The first step was to call all the sponsored children into the church and get them nametags. This was a much easier process than it had been the day before. I think the word was out - sponsored children only - and the rest of the community was very kind and accepting of that. People gathered in the Jemo compound and watched the children playing, but with smiles and laughter and understanding. Our sleepless, prayer-filled night was answered by a smooth, pleasant day.
Praise God!
Here is Marta, our translator for the day, explaining what was going to happen to the waiting families. We hired 4 translators to be part of this day, so that each activity station would have a translator. It was worth every penny!
We were all really excited to get nametags on the children. We had all been searching for certain children, and it was hard to locate them without nametags! Mike finally found his sponsor brother, and he happily snapped a photo for his mom to enjoy!
I had spent A LOT of time on nametags. They had the child's name - large font for the first name which can be posted online, small font for the father's name which is more private. I also added their ID number, for our reference, and their age. The other feature that I added was the sponsor's name. I am so glad that I did! (Thanks Ingrid!) Every time I looked at a child, I thought of their sponsor family. It was SO helpful!
After all the kids were welcomed inside, Colin lead us in worship.
After worship the children were broken into four groups.
Bible Story
Crafts
Sponsor Gift Creation
Games
Some members of our team stayed with a group of children all day, traveling with them from station to station. Others were station leaders. They were the teachers/directors of each station. Additionally, we had a translator with each station. It worked very, very well.
Sponsors, here is a sneak peak at your gift from your child.
Donna, Sierra, and Grant did an amazing job helping the children create!
We will get them sent your way sometime in June.
Troy lead the game station.
He did an amazing job! The kids laughed and played with glee.
There were a few children that stayed to watch. By then end of the morning, they were serving as helpers which was a great way for us to be able to include them.
Chantalle and Kristen had planned the craft station.
Chantalle found backpacks that the children could color on. They enjoyed the project, and in the end had a useful bag to bring home with them. It was a stellar idea!
Bob was Troy's right hand man. His kindness and encouragement were contagious. Even the most hesitant child would play with Bob.
The children loved creating. Simple things like markers and crayons are not every day possessions. They worked diligently and with big smiles on their faces. I was also amazed at their patience. They took turns nicely. They rarely fought over a certain color marker. As long as they had one to use, they were satisfied.
Mid-morning the sheep slaughter began.
The children did not even notice.
They were having too much fun!
I love Jim. He always had the kids doing the craziest things - like "the Birdman." Yet, he managed to keep the kids focused and on task. He has some great skills!
This little sweety, Beza, is our youngest sponsored child.
She did a wonderful job with these stations, having no problems keeping up with the older kids!
Grant asked for a nametag made with Amharic script.
He was such a good helper!
Our word of the day was "self" which meant "line up."
All of the men took the day off from fencing to be with the children.
I was so glad they did.
Their enthusiasm, energy, and presence were invaluable.
Ashlee taught the Bible Story.
Being in Ethiopia with Ashlee was a dream come true for me. I had long dreamed of watching her teach children there. She did an amazing job of teaching the children the story of the Good Shepherd.
We broke from stations about noon.
We served the children buns, bananas, and soda.
Little did they know that after their lunch, they would receive gifts!
I will save that story for tomorrow.
If you are planning a trip similar to this one, here are some tips I would be happy to share:
1. The kids will be able to wait much longer than American kids.
2. They will be happy with simple things. We gave each child 2 crayons, and they were thrilled. So - keep things as simple as possible.
3. Spend the extra money on translators if you can. It was so helpful!
4. The children will not need much space to sit or work in. They are comfortable being much closer together when they work and listen than American kids. The small ratios of children to adults that we strive for is not necessary.
5. Use nametags is at all possible. Adding the sponsor's name was really helpful. If you plan to group the children, I would have 2 people greeting the kids at the door. One with a nametag, the other with a sticker to put on the nametag that tells the which group they belong to. At Jemo we had many children come and go at different times (it is a drop in center, so this may not be as applicable at other care points). If I had pre-grouped the kids, my groups would have been really out of balance. Grouping as the kids came in was the quickest and easiest.
6. Plan useful crafts when possible.
7. Use Bible stories that have manipulates and use few words. This was very helpful with translation.
8. Do not give the children game supplies for free play, they will slowly disappear unless their is an adult explaining that they have to be turned back in. I do not think we had any children purposely stealing. They just did not know when we gave them things to play with if they were theirs to keep or just to use.
9. Having some adults travel with a group and some stay in the stations worked well. Some adults knew which children should be in which group and who would need help, others knew the activity well. It was a great balance.
10. Have at least one adult "float." The floater can snap photos, help with bathroom breaks, bring water to fading adults, retrieve extra supplies, etc...
11. Pack wipes, lots of wipes. And bandaids. And gloves. And tissues.
12. Be prepared for things to change! Roll with them! It is just part of the adventure.
13. Have fun! Joy is contagious. It is a great thing to spread!
I'd love your tips, too! Feel free to share!
