A Ministry of Glory Children's City International (GCCI)
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AYI MUKAMA
HAKUNA MUNGU
KYOTASUBIRA
TOGETHER WE CAN
August 1st-
After a night in Kearney at the Western Inn South and a breakfast of waffles in the lobby we headed to ABC-NTV and prepared for our morning television appearance. The children did a great job and enjoyed their time in the studio. You can view the interview and appearances on the following website.
While on the air Walmart donated $300 to go toward the basic needs list on the website, so after finishing up at the studio we headed for Walmart and enjoyed purchasing some things like deodorant, large duffle bags, batteries, international phone cards, and chicken for lunch. We enjoyed our picnic of Chicken under the trees at Walmart and then headed for the Sturh Museum in Grand Island. The afternoon was great fun for SIFA at the museum while we explored the 1889 railroad town. While in town David got a job at the blacksmith shop and helped make a beautiful cross. Several others got jobs at the tinsmith, while others helped at the mercantile. We enjoyed visiting at the Dr. Office, seeing the train depot, and fetching water. It was a great afternoon full of participation and learning American History. Some of our best school days have been spent in places like this. Thank you Sturh Museum for providing this experience for us. Once we left 1889 we stepped back into August 1, 20008 and the nearly 100 degrees of Nebraska came with us. We arrived at the first Christian Church of Grand Island in time for a nap followed by dinner. A great dinner was provided by the women of the church and included favorites like chicken nuggets, green beans, grapes, and cookies. Several of the SIFA children even tried and enjoyed macaroni and chess. The evening concert went well and was enjoyed by everyone that attended. It was off to host families for a snack and bedtime.
August 2nd-
We arrived in Burwell NE after a couple hours of driving. It was a beautiful drive into the sandhills. We enjoyed the green rolling hills, and scattered lakes. We enjoyed lunch provided by our Nebraska coordinator Cassie at a park and headed to Calamus Lake for an afternoon of swimming and playing on the sandy shore. Everyone enjoyed their time in and out of the water. The younger children enjoyed "baptizing" each other and the older ones played soccer both in and out of the water. At times it seemed like water polo and then it was back to soccer. After brushing of the sand and changing clothes we headed to the church for a quick nap before dinner. Pizza Palace of Burwell provided drinks and yummy pizza for all of SIFA. Thank you. Then it was time for a once in a lifetime SIFA concert. Surefine foods donated their parking lot, the Lowery family brought their trailer, and someone else brought a sound system and we were off and singing. Actually I should say swaying and singing. We had the trailer rocking to the SIFA sound track and swaying to the choreography. The audience sat in lawn chairs and clapped along on the beautiful Nebraska night. We had a great time! During and after the concert there was a silent auction that was but together as a great fundraiser for the choir. We truly had a great evening! Off to host families and to bed as it was quiet late after things got wrapped up. Good night form the corn fields!
August 3rd-
SIFA was able to sleep in a little bit after a late night and arrived at church at 9:30 to prepare for our morning concert at Burwell Baptist Church. We enjoyed singing to about 200 people and enjoyed a great potluck afterwards. Soccer, cards, and relaxing under the trees on the church property filled the afternoon until it was nap time in the airconditioned church at 3:00. After a good nap SIFA was ready to roll to our next concert at Bethel Baptist Church in Ord. We enjoyed a great dinner of rice, beans, and cookies and enjoyed checking out a great sound system before the concert at 7:00. The concert was well attended and enjoyed by many people who had come because of the our television appearance on Friday. After the concert we enjoyed a time of fellowship and cookies before we rounded everyone up to travel back to Burwell and meet host families at 9:30. It was off to bed shortly after arriving at homes with the promise of sleeping in as late as everyone wanted.
August 4th-
SIFA had a hay day today! After a great morning of sleeping in SIFA headed to the Lowrey Ranch to play in the hay. We were able to see the mowing, racking, piling, and bailing process up close and personal. Paul drove the bailing tractor and the children climbed on the bails. We came back to the ranch and were joined by Bethel Baptist Church children's ministry for an afternoon of q & a, beads, sugar cookie decorating, and all kinds of games. The evening ended with a great BBQ (SIFA was able to enjoy steak again!) and special times with new friends. Back to host families and off to bed after a great day on the farm. Thank you Lowrey Family and Bethel Baptist for making today extra special for SIFA.
August 5th-
We left Burwell this morning at 8:30 and picked kids up at three different places along Hwy 11. We have been so blessed to stay in ranch country and learn about the ranching life. At 10:30 we arrived in O'Neil to begin our time with Grandma Beth, whom is the founder of the SIFA Grandma's club. At 11:30 we sang at the O'Neil rotary club and enjoyed lunch with people of all different professions. From rotary we were off to Shane farms to ride on the biggest tractor and farm machines we had ever seen. The children were amazed by not only the size but the technology and GPS systems on board. While waiting for tractor rides we enjoyed horse back riding, a trampoline, and seeing other farm implements. Thank you Shane Farms for having the SIFA choir over to play on the farm. We were soon on the road for our next stop at Stewart United Methodist Church for a lovely potluck. Then it was time for a concert which went we and was attend by many community members and SIFA followers. We all had a great time performing and enjoyed ice cream after the concert. It was back on the road after the concert and up to O'Neil to meet our host families. It was almost 11 by the time we arrived at out homes so it was off to bed for a good night sleep.
August 6th-
Our morning started with a yummy breakfast provided by Tia Zia in O'Neil. Everyone enjoyed eating and singing for the cooks and staff. Then it was off to Evergreen Assisted Living for a performance, interviews and lunch. We really enjoyed ministering to the older population again and learning about Nebraska from our elders. Lunch was a great which was followed by ice cream that was a hit because not only was it vanilla but the children were able to get out of a self serve machine themselves. After lunch we headed to the O'Neil Country Club were we were met by 20 grandma's and 20 golf carts. Off SIFA went on the carts in a nice orderly line playing follow the leader. It wasn't long before the golf course was completely taken over by speeding SIFA children driving and Grandma's holding on and reaching over to steer them around trees. The children has a grand time driving and touring the golf course. Everyone has been begging to drive anything so this activity was a great highlight! From the golf course we were off to the fair grounds to ride horse and buggies. Junior Young did a great job organizing several buggies and many horses for us to ride. Having the fenced in arena was great as the children who were confident could ride with out someone leading them and really enjoyed getting the real feel of horse back ridding. Geoffrey, EZ, and David even trotted and galloped. The buggies and carts were great for those who weren't so horse comfortable and a whole new thing to experience. What a fun time we had! Seeing SIFA interact with the horses you would never believe that they had never even seen a horse a four short months ago. After our adventures on the horses we headed to O'Neil UMC for a quick nap (it is hard work keeping up with Grandma Beth!) and prepared for our evening concert. SIFA enjoyed Pizza for dinner and was off and rolling with a great concert. It was back to host families a little earlier than last night which was nice to be able to enjoy some time with them. Games, pictures, more ice cream, and lots of fun filled the evening and it was off to bed.
August 7th-
SIFA headed back to the UMC church this morning and enjoyed a great breakfast provide by the UMC women and sang a few songs to say thank you for our breakfast. After breakfast we headed out to the Wesleyan UMC Camp were we will be staying for a couple nights. We settled in and enjoyed some free time before lunch. After lunch we enjoyed some more free time and a resting before we headed to Chambers for the Holt County 4-H Fair. We were matched up with children participating in the fair and toured all the projects and animal pens. It was great to learn about how the American rear cattle. The most remarkable thing was when the SIFA children saw the 4-H children bathing their cows. If that wasn't enough we rounded the corner and saw them drying their cows with dryers! SIFA has gotten used to the American who walk their dogs of "strings", sleep with cats in their beds, and keep birds in cages in their homes, but cow washing was a completely new thing and one I am sure them will share with everyone in Uganda. After our 4-H tour the fair board provided money for the children to eat dinner which was exciting because they were able to order and pay with the money they'd been given. Hamburgers, Chicken strips, French Fries, Hot Dogs, Soda, and a pickle for EZ were some of the favorites. After dinner we prepared for our Grandstand Concert and practiced on the stage made on a wagon. Once the grandstands were filled we began a special outdoor concert and had a great time singing as the sun went down. After the concert we headed back to O'Neil for a special treat at Dairy Queen. SIFA branched out tonight and tried different flavors of Arctic Rush Slushiest, Chocolate Ice Cream, Strawberry Blizzards, and Geoffrey even tried a Banana Split! Thank you George Holm, the manager of Dairy Queen for staying open and for all the yummy treats! Back to the camp for a good night of sleep after all the sugar from Dairy Queen wore off!
August 8th- This morning we were up and out of camp at 8:30 for the Grandma's Breakfast put on by Beth Telkie. We enjoyed an illusion show, sang a few songs and then ate breakfast. From breakfast we went to the main intersection in town where there is a huge shamrock painted in the intersection as O'Neill is an Irish town. We were made honorary citizen of O'Neill and presented with a key to the city. Then the police shut down the intersection so that we could have our picture taken in the middle of the shamrock. At the single of the sheriff we marched with the Mayor to the middle of the intersection and smiled for the camera. Another first for SIFA. We shut down a town all for a picture. After the picture a local shop called the Community Concert offered to meet some of the clothing needs of the children and we were able to get some things on our needs list. Daniel and Emma have grown in height so much that their pants were hitting mid calf. Not to mention SIFA feet have grown so much so much that Jackie, Juliet, Daniel, and Emma all needed new shoes. All the American food is catching up with us. I wonder if the villagers will recognize the children when they return in September? Once we were done in town we headed back out to the camp for some much enjoyed and needed free time. Lunch was once again provided by Grandma Beth and enjoyed by all. After lunch it was time to head back to the Holt County Fair for dinner, festivities, and a Rodeo. This was SIFA's first time to see a Rodeo and it was definitely a high light. Most of the girls were cheering for the cows to win, although it was very exciting to see the cowboys and cowgirls do their events well. The fair provided cotton candy and popcorn and everyone had a great time. Several of our very own SIFA cowboys (namely Geoffrey, David, and EZ) really liked the barrel racing and think they would enjoy trying it themselves. After the rodeo we had to say goodbye to Grandma Beth, our gracious coordinator in Nebraska so everyone was sad on the way back to camp, however the excitement of the rodeo was still in the air. It was almost midnight before SIFA made it to bed. Another day of excitement and firsts in the life of SIFA, thank you to all our Nebraska friends for all they have done to make this possible.
August 9th-
Today we packed up and left the camp after breakfast and headed to a BBQ put on by our new friends from Rotary. We had a fun time playing at the Weisse home and enjoying the toys, bike and balls of their eight children. Lunch was a wonderful spread of burgers, hotdog's, beans, rice, sweat corn, hog wings, chips, cookies, drinks, and all topped of with ice cream cones. Yummy! At 2:00 it was time to leave O'Neill and head two hours south to Palmer. We arrived in Palmer in time for a sound check and diner at the local cafe. A very prominent man who had spent his life serving in Palmer had been killed in a four wheel accident earlier this week and the town was grieving so we were grateful for the opportunity to share and minister Christ's love to the hurting people. It was a small concert but a special one for those who attended and were blessed by our coming to such a small town. We decided up into host homes after a time of fellowship and some huge ice cream sundaes. It was off to bed about 10 to sleep "fast" as we have to be on the road by 6 am for our Sunday morning concert in Hastings.
August 10th-
SIFA enjoyed a early warm breakfast at the Branding Iron Cafe in Palmer and hit the road at 6:20 am. Jamie and Carrie struggled to see the road in the dense Nebraska fog while everyone else slept on our hour and a half drive to Hastings. We arrived and changed for our two morning concerts at Grace United Methodist Church. They were so blessed to have us as their church secretary was recovering from surgery and thier organist was on vacation and they weren't sure what they were going to do for thier worship service until we called during their staff meeting on Monday letting them know that due to a schedule change we were avaible in thier area. We knew it was a God thing because we had hostin and they had worship music. It is so cool to see God continue to work through SIFA. Everyone was blessed by the concert and enjoyed the morning. After church we enjoyed a wonderful meal of lasagna. SIFA has aquiered a taste for lasagna and David and Daisy even claim it as thier favorite food! After lunch we headed to the water park for a fun afternoon of swimming, sliding, and tubing down the Lazy River. We had a great time and enjoyed the beautiful afternoon of only about 80 degrees. A big thank you to the water park for donating our admission to the park. SIFA headed back to the church for a quick nap and then it was off to the home of the Wiggerts for a BBQ and tubing behind a speed boat. If it involves speed SIFA really seems to enjoy it. We truly thought that by the end of the evening thier faces would hurt from smiling and laughing from beind the boat with the air flapping thier checks. We had a great evening, Thank you Wiggert family. When the sun went down the SIFA boys bedded down at the Wiggert's and the girls headed back to the church for an air mattress slumber party. It was quiet early after such and early morning and full day they were ready for bed.
August 11th-
We were on the road again this morning at 8:30 and headed to Iowa. We enjoyed our packed lunch road side in western Iowa and arrived after just 400 miles to Bagor, Iowa for a special time with a friend of Jamie's. We all gathered at a nearby farm for a time of swimming in the pond. There were plenty life jackets so everyone was able to swim. The boys were the first to make it to the dock in the middle of the lake and enjoyed pushing each other off and playing games in middle of the pond. After a while our host families for the night joined us pondside for a potluck. Potlucks are some of SIFA's favorite meals now. It is a great opportunity to try new things and get a second helping of favorite things. Actually meatballs are going quickly when SIFA comes through the line. After dinner it was time to sing a few songs and then it was back into the water. Everyone enjoyed the water and even got the paddle boat going. It was great to see kids who were once scared to jump into a pool leaping off the boat and dock. It wasn't too long before everyone's teeth were chattering and the life jackets came off and everyone headed home for the rest of the evening. Many of the families watched Olympics which everyone enjoyed. We have some loyal American fans on our side. Good night from the Iowa corn fields.
August 12th-
Today we were up at a reasonable time, and on the road at 10 headed for Minnesota, which is our 20th state to visit. We drove through sporadic rain showers for the first time in a long time and arrived in rainy Elk River, Minnesota at Central Lutheran Church for a play time in the gym and a great spaghetti dinner. It was time for a concert at 7 during which we enjoyed a great audience and powerful sound system. Abrahams sponsors and Angellah's sponsors not only were able to attend tonight concert but to take them for a couple days for a visit and advertures. During the interview section someone asked Emma what his name was and how old he was. He quickly rattle off his surname and first name and age. Paul asked him to try again and "say it slowly". Emma confidently took the mic back and said "S-L-O-W-L-Y". The audience roared and Emma smiled completely oblivious to what he had done. Paul translated and with a grin and twinkle in his eye he said his names and age . . .slowly. After snacks and cookies we headed home with host families for a quick glimpse of the Olympics and off to bed. Just another day in the life of SIFA. Wonderful people, wonderful food, wonderful concerts, and wonderful opportunities to minister to people.
August 13th-
We had a couple hours this morning before we all meet back at the church and headed to St. Cloud MN for a BBQ at Edy's (one of our Together We Can Change the World Angels) home. SIFA enjoyed lots and lots of grilled chicken, beans, rice, melon, crackers, pickles, and of course boiled eggs. After eating SIFA was able to relax for the afternoon. Many of the children watched movies, napped, and just enjoyed hanging out with new friends. Edy has unlimited international calling so everyone enjoyed making calls to Uganda. Later in the afternoon most of SIFA went to check into the Super 8 (who had donated 50% of the rooms as well as another company who paid for rest) in St. Cloud and had an hour of quiet time before heading back to Edy's for more food on the way to St. Benedict's Monastery for our concerts with the Sisters of St. Benedict's. The children were completely blown away by the St. Benedict's Chapel which they said wow, we are singing in a Cathedral. It was an impressive and beautiful place to sing under a multi story dome in a striking granite hall. The voices were beautiful as the children did the entire concert chapel. The Sister's and other audience members, including Racheal sponsors who drove 6 hours to come visit, were a great encouragement to SIFA with their enthusiastic clapping and cheering. We had a great time of fellowship after the concert and enjoyed getting to know the Sister's. While we were visiting in the lobby David asked "If these are all the sisters then where are all the brothers." David has become the comedian of SIFA. He is always making us laugh! Back to where we were to sleep and into bed with sounds of Olympics coming from each room. Tonight we also celebrated Joan's 12th birthday. Happy Birthday Joan.
August 14th-
This morning we had a late morning and weren't on the road until 10:30. Breakfast was provided in the hotel lobby and everyone enjoyed one of their first donuts. We hadn't realized that most of the kids hadn't experienced good old American cake donuts. I think they wondered why we hadn't had donuts before. Anything with sugar is great. Since we had the hotel rooms SIFA enjoyed hanging out after breakfast in their rooms while Jamie and Carrie got some things done and got gas without the kids having to wait. Once we were on the road it was just under two hours before we arrive at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in New Brighton MN. We enjoyed a spaghetti lunch provided by Abraham's sponsors the Fruth's. SIFA enjoyed seeing Abraham for the first time in a few days as he had been with his sponsors. He had a wonderful time visiting different places in Wisconsin and then topped it all of with flying a plane this morning. Abraham had a great time with a flight instructor who turned over the wheel just after take of. Abraham is a boy of few words but his smile spoke a great deal. I must say that SIFA was a bit jealous! After lunch we were able to do a rehearsal and then snuck in a 2 hours nap before dinner. SIFA has been very busy and needy the sleep. The late night Olympics are exciting but leads to sleepy children the next day. After dinner we prepared for our concert while every seat in the concert hall filled with people. We enjoyed a great concert and enjoyed our Q&A portion of the concert with a priest with a great sense of humor. After the concert and an ice cream sandwich it was off to host families for the night. We don't have to be back at the church until 2 o'clock so we are looking forward to a lazy morning and spending more time with out host families.
August 15th-
We had a great morning doing all kinds of things with our host families, that is after they woke up. Most of the SIFA girls managed to sleep past nine. We have come along way from our first days in Connecticut when SIFA would wake up with the sun. Host families toured the city, saw the Mississippi River, toured gardens, played at parks, and enjoyed time doing family things. At 2 o'clock we all gathered at the church and headed out for Wisconsin. After a short journey of just under an hour we arrived at Hudson United Methodist Church and enjoyed some free time and trailer organizing before eating dinner with all the local VBS children and their families. Our concert started with some songs sung by the VBS children which they had learned during Power Lab VBS as they learning about the poverty and needs in Africa as part of the missions focus. We enjoyed hearing American children perform and sing American songs of praise and worship. We took the stage after them and had a great time with a lively audience in a packed sanctuary. After a special time of fellowship we departed with our host families with the promise of tomorrow being a day off. This will be first complete day of in over 18 days as we had either had a concert or sung at least 4 or more songs everyday. EZ was disappointed as he truly love singing and performing, but the rest of us will enjoy not only a day of but two nights in the same bed. It was another great day for SIFA. Good night from our 21st state . . .Wisconsin.
August 16th-
It was a great day for a parade! SIFA was invited to enjoy the North Hudson WI Pepper Festival today and was blessed to be able to experience yet a few more first along our journey. The day started with a parade and was followed by carnival rides and a wonderful lunch of spaghetti! The children enjoyed the parade and especially the things that were thrown to curb like candy, necklaces, and popsicals. They thought the Shiners Roadsters were great and especially the Budwieser Horse Team which was very impressive up close and personal. After the parade we were officially welcomed to the pepper festival and given pepper beads and bandanas. While waiting for lunch SIFA was invited to enjoy the rides. Although a bit hesitant a first it was in line all but a few were confidently on the ride spinning and going up and down in moments. Rachael, Daisy, and Abraham would have nothing to do with any of it, but the rest giggled and smiled as their tummies were tickled and heads were spun. After riding we ate a wonderful spaghetti dinner and even were able to try ravioli. Happy, full, hot, and tiered SIFA returned to host families for a fun afternoon of boating, swimming, napping, cards, and dinner. It was a great day for SIFA and our first official day off in many days. Hopefully everyone is in bed early tonight as we have three morning concerts and 403 miles to drive to Chicago tomorrow. It will be a long day, but exciting as we make our way into our first official city stop in downtown Chicago and stay at the International Guest Hostile for the next ten days. We will talk to you tomorrow from the windy city!
August 17th-
After a great morning and breakfast at Hudson United Methodist, and pulling off three concerts in a row we all boarded the vans and headed to Chicago. It wasn't long before SIFA was asleep and Jamie and Carrie had to keep each other company for the 400 mile journey by using the walkie-talkies. Actually about 3:00 everyone woke up for a bathroom break and to dug into the great sack lunches provided by the families our host families in Hudson. At about 8:30 we arrived in Chicago. Jamie and Carrie were a bit overwhelmed with the downtown city driving in the dark, and Aunt GPS wasn't able to keep in touch with the satellite between the very tall buildings so she wasn't any help either. Just before nine we arrived in the alley way next to the International Visitors Hostel in downtown Chicago which is to be our home for the next week and quickly unloaded the trailer. All of SIFA was wide eyed as the train passed overhead and countless cars passed by ever so quickly honking all the way. Once inside we were introduced to Jean Lacowitz and her husband, who our host for the Chicago area. Jean has done a tremendous job organizing our time here. Thank you Jean. With back-packs, duffle's, and our cooler with our packed dinner we all crammed into a elevator and went up to the 7th floor to find our rooms. All the boys are staying together and the older girls and Betty are in the room next door. The younger girls and Jamie and Carrie are down on the forth floor. Everyone remained in the 7th floor girls room and ate dinner while Jamie and Carrie went to park the vans about a mile away. Fortunately a friend of our host was able to give us a ride back and we were finally able to get settled in our rooms. Everyone made it to bed just after 11. Wow, a few hours in the city and we are worn out. Tomorrow we will have a chance to explore the city and meet our international hostile friends that we will be staying with for the next week. Good night from the very BIG city of Chicago.
August 18th-
It was up and to breakfast by 9:00. SIFA mastered the ropes of a hostel breakfast and dish washing quickly and was ready to explore the city. After the younger girls, Jamie, and Carrie returned from a brisk walk to Kinko's and the bank, SIFA all gathered together to venture out into the city and walked about a mile to the SGI center for a tour and lunch. After lunch it was off on our walking touring of the city. We were able to cover alot of the city in our 2-3 miles of walking around the museums, the water fronts, Millennium park, the giant bean statue, the Grant park fountains, and many other Chicago landmarks. The children enjoyed the city and especial the bean and the fountain they we able to play in, however the walk they thought was a little too long since it was pretty hot. Up returning to our rooms SIFA cleaned up and took a nap while Jamie and Carrie walked another mile to go get the vans. We headed to the Mahogany Heritage School of Performing Arts for our cultural exchange concerts and enjoyed dinner there with our new friends. It was a busy evening of meeting new people and being awarded a wonderful award that will be officially presented on Saturday. It was back in the vans and time to drive back into downtown just before 9 o'clock. It was a nice evening. We arrived back at the hostel about 9:15 and Jamie and Carrie went to park the vans while SIFA gathered for a very special visitor. Moments before 10 pm Prince Ronald Mutebi came to see the children. It was a delightful visit for everyone as they enjoyed speaking their native language and talking about things they bot has in common. We are looking forward to seeing him again on Wednesday, Saturday, and especially Sunday for a soccer game. It was the perfect ending to our first day in the Chicago. Everyone should sleep well tonight. It was a busy day full of activity.
August 19th-
SIFA enjoyed breakfast between 8 and 10 and spent the rest of the day until 1 pm having free time. It was a great time to sleep, read, bead, play games, and go for a walk to the Sears tower. Unfortunately for the those who followed along to the Sears tower-we were not able to go to the top because it was $12.95 per person. So we took the free escalator to the basement and enjoyed the lower levels of the Sears Tower. SIFA hadn't been on escalators since our run through the London Airport, so we still had fun despite not going to the top. We picked up $1 chicken sandwiches on the way home and enjoyed lunch with all the fixings we'd brought from the van in the dining hall. After lunch it was time for a nap and quiet time before gathering up at 5:30 to walk (in matching outfits) to the venue of the evening. After walking for 30 minutes we arrived at the private party for the International Visitor Center where we were to sing. This elevator was free and went 24 stories up for a great view of the city on the roof top terrace. The children really enjoyed the view and seeing the fountain and the bean we had played in the day before. Everyone was somewhat quiet because of the high end nature of this event and the height at which we were. The singing went well and was enjoyed by those in attendance. After singing we were "treated" to crustless pb&j sandwiches, watermelon, cantaloupe, and chocolate covered pretzels. The organizers had apparently been told that the children wouldn't like the chicken on a stick that everyone else was eating (unfortunate chicken on a stick is their favorite food) at the reception, so we all graciously ate pb&j until Daniel asked if he could try the chicken on a stick because he was still hungry. Daniel and a few others finished off the rest of what was left of the reception food, especially enjoying the Chocolate Mouse cups, as it was winding down and all the adults were done eating. Then we thanked our host Mary Greice and the officials in attendance, rode the elevators down 24 floors and walked down Michigan Avenue back to the hostel on Congress street. Jamie and Carrie laundered everyone's blue SIFA shirts and kaiki pants and headed to bed at about 10. Another long, but enjoyable day in the city. Everyone really enjoyed the free time this morning and is looking forward to our next opportunity to "hang out".
August 20th-
Jamie and Carrie were up and out the door at 8:30 to walk a mile to get the van and come back to pick up all of SIFA's bags in order to check out of the hostel by 11:00. SIFA hung out in the rec room while Jamie and Carrie went back to park the vans and then walk the mile back to the hostel to pick up the children and continue another mile to the Thompson Center for our noon performance. The Illinois Public Health Department sponsored the event and provided lunch for all the children at the conclusion of the program. The children were given the choice of any food in the food court, and of course you guessed it 17 of them ended up with KFC and the other 3 with Panda Express. After lunch it was time for another walk back to the vans. SIFA is getting in shape in Chicago! While we were walking we kept getting asked "Where ya' from?" . I guess we all stuck out a bit walking in a double line down the side walk in matching blue SIFA shirts and Kaiki pants. Jamie and Carrie joked that we were going to answer "Japan" or something just to see if the person was really paying tension. Anyway SIFA covered nearly 2 miles in about 30 minutes and promptly feel asleep while driving to Naperville. In Naperville we stopped at City Express Travel, our wonderful travel agents, and thanked them for all they have done for us in arranging our tickets. It was special for us to visit and for them to see the children. They enjoyed hearing the children sing and receiving a poster and CD. What a special visit. From City Express we headed to Good Shepherd Lutheran Church for dinner and a concert. What an amazing concert with fabulous audience participation. The children loved the clapping during almost every song and had a big grins with all the enthusiasm and cheering between songs. After the service everyone enjoyed ice cream sandwiches and a great time of fellowship with all kinds of educational booths that had been set up to share the story of the Uganda orphan and lifestyle. It was soon time to clean up and head to host families for the night. Most children had a pile of laundry to do since we have been without facilities all week, and we were so grateful for our host families for their willingness to help. Everyone was excited about going home to host families. Although we have enjoyed the hostel there still is "no place like home". We truly have had amazing host families throughout the tour, and tonight is no exception. Good night from the nice quiet suburb of a very noisy Chicago.
August 21th-
We woke up in our wonderful Good Shepherd host families and enjoyed a great homemade breakfast before having to pack up and head to the church to meet up to head to the Silver Stallion Ranch in Markham, IL. Silver Stallion boast that it is home to the original black cowboy and has but together a horse interaction for people to come out of the city and ride ponies, hay wagons, and swings. The children enjoyed the hay ride and reclining swings but were a little disappointed by the horses as the ride was on a pony tied to a carrousel that made a couple rotations and then the ride was over. SIFA has been blessed with such tremendous horse interaction times and rides that they like having the reins and enjoy bigger, faster, and free horses. It was still enjoyable to spend any time with a horse, but they left wishing they'd had a trail ride. From horses we visited a small petting zoo and a temporary tattoo parlor where the children received airbrushed (washable) horse tatoo. Then it was time for our sack lunches which were enjoyed by all. Boy do the Good Shepherd families know how to pack a lunch. Yummy! Cowboy Robinson joined us for lunch and presented all of SIFA with cowboy hats and pencils and spent some time with us. After saying goodbye to our cowboy friends it was time to head back into the city to get settled into the hostel and head to Columbia College. Jamie and Carrie are figuring out the city and managed to get everyone and their bags dropped off, the vans parked, and walk the mile back in less than an hour. From the hostel we headed only a couple of blocks to Columbia College where we watched the Lion King in their private screening room. It was enjoyable to watch a movie based in Africa on a large screen and be able to laugh and talk to their hearts content since we were the only ones there. During intermission we enjoyed a wonderful dinner of chicken and/or beef on a stick (At last, SIFA was able to enjoy what everyone else did at the party a few nights ago) fruit kabobs, cookies, and soda. Everyone ate and enjoyed hearing from the Vice President of Columbia, and finding out that it is Columbia college who has provided us with our housing in Chicago at the hostle and about the school and their students. After dinner we sang a song and then were presented with wonderful gift bags and headed back down to the movie theater for the conclusion of Lion King. After the movie we sang Hakuna Matata all the way home and decided that we should change David's name to Timone for his sense of humor and dancing! It was an early quiet evening for SIFA and gave everyone a chance to explore all the goodies and gadgets in the gift bags from the college. We are all back in our rooms and hope to hit the sack early tonight. I wonder if SIFA knows what going to bed early is? It has been a long time since we've had that opportunity. Good night!
August 22nd-
It was another busy day in the Windy City that is proving to be more humid than windy. Jamie and Carrie did the usual van pick up by walking the mile to the parking lot and returned to the hostel at 8:20 to pick everyone up and head to the Illinois Eye Institute for eye exams. This was a tremendous blessing for SIFA as we have not had any opportunity to evaluate the visual needs of the children. Three doctors and several residents helped to work the children through the process and 3 hours later we had 18 children with 20/20 vision, 1 (David) with genetic color blindness, and 2 (Angellah and Jackie) with a very mild prescription for glasses. Angellah and Jackie were able to pick out nice frames and received their glasses just after lunch. Jamie's brother, "Uncle Jud", was in town and helped make sure everyone got through the lunch line and got enough of what they wanted to eat. He was a great blessing at just the right time! Lunch was a fun time of choices in the cafeteria and was enjoyed by all. From Pizza to Chicken to Burgers, to Beans and Rice it was a great lunch provided by the eye institute. What a blessing this was for SIFA. After dropping the children off at the hostel for free time Jamie and Carrie headed to park the vans and walk back to the hostel. It was soon time for Uncle Jud to leave so we said goodbye and walked him back to the Blue Line Subway a few blocks away. At 6:00 SIFA headed out to the Renaissance Hotel for our evening concert for the State of Illinois Black Chamber Awards Gala. After a mile of walking we arrived. On the way we crossed a red carpet with cameras and limo's for a special event and the Chicago with MC Hammer and Cindy Lauper. At 7 we performed several songs for the very elegant Gala and then were invited to stay for dinner. This is by far the fanciest meal SIFA has ever had! Since arriving in America we have mastered one fork for a meal but 3?, what were the children to do. Then there was the molded butter that no one realized was actually butter, the foods that were new (thankfully the main dish was chicken), and the cloth napkins, although we've had practice with them a time or two before. It was a nice evening and a pleasant walk back to the hostel. In a few short days everyone has figured out how to navigate the street pretty well and knows exactly what to do at a cross walk. Oh, if their guardians could see them now. SIFA has taken Chicago in stride. It is hard to imagine that in a week we will be in middle of Michigan Amish Country helping on a farm. Well, everyone is in their rooms and ready for bed and it is only 10 minutes to 10:00 so we are doing good. We have two busy days ahead of us so we are going to take advantage of the sort of early evening. Goodnight.
August 24-
This morning SIFA left the hostle early for a morning concert a South Shore United Methodist Church. We were blessed by our time there and really enjoyed the heartfelt worship, challenging sermon and encouraging conclusion. We had a nice time of fellowship and then headed to our second concert of the day at an International Arts Festival in Hyde Park. After the concet it was final time for lunch and and the concert organizer purchase SIFA's first Happy Meals. They were "happy" although they decided that the toy was useless and there really wasn't enough food to make them really happy, so we won't be doing happy meals again. Nonetheless it is one more American past time off the list. From Hyde Park we headed to City of Refuge Church in Lawndale. We arrived a little late because of traffic crossing Chicago so we were delighted to find easy parking and unload the children quickly. Jamie and Carrie noted the rough nieghborhood and wondered what God had planned for us through this concert. Once the children where inside and changing into thier uniforms Carrie went back to the van to get her back pack. The man who had bee standing in front of the church acting as the security person, asked if our door look had been broken. Aparently just after we arrived he came in to use the restroom and in the mean time someone had robbed us. In the few moment that we had been away from the locked and alarmed vans someone had punched out the look in the drivers side of Carrie's door and taken her backpack, Paul's bag, Olivia's backpack, the GPS, and owners manual to the van. So began a media and police frenzie for the next 5 hours. The SIFA children went on to perform an amazing concert for the people of Cityof Refuge while Carrie filesd a police report and did interview after interview with all the news stations pleading for the return of the items. Below is a letter published in the Sun Times regarding the robbery and a link to one of the TV interviews that was seen nationwide on CNN. Click Here to view (it starts with a short commercail)
An Open Letter to the person who broke into the SIFA African Children’s Choir van on Sunday afternoon in Lawndale:
Maybe you thought you were taking things from people who had more than you do.
Or maybe you thought you needed the money you could make from fencing the laptops and other items to slake a habit or make ends meet — more so than the people who owned them did.
But I bet you actually never gave any thought to the people you were stealing from, even as you watched the troupe of African children in their matching uniforms cross the street from the van to the City of Refuge Ministries church.
You probably didn’t stop to consider you might be stealing things from children who have nothing. Orphans. The poorest of the poor.
Let me tell you a little bit about what you stole.
Sure, the two laptops, camera and memory sticks that were in the backpacks were valuable. Between that gear and the GPS device the choir’s chaperones have used for the last six months to drive the kids through 22 states, it would cost about $5,000 to replace them. (And a very kind Chicago businessman, having heard what you did, showed up Monday morning and handed the choir a check for $10,000 to do just that.)
But you took something that cannot be replaced. Ever.
On those laptops and memory sticks are photographs of many of the children’s parents. Parents who have died or are going to die very soon, from AIDS. You took the only pictures the children have of their parents.
What price can you put on them?
They’re of no value to you. So give them back, please.
The smaller backpack you snatched belongs to a girl named Olivia. She’s 11. Those were her dolls inside of it, and that was the $66 she had scrimped and saved to bring back to her village. The snapshots are of her parents.
Olivia and the 19 other children in the choir, who range in age from 7 to 17, have been traveling in the United States since April to help raise money to build group orphan homes and a school in their tiny village. They live in the bush of Uganda, 12 miles from the nearest paved road.
More than 80 percent of all the adults in their village died in the late 1990s from HIV and AIDS, leaving 70 orphaned children. They live in mud huts. They have no running water. They have no electricity. They get up every morning at dawn to gather firewood and water for the day. Then they walk three-to-five miles — each way — to attend state schools that are so substandard they make the worst Chicago public schools look like Yale.
They live on less than $1 a day.
A charity called Glory Children’s City International (www.glorychildrenscity.org or www.sifachoir.org), is trying to build group homes and a school that will provide a better education for the orphans and 500 other children from surrounding areas. Hence the choir tour.
These are big-hearted people. The van you broke into was donated. Chicago is the first and only big city the SIFA choir kids are visiting during their six-month tour. They spent the first week at a hostel downtown on Congress, wowed by skyscrapers, the el and the parking garages they call "parking sandwiches." You tainted their wonder with fear. Shame on you.
Geoffrey, the kind 14-year-old I talked to Monday, told me how much he and the other choir kids had looked forward to visiting our city. "We were so excited to come to Chicago because that’s our mission, to minister to different types of people," said the teen who lost his mother when he was 3 and his father when he was 6.
When I asked him if he was upset by what you’ve done, Geoffrey thought for a moment and answered by telling me about his God.
"God has known this story before," he said. "God is our savior and God is the spirit and God knows what’s going to happen before we know. God has made a plan for us to be here. . . . I know everything’s going to be all right."
Do the decent thing. Return what you took. Right the wrong.
August 25
Morning at the Darst center.
The day after............... The reporters were so kind as to wait until 9:00 a.m. to start calling Carrie, but before that Carrie and Jamie had to get food to cook for SIFA for the next 2 days. So, after a long night of talking with reporters the night before, getting necessary paperwork for Paul's new passport from the Prince, and then trying to sleep despite nightmares- Carrie and Jamie were up early and went shopping. The news camera's started showing up as breakfast was finishing. Carrie, Paul and SIFA continued doing interviews throughout the morning and afternoon. Carrie received calls from all over the United States regarding news reports that people had seen on the news. CNN, WGN, ABC.NBC, KTLV, countless newspapers, radio stations, and the Associated Press International Wire. God has an interesting way of spreading the word about SIFA . We had dinner and a concert at Oak Park Arms Senior Community assisted living, the staff their were very excited about our arrival and were just as excited about the opportunity of free publicity due to the camera crews from WGN, FOX, ABC and the Chicago Tribune that were there. The children are professionals now with giving interviews. The concert was great, with a wonderful, generous turnout. Back to Darst center and bed. Hopefully tonight's sleep will come easier. Carrie and Jamie are exaushted from being strong for the choir, holding out hope that our precious memories will be returned, and make sure our precious children do not get sucked into the media blitz and crazzinesds the robbery has created.
August 26-
A quiet morning and then a short drive to Bridgeport Catholic Academy. We were treated to a tour of the campus by student leaders, pizza, and then a concert, attended by the students, teachers, Prince Mutebi of Uganda, and members of the McCormick chamber of commerce. The students really enjoyed the concert and had great questions to ask during out interaction time. SIFA was presented with Bridgeport T-Shirts and chocolates and then headed back to the Darst Center. Upon arriving at the Center Jamie noticed something hanging under Carrie's van. When we parked and got out of the vans we realized that sometime after the original robbery someone hand taken the spare tires. While SIFA crouched under Carrie's van, Daniel went over to Jamie's van and noticed her spare was gone too. Several of the SIFA children put their head in their hands and said, "not again". Despite the original love of Chicago and excitement of the city, I think that everyone is ready to leave. The afternoon was filled with repacking blue bags, and cleaning out the vans for our journey out of Chicago. Some friends provided dinner for us from both an Ethiopian place and an Italian place and everyone really enjoyed a yummy meal. After an evening of continueing to work on details Carrie, Jamie, and SIFA dropped into bed about midnight. The night was calmer, and Jamie got a little more sleep than the night before. Carrie had more difficulties with bad dreams. Thankfully though SIFA has gotten more comfortable at the Darst Center and seems to be sleeping despite their hesitation the first nights when they objected to sleeping in the city after the robbery. "They have our pictures and know what we look like . . ." Tomorrow we leave Chicago.
August 27-
Today we finally left Chicago. It was hard to leave knowing our things that had been stolen were out there somewhere. It was a relief however to leave the city behind. We soon crossed into Indiana after paying a few tolls and then right into Michigan. It was a welcome site to see green grass and rolling hills again. Jamie and Carrie are both country girls and were rather glad to be back in the country. We were in Chicago too long for comfort. After a little over 400 miles we arrived to an eager welcoming committee at St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Church in Redford MI. Just after arriving Olivia was surprised by her sponsors who drove from Ohio to come and visit her and bring her all the things that has been stolen in her backpack. She had a very special visit during dinner during which we were all treated to a wonderful African dinner prepared just for the kids. After dinner it was time to prepare for our concert. It was a tough concert as the sound system was not working, however the children did a tremendous job pulling of a completely accapella concert. Everyone enjoyed the concert and greeted the children after the concert. Then there was a wonderful spread of cookies and desserts for the children and audience and we enjoyed a great time of fellowship with everyone. Juliet was also was greeted by her sponsor who traveled up from Indiana to attend the concert and surprise her. After things wound down Juliet and Jackie left with their sponsor and the rest of us went to the gym for a SIFA Slumber Party. We had a great time sleeping all together on the stage in the school gym and had special surprises through out the evening from our gracious hosts. It is long after midnight now and high time for lights out. Goodnight!
August 28-
SIFA woke up this morning after a late night slumber party and headed for breakfast at 8:00. After breakfast it was play time in the gym for SIFA and off to get the van door fixed for Jamie and Carrie. We were able to get the door repaired and lock secured and back to the church for lunch and on then on the road to Battle Creek at 2:00. Fortunately it was only a two hour drive before we arrived at Super 8 for the night. Everyone enjoyed hanging out in their rooms and a quiet early evening after such a late fun night last night. We had the usual SIFA hotel buffet of Cup of Noodles, Grapes, Bread, Cookies, and popcorn. We have come a long way since our first hotel dinner as our room leaders can now prepare their own cup of noodles in their rooms with out assistance. It was bed time early for Jamie and Carrie and hopefully for the rest of SIFA who are really enjoying the TV's in there rooms tonight.
August 29-
Finally the day arrived for Carrie to take the SIFA choir to her brothers house in Michigan. After a relaxing day at a park in Battle Creek, and dropping Aunt Mary off with her aunt, we arrived at the Harless Homestead at 5:00 to meet host families and head to their homes for the evening. It was a nice evening in the middle of peaceful Amish country, a welcomed relief from the vigors of Chicago. Several of our host families for the next few days are in Indiana so we are split between two states. The kids think that is pretty cool. We are right on the border so it isn't far. It will be a nice to be in one place for four days and enjoy a good ole American three day weekend. Carrie is enjoying a nice evening with several children and sharing her SIFA life with her bother and his family.
August 30-
Today SIFA enjoyed a great day together at the Graber's home and played, canoed, kiayacked, and hung out in the country. It was a great day to be kids. No media, no loud rap music, and no screeching subways trains. At 5:00 we headed for Constantine High School for a community concert. We had a great time and Carrie truly enjoyed having at least a few members of her family there and sharing the wonderful SIFA choir with them. After the concert we all headed back to our wonderful host families who we are really enjoying and had a nice time before heading to bed.
August 31-
This morning we attended church at Fairhaven Church. We participated in a great time of Q & A during Sunday School and then performed during the worship service. It was a great service which ended with a short sermon from Paul. Several other churches attended the service and we filled the large rented tented so there were alot of people to greet after church. Then it was time for an amazing potluck. SIFA had never seen so much food before and enjoyed trying many yummy homemade dishes and of course a large pile of fried chicken. After everyone was full and hot we headed to the lake for a swim. SIFA enjoyed the slide, dock, and basketball hoop and spent hours in the lake. Then it was time to head back to host families for a relaxing evening and time to learn more about Michigan farm families and all the Amish people we had seen on the roads in horse drawn buggies. It was off to bed at a decent time as everyone was tiered from the busy day. Good night from the farm.
