July 20, 2009

Flood waters from the Okavango Delta have arrived in Maun. People in Maun were astounded the second week of July when the banks of the Thamalaklane River flowed into areas that had not seen water in over 20 years. The first picture below was taken from the bridge near our house last April. The next picture is a current picture of the river from the bridge.

April 2009

July 2009

This next picture was taken from further down river last September and the picture to follow is a current picture from the same location. Note the current in the river now.

September 2008

July 2009

In some of the low lying areas, water flooded over the roads and alternative roads through the sand were used or made.

The house that we lived in last August with Travis, is in a low area and the yard flooded but not the inside of the house. Colin helped Keith and Cheryl Kowalski get their furniture and appliances out late one night as the sand was turning to mud, making travel into the yard by car difficult. The Kowalski family had just gotten comfortably settled in the house when the water forced them out. The pictures show the yard just before it was completely covered in water.



Fortunately our pilot neighbor, Kari, had moved out of the second flat on our property at the beginning of July, and FMS had decided to rent that single room flat also. The two flats have a door between them and have provided temporary housing for the Kowalskis. Please pray that they can find another suitable home or that the water will recede and dry quickly so they can resume a normal routine in their own home.

The Kowalski "6", note river in the back ground

Flying has been a bit slow during the beginning of July, but it is picking up and looks very busy for August. Colin enjoyed a full day in the San Bushman village of Xai Xai last week, while going to meetings with a client he flew there. The pictures show a few of the stops around the village that they made. The San are an incredibly friendly, welcoming and happy people. Colin looks forward to another visit.

Xai Xai housing

Some people make do with "open" housing

Home of the villages most powerful elder

The elder and his wife

Smoke break

Grandfather and grandson

Government school

Xai Xai missionaries Pieter and Susan

Xai Xai church

We continue to be fascinated with the diversity of bird life here, and even in the cooler winter months there are many varieties everywhere.

Marabou Stork beside Xaxaba runway

African Jacana

Blue Wax Bill, about 3 inches long

Red Beaked Fire Finch, also 3 inches long

The middle of winter is here with temperatures ranging from the low 40's F ( a few days at the start of the month were just above freezing) to highs in the low 80's F. Even in the coldest months, there are all kinds of plants still blooming.


Julie continues to be busy with her class at school and has only three more weeks before the term break. Then she will have 1 month off before finishing the last term of school for the 2009 school year. The classroom she has is a trailer on the edge of the school property. She enjoys having her door open during the warm afternoons, and hearing the sounds of happy children playing games just out the door. The picture below was taken while standing at the door of the trailer during lunch time. All the students pack lunches and eat under the shade of trees on the property. In the background is one of the main school buildings.


Misheck and Debra are doing well. We were able to help secure better housing for them with free rent. The owner lives elsewhere and needed a reliable person to maintain the property, care for the guard dog, and help provide security for the other house on the plot. It was an answer to prayer for the two of them, as they could no longer afford even the simplest of accommodation in town. Debra is currently 6 months pregnant and Misheck just had to leave to return to Zimbabwe. His sister has passed away and the family looks to him for leadership. He had planned to return home at the end of the month because he has a job offer here with someone willing to fight through the paperwork and pay the costs for him to get a work permit. With a letter from the Zimbabwean police stating that he has no criminal record, he may be able to finally secure residency through legal work. This will mean that he can also bring the couples other two children here and be a family again. It is a common practice for these refugees to over stay their visa and just hope that the police do not stop them and check their paperwork. Misheck had over stayed by 7 months. In doing so, to return home with out problems, a ticket had to be paid to allow him to enter Botswana again on his return. We had already promised to pay this fee, and we ended up paying his bus fair home also. With the death of his sister, he had to return earlier that originally planned and was short the additional time he planned to set money aside through working. The extra financial help sent us, made it possible to generously contribute the money needed to give practical help and hope for a better future to Misheck and his family. Please keep this gentle and humble couple in your prayers. Pray that Misheck will have safe travels and that the paperwork for a work permit will be accepted by the government here once he returns.

The quarterly news letter has been posted on the FM web page and we encourage you to check it out under "Publications" at: www.flyingmission.org Also, if any of you have church families that may want to help with the work here, we would greatly value any toiletry items such as soap, tooth brushes and toothpaste, hand towels, used baby clothing, or fairly large pieces of scrap cloth that we could distribute again in the outlaying areas. It is costly to mail things here, but people are so thankful for the simplest of things, that we can assure that your efforts will much appreciated. If you are interested in organizing something with your friends or church family, please contact us for more details. Our hearts desire is to be able to distribute these items again around Christmas time.

Please pray for the up coming Bible camp that Julie and a few other women are planning in August. They are expecting a larger group this time, as the first camp was a huge blessing to those that attended. Many children are already talking about the next camp with lots of anticipation, and encouraging their friends to participate.

As we close, it really lifts us up when you write us and we want to thank all of you for the care and kindness you have shown us in so many ways over this last year. We know it is because of so many of you keeping us in your thoughts and prayers, that we h ave been able to..."continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith, as [we] were taught, and [we are] overflowing with thankfulness." Colossians 2:6

Leaving Alaska was not easy for us, but we are confident that being here in Maun is God's will for us. As our second year here begins, we are seeking His guidence and vision for the next year and beyond. Our hope is that we may glorify the Lord in all that we do here, and that our hearts will continue to be directed to those He has sent us to encourage and share the good news of Christ's love. "Now may the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you." 2 Thessalonians 3:16