Me and Granny

Me and Granny

In the few days I've been home, Granny has improved dramatically. The rest of the family who saw her a week ago are amazed at how much better she's doing.

We had a great time together yesterday, just the two of us. I gave her a manicure and pedicure, and a nice long hand massage. Then we did a crossword puzzle (I gave the clues, she gave the answers).

The best part was reading Psalm 91 and talking about the faithfulness of God, and His protection to those who abide in Him. We prayed together and it was so sweet to hold hands and hear Granny give thanks to God for her loving family.

I'm really thankful to be able to be here and love on my Granny a little bit. I know she really appreciates it, and it's a blessing to me.

Table for one

I’m not used to this.




I was just sitting here in Entebbe, having a little time with God, when the ladies from the guest house came and set up
my table for dinner.

One place setting, one chair…it just doesn’t look right.








I’m used to shoving lots of bodies into our big truck and driving for hours to get anywhere…




…with lots of pee breaks along the way



















…and of course the necessary disinfecting with antibacterial gel after said pee breaks.















Or if we are traveling by plane, there are usually bags of toys and ‘keep the kids active’ stuff, that last time resulted in Noah decorating his window with play dough!



(By the way…don’t carry play dough in your hand luggage unless you want to be pulled aside and thoroughly searched by security. Apparently play dough exactly resembles bomb-making explosive plastic. We learned this the hard way.)


Needless to say, my travels are usually a lot more noisy, chaotic and full of hair-pulling frenzy. So why am I lamenting this solo travel experience…?

I have no idea! I should be reveling in the peace and quiet and luxury of time to myself.

But darned if I don’t miss that noisy bunch left behind in Arua.

Go ahead…tell me to get over it and just enjoy it. I’ll try, but it’s my blog and I’ll cry if I want to.

Granny Margie

Noah and Granny Margie, taken 2008

Another difficult situation...my granny is sick and not handling it well. She's depressed and discouraged and just wants it all to end.

She took me in after my mother died when I was 15...she is like a mother to me, and hearing about her physical and emotional pain is very difficult for me.

I'm starting my journey back to Washington State to see her tomorrow. It will take me 3 days and 4 flights to get there, and I'm still tired from all the travelling we've been doing over the last couple of months.

Plus I'm going alone, which I find hard. I wish John could go with me, but it's not possible right now.

Please pray for safe journeys, strength and good health for me, and peace for my granny.

And may the name of the Lord be praised.

Communications update from Arusha Conference

The idea for a communication team for Africa was conceived in 2002, and with lots of hard work and prayer, Tim and Miranda Heathcote spearheaded what is known as YWAM AfriCom.

Over the last several years, the Heathcotes have travelled the world casting the vision to multiply YWAM Com Teams globally. The result has been the start-up of Com Teams in South America, Europe, India, and Asia Pacific.

Now it's our turn in East Africa!

A few months ago I posted an update from the CRIT consultation I attended in Jinja (see that post here).

One of the outcomes of that consultation was a commitment to build a communication team in East Africa that would compliment the work AfriCom has been doing from South Africa and join this growing global network of YWAM communicators. At the time, however, we felt we needed more representation from the region before starting the team, since the only delegates at the CRIT from East Africa were all with Uganda bases.

So we targeted the East Africa Regional Staff Conference in Arusha as the ideal place to spread the news about our heart for an East African com team, and to start identifying people in the region with a vision for communications in whatever form.

Miranda flew in from South Africa to introduce the whole idea of an East African Com Team during the staff conference, and then spent a large part of the conference in meetings with various leaders hashing out how the whole thing would work.

The result was the beginnings of AfriCom East!

Several people showed interest in being part of this team, including Sandra Merriman who will provide support and encouragement to the group in Jinja, Uganda who have already caught the vision for this com team.

My job will be to connect the various other people in the region with each other and with the AfriCom team in South Africa.

Our first big project will be to produce a magazine for YWAM's 50th anniversary celebrations next year, so we are excited to get going on that.

On my side, I'm excited about the new thing God is doing, and praying that I haven't bitten off more than I can chew! It's going to be a lot of work, but I believe this is part of what God has been preparing me for, and I'm thankful once again that He matches our dreams with His dreams.

Let the glory go back to Him.

For another perspective on the whole process, read Miranda's post here: YWAM AfriCom blog

The start of AfriCom East, from L - R:
John Mulongi, Antony Elliot, Sandra Merriman, Miranda Heathcote, Tom Sliep,
Rachel Spencer, Charles Syemi, Vikki Wright, and Robert Mazige

Back from Mombasa

We made it!! After 4 days on the road with 4 adults and 7 children in 1 truck...we finally reached Mombasa. It was a journey to remember, and a very special holiday. There were a lot of 'firsts' for all of us, my favorite of which was hand-feeding the giraffe in Haller Park...amazing.

It was a great blessing for us to be able to spend 2 weeks with this lovely family, and we would like to say thank you once again to everyone who contributed for the Orems to enjoy this holiday. May God bless you so much.

So, here are the pics!! (More info. about the staff conference in Arusha, Tanzania later!)

The Wrights and the Orems set out for Mombasa
(leaving YWAM base, Athi River, Kenya)

After 6 hours of non-stop travel, it was a huge blessing to find
a roadside restaurant with a bouncy castle...the first the Orems had seen.

Joanna kept boredom at bay on the journey by decorating herself

Once we arrived in Mombasa, the Orem kids got to
sample the ocean for the first time...and loved it!

Noah enjoyed searching the rock pools at low tide

We introduced the Orems to lots of new foods.
John taught Stephen how to make pancakes for us one morning...

...and the rest of us enjoyed them!

We bbq'd burgers one night...another first for the Orems

All the kids loved the burgers...Martha chows down

We taught the Orems how to make s'mores

Kezi and Joel getting sticky with their s'mores

Stephen enjoyed coconut milk a la naturale

Jane bought rainbow fish that looked hand-painted

We visited Haller Park north of Mombasa where
the highlight was definitely feeding the giraffe

Noah was the first...

Kezi's turn...

Jane got to feed two at once...

John bribed one with the whole bucket
and got to pet it...

The kids were amazed at these tortoises

The morning view outside our door

The Wrights and the Orems on their last day together in Mombasa

What a privilege to rest and play with our friends.
Thank you all.

Operation Mombasa...Success!

You did it!!!

Thank you so much to all the people who contributed to the Orem family holiday, aka Operation Mombasa.

We praise God for all of you, and are happy to announce we received 381 pounds (610 us dollars)!!! Our goal was 400 pounds (650 us dollars), so we are very excited about the amount that came in.

We leave tomorrow morning at 5 am with a night in Kampala, then rendezvous with the Orem family in Tororo (on the Uganda/Kenyan border) Friday night. We will all then squish into our Landcruiser truck (yes...that will be 4 adults and 7 children in one vehicle!) for the 2-day journey to the Kenyan coast.

I keep telling myself, "There is joy in the journey" (otherwise I might give in to a huge bout of anxiety). One way or the other, it's certainly going to be an adventure!

Many many thanks again to all of you. We'll keep you posted.

Mombasa...here we come!

Operation Mombasa

I normally don’t write blog posts about financial needs, but John and I felt like sharing this particular need with the wider world, so please bear with us as we tell you the story.


Stephen and Jane Orem are a Ugandan couple with 3 kids who have been friends of ours for 14 years. Stephen is the base leader of YWAM Soroti base, and serves on the YWAM National Leadership Team as well as the Regional Leadership Team. Jane serves on the Hospitality team and helps out with the Discipleship Training School.

A few months ago we were with Stephen for a National Leadership Team meeting, and were discussing the upcoming East Africa Regional Staff Conference in Arusha, Tanzania. Then Stephen suggested, “What do you think about going to Mombasa with us after the conference for a holiday?”

John and I thought it was a great idea, and started making plans with Stephen, who knew of an AIM guesthouse there available for very affordable prices (only $40 a night for each family!) When we looked at the timing, Stephen said they were planning on going for only 3 or 4 days, as they only had 300 pounds (450 dollars) towards the whole trip.

However, John and I thought it would be great to get a ‘full’ holiday…two weeks, ideally…so we could really relax and enjoy the break. With both John and Stephen serving in high-stress leadership positions, we felt they both could use the extra time to really get refreshed.

So we as a family decided to help cover the extra expenses of the Orem family so they could spend the whole holiday with us, and still be able to attend the regional conference.

But then we went back to the UK at short notice to see John’s dad who was very sick, and passed away just before we reached home. During our time there we spent more money than we had planned. When we got back to Uganda, we reviewed our finances and realized we only had enough to cover our own expenses.

We would very much like for the Orems to be blessed with this holiday, as well.

So we thought we would share the challenge with you readers, many of whom already support us (many thanks!!), and just ask if anyone would like to contribute to the Orem family so they can enjoy a much-needed break.

The total cost of their holiday is: $1100. They have about $450, so that still leaves a need of $650.

If you would like to contribute to the Orem family’s holiday, please donate through the PayPal donation button on the sidebar to the right called "Operation Mombasa".

(If you don't see the button, please scroll down to the bottom of the posts where the sidebar may be located if your computer is formatted differently than ours. The PayPal account is John's personal account, but all monies donated in the next few weeks will go towards Operation Mombasa. The currency on the account is British pounds, but I believe people can donate in any currency which will then be converted to British pounds.)

Many many thanks from us, the Wrights, on behalf of the Orems! May God bless you so much!