we are given by God.
We have had a week of studying biblical child training and have come to realize that it has just as well been a week on biblical parent training. All that we have learned has been invaluable and very timely as we begin parenting and training Nicholas. We have a united goal to continually have our hearts turned toward the children God brings; to continually seek to turn the hearts of children toward their parents, and to turn hearts of individuals and families collectively toward God the Father resulting in the worship of Him and magnification of His glory!
Another few days have been devoted to learning about the different department’s day to day functions, and the operation of N.H.U. (New Hope Uganda). We were able to talk to and have Q&A with heads of departments and supervisors about how things work here. Some highlights of these few days were touring the Vocational School and Enterprise Farm. At the Vocational School maize (corn) is milled for Kasana (New Hope) families and farmers in the Kiwoko and Kabooboo communities. Here students are also trained in weaving, sewing & tailoring, welding & automechanics, as well as carpentry. At the Enterprise Farm 40 acres of land are used to farm maize for the secondary (high school) student’s lunches. They are expanding to include vegetables and soon to include fruit from 100 fruit trees purchased this week. Just this year New Hope also started a small business raising pigs. They can sell them once full grown for about 100,000 (shs) which is around $60 us dollars. This tour was a great opportunity to see New Hope faithfully using what God has entrusted to them, and becoming more self sufficient as they grow each year.

Camp Land: It is exciting to report to you that the 1st camp construction project is planned to begin November 17th. The structure will be for camp staff housing. Please be in prayer as we develop relationships with the community there and that our interactions would genuinely reflect the love of Jesus. Pray that we would be mindful of their eternity as many of them do not know Christ.
Personal: Alair’s mom’s health is declining as the cancer has begun to take over her liver. Many of her days are spent in bed, and arrangements for a hospice nurse to come are being made. Please pray for God’s grace as she deals with the pain of a deteriorating spine, for Jim (Alair’s dad) as he cares for her and in making funeral arrangements. We plan to return to the States (CT) to be with them and the rest of the family. We are purchasing tickets with the plan to be there by Thanksgiving. Also pray for God’s continued grace as we move forward with steps in the foster/guardian/adoption process with Nicholas. We want to thank you for your love and prayers.

Blessings,
Caleb and Alair

Pacific Family's Youngest Members

2008-10-23T23:47:00.003-04:00

David (left) Rebeccah, and Peter (right) from Pacific family enjoy getting their picture taken.

Learning First Aid

2008-10-23T23:19:00.004-04:00

Seggie (Francis on left) and Amon learn the Heimlich maneuver

One week at the Institute we learned first aid and CPR. A team from Alaska came to do the training. It was very beneficial and we learned a great deal. One of the interesting topics was how to treat snake bites.

Institute Class

2008-10-03T00:37:00.003-04:00

This week we have been learning about Biblical Counceling. Uncle Jones has been giving insight on this topic. We have enjoyed his teaching and are learning a great deal.

Our New Hope Family

2008-09-22T07:33:00.007-04:00

We have had a great time getting to know our Pacific Family.

Oli Otya!

2008-09-22T06:53:00.004-04:00

Eating lunch in Jinja with our friend David.

David's bike ran out of gas on the way to the source of the Nile

Caleb Giving Nico a bath.

Oli otya! (Greetings!) Family & Friends,

So much has happened since our last update. We are so thankful for how God has made His presence known to us over the last couple of months, in the midst of joys- like baby Nico, and seeing our newest nephew Cash via Skype, as well as difficulties- like receiving the news of that Alair’s mom is wrestling with cancer again (and we’re ½ a world away). Yet, in so many ways, the Holy Spirit has been actively working to prepare our hearts to recognize His hand, worship the Lord as He reveals His glory to us in every circumstance, to point out His glory to others as it is revealed more and more, and to have a song of praise ever ready on our lips (Ps. 40: 16, PS. 34:1-3).
During a recent phone call with Alair’s mom (Averill), we learned that she is able to walk very short distances with a walker and uses a wheel chair outside of the house due to the degeneration that has taken place in her spine and hip. She is still feeling well (not sick), and aside from the pain (which she is treating with a “pain patch” as well as acupuncture treatments every other day), has enjoyed her time with family and friends who have visited. We continue to covet your prayers for her, and the rest of the family (Dad- Jim, Sister- Janea, aunts, uncles and cousins). Please pray also for clear direction from God as to when we should return.
God has allowed me (Alair) to walk through a similar situation with Silvia (a sixteen year old girl in our family group), whose mother is very sick. Although I can’t claim to understand what she is going through, I am confident that God has placed us in Pacific family to love and encourage, pray for and pray with those we have opportunity to cultivate relationships with, and to point them to Christ and the truths in God’s word.
We have been caring for baby Nico (Nicholas) from New Hope’s Hope House on the weekends, and after a few months of prayer have decided to begin the application process for adoption. We must first apply and be approved by New Hope then we will able to start the progressive stages of the process. While our New Hope application is in process, a staff person from New Hope will attempt to locate Nico’s birth mother. The complete adoption procedure in Uganda requires three years residency, and has three different stages (each having its own set of regulations): 1st foster, 2nd guardianship, and 3rd adoption.
This month marks the ½ way point in our five month training. At the beginning of class, we dealt extensively with learning to detect cultural word views, and as we have been searching the scriptures, we are coming to more fully understand and to cultivate a biblical or kingdom world view. This begins with seeing all of creation and life with God’s glory at the center. As God unveils His glory, His sovereignty and power are among the numerous attributes that are revealed! In addition we have seen from scripture what redeemed manhood, womanhood, and family look like. We are currently beginning a section on child training.
Slowly by slowly we are learning Luganda (the language spoken in our area and we were happy to hear, in the region where New Hope’s new camp/ training center will be located). Caleb practices phrases like “Well done”… “How is your family?”... “Welcome back”… and “I love you,” on everyone he passes by (literally) and is doing very well. Everyone loves the fact that he greets them in Luganda. Some Ugandan friends and staff have made the comment “You know Luganda as well as I do.” I (Alair) think he he’s well on his way to becoming Uganda’s favorite mazungu (white one). Although the timing is not certain, our next undertaking here in Uganda will be to take six months of language school before we move to the camp property. Yes, English is the national language in Uganda, and it is spoken widely here at New Hope, but there are many other languages spoken here…Luganda being the most common.
Please continue to pray with us about the purchase of the land for the camp. There has been a purchase agreement made, but we are still in the negotiation stages and a few land disputes must be settled before we can obtain the title. We are using Skype to chat and make calls, so if you want to do a search for us (our name is Caleb and Alair Mitchell) we’d love to hear from you. Also check out our updated blog Thank you again for your support and your prayers.

In His service and for His glory,
Caleb & Alair

Learning Ugandan Culture

2008-08-26T14:08:00.008-04:00

(far left in white is Esther, middle left in blue and white is Lilliane, middle right is Gloria)
During parents day the students from the secondary school perform a traditional African folk song.

Uncle Dan and Caleb show off a puff adder. This is a very dangerous and venomous snake. Uncle Dan killed it with a stick on the road to Lewuro.

Caleb is learning to ox plow with his teacher Francis who is also attending the Institute classes.

Little Nicholas

2008-08-03T08:43:00.006-04:00

The Past two weekends we were able to take care of a Nicholas from the baby house. He is 6 months old and always has a smile on his face.

The First Three Weeks

2008-07-17T09:57:00.004-04:00

Alair with Kintu Obadiah (child we are sponsoring)

Past Sons and Daughters reuniting with current ones

Nathan from the baby house

Dear Family and Friends,

It is with much excitement that we write to you. Our transition time has gone smoothly and we are adjusting to the culture quite well so far. This month New Hope celebrated 20 years of bringing the “Fatherhood of God to the fatherless”. It was a three day celebration where older brothers and sisters were welcomed home by their families (children here are raised in a family setting), and joined present and former staff in thanking God for his faithfulness to individuals and the ministry. It was a sweet time of reunion, forgiveness, and hearing testimonies of the on-going goodness of the LORD.
The family we are attached to is Pacific family. There are 21 children in our family (7 boys and 14 girls ranging in age from 4 to 16). We’ve spent evenings in family devotions and Saturday mornings working in the family garden. I should warn you to hear the term “garden” loosely because the family gardens include banana plantation, and over three acres of plots for sweet potato, beans, cassava (a white yam-like vegetable), and maze (corn).
Another exciting aspect of our time here has been the teaching we are receiving in the institute. We have been challenged to detect where our cultural world views clash with kingdom world view, and to recognize the lies in our deceitful heart Jeremiah 17:9 and to renew our minds with truth Romans 12:2.
We were able to visit the land for the camp on our 11th wedding anniversary which was July 1st. It was a four hour trip from the Kasana site to the property on Lake Victoria. There are beautiful views of the lake, trails through the bush, a fresh water spring, and 600+ meters of beach front where a squatter’s village of fisherman and their families are living. The two initial priorities are fencing of the property and further developing the roads leading to the camp. The next priority in camp planning will be to build a structure that will first serve as housing for both us and the Sparks and be used in the future for either programming or storage. The next step will be to begin developing camp programming.
We feel very privileged to be serving with New Hope Uganda. Thank you for your on-going prayers, and support. We will keep you up to date as things progress.

In His service and for His glory,
Caleb and Alair

Our New Home

2008-07-05T10:45:00.007-04:00

London

Lake Victoria Property with Syd and Andrea

Our New Home

Well, we made it safely to Uganda with little to no problems. We had a 12 hour layover in London were we were able to visit with Caleb’s cousin Mike (who lives there) and Alair’s cousin John who happened to be on business at the time.
We have been settling down nicely here in Uganda. We are learning many new things about the Ugandan culture and have met many new people. Our next door neighbors while we are in the institute are Syd and Andrea Sparks who we are partnering with on the New Hope camp endeavor.
We have had two days of great class lectures from Keith McFarland and are learning about how different world views effect how we see life. We have also talked much about the Kingdom world view and how it is unchanging even within the different cultures.
We had a wonderful Fourth of July celebration with many of the western staff. The food and fellowship were great.
Saturday was our first opportunity to work in the gardens with Pacific Family. We learned how to slash. In other word how to cut down tall grass and weeds in preparation for ox plowing. Alair’s longed promised ox plowing pictures will be coming soon.

Ready, Set, Move

2008-06-21T15:30:00.003-04:00

Family and Friends,

The past few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity, but time spent visiting family and seeing friends has been a blessing. Caleb completed his time at the YMCA the last week of May, and thanks to frequent flyer miles, was able to travel to California to visit Josh his brother, Vanessa (sister in-law) , Cy our nephew who just turned two (Happy birthday CY!) and Alair’s sister Janea. He had a blast with CY, who enjoyed riding the elevator over and over at the office while waiting for dad to finish work. They had fun swimming, playing outside, and chasing eachother around the house.
While Caleb was in California, Alair was wrapping up the school year. We had one weekend to do a lot of filing, some shopping, packing, putting things in storage at Caleb’s parent’s house, and getting our international driving permits. We were blessed to have many churches pray for us over the past month including our home church. God has also added new partners in ministry who are passionate about the fatherless in Uganda.
This past week we were able to visit with Alair’s parents in Connecticut. We enjoyed a family BBQ with aunts, uncles and cousins, celebrated her dad’s Birthday, Father’s Day, Aunt Gladys’ birthday and even had a private Salsa dance lesson from Cousin Josiah and his girl friend Michelle. Fun times, but not without some frantic preparations for Uganda. We spent a day on the phone before finding a clinic that would administer travel shots still needed. Despite the frenzied activities we had a great time with the family.
We had a wonderful break yesterday as we were able to spend a nice dinner with Caleb’s mom Dianne, dad John, grandparents Wayne and Martha, and Uncle Brent. For all of this we are truly thankful.
As our departure date quickly approaches the word busy doesn’t quite describe the atmosphere. We have complete most of the things needed to leave the country and have done a lot more packing and cleaning out of the apartment.
To give you a quick update on our support level, we are currently at 65% of our monthly support and around 60% of our start up cost. Our prayer is to be at 80% by the end of our five month training at the Institute.
We want to thank all of you again for your prayers and ongoing support. We will keep you posted via e-mail and our blog as new developments occur.

Blessings,
Caleb and Alair

Saying Good Bye

2008-06-13T11:37:00.006-04:00

We are having a wonderful time in Connecticut visiting Alair's family before we leave for Uganda on June 25. We've spent time helping the Brown's plant their summer garden (in preparation for farming in Africa). We also had a cook out with all the aunts, uncles and cousins. It was a very fun time as we will not see them for a very long time...

April News

2008-04-22T10:11:00.003-04:00

Dear Friends and Family,

God has truly blessed us these past few months. We have continued to feel His leading as the details of our departure are being finalized. God has given us peace, direction , and growing anticipation as we get closer to being on the field.
It is exciting to be part of the team that will be developing a camp on the 715 acres recently purchased by NHUM. This beautiful site is located on Lake Victoria in the southern part of Uganda. We believe that God will greatly use this camp to impact the lives of the youth of Uganda for Christ. The new youth camp and training center will play a vital role in bringing the Fatherhood of God to the fatherless children with whom we have been entrusted.
Our goal is to establish a camp that will work with our current children’s centers, other children’s centers in Uganda, as well as other Christian ministries working to further the gospel of Christ. The camp will provide opportunities for people to come to know Christ, grow in their relationship with Him, and grow in their understanding of what it means to be God-honoring men and woman in their culture.
We are excited to see the truth of God’s Word transform their lives and compel them to live for Christ. There is much work ahead of us and we cherish your prayer support. We trust that God will work all things together for His glory.

Blessings,
Caleb and Alair

Prayer Request
A strong financial and prayer support base as we continue to seek new partners in ministry
For wisdom as we make decisions and raise funds for the land.
That we will continue to clearly share the vision of what God has called us to.

Updates
Our plane tickets have been purchased!
Our departure date is June 25th.
Thanks to ministry partners, New Hope Uganda has signed a purchase agreement for 715 acres of the 1,100 acres of land on Lake Victoria for the camp!
Prayer Support- We are very thankful for those of you who have committed to pray for us and this ministry either daily or weekly!
We are grateful for those who have given financially to this ministry.

Monthly Support Covers
Personal expenses such as:
food
house maintenance
insurance
fuel
Ministry expenses such as:
air travel
savings for furloughs
correspondence
NHU admin. expenses
hosting groups
community needs

Start Up Expenses
initial airfare to Uganda
work permits
visas
shots
printing and mailings
camp housing to be built
vehicle in Uganda
emergency fund
phone
language school
NHICF training

Support and Donations
New Hope Uganda Ministries
PO Box 154
Belle Fourche, SD 57717
1-800-611-6486

Land for Camp Site

2008-04-14T09:04:00.009-04:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Thank you very much for your prayers! God has heard us and acted in a very strong way! We have a signed purchase agreement for the land and money to back it!

A couple days ago we sent out an email requesting prayer for the negotiations we were going to be in the very next day for the purchase of 1100 beautiful acres of land on the shore of Lake Victoria for our Manhood/Womanhood/Youth Camp. I have felt strongly that we need that land but we didn't have any money with which to negotiate. God has provided! The night before we went for the meeting, I received a call from a dear friend wanting to invest in this venture. Because of circumstances he isn't able to donate the money but he is loaning/investing the money needed for the down payment. We also got another significant donation from another dear friend. So as we went into the meeting we were able to talk with confidence.

Negotiations went well! We have now signed for 715 acres of the land. As I understand it, because of the pressure the cooperative is under, they have offered the second plot that would have made the offer 1100 acres, to someone else and said they thought we weren't interested. I assured them we are interested, so they are promising to bring that title to the negotiating table soon.

We have put a small down payment down and promised the rest after the two weeks it will take them to have the boundaries verified and an amicable agreement made with the squatters.

Thank you so very much for your prayers! Please keep this in prayer. We still need to raise approximately $120,000 to complete the purchase of the 715 acres. We also need approximately $150,000 more for the remaining pieces of land It is a lot of money for an organization our size.

Some of you may be wondering if the equatorial heat has been affecting my brains in trying to get such a large piece of land. Others have wondered about the size of the land and if this is in line with our mission of "bringing the Fatherhood of God to the fatherless. These are very valid questions. Below are my copied and pasted answers to those questions.

It is obviously a very large piece of land and is much bigger than we would be able to use in the near future. However, there are several reasons why I hope we will be able to buy all of it:
· Land prices are going up continuously in Uganda. Foreign investors from Arab Muslim nations, China, and other Asian countries are buying up land. The land is far enough away from Kampala that the price is still not very high but the land grab is spreading. Getting land of this quality and size in the future will be difficult.
· This is an investment in the future of ministry and the Kingdom of God here in Uganda.
· Ugandan culture is very different from US culture. Here there is only one volume on any radio or PA system and that is maximum. It is not uncommon for us to have our sleep disturbed by blaring music from “discos” that are several kilometers away from us. If I buy a relatively small piece of land it is likely that in the future someone will put in a disco on the beach near by and keep our campers awake through the nights to all kinds of bad music. It would be very difficult for us to do anything about it. If we own this whole piece, the nearest neighbor would with two possible exceptions, would be on the other side of a hill or quite distant. Without this whole piece of land, we could end up with a piece of property that was unusable for our purposes because of the neighbors.
· There is a fairly large piece of forest on the land. It is being encroached on by sawyers and charcoal makers. It would be wonderful to be able to preserve the beauty of the site.
· There would be much land available for hiking and nature trails.
· The population of Uganda is growing very fast and the market for the kinds of facilities we would provide would continue to grow. We would be looking at increasing the types of services we provide to include things like a retreat center and could have camps for different ages or groups.
· When we talked to the leadership of Hume Lake, one of the foremost Christian Camps on the west coast of the US, they told us to buy as much land as we could get a hold of. Hume Lake is what it is today because many years ago some young men with forethought made a big investment in a large piece of land in the mountains of California.

Our purpose is to bring the Fatherhood of God to the fatherless. We have been very aware of the need for a Manhood/Womanhood/Youth CampTraining Site and have been planning that direction. We saw that if we don't strategically train boys and young men to be true, godly men, many of them will grow up to produce children that are in effect fatherless if not in actual fact. Now we see even more that we need to make bold steps into this area if we are going to play the role we believe God has given us in reaching the fatherless, being a part of transforming Ugandan society, and reducing fatherlessness.

We are learning to look way into the future in our planning and are that much more aware of how strategic we need to be in preparing for the future. This isn't just about now or the next few years; it is about 20 and more years from now. The site is very strategically located to serve children's centers, churches, schools and needy children - often fatherless, from Kampala, Mukono, Lugazi, and Jinja and beyond. A significant portion of the population of Uganda comes from those areas. Those towns and the surrounding areas would likely include as many as a million fatherless children not to mention the many thousands of other children who could benefit from the programs we could offer.

Thanks again for your prayers. Goodbye for now.

In Christ,

Jay
Director
New Hope Uganda

California

2008-04-04T23:34:00.007-04:00

We had a great time visiting family in California during Alair's Spring Break. We were able to see Alair's dad (James) and sitster (Janea) as well as Caleb's brother (Josh) and sister in law (Vanessa) and nephew (Cy). We spent one day at the Santa Barbara Zoo. We had a great time seeing everyone as we know this will be the last visit before we head off to Uganda for two years.

Land for Nyanja Youth Camp

2008-03-27T11:52:00.004-04:00

On Tuesday March 18th Jay (New Hope Director) and Jonnes (Pastor/Co-Director) met with the land owners. It was a good meeting that sent them away with...

* Knowing that we would like to move forward on this property.
* Knowing the land owners have 1,100 acres of land available for sale.
* An asking price of $325 per acre.
* Knowing the next steps are to decide which parcels of land we would like and to find funding to move forward with the purchase.

Please pray for wisdom as Jay and Jonnes continue this initial process of land purchase. Pray that God would be honord and that we would be sensitive to His leading.

If you or anyone you know would be interested in giving toward the purchase of the Lake Victoria property and would like more information about the land or our plans for the Youth Camp and Training Center, please contact Gary Wood the NHU North American Director at 800-611-6486.

March News Letter

2008-03-12T10:44:00.001-04:00

Dear Family and Friends,

Here we are with more exciting news. Just two weeks after we sent you our February news letter we met with our mission’s director, an overseeing elder, and the missions committee from our church, and were approved for a two year term to begin in July at the start of our training. With our ever changing journey of faith, we have once again been reminded that it is not for us to plan our way, but to trust and act in obedience. Proverbs 19:21 says, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”
With this new development we now need to begin support raising efforts beyond what has already been given toward our four month training at New Hope Uganda’s Institute of Childcare and Family. We are believing God for prayer partners, the necessary funds for start up costs and monthly support to be raised prior to our departure. We have currently raised 30% of our monthly support. Many of you had committed to financially support us on a monthly basis and have asked about continuing your monthly pledge. We are praying that God will lead you to partner with us once again, and are we are praying that He would bring new individuals to join us in the ministry to the orphan children of Uganda.
It was a blessing to spend an evening last week with team members Syd and Andrea Sparks, getting to know each other better and casting vision for the camp that New Hope has asked us to help develop. We anticipate that God will do much more than we can imagine as his plans unfold for that aspect of the ministry. Please pray for Syd and Andrea as they are raising support as well. Pray that God will clearly lead Ugandan individuals to join our team. Pray for us as we travel over these next few months to visit churches in our area.
Thanks so much for taking the time to read this letter, and if you have any questions, please let us know. Take care, and we hope to hear from you soon!

Blessings,

Caleb and Alair

www.calebalair.blogspot.com
Support and Donations Mailing Address
New Hope Uganda Ministries
P.O. Box 154
Belle Fourche, South Dakota 57717
1-800-611-6486

New Hope Insitute of Childcare and Family

2008-03-05T23:17:00.001-05:00

This is a promo video of the five month training we will complete prior to our placement within the ministry of New Hope

Nyanja Youth Camp - Kampala, Uganda

2008-02-21T15:41:00.010-05:00

This is a description of the camp that is being developed. We will be working on this project with Syd and Andrea Sparks who bring a tremendous amount camping experience with them. To learn more about Syd and Andrea visit their blog at http://www.thesparkstrail.blogspot.com/

Nyanja Youth Camp - A Camp and Training Center

New Hope Uganda is developing plans for a Manhood and Womanhood training site where boys and young men will be challenged and trained in biblical manhood and young women can be prepared for biblical womanhood. This is a revolutionary concept in a world where most boys and girls grow up with only a vague idea of what it means to be a “man” or a “woman”. God has great plans and great freedom for them in their respective roles! A team is being formed for this new site on the shores of beautiful lake Victoria. Programs will be for our young people but will also be available to churches and children’s centers from all over Uganda.

We will offer several types of programs:

Weekend programs
2 week training programs for boys during school holidays
3 month programs for long vacations
9 month programs for those who want to develop leadership in godly manhood

Invisible Children Trailer

2008-02-20T20:46:00.002-05:00

The war in northern Uganda has been called the most neglected humanitarian emergency in the world today. For the past 21 years, the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) and the Ugandan government have been waging a war that has left nearly two million innocent civilians caught in the middle. The Ugandan government has failed to protect its citizens from this rebel militia that has murdered mothers and buried the young, leaving an entire generation of youth that has never known peace.

Doing Missions When Dying Is Gain

2008-02-19T20:34:00.000-05:00

I just finished listening to a sermon by John Piper called "Doing Missions When Dying Is Gain".

Piper starts out talking to young people about his severe struggles with public speaking and how through God he overcame those fears. Then he talks to the young people about doing missions when dying is gain, sharing some great missionary stories as he preaches.

It is a great reminder of God's sovereignty in all things, even in our suffering and death.

This sermon may be found on the Desiring God website http://www.desiringgod.org/

God as Father

2008-02-17T21:57:00.001-05:00

During a speaking engagement at a local church about God's heart for the orphan I posed the question- How many of you have been adopted? Only a few raised their hands. Then I read the passage of scripture found in Ephesians 1:5 "He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will." I then asked the same question again. The whole congregation raised their hands the second time.
I often forget the significance of our adoption into the family of God and I believe many other christians do the same. C. J. Mahaney expounds on this concept in his recent sermon called "God as Father," as I listened to this sermon it was a powerful reminder of the joy that is found as we embrace God as our Father.

to listen to the message "God as Father" by C.J. Mahaney click on the link below. It is found under the resources tab. Then click on view all resources.
http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/