Life at Tenwek

Having finished our first full week at Tenwek Hospital, we are thankful, and a little tired. We have been so busy setting up, starting homeschooling, and working at the hospital that we totally forgot Thanksgiving Day on Thursday (not a Kenyan holiday). But the tradition here is to celebrate on the Saturday after, so yesterday, all the American families gathered for a full Thanksgiving dinner! The kids seem to be adjusting to our new Kenyan/Tenwek culture. There are many other American children here, and thankfully, the kids all have at least one friend.

Being a few degrees south of the equator, but at an elevation of 6800 feet, the temperatures are perfect, and the sun rises and sets every day at the same time, 6:30 am and 6:30 pm. This is the “hot time of year,” according to the Kenyans (summer time, or the “short rain” season, where it rains a little almost every day in the afternoon). It is difficult to explain that a high of 80 degrees is perfect, compared with the scorching summer heat of Phoenix.

The work at the hospital has been challenging, in terms of volume and pathology. Debilitating bone infections are very common here, some of which have been going on for years…I find myself constantly praying for wisdom for proper management decisions. On Friday, a young 20 year old man came to see me with a large mass on his right leg. He had it biopsied last year and it was found to be a very rare malignancy, one I had never seen before, even at the Mayo Clinic. In my first week, I did 18 cases, and I discovered that the orthopedic supplies are running at a critical low, especially plates and screws.

Please continue to pray for us in our adjustment here:
• Pray that God continues to provide wisdom for Heather with homeschooling, and for me at the hospital.
• Please pray that God provides all the necessary supplies for a fully functioning orthopedic department.
• Pray that God would move people, hospitals and companies to donate finances and supplies for the work here.
• Also, your continued prayer for our physical, emotional, mental, and especially spiritual health is so cornerstone.


Thank you for your support…we appreciate you so much!