Day 300!!

Today is the 300th day of this adventure with Mercy Ships!! :)  What a blessing this time has been.  I never imagined when I left my family home in Indiana nearly 10 months ago what all God had in store for me here.  Now I feel like I have two new homes-one in Cape Town and one that floats! 

Tomorrow will be 4 weeks since I married the man of my dreams :)  We had a wonderful 3 weeks together in Cape Town.  I arrived on the 29th of February and we were married that weekend, Sunday the 4th of March.   Click here to go to Murray's blog to see more photos from the wedding. 

Coming back to the ship, we have received such a warm welcome!  We are busy settling into our new cabin, and plan to host our first visitors tomorrow afternoon-two of the Day Workers from Admissions.  Our plan is to host the other three the weekend after Easter.  What a wonderful translating team the five of them make! 

Monday starts week 9 of a total 17 weeks of surgery for this field service.  How crazy to think that our time in Togo is halfway over.  Please pray for the patients currently here, and those who are coming, that they will recover quickly and that infection rates will stay low.  Pray also as we strive to show them the love of Jesus through our lives.

<>< Day 266

Admissions!! :)

Left to right, back row: Cheryl, Eva, Autumn, Ruth, Dr Peter, Esther, Dr Fiona, Emmanuel.

Left to right, front row: Annika, Edem, Me.

Last week we discovered that we have admitted at least 100 patients! Yay for what God is doing :)

Day 253

Today is the 9th day of an open hospital aboard the Africa Mercy!! :)  Admissions began on Sunday, Feb 5, admitting seven patients.  It went very well, and we were off to a good start.  Everyone worked hard all week, Sunday-Friday, ending with an afternoon of relaxation by the pool :)

Here are some photos of the screening that took place on Wednesday, Feb 1.

Security was at the stadium the night before, as well as pre-screeners.  Otherwise, crew members began arriving at 5:00 AM and even a bit earlier to start the day.

Left, a medical examination by an anesthetist.  

On the right, a patient with a cleft lip getting her pre-op photo taken.  She was one of the 7 patients admitted on our opening day, Sunday the 5th, and has already had her surgery!!

 Left, Polly drawing blood. 

To the right is Registration.

 Left, Dr Gary, Edith (translating), and a potential patient. 

Right, I had to have some snuggle time as part of my day, of course! :)

Scheduling surgeries!!!



242

Since I failed to post this week, I thought I would send you to Murray's blog to read the latest news... Just click here... :) Enjoy!

Day 233 :)

Last evening, approximately 40 new and returning nurses arrived to the ship.  Hooray!!  Therefore, this week is orientation and meetings, meetings, meetings.  Wednesday, Feb 1 is our screening day at the stadium.  The hospital opens on Sunday, Feb 5, and surgeries begin on Monday, Feb 6. 
Please join us in praying for safety at the screening site.  We are also praying that only those whom God has a purpose for with Mercy Ships will come to the screening.  Also pray for hospital staff and the rest of the crew as we prepare for the hospital to be open and for the many Day Workers who are coming to join us in the work God is doing.

Day 225

I thought this was quite a unique find, as a lady from my church back home is named Ida.  Today also happens to be her 96th Birthday!!  Happy Birthday, Ida!

Port of Tema, Ghana

Day 218

196 Day Workers boarded the Africa Mercy today for a safety briefing by the Captain.  I was very excited to meet the Togolese people I will be working with for this next outreach.  Most of the 196 worked with us when the ship was docked here in 2010.  They return again next week for further orientation.

Hopefully everyone had a happy New Year.  The ship was in Ghana for the holidays, which was very nice.  Now we are docked in Lome, Togo, which is more developed that Sierra Leone, but still very poor.   The level of excitement is very high, even walking through town, with many people recognizing Mercy Ships crew members.

Happy Monday!!