Malawi Messages

@All: The Team wanted me to point out that it is a SQUID on the Bus, not an OCTOPUS ;) :D ~Kevin

@Tina Lee: Tinar! Thank you for your kind words! Hearing from my surrogate parent felt so good, and made me less homesick. TLBYAKY – I miss you tons. ~Kari

@Doyles (Mom and Landry): I love you both, I miss you, and I can’t wait to see you in July! I will have many photos and stories to share, so you will just have to prepare yourselves to sit through them all. :) I am doing fine, so if you’re worried (MOM), please don’t be. The trip is wonderful, we are all safe, and lives are being changed. Not sure if/when I’ll be able to email, so please don’t worry if you don’t hear from me. I love you both THIS MUCH! ~Bears

@Balvanz - Mama and Daddy and Jill and all from CBC who are following me and the rest of the group: ~ I ate a smoked sardine yesterday, but otherwise I am okay ;-) I am having an amazing time and there is so much to see and experience. We have seen some difficult things, but we are being so blessed by all the kids, and we’re having a ton of fun together. I miss you all A TON! I’m glad you had a great party and I hope you are all doing well. I love you SO MUCH! ~Hannah Bug

@Mamasita and Papa Chuck: Hey Mom and Dad I miss you guys, but don’t worry I’m not home sick. I have constantly been worrying about Dad ... hope you’re doing well. I cleaned up throw up and I instantly thought, AHH, chemo! :) These kids are absolutely adorable and loveable. I miss my three older brothers and their bullying of me. I miss you and love you! Mom-can you bring another sweatshirt ... and shaver, and can you look up how to ask “where do we get a nose piercing” in French. Kay cool :) much love! ~Nutbi

@Conners - mommy, daddy, sissy, camo, and sissy: make sure to tell everyone at church: everything is going great! The kids are adorable and yesterday one little girl, her name is Beauti, fell asleep in my lap and every time I held her closer she would squeeze into me. I got a little sick this morning but not to bad, its all good. I'm so glad I am having this experience! I absolutely love it here, its amazing! I love you all and miss you, I'm telling the truth I promise. Sissy tell everyone from church my story and that I miss them and cant wait to see them soon and tell them everything. I will tell you more stories as we continue on our journey. I love you and will talk to you soon. Continue to pray for me. ~Love, Savannah

@Dawleys and Darcie: Hi! First of all, thank you so much for praying for me! Your prayers are much appreciated. I am having so much fun playing with the kids at the Malawi Children’s Mission!! They are all so sweet and have so much joy even though all of them have lost at least one parent :( A lot of them also have to take care of their younger siblings because there are no parents to take care of them. Today we went to visit people that live in a village. All of the kids were waving to us when we arrived in the bus :) It was so cute!! On Monday we went to a hospital and went into the Pediatric ward. It was really hard to see the sick kids as well as the conditions that they are in. We are going to the Hospital tomorrow, so if you could pray for the team to have strength and to be able to show the kids and parents God’s love and hope that would be great!!! Thanks! Love you and can’t wait to tell you all about my trip!!!! P.S. there is Coke in Malawi, Bannah is happy!!! :) ~Dannah

@ Biagini’s: Hey mom, dad, and Joey! We arrived safely and I am having an awesome time in Malawi! I am getting to know so many new people, and Africa is really amazing. It is so cool to be in a new country and seeing new things. I know that this trip will be a life changing experience because of what I have seen and experienced so far, and what I am still to experience. We have done so many things already, and everything has been inspirational. See you soon and love you! ~Cailley

@First Baptist at San Mateo, and everyone else: Lisa and I (Neal) are doing well. The visit to the hospital was tough. We held children and prayed for them. We had a great time at church (2.5 hours!). The children at the center are a treasure. Gospel stories are told through acting and translators. Blessings to all. Keep us in your prayers. ~Love Neal

@Friends and family of Ana Akana: Hey guys … just wanted to let you know that I’m having a fantastic time in Africa. Everything is so exciting here and I’ll never have another experience like it. Just to let you know (mom) I’ve been taking my medicine, so don’t worry about me. I’m so glad I came on this trip and I can't wait to tell you about the missions, schools, and hospitals. I’ll see you in about a week. Oh, mom or whoever is picking me up from the airport- could you please bring me ice cream or starbucks PLEASE. Thanks Love ya Miss ya ~ANA =)

@Mr Dawley: Thanks for the Giants update! Did Randy Johnson get his 300th win? ~Steven

@All of Meghan’s family and friends: Steven and I want to know how the Giants are doing!! We’re doing well over here. It’s a ton of fun. I love playing with the kids every day (no surprise there). Thanks for everyone’s prayers. I miss you guys! Mom -- Miss Doyle and Miss Smith aren’t too happy that you didn’t say hi to them in my card. Yes, I remembered my malaria pill, and Austin has not been playing with any of the monkeys that we have encountered. Tell your first graders I say hi and good job for finishing the year. And take Callie for a walk for me! Bring me a Starbucks or a smoothie when you pick me up, too, pleaseeee. <3 ~Meghan

@ Mr. and Mrs. Johnson and any followers from SFC: Malawi is incredible. The country is beautiful and the people here are just filled with so much joy it’s incredible. As a culture, they are very communal and love to sing and dance, both of which they do far better than their American counterparts. (No offense to all the amazing American singers I know!) For those of you who have been to Mexico, the paradox of people with so little having so much joy is in full force here, even more so than in Mexico. And they truly have little; nearly all of the children we work with have the distended stomachs characteristic of malnutrition because their families can’t afford adequate food. Quite frankly, it’s heartbreaking, and in light of American abundance, very frustrating as well. I hope that all of you remember how blessed you are, and do not forget our brothers and sisters who struggling just to survive. Grace and peace to you all. (And yes, Mom, I’m still alive and well.) ~Rob

@Eddie and Taylor Soetje: Greeting from the warm heart of Africa, Malawi … it is absolutely beautiful here and the people are incredibly joyful and inviting. We are having a great time and wish that you were here with us. We are headed to the Lake this weekend and look forward to sharing all the incredible things God has done this week and will do next week. We can’t wait to come home and share all of the life changing experiences. Miss you tons. Marlona, we got your blog comments, keep them coming, tell Eddie how to use the site. Love you all tons, tell everyone we are good… ~Sheryl and Kiley (now 17) :) :)