What's New

Addis Ababa -- #5

Friends: We are back at the Ghion Hotel! We just had a restful night, our last in Ethiopia. Tonight at 11:00 we leave for home and you all. We have had a glorious two weeks, but we're ready to come home to family and friends. Yesterday, Friday, we went to the Mekane Yesus Seminary in the morning for a brief tour and orientation. The seminary is a quiet retreat from the frenzy of Addis Ababa. It was good to be there. Then, Karen and Carla stayed for chapel services (where Karen brought greetings) and the rest of the group sped off to the LWF offices. We were supposed to meet with John Halvorson of LWF, but he is out ill, so we met with two of his staff people. It was fascinating to hear about the work of LWF throughout Ethiopia.

After lunch with the LWF staff, we went to the Mercado, the large market in Addis Ababa. What chaos, what humanity, what stuff! We found a few treasures to take back home, then sped back to the hotel to meet Ammanuel and Elfinish. We then traveled to the home of Destai and Jim, the sister and brother-in-law of Tsehai (of the REAL scholarships) for dinner. They had gathered many friends as a farewell dinner for Tsehai, who is returning to the US tonight also (but on another flight). Perhaps the word for yesterday was "taxi." We took two taxis to the seminary, and on the way to LWF, the transmission fell out of one of the cabs. The group hustled out of that cab and got into another and arrived safely at LWF, although late. Then last night on the way to Destai's home, we took two taxis. Just a block away from the house (which is a distance from Addis, out in the suburbs), one cab died. The first cab returned to gather the stranded riders.

We ate dinner, and when we were ready to leave, the failed cab was at the door, ready to take us back to the hotel; the driver, "Donnie," said his cab was working fine. We got about a block away from the house, and it died again. He resurrected it again, only to have it die once more a block farther down the road. That was the finishing blow. It could not be revived. Thanks to God, a friend of Tsehai and Destai was following us, and picked up the stranded taxi-riders with his deluxe SUV. He graciously deposited us back at the hotel in fine style. We can only wonder how "Donnie" our cabbie got back to the city. Ah, the joys of travel in a developing country! Bumpy roads in the west, and unreliable taxis in the city. Everyone retained their good humor during the taxi difficulties.

In fact there was unstoppable laughter in the midst of the starting and stopping and starting and stopping. This has been a marvelous group, with a diversity of gifts and great good humor! Today we are going to take a brief tour of the city -- seeing a museum and a couple classic Ethiopian Orthodox churches. Then, tonight it's to the airport and home to you. We have much to tell you about the west, and our time in Ayra. We are reminded again and again of the gracious welcome we received from both the BirBirDilla Synod and the Lalo Ayra congregation. But, we will tell you about that when we return. Waqqau sei ebesu! ("God bless you.") We will see you soon.

Addis Ababa -- #4

Friends:
We are back in Addis Ababa after a thrilling and exhausting week in the west! We are all well and look forward to a couple days in Addis and then gettinghome to you.

When we arrived in Addis, we found that the Ghion did not have room for us (no surprise to those who were here last year) We think we will be back at the Ghion tomorrow, but who knows?

We will have much to tell you: The children of Nekemte continue to grow and learn. They do amazing things in the Central Synod to help the children orphaned because of AIDS. Nancy and Karen met their REAL sponsorees! How do you fall in love with a girl in a few seconds? It's possible!

The Yubdo Project has grown so much during the past year! It was thrilling to see how the project has taken form. We spent time with the people of Lalo Ayra Congregation. We can't wait to tell you about their gracious and eager response to our suggestion that we form a partner-congregation relationship. We worshiped with them on Sunday, a service that lasted five hours (yes, 5 hours). We were able to celebrate Holy Communion with them at that service. How wonderful to share the bread and wine together! And they stood with their hands raised in benediction to us as Kes Mulatu, the president of the BirBirDilla Synod prayed in an earnest and charismatic fashion, and the elders stood behind us, laying hands on us. There were tears on all our faces. They do know so well how to welcome and bless!

We feel that we were invited into the joys and the difficulties of the BirBirDilla Synod this time. They are struggling on many fronts, especially with the Ayra Hospital, but also with the Nursing College and the Onesimus Nesib Seminary. And yet, as Kes Tadessa, president of the seminary said to us in parting, "We have many difficulties, but we know that God is in control, and we trust God's hand.

I have to run now, so more information tomorrow. Love to you all.
Karen Walhof

Addis Ababa -- #3
Friends: We are back at the Ghion Hotel after a day with the girls at Burayu Katta. What a day! Those of us who met the girls last year were amazed at the growth and development we saw this year. While last year their English skills were marginal, and they seemed to speak only what they had memorized, this year they carried on conversations with all of us. They are incredibly bright, focused girls with very bright futures! Carla particularly had a special time with the girl she supports. As we were leaving her, I saw Mahidir wipe the tears off Carla's face, and it was clear that deep relationships had been built. We have stories to tell each one of your sponsors about your charming girls. And dozens of pictures! Four of our group spent a couple hours this afternoon teaching English to the younger children (grades 1 and 2) following a lesson plan developed by Lisa Riddle. They were a hit! The women were surprised at the language skills of the young children, and the young children were smitten with the women. Sharon videotaped the sessions, so Lisa will have a chance to see if we did it right! It was heartwarming and encouraging. Nancy and Martha spoke to the older children (grades 7 and 8), encouraging them to work hard in their studies and help change their world. What a great time! Then we visited the homes of four of the REAL girls. We were treated as honored guests, served marvelous Ethiopian food in each home, then rolled out of the last one into our van and on our way back to the Ghion. The food was delicious, the appreciation of the REAL scholarships by both the girls and their families was clear. It seems that the potential for the girls has no bounds. We were surprised to find Tsehai Wodajo at Birayu Katta today. She is the founder of REAL and is located in Minneapolis. However, she had traveled to Addis Ababa Saturday for family business and came out to Burayu Katta, knowing we would be there to meet with the girls. She didn't stay long, but she too marveled at the girls' progress. We have a truly amazing group of travelers here. You would be so pleased with their interactions with everyone -- they make incredible ambassadors for Good Shepherd and Oromo Evangelical.

I was shooting pictures several times today of individuals in our group only to find them swallowed up by mobs of children eager to talk and listen and learn! Each has different gifts, but they are indeed gifts that are invaluable in this journey. And we have come to really appreciate and enjoy eachother! There will be so many stories when we return . . . And let me tell you about Sunday afternoon and evening! It was an incredibly rich time for us. At 3:30 we met with President Iteffa of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, the General Secretary of Mekane Yesus, and the director for mission and theology of Mekane Yesus. We were amazed that they took the time to meet with us! They talked a bit about changes in the structure and mssion of Mekane Yesus, we told them about Good Shepherd. Then we together broached the topic of a companion relationship with Lalo Ayra congregation. We were not certain about their response, since we had some confusing messages coming from ELCA Global Mission and Minneapolis Area Synod staff before we left. Well, let me tell you: There is no confusion any more! They gave us their unequivocal support for relationships with BirBirDilla Synod and Lalo Ayra. They asked, of course, that the synods (Minneapolis Area and BirBirDilla) always be kept informed. They also stressed that the relationship should not be financial (giving to them) but reciprocal, working together. We were entirely in agreement with their comments. And we had a delightful conversation with them. Mekane Yesus is clearly responding to the changing world and the always-changing challenges that face the church. I was impressed. Kes Iteffa explained that he might not be available at our return, but the General Secretary of Mekane Yesus will be in his office, and he asked that we meet with him when we return to Addis.

They are eager for helpful, growing relationships -- there was no doubt about that. We will have to calm the concerns of ELCA and Minneapolis Area Synod when we return! We felt incredibly honored to be given such substantial amounts of their time. After that we had dinner with Loren and Edith Bliese, long-time American missionaries to Ethiopia. There's never a dull moment with Loren and Edith, and that proved to be true again. Loren told the group in his flat, even tone about their work in Ethiopia, while Edith piped in with story after story about incredible incidents, threatening times, and great joys that they had experienced during their time here. It provided a wonderful context for the entire group as we begin our foray into Mekane Yesus. Transportation has been a continuing challenge here. We hope tomorrow will go smoothly, with the LandRovers that Sue arranged with Mekane Yesus actually arriving at the Ghion. At 8:00 tomorrow morning Sue and I will be at Mekane Yesus so we clearly know what's happening. Thankfully, Wakgari has helped us develop "Plan B" if the Mekane Yesus plans fall through. We're on our way to Nekemte tomorrow, one way or another! Let me tell you what a gift Wakgari has been for our group. His knowledge of how to get things done in Addis, his continuing presense, and his unfailing good humor have made life very good these last two days. We thank God for Wakgari! That's all for now!  We will write next time we have access to internet. We know there's an internet cafe in Nekemte, but we're not absolutely sure of our time commitments there, so don't worry if we don't write for a while. We are eager to leave Addis and enter the glorious hills and valleys of Wollega! God's blessings to you! We will be praying for you tonight at worship. Remember us in prayer too. Karen Walhof for one and all

Addis Ababa -- #2
Friends:

This is Karen, your scribe for the day.

We arrived in Addis Ababa right on time last night at 8:40 p.m. Although it

was a long and exhausting trip, it was uneventful, and everyone maintained

their good humor and adreniline-induced energy. We were happy to see Sue's

smiling face as we gathered our luggage and exited the airport. There she

was -- with the Ghion van! What more could you ask for? Waggari's mother and

brothers were also there to welcome him. It was wonderful to meet some of

his family.

We attended worship services at the Gulale congregation this morning --

starting at 9:00 and running for a full three hours. It was a spirited

worship -- with full-voiced singing and charasmatic praying and preaching. I

brought greetings from Good Shepherd, and Martha introduced the group and

presented the gift of a baptismal candle to the congregation. Waggari

translated for us, and he appeared to do an excellent job (though he was a

bit nervous -- it was his first time doing live translating). We also met

Girma Daka at the service. He is here along with Joseph from LiftKids. They

are heading out to Ayra tomorrow.

Lunch after worship at the Carnivore Restaurant was most pleasant. Now most

people are resting for an hour. Some did not sleep well last night, and they

were starting to look a bit bleary-eyed!

We are honored and excited to meet with President Iteffa Gobena (president

of the Evangelical Ethiopia Church Mekane Yesus) this afternoon at 3:30 p.m.

He and one of his staff people (one entrusted with ecumenical relationships)

are coming here to the Ghion to meet with us and talk about companion

relationships with Lalo Ayra and the BirBirDilla Synod. This is most

amazing, and we are eager to hear what he has to say about our potential

relationships there. Sue had contacted him, asking for a brief meeting, and

he suggested that we meet this afternoon, and that he would "come to us"

because it was easier than coming to his office.

After meeting with President Iteffa, we are having dinner with the Blieses.

Loren is back in town, so it will be dinner with both of them. Again, we are

pleased for this possibility.

Tomorrow it's on to Burayu Katta and the girls we sponsor there. Sue met

many of them last week when Don Meyer was here, and she said their growth

and development over the past year has been absolutely amazing. Their

mentor, Elfinish, will be traveling with us to Nekemte, Gimbi, and Ayra, to

check on the REAL girls and mentors in each of those locations (she's the

mentor of mentors now for REAL). We are delighted with that development.

Otherwise it seems that everything is going according to plan. Elfinish has

been a most helpful communicator for Sue with Ayra and the BirBirDilla Synod

office, so we are grateful for that. She even clearly arranged for the

German guest house for our use again! So I love her even more!

And -- good news!!!! -- Sue ran into Tesfae at Mekane Yesus headquarters

last week. When he found out that we are going to Nekemte and Ayra, he spoke

with Dr. Habtamu to make sure he could be our driver!! So we will be in the

good hands of Tesfae again. We're not sure about the other driver, but we

are delighted that we can spend road time with Tesfae. (Tesfae was one of

our drivers last year, and we became particularly fond of him.)

That's all for now. We will be back in contact tomorrow some time, when we

will be able to report on our meeting with President Iteffa and our day with

the REAL girls at Burayu Katta.

Blessed All Saints Day to all of you saints of God!

Karen Walhof

Addis Ababa -- #1
Good Morning, Family and Friends -- As I type this, women from countries around the world are posing in Swim Suits for the swim suit competition of "Miss Millenium" of Ethiopia just outside this business center. Maybe that's why I finally can get on a computer here!  Very surreal. (As some of you know, September was the millenium here in Ethiopia, which follows a different calendar than most of the world. There's also a different time which is either 5 or 7 hours earlier than the rest of the world's time. It seems strange to us, but then, think about our Leap Year.....) I accompanied Don to the airport this morning. He's flying back to Lusaka, Zambia to meet up with John Mendesh for their return flight home. I now am awaiting the arrival of our group. They should arrive close to 9 p.m. tonight. Until then, I've got a few more details to finalize for our trip. Don and I had a successful and eventful day yesterday.

We met with Dr. Habtamu who is in charge of the Human Development programs for the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus (EECMY). He was pleased to hear more about our plans to help assess the capacity of the hospital in Aira to continue its important institutional health care while becoming more self sustaining. We will be working with Global Health Ministries on this. I cannot wait for our medical team of Nancy, Sharon, Suzanne, Martha to get there and help assess the strengths and challenges of the Hospital and Nursing School. We also arranged for the President of Mekane Yesus and the head of Mission and Theology to meet with us at our hotel on Sunday afternoon. Then Don and I toured the tomb of King Menelik II, his wife, daughter and the daughter of Haille Sallassee. He loved that! We also visited an Ethiopian Orthodox church. The language used in the service is Ge'ez, an ancient language not spoken outside of the church and, even then, only by very trained priests and scholars. We heard some men practicing the chanting with a priest to make sure their pronunciation and intonation were correct. Very interesting. We had lunch with Brian Gilquist, a Shanondoah Valley Virginian who used to work with the Peace office of EECMY. Now he is with U.S. AID and seeing if he can help with interfaith conflict through that office. He was very helpful in guiding our thinking about partnership with the congregation of Lalo Ayra. His Virginia Presbytery has had a companion relationship south of Aira for 25 years!  Unfortunately, Don's camera was stolen while we had lunch with Brian. Don handled that disappointment in an inspiring way. "It's just a thing. Sure, I'm disappointed to lose those pictures. But I had the wonderful experiences. I just pray for whoever took it, that they would find a better way to meet their needs." 

We finalized some of our plans for heading west and our day with Amanuel and Elfinish of the Burayu Katta school. Elfinish will travel with us to visit the new REAL sites and two older ones. Don and I went to dinner at a traditional Ethiopian Restaurant which I don't think was his "cup of tea." It was very cheap, however, and the food was very good. I had just put his wallet in my zippered camera case when a group of young men pretended to bump into him, felt his back pocket and pulled out his passport. Fortunately, another young man picked it up and ran up to Don with it. Then as we left the restaurant, Don left his passport on the chair. Another young man, who was fellow diner, saw it and ran it out to him. Geez. Talk about close calls. Don's conclusion? "Well, getting my passport back twice just shows there's at least twice as many good people as those who are up to trouble."  We did see many, many poor people lining the streets yesterday. The harshest sight for me (how can you evaluate such circumstances) was a young mother who'd crafted a makeshift house from plastic on a street corner. She had two young girls playing inside and outside of the plastic cube. Her baby, naked crawled out from the "house" and onto the sidewalk. What is their future? How can their present be so torrid and difficult. Why is mine and my family's so gentle? What is God's call to me to respond? A few birr tossed to them does not seem enough and certainly doesn't warrant the mother's respectful bowing to me. That's about all for now. I am looking forward to seeing our group tonight. Oh, the swimsuit event is finished and the women are now trying to use the computers in their formal gowns, ribbons with their countries across their shoulders and heavy perfume. Miss Estonia is right here with Miss Bulgaria. I'd better sign off for now.

Missing you all and wishing you the Peace of God, Sue

OUR MISSION: Thoughtful Faith. Passionate Action. Grace for the Journey.