Maintenance Facility Takes Shape
A portion of the floor has been poured and walls are now going up on the Maintenance Facility in Mozambique. John Topham (below) has been assisting the mission in a number of ways since his arrival last week, including assisting Rick Cogbill and the local building team with construction.
Leveling a portion of the maintenance facility floor.
Fani learning to use the transit level.
Pouring floors Mozambique-style…one wheelbarrowful at a time!
The beautiful final product. What a blessing it will be to work on a cement floor rather than in the dirt!
The walls going up on the poured section.
(Little McGuyver, Rick and Heather Neufeld’s Jack Russell, does a quality check.)
Window frames mounted and subsequent floor section prepared for floor pouring.
Second Mechanics Module Underway!
Rick Cogbill arrived earlier this month to teach the next module of the mechanic training program in Mozambique. Since the mission’s community grinding mill broke down recently, he and the students used it as an opportunity for some hands-on learning as well.
Besides teaching and incorporating various repair projects as practical components, Rick has also been operating the backhoe to help the crew working on the airstrip and has undertaken to see progress made on construction of the maintenance facility.
Peter, the mission’s construction department head, begins building the pillars.
Progress on the maintenance pit which will be used to service vehicles.
We rejoice to see this much-needed facility taking shape!
Partnerships And Furlough News
There is little more exciting than watching people who have chosen to give themselves to partner with God in His amazing work of rescuing people from the destructive influences of a messed up world! We had the privilege over the weekend to be with two churches as well as a number of families and individuals who are supporting or who have started to partner with SAM Ministries to give people a chance!
Saturday we had the fun of sharing lunch and a good afternoon visit with Suzanne and Andrew and their new little arrival, Emmit. Suzanne has led a number of nursing teams to Mozambique and this past year she brought Andrew out to meet us…that is after marrying him. We had the fun of giving them an African wedding ceremony while they were there and our prayers of blessing and good will paid off with the arrival of little Emmit only a month ago. Both Suzanne and Andrew are amazing people with big hearts and we were honored by their willingness to drive so far to enable this reunion.
Sunday morning we started out in Westerose, Alberta where we worshiped and shared with a great group of people who have been partners in this effort for many years now. Their faithful support, prayers and encouragement is characteristic of so many churches and individuals who God is using to make this mission happen.
Todd Green, a columnist and an auto mechanic’s instructor (thegrumpymechanic) at SAIT in Calgary, Alberta Canada, invited us along with Rick Cogbill of Mercy Tech Mission to share with his church about the vocational training started in Mozambique and the need for the maintenance facility presently under construction. As Todd shared his experience and the impact his encounter with Mozambique had made on his life, it was clear that yet again God had recruited another ambassador to represent the needs of people He deeply cares for.
Rick Cogbill, founder of Mercy Tech Mission, who is in a new phase in his journey of faith (along with his dear wife Nan and family), inspired us all to keep digging ditches (an illustration from a Bible story in 2Kings 3:16 ) so God could fill them with His provision to meet not only our needs, but the needs of those who need to be set free from the enemy of their souls! Rick traveled to Calgary for the weekend from Summerland and had the chance to share in a church in Okotokes as well.
Thanks to all the churches and good friends who have opened their homes and hearts to us over this past month.
Launching A New Course
The first course in “basic automotive repair and maintenance” was offered to a group of young men recently. Automotive technicians from Canada volunteered to come spend a month teaching, and in doing so provided young men here with a unique learning opportunity. In the words of one of the students,
“The course helped me a lot in both the theory and the practical. I’m already using the skills I learned here at Mission Farm. I was able to bleed the backhoe and do some simple maintenance. I would love to attend another training time like the one we just had. My dream is to be a mechanic.”
We trust this will be the first of many such courses that help young people learn skills needed to gain employment.
A First Step In Vocational Training
In August we welcomed Rick Cogbill, Todd Green and Ed Hyslip, who came to teach a course on basic automotive repair to some of the mission’s key staff and sponsored students. This, in combination with the maintenance facility currently under construction, marks the beginning of the mission’s automotive vocational training program.
Theory was taught in a thatched gazebo each morning, and afternoons were spent doing hands-on work. What a blessing it was to have skilled automotive technicians on site to undertake the more challenging tasks and to pass some skills along.
In the words of Jacobo, the mission’s main driver, “The vocational training was awesome. It’s helped me a lot to better understand how an engine, the electrics, and brakes work on vehicles. I also learned the importance of regular maintenance. A few weeks ago, two of us who attended the course managed to fix some electrical problems on our truck. This saved the mission a lengthy and costly repair job in town.”
