K-MAN @ HOPE DENTAL CLINIC

Pic #1: K-MAN, Dr Gabe and K-MAN's manager
Pic #2: K-MAN, Beck and Timothy (Head of Security @ HOPE)

K-MAN has become a regular at HOPE DENTAL as he is having several teeth worked on over a couple of weeks.  He is Sierra Leonean, and is famous here for his music, Afro Rythmn & Blues.  He tours internationally as well, and has been along the Eastern USA and Dallas, TX.  He departs next week for Holland. 

Cosmetology Gals

This is an exciting week for 10 cosmetology students and their instructor, Mabinty (far right).  They took final exams today by way of an exhibition at the HOPE CENTRE.  Numerous guests stopped by to see them work.  On Saturday, they will participate in a graduation ceremony, and next Monday they will open a salon as a cooperative business venture!   

Martin is not doing well!

Our concerns are growing for “Martin’s” health.  He is one of Margaret Tucker’s 25 orphans.  We have been sensing a steady decline over the last few months, and this week our two teammates that are nurses, Chuck and Sada, have expressed serious questions as to whether “Martin” will be with us much longer.  A medical team from the states will look him over on Monday.  We pray for wisdom as we make decisions on his behalf.

“Martin” was found on a trash heap in the Lakka area of Freetown in 2007 by a Catholic priest.  Father Martin Berton brought him to Margaret as the only person he knew of that might take on the tremendous responsibility of caring for him.  He has multiple physical disabilities and cannot speak.  “Martin” is estimated to be about 16 years of age.

Presenting Miss Ella Grace Casey...grandchild #7

Ella Grace is now headed home with our daughter Julie and her husband Rob. She was on the small side at 4.4 pounds and has qualities of a premi, so she spent a few extra days in the hospital, but she is now doing fine!

HARMATAN!

Winds from the Sahara continue to swoop down over West Africa, and with them…BLACK DIRT in the air! The “plus” is that the dirt blocks the intensity of the sun and there is less humidity. The negative impact is that people are breathing the dirt, and with the cooler temps they are experiencing more illness.

Happy February To You All!!!

February 5, 2012

Greeting from Sierra Leone!

What a joy it was to spend the holidays with family in Texas! Our thanks to our church and all of you for giving us this privilege! It was nothing short of a whirlwind, but a good one. We were blessed to find our parents, children and grandchildren doing well. Our biggest regret is that we could not spend time with each of YOU as we would have liked, but we felt it important that we focus on family for this first trip back home. THANK YOU FOR YOUR UNDERSTANDING!

VISION 2012! We are thrilled at all God did in 2011, and we expect Him to continue to grow the ministry here even more this year. With eagerness we want to share updates on some of the aspects of His work!

Mohamed (Bobo): Bo is doing well. We are grateful to those who made arrangements for us to take him to Children’s Medical Center in Dallas to the children’s dermatology department for assessment. Dr Agim believes the root cause of his 5+ year skin condition is fungal. We currently have 11 medicines, oral and topical, and are aggressively treating him. We’ve had a few setbacks since we returned. The heat and humidity here may be part of the problem, but we are hopeful that one day this precious little boy will be completely healed. We will soon start the process of expanding our one year temporary fostering status to something more indefinite.

Margaret Tucker’s Orphans: We continue to praise the Lord for a group of Sierra Leoneans and a family from Jefferson City, MO for funding the education of Margaret’s 24 school children for the 2011-2012 school year. And now we have the added assurance that they will be provided another year of school, plus food and medical needs for the family, through an Orphan Sponsorship Program at FBC McKinney, TX.

War Widows Association: The 85 widows are looking forward to 2012 as they expand their farming from 24 acres to up to 74 acres throughout the year. They are also improving the various skills that they have added since the fall of 2010: weaving, quilting, jewelry making, soap making and raising sheep & goats! We have never seen people work as hard as these women!

Hosetta School for Children with Mental Challenges: Construction continues on a dormitory that will house 24 children on site at the school. This will benefit children that cannot attend because of lack of transportation. The school is the only one of its kind in Sierra Leone, and we see such potential for reaching more children who are considered “the very lease of these” in this culture. Teams in May and June will focus on construction, as well as continuing teacher training and curriculum development for the staff.

Young Adult Skills Development: We currently have 14 young men training in electrical or plumbing skills, and we have 10 young women that are launching a business cooperative in March in hairdressing based on the skills they learned last year.

There are so many things we could share, but we will save those for another time. We appreciate you all so much! Thank you for your prayers and financial support! We are humbled and so grateful to God for bringing each of you into our lives!
May 2012 truly be a year of GREAT ADVENTURES for all of us!

Tom & Becky

Contributions:
Please make checks payable to:
Transform Your World Network, TYW05
Mail to:
TYW Network
PO Box 1900
McKinney, TX 75069
OR donate online: FBCmissionallife.com