We are definitely in a season of building here at
Tenwek. The hydroelectric turbine
expansion, which will more than double the amount of power at Tenwek, will be
completed by the end of October. This
massive gift from Samaritan’s Purse will provide adequate power for decades to
come and allow for future expansion of the hospital.
The yellow turbine provides 340kW of power and has been in operation since 1987. The new blue turbine will provide 520kW of power, more than doubling our current output. Excess power will be sold back to Kenya Power and Lighting.
Speaking of which, the “trainee housing project” was started
a few weeks ago (a miracle in itself). Once
completed, this 4-story building will provide housing for more than 25 trainees
(medical students, interns and residents).
The building site is extremely
challenging as space is tight, and there is a huge 6-meter soak pit, which
needs to be rerouted. And despite recent torrential rainfall, we are still
on target to complete this project by the end of the year so that we can
accommodate our next group of trainees (current housing is completely
full!) Again, Samaritan’s Purse provided
a large chunk of the funding for this important expansion (40%), but we are
still about $100,000 shy of our goal.
Please consider joining our vision of providing solid medical training
for Africans by supporting this project (www.wgm.org/tenwek-hospital-housing).
The Galats are also continuing with our smaller scale
“ministry house” (in our back yard next to our house). This building will include two much-needed apartments
for visiting staff (and our guests), and also an “upper room” for ministry
(replete with a brick pizza oven for feeding hungry residents!). We are so thankful for those who have donated
into our Galat ministry account with WGM, as this account provided the funding
for this building (www.wgm.org/galat).
Most of the building materials for this house have been sourced locally, including the rough-hewn wood beams used to make the front porch and the block which was hand-cut from a rock quarry.
The workers were pouring the front porch the same day as Josie's 1st birthday, so we took the opportunity for everyone in our family to place a permanent imprint of their feet in the concrete.
Finally, a massive vision is beginning to take shape at
Tenwek. For a number of years, we have
been dreaming of the possibility of a free-standing orthopaedic "hospital" at
Tenwek. After much prayer (and many
meetings) the hospital administration has caught this vision and a site has been
proposed (a huge hurdle as space is so limited at Tenwek). And a missionary architect just arrived at
Tenwek last week (staying for an entire year helping with all these building
projects and the master plan). He will
be helping us sketch out the concepts for this Tenwek Orthopaedic Center of
Excellence. We are trusting God to
accomplish this big goal in His timing.
Thank you for your continual partnership with our family at
Tenwek hospital. We are approaching the 6-year anniversary of our arrival here, and it is amazing to see what God has
accomplished in this short period of time.
And we remain here thanks to your prayers and faithful financial
support. Thank you for your partnership
with us and for sharing our goal of training African orthopaedic surgeons and
caring for the most needy, all for God’s glory!
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