How this all started

In March 2006, my sister Cathy, niece Kandace, and great-niece Katrina were all killed in a car accident in New Mexico. This horrific event immediately cut our ties to our future plans and goals, leaving our family in search of a mission that would give us purpose again. Then AHI (Adventist Health International) contacted us, asking if we would be willing to serve at a 75 bed hospital in Gimbie, Ethiopia. We began saving, downsizing, and preparing for our "tour of duty", only to be financially crippled when my husband had a serious motorcycle accident which left him jobless for 7 months. Through generous support from our family, friends, and community, we were still able to raise enough money for plane tickets and expenses, and GO.

On October 3, 2008, our Ethiopian mission started to change our lives, forever. The first week was spent building a green house for Dr. Gemechu at the Learning Center just outside of Addis. After that we were transferred to Gimbie, and a journey that none of us expected unfolded. Instead of working on construction at the nursing school as expected, we were immediately thrown into the problems and struggles of the hospital. My husband was needed as head nurse, and he undertook the job, assigning us to positions to paint, clean, and organize where needed. The hospital was in dire need of TLC, so long hours and hard labor were necessary.

But soon the REAL issues started to surface. People were suffering. The needs of the people were so great and so complicated, we had to take time to somehow relieve their pain. Medicines, lab tests, and surgeries were needed for the poor patients. Mothers were dying, leaving orphans that needed care. Street boys were admitted to the hospital who had no home to be discharged to. Pregnant young girls were self-aborting, killing themselves along with their babies. Feet crippled by "podoconiosis" were searching for treatment. Women stigmatized by prolapses were deserted by their spouses. And those reaching puberty were feeling the first signs of a goiter, because of their lack of iodized salt.

How could we ignore these needs??????? This blog is to chronicle this journey we are traveling to relieve as much suffering as possible. Along the way, we hope to introduce you to the wonderful culture and people of Gimbie, so you can better understand our fellow brothers and sisters. I am sure you will fall in love with them as quickly as we did!