We were up early again and ready to go, but our ride was an hour and a half late. Traffic problems. Holeta is only about an hour away. The drive was beautiful. Watching the country go by never gets old.
We arrived at the orphanage and began unloading and sorting our bags. We wanted to make sure we had everything. We were able to give a few things to the children in the orphan center as we waited. They played with the new balls as we got organized. There are 6 children here right now.
The children were waiting in the community center next door when we walked in. There were 50 children sponsored here. We handed out bags, which the children were so happy to have. They all tried on their new clothes and got to wear them for the rest of the day.
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| Jen loved up on this sweet girl |
After they were changed we sat in the center and sang songs. We taught them "If you're happy and you know it". They sang many songs for us. It was fun to try to do the actions along with them.
They all had afternoon school so had to leave. We only spent an hour with them. We pulled aside the kids who were wearing their new Bison shirts and took a group shot. We were wearing ours, too.
We had lunch - sheep lasagna???- and then visited the ladies who make beads. The Covenant Sisters, they call themselves. I got to try to make one - twice - and failed miserably. Both times. They just laughed. Oh, well.
We went through their inventory and picked some to buy. They all were so beautiful it was hard to choose.
Pochi wanted to visit a few of the elderly sponsored ladies so Jen, Kyle and I went with. It was a rocky path with houses on each side. The children were still in school so the streets were very quiet. There were many more trees here than we have seen in the other towns.
We visited two widows who are sponsored by CDA in their homes. One was between 80 and 90 years old. When we got to her house we had to wait at the gate, as we heard a dog on the other side. David declared himself guard, so we went in. She lived in one room with only a foam mat on the floor and a bench in the corner. There were no lights and though it was daylight outside it was very dark inside. We had to let our eyes adjust to the dim room. She is unable to care for herself so her neighbors help her out and cook her meals. We brought her a fleece blanket. she was very sweet and grateful for our visit. She thanked us for coming to visit her while she was still alive instead of waiting to come to her funeral.
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| Hanna and Pochi with our new friend |
The next house was a five minute walk from where we were. This woman was blind and sat in a small room in her house. This house was larger and had lights, but was split into two rooms. She had a family living in the larger room and they cared for her. She did not speak much to us, but was also thankful for her new blanket.
The children were getting out of school when we left there so we had a few follow us back to the orphan home. We had some time to play with the children in the home. They were so sweet. The oldest girl spoke some English, but was very shy. She showed us around the home and showed us her room. There were six beds, but she was the only one in hers, as the other girls were toddlers and still in cribs. She said she goes to school, but she stayed home today to see us.
It was nearly dinner time when we got home. Tsige made us spaghetti and salad for dinner. Then we had a relaxing talk about the needs we have seen. We need to divide our donation money before we go.
We were all ready for a good sleep.
*Read more about the Covenant Sisters
HERE
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