July 23, 2008 

We have just said good-bye to the Graber's and Steve Schultz, as they have extended their stay to visit relatives here in London.  It was a long night for me but I think a lot of our group got some sleep on the flight from Nairobi.  It was really hard to leave our drivers and friends in Kenya, because we had gotten so close but we knew it was time.  All of us are trying to process what we have gone through and we are excited to see you all.  It really was a life changing experience for all of us!

See you in a few hours,
Jake 

July 21, 2008 

Hi there.  We are all doing very well.  We are still here in the Mara and loving it.  Yesterday we spent the entire day on safari and covered a lot of ground. We saw everything from hippos to lions to wart hogs - it was a great experience!

Today we have split the group up. and several are helping in the local ABW clinic while the rest are at our last school.  The students are doing very well, you should all be proud!  I think everyone is not sure what to think at this point in our trip, because they miss home and want to see you all, but most don't want to leave.  We wish there was a way for all of you to have experienced what we have.  There have been lots of rough patches along the way, but it's all worth it because of the growth I have see in our team.

We leave the Mara tomorrow early on safari and plan to be back in Nairobi by late afternoon.  It will be very long day, as our flight leaves at 11:50pm.  After a 7 hour lay over in London we will arrive in Calgary on July 23 at 4:35pm. 

We look forward to seeing you all.

Jake 

P.S. For those of you interested in seeing more about our trip, you can check out www.a-better-world.ca. 

July 19, 2008 

Hi everyone.  I am sorry that I have not been very consistent in updating this blog lately, but phone coverage is very spotty here.  We have been having a lot of fun here with a schedule that has slowed down considerably.  It is migration season so we have already seen lots of different animals including elephants, giraffes and many more.  Today, after taking the morning off, besides an early morning game drive, we have visited two schools and a clinic built by A Better World.  We are finishing off our day with a traditional tribal dance with singing in a Masie village.  Our kids joined right in - it was a lot of fun and a great taste of the Kenyan culture.

From the best animal migration route in the world,
Jake 

July 18, 2008 

Hey everyone!  Sorry there are no pictures - I seem to be having some trouble sending them... welcome to Kenya.  We are on our way to the Mara today; it will be a long drive but worth it as we get to see the animal migration through the Rift Valley.  We should be at our new hotel by 5pm tonight.  It was hard to say good bye to all the babies and orphanage kids but I think all of us are up for the next challenge.

From some of the bumpiest roads in the world...

Jake

July 17, 2008

Today we were able to go to the Ringa school that Lacombe Composite High School had a hand in building.  We were again the recipients of lots of thanks as a result of their beautiful new school.  A Better World has created a wonderful learning environment where students have a great opportunity to make a difference in their world.

Our guys had lots of fun listening to singers, enjoying a wonderful lunch prepared for us, and connecting with students.

Tomorrow we travel to the Mara...it will be a long journey on these roads!

Jake

July 16, 2008 

And even more babies!  They are very special little ones with stories that bring us all to tears.  They are the 'unwanted' that society has rejected.  Join me in thanking God for ladies like Anne and Faith that see how beautiful and precious  these little ones are... just like your babies.  They miss you.  Take a moment tonight and join me in thanking God for all of them!

From the happiest place on earth,
Jake

July 15, 2008 

Another hockey day in Kenya!

Today was another early morning as we split the team in two to go to both EAMO and Ian's orphanage.  The students have been involved teaching at the school, playing with kids, holding and feeding babies, as well as a lot of painting this week and they have done very well.  They don't have quite as much zip as they had in the first week, but with all they have been able to do its no wonder they are getting tired.

I personally spent most of the morning painting so that the students could spent the day with the kids, but during a break I was amazed at what I saw.  There are several disabled children at the orphanage so when it was time to play hockey our students made sure that no one was left out.  They had kids in wheel chairs with artificial limbs, and even ones without limbs playing.  I was really proud at the way our students demonstrated to these special kids that they can do anything if they just give it a try.

Be proud parents, you have exceptional kids!

Jake 

July 14, 2008 

We are doing very well here in Nakuru, with our focus on three different locations: Ian Castleman's orphanage, East African Mission Orphanage, and Anne's Baby home.  The team is split in two groups in order to help in as many places as possible and, like usual, our students are doing a great job and are being very flexible with all that is going on.  Our heart strings are being pulled in a lot of different directions with all that we are seeing.  We are having lots of fun interacting and playing with the kids; they are so happy to see us just as we are in seeing them.  We have also heard many of the orphans stories and that is a little more difficult to take.  A lot of our students are not sure to do with all the emotions they are feeling, but they do understand that they are making a difference even if it is for a short while.

On a lighter note, we have made an unexpected hotel change.  Everything was safe and satisfactory at the old place, but they were not really prepared to host a foreign group.  Let's just say that toilet seats are a prerequisite in our books.  All the students are really happy with our switch, and they are happy that their toilets are no longer in the shower.  The students named the bathrooms at the old hotel 'shoilets'.

Stay tuned,
Jake 

July 13, 2008

This is van number 2, Donna, Stacy, Keira, Tessa, Jake and Jackie. Hello! We are on our way to EAMO after some blackberry issues, don't we love computers?!?! This is Melissa and Donna. Don't worry we are all safe and having a blast and we have learned lots. Like they have bicycle taxis - how great is that. This is Tess and I am having an amazing time and hugging lots of little babies, seeing lots of really cool equipment and cars.  They actually have a dozer... sweet!  This is Stacy and everything is so spectacular and life changing I'm speechless.

July 11, 2008 

It was a very emotional last day at the Male School; we were only there for 5 days but great bonds were formed.  We had many letters and requests from the African kid to come back to Canada with us, but in our final address to them we affirmed to them that they have a great country and we encouraged them to be the best little Africans they can be.  You should all be proud - our students were great!

On our final day we also discovered an outbreak of ring worm.  We identified three of the worst cases, so Charles and I took them to the doctor and purchased antibiotics for them.  We have also arranged to have a doctor visit their entire school.  This reconfirms to me that we need to have a long-term partnership with this school.

We had a great time at the Male school but everyone is now excited to move on to our next challenge in Nakuru.  We will see lots of great points of interest as we travel, but we have to endure the roads!  I wish you could see the looks on some of our teams' faces - priceless!  I have just been telling everyone...'Welcome to Kenya!' 

Jake 

July 10, 2008 

Hi everyone, I would like to introduce you to Charles.  Charles is our head driver that I met the last time I was in Kenya and he is a pretty special guy.  He has been driving for A Better World for almost 18 years and in all that time of seeing and managing many projects he has never asked for anything for his home village.  After 18 years of service, we have the privilege of being the first Canadian group to invest in his village and it has been a huge honor. 

We have had lots of fun teaching in the classroom, playing their sports, and teaching them to play hockey, but I think as we leave tomorrow morning for our next location we can honestly say that we have received much more than we have given!  Kenyans are a great people who can see the good in each situation and in all people, they are also a forgetting people that forgive very quickly.  I think the most contagious thing about these people is that they are content with very little or even nothing!  'School is in session Canada' be grateful for what and who you have today!

We are all blessed and humbled to be here, so please pray for us as I know there will be many tears here in our final day at the Male School.

Jake

July 8, 2008

It was another hot one today, but it didn't start that way!  This morning the temperature was in the single digits with everyone snuggled up in their warm cloths at breakfast, but by 9:30am it was hot!  We spent the entire day at the school and it was highlighted with a debate between our students and their high school students.  The subject was 'has science been positive or negative on our society' - our students did very well with little time to prepare.  They very appropriately called it a tie, and there was a lot of opportunity for relationship afterward.  Stay tuned...

Jake

July 7, 2008

Hi everyone, we are doing great besides a few upset stomachs and some lingering jetlag.  I just wanted to send you a few pictures to let you know that we are really roughing it out here!  Actually our hotel has been a wonderful refuge and the students have enjoyed the pool, beautiful scenery and fine dining.  (Well, most of us have.)

Today is the first day that we were at the school with the African kids and it was incredible.  We had a wonderful ceremony with some introductions and the raising of both of our flags.  The day was very full with students in the class room, on the play ground and a Kenya vs. Canada games of soccer and volleyball.  We lost both games but everyone had a lot of fun.  I blame the jetlag. ;)

Our days have been very full, concluding with evening debriefing / connecting time where we also spend time planning for the next day.  We are all tired but feel very blessed to have the opportunity to be a blessing.

Please pray for students that are not feeling well, for safety, team unity, for tired leaders and most of all for the beautiful African kids that we get to be with...it's hard for us to see them hungry.

From the happiest place on earth!

Jake 

July 6, 2008

Jambo everyone!

We are most certainly on a life changing adventure here in Kenya, with new things happening every day.  Yesterday started out with a visit to the Male school, without children, for orientation with the staff and it was an eye opener.  In Kenya they plant crops in anticipation of the rain and this year there was no rain.  The students that we will be working with are surviving on only one simple meal a day and still have to walk for several miles to come to school.  There are kids that walk up to 8 miles one way; many do this without shoes.  As you can imagine it was a very emotional time.

From the school we went straight to an authentic Kenyan church service as a team and it was a lot of fun.  Again the life lessons are hard to miss when people are putting eggs and produce on the offering plate because they have no money.  During the service the food is auctioned off at below market value for those who cannot afford food.

After lunch we went to the equator for a water demonstration and some shopping.  The shopping was fun for some, but not  for all.  The majority of the team have had no bartering experience, so let's just say it was a good (and expensive for some) cultural experience.

We are all doing well and understanding that we have way more to learn than teach, and way more to receive than to give!

From the happiest place on earth,

Jake

July 5, 2008

After a couple hour delay in London we finally got off the ground with everyone excited but exhausted.  To be honest, I don't remember much from the trip because I was sleeping.  After arriving we quickly made our way though the visa line only to find out that five of our bags were missing, including Stacy's, Ainsley's, Stephanie's and Nicole's.  Thankfully they will be sent to us tomorrow.  After getting out of the airport, we had a quick session with our travel agent and drivers, a short tour downtown and now we are off to Mount Kenya where we will be serving for the next 6 days.

Jake 

July 4, 2008

Off off and away!

We have arrived in London and although we are all different, as a team we have one thing in common, WE ARE ALL TIRED!  We spent the day together walking around beautiful Windsor Castle and community and it was really fun.  It was a great cultural experience as well as a great time for us as a team to bond before we see the beauty and hardships of Kenya.  We got to see some city, some countryside and have lunch in a traditional pub - it doesn't get much better than that!  Everyone is excited and exhausted at the same time, which means that our flight tonight from London to Nairobi will be a quiet one.  The team has dispersed in the departure area and are getting their last fixes of consumerism before we fly out at 8pm this evening.  Please pray for us that we would get a good night sleep tonight because none of us really slept at all, with the exception of Steve Schultz, who got bumped up to first class (he must have had a coupon!).  We arrive in Kenya at 6:30am tomorrow morning and don't really stop until we reach our hotel later in the evening.  We will arrive, go through customs, have an orientation session with our travel agent, and then take the 4-5 hour drive to Mount Kenya where we will be at our first school.  I will try to keep you updated as much as we can, we are thinking of you as we think of others! 

Jake

In case you don't already know us, here we are.  From left to right: Jerel Peters, Tania Rapske, Jake Schellenberg & Devin Bos (missing: Jenny Splane & Greg Lamy).