A lot has happened in the last two and a half months since we have been gone from Zimbabwe, visiting Canada and sharing our hearts, our struggles and our hopes with others. It would take pages to put it all down, so let us hit just the highlights….

PRIMARY SCHOOL ON THE VILLAGE OF HOPE GROUNDS IS OPEN!

CHAPS ( Cornelius Hope Academy Primary School) on the grounds of the Village of Hope , Harare , Zimbabwe – opened their doors to 22 of our kids sponsored through Child Care Plus, and either residing on or living around the community of the Village of Hope! The picture attests to that fact with resounding joy! It was even taken as the teacher led the children in a devotion about how God cares for us and retold the story of Noah. But let’s step back for a moment…..

As you might recall, just as we were packing suitcases for a visit to Canada, we got word that the primary school at the Village of Hope was fully registered and able to open!

We prayed about moving forward or whether to wait. But it was time, and so Gord and our Management Committee began marathon interviews over the last two weeks before leaving Zimbabwe , for a Head Master for the school. In that short time God provided the perfect gentleman with the right experience and Christian background. During our time in Canada, Mr. Musasa began his job by interviewing teachers that he would oversee for grades 1 and 2. And so, as God provided, books were purchased and on Tuesday, May 8th, grade one and two opened. Though we were sad to miss the actual day, what a joy to step into a fully functioning classroom and hear stories like7 year old Rumbi who was suddenly reading with such close attention from a teacher, when she had ended grade one with a score of only 8%. God is good! With the control of the size of classrooms, we pray to see this kind of success over and over! Thanks for being a part of getting the school open!

CHAPS DEVELOPMENT /

God has pr

ovided more funding for the school, and so as we visited churches in Canada and spread the word about the Village of Hope and all God is doing here, the Administration block (back right) and two more classroom blocks (3 classrooms each – pictured left and behind grade 1 & 2) began construction. A full opening of CHAPS will then take place January 2008, for grades 1 through to 6. Secondary school in Zimbabwe begins in grade 8, but is part of *future* plans for the Village of Hope. Until then, we are using our pickup to provide transportation for students who need to go off grounds for their education – 7 in total.

NEW OFFICES /

Though this seems so small in comparison to a school, we were tripping over each other in the offices at the front of the Village property, and Pastor Zowa found it hard to ‘pastor’ with the constant busyness of the front office. So on Friday as we made our first visit to the Village of Hope to hug kids and shake hands, employees were moving our offices to the now beautifully renovated cottage near the future children’s homes. What a blessing!

THANKFUL HEARTS /

Thank you so much for the graciousness and generousness extended to our family during our time in Canada ! We made many new friends, enjoyed the company of some old ones, shared in 23 places about the Village of Hope, and had a chance to bring closure to some huge losses in our family’s lives over the time we were in Zimbabwe.

Though we got on the plane in Toronto with mixed feelings, it was awesome to be greeted at the airport in Harare by such welcoming faces, and feel that we were really stepping back ‘home’. That word now roles easier off our tongues and comes from the heart. Gord likes to describe it in Zimbabwean terms – as every Zimbabwean seems to have the ‘place they stay’, and a ‘rural’ home they go to on vacations to see mom and dad – Gord now refers to Canada as our ‘rural home’. They nod and smile and understand J .

SOME OF THE CHALLENGES AHEAD /

As our management team met again this week to plan our way forward and share information, some very vital steps were discussed and are things I know you will take to heart and to your knees.

- With constant ZESA (electricity) cuts now sometimes for up to 20 hours, how are we to run our offices and feed children in the future? And as the Village grows, how much electricity will we need to sustain operations? And so begins the task of assessing our needs both now and in the future, costing out generators and solar panels to make an informed and frugal decision.

- The farm needs electricity for the borehole pumps, and for the water that the VOH provides to the community when their own is shut off (a line up at the tap, front gate VOH, is pictured). These needs need to be considered into the electricity question.
- The search for a house-mom-in-training continues as we anticipate the growth of the Village and orphanage Registration. Our current house mom is doing an awesome job! But we are prepping for the future, and so interviews continue. The problem? We are having many applicants with children already – widows with no means to support their family. How can we hire a mom into a family at the Village, only to remove her from her own, and how does she support her own children if she doesn’t find a job? We pray for mature, unattached ladies – please pray with us.

- With the growth of the school, we will plan to take on an estimated 90 new children on to Child Care Plus sponsorship of ages 3-11. Please pray for wisdom in these decisions as we begin to deliberate over how to make our selections and form committees to handle the final numbers and information.
- We need to build outdoor BBQ pits for the children’s homes if electricity cuts continue.
- Staffing both now and for the future is being deliberated on. Cleaners, secretaries and support staff for the growing school and new offices need to be found and scheduled. Including security around all children’s areas and through the night.

PRAYER REQUESTS /

- for safety and provision for the people of Zimbabwe through these troubled times
- for the continued growth of CHAPS, for God’s glory
- for Mr. Musasa (headmaster), Mrs. Kubara (grade one), and Mrs. Gandiya (grade two)
- for our family as we slip back into life in Zimbabwe and all that entails
- for the permit needed to operate the orphanage.

God bless you for being part of the hope of Zimbabwe through the Village of Hope!