By Saturday morning, I had adjusted to the time change fairly well. It was nice to sleep through the night. After breakfast we headed out to Entoto Mountain. I was excited to go there because I'd heard so much about it but had not been there myself.
We passed Addis Ababa University on the way to Entoto Mountain. This is where many students attend if they finish high school.
Mesfin (second from left) is the founder of this feeding program, Endihnew Hope, on Entoto Mountain. When he was in his early 20's, he felt led to start feeding the children on Entoto Mountain. The need there is even greater than in Korah in some ways because there is no trash dump for hunting for food. For five years Mesfin faithfully fed the children once a week at his own expense.
Last December he met Kelly Putty, founder of Ordinary Hero. Kelly took her team to help with his feeding program. They ran out of food so the team members were giving away all the food they had in their backpacks like granola bars and snack foods. Through that day a partnership was formed between Ordinary Hero and Endihnew Hope.
The "serving line" went from the building where the food was prepared down to a grove of trees where the children were patiently waiting.
It was a very long serving line.
For many of these children, this is the only meal they will receive for several days.
It took us about 20 minutes to serve the 100+ children. They sat quietly and waited as the plates were passed out.
The younger children were on the left and the older children were on this side.
Each child received a cup of water with his/her meal.
Once the dishes had been collected, the children wanted to play - and have their photos taken. After we took a photo, they always wanted to see it. You will see the boy in the blue cap in lots of my photos. I can't remember his name but he stuck to me like glue. :)
Some boys being silly. Some things are the same in any culture!
We walked out of the grove of trees into the open space to play some games with the children. One little boy only wanted me to hold him.
I never quite figured out the purpose of this game but the kids were laughing and having fun so I considered it a success! (Do you see the blue cap!?)
Some of my new friends. The boy in the blue cap was with me until the end. :)
After the meal we walked higher up the mountain to do some home visits. One of the boys had a whip that Temeche decided to try. All the boys who did it were pretty good with it. I only succeeded in wrapping it around my legs so I passed it on to someone else.
One of the students on our trip wanted to sponsor one of the boys she met that morning. So we went to this boy's home for her to meet his family. I was encouraged that an 18 year old who just graduated from high school and is starting college this fall would invest in a child through the money she earns working. This trip truly changed many lives on both sides of the ocean.
This woman's home was too far for us to walk so Mesfin introduced us to her on the mountain side. She and her young daughter can be sponsored through Ordinary Hero's partnership with Endihnew Hope. Through a sponsorship she will learn a trade to be able to work to provide for her family.
Many of the families who live on Entoto Mountain have come from the countryside of Ethiopia. They believe that the water on the mountain is "holy" and they will be healed of whatever disease plagues them. The family in the photo above and below came for this very reason. Now both parents are unable to work due to sickness. The dad weaves cloth but he cannot produce as much as he once did because he becomes too weak. They too can be sponsored so that their children receive food and can attend school. Education is the way to break the cycle of poverty for families.
This mom and daughter are both HIV positive. They receive free medicine from the government but the medicine is ineffective without food. They are in need of a sponsor so they can have food to regain their strength so the mom can work again.
As I took a photo of Emily and Owen with this mom and her daughter, I was reminded that God has not forgotten either of these families. He loves us all the same no matter where we live or how big our house is or isn't. I'm thankful for Endihnew Hope that works to meet the physical needs of people while sharing the Good New of Jesus with them.
There was a crowd walking with us for all the home visits. The children love to hold hands while walking which is quite normal for this culture.
My camera did not capture the view but it is beautiful up on the mountain!
So I had been telling the kids that Owen is a gymnast. I don't think they fully understood what I was telling them. When we stopped to eat lunch, there was a playground with some parallel bars and uneven bars. This was the perfect opportunity for him to show them what he could do. I wish I had my camera on Bira and Temeche's faces the moment Owen did his first stunt. It was soooo funny!
So then Temeche had to try it....
...and Bira too!
Robel, Sesay and Beza had fun swinging...(I did too!)
...and sliding.
Then we had lunch. This is a typical Ethiopian dish with injera. Injera is the spongy, breadlike food they use to eat with just about everything.
It was a beautiful day to enjoy lunch outside.
Beza and I decided to do a little more swinging before leaving for Sululta.
After lunch we drove out to the countryside to visit the third home of Hope for the Hopeless (H4H). This home is located in the Sululta area. This is where the older children live who have been in the program for about two years or more. They are teenagers who cannot go back home for varying reasons. We took several bags of donations of clothes and school supplies.
After a brief history of the ministry from its director, Fekadu, he gave us a tour of the property.
Once this building is finished, this will be a place for the children to eat, plus have bathrooms/showers and a library. The work has stopped for now until they receive more donations. (If you or your church or your scout troop or any other organization would like to raise money for H4H to finish building, contact Ordinary Hero. US dollars go a long way in Ethiopia. Every contribution helps!)
A little further up the hill is a school. They had hoped to open this fall but construction will not be finished. This is one of the classrooms. There will be eight classrooms for grades 1-8. For now the children who live at the Sululta Home have to go about 25 km each way for school. Once this school is completed, they will walk to class. It will also provide a place for local children to attend who did not have a way to go 25 km each day.
These will be the desks once they are repainted and the wood is attached.
An outside view of the school building.
We sorted clothes for the girls to receive a new outfit.
The boys also received new clothes. The boys and girls dorms are on separate sides of the driveway. They know that girls stay on their side and boys stay on the other side - even when clothes are being distributed. So we took the boys clothes into one of their rooms and let them come in a few at a time.
This young man chose a shirt from the clothes my church donated.
The building on the right is the "kitchen" where the meals are prepared. They look forward to the day the new building can be completed so they have better facilities. There are many more desks in the yard to repaint and finish for the classrooms.
These ladies are joyful no matter where they are cooking. The big pot was full of wat soup which the students would have for dinner with injera.
One little boy managed to "sneak in" the gate when we arrived. He had a plastic harmonica that he played most the time we were there.
Before we left we found some clothes to fit our new friend and helped him put on the shirt. He was very excited!
The temperatures are dropping for the rainy season so we found him a jacket as well. It was big but it will last him a few years.
Hanging out by the van just before it was time to leave.
Saturday was Robel's 15th birthday. When we stopped by his house yesterday, the team invited his mom and sister to the Life Center for dinner and cake. They were there when we arrived back from the countryside so we all celebrated Robel that evening.
We didn't have any candles but Lauren "blessed" Robel with icing on his nose as we sang "Happy Birthday". :)
This is Robel and his mom.
Robel's sister is sitting in the chair.
Robel's family gave Kelly and Lauren a gift. The Putty family sponsor Robel so this was a way of saying "thank you" to them for all they do for Robel.
The party was moved outside for a watermelon eating contest.
These boys took their watermelon eating very seriously! They were all in to win!!
It got messy!
The birthday boy was the winner!! :) Happy birthday, Robel!!
Saturday was a long, busy day but our hearts were full from seeing how people are serving in Ethiopia and by celebrating one who has enjoyed a changed life due to sponsorship. Change the world for ONE!
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