Maranatha Jan 31, 2013

Thank you everyone for all of your prayers. All of the containers finally cleared the various obstacles (mostly people wanting bribes) and arrived here this month. The last container arrived about a week ago. So the materials for the new buildings are here but there was some stuff that was apparently not put in the containers although I think they were about maxed out in terms of weight. I believe they are going to send some more material via another container that hopefully will arrive before rainy seasons when the roads become impassable. Some materials for electrical are going to be sent as well as some insulation.
A maranatha group just left after being here for two plus weeks. They got a lot done erecting frames, roofing, and siding on new buildings. Not all got done. There is still much work to be done on the inside to finish the buildings. Our house is to be one of the first ones to be completed along with a “hotel,” a 4-plex so that people will have a place to stay when they come. The private wards for patients who want to pay extra for special room will be finished before the rest. This will bring extra revenue for the hospital and give us more bed space as we are almost always full and having to make some patients stay on the veranda or under the mango trees.. WE WILL STILL NEED MORE PEOPLE TO FINISH THE PROJECT. There is still more steel work to be done as well as the electrical and plumbing that has not been started. The aerial view is certainly different than it was when we arrived.
It has been interesting trying to sort through some of the things in our container although we do not have a house to put things in yet. We have brought a few things over to the little apartment we are living. Our soft couch, love seat, and chair are certainly more comfortable than the hard benches we were sitting on before. We got some of the CD’s out and playing them on our little CD stereo player and are enjoying some good music. So far we have found very little breakage. The mirrors are ok and only one broken jar and 2 plastic platters. Some of the boxes were very mutilated but the contents still ok. The freezer has the top bent in but I think we can eventually straighten it out as it is not very bad.
Of course the hospital has been busy. 

Nearly all the beds are full most of the time, especially post op. We have in the books over 140 procedures for Jan. In general if a patient can eat, drink, walk and be afebrile he/she is discharged or at least sent out under the mango trees. We had a run on ruptured uteri and c-sections while Danae and Olen were on leave during Nov and Dec but have had none since they got back except one c-section. I had a urethra stricture and fistula in a man today that was quite difficult. His prostatic urethra was very scarred and stenosed but finally got a foley in and then did the fistula repair. Two days ago we had a foul smelling necrosed part of scrotum and necrosed mushy testicle that we cleaned out and packed it open perhaps to be closed after the infection is cleared. Also did a hernia repair and amputation of part of his scrotum that was necrosed on a man that insisted that it be done even though it was dangerous with edema and an ejection fraction about 20%. He has done very well so far post op. A few days ago we drained a liver abscess and obtained about a pint of purulence from it and so far is doing ok.
Scott and Becki Gardner, Olen’s uncle and aunt, were here this past week and will be here next week. They are over at Koza, Cameroon this week where they are planning to be long term after Dec. He is a surgeon and she a nurse. One of the Maranatha group is an anesthetist and is staying an extra week to do some anesthesia and teach some also.
Lyol and Zane are very active and “get into everything” and keep Dolores busy during the day. Today is Lyol’s birthday and we had a birthday party for him inviting the expats over. He got several gifts and of course birthday cake. He had fun opening his various gift packages. We had to help him assemble his new wagon that will hold two people. Lyol calls this his home rather than America. I guess we all long for that land above that is fairer than day. This definitely does not feel like home here but we make the best of it and hope the love of Jesus will shine to these people.
Love, Rollin and Dolores