Thursday 30 April 2009

Clean Water : A Life & Death Issue

here is an article our Boss bruce Rydbeck wrote after working on the
project in Amazonas


"If anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones … he
will certainly not lose his reward."
Jesus
Three Shuar Indian men somberly carried the body of a three-year-old
girl in a miniature rough board coffin down the trail in the dense Amazon
jungle. Only intense fatigue enabled them to hide the emotional pain of
their loss. The men had slogged four hours over difficult muddy jungle
trails and were barely halfway to the community where the body was to be
buried. They stopped in the community where we were working just long enough
to gulp down healthy amounts of 'chicha', a watery drink of puréed boiled
yucca, offered them to quench their thirst and stave off the intense humid
equatorial mid-day heat before continuing on their journey.

Circumstances of the girl's death indicate that quite likely she died
of an intestinal parasite infection. The community where she lived does not
have a protected water source or a medical clinic. Every year, at least two
million children die of diarrhea in developing countries. Jesus sends us as
his disciples to make a difference and express the depth of his compassion
for these little ones.

Alfredo and I reflected on this abrupt interruption to our day while
eating a simple lunch of boiled fish and bananas served to us by the
community of Amazonas. Alfredo is an Ecuadorian missionary engineer on our
community development staff helping remote jungle communities to build water
systems and rudimentary sanitation. The sixty families in Amazonas requested
help to build their water system and Alfredo and his wife Alex coordinate
that project, which is nearly complete. The young Shuar girl's death only
underlined to us the importance and urgency of our task."

more on the tank saga

hi all,
the tank didn't make it in by river or by trail and is still sitting
at the end of the road (looking lonely and sad). ECORAE, the
government organisation paying for the project are now paying for a
temparary solution of 4 smaller tanks to make the water system function.
A collegue in the office says he knows people in high places in the
military and can get us the flight...we'll wait and see.
keep praying, only a miricle will get the tank there now!
alex

Tuesday 14 April 2009

april leon newsletter

dear Friends,
hope you all had a wonderful Easter and enjoyed the double bank holiday!
attached is the latest newsletter, sorry its taken so long to write!
to make up for the slowness, it includes 2 pages of photos of the last
6 months.

The tank is no longer in Shell, but hasn't arrived at its destination
yet... Adin is taking it in by river and trail, so please keep this in
your prayers.

We have changed our plans a bit for next year, it is now more likely
that we'll be in the UK for about 6 months and not go to the USA to
study this time. keep praying for us as we concrete study options in
the UK.

Benjamin started rolling over this weekend and is showing signs of
wanting to crawl when he is on his front, soon nothing in the house
will be safe from a roaming baby!

keep in touch, we love to hear the goings-on in the UK.
hugs and blessings,
Alex, Alfredo and Benjamin