Today makes one week since we landed in Harare, so it's a good time to let you know how everything is going. 

People in Zimbabwe are still going through tough economic times, but there is clearly a sense of hope in the air that things are getting better, even though times are still very tough for most people.

I'm in Mutare at the home of Tom and Tracy Sarimana, my host family. I stayed with them in 2004 and 2007, and it feels wonderful to be with them again. Sunday, most of us went with Kennedy to his home church at Chitikatera, and it was a delightful experience. It was Harvest Sunday, and the church was jammed. Even though the impact of the economic hard times is severe, everybody was joyful as they shared their harvest with the church. This pretty much sets the church budget for the coming year, so it is a very important Sunday. The singing was incredible, and there was lots of it. It is so wonderful to experience that kind of joyful service. One of the very interesting bits of information that came from talking with elders at that service is that Dad presided at the ground-breaking for the Chitikatera church about fifty years ago. That was something that Kennedy did not know, even though he grew up in that church, and neither Peg nor I knew anything about it either. Interestingly enough, today, one of older members of that church brought an old faded picture of the ground-breaking, and it clearly showed Dad as the presiding church official for the ceremony! That makes our connection with the Chitikatera church even stronger!

Monday, we went to the Chitikatera Primary school and gave gifts to the 1257 students there in a general assembly type of program, though it was conducted outside. The faculty and staff were most welcoming, and the kids were wonderful. Then we went back to the Chitikatera Church to meet with the Women's Sewing Club, and that was a very nice experience. They welcomed us with the kind of exuberant singing that we hear so much of here. It is really great to hear them singing so joyfully in spite of their dire economic circumstances. They showed us samples of their sewing work, and it is excellent. I bought a few sample place mats, as did several others in our group.

Tuesday we went to the Zimunya Project site, and carried bricks each morning for the brick-layers to work with. The gables are all completed now, and we're hoping to see the trusses put in place early next week. It now looks as if the roof will be put on later that week or early the next week. In any case, the classroom building should be roofed over by the time I leave, and that will be great.

Wednesday, we were at Africa University, starting with morning chapel service at 8 AM for the Pastor's School being conducted there this week. I met with Dr. Fasan and Dr. Fadzai at 10 AM, and it was a very productive meeting. It looks like there will be a good opportunity for me to teach here for three months next year, and it all goes well, probably for several years after that. In addition, Dr. Fasan is interested in the possibility of tying our Zimunya Project with Africa University's community outreach program. It looks promising.

Wednesday evening I went with Tom Sarimana to the Prayer Section meeting for which he is the chair person. There were about twenty people there, and I enjoyed meeting all of them. The discussion was lively and well informed, and then we concluded with prayer. Among the people I met, the Kangwenda's (husband and wife physicians) are both on staff at Mutare General Hospital, and they invited me to be the guest presenter at their hospital Grand Rounds on the morning of Friday, August 14th. I accepted the invitation, and it should prove to be very interesting. There will be about twenty physicians, and many nurses and lab techs. Presenting to such a varied group will be challenging, but I have a topic that will attract much interest. I'm going to present the problem of obesity as a major public health problem, which it is, and discuss the contributing factors, causes, and consequences, as well as approaches to prevention. They already know it is a huge problem in the United States (everybody around the world seems to know this,) and they realize that it is an emerging problem in Zimbabwe among the more affluent urban people. The Kangwenda's are enthusiastic about the topic, and it is certainly something for which I have much information to share.

Today we worked at the Skills Training Center again, carrying bricks for the brick-layers. After lunch we went to the factory making the trusses for the roof, and saw our own trusses in process. They now plan to deliver them over the weekend, and start raising them on Monday.

All told, this week has been a marvelous experience. Peg has loved being here, but I'll let her fill you in on her perspective when she is able.