A Bridge!

When you make the special effort to sponsor a child, train a leader or help provide a skill to a young person, you help to build a bridge enabling people to cross into a life of productive contribution! It is likely hard however to imagine how hard it is at times to reach those who so desperately need our help. Besides the cultural, economic and linguistic challenges are the simple physical challenges of getting to where they are!
This past year a bridge we built a number of years back burned down in the annual bush fires that rage through the area. Thankfully there was another way around to reach the community where our school is located, but then an old bridge on that road also burned. A literal physical bridge became the desperate need, so we got stuck in this past week and built a new one. This time with cement culverts that were transported from a good 6 hour truck drive away!
With the cement culverts on site, we then once again were blessed by the presence of the back hoe which was donated through Mercy Air (U.S.A) and which SAM Ministries then imported and transported. The machine made possible the excavation and transport of volumes of soil that would have taken many weeks to do by hand!

Prosper Fernando, a young man who had a dream for mechanics training, took the first module offered by Rick Cogbill and a team from Canada and France. His character, enthusiasm and capability made him a perfect candidate to be trained to operate the backhoe. Ron Wayner spent many hours with Prosper on the machine and Rick Cogbill along with other team members helped Prosper learn the regular maintenance of the machine. Prosper is now enrolled in a mechanic course with another cooperating mission but just so happened to be on holiday when we needed him the most. What a blessing he has been.
But none of us can do this alone! The maintenance facility that Rick Cogbill (SAM Ministries short term volunteer and founder of the new-to-be registered Mercy Tech Missions) and many supporters took on, although only partly completed, is already providing a huge blessing to the mission. Due to the work on the runway (another project underway), a number of bolts and nuts had come lose and the backhoe was leaking lots of hydraulic fluid, so before we could get to the work on the bridge and remaining work on the runway, this needed repair. The repair pit at the unfinished maintenance shop made attending to this challenge a breeze and the problem was quickly resolved enabling the bridge to be built. It really does take a team to overcome the many challenges in reaching people.
We welcome your assistance to support of a child or to help us to finish one of these important projects.
Your financial and prayer support for all of these critical projects results in bridges of many kinds to be built. The result is lives saved and equipped to make a difference for many others! Thank you!