masana 2010

2011 Support

Hello family and friends! How quickly 2010 has gone by! I am back in the states with my family for the holidays and so looking forward to a time of rest before I return to Mozambique for another year.

As I think back over the past year in Mozambique, I am overwhelmed by the goodness of our God. It has been a wonderful year full of blessings in my ministry at Masana with street kids. We helped 15 boys leave the streets and return to their families with 2 others awaiting our help in January when Masana reopens. Our day center moved to a new location with much nicer facilities for the boys. As a result of that, we've seen an increase in the number of street kids wanting to be a part of our project on a daily basis. We now have temporary housing for the boys when they are sick or in the process of being reintegrated with their families. About 25 boys stayed with us for various reasons throughout the year. Currently, 2 boys are living with us as work on helping them reconnect with their families.

We've also seen a few disappointments over the year. We had a couple of hard reintegration attempts where families refused to accept their sons back. One boy we took back to his family returned to the streets 3 days later. 2 others stayed home for a couple of months and then returned to the streets. We had to deal with a few thefts from both street kids and, even harder, friends that we trusted and allowed into our home.

But despite the hard parts of the year, I can say without a doubt that it's all worth it. The privilege of witnessing a family reunited far outweighs any of the disappointments. There is a verse in Psalms that says, "He places the lonely in families." That is what our ministry among these street boys is all about...seeing them restored to their families.

My annual budget is around $24,000. I would like to ask you to pray about supporting me. Whatever God puts on your heart, know that it is being used for the building of His kingdom. I am raising my support through Unveiled Faces, a non-profit organization designed to connect and support missionaries. All gifts are tax deductible. Follow this link to give online or you can mail a check made payable to "Unveiled Faces" with "Sarah Olds" on the memo line to:

Unveiled Faces
PO Box 8235
Atlanta GA 31106

If you feel led to support me monthly, let me know and I can send you envelopes for each month or I can give you information on how to set-up automatic debit.

Please feel free to contact me if you want to hear more about Masana and my time in Mozambique!

Blessings!

Sarah Olds

www.sarah-n-africa.com

Our Family is Growing!

Part of the beauty of working with street kids is how unique each of their stories are. We have boys that have been on the streets for months and some for years. Some love life on the street and have no desire to return home. Some are anxious to return to their families but a little scared about doing it alone. Some try going home and, for whatever reason, just don't stay.

It is our desire to meet these boys where they are and help them reach the place that they are ready to be back home with their families. We've recently had 2 boys move in with us as we've developed a plan to get them back with their families. Let me introduce you to Felix and Paito!

Felix is 12 years old. Masana first reintegrated him in October, 2009. He stayed at home for a few months but then ended up back on the street when his uncle kicked him out. We went and met with grandmother and uncle but they were not willing to take responsability for him because of his behavior problems. They had tried to deal with his problems using witchcraft but without success. Next we went to visit Felix's father. His father loves him but also struggles with Felix's behavior. If Felix were living in america, he would be in a special ed class at school and receive lots of one-on-one attention. Unfortunately the Mozambican schools don't work that way so Felix struggles in school and finds himself getting into trouble often.

Ian, one of my housemates, has been working with Felix a lot this year on learning to read and write. He's progressing greatly!!! A couple of months back, we prayed a lot about Felix and decided to invite him to live with us at the Kunhymela House. The deal we came up with is that Felix will stay with us Sunday - Thursday and then with either his grandmother or father on the weekends. For Felix, we feel his life at home will be much better once he is caught up in school and able to feel successful in his school work. He loves being with his family on the weekends but just isn't ready to be there full-time yet. Felix is a very hard worker and loves helping us out around the house!

Paito is 15 years old. He has been living on the streets since 2008. His mother has always bounced from one man to the next. Paito was never really close to his father. Prior to coming to live on the streets of Maputo, Paito was living with his father and got into some trouble for stealing. One day he just left home and never went back. Earlier this year, we went to visit Paito's father. It was the first time they'd seen each other in 2 years. His father was happy to see him again and wanted him to return home. Paito, however, had no desire to return home. He enjoyed his life on the street...coming to Masana, spending the evening walking around the city, going to sleep, and doing it all over again the next day. He didn't really have friends on the street but kept to himself.

As we got closer to Paito, we realized he needed a little help in seeing the value of family. So we invited him to live with us with the same plan as Felix...that weekends are spent with his father. Our hope with Paito is that he will begin to realize that he needs the support and encouragement of his family if he is going to make something of his life. In January, we will register Paito at a school here in the city. We want to help him find a job and teach him how to budget and save. If time allows, we also want to sign him up for some english courses as he loves learning english.

The Kunhymela House is currently made up of 3 Americans, 1 South African and now 2 Mozambicans. We may not look like a traditional family but as we do life together, its our prayer that these boys will, day by day, see the value of family.

Afternoons with Paito

Each afternoon after Masana, one of the boys, Paito, sticks around to wash our cars and complete whatever other odd jobs we have for him. He is also quite the entertainer. He loves music and dancing. So for him, washing one of our cars with the stereo blasted is the perfect way to pass the afternoon. And I love peaking out the window and seeing the joy on his face as he listens to his favorite music and dances. The video below is Paito and Lauren, one of my housemates. Lauren has just explained to Paito what ballet is.

Paito is quite unique when it comes to street kids. He keeps to himself on the street rather than sleeping with other kids. He loves his life on the streets where he can wake up, walk around, do what he wants, go to sleep. . . only to wake up and do it all over again the next day. Complete freedom. We've been talking to him a lot about his future and what dreams he has for his life.

Please pray for Paito. He does not have a relationship with his father and we really want to see that restored. Our hope for him is that he'll begin visiting his family on the weekends and start working towards restoring his family.

Luis: Revisted

A month ago, we took Luis back home. Today we did a follow-up visit. It was beautiful.

We arrived to a table set for a feast. Luis' grandparents were there to express their deep gratitude for our help in bringing their grandson back home. His grandmother shed tears of joy as she tried to express how much joy she felt that day, a month ago, when we first showed up at the family's house with Luis. Then she asked to pray for us. Her prayer was in Shanghan, the local language, so I did not understand her words but I felt the Holy Spirit. I knew that, once again, God had used us to restore a family. It was obvious that, with the return of Luis, this family was filled with new hope for life.

We discussed with the family what small business they had decided to try. They asked if instead, we would be willing to use the business money to build a house for Luis next to his mom's house. We asked them to do some research on the cost involved in this and we'll let them know if Masana has the finances to do it or not.

We had brought a suitcase full of new clothes, a couple of blankets, a sleeping mat, and a few other items Luis will need as he resettles with his family. Again, tears were shed as Luis opened the suitcase and showed his family all that was inside. One by one, his family members came to hug us and thank us again for all that we have done for their family.

Then we were served a feast. The women in the family had worked so hard to prepare these beautiful plates - prawns, chicken, salad, rice, and potatoes. It was literally some of the best food I've had in Mozambique. And how perfect to enjoy this meal sitting under a large tree in a village with a family so full of joy.

As we left, the entire family accompanied us to the end of the road. Then we said our goodbyes and continued on to the bus stop with just Luis and his mother. Luis' mom asked to speak to my coworker alone. Lauren and I walked on ahead with Luis chatting with him about life in his community and how he passed his time.

As we boarded the ferry boat to cross the Maputo Bay back to the city, my coworker told us that Luis' mom was HIV+. She had just found out and has not told her son or other family yet. That is why she wants us to build a house for her son....so that he has a place of his own once she is gone.

Watching the island disappear as the boat crossed the bay, tears filled my eyes. Such a mixture of emotions filled my heart as I thought of this joyful family so full of hope. And this mother carrying a secret....to afraid to tell her family for fear of crushing that hope.

Juma

Oh sweet Juma . . . such a heartbreaking story to tell.

Juma has been living on the streets for a couple of years. He is 12 years old now. His mom lives in South Africa most of the year and returns to Mozambique for only a few months. She has a husband in South Africa. I remember in 2009 when Juma heard from a family member that his mom would be in Mozambique. He saved all of the money he earned begging so that he could buy nice new clothes and then he went to visit her. A couple of weeks later he returned to the streets so happy that he had seen him mom.

Juma wants nothing more in the world than to live with his mom.

But she just doesn't want to take responsibility for Juma.

I don't get it.

And it breaks my heart.

Juma's mom was recently here in Mozambique again and we went to meet her. We spoke to her about her son and the responsibility she has in taking care of him. When I asked her why she doesn't take Juma to South Africa with her, she simply laughed and said, "what will I do with him there?"

Seeing that his mom was not willing to take care of Juma, we asked her to help us find a family member that he could live with. She agreed to help but never followed through. We finally just showed up at her house again with Juma. During this visit, she agreed that Juma could come back and live with her until she returned to South Africa at which point he would go live with his grandfather.

Juma was so happy as we left that day! He chose the following Thursday, exactly one week later, as his day to return.

Again, Juma spent the whole week saving his begging money to buy new clothes. Thursday arrived and Juma bid farewell to all of his friends at Masana. We drove to his mom's house and arrived to discover that she had left a few days earlier and returned to South Africa.

Juma was crushed. He held it together as we walked back to my car and then the tears began to flow as he faced the truth that his mom had left because she didn't want him.

No child should ever have to face that truth.

2 More Boys Back With Their Families

We recently helped 2 boys leave the streets and Maputo and return to their families!!! Here are their stories:

Thomas

Thomas has been living on the streets on and off again since he was 10 years old. He is now 17. For 10 years he would leave home for no real reason, live on the streets for a few months, and then return home when he was ready to. Thomas has a great father who is a pastor. His father just does not understand why Thomas chooses to live on the streets when he has a family that loves him and provides for him.

In the past, other centers have helped Thomas return to his family. Why do I think us helping him this time will be any different? Thomas' father had a great and encouraging answer to that question. He said that there is something different about Masana and the way we have gone about reintegrating Thomas with his family. We are the first project that has invested time in talking with them as a family and getting to the root of what drives Thomas to the streets. We are the first project that has provided a bit of counseling for Thomas as he makes this transition back home. And we will continue doing all of this for at least a year.

Fred

Fred has one of the biggest smiles I've ever seen on the streets of Maputo. He just shines! He has a slight tendency to tell tall-tales but he is a good kid. He doesn't get into much trouble. He doesn't steal. He is one of the boys that hung around the house with us more often...one of the boys that we were able to connect with on a more personal level. And now he is home with his family.

Fred is 15 years old. Both of his parents have passed away. He is now living with his brother and his brother's wife in a community not far from the city.

I find this happens often: God will highlight a certain boy and give me and my housemates a special bond with him. He'll be one of the boys that we trust a little bit more than the others. He'll be one that opens up to us and shares about his life on and off the streets. And these are usually the boys we see making the decision to return home. And that is what our being here is all about.

Reintegration: Luis

Today we took Luis back to his family. He had been on the streets of Maputo for a few months. He is one of the sweetest most respectful boys at Masana. I never heard anyone say anything bad about him or things he had done. His family is in a rural area near Maputo. We took a ferry across the bay and then a chapa (local mini bus) to his house. We walked the last 15 minutes to his house. All along the way, neighbors would call out, "Luis" as we passed by. They were all so excited to see him back!!!

Luis had left home a few months ago after getting into some trouble with some of his neighbors. He and some friends had stolen a chicken from a neighbor and eaten it. For whatever reason, Luis decided to run away rather than be punished. We had a good talk with him about being careful about the friends he chose to spend his time with.

We'll return to visit Luis in a few weeks. At that time, we'll take him clothes, blankets, and a few other basic necessities. We'll also help him start up a small business. He and his mom are talking about the possibility of starting a chicken business where they raise chickens both for eggs and to sale. I am really excited about this possibility as it is a business that can keep its self running as long as the chicken's are taken care of. We're going to do some investigating on the start up cost of this. If its not way out of our normal budget I think it could be a great one to try out! And Luis can replace the chicken he stole from his neighbor!!!

Please be praying for Luis in these next few days as he readjusts to life at home. Pray that he may be overwhelmed by the love of his family and neighbors. Pray also that he will find a church near his house that he can get connected to.

Another son is back home tonight!!!

Corey and Paito

From time to time, we get some visitors at the Kunhymela House. Some come for a couple of nights and some stay for a couple of months. Since late July, we've had Corey, a university student from Oregon, staying with us. He is really gifted in carpentry and has completed a few projects for us around the house including some more beds. One of the street boys, Paito, has become Corey's assistant. Its such a blessing when a visitor is able to teach the boys something valuable like carpentry.

Thanks Corey for taking time to teach Paito....you may think of him as just someone to assist you with your projects but the time that you are investing in him is helping him to see the value he has in God's eyes. And that's our purpose in being here in Mozambique with these precious boys.

Fabiao: Revisited

A few weeks ago, we did our first follow up visit with Fabiao. If you haven't read about his reintegration yet, you should check out that post. It was the most joyful reintegration yet!!!

He is doing really well at home. His family wanted to treat us to a meal as a thank you for all that we did to help their son. We had told them what time we'd be arriving, in hopes that they would have the meal prepared already. But of course that didn't happen. His mom insisted that they had to catch the chicken and kill it while we were there so that we knew they were serving us fresh food and not leftovers! Here is Fabiao and Nelson, another Masana boy, with the chicken:

While the women prepared the meal, Fabiao was able to try on all of the clothes we had brought him. He insisted that I take a picture of him in every outfit. I had prepared a notebook for him to continue learning to read and write so I was able to go through it with him and his older sister so that she could help him. Fabiao also blessed me with a gift...a mat that he had made for me. Here is Fabiao in one of his new outfits:

Finally the food was done and we were served. This is always a bit awkward for me because custom here in Mozambique is that guests are served and everyone else watches us eat. After the meal, we all gathered in their house so that the rest of the family could see the clothes, blankets, and other things we had brought for Fabiao. Fabiao's mom was so excited that she stood up and started dancing and singing. She is seriously one of the most joyful women I have met in Mozambique!!! Here is Fabiao with his family (the mat they are sitting on is the one Fabiao made for me!):

After a great time celebrating with this family, we made the 3 hour drive back to Maputo. We will be back in Xai Xai, where Fabiao lives in a couple of weeks which means we'll get to visit again! It is always a blessing being a part of seeing families restored!

Peace in the Midst of Rioting

A little over a week ago, Maputo experienced 3 days of rioting as the people protested the increases in the price of electricity, water, and many basic food items. One street over from our house was one of the worst areas on the first day of rioting. For hours, the sky was black with smoke from burning tires. Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to control the crowds. Cars were destroyed. Shops were luted. 2 innocent children lost their lives.

Despite the commotion on the street, our house was a place of peace. We had 24 street boys with us that day. They were grateful for a safe place to pass the day, safe from the danger on the streets. I was blessed to see them here rather than out participating in the riots. What a joy to provide a safe place for these boys.

In response to the rioting, the government found ways to help with the cost of living by supplementing bakeries so that the price of bread could remain the same and lowing the taxes on importing goods from other countries.

Thank you everyone who prayed for us during the riots.

LIfting My Eyes

This morning, i read a verse in Isaiah that led me to reflect and rejoice at the work God has done in the short 19 months that i have been working with Masana.

"Lift up your eyes and look around; all your sons gather and come to you. As surely as I live, declares the Lord, you will wear them all as ornaments; you will put them on, like a bride."

Isaiah 49:18

one of the deepest desires of my heart is be a bride...a wife and a mother. with the life that i have chosen to live, i am not sure that that is going to happen. so this verse is a beautiful promise to me. though i have no sons of my own womb, when i lift up my eyes and look around, i see that God has given me so many sons. and i have the beautiful privilege of seeing these sons reunited with their earthly families.

these are my sons that are now back with their families:

Felix

Aderito

Fabiao

Janerio

Abrantis

Castigo

Biggs

Emilton

Marcus

Leonel

Danilio

Carlos

Fazenda

Antonio

Antonio

Pedro

Declesio

Gito

Semera

Crazy Hat Day!

Some days, the boys show up at Masana with the funniest clothes and other treasures they’ve found on the street. Each evening, as venders that sale clothes on the sidewalks are closing up shop, they will give the boys random pieces of clothing that they probably won’t ever sale.

Thursday, it was crazy hat day! Wednesday had been a cold and rainy day so the boys must have worked hard to find warm clothes…including these great hats:

Mario

Solomon

Issac

New boy whose name i don't know yet

Fred

Another Mario

Felix

Shake Off The Dust

i hate rejection. if satan can keep us in the place of feeling rejected, he knows it will hinder us from receiving the love of God.

rejection is one of the greatest things we are up against as we work with street kids.

i blogged below about the joyful reunion of fabião with his mother. the same day, we also had a very sad home visit where one of the precious little ones dear to my heart, nelson, was rejected by his family. they were tired of dealing with his behavior problems and refused to allow him to return home. they suggested we try to make contact with nelson's father.

this makes me so angry! no child, regardless of what behavior problems he has, should ever have to listen to his family say he's not wanted.

please join with me in praying for nelson. pray that the lies of rejection would be broken off of his tender little heart and that he would know that he is accepted by his Father. pray that he would feel the love of God in a very tangible way and that it would be enough to push away the hurt he experienced saturday as we visited his family.

as we were leaving the family's house, i was reminded of the scripture in matthew 10:14 that says, "if anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off you feet as you leave that home or town."

i pray little nelson will be able to shake the dust off his feet and follow the path God has set before him...a path that will lead him into the arms of his Father.

Fabião....True Joy.

Saturday we took 12 year old Fabião back home. When we first arrived at the house, none of the family was there. Some neighbors tried to phone them as we waited. Fabião's mother, on her way home from the farm, ran into a neighbor as she headed up the hill towards her house. The neighbor told her she had some visitors...white people. Her first thought was that there was bad news about Fabião. As she arrived at the house, she saw our footprints leading to a neighbor's so she followed them. We were just leaving the neighbor's as she approached.

And what we witnessed next was true joy as mother and son saw each other for the first time in 2 years!!!

It was the most beautiful reintegration I've been a part of!!!

I cried tears of joy as my sweet little Fabião was reunited with his mother.

A Secret World

today i had the privilege of entering into the secret world of the street kids i work with. ian, alexis, and i were invited to visit the area of the city where they have construed houses for themselves. i parked my car by a new fancy office building and then we began the uphill climb into one of the few green spaces in the city of Maputo. parts of the hill were so steep that we had to use roots and vines to pull ourselves up. other parts we just had to climb on all fours. we passed a broken pipe peaking out of the ground with water leaking out. the boys informed us that that is where they wash their clothes and bathe when masana is closed. finally we arrived into this little village of houses made of sticks, cardboard boxes, sheets of plastic, and other random scraps found in the garbage.

there are at least 20 boys sleeping in this area. the oldest boys are around 20 years old and the youngest are 11. they are a community...protecting and helping one another. one by one the boys took us to their houses and showed us their individual rooms. some of the boys, especially the younger, sleep 2 or 3 to a house. the older boys had taken much care in building beds with scraps of wood. some had small boxes that served as a bedside table. their little tables were covered with treasures found around the city...almost empty bottles of perfume, broken toys, empty boxes baring the logo of their favorite brands such as nike or coca cola.

i was filled with all sorts of emotions as i spent a couple of hours in this secret world:

PROUD of how resourceful my boys are.

HAPPY to see the older boys inviting the younger boys to live among them.

OVERWHELMED by the care each one took of his home...even running ahead of us to clean up before we arrived.

SAD at the thought of them sleeping on that hill overlooking the city tonight.

BROKEN at the sense of hopelessness that these boys live in when a glorified cardboard box serves as a substitute for a home filled with family.

BLESSED to know that i am trusted enough to be invited into their world.

Making Learning Fun!

A few weeks ago, we started a special class for 4 of the boys who are regulars at Masana. Ian, one of guys living in Kunhymela House, is now Professor Ian and he has the fun job of teaching reading, writing, and mathematics to Felix, Dombo, Issac, and Fabiao. These 4 boys range in age from 12 to 19 and none of them know how to read or write much more than their own name. For the past year or so, they've been in the normal school lessons we offer but were just not progressing. So I decided we needed to work with these boys more one-on-one and Ian was up for the task! He is doing a great job of coming up with fun ways to help the boys recognize letters and do math problems. It's so wonderful to see these 4 boys actually excited about the school lessons each day as they get their notebooks out and ask me where Professor Ian is.

Professor Ian and his students.

Another Son Back With His Family Tonight

Today we took 11 year old Pai back to his family. We were greeted by his grandmother, who overjoyed at seeing Pai, could only say "Thank you God! Thank you God!" over and over again. A neighbor quickly ran in search of Pai's mother. They had been looking for him since he disappeared 4 months ago. Just a few days ago, they gave up hope of finding Pai and sent word to the extended family that he was gone. But now, in answer to the prayers of this family, God had returned their lost son.

Tonight

Tonight, there is one less boy sleeping on the streets of Maputo, Mozambique.

Tonight, a family is able to celebrate the return of their lost son.

Tonight, Marcus is at home.

A New Car!!!

A little over 3 weeks ago, i had the frustrating experience of my car breaking down while on a sand road only accessible with 4x4 and about 3 hours from the city where i live. 9 hours later we finally made it home with my car in tow.

Since then, i have been amazed as i've watched God provide! My family and friends in the States and other parts of the world began praying and giving. God also put me in contact with an amazing family involved with the U.S. government here in Mozambique who was preparing to leave the country. They had a beautiful car that was perfect for my ministry needs. So i began praying for it. With the car, we discovered there were some taxes involved in switching it from diplomatic status to normal registration. the owner of the car was expecting it to be around $1000 in taxes and had told me he and his wife would pay up to $1000 if i could make up the balance. the family was also amazing in working out a payment plan with me in which i have til jan. 1 to pay the total amount.

friday he called me with the shocking and sad news that the taxes would be $8000! i was so disappointed. he and his wife really wanted me to have the car so they had talked and prayed and agreed to pay $4000 of the taxes if i could cover the rest. i told him i couldn't do it as it would put the cost of the car out of my budget. so i gave up on getting their car and started looking at classifieds again.

sunday, the owner of the car texted me and asked me to come by their house. they had prayed about it more and still felt like i was suppose to have the car. they decided that i could "borrow" the car til september when the taxes owed would drop to $5000 then they will pay that amount as a gift to me. then he gave me all the documents and the keys! and the car is mine!!!

thank you all so much for helping me raise the money for this car! i still need a few thousand dollars more by january 1st so please keep praying and give if you are able (go to www.theunveiledfaces.org to give).

i pray this blog is a reminder of God's faithfulness. He loves to give good gifts to His children!

Lena

if you've followed my blog for long or heard me share stories about life in mozambique, you've probably heard me mention gaspar and zacarius. they are brothers and were teh first 2 street kids i ever met. they became a huge part of my testimony and calling to work with street kids. sadly, i write this blog with bad news. their mother, lena, passed away friday. she was 6 months pregnant and died of complications related to the pregnancy.

this afternoon when i got home, gaspar and zacarius were at my house. they had tears in their eyes and told me their mother had died. i thought they had to be confused. manuel and nelson, 2 of my friends, had just spoken to her the day before. thankfully, manuel and nelson were with me so they talked to the boys and then we jumped in the car with my housemmate, ian, and went to matola to speak to the family.

gaspar, zacarius, and matilda (their 13 year old sister) ended up coming home with me to stay at my house a night or two while the family figures out what to do about the funeral. sadly, it did not seem to be anyone's priority to look after these kids. a friend of mine is going to let me use her car tomorrow so that i can take the kids to get some clothes and then back to matola to check in with the family. lena's parents are living and so are some brothers and sisters so i'm really praying they will take in these 3 kids.

the boys and matilda seem to be doing okay. i think them staying here with me is a good distraction. they've just enjoyed watching tom and jerry cartoons and have laughed a lot. please keep them in your prayers these next few days. . . and me. life in Africa is so harsh.

Lena and her 4 precious children.

Soccer With the Street Kids

Every Thursday, me and the housemates head down to a soccer field in the city to play with the boys. We have anywhere from 20 to 35 boys join us. A few of our Mozambican friends go to help get the games organized. The boys found out that I use to play goalie back in the day so that is now my permanent position. For a few of the boys, their goal each week is simply to score a goal while I'm playing keeper.....as if that's really a big feat!!! It is so much fun though to connect with the boys through soccer. Each week, we play til the sun goes down and then we wrap up with a quick devotional and prayer.

Towards the end of July, we will be holding a week long soccer clinic. We'll promote the clinic among street kids and also open it up to kids that live in the city. The whole point of this clinic is evangelism. The different components of soccer will be used to share Christ. Please be praying for this clinic as we prepare!!

Soccer is such a part of life here and such an incredible tool to share the Gospel!!!

Daniel, the director of Ambassador in Sport Mozambique, visited Masana and played some games using soccer skills.

Me and the housemates with some of the boys at the soccer field.

Devotion time after our soccer game.