There will be showers of BLESSING.......

A long time coming blog.

As usual things get busy here in our tropical zone. We arrived back in our “home” country in mid October and the rest of October/November and now December become a blur. I regret we have not published a blog recently but at least we did publish a newsletter in November that is available by going to rafikifoundation.org. 

We had a lovely Thanksgiving celebration on our porch again this year with mostly our Rafiki team here plus one or two other guests. We celebrated with roasted chicken and too much pie and many side dishes. The meal and our time of Thanksgiving to God for all He has done for us this year filled our hearts as well as our stomaches. We are so thankful for a good team here who love each other and know how to work hard but find time for just plain fun! 
Rafiki Thanksgiving meal






















Kent and I were able to take an unusual diversion trip on November 8 to 10. November 9th was Anna's 30th birthday and she was born the day the Berlin Wall dividing East and West Germany, came down. She had decided she wanted to be in Berlin for her 30th birthday coinciding with the 30th year celebration of the destruction of the Wall. About a week before the birthday, Kent and I decided to surprise her and join her for the BIG birthday celebration. Kent was in Nairobi until Friday morning so the trip was a bit "risky" but all worked out as he arrived at our Village 4:30 pm and our flight for Berlin left at 9pm. Thankfully we are able to sleep on long plane flights!! We had a wonderful 2 days with Anna and Andrew and flew back, leaving Berlin at 4 AM on Monday morning. I would say it was one of those things in your life you are so happy you "listened to your heart". 
Belin at the "Wall Celebration"

























Kent and I were blessed to join his brother Max and wife Julie for 5 days in Israel. We were up and on a bus at about 7 AM each day and dropped into our beds at 7 pm each evening. We were able to tour the old city, go to Bethlehem, Nazareth, Jericho, the Dead Sea, Masada, and the Sea of Galilee and Caesarea and a few other sites. It was an amazing whirlwind of a tour. Now our tastes are whetted for a return with a more leisurely time of touring. Max and Julie were the perfect travel companions which also added to the trip. Not changing but one time zone for us, was also a treat. We were, however, exhausted when we returned but recovered after a good nights sleep. 
By the Sea of Galilee






















We did some new things with the few children (4) that were here for the holiday school break. We sent the two mothers to the local market with the children and let them pick out a Christmas gift for one of the other children in the group. They were so excited with this experience and picked out nice gifts and wrapped them for the 26th which is the gift exchange day in our country. They called me on the morning of the 26th and wanted me to be there as they opened their gifts. It was indeed a blessing to see what they purchased for each other with a little less than a $5.00 budget each. They were as proud of the gift they gave as they were of the one they received. Isn’t that what giving is all about?


We decided to take the 2 mothers and the 4 children out to a local restaurant for the Christmas Day meal. They were so excited and very well mannered as they waited at the crowded restaurant for the food. They ate and ate and ate as there was lots or roasted pork and grilled chicken along with many other things for all to enjoy. It was a fun time for us as well as the children. Laurie joined us as well as Kent and I and our daughter Anna and her boyfriend Andrew. What a wonderful Christmas celebration. We are privileged to have Anna and Andrew with us for the holiday season and Anna will stay a bit into the New Year!


We are now busy getting ready for the new school year which begins on January 6th. We were so sure that our children would all be back with us in our school this school term but , alas, our Secondary School registration continues to linger. We will be sending our 33 Secondary students from our resident children come January 6 and who knows for how long. Please pray for the registration of our school as we have done all the things required for registration.

We are also changing our RICE teachers’ training program and are excited about the new program. We will be providing a “capacity building” program for trained teachers who are finding it difficult to get a job. We have two more days of registration before we know how many we will have for the program. We are hoping to make some good teachers into great teachers so please pray for a good registration with eager teachers.


It is difficult to imagine that we have now been here in the Village for more than 5 years. We are still amazed that God gives us good health and energy to do all the things required for this work. We have good work to do each day and continue to be amazed at the beauty surrounding us as we go about our day to day activities. As I sit on my porch typing, I see a Red Cheeked Cordon Blue, a Fire Finch, and a Spectacled Weaver drinking from our birdbath as well as many little brown birds. The bright aqua blue, the deep red and the nearly florescent yellow of the three birds together is nearly breathtaking. Also with our recent rains our world is quite green. The mountain this morning was covered with a fresh coat of snow from our moisture of yesterday. I don’t think we will ever live in a more beautiful place. 
"Snow" as we know it .....

We are grateful for those of you who follow us on this journey. We know that many are praying for us and this also encourages us. We pray that all of you are doing well and ready to enjoy an amazing 2020!


Kent and Peggy

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