Thank you so much for the outpouring of prayers for Amy and encouragement that you sent us.  We are very blessed indeed to have such a team with us.  Amy’s procedure went quite well, although, she now has a rather large incision that will have to heal from the inside out.  The doctor said that the infected area did not look serious, so it should recover quickly.  So now it is a matter of time to wait while the incision heals.  She is also on antibiotics and will be trying a couple other treatments that many of you have suggested to help get rid of the Mersa staff infection.  Amy is not in much pain which is amazing!  Thank you again for your prayers.  They are a great comfort!

I also wanted to share with you a flight from last week.  I took a team of World Vision donors and representative who were going to see the work in the Gulu area.  We started off seeing several “small” tasks that World Vision is supporting through economic development.  Obviously, this area has suffered under the attacks of the LRA for many years and many of the people are now returning to normal life.  World Vision is involved in supporting community groups who seek to improve themselves by providing the capital for such things as a Chicken farm or a pig farm.  The profit from these projects then goes back to the community to support more projects (crops, other herds, etc…)  So it was encouraging to see these groups excited about having the opportunity to have a source of income.  Many of these communities have come from having absolutely nothing after the conflict.

The next day we visited the War Child Center which is what I would like to share about most of all.  At this center, World Vision staff work to rehabilitate those who have been abducted by the LRA.  We even had the chance to talk with a couple individuals who recently escaped.  These are mostly children, but some have grown to adults during their abduction.  Many have been forced to serve as soldiers, porters (carrying things for the LRA), or as wives or workers in the camps of the LRA.  Those who escape are often injured during fighting with UPDF or SPLA sometimes simply from being caught in crossfire.  At the War Child Center the staff works to rehabilitate these children socially (interactions with others), from their physical injuries, and their psychological “injury” or confusion.  Many of the children felt they could not escape because the LRA would hunt them and torture them and even if they could escape the UPDF, SPLA, or local villages might kill or harm them, thinking they were combatants.  The World Vision staff showed us pictures that the children drew as part of how they would work through the trauma they had been through.  Many of the children will not talk especially about what they have seen and experienced, so the pictures are a means to begin the communication as well as build trust.  It was very sad to see what these youth have been put through and the horrors and fear they have been subjected to.  At the same time it was wonderful to see how so many of them (14,000) have been treated and returned to their communities.  Also, as part of their treatment, the World Vision staff would educate the parents or family of the emotional and sometimes physical issues that the child might be dealing with.  Lastly they would complete “outpatient” counseling once the children had been returned to their families.  Many of these children were forced to attack other villages nearby which greatly complicates their reintegration.  Yet, God is overcoming even these seemingly impossible challenges through groups like World Vision.  Needless to say God is a very important part of World Visions rehabilitation emphasis.  This is just a bit of what I experienced, and at times I was overwhelmed with emotions – Anger at what the LRA is doing, Joy at what God is doing through World Vision and just confused by the chaos of it all.  This is just one out of many projects we support each time we fly!  Thank you for your support and prayers that allow us to be a part of this.