Wednesday

Thank you - a great day of action with your donations!

First of all, a HUGE thank you to all of you who donated! We were able to do so much today to change the path of lives because of your help...

We started at the furniture store where Kait laid on the beds like Goldilocks until we found the perfect pair of beds for our new child-headed family.  We bought the beds (and pillows and blankets) and strapped them to the roof of our car.  Then headed to Malindza to the children's home.

But on our commute, we came across a primary school where a lot of our kiddos attend.  They were just being released for the day.  One of the boys (standing in a group of 3) motioned the Swazi sign for hitchhiking.  Some of the kids walk a LONG way to and from school (10km!) and so just as Kait was saying "Are we pulling over to get them...?" with a skeptical look on her face as our car was already filled, I yelled "YEP!" and opened the trunk.  I was expecting the 3 boys to jump in... but as they jumped in, other children noticed what was going on and they rushed to the car and climbed inside.  They were packed in like sardines before I finally told the others that we did not have room for more.  Off we went to their homes (which indeed was forever far away).  When we made it to their neighborhood, I opened the trunk and counted as they popped out.  16.  16 kids, two adults, food, pillows, two suitcases, blankets and two mattresses in the car today. When in Rome... but this is a new record, even for us!

We reached Mathanda's homestead and delivered the beds.  The old man next door who checks on the little one when the older children are at school was shocked.  He kept saying that the children would have wonderful dreams tonight and that they've never had a pillow before.  The oldest, Mathanda, has never even had a bed (3 middle ones were sleeping on an icky piece of flimsy foam and the 4 little ones were on a grassmat).  We also took Owen (the 4 year old) to a nearby preschool and got him registered for January (when the new school year starts).  We also went to the store and bought him his very first school uniform!  The builders will be finished fixing their home and affixing the rain catchment by tomorrow.  We also delivered chairs to sit on, a pitchfork to help with their garden, backpacks, and some clothes.  THANK YOU FOR MAKING IT POSSIBLE. We will keep a close eye on these kids and see how we can continue assisting. They are all now part of the GHFP family! And they will thrive like all of our children have and continue to do.  Can't wait to see them again in December!

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