I can't believe I have lapsed on writing in almost a year.  Since then my family has taken on a few projects, with friends help.  A pastor that I know in Kenya, a native, had taken to following the story and visiting a baby that was abandoned.  Not just abandoned but thrown over a 9 foot fence and left for dead by her 15 year old  impoverished mother.  He posted about her on facebook and my mother could not stop thinking that we have to do something.  With my mothers help, as well as donors, Tonny and his family have been able to adopt baby Hope.  I had the honor to visit the Wasike family in October and spend a week getting to know his family and loving on Hope.  At ten months she still only weighted nine pounds!  I took nutrition supplements and six large tubs of baby formula with me, asking God to get me through customs without it being stolen.  It was not stolen and she is thriving.  While with his family I met a little girl named Jane who "just stays around".  Meaning that she is an orphan and moves around from local families looking for food.  She had been spending a lot of time with Tonny's family assisting with baby Hope.  Jane is beautiful, smart, inquisitive and bright.  After leaving and coming home with pictures of these wonderful children my heart pulled to help more.  Through the support of friends I raised money to get Jane back in school.  She got a new uniform dress, new shoes, pencils, paper and books.  She was so excited to have a new dress and be back is school, Tonny tells me that she is doing very well in her studies.

I will be returning to Kenya at the end of June and will be able to see my girls.  I will be going with Church Mission Network again, we will be doing medical clinics in the surrounding area.  While on my last trip I spoke to the women in Tonny's church and to the widows in his home village.  I look forward to seeing these women again and helping them to understand God a little more with each visit.  

If you feel compelled to help me with my trip costs or supporting Hope and Jane, I will gratefully accept.  My paypal is under mmwolfington07@comcast.net OR mail to World Care Connections, 211 Knight Drive, San Rafael, CA 94901.  

Love and blessings!

Why did I want to go to third world countries on medical missions?
Moral responsibility: God commanded us to care for the orphans and widows.  Most Americans can't go to third world countries and help, so I leave the widows and orphans of America in their hands.  I go because I can and because God placed Africa, specifically, on my heart.

Social responsibility:  If those of us that can make a difference don't try to help, the desperation that the less fortunate feel escalates to crime, violence, war.  Which then leads to worsened poverty, hunger, and death.

Today in World Malaria Day.  A disease that claimed 650,000 lives in 2010 (World Health Organization statistic). That is very close to the number of people that die of cancer annually. A disease that I have seen the effects of. The boy in the above picture was ill with an enlarge liver and spleen from repeated Malaria infections.  He was sent to the hospital hours away with funds to have some tests done and prays that his colon was not perforated from inflammation.  Without treatment he would die.

I am planning a trip to Uganda in October of this year.  This trip will be to an orphanage to provide medical care for the orphans and mamas that care for them.  This trip will cost just over $2000 depending on airfare.  I can not wait to get back on African soil and feel the Holy Spirit guide my every move.  

I now have the ability to post from my phone from anywhere in the world.

"In my mind, philanthropy is not about the money. It’s about using whatever resources you have at your fingertips and applying them to improving the world." -- Melinda Gates

"However, I need some money. $2,500 to go to Africa in January." -- Margaux Wolfington

I am looking at going to Benin, West Africa January 21-31. I will be going with Mercy Ships. "Mercy Ships is a global charity that has operated hospital ships in developing nations since 1978, bringing hope and healing to the forgotten poor by mobilizing people and resources worldwide, serving all people without regard for race or religion." (facebook excerpt).

Donate to: World Care Connections, PO BOX 773, Tiburon, CA 94920

I have been behind on keeping you posted on what my trip to Tanzania consisted of. It was such an incredible trip that it is hard to narrow down so I will be posting several blogs with photos. Our team consisted of 24 medical personnel including a dentist, a surgeon and a vet. For the men that would not come and see the doctors and nurses the vet team gave us another option of reaching out to them. In total we saw 3163 medical patients, performed 26 surgeries, gave glasses out to 365 patients, 18220 prescriptions were given out, 223 dental patients (253 extractions, 7 fillings, 46 exams, 16 cleanings, and 1 surgery) and our vet team saw: 1238 cows, 1200 goats, 235 sheep, 239 dogs, 11 donkeys, 5 cats, 11 chickens, and 1 rabbit. All of this resulted in 1981 people praying to receive Christ and the start of 7 new churches.

The area of Tanzania we were working in was in the northwestern part of the country and bordering into the Seregeti. The villages were very remote and mostly without electricity. We worked out of school rooms and school yards under the trees with tarps hung to protect us from the sun. Any of the buildings you see are the school buildings. We also encountered results of Voodoo and traditional herbal remedies. Many of these are makings left strange patterns on the body. The boy in this photo had markings around his left

nipple on his chest to protect to heal his heart of "running fast". All of his life he has had episodes of rapid heart rate and the Voodoo medicine doctor thought that there was a spell on his heart and made the markings to disspell the curse. Yet his heart still races and he is left with scares. His father brings him to us for some answers and hope that we can help. The motto for our trip was "Bringing hope to a hurting world". I am hoping that we left this family feeling that we gave them some hope. Physically and spiritually.

News from the Serengeti

Serengeti is derived from the Maasai language, Maa; specifically, "Serengit" meaning "Endless Plains"

Margaux called me today from somewhere in the Serengeti. It's so amazing to me that she is able to call me from the middle of a remote area that has never had electricity. What's more amazing is that she met a 99 year old man that had never heard of God. Thanks to this awesome group of medical professionals, he has recieved medical care where normally there is none, and he had finally heard the word of God!!!

She comes home on Sunday, so hopefully there will be more to read in the coming week. Stay tuned...

I don't know if I want to be poetic or just jump for joy at what we have seen or done. Last night we saw 11 albinos that live in fear of attack or kidnapping. They were seen in the evening at the hotel so that they were not out in the sun. They all have terrible vision and multiple skin problems both from the sun. They were all given new sunglasses, sunscreen and any meds that they needed. They all prayed with the pastors to become Christians. We are hoping that they will be able to attend the new church in this area. Today at the clinic we set up in a school yard we saw three additional albinos, one of which was a child. These people need all of our love and support to make a productive and happy life. Now they will experience life with God by their side.

Yesterdays village had a high number of elderly. Todays village had a great number of babies. It is interesting to see the demographic changes in different villages. I am still in love with all the babies. I offered to deliver a baby for a pregnant woman and she just laughed.

I have been able to give shoes to adults and children that have none, and have cuts or sores, through the generous donation of two people. You know who you are.

Tomorrow we will travel into the Serengeti and be going to four different villages and doing clinic. These places will be very remote and it will be interesting to see what is in store for us.

Thank you to everyone how made donations to assist with the costs of this trip. Also, thanks to everyone who has prayed and supported me through this journey of my life.

Blessing,
Margaux

Back in Africa

Margaux is in Africa again! We are asking for prayers for safety of the medical team and the group of albinos that will be meeting with them in secret. These people live in hiding, in fear for their lives because there are still parts of our world that believe in voodoo. Let's lift this group of people up in prayer, so they may feel God's love through the medical team. If Margaux gets the chance to write a blog while she's in Tanzania she will, but they are traveling in some very remote areas and internet access is very limited.

On another note, we are now legally a non-profit organization!!!! We are hoping and praying for big things to happen this year. We will be putting together some fundraisers and possibly an event or two so stay tuned! I can't wait to hear the amazing, joyful, and heart-breaking stories that will come from this trip. I'll conclude by sharing a quote with you:

Everything can be taken from a man or a woman but one thing: the last of human freedoms to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.
Viktor E. Frankl

 

On June 27 I will be leaving to travel to Tanzania, Africa for two weeks. The team that I am traveling with are mostly medical professionals that want to help others. We will be in very remote parts of the country and will have a lot of difficult travel. Even though most of it will be tough I can't wait. I can't wait to, again, see the love and smiling faces of those that have nothing materially and share God's love with them.

World Care Connections is asking for your help. Donations from people like you make these trips possible. Make it possible to help the sick and injured that would otherwise have no care. All contributions are appreciated and accepted at PO Box 773, Tiburon, CA 94920. Large or small makes a difference in the costs incurred to get to Africa and help those whose bodies, minds, and heart need medical or spiritual care.

World Care connections has a hopeful future. As we grow we will need more medical professionals that have a calling to serve in other countries. The most exciting part of starting

this organization is seeing the passion that I have spread to others or come to the surface. Not everyone can go overseas and help but through financial support you do make a difference.

Blessings,

Margaux Wolfington, RN

Many Stars

In Haiti many stars can be seem. In the sky at night and all around us during the day. The stars around us during the day are the orphans. They are the future of Haiti and the most generous caring children I have ever seem. If one is getting candy or a balloon he or she make sure there is one for their friend as well. The older children help care for the younger ones with the guidance of the "mamas". Each mama has 12-15 children to care for ranging in ages from three to fifteen. All of the children look out for each other and are so proud of their mama.

This medical mission consisted of eighteen team members, mostly medical personnel. We immunized 130 children, which received 5 - 6 shots each to have them caught up on childhood vaccines. This was completed in two days. During which time there were many bodies and hearts to comfort. Some of the children would cry out "why, why, why." This broke our hearts for three days until we were told that in Creole why means ouch. These children needed extra hugs and songs to ease their pain.

Through the generosity of a local church here in Tennessee we had about 150 pairs of shoes to take to the orphans. After receiving there vaccines all of the children were fitted for new shoes. Some had old shoes that were too small and there were others that had none at all.

The pediatrician that was on our team was attentive to every child he saw and diagnosed a boy with mumps. He should recover well by controlling fevers and monitoring for signs of further development. We also treated an orphan that suspected pneumonia with high fevers. She was given an antibiotic shot on the first day. The second day she needed IV fluids to rehydrate her and medicine to control vomiting. I sat with here for several hours until she seemed stable enough to go back with her mama. The next day she still had a fever and we monitored her all day but we could tell that she was feeling better because she was coloring while laying on the cot. By the fourth day she had no fever and was up and walking.

After two days with the orphans we spent the next two and a half days seeing the surrounding community. We saw many people and many general illnesses, some pneumonia, suspected TB, neck pain, back pain. These are people that have worked hard all of their lives and show the signs of it. The average age in Haiti is 28. Life expectancy is 45. The illiteracy rate is 53%. The people of Haiti need guidance and support. They have been oppressed by their own government for so long that they do not know that a better life is possible. By supporting the orphans of Haiti maybe a generation of hope will arise.

A new year......new trips

Yesterday I had two amazing dreams about Africa that were so vivid. I awoke renewed and excited that I have something that I am so passionate about. The trip I took this past summer to Kenya changed my life. I had felt a calling to Africa for several years and waited for the right opportunity. I look to the future for more ways to make a difference. A difference not just overseas but also at home. I am more aware of those in need around me and the comfort that a smiling face can give a scared patient.

I saw children that could not remember the last time they had eaten.

I saw families that did not have any shoes.

I saw children that would soon be orphaned by AIDS.

I saw diseases that have been eradicated in the western world.

I saw simple illnesses, that we treat over the counter, damage lives.

I saw love.

I saw thankfulness.

I saw simplicity.

I saw beauty.

I saw my future.

This February I am going to an orphanage in Haiti for one week. A coworker, RN, will be accompanying me. We will be giving the children vaccines and medicines and treating part of the immediate community. After that I am planning on going to Tanzania in June for two weeks and working with an unusual population, albinos. These people fear for their lives because of myths in voodoo medicine that say if the flesh of an albino is eaten it gives special powers. They also have to battle skin damage from living so close to the equator and vision problems. I am hoping to go back to Kenya in August and Uganda in September.

I am ready and willing. I need your support to make this happen. Even ten dollars from enough people will make the difference in the number of lives I can touch and the number of people that can go with me on this journey.

Each journey begins with a step....

Or an airplane ticket! My daughter Margaux's trip to Kenya on a medical mission was the culmination of a lot of planning, a lot of saving and the generous support of a few good friends. Little did I know it was just the beginning....

I am a mother. My daughters have never gone hungry. My daughters have never lacked medical care. My daughters have a world of opportunity through education always available to them and they have the luxury of choice! I am blessed that they have open minds, generous hearts and compassionate spirits. Margaux's experience in Kenya has brought home life change for each of us. Now the need of other mothers and motherless children has a very personal face, one we can't ignore. To that end, we are starting World Care Connections. In just a few brief weeks, a small team of volunteers were able to give medical care to over 3,000 people with no access to it in remote villages. They brought and dispensed over 20,000 prescription medications. Margaux and I will be sharing photographs she took and her experiences with the people she met through this blog and the website we have under development. We are finalizing the status as a non-profit foundation. Erica's creative talents and computer wizardry will help us connect with you who want to share with the ones in need!

Other trips are planned for this upcoming year to Kenya and Tanzania. Our goal is to financially support trained medical volunteers who feel the call to serve under challenging circumstances around the world. In third world countries, a little goes a very long way.

I hope to find ten people who each know ten people who each know ten people who would not miss parting with $10 a month. By forming small GIVING CIRCLES of ten people who can commit just $10 each per month we can raise $1,200 a year. With great love, if we multiply these small gifts by 100 GIVING CIRCLES we can accomplish so much more!


Now imagine if you could see the faces and hear the stories of those people whose lives you touched..... we intend to have you share the experience as it unfolds.

We can do no great things, only small things with great love.  ~Mother Teresa