Dear Friends and Family,

Bill and I wish each of you a most grateful Thanksgiving day. It is our family tradition each year to decide a few people for whom we are especially thankful and write them a card and take them a loaf of homemade pumpkin bread. As Bill and I have thought of those people that we are thankful for this year, YOU came to mind. Your love, support, prayers, emails, financial gifts, and encouragement have meant so much to us and we are so grateful to God for you. Happy Thanksgiving!

THANK YOU FOR BEING ONE REASON WE ARE SO THANKFUL THIS THANKSGIVING!

This past Monday during our chapel time, our hospital administrator, Mr. Kulunga, stated that though the rainy season was to begin on 15 Oct. we had had no rain until the 13th of November but now it looked like the rainy season had started. Bill and I were a bit surprised by his statement as since the 8th of Oct. we have had at least 10 good rains (good to folk from the southwest USA at least). Later that day I asked some of my Kenyan friends what he meant. They laughed and said that the rains we had previously had settled the dust but were considered showers not rains. During the rainy season it generally rains 6 - 9 hours daily.

Bill and I were here last year for the rainy season and thought we had quite a bit of rain but in fact, we did not. That is why we are now having droughts and famine country wide. Now we are having the rainy season.

The new accessories to our wardrobe are goulashes, a rain coat, and umbrella. We never leave home without them! The rain was so heavy in this area last Sat. 14 Nov. that for 10 miles from here to Meru the road was greatly damaged. Three miles from here at Milutatu about 12 feet of tarmac was literally washed away. At that particular point water from the steep hill (mountain) meets with water from a gully that follows the road. When the two met it washed the tarmac down the side of the hill. From about 5 - 10 miles from here the road was littered with rocks. At three places the rocks were so plentiful that the village people had to remove them to make one side of the road passable. With the daily rains that literally do last 6 - 9 hours, the road seems to be washing away piece by piece.

Mud and standing water seem to be everywhere. Mosquitoes can be found swarming inside and outside. Drying laundry is almost impossible. But there is another side to my story. Everyday in chapel and at church there are prayers of thanksgiving for the rain and hope of the crops that will be produced. The farmers are thrilled. Our very wet world is green and lush and there is hope for food this year, abundant crops, we pray. On a Sunday afternoon, hearing and watching the rain fall as we sit in our home is joyous. The real rainy season has come and we praise God for His goodness.

We are rejoicing for more than the rain coming. This past Friday we had a very special delivery. Ten hospitals country-wide received a 40 foot container of medical equipment from the US military. Five of the hospitals were government and five were mission hospitals. We have no idea how we were chosen but we are so thankful. Friday around 2:30pm the truck pulled into the hospital compound accompanied by military personnel. They spent the first 40 minutes removing the locks and latches as this shipment did not go through customs but was flown by a military cargo plane and then loaded on to trucks. Bill and several other workers had been moving boxes most of the morning to ready rooms to receive our new shipment. They spent until almost 7pm unloading the shipment.

As you may recall this is our third shipment of medical supplies since August. As we unloaded this shipment our hearts seemed to soar. Wow! the things we will be able to do. The impossible becomes possible. The unimaginable becomes reality. So much to be thankful for this thanksgiving! Three shipments -- 100's of miracles!

For the past few weeks I have spent most of my time on the units preparing our senior students for their management assessment and a few junior students for their nursing care assessment. I find working on the units both a joy and a frustration. I so enjoy the contact with patients, students, and staff but struggle to know how to improve nursing care. I am so fortunate because I have seen nursing care in different countries and know there are many ways to do the same things. However, for most our nurses, their careers have been here so they have not seen different models. Often when I share my experiences the staff has difficulty imagining what I am talking about. I must constantly remind myself that change takes time and I must focus on what is most important for the patient and most possible for the staff. Please pray that God will direct my actions and words and I will be patient.

This past week has seen a few real tragedies here. In this area the people grow two types of cassava. One type is poisonous unless you soak the cassava in salt water for 24 - 48 hours. That type contains cyanide. Thurs. night we had four children from one family admitted with cyanide poisoning from eating raw cassava at lunch and the same cassava cooked for dinner. The two youngest children, two boys, died Thursday night. The two older girls were on the medical ward and were released today with no serious problems or long term effects (we pray). The oldest sister had prepared the cassava as her parents were away. Please join us in praying for her. How difficult to live with that situation.

Last Monday a 28 year old male, Lewis, was admitted to the male ward. He had a right collapsed lung. The next day he was taken to surgery for a chest tube but they could not insert the tube in his lung. One of my students nursed him daily, so I knew Lewis well. He spoke English so we even communicated well. He was very worried and asked everyone if he was going to die. On Thursday I saw real improvement in his condition and was so thankful and hopeful. However, Fri. morning he began gasping and died. When CPR was called and the nurses and students walked into the nurses room, the charge nurse said "We all die, today or tomorrow. No one escapes." It helps me remember what a gift everyday is and how thankful we can be this coming Thursday for a new one.

Share the light,

Jerri and Bill

You can answer this letter at