Jarretts Ministry

Dear Family and Friends,
My writing has been sporatic due to the full schedule we had the past 6 weeks. However, you have all been thought about much, prayed for regularly, and missed greatly. I am going to take this opportunity to give you a detailed summary of our time with Laura and Alicia. Feel free to skim or read all the details.
Saying good-bye to Laura and Alicia was as difficult as expected, but God’s grace comforted us and allowed us to sleep that night. The heartbreaking part of the farewell was Rachel’s response. She rarely senses physical pain and seldomly shows strong emotion; however, for the first time we saw her sob when the girls left–calling out Alicia’s name over and over. All I could do was put my arms around her and encourage her that Jesus would help us each day. Alicia seems to be Rachel’s special gift from God.
On a brighter note, the past six weeks were full of blessings. Laura and Alicia did a magnificient job leading worship on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. Laura has developed that musical gift from the Lord and worship now comes from her heart. It was such a meaningful time for all of us. I am certain God is using those experiences in preparation for her ministry in Japan. The girls even learned some new Swahilli praise songs along with the “moves”.
As far as ministry opportunities, various ones made trips to the nursery to “love on” forgotten babies, (I should have checked L & A’s luggage for their 2 favorites), went to the primary school a few times to play volleyball with the students, babysat with MK’s numerous times, and did haircuts and manicures galore.
Along with the Ruckers, (our friends from Boone, N.C.), we had a 4-Day Bible Club for 40 Kenyan staff children. They sang praise songs with gusto, learned Bible verses eagerly, listened intently to Bible stories, and played relay games with much enthusiasm (especially the sack races—they looked like little veggie tale characters.) The Lord somehow stretched our materials prepared for the 27 signed up children to accommodate the 40 who excitedly came each day.
The Ruckers also visited all 4 of the orphanages with us. We had such special times with over 100 children—sharing songs, stories, clothes, gift bags, small individual metal foot lockers, bubbles, silly string, and balloons! (most all of these items donated by the Ruckers). The little girls loved the black baby dolls, and the little boys were thrilled with balls and Matchbox type cars. They soon discovered they could race the small cars across the tops of their new trunks. The smiles on their faces as proud owners of individual storage lockers stretched from ear to ear as they put these new personal possessions away. (What each child owns could be put in a medium sized Target sack.)
Entertaining filled another large amount of our time. We had visitors and friends come for lunch and dinner several times. The girls and I had a Valentine’s dinner on the 14th for the single missionary ladies–complete with a gourmet dinner, table and house decorations, and gifts. We also helped the Ruckers with a Valentine’s party on the 14th for the MK’s. It was fun to see some of the creative costumes the kids put together. (oh my!)They enjoyed the games, refreshments, and the video about Valentine (early Christian martyr). Then on the 18th, we helped the Ruckers with a Valentine’s Banquet for the adult missionaries. Lorraine, Billy, and Anna prepared a delicious Italian dinner, planned some fun games, and hosted the Newlywed Game with 3 couples. I was thanking the Lord our name was not drawn as our relationship seemed to deteriorate for a short while after each time we played that game in the early years of our marriage. Of course, hopefully we would do much better now as Christians—if our memories were consistently working.
You might be asking, “Where did all the supplies come from for all these events and ministries?”. Well, the answer is: the Rucker’s God equipped “bottomless” suitcases (reminds me of the widow’s jar of oil that never emptied). Besides all those supplies, they brought several hospital supplies and much desired personal items for us and others. As you can imagine, the Ruckers were incredible blessings to us and all of Tenwek and beyond!!! God is so faithful to arrange details and provide abundantly—often through His servants such as that precious family. Lorraine is like a sister to me, and it is such a blessing to serve the Lord together. I guess it was added difficulty having them leave the same time as Laura and Alicia. I definitely spent much time with the Lord this morning praising Him and seeking His direction and continued encouragement for me now. He is always faithful.
A birthday party for Alex (one of our favorite Medical students who left 2 weeks ago) and a Ladies Night Out at our home rounded out the entertaining events we have hosted. Alex’s party included about 30 Kenyan and American med students. I gave a devotion about “Friends in the Lord”, the girls sang Michael W. Smith’s “Friends” and we played Guestures (some of the Kenyan guys were hilarious!) Refreshments were abundant (including 2 cakes with relighting candles), and decorations consisted of balloons, streamers, and a giant hand-made card created by Laura and Alicia. The evening continued with a Kenyan birthday tradition of drenching the guest of honor with bucketfulls of water mixed with cereal, flour, etc. (outside, of course—only a few onlookers got a little wet.) Our celebration ended with great praise music and some Kenyan dancing well past midnight at Alex’s request.
The Ladies’ Night Out (which has become a yearly tradition in our home) was a great success. I gave a devotion on “Who We Are In Christ”, and the girls lead us in singing “How Great Is Our God” (my newest favorite praise song). The ladies brought yummy salads of all varieties ( a real treat because veggies are hard to find this year), and we contributed the desserts and beverages. To complete the evening, Alicia and Laura did several manicures, Rachel gave relaxing foot massages, and we played Mexican Train. It was a special evening for the ladies and us.
One other opportunity for L and A to help the missionary families was helping with the “Wet and Wild” birthday party for one of the visitors of the Manchester Family. The Slip and Slide event must surely be called the “entertainment of the decade” for children at Tenwek. Laura was definitely the hero as she made close to 100 trips down the plastic tarp on our back hill, watered down regularly with a bucket of water. Each time she had one of the MK’s tucked safely in front of her as she flew down backwards providing a soft landing for each of the children. What a sacrifice, but she loved it as much as the kids. Her white skin and clothing were several shades darker when she came in 4 hours later. I think she felt like she had been run over by a truck when she crept out of bed the next morning. Believe it or not, A and L decided to walk to Bomet and back that morning to complete their Tenwek adventures.(about a 3 hour walk). There is now a small grocery at the petrol station in the thriving little town of Bomet so their trip was rewarded with the purchase of an ice cream treat. Wonders never cease around here! Maybe we will see a Wal-Mart in the area someday—oh dear!
Another chunk of time for all of us has been filled with many walks (Rachel and I go on a mile walk most mornings), several game nights (Settlers–not me!!, Skip Bo, Tripoley, Pinocle), a few movies, some visits in Kenyan homes including Caroline’s (our sweet househelper), Wallyball—not me!!! , and enjoying lots of popcorn.
A repeat ministry for me this year is my weekly Bible Study and Prayer time with 2 different groups–one with my Tenwek “Daughters” (the group of missionary wives) and the other with 2 women househelpers. It is a joy to share God’s Word and spiritual truths and spend time praising Him. Sharing burdens and requests and taking them before the Lord is a great encouragement for all of us. Of course a daily ministry for us is praying with Kenyans (4 already today)who come seeking financial aid. We offer suggestions for work opportunities and occasionly share clothes, food, or a small amount of money as God leads. There are so many struggling people right now due to the continued drought. PLEASE KEEP PRAYING for rain. Electric power outages are also becoming a periodic problem.
Well, our 6 weeks with the girls came to an end with a wonderful time in the Aberdares with the Ruckers. God is so faithful. As you might recall, we asked you to pray for our health and for the safety and performance of the car. Prayers were definitely felt and answered as we were reminded early in our travels to rely on God’s sovereignty and provision. As we were packing the car in the dark early hours of Thursday, Rachel was sitting in a lawn chair and suddenly vomited in the yard. (good place). OK. It is time for us to leave on our 6 hour journey, so I grab a bucket, several plastic bags, an extra bottle of water and send up an urgent prayer for God’s mercy and grace in the form of healing for Rachel. She sat in the backseat next to me with the bucket positioned on her lap and finally went to sleep.
Then 2 hours down the bumpy road [the main road between Kenya and Uganda is in terrible disrepair], God’s car began making very disturbing noises. After 2 quick stops along the narrow side of the road to investigate the problem and use our trusty duct tape on parts hanging down, we limped into Nakuru and stopped at the first business we saw—a large Pajero dealership. God is so good! They assured us that 2 hours of repairs on the broken-off shock absorber would see us on our way. When that 2 hours had come and gone, we observed an old man lumbering up on his bicycle with our needed part for the car stored in his front basket—only it was the wrong size. The comedy of the scene (a bicycle delivery to this big fancy car dealer) gave us some relief from the trying situation. God definitely has a sense of humor. Well, the 1:00-2:00 lunch hour is sacred in Kenya, so all the employees left, everything was locked up tightly, and we were told that work on the car would resume (with the proper part now on hand) after lunch. (Groan—it would only take 15 minutes to install, but lunch was scheduled to begin in 10 minutes, so wait we did!) We decided to send the Ruckers ahead with their driver not wanting their stay at the Aberdares to be shortened any longer. Finally, the lunch break ended, the part was put on (in 15 minutes), and we were supposedly on our way—minus another part that could not be located in Nakuru but would hopefully not interfere with driving the car.
When we pulled out of the lot and headed to the petrol station, the noises were worse than before, so we decided it was not safe or wise to travel on in this car. After praying, Dad felt lead to call the WGM field director who lives in that town and see if there was a WGM vehicle available for us to borrow [our car is actually owned by World Gospel Mission]. Praise God for His provision. We soon had a Land Rover to use for the remainder of our trip while our car stayed in Nakuru waiting for the parts to come from Nairobi. (I hope not by bicycle delivery.) Other than some trouble with a difficult, tempermental clutch, Dad did well handling the Land Rover. (much faster than the Pajero which was a bonus) With God’s help, we pulled into the Aberdares Country Club just as it was getting dark—only 7 hours later than anticipated. The Ruckers were thrilled to see us. The rest of our time there was delightful: beautiful flowering bushes, a breathtaking view of Mt. Kenya, good food, horseback riding and walking among the giraffe and other grazing animals, a safari in the Aberdare National Park arranged by the Ruckers, Skip Bo and Speed Uno in the beautiful lounge [built in the 1930's], and sweet fellowship with loved ones.
The trip to Nairobi went smoothly except for a few tense moments when Dad tried to pass a creeping truck (a repeated necessity on one long stretch of the road), found another car coming our way, screeched to a halt to get back in our lane which killed the engine, and there we were in the middle of 2 lanes with cars coming from both directions going around us and a car that didn’t want to restart! Pray, we did!!! Finally, when traffic was clear for a moment, we were able to roll backwards down the hill a bit and get to the side. Dad was then able to restart the engine, and we were on our way once again—no further excitement.
Shopping in Nairobi was the usual tiring, stressful adventure with many friends to visit in the dukas–all wanting to greet us and have us shop! They are precious people, and you wish you could buy from all, but that is not possible. Handshakes and words of encouragement are definitely welcomed. Everyone found most of what they wanted to take home, and a few Bibles and Bible study materials were distributed.
By the way, Rachel was not sick again the whole trip, and no one else got sick so we praise God for His provision. He answered your prayers for good health and a working car for us. Her hives still come and go, so we’re now doubtful of the latest diagnosis and treatment for Lyme Disease, which she would have gotten before leaving the USA. We’ll do some tests this week.
Now we just have to make another trip to Nakuru at the end of the week (3 hours one way) to exchange cars. Please pray that the Pajero is fixed and in good condition (no more scary noises) and that the price of repairs will be fair.
All this report brings us back to where it began–a sad farewell to Laura and Alicia but praise that they are home safe and sound after some extra difficult travel. [Four hour delayed flight from Nairobi, missed flight in London, and lost all luggage] God is faithful, and we trust He will continue to meet all our needs as He also cares for all of you. We love you and pray fervently for all of you. Family is an incredible blessing of God. Whew, are you tired yet? I am in the process of recuperating from a full and wonderful 6 weeks. My first order of business though when arriving at Tenwek (in a record 3 hours with the Land Rover) was unpacking (without Laura’s strong arms), putting away groceries, washing and bleaching produce, and doing laundry. Maybe the rest of the week will be a little more relaxing–ha! God’s mercies are new each morning. (Lam. 3: 21-25). I know this has been a very long report, but I hope some of it will be a blessing to you. Ephesians. 3: 20-21 has been very true for us and I pray that it is for you. “Now to Him Who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.”
Love in Christ,
Marty

Dear Friends and Family:
We would request your prayers for safe travel as we take Laura and Alicia to the airport for their flight Saturday night. They will be arriving back in Indianapolis on Sunday afternoon at 4:24 PM.
We will leave Tenwek early Thursday morning [about 11pm Indianapolis time Wednesday night] and drive to Aberdares north of Nakuru where we’ll spend Thursday and Friday nights [hopefully relaxing]. Our friends, the Ruckers from Boone, NC will travel with us. Then Saturday morning we’ll drive to Nairobi for a day of shopping before the girls and the Ruckers depart for the airport. Their flight leaves around 11PM, which is 3PM Saturday in Indianapolis. Paul, Marty, and Rachel will travel back to Tenwek on Sunday.
Also, remember Marty during this time of separation from the girls. It will be more than 9 weeks before Amy and Elissa come to spend the remaining two months with us.
Thanks so much for your prayers.
Paul, for the Jarretts in Kenya
PS. Our Tenwek e-mail has been down for 5 days. If you wrote us at the jarretts@tenwek.com address, you probably got a returned mail as undeliverable.
Please write us at pauljar@gmail.com where we can still check e-mails. Mail sent to that address is saved and can be read. Mail will be automatically forwarded to Tenwek when our server is working again. We appreciate your notes and encouragement.

Jarrett’s Prayer Letter
Volume 7, Number 5
February 13, 2006

Dear Friends and Family:

Thanks so much for your prayers this past week. Let me tell you what a remarkable turn around has occurred with the young HIV+ woman with an unwanted pregnancy. She had also been the victim of assault. You may recall that she had refused all intervention on behalf of the child as well as her own health.
I must also give praise for the skills of my Kenyan colleague, Kays Muruka, whom I have been training for the past three years. He spent a great deal of time talking with the young woman. Even though she was refusing care, he was also sensing that she wasn’t eager to leave the hospital; so he told her that he would like her to stay for a few more days which she readily accepted. He and a chaplain, Pastor Helen, spent time with her each day. They began to see a change in her attitude in response to their kindness and interest.
This young woman has had a good education. She speaks English easily and fluently. She admitted that her problems arose from her wayward behavior. Promiscuity and alcohol had led her into a life of prostitution. She had already had one child who stays with her mother. As our staff began to counsel her and treat her so kindly, she began to warm to the idea of giving the child away; but this culture dictates that her father must consent to this. She didn’t want to tell her family about her HIV + status.
Her father came and talked with the doctor and chaplain. He agreed that she could give up the child, but his wife, the grandmother, must be consulted, since she may well want to raise the child. Indeed, the grandmother was wanting to keep the child. Now there was a dilemma; the adoptive parents must know about the HIV exposure for the baby. Finally, the girl agreed to divulge her HIV status to her parents. They were very supportive; they want her to come home, and they will give her money to start a business.
Finally, the mother agreed to take medicine to lessen the chance of transmission to the baby. She also agreed to have a cesarean section to lessen the chances even further. The healthy appearing baby was born by c-section last Thursday. I told the woman that we had been praying for her. She asked that we continue. She has not yet given her life to Jesus, but I believe that she may be close. At least, she has acknowledged her sins and has made some unselfish decisions to support the baby. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will quicken her to a new birth in Jesus.
From my first letter, I wanted to give some follow-up. The mother who had congestive heart failure near term responded very well to diuretics [water pills] and digitalis [strengthens heart muscle contraction]. After her recovery, we induced labor and got a healthy baby. She now is looking and feeling very good. The mother with a stroke has been prepared to go home. She has no function of her left arm or leg at this time. The family has been taught how to care for her, but how effectively her husband will do this is a major question. Please pray for her, although I doubt I will have more follow-up information for her.
Rachel’s mysterious giant hives are continuing, so we are still at a loss to explain them. She has been off her malaria prophylaxis for a week. She is taking it all in stride, but her parents are concerned.
I will give the next section of this letter to Laura, as she gives a good summary of the recent ministry that she and Alicia have had here the past few weeks.
I am sorry it has been so long since you heard from me last! I have been very busy. I can not believe it is already the end of our fourth week here. Right now I am over at a fellow missionary’s house watching the Super bowl! Only one week late also. But, I am enjoying the commercials mostly. I write during the game, and pause for commercials. Quite the opposite of most everybody here. I am also cheering for the losing team.
 
 Well, I am trying to remember what all I have not told you about. Every day during the week I try to study Japanese for 2 hours, at least. Also I work on my bible classes, Old Testament and Bible Introduction. I am really enjoying these classes actually. And I am learning so much. Recently I just finished writing a paper on the Life of Joseph. There are so many lessons we can learn from his life! I also just never realized how many themes of worship are in the OT.
 
 Besides my studies, we have been able to fit in some ministry. This year it seems like we have had a real big ministry with music. Alicia and I have gotten to help lead worship for church and also on every Wednesday night we have been leading music with our friend Alex [Intern from Germany] for the Kenyan interns and the visiting medical staff. It has really been a blessing to me.
 On Thursdays Alicia and I go up in the morning to play with the 7th grade girls at the Tenwek primary school. We taught them a game called Nukem, and also played net ball with them. It has been fun, as we play with the same girls every week and have started to form some relationships with them.
 We also keep busy taking care of the young missionary kids so that their parents can do various things [like prayer and Bible study], and then also have enjoyed going up to the premie nursery and holding all the little babies and giving them love. There are three babies that especially need love because their mommies are “not alone”, as they say here (crazy), and are not allowed to hold them very much. So we get to go and give them love. They are so sweet.
 On Saturday we got to go to the new orphanage called Bosto. It is the orphanage that our church kids during VBS raised money for. It was so special to see the results, and also just how well it is doing and moving along in its ministry. They have 20 girls there now. (it opened a month ago) As the crow flies, this orphanage would only be about 20 minutes away, but there is no bridge across the river, so we have to go all the way around and it took us about an hour and a half to get there. (that is with the terrible roads of course) But we had fun bumping along and giving Dad a hard time about his driving.
   The 20 girls are actually the neediest of 600 ORPHANS in the area that they picked to bring into the home until they can build and expand more. It was really neat to see that the local churches have really stepped up and are taking care of the children. We had a fun time doing songs with the kids, playing with bubbles, balloons, shooting silly string every where, and of course, drinking chai together. The girls were so sweet, they immediately warmed up to us and held our hands, and sat on our laps. So sweet.
 Last weekend we hiked up Mt Motigo for the sunrise. So we got up at 4:30 am and with a bunch of visiting med staff, and also one of the Kenyan med students, and various other people, hiked up the mountain. This is the 3rd time we have done this, but the first time to actually get up there in time for the sunrise. It was soo beautiful! I can’t even imagine how people can think that the earth was not created by the Lord, and that it just evolved. What a creative and artistic God we serve!
 Last Sunday we had a beautiful service of all worship music and testimonies for church. The theme was the place of music in worship in the church. It was really special.
 This week I would appreciate your prayers for us. We are going to be having a week long bible club. We have 27 Kenyan staff children signed up, so we are really excited. Please pray that all the kids that are signed up will come and that they will learn. And if there are any that don’t know Jesus, that they would learn the truth and respond. Also please pray for Alicia and me as this our last full week at Tenwek.  
 Also, I would appreciate if you kept praying for rain in Kenya. There is a severe drought going on, and it is so hard of people to get water, for them to grow anything (therefore no food) and even the cows are not producing milk. So Kenya really needs rain!
 Well, I think I will try and send a few pictures. Otherwise I will sign off for now. God bless you all and thank you for praying for us! I love you all. Love in Christ, Laura Jarrett

We were all impressed with the Bosto Children’s Home. The pastor, Elkanah Rotich, explained some things about the community’s acceptance of the children. As I have stated before, the idea of an orphanage is completely new in this culture. Orphans are usually viewed as outcasts. As the building has been under construction for the past year, people would come by and wonder about it. But local churches began supporting the children when they arrived two months ago. Their first day at the new school set the tone for the community’s response. The teachers had the students walk down the road to greet the new girls as they arrived at school. They accepted them immediately, as only children can do, and each of the children integrated quickly into the school.
The children seem very happy and really looked very healthy after a relatively short period of time at the home. Perhaps the pastor’s request of worm medicine from Dr. Chuck Bemm for the girls had a bigger impact than would have been anticipated. It only took $3.00 of medicine to treat them all.
For me, the opening of the home is like a dream come true, since it has been two years since I first visited the site. This home started later than the other three, but began with permanent brick buildings rather than semi-permanent board buildings. The room that is serving for the girl’s dormitory is large, bright, and airy. There is a cross breeze coming up from the valley and forest below. There are 11 bunk beds in the room, each with a blanket, mattress, sheets, pillow, and a coverlet. A Bible was placed on each bed. There is a finished latrine building which our girls remarked to be spotless. There is a graded area for a large kitchen building. Many of the materials are on hand, and the architect stated that only $200 for labor and additional materials would finish it. The remaining two-thirds of the dormitory building needs cement floors, plaster for the walls, and glass for the windows, and a ceiling. One room will be another dorm. The middle room will be a guest room and a room for the supervising family. There is also roofed space for an office for record keeping. This will take about another $1,000. Inside the building is a plaque dedicating the building to Castleview Baptist Church of Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. Another acknowledges the gift of the children of Castleview for the completion of the dormitory.
We also got to see the goats. There are two Torgenburg goats from South Africa at the present time. The female is giving about 3 liters of milk each day and hasn’t been affected by the drought as have many other animals. And I am told that the milk is richer. The male goat has yet to give milk, but will provide other services. The goats are just over $100 apiece, rather than $50 which I had understood earlier, and a herd of 6 to 10 is desired. We have funds for two more goats at the present time. The acreage is completely fenced, and a man stays with the goats all day long. They are penned up at night for safety. The ministry of Agriculture is very interested in this project as a demonstration project.
A chicken project may start here at some point, but the director is reluctant to pursue this at present with the uncertainty of bird flu on the horizon. I thought that this was a good judgment, although we have not had any losses in the other chicken projects at this time.
After our visit and time of fellowship with the children and staff, we returned home with our visitors, the Rucker family from Boone, NC and David and Jenny Kim from Chicago. They were quite impressed as well. Another visiting family here at Tenwek had brought money for orphanage projects from their home church in St. Joseph, MI. Through the generosity of these families, some immediate needs for food for the children and the funds for completion of the dormitory and the kitchen were given. Thank you, Lord.
Despite the lateness of the day, we also stopped at the Umoja orphanage, the first one that opened. It is now in its third year. Joseph, the director, told me that the drought has produced significant hardship for them. There are now 20 children there. Food donations are down in recent months; despite having pretty good support from local churches in the past, so many people are hurting for food and water because of the drought. Umoja has two large rain collection tanks, but both are empty. Formerly they went to the river at the bottom of the hill for water when the rain tanks were dry, but now the river is dry. Joseph has to drive several kilometers to the river by Tenwek to haul water, but this takes money for gasoline for the truck.
It is difficult to comprehend the effects of the lack of rain for an extended period of time in a subsistence agricultural community. It’s not just the brown lawns. None of the gardens that are planted in January survived, so people don’t have vegetables. The herd animals at the Masai Mara are dying. The predators are eating well, as the weakened prey have little stamina in pursuit. In Longisa, just 15 miles from here, elephants and leopards have come up from the Mara area which frightens the local residents considerably. We had some rain on our arrival, but it has been dry since the first week. The only positive thing that can be said about the situation is that there are very few mosquitoes; consequently, we are seeing very few malaria cases at the hospital. We did have an anthrax case yesterday. Please pray that the daily rains will begin soon.
It was a special blessing and surprise to be at Umoja and see many of the older orphans from Kitoben Vision Children’s Home, which is six or seven miles away. They are attending a boarding school near Umoja; Alice had arranged with the headmaster for special permission for them to come and greet us. Otherwise, children are not allowed to leave the school.
Two of the children wrote notes to us. One was for Marty and the one for me was from a 15-year-old, Peninah. She is one from whom I can always catch an eye and a shy smile. She wrote: Many thanks to the Lord. He has taken great care of you since you left Kenya and now we are together again in the same, same spot, that’s Kenya. Welcome home, Daktari. We are happy and fine to see you back.
However, we Kitoben won’t forget to thank God who has greatly touched your hearts and all whoever they have extended these helping hands to us. God bless Our friends in United States. God bless you and your family at large.
Thank you for the school fees. Thank you for the brotherly love. Thank you for basics you are providing. Thanks for the toilet construction. And thanks for everything that I can’t contain in this script. We are greateful Daktari Paul. God bless.
And so, I can pass on these thanks to you verbatim for your participation in this ministry. Thanks to your prayers and support, many children are growing physically and spiritually. We receive the hugs and thanks on your behalf. Someday, in Heaven, you can receive them in person. We will have a joyous reunion there one day with all those whose lives we have touched directly and indirectly in prayer and with the Gospel as well as physical support. Do you not realize that you are doing these things as unto Jesus? Matt 25:34-40 says: “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’ NIV

Paul, for the Jarretts in Kenya [with help from Laura]

Jarrett’s Prayer Letter
Volume 7, Number 4
February 3, 2006

Reply: pauljar@gmail.com

Tales from Tenwek

They say that truth is stranger than fiction, and I believe them, whoever they are. While Marty and I were celebrating our anniversary on December 23, another event was unfolding on the other side of the world near our Tenwek home. I will forewarn those with a weak stomach to skip the first story.
In the little town of Silobwet about a mile from Tenwek, a woman was in the process of giving birth. It was said that this woman was a professional woman, that is, a member of one of the older professions, if not the oldest. She didn’t want another child, so she decided to deliver it into the pit latrine in town. Public latrines are nothing more than a small shack with a hole in the floor about a foot square. Often, the floor is a poured concrete slab over a 15 to 20 foot deep pit, but the one in Silobwet has a floor made of boards. One does not need to ask where the latrine is in a town; simply follow your nose.
In Africa, very little of people’s lives is private. People sit around the towns and stare and people-watch much of the time. So this woman’s entrance and activities inside the latrine didn’t go completely unnoticed. And since birthing a baby is usually not a quiet event, undoubtedly there was some commotion inside. When she left the latrine hurriedly, some people came over to see what had happened. They could hear a baby crying down in the pit below the floor of the latrine.
One of the men was drunk. He and a friend began to tear the floor of the latrine apart; then the friend lowered the drunken man down into the pit where he found the baby. I believe that one would have to be either an angel or a drunk to climb down into a pit latrine; since this man was well known in town, I give credence to the belief that he was the latter.
The drunk, the friend, and a woman friend rushed the baby to Tenwek Hospital. When they arrived in the Casualty Dept, they were filthy and smelled awful. Missionary Doctor Steve Manchester and members of our staff were literally suctioning sewage from the baby’s mouth and lungs where he had inhaled the filth in his initial breathing. His skin was burned on his face and chest from the ammonia and other toxins in the pit. A maggot crawled out of his ear. It looked like a very bleak picture, yet the baby responded to the treatment and cleansing; he began his fight for life.
The woman who accompanied the group to Tenwek gave information to the admitting officers. She told them the name of the mother of the child, but gave her own name instead of the birth mother. She was hoping for a finders keepers situation if the baby lived – a real shortcut through the adoption process. That is in itself a very unique situation. Very few people in this part of Kenya are interested in adopting a child outside their family.
Meanwhile the police started a search for the birth mother. She came to Tenwek the next day with heavy bleeding; she had failed to deliver the afterbirth completely, and she now needed assistance. One of our doctors performed a curettage to remove the remaining placenta in order to stop the bleeding. When the patient was taken to the ward to recover, the police arrested her. When she was released from the hospital, she was taken to jail.
Remarkably, the baby responded to the antibiotics and didn’t develop a serious pneumonia. The doctors treated him for all the treatable diseases that one can pick up from fecal contamination. The superficial chemical burns healed well.
Meanwhile, the mother spent three days in jail before she was released on probation. The maternal grandmother visited the baby in the hospital and had some sort of supervision over the mother as well.
The baby was soon ready for release. The woman who had given her own name as the mother came to the hospital to claim the baby. The staff nurses were now aware of the situation and informed her that her ruse was not going to be successful. It just didn’t work that way.
The criminal case was settled before a local judge very quickly. The birth mother was sentenced to probation for three years and custody of the baby was given to the grandmother. The mother is able to be involved with the baby’s care. The grandmother was made to buy five cans of formula for the baby and had a two-week follow-up appointment in the clinic. Child Protective Services personnel in the States would have a heart attack over this outcome, but things are not the same here.
Another strange situation came to light this week. As we were making rounds in the Maternity building, one of the nurses said to come quickly to the delivery room. A mother had just been brought in after delivering at home; she had been bleeding profusely and was no longer responding. Immediately, a team formed to begin a futile resuscitation effort. Despite cardiac compressions and assisted breathing as is standard in a CPR effort, there was not a flicker of life; it had been too long since her heart had stopped. As we surveyed the situation, the woman appeared to be in her late 30’s and just a bit heavier than most of our patients. Someone told us that the baby didn’t make it either.
The next morning a nursing officer brought us the death certificate to complete. We inquired about additional children. The nurse said that this was her ninth child. I envisioned the eight motherless children and asked about the father. The nurse replied that there was no husband; the woman was married to an old woman!
I have read about this custom in Kalingen tribes which has nearly died out – an older single woman, well past the marriageable age will arrange to buy a young girl as a bride. I believe that she would pay a dowry fee of some cows just as a young man would do. The girl would be brought into her home just as a wife, but, of course, with no sexual relationship between the two women. Homosexuality remains a taboo in this society. If I have the rest of the story correct — a male relative of the old woman, perhaps her brother, would impregnate the new wife, who would then raise up the child for the old woman. In this case, the eight children will be left with the old woman, although I believe that there might be some assistance from her male relatives, if necessary, as children traditionally belong to the male side of the family – which in this case is the old woman’s family.
In this case the baby had already delivered so our job was finished. When the mother dies with the baby still inside, we are requested to do a post-mortem cesarean section to remove the baby so that it can be buried separate from the mother – another Kalingen custom that I wrote about once before. My junior staff associate, Kays Muruka, told me that he has had to do this surgery on a corpse several times – the most recent only a few weeks before I returned. In this case, the person was already three days dead! I thought of the scripture — John 11:39 “But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.” NIV Kays said that it was applicable. The morgue has been so full that there is no room in the refrigerators. Kays stated that there were “four on the floor”. I explained that the American meaning of that phrase referred to a hot rod, but in this context the meaning was quite different.
There are probably several reasons for this overcrowded ward where no one complains. Being a referral hospital, we are often sent terminal cases from the district hospitals. We often have nothing to offer in the way of medical treatment that will make a difference other than compassionate terminal care and a presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Therefore, the medical ward is sometimes described as the “gateway to heaven”. Fortunately, for some this is true. There is also the ever-increasing problem of AIDS.
Also this week, a young woman was admitted in the last month of her pregnancy as a victim of sexual assault as well as considerable physical battery. The background story suggested that she was a prostitute – now it is politically correct to refer to her as a commercial sex worker. Apparently, she had been drinking. The admitting physicians treated her for the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases as per the protocol, including a dose of antiretroviral therapy as would be used after HIV exposure. Only later did it become known that she was already HIV positive – an occupational hazard not regulated by OHSA.
After the woman had recovered from the beating, she was informed of her HIV positive status. This information transferal can only occur if the patient gives consent to be told the results. The program of life-extending drugs for herself and prevention of transmission of the disease to the baby was carefully and patiently explained to her. She refused all intervention, including the one-time pill that she would take at the beginning of her impending labor. It became obvious after the intern spent two hours talking with her that she was adamant that she was going to do something to abort the baby, who is completely viable being only two weeks short of term. This is illegal in Kenya and a grave threat to the life of the mother as well as the child. We could envision a repeat of the first latrine story.
Friday afternoon, Kays and I discussed offering her induction of labor and assistance with placement of the baby. We would appreciate your prayers for this young woman and the child. I won’t give a name due to confidentiality issues – normally I only give a first name anyway.
We were disappointed that the meeting on Wednesday that I had asked you to pray for with the church council for the Kitoben Vision Children’s Home did not take place. Allegedly, the pastor had malaria and couldn’t come or call. There is some skepticism on the part of some of us that sufficient interest in supporting the children exists on this council. Please pray that the local church will begin supporting the children. The status of the paperwork that the council was to prepare for the donation of a dormitory is also unknown.
Today, we met with Alice and told her the status of funds for the support of the children. We have $1,200 in designated support which we will apportion over the next three months. She has been spending the equivalent of about $650 per month on food [although some of this she has grown in her garden] for when just 25 children are there and more when the older children return from school in the months of April, August, November, and December. Food prices are higher due to the drought, and the quality of the vegetables is not as high. The exchange rate is even worse than it was two weeks ago – reportedly 68 KSh to the US$ instead of 70. We told Alice that it is imperative that she contact local churches in the area to stir them up to assist her in ministering to these children. We don’t think it is healthy in the long run to rely on the support from abroad – the missionaries could be out of the picture at anytime – although it isn’t foreseen that this is likely.
The workers have been working on the latrine project again. Money for materials is being given by the Bemms through their support funds. Please continue to pray for this entire situation.
I hope that you aren’t getting tired of hearing from us. I warned you in the first letter that I had enough information for two letters, but I withheld it until now. With this update on prayer requests, I ask that you continue to pray specifically for the issues mentioned. We see time and time again that God is answering all of our prayers. Even these issues that seem so big to us are not impossible for God. Thanks for standing with us.

Paul, for the Jarretts in Kenya