BIG NEWS! HOUSE # 1 IS FINISHED!!!

Exciting News From Mission:180

Its been a long time coming, but after much work, much prayer, and much help from Canada, Mission:180's first of 12 Forever Homes is complete!

Mission:180's first completed "Forever Home".

We have stayed out there one night to get the feel of things and it was great. The house looks awesome, and everything works well.  It's the only house in the area with running water and that is fully wired for electricity. Of course, we are still waiting on the The Kenya Light and Power Company to deliver power to the property and that area in general, but we know it works because we have a generator! For now we run the generator in the evening till we go to sleep when we stay there.

We are so grateful to all of our supporters who partnered with us to make this home a reality! Thank-you feels like it rings hollow, because it cannot begin to express our gratitude!

The video below shows the journey from start to finish in the construction of House # 1, as well as makes brief mention of all those who gave towards the construction costs.

We are also working on furnishing the house. We have quotes from various furniture vendors and we have so far received just under half of the $5,000.00 we estimate it will cost to fully equip the house for childcare and habitation.  If you would like to help us get this house fully furnished, feel free to make a contribution through PAYPAL or by sending a cheque to our mailing address, 1505 Jackson Ave, Saskatoon SK, S7H 2N1. Just make a note either way to let us know that the funds are for furnishing the home!

One of the requirements to be able to open the doors and start functioning as a child care provider in Kenya is that we must have a social worker on staff.  After a long day of interviewing many good candidates we have hired the person we believe is best suited to this position. Meet Lucy! She comes to us with a great education, strong recommendations and years of experience as a social worker in children's homes in Kenya.

Lucy, Mission:180's first Social Worker

As we look to the near future, we are very excited as we see a dream and vision begin to take shape with more and more detail. We are very close to being able to rescue infants and children with extreme needs who desperately need the help and the family Mission:180 will be able to provide them because of the generous support of many Canadians who believe in this cause and mission!

Awesome guests from Canada, and When It Rains It Pours......

June 11 2013

This is a two part newsletter/blog.

Part 1. Awesome Guests From Canada: 

Its like Christmas when guests arrive, they bring treats
from Canada!

I had the privilege recently of going to Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to pick up three young ladies from Saskatoon who used to attend the youth group I pastored. This does my heart good! What a joy to see them, to hear how they are doing, and to watch them in action as they work along side us in this ministry to very needy Kenyan families.

Day one its straight to work!

And work we have! These amazing young ladies raised funds for over 80 "Hampers Of Hope". We have put them to work getting the materials, putting them together, loading them into the vehicles, and then very very long days of driving out in the back country off roading to deliver them. Last week we logged over 60 hours of work in a 5 day week.  So, its not all fun and games, but it is fun! These ladies have a strong work ethic, and amazing compassion for the people we minister to. Their visit not only helps us do our work, they have encouraged us and put new and strong wind into our tired sails!

Hamper ingredients now fully sorted!

We work hard around here!

Jennifer with one of the many many children we
 encounter every day. 

Part 2. A & B. When It Rains....It Pours! 
A.Here comes the Rain.
On Sunday, June 2nd, we got up and got ready for church. We had a very busy day planned. First church, then a quick lunch on the way to drop Joshua off at youth camp, followed by shopping for more "Hamper Of Hope" deliveries.
 Then we had very busy week planned, one that required two vehicles to accomplish all of our tasks.
We left the house at 9:45 am. and headed for church. 5 minutes into that drive, we had a major collision with another vehicle. I was forced off the road at approx. 50 KM per hour, narrowly missing a "Duka" (roadside shop), and completely wiped out a power pole. Thankfully,no one was hurt in either vehicle, nor were there any pedestrians hurt. The elderly German lady explained her actions this way. "Normally I look that way before I come out onto the road, but today is Sunday and I decided not to look."  Seems logical to me.

Waiting for the police. We pay for roadside
security for times just like this!

I had to bend some pieces by hand
to make it drivable.

Front end damage! See where we hit
 the Mercedes?

After making sure everyone was okay, we contacted our security provider to come and keep watch over us while we waited for the police. Not long after the impact, the "ambulance chasers" came out of the wood work. Some young thugs with clubs approached our vehicle and demanded we take a university aged girl to hospital, claiming we had hit her and hurt her. Neither vehicle in this accident came anywhere near her or any pedestrians.  I had already spoken to her, and she told me and our security team that she was fine, uninjured and well. We dealt with the thugs, and kept waiting.

Where we hit the power pole after hitting the
other car.

After about an hour the police finally made it to the scene. They took stock of things, immediately saw the fault was with the other driver, (this dear, poor old lady was very shaken up, I felt really bad for her), and arranged to have the vehicles moved. No sooner had the police arrived, when low and behold, the young lady who was uninjured moments before developed a severe limp and claimed to have "internal" injuries. Her Aunt had arrived, and was coaching her in how to get money out of foreigners. This is one foreigner who was paying nothing!!! The Auntie came over to me and actually said with a Cheshire grin on her face, "She is a university student, and now YOU are going to pay for her schooling"!!! Welcome to Kenya! What a fiasco. Long story short, eventually her mother showed up and forced her to be honest. But not before causing us some major inconvenience.
Now the insurance battle ensues!!! These are the times when Canada is missed the most!

B. That part was just the rain, now for the pouring rain.
On Monday we headed out to deliver more "Hampers Of Hope", out in the Rift Valley close to our bigger project located at Kona Baridi. We had a great day, and all was going well.

The picture doesn't do it justice, I am about to drive through
a steep dried river bed.

This is one tough Toyota. But this country, and our work
is really hard on vehicles!

 We were finished our work and heading home, up a steep twisty road, when out of nowhere the engine on our Toyota Hilux Surf died! Gave up the ghost! Not revive-able! Toast. Kaput-ski! Dead as a door nail! Kabissa! Taking quick stock of the situation, I sent Jennifer and the ladies back to Nairobi while I waited for a rescue vehicle to come and tow my poor Toyota to our trusted shop back in town. I waited. I called KAA (Kenya Auto-mobile Association) a number of times, the sun went down (not a good scenario), and I waited some more. This started at 3:00. I did not get home till 10:00 pm. Good times! I got the report from our mechanic the next day. The entire engine has to be rebuilt. When it rains, it pours. Here in Kenya, it rains harder than anywhere I have ever been.   Both literally and figuratively.

Having said all of that, things are going well here in Nairobi and beyond as we serve the poorest of the poor people of Kenya. We are not deterred by the above mentioned events. Its just stuff, God provided it, and He will take of the details.  He always does.
Rather we are encouraged by the progress we have been able to make. Its only through God's direction, and the prayers of you our co-workers in Canada and beyond that we are able to do anything.  We give Him all the Glory.
Your continued encouraging emails, your Facebook comments and the way you share about our work on Facebook and other social media, (or even over coffee at Tim's or Stars), and your continued response to our work with your generous financial contributions, all of these things encourage us and keep us going.

If you feel so compelled, these recent vehicle "incidents", have caused some tension in the budget department, and we could use some help! We have incurred an extra $5000.00 above what we expected for vehicle maintenance and repairs. If you feel led to help us, we would be very grateful. Either by cheque or PayPal, or, just mark somehow that this is a special gift for Mission:180's vehicle situation.

Thanks for all your help, thanks for keeping up with us on the Blog and Facebook! We cant do this without you, and we wouldn't want to!

We go "No Roading"

So, I just wanted to post a quick note after today's trip into the "Great Rift Valley". We went to the home of a family with eleven children.
We brought them some much needed food and visited in their home, and then went on our merry way.
This post is actually about the great lengths we go to just to reach these homes.
We don't go off-roading. Most of the so called "roads" we drive on day in and day out around Nairobi would be considered off roading in Canada. No, what we do I prefer to call "no roading". We go places no vehicle has ever been. Most of the time it's bouncy and fun. But sometimes, it's risky. We risk getting really badly stuck, and we risk damaging the vehicles.
The trick is good maintenance, good tires, and plenty of prayer!

Now you know a little bit more about some of our day to day work. It includes a lot of interesting driving.

The green vehicle pictured below is our Mistubishi Pajero Exceed.
The silver one is called a Toyota Hilux Surf. (In Canada its called a Toyota 4Runner). One the photos below shows Jennifer and our Maasai employee Jeremy having lunch out in a remote location during a long day out in Maasai-land.
Jeremy is our "Community Liason" and "Water Project Manager".

We are so grateful for our vehicles. We can't do our work without them. Thanks to all of our generous donors, we have been able to purchase and operate these "tools for the job".

Thank-you!!!

Here is a short video about Mission:180's 

main project in Kenya, our forever homes!

BIG NEWS FROM KENYA!!!

It's been several weeks but it's time for some news about Mission:180 Kenya.  Two very exciting events have taken place over the past several weeks and we want to let you know all about it! Then a little bit of news about the past month and a half.

First, here is our REALLY BIG NEWS!!!

The exterior as it appears right now.
Stay tuned for an update in a few weeks!
Bus Driver......move that bus!

1. Two weeks ago Mission:180 received one of our largest single donations to date, $22,000.00 specifically earmarked for the completion of House #1! It was the exact amount we needed to make House #1 ready to move in to!  We are so encouraged and blessed by outpourings of generosity like this as people back home in Canada respond to the needs here and Mission:180's work towards addressing those needs. Construction has resumed, and the finishing work has  begun.  Wiring the house for electricity, plumbing, tiling, interior painting, exterior painting, etc.  

The finishing work on the interior is
underway.

We were on the property today choosing paint colors and tiling for back-splashes and flooring.  Its very exciting to be able to move forward with the final push. Now that the first house will be complete soon we are also beginning the task of furnishing and staffing the home so we can be ready to rescue abandoned infants.

2. On April 18 we received the following e-mail.  Here's an excerpt: 

"I am pleased to inform you that the NGO's Co-ordination Board has approved the application for registration of "Mission:180 Ministries" as an NGO."

We have been involved in an almost year long process to get this designation here in Kenya! In case you don't know, NGO stands for "Non-Governmental Organization". We are now a fully registered international charity in Kenya. This is a BIG deal and a major accomplishment! We are very happy to have reached this milestone in our work here in Kenya!

Our certificate of registration as an
International NGO.

Of course, every milestone of growth comes with work! More details to be covered, more steps to be taken, and forward momentum to be maintained!
This now makes Mission:180 a legal entity in Kenya.  It gives us the ability to bank and carry out other essential business transactions here.  It also makes it possible for us to begin the long process of becoming a registered child care provider.

All this good news puts more wind in our sails and encourages us to push on with all that we are called to Kenya to accomplish!

A quick word about our financial situation:  We have been experiencing some significant increases in our general budget expenses.  Growth, as it turns out, is expensive! We need to quickly find another $1,000.00 per month in pledged giving to even out the budget and stay out of the red! If you don't already support Mission:180's general budget with a monthly pledged amount, would you consider making a pledge? Our general budget is what keeps us moving and allows us to remain in Kenya doing what we do! Without it, we can't continue at the pace and size we are currently doing things. If you want to make a one time donation, that is always gratefully accepted as well. To give via Paypal please see the link on this page.  To give by automatically debiting your bank account, please email me at the following address, jason@mission180.ca, and I will help you get that set up.

A little bit the last two months for Mission:180 in Kenya:

President Uhuru Kenyatta.  His name
means "freedom".

March was a momentous and historic month for the nation of Kenya. They have elected their fourth president since becoming a nation.  Uhuru Kenyatta, the son of Kenya's first president, Jomo Kenyatta, was elected by a very narrow margin. 50.07% to be precise. His main opponent contested the vote, suggesting ballot rigging and poor counting.  It went directly to the supreme court, where the election results were deemed to be accurate and the new president was inaugurated several days later. It was a tense time here and all expats (foreigners) were prepared for violence and major service disruptions.  Thankfully peace ruled the day, with some minor exceptions.  The new constitution was put to the test, and from the outside looking in, all seems to have worked out.  It is now back to business as usual here in Kenya.

An upside down Matatu, a 14
passenger public transit bus.  He tried
to cross a washed out bridge, the results
were deadly.

We are now in the season known as the "long rains".  It's an appropriate title! It rains every day, sometimes a little, sometimes a lot.  But it POURS every night! As of this writing, 63 people have died in flooding and landslides.  Many in vehicles washed away as Matatu (public service vehicles, 14 passenger buses) drivers will do anything to keep moving and make money.  This week Kenya power has received 208,000 complaints of power outages which is up from 94,000 this time last year. We have had power outages every night. The lights flicker and we all know what is about to happen.  Our longest stretch without power at one time so far this rainy season was 36 hours. We are blessed to have a solar back-up system that will power the whole house for 6-8 hours at a time. If that fails, we have a gas generator.  However, gas is not free, sunshine (when you can get it) is, so we have to ration the generator use!

Throughout all this we have been working on our various projects. We have been delivering "Hampers of Hope", our food relief program, running our community water project and we have been busy with meetings, staffing issues, fundraising (it never ends), and dealing with the bureaucracy that is the Kenya Government.

Once again we want to say thanks to all who encourage us and to those who give generously to the work we are doing.  Without you we can't keep going.  THANK-YOU!!!

February 2013

Jennifer and a young widow and one of her 8 children.
She was thrilled to receive a gift of food that day.

Hello friends and followers of Mission:180 and the Sheppard's in Kenya.
It's been just over a month since we last posted and it's time for an update on what is happening and what we have been up to!

Our latest dwelling place! We like it!

Since our last post we have experienced some significant changes in our living arrangements. We have moved, or as our friends here in Kenya put it, we have "shifted". The home we lived in for one year had significant issues, a big one being the very leaky roof. Consequently the home developed black mold and this was making us sick. Another issue was poor security on the perimeter of the yard. This was making us increasingly uncomfortable as we approach a time of uncertainty and historically unstable national elections. So we made the move to a safer, newer home.  It was a tough decision but one we had to make.

The driveway with our two tough SUV's. 

As we cruise into 2013, this first month and a half has been filled with one of my favourite things......paperwork! Let's be honest and get real here, without Jennifer's brains the numbers would never get crunched. In frequent communication with our Canadian team-mate Nancy, Jennifer has poured hours into the fiscal year end and organizing files and pictures and hamper reports etc. I am so grateful for a partner in life and ministry who is so gifted in the things that make me dizzy!

As well as all of that, we are in the looooooong process of getting Mission:180 registered as an International NGO in Kenya. ("NGO" stands for "Non-Governmental Organization"). This is a very important step for us here as it makes Mission:180 a recognized legal entity with an identity in Kenya.

Some new friends from Canada who came along to
help one day.  Thanks Randy and Cathy!

New shoes! A BIG deal!

In the midst of these things we continue to operate our food relief program "Hampers of Hope". While the Christmas season is the busiest time of year for this program, we offer this program all year long.  The needs never go away and many of you continue to give towards this program throughout the year for special occasions and gifts for friends and loved ones.

To those of you reading this who already regularly contribute to our work in Kenya, we want to say again how grateful we are for your continued support. Without your generosity, we cannot do what we do. To everyone who donates to the programs and special projects, we say thank-you!

For us it's a major honor and privilege to live and serve in Kenya. The needs are huge, and the sheer size of the poverty and destitution is often overwhelming.  When it starts to seem like sooooo much, that's when we remind ourselves of our own motto, "Impacting One Life At A Time", and we press on doing what we can with what we have! Thanks for the part you play in helping us do what we do!

Delivering more than just food, that's why we call them
"Hampers Of Hope"

Guest Post: Marjorie Andrew

Meet Marjorie Andrew.  She is a remarkable, spry Canadian Grandma who came to Kenya for one reason, she wanted to help! This wonderful lady put us to shame. She is tough, and she knows how to work! Below you can read her comments and observations about her time in Kenya with Mission:180.
Marjorie we loved having you here with us, and we would welcome you back anytime!

"How does one put into words the experience of a lifetime? I am so anxious to return......."

How does one put into words the experience of a lifetime?  I have recently returned from Kenya where I spent 3 weeks in the company of Jason, Jennifer and Joshua Sheppard who are the Mission:180 Ministries team on the ground.  What a Joy to be with these dedicated hard working folks.  And what an experience working with them delivering hampers to the Maasai people in the Ngong  Hills.  We encountered many heart wrenching situations and many beautiful, warm and welcoming people who gave us more in love than we gave them in food.  The Sheppard’s have gathered around them a team of wonderful and dedicated Kenyan folk who help with and plan the Hamper of Hope distribution.  These same people are also heavily involved in the building/construction and forward plans of the Forever Homes for orphans.  The first home is nearing completion and is situated in a beautiful country area.  I am so anxious to return to see this in use.  They cautiously build according to moneys as it is donated and are currently waiting to finish off the first home which will become an infant rescue home.  The remaining 11 houses will become the Forever Homes each having 8 orphans and a live in Mother.  What a village that will be!

Thank you, Sheppard’s, for a wonderful experience and your kind hospitality. You are doing an amazing work.    

 "We encountered many heart wrenching situations and many beautiful, warm and
welcoming people who gave us more in love than we gave them in food."