I am now back to work after a wonderful 2 week vacation with my mom, aunt and brother who came to visit me and meet Grace and Abigail for the first time!  For my mom and aunt, it was also their first trip to Africa, so they had a lot of new things thrown at them all at once.  I was so proud watching them kill spiders, battle wasps, and deal with the occasional power outage and water shortage.  They were able to meet some of the children they have supported over the years, as well as meet the little girl their United Methodist Women’s group supports.  Abby instantly chose Uncle Josh as her new best friend, and could even say “Joth” by the end of the trip with her cute little lisp.

We were able to travel to a lot of my favorite spots and meet my favorite people, so it was such a special time.  We spent most of the first week at or near home so the girls could sleep in their own beds, but we did venture out a bit farther the second week with 2 of my friends, Julie and Ruth.  We traveled to Chimanimani Mountains, Mt. Selinda where the girls are from, and the Great Zimbabwe Ruins.  I couldn’t believe all of us made it to the top of the mountain where the kings’ castle used to be!  Abby and Grace had so much fun, but by the end of the trip, I think they were exhausted along with the rest of us! 

The girls turned two years old on October 5.  It was so special to have some of my family there to celebrate.   We had a small party with lots of presents, pretty party dresses, and chocolate cake.  Unfortunately after so much excitement both girls got sick, so we had to send my family to the game park on their last day without us.  It was sad to leave Mom, Nancy and Josh at the airport, but I am happy they arrived safely back home with lots of stories and memories to share with everyone.

During my family’s visit, there was a Prize Giving Day at many of the schools where our HOPE children attend school.  We were proud to find out that many two of our children received prizes, which is a great honor.  Blessing Samushonga, who attends Hartzell Secondary School, had the highest grades of his entire class (hundreds of students!).  Enoch Magombera, from Vumbunu Secondary, received an award for being the most responsible child in his entire class. 

We have 8 children currently writing their 7^th grade exams this month.  The results will determine which school they can attend for junior high/secondary school.  We have 6 more writing their “O” level exams, and 2 writing their “A” level exams which will determine if they will be able to attend college.  We wish them good luck and are looking forward to good results from all of them.  Hopefully we will have more college and university students under the HOPE program in the near future.

I am excited that rainy season is right around the corner, but for now we have to tolerate the heat with no air conditioning!

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine, Abigail and Grace

 

 

 We have officially started the third and last term of school year and it is much quieter at Fairfield during the days!  This past month was a true blessing with the Ream family visiting from my hometown in West Virginia.  They stayed for a full month with their three children.  This was the first time younger children have come to live with us at Fairfield.  The Fairfield children had so much fun studying, playing, doing Bible Study and watching movies with their new friends. 

The Ream family also supports 2 of our HOPE children in the education program.  They were able to spend a few days with them and take them on a special outing that included horseback riding and a stop at the best cake shop in Zimbabwe!  We were also able to travel together to meet one of their sponsor children’s relatives.  They were very helpful passing out food for the nutrition program and school supplies at each of the schools.  Our Vumbunu Primary School children now all have sponsors so we were able to purchase new school shoes and sweaters for them to finish out the year in style!

We attempted to drive my car to visit some of our HOPE children on the nutrition program in their homes.  Halfway to our destination, we realized there was no way the car could continue on the “road” and we had to turn back.  Luckily some of our babies came to visit us this month, including our mother of triplets.  She was carrying them all by herself-one on the back and one on each side.  I decided to no longer complain when carrying twins!

Grace and Abigail are growing, happy and healthy.  They love dancing and singing all day long.  Grace loves to look in the mirror every morning from many angles to ensure her outfit is beautiful enough.  She won’t leave the house without a bow in her hair and carries her stuffed animals around on her back wrapped in a towel.  Abby is my little tomboy.  She can be found running around with all the boys at the daycare center and hurling bouncy balls straight at my head.  She loves to dig in the mud with a stick and going fast-whether it is in her stroller or being spun around the room. 

The girls had their first ice cream party while the Ream family was here.  They ate all of their own ice cream and then moved on to finish what was left in everyone else’s bowls.  By the end the girls were even trying to eat right from the container.  Now I truly know these are my children!

My Mom, brother Josh and Aunt Nancy arrive this coming Sunday for a 2-week visit.  Abby and Grace are so excited to meet Mormor, Uncle Josh and Nan as they know them by the picture we keep next to a map of the world.  The bright purple jacaranda trees have made an appearance just in time for their visit and we are all looking forward to some family time together.

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine

The annual journey has begun to collect sponsor letters and take new photos of all the HOPE children.  This year it has been much more entertaining with the three college students from the US accompanying me on each trip to all the different schools.  This also gives us an opportunity to check up on all the children’s report books and see how they are doing in their classes.  We also find out from these trips which children have changed schools so that we can keep our HOPE records up-to-date.

 The HOPE children are often very transient because they are usually being cared for by a relative.  When that relative is no longer able to keep them, they will be moved to live with another relative, often a long distance away.  We try our very best to follow the children to their new schools and continue paying school fees, but sometimes this is just not possible.  Some will move without informing us of their new destination and others move to very remote areas where we are not able to travel on a regular basis.  For these reasons, sponsors may have multiple children throughout their sponsorship experience.  This is good news because it means even more children have been prayed for and cared for over the years!

So far, we have traveled to Tsvingwe Primary and Secondary Schools, Vumbunu Primary and Secondary Schools and St. James Primary and Secondary Schools.  About 75% of our children attend these schools, so now the hard part will begin of tracking down the other 25% that attend multiple schools all over Zimbabwe!

 

 Grace and Abby are now 21 months old.  It is hard to believe how fast they are growing.  They can now brush their teeth, eat on their own (although sometimes more ends up on the floor than in their mouths!), and love playing with other children from Fairfield and their church.  We have had a visit from our Social Welfare officer this past month who has already filed the first set of paperwork for me to be allowed to adopt as a foreigner.  After he receives the approval letter, he will get my references and set a court date!  He is estimating the Zimbabwean side of the adoption will be completed by the end of October 2012.  That is also the time my visa expires, but hopefully I will receive an extension that will last a year.  Please be in prayer that everything happens in God’s timing and no obstacles will be allowed to get in the way.

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine, Abby and Grace

Hello!  It is a chilly June here in Zimbabwe, which has really affected the crops in our gardens!  We have been blessed with lots of visiting teams and individuals in the last few weeks.  One group came from Tennessee and did crafts with all the Fairfield children.  They were also able to spend time with the 4 children some of the team members sponsor.   Two of the children are from Fairfield, so they were able visit both at school and home.  A third child has been reunified with his family members after living for the first few years at Fairfield.  He is now placed under the HOPE program, so the group traveled to his new school to visit and bring gifts of clothing and food.  The fourth child has been in the HOPE program since the very first year we started and has had the same couple sponsoring him throughout.  It was very exciting to see them finally get to meet Clopas, who they have been so faithful in sponsoring for so many years.   

The three college students staying with us from Mississippi have been so helpful.  Our preschool teacher was able to take a week off while the girls played with the children each morning.  They are also starting to update the lifebooks for each child so that when they leave Fairfield someday, they will go with pictures and stories of their childhood at Fairfield.  We are happy to have Casey Edwards from South Carolina back with us for a few weeks as well.  The children love taking dance lessons with her each time she visits.

Grace and Abby are now going to crèche (our play center) every morning.  It seems every day they learn something new.  I found Abby climbing her way to the top of the slide last week and then sliding back down.  It is difficult to remove Grace from the swings when it is time to go home!  The girls had a great time at a church picnic a few days ago where they learned to kick and throw a ball.  They have been spoiled by the visitors who have brought toys and clothes for them.  I feel truly blessed to be their mother and am very excited that the six month waiting period as a foster parent is finished next month and we can start the adoption process!  I would appreciate your prayers over the next few months.

Hope you and yours are enjoying life J

Love, Janine, Grace, and Abigail

Mississippi May

The children are now back to school for the second term of the year after a month-long holiday in April.  We were very happy with the first term results of our HOPE children.  Many of them were top of their class and received a special present from HOPE to congratulate them on their accomplishments.  HOPE staff tried to encourage them to continue working hard so that maybe one day they will move on to university!

This May, we were fortunate to have a team from University of Southern Mississippi come to work at Fairfield for the week.  Many of the students were returning for their second trip to Zimbabwe with their leader Patrick Hutto.  This year, the students assisted in laying a slab of concrete for a container that was donated last year.  They then built wood shelving to place inside the container, which will be moved onto the concrete slab.  This container will help Fairfield staff organize donations of clothing and food so that it can be easily accessed for the children.  With 77 kids, we go through a lot of clothing and food each year!

Three of the students, Katherine, Ann Marie and Charlsie, will continue their stay at Fairfield until the end of July.  The children are looking forward to spending time with them and having help in English and Math so that they can improve in school.

Grace and Abigail are now attending crèche (preschool) for a few hours each morning.  They can now walk on their own to devotions in the morning-although it takes us a while to get there!  They love Mrs. Matitsa, their preschool teacher who teaches them to jump, color and count to five.  We received a new baby at Fairfield last month and Abby and Grace both love to play with “nana” (baby) Ruvimbo who lives next door to us. 

Hope you all have a fantastic month of May!

Wenyu Munashe,

Janine

It seems like March is flying by!  On the 3rd of March, a group of us from Fairfield went to Lydia Chimonyo High School for Visiting Day to see two of our children in boarding school there.  Some of you may remember Chipo, who started our program in 2004.  It is amazing to see how much she has grown and matured over the last years.  She is now in Form 3 (10th grade), with less than 2 years before she will take her major exams at the end of Form 4.  These tests will determine if she will continue to the last two years of high school in preparation for university.  She and her friend Anna are both doing well in Science and also enjoy their Fashion and Fabrics class.  Grace and Abby were excited for their first Visiting Day, especially since big sister Nyarai took some time off from studying to come with us!

Some of the HOPE staff visited our children at Tsvingwe Primary School this week to check on their progress during the first term.  We have 16 children at this elementary school, and all but 2 are fully sponsored!  There has been a great amount of interest in the sponsorship program over the last few months.  Thank you to our new sponsors who have agreed to support a HOPE child! 

Grace and Abby met the Bishop of Zimbabwe and his wife for the first time.  We welcomed Bishop and Mrs. Nhiwatiwa who stayed at the Fairfield guest house for a few nights.  Abby and Grace were so excited to be meeting their special guests that they both cried!  Fortunately, the Bishop was able to quickly turn the coffee table into a drum, instantly becoming one of the girls' favorite people.  

The girls are growing every day.  They are so exciting to watch.  Grace has taken her first steps and Abby can now stand up on her own without holding anything.  They both love to crawl all over the house, keeping Mom on her toes!

Hope you and your families are all doing well!
Wenyu Munashe,
Janine

February Followings



1st Grade students writing letters to their new sponsors!



February has been a great month for HOPE!  The weather has been beautiful and we finally received the rain we had been waiting on for a few weeks.  I am very thankful that two of our Form 4 (11^th grade) students passed their exams well enough to go on to Form 5 and 6 (two additional years of high school in preparation for university).  One received 6 A’s and the other received 7!  Most of our children finish high school at Form 4 and either go to a training school or try to find employment.  It is our hope that each year we will be able to have a Form 6 student graduate with high enough grades to continue on to university. 



Loreen, a 1st Grade Student in need of a sponsor



Although we accepted 30 new students into the HOPE program last month, some of them still do not have their own sponsor.  If you or a group you are involved in would like to consider sponsoring a child, please send me an email and I will make sure you get all the information you need to help make a decision.  Most of the new children we accepted are in 1^st and 2^nd grade and were recommended by the principals because their family could not afford to pay their fees.



Chenai and his Fairfield mother and brother



The HOPE staff was able to visit one of our children who used to live at Fairfield, but has now been reunified with his extended family.  He was very happy to see his “mother” from Fairfield who brought him some treats to eat!  We hope to continue supporting these reunified children as needed once they rejoin their family to make sure they have everything they need to do well in school.







Abby enjoying a splash!

Abby and Grace have had a great 16^th month!  Two of Fairfield’s board members came to visit from the US and along with friends already in Zimbabwe we took the girls to see their very first waterfall in an area called Nyanga.  Unfortunately, it started pouring the rain on the hike back and we discovered Grace does not like cold rain!  They also had their first swim in a baby pool, which they loved.  Friends from college, Stacy and Todd, also joined us for a few days as part of their honeymoon around Africa.  The girls loved having visitors to entertain them!  Both girls are healthy, happy and moving.  Grace can now stand by herself and crawl.  I am sure she will be walking on her own soon.   Abby is close behind and can now walk holding onto the edge of the table.  

Thanks for all the love, prayers and support!  Janine