VISITING THE SCHOOLS - WHAT A JOY!
We were greeted by the children and staff upon our arrival at the schools with standing drills, and rousing songs of welcome sung to us by the children. Once inside the classrooms, they showed off their learning by raising their hands to answer the questions of the teachers. The first school that we visited is the one which Loving Hugs, Inc. was able to provide almost half of the funds to purchase this new location and its buildings for this school. It was astonishing to see how many students are already attending so quickly, in this first opening quarter; the classrooms are already full and overflowing! There is such a need for providing education there!
We visited three individual schools in all. All are doing great and important work educating approximately 600+ students total, in literacy and general education. These schools need support to continue to provide the critical education to their people, to help move their country out of the chaos. Donor support for their education can be done through our organization (www.lovinghugs.org).
THE VOCATIONAL SEWING PROGRAM:
The Vocational Sewing Program is growing and expanding! Before arriving in the Congo, thanks to the help of Susan Johnson and Dr. Mimi Kanda of the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation (www.dmf.org), I was able to set up a meeting with the Chief of Administration of the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital in Kinshasa, Mr. Alexandre Manunga. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss possible collaborations between their hospital and our Vocational Sewing and Woodshop Programs. Many, many thanks and my deepest gratitude to Susan Johnson, and Dr. Mimi Kanda for their wonderful help and support! We could not have had this important and positive meeting without your help. Thank you so very much!
The meeting with Mr. Manunga was very positive, and included his giving us a wonderful tour along with their Chief Surgeon, of their beautiful hospital. We discussed possibilities for our Vocational Sewing Program to provide (for a fee) any of the needed sewn goods for the hospital, as well as any needs for things such as wooden shelving and tables from our Vocational Woodshop Program. This is what my purpose for this trip was… To see our Programs for myself, and to help facilitate the securing of collaborations on the ground in the Congo, to provide self-sustainability in Win-Win-Win situations with Congolese helping Congolese, for greater good for their people, through their own collaborative efforts. Much good has already been accomplished and realized from this great meeting! My gratitude is immense!
The story of the young boy from Goma, DRC, a patient at the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital:
While visiting the children’s ward, I saw and was told the story by their Chief Pediatric Surgeon, of the young 11 year-old boy from Goma (where a number of the refugee camps are, and their horrific war has continued). This sweet, quiet, innocent boy was at home with his father and sister (his mother was not at home at the time), when rebels burst into their home, opening fire on them. They were flown to the Biamba Marie Mutombo hospital, thanks to a non-profit organization there. The sister has now fully recovered; the father was shot in both arms. He will never be able to fully extend his arms again (think of the repercussions: little ability now to earn a living to support his family, and cannot hold or hug his wife, or his children ever again). This little 11 year-old boy was shot to such an extent that they had to remove his bowel and small intestine. He will have to be fed intravenously for the rest of his life; he’s 11 years old. I wanted to wrap my arms around that little boy as he sat in a chair in his room looking at us, and we at him. When we started to leave, I smiled at him again (wanting so much to cry), waved and said, “Au revoir”! He waved back and said in his sweet little voice, “Au revoir”. It was a very powerful experience and a strong reminder for me that the ghastly war in the Congo continues to destroy hundreds of thousands of very innocent lives. It’s so ‘not right’, and so not fair. They need everyone’s prayers, support, and help. If you want to help, please contact me at: wendy@lovinghugs.org, or call (303) 948-0552. Whether you support our efforts to help or not, please send your prayers their way!
I have never been in a hospital where I’ve felt so much peace, and loving care in the atmosphere of a hospital, or from the staff, as I did when visiting the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital in Kinshasa, DRC, Africa. God bless them for their great work!
“Cinderella” goes to the Ball:
Have you ever found it difficult to pack the right things for a trip? Packing for our trip to the Congo seemed like a “no-brainer”; dirt roads, hot, humid weather during their rainy season… How was I to guess that I should have also packed my ball gown/cocktail dress, glam shoes and handbag? ! I would have felt just like Cinderella if I had only known!
I happened to sit next to the ‘right’ person at a Rotary Club meeting in Kinshasa, and ended up getting invited to, and given tickets for my husband and I to attend the Marine Corps Ball in the Congo! The Marines celebrate the birthday of the Marine Corps every year, all over the world, in every embassy where they are stationed- and we got to attend in the Congo! It was an amazing, never-could-have imagined, wonderful experience that I will always remember. It was especially meaningful since I work with the U. S. Navy with our Hugs Program. I’m not really Cinderella, but I felt like one, without the ball gown! I won’t go into the adventure story of what it took to actually pick up the gratis tickets for us at the U. S. Embassy in Kinshasa, but if you think of a Congolese Army soldier with an AK-47, you might get an idea…
There are many adventure stories to share from our trip to the Congo, but not the space, or your time to share them here now. There are stories such as; being stormed by a couple of Republican Guard soldiers of President Kabila’s Army with their AK-47’s; an ominous threat from a young man, just graduated from the University of Kinshasa, through our car window as we were dead-stop grid-locked in an incredible traffic jam, and could not have escaped... Then there are the many stories of the great people we met – warm, gracious, so very loving and generous! People invited us into their homes to welcome us with a feast - many times in many different homes! We loved our time in the Congo, and we loved the people we met. It was an extraordinary experience and trip. So much good was accomplished!
Hugs to Philippine Flood Survivors
Last but not least, is a photo from the distribution of our hugs to victims of the recent flood in Metro Manila, Philippines. Apologies were given me for the poor quality of the picture, but it still shows the story of children being hugged by the generous and compassionate Americans who send us their ‘hugs’ for these children in difficult, or troubling situations around the world.
Thank you all always, for your support, help, donations, and ‘hugs’!
Sincerely,
Wendy L. Clark
