jwmotley Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Glenn if I put this in the wrong place please move it for me Thanks I thought this may be of interest to you all. Jessie Ward (a very talented artist, blacksmith and farrier, her brother runs a well known farrier school outside of Martinsville, VA if I remember correctly) called me a few days ago and offered me a chance to go to Tanzania where she went to do some paintings at the orphanage there last year. We will be making security bars for doors and windows on a medical center (to open Fall 2009 and serve 1000+ people daily) in Ntagacha, Tanzania (this is between the Serengeti National Game Reserve and Lake Victoria near the Kenyan border). This is missionary work and will probably be more functional than forged work involved. Nevertheless I am thrilled to be going. We will be leaving on 03/08/09 and won't be back until around the 1st of April. Here's a link to where we're going if you're interested:Teamwork Ministries :: City of Hope After her trip last year Jessie had told me that the people in this village have almost nothing and have only recently been able to have safe water to drink. I think this is a very worthy cause if anyone would like to donate either monetarily or their time as this is the first af several centers planned in Africa. I just couldn't turn down this trip of a lifetime. JW Motley Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Einhorn Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 (edited) It is great that you are generous and helping people. As for myself, I am currently a social worker working with some of the poor in our area of Pennsylvania. You would not believe the huge number of poor, homeless, mentally unhealthy, and/or jobless around this area alone. Literally thousands! The charities say they are running out of food, beds and money because of the economy. The shelters turn people away, especially in the winter because of the limited number of beds. Your trip sounds like a lot of fun. Enjoy! Edited February 17, 2009 by UnicornForge Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwmotley Posted February 17, 2009 Author Share Posted February 17, 2009 It is great that you are generous and helping people. As for myself, I am currently a social worker working with some of the poor in our area of Pennsylvania. You would not believe the huge number of poor, homeless, mentally unhealthy, and/or jobless around this area alone. Literally thousands! The charities say they are running out of food, beds and money because of the economy. The shelters turn people away, especially in the winter because of the limited number of beds. Your trip sounds like a lot of fun. Enjoy! We are having the same problems here in southwest VA, plants closing left and right, people losing their homes. Not many good paying jobs here to start with and now just snowballing downhill looks like. We try to help the local food pantry as much as we can. If you check what we're getting for our cattle now and what's projected for prices this year as far as our costs go either my wife or myself will have to get a public job if one can be found. My 'smithing item sales went way down the last 3 months, no one has any money to spend on "extra's". Things are tough all over right now and if you get a chance to help somehow you need to because it may be you needing help next week or month or year. I feel I have really been blessed by getting this opportunity to go (even though I was warned we had to work our tails off while we're there). lol I'm sure it will be a great time had by all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigjohn Posted February 18, 2009 Share Posted February 18, 2009 I hope you have a great trip. I haven't been to that particular part of the world ... yet. I will get around there before long.. My heart is stuck in Mexico for the time being.. I've been on mission trips since 2000 and would not trade those experiences for anything.. I work mainly with deaf ministries to build neighborhood schools for the kids. I teach blacksmithing to the older kids. I'm heading down near the end of February to forge two sets of gates for a mission in Reynosa. If anyone is interested in going , I'll be driving from Memphis to Harlingen TX. It's about a 16 hour drive. Just email me and I can go into specifics I work closely with Isaiah 55 Ministries. I have a small version of my shop on site and I take tools down when I go. I go about two or three times a year and stay from a week up to two months some times. I always go to serve others but, I am always the one who ends up being served. And, the food is absolutely fantastic.... that's actually the real reason I go. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwmotley Posted February 18, 2009 Author Share Posted February 18, 2009 (edited) I hope you have a great trip. I haven't been to that particular part of the world ... yet. I will get around there before long.. My heart is stuck in Mexico for the time being.. I've been on mission trips since 2000 and would not trade those experiences for anything.. I work mainly with deaf ministries to build neighborhood schools for the kids. I teach blacksmithing to the older kids. I'm heading down near the end of February to forge two sets of gates for a mission in Reynosa. If anyone is interested in going , I'll be driving from Memphis to Harlingen TX. It's about a 16 hour drive. Just email me and I can go into specifics I work closely with Isaiah 55 Ministries. I have a small version of my shop on site and I take tools down when I go. I go about two or three times a year and stay from a week up to two months some times. I always go to serve others but, I am always the one who ends up being served. And, the food is absolutely fantastic.... that's actually the real reason I go. Thanks bigjohn, your work sounds like a great cause also. Makes me wish I could go with you as well, maybe next year! Edited February 18, 2009 by jwmotley typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwmotley Posted February 19, 2009 Author Share Posted February 19, 2009 JMW, curious? Were the wells provided in the last couple years. I did some ironwork for a gentleman but since have lost contact with him. He and his partner were working on plans to provide water to every village in Tanzania. I thought wow!, but then I learn how much money there was between the two of them and how serious they were. Last I heard, they were in the planning stage with the Tanzania government. Gerald the well was done sometime last year I believe. It was part of the ZAO Water Organization, a completely non-profit organization. to quote them "We SELL water to GIVE water". They are doing a great service for providing healthy, clean, SAFE water in Kenya and Tanzania. Matt Peterson is the director. To date they have provided 19 wells,33 springs,a catchment tank that provides for 900 school children, hygiene training for thousands and sanitary latrines in most places that they have provided a watersource. Here's a link to their site:::: ZAO WATER ::: Water for the Thirsty In todays "modern" world water related diseases take the lives of over 5 MILLION people each year, most are children under the age of 5!!! According to UNICEF/WHO(World Health Organization) in 2004 unsafe water killed about 4500 children a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwmotley Posted April 2, 2009 Author Share Posted April 2, 2009 Well I'm back now. Praise to God for that!!! We got much done but ended up in the middle of a tribal war. We had to hunker down one day trying to avoid a stray bullet from the fighting less than 1/4 mile away!!!!!!!!! There's no place like home Toto. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.