Time Flies

Wow. All I can say is that time really does fly when you’re having fun. I can not believe that my time here (for now)  is so quickly coming to a close. I am in utter disbelief that I leave this beautiful country tomorrow night. Each and every year that I have come here I  leave another piece of my heart. Leaving is bittersweet. I will miss the kids and friends I have made here, but so look forward to seeing my friends, family, and Landon. I have peace knowing that I will surely return (hopefully bringing a team next year, so let me know if you’re interested!).

Life has been crazy since I have last updated. Another intern arrived Friday night and us three interns have had so much fun hanging out together. Early Saturday morning we left for a safari. We took a transport up to Aquila Private Game Reserve, went on a game drive, slept there, and went on another game drive in the morning. Between that time there was a lot of relaxing and eating. We were able to see all of the major animals, and all of the African Big 5 besides the leopard. As far as other non work related things go, we took a surfing lesson early Monday morning before going to the Dream Centre. Let me tell you, surfing was so much fun. One of the other interns and I took a lesson, and God bless our instructor because she was SO patient with us and had us both catching waves standing up by the end of the lesson. I wish I had tried surfing earlier because it seemed like I had finally started to get the hang of things and then the lesson was over. It was also cool because we took our lessons from Roxy surf school and when we finished Roxy herself was in the shop! I fangirled hard core and took a photo with her. I am amazed at her humility for being such a big name.

The kids have simply been amazing. Some days are harder than others. We are entering the rainy season here and actually had what the South African weather people called a small hurricane last week. It was predicted to be so bad that all schools were cancelled. While I have definitely seen more powerful winds and rain, a storm this big can have a detrimental effect on those in the informal settlements who live in shacks. Luckily, all of our kids were okay after, and the overall damage was not as bad as anticipated. Some had some flooding in their homes, but it could have been so so much worse. The day after that we were missing about 10 kids from my class at God’s Little Lighthouse and it was a tough day with the rest. This was expected as they are coming off little sleep, a day of being cooped up, and many have little structure at home. My patience always grows during my times here as I learn to think more about what each child faces at home than their current behavior. Throughout my three years here I have heard so many stories that put so many things, including their behavior, into perspective. I will truly miss all of the God’s Little Lighthouse and Dream Centre kids, I have learned to love even the naughtiest of them all 🙂

 

Tomorrow night I begin my journey home to the states. I leave South Africa at 11pm SA time (5pm Michigan time) and am scheduled to land in Grand Rapids 6:30pm on Thursday the 15th Michigan time. Please pray that I would have safe travels, that everything would go as planned, and that there will not be too many tears at the airport!

Thank you so much for all of your support and prayers throughout my trip,

Olivia

Half Way

WOW this past week went by so fast. I am so sorry that  I have not updated until now, but I guess that is a sign that I am having a great time. My schedule is pretty consistent as far as serving goes from week to week, so it can be hard to remember to post. Last week was a full week of work since there were not any holidays. In the last week I also got a roommate! Her name is Megan and she will be here for two months working with a soccer school in the mornings and the Dream Centre in the afternoons. It has been a lot less lonely in the flat and we have had so much  fun together so far. A third intern arrives this Friday, and we are so excited to meet her as well.

It is amazing to see the kids learn and grow in the short time that I have been here. In my last post a mentioned a little boy that I have gotten to work closely with. I fell in love with him two years ago when I first came and got to spend time with him last year as well. This year, he has fallen behind in his reading so I work with him one on one everyday. The first day I started with him he could not recognize about half the letters in the alphabet. I have been following a program that a local Afrikaans lady set up for another boy who she works with, and it has helped him so much. C can now easily name all the letters and is starting to read simple words! I hope and pray that I can continue to be of help to him in my last weeks here. What is even cooler about being able to work with C is that my family actually sponsors him. Landon and I also sponsored a little girl for Christmas and it is so cool to be able to spend time with these kids and know how much good our sponsorship is doing. Many of the kids at the Dream Centre still do not have any sponsors, so if you are interested in learning more about this great program, email me at olivia.hoppen@gmail.com and I would love to get you more information/profiles!

This past weekend was sort of a vacation weekend. Every year Extreme Response and the leaders of one of their partner organizations go away together just for a time of fellowship. This year, they went to Cape Agulhas and they invited us interns to come along as well. Cape Agulhas is where the southernmost tip of Africa is, not to be confused with the most southwestern tip that  we visited Friday morning. This southern tip is also where the Indian and Atlantic oceans meet. The weekend was spent exploring, playing games, and eating lots with good company.

Prayer Requests:

1. That C would keep improving his reading
2. More sponsors for the Dream Centre kids
3. Safe arrival of the third intern on Friday
4. That I would continue to stay healthy

Thanks for your support!

Olivia

The little girl Landon and I sponsor!

C 🙂

Megan and I at Cape Point!

Southwestern tip of africa!

Big improvements at swimming this week!

Most southern tip of Africa!

 

Finding a Rhythm

I have officially been here over a week, and I can not believe how fast time is already going. I am finally adjusted to the time change and let me tell you, overcoming jet lag is not fun. Often I think about my first trip here with a team, where it was go go go right from the start. I thought that I was simply having a hard time adjusting, but I actually had the beginning stages of mono (lol I fell asleep every time we got in the van to go anywhere). Therefore, whenever I was struggling with the jet lag this time around I just reminded myself that I somehow survived that.

It has been nice to start to have a somewhat consistent schedule. I spend my days between God’s Little Lighthouse and the Dream Centre and then typically come back to my flat for dinner and just hanging out the rest of the night. It is the beginning of winter here so it is starting to get dark early. There is not much to do in “the valley” after dark, so I feel very lucky to have access to wifi. I have really enjoyed my days with the kids. As I have said before, one of my favorite things about coming back to the same place every year is that I get to interact with the same kids and see how they grow and change. I plan on talking about him more later, but this year I have the opportunity to work one on one with a little boy that I have spent time with on both of my previous trips as well. He has grown so big!

One thing that I learned this year is that South Africans celebrate Ascension Day, the day that Jesus went back to Heaven. I think that this is really cool because it is a day that we do not even mention when we are in the states. Since most schools had the day off and GLLH is a Christian preschool, I had my entire Thursday off. I spent my day leaving the valley to do some shopping with the Townsend girls (cool Extreme Response missionary family that lets me live in the flat in their backyard), and then went to a local food market for dinner with Emily. South Africa is breathtakenly beautiful. I could not help but gaze out the windows on the way to go shopping and think about how glorious His creation is. It made me think that if I am so amazed by creation, I can not imagine how glorious the first Ascension day must have been.

Prayer Requests:

-Rain!! South Africa is in a huge drought. The tap water is no longer safe to drink because the dams are so low.

-Many of the children that I work with live in the local township of Masiphumalele. This can be a chaotic and often unsafe environment for these kids. They have told ER staff members about different things that they have seen during riots, and it is heartbreaking. The leaders of Masi have recently made a video talking about some of the big problems with their conditions that they are having. You can watch it here: https://youtu.be/rYfislIPe0Q. Please join me in praying for these conditions to be fixed, and for it to happen peacefully.

-Another intern arrives late Sunday night, pray for her to have safe travels here. I am excited to have someone living with me!

Thank you for your prayers and support!

Liv

Dream Centre silliness

The mountain that we climbed last weekend!

Top of the mountain, I am just happy I didn’t fall going up or down

Every Wednesday is Bakers day, 2 kids bring in sweets to share and they get to wear a hat for the day.

 

 

The First Few Days

Hello everyone! I am sorry that I have not updated before this, but I have made it to South Africa safe and sound. I arrived Tuesday night (here about 9pm) and have been busy adjusting ever since. There is a 6 hour time difference (South Africa is ahead) so between that and traveling, I have been exhausted trying to adjust. This year, I am staying in a flat behind the house of a family from the States who works for Extreme Response. They have three teenage daughters, and it has been so nice to be around other people at night here.

The day after I got here I was able to sleep in a little bit and then we went to get me some groceries, money, and lunch. Luckily, this year I am in walking distance of a lot of places. Then in the afternoon we went to the dream centre, and I was amazed at how organized they have been able to keep things. Last year they only had grade ones, but this year they took a new batch of grade ones and continue to have the now grade twos…aka double the kids. It is so fun to see how these kids have grown and flourished over the year. So far, I have really enjoyed my afternoons there.

I have also spent two mornings at God’s Little Lighthouse this week. I am able to work with the same wonderful teacher that I did last year. It has been nice to know how she does things, as it makes it easier for me to jump in (and not be pushed around by the kids). She has 34 kids around the age of 4-5 in her class this year. They are a bit crazy but they are just so cute. I was talking to her and she told me that when a new person enters the class they often act out a bit more because they want the new person’s attention. I hope that they get used to me quickly so they are able to learn as much as possible. This year, I will only be going to GLLH on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. These are their teaching days and the days that I will be most helpful.

Another new thing this year is that on Fridays the grade twos at the Dream Centre take swimming lessons from a program called “Swim like a Shark”. I will be helping with these swimming lessons on Fridays. The program takes a big van to come pick up the kids. They then have some classroom time  where they learn about different things, sharks especially. Their big thing is that you are more likely to drown than be attacked by a shark. It is awesome that these kids are receiving these swimming lessons because they live in a place surrounded by water. Otherwise, they may have never been able to learn. We had so much fun, but the water was COLD (50 degrees!).

This weekend will be filled with relaxing. This afternoon we are heading into Cape Town to hike a place called Lion’s Head. It is a hike that has similar views to Table Mountain, but not as long or treacherous. Hopefully after this weekend I will be on the other side of jet lag and fully adjusted. Continue to pray that I would adjust, that God would work through me, and that I would make the most of my time here. I have added some pictures below!

God bless,

Liv

 

Round THREE here I come!

Believe it or not, tomorrow afternoon I leave for my third trip to South Africa. I will be interning with Extreme Response International, the same organization that I have been with my last two trips. I am so excited to be back in the place that has such a  large part of my heart. One of my favorite things about continuing to serve with the same organization is that I get to see the same kids year to year. My days will look similar to my days last year. I will again be helping at God’s Little Lighthouse in the morning, and the Dream Centre in the afternoon. I am sure that I will be amazed with how much the kids have grown and flourished in the past year.

My first flight leaves Grand Rapids tomorrow (Monday the 15th) at 3:30pm. I will then fly to Detroit, then Amsterdam, then finally Cape Town. If all goes as planned, I will be on South African soil at 9pm on Tuesday (3pm Michigan time). From there I will jump right in to work, and I could not be more excited. I will do my best to post regular updates to this blog, as well as prayer requests, throughout my time there.

Prayer Requests:

-Safe travels! I always get a little nervous traveling alone

-Home sickness..last year I was not homesick much, but this year I am more worried about this

-All my loved ones that I am leaving in the US (family, lil and big landon, 2 future niece/nephews)

-Lastly, prayers for Abby and Joe and the goldfish, that they would get encouraging news and test results soon.

See you June 15, America!

Olivia

In the Groove

Well, I want to start off by saying that I am sorry that I have been so bad at updating this! I guess that means that I am having such a great time that I have not really had time to. By the end of the day working with the kids I am usually so exhausted that all I can do is eat and sleep! My schedule on the week days has been the same with working at God’s Little Lighthouse in the mornings and the Dream Centre in the afternoon- early evening. This is one major difference between my experience being on a team last year and being an intern this year: it is a much more accurate glimpse of living here. With a team you may have something that you do each day, but as an intern a lot of the days look really similar. I like the more routine schedule that comes with being an intern because it has made it easier to adjust and see a glimpse of real life. One thing new this past week is that GLLH is getting new concrete! The old concrete caused a lot of kids to get hurt because it was so uneven. Someone made a donation to get it fixed and it will be so so nice when it is done. However, it has been a little chaotic with having part of the playground roped off or not being able to go outside at all, but it will be so worth it. Here are some pictures of the kiddos from the last week and half!

Every Wednesday GLLH has bakers day! Where two children from the class bring a treat to share!

Someone got a little sleepy during devotions…

This past weekend was spent exploring. Thursday night we went to a food market at a vineyard and it was absolutely beautiful! They also had so much good food I think I went to 5 different food stands (mostly desserts). Friday night we went out to Fishhoek beach because the colors were a beautiful pastel and you could actually see the mountains on the other side of the bay which you usually can’t. Then we went to watch a little bit of Gabe’s, Lindsey’s husband, rugby team play. He is a coach for the men’s Masiphumelele rugby team and they were playing a visiting team from the UK. We stuck around there for a little bit and then headed to dinner at a place called Michigan Spur (how funny!) then we went back to Lindsey’s to research Tie Dye! We have decided that in my last week at the Dream Centre we are going to make tie dye with the kids because it is something that they have never done. We got a lot of the supplies today and it was definitely not like just buying a kit in the US. I am excited to do this with the kids and talk about how the shirts are kind of like our lives. When we fold them and put the dye on them, we can not see the whole picture or how they are going to turn out. However, God knows how our lives are going to go and has made us into beautiful creations. Saturday morning was spent at Emily’s (the daughter of ER staff members who stayed with me the first part of my trip) home school graduation. We headed to Fishhoek beach for a short service then back to their home for some food. I wish I graduated on the beach! We then headed to a place called Kalk bay to do some shopping. I surprisingly stayed under control, especially when I thought about the lack of extra weight in my luggage. We then headed into Cape Town where we attempted to go up Table Mountain for sunset only to figure out it closed early! We instead headed to nearby Signal Hill, which was just as beautiful! It was really cool that you could see Table Mountain, The 12 Apostles Range, and Lion’s Head all in one place. After sunset we went into the very touristy part called the Waterfront. The Waterfront is the number one tourist destination in South Africa for both citizens and tourists. We did some light shopping there before having dinner and heading back over the mountain to the valley.

Lindsey and I

Rugby fields!

Fishhoek beach with the beautiful colors and so clear that you can actually see the mountains across the bay!

Some fellow tourists

The path by Fishhoek beach

Hannah, the Townsend’s middle daughter!

I look forward to my last week serving here, but am not at all ready for it to be done. I will miss these sweet kids so much and the South African style of life. Trust me, I have already started to think about my next trip. I thought I would end this post with a list of funny things that have happened or kids have said:

-Finding random pieces of weaves on the floor and even in a pencil case

-Gabe: “stay out of there, there is nails!”

Kid: “I am not afraid of some snails!”

-A little girl looking at the back of my phone: “Did someone take a bite out of that apple?”

-When they fart they say that they have spoiled the air

-Trying to pick off the mysterious black stuff on my eye lashes one day (mascara)

-Kids constantly singing popular pop singing popular pop songs, including “Hotline Bling”

-A kids snack that looks like jello shots (but there is no alcohol thank goodness)

And many more that I know I am forgetting!

Cant believe I will be home just about a week from now!

Love,

Liv

 

Off and Running

Well, today marked my third day of being with the kids here in South Africa, and so far it has been amazing. I spend from about 8:30 to 11:30 working with a class of 33 4-5 year olds at God’s Little Lighthouse. These kids are CRAZY (mostly in a good way) and love to jump on people, hug, and cuddle. What it really seems like to me is that they just love all of the physical affection that they can get. The teacher that I am working with, Auntie Christy, does such a great job at giving them both structure and love. There has been some rioting going on in the nearby township of Masiphumelele that seems to really affect the kids behavior, attendance, and even how they play with each other on the playground. The teachers do a good job of recognizing this and letting them know that it isn’t okay behavior but also understanding. All of the teachers also do a great job of making due with what resources and space they have. These kids have BIG imaginations. It is so fun to see kids that I met last year and how much they have grown!

Then in my afternoons from about 1:30-5:30 I head to the Dream Centre, which takes place in a building that Extreme Response built on the property of God’s Little Lighthouse. The Dream Centre is a place where kids that are now in grade 1 and used to attend God’s Little Lighthouse and were identified as likely to fall behind for various reasons come for extra help and love. The kids receive tutoring, food, Bible lesson, and a lot of loving. Many of these kids apply these things to their lives and have even been recognized by their teachers at their schools for it! Something that is really interesting to me is that unlike the States, when you enter grade 1 you have to apply for a school. From what I understand, the schools are either really good or really bad. The Dream Centre kiddos come from all different schools in the area , so we get to see some of both. Also, for some kids, they are likely to fall behind because all of their school is taught in English, but English is not spoken in their homes at all. This makes it hard for them not only to learn the language, but to even do their homework. The Dream Centre really is a life changing place for these kiddos!

As you can tell, I am having an amazing time here! I think I have finally adjusted to the time change. It is nice to have my nights at my house here to relax. It is South African winter, so it gets dark really early and there is not much to do then! Emily, the girl that was nice enough to stay with me while I am here, and I typically will just watch a movie and eat some ice cream 🙂 I can not wait to see what God has in store for me the rest of my time here, I know that this is just the beginning! Please pray that I continue to adjust and that I stay healthy! It seems that all of the kids are starting to get sick! I have included so

Love,

Liv

One of the Dream Centre cuties!

Doing some coloring after she got her homework done!

CRAZY kids once a camera comes out!

The little boy that I fell in love with last year and that my family now sponsors!

The “big kid” playground

LOOK AT THAT FACE

Big imaginations

The fence and murals that my group painted last year when I was here!

The classroom I work in! Hard to believe they fit 33 little ones in here!

I made it!

 

After 3 flights (1 hour, 8 hour, and 11.5 hours) and a 12 hour layover in London, I arrived to South Africa around 10am on Saturday! All of my flights went as planned, and really could not have gone any smoother. On my longest flight I even had an empty seat next to me, so that was definitely a blessing! After Lindsey, the intern coordinator, picked me up, we went to my house to drop off my luggage, went and got groceries, and then went to a beach nearby to just hangout and try to keep me awake so that I could (attempt) to adjust to the time change. We then ate pizza at my house with the Extreme Response staff and I headed to bed shortly after. Many little things quickly came back to me, like ketchup= tomato sauce, sweatshirts=jerseys, there are car guards at parking lots, traffic lights= robots, you ask for tap water at restaurants and normally do not get ice, and many more little things that always make me smile. The house that I am staying in is very nice and is seriously like a fortress. Like if anyone could get in here, I would just be impressed.

My house from the outside!

The other way!

View from the beach that we visited

This morning (Sunday) I went to church with Lindsey and her husband, Gabe, in a local school, then came back to my house and took a nap and had some lunch. Then in the afternoon they picked me back up and we went on a hike at a nature reserve like place nearby that just has tons of different trails that you could take! We were on a bit of a time crunch, so we did not go for too long, but it was BEAUTIFUL! I love how in South Africa you get mountains AND the ocean. So beautiful.

Then at 5 we headed over to one of Extreme Response’s partners in a neighboring town to check out their mission and facilities. The organization is named JAM and the camp we visited is their main campus built on an old World War 2 base, so between my love for camp and my inner history nerd, I was pretty excited. The camp is called “Apostles Battery” because it is right below the 12 Apostles mountain range, and it is right below the peak named Judas. The battery part comes form the 3 cannons that are on sight. The organizations main focus was running camps and also doing outreach in the communities surrounding them, so that the relationships can go beyond camp and they can raise up leaders within the communities. We spent some time getting a tour of the facilities, and seeing different ways that they have made a military base into a camp, including going INSIDE a tunnel under a cannon where they stored and loaded ammunition into the cannon. There was one narrow short tunnel that went around the main ammunition rooms to serve as a shock absorber type of thing from when they would fire the cannons. Well, they had us go through it one at a time and we could not have any light and I do not think that I have even been in a darker place! I couldn’t It was scary! At the same time, I am kind of glad that I could not see what was lurking in there. They are really into using the things from WW2 to teach the kids lessons. For example, they used an old bomb shelter to teach kids about secret churches and persecution. It was cool to see how they do some of the same things that we do at camp in Michigan. Initiatives, telling the campers stories (theirs mostly regarded the tunnels and telling the kids that they could end up on an island, just camp things), and showing kids Jesus and believing in the power of a camp experience on spiritual development. Then we went and ate dinner that they prepared for us. And when I say prepared, I mean that the owner of the camp shot and processed the meat that we ate himself! This was my first experience with real South African food. The main dish was Kudu (a South African animal) with mashed potatoes on top and vegetables mixed in it. It kind of reminded me of Shepherds Pie. For those of you that know me well, you know that I am an extremely picky eater, so this was an interesting experience for me and an opportunity to be hospitable to those who were hosting us. The road we took there also just had the most beautiful views so I will include a couple pictures just from the drive as well 🙂 Everywhere that you drive here is so beautiful that I always feel like I am taking pictures from the inside of the car!

Drive to JAM

Chapmans Peak! ( the road to Jam)

The backdrop of “Apostle Battery”

View from the camp!

Behind a WW2 Cannon that the tunnel is underneath

The front of the cannon

An initiative similar to one we have at Geneva!

Another Initiative

How they help tell the campers stories (the “Help Me” is not from world war 2)

Looking up from the end room of the tunnel that they loaded ammunition up into the cannon.

Tomorrow is my first day working at God’s Little Lighthouse and the Dream Centre, and I could not be more excited to dive in! Pray that I continue to adjust to the time zone, as I am still a bit on the tired side, and it sounds like I will need all of the energy that I can get. Thank you so much for all of your prayers, they mean the world to me!

Love,

Liv

 

Here I go!

I can NOT believe that today is already the day that I begin my second journey to South Africa. I started planning this trip the end of last summer, and I am amazed at how fast the time went. To say that I am nervous and anxious would be an understatement. I have never been away from home or my family this long, but I know without a doubt that this is what the Lord is calling me to do. Several weeks ago when my trip was undergoing some major changes, I was sitting in church and the prayer of confession hit me (I am one of those few people that is still a big fan of liturgical worship). It went like this:

“Loving Jesus, You asked for my hands, that you might use them for your purpose. I gave them for a moment, then withdrew them, for the work was hard. You asked for my mouth to speak out against injustice. I gave you a whisper that I might not be accused. You asked for my eyes to see the pain of poverty. I closed them, for I did not want to see. You asked for my life, that you might work through me. I gave a small part; that I might not get too involved. Lord, forgive my calculated efforts to serve you– only when it is convenient for me to do so, only in places where it is safe to do so, and only with those who make it easy to do so. Savior, forgive me, renew me, and send me out as a usable instrument, that I might take seriously the meaning of your cross. Amen”

How fitting is that? Not just for my trip, but for everyday life. How often do we follow God’s call only to the extent that we are comfortable with or is convenient for us? It reminds me of the song “Ocean” that is asking us to step out of the boat of our comfort and follow Jesus into deeper waters. I have taped this prayer into the front of my journal, and I hope that it serves as a constant reminder to me to follow God’s will for my time serving and not my own.

As I said before, today is the day that I finally leave! My flight leaves Grand Rapids at 7pm tonight. Before that, I am meeting at Logan’s with my siblings and nephew before they take me to the airport. I then fly to Chicago and then to London at about 8:30pm, I arrive in London Friday morning where I have an 11 hour layover (yuck!) and then Friday night London time I take off for Cape Town where I land at 10 am South African time (6 hours ahead) on Saturday morning. I will try and update Saturday night once I am all settled in!

Prayer Requests:

Pray for traveling safeties and endurance, it is a long travel time, especially alone!

Pray for the Lord’s peace leaving later today and for calm hearts for both me and my family (especially my parents).

Pray that I would work to follow God’s will for my time serving, and not my own. Help me to realize that it is God working through me, and to not make calculated efforts to serve Him but do so wholeheartedly.

All packed and ready to go! Finally got my suitcase (barely) under 50 pounds!

The Calling

As many of you may know, last year I had the incredible opportunity to go on a trip to South Africa for 10 days with Maranatha ministries. I instantly fell in love with this beautiful place, the culture, and the people. In conversing with Extreme Response International, the organization that I went with, the opportunity to be an intern for the month of May arose. I could not be more excited for this opportunity. As I begin to prepare to leave, I thought I would do a small FAQ session!

What is Extreme Response International?

Extreme Response’s website says, ” Extreme Response International is a humanitarian aid organization committed to changing the lives of people living in extreme, often life-threatening, situations. From locations in North and South America, Africa and Asia, we operate a series of programs designed to bring help and hope to those in need, with a particular emphasis on at-risk children and women. Our impact is strengthened through strategic partnerships with community-based organizations. This tactic is grounded in one of our core beliefs – that, while money is certainly a necessary component, it’s through relationships that genuine life change takes place. ER strives to build and maintain meaningful relationships at every level, from those we serve to strategic partners to donors to volunteers. A registered not-for-profit organization in the United States and Canada, ER is actively involved in 11 countries. Our programs include outreach to orphans, dump dwellers and refugees; people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS; people with no access to clean drinking water, proper medical care or education; and people living in extreme poverty. In serving the world’s poor and at-risk, we are addressing critical physical needs.” I love the relational component of Extreme Response, because I think that it works against the “Western Savior Complex” and actually helps people in a way that is glorifying to Christ.”

What will you be doing there?

I will be spending our mornings and early afternoons with an Extreme Response partner called “God’s Little Lighthouse” and my afternoons with a new Extreme Response program called “The Dream Centre”. God’s Little Lighthouse is a Christian preschool run for kids that would normally not get the amazing opportunities that GLL provides. Sometimes this is the only place that kids hear about Jesus! I was able to spend mornings there on my last trip, and fell in love with these amazing kiddos! The Dream Centre is a new after school program for kids that left GLL and went to all different schools for grade 1. This program is helpful in keeping kids on track with both school and faith. I will also have the privilege of spending a couple afternoons with a group home program called “African Hope Trust”. And of course, I will have the opportunity to do lots of exploring of all South Africa has to offer!

Kids at GLL

Some of my favorites 🙂

Here are some of the kids from God’s Little Lighthouse!

When will you be there?

I leave for South Africa May 5, and I will return May 29!

I am so grateful for all of the support that we have received thus far. Feel free to ask me any more questions that you may have, I would love to talk to you! Please continue to pray for me as I prepare to depart. Pray for calm hearts (both mine and my families) and that all of the small details would come together seamlessly, especially financially!

In Christ,

Liv