Keep praying!

Just a note from the Radfords - this team is amazing! They are jumping in with both feet and have already honoured so many people with their loving spirits. We can hardly wait to see what the week holds. PLEASE keep praying for them!

Church in Senegal

We began our day with devotions and breakfast. We boarded a bus which took us to church. The people were very warm and welcomed us with open arms. With no sound system or power point projection, the Senegalese people sang with great joy and volume. It was encouraging to be with them.

It is now 3:45pm. Everyone is well. We are going to be spending the evening at Dakar Academy where we will hear some testimonies of students from this Christian school.

Orientation

It is 4:30pm in Senegal. We have finished a meaningful time of orientation with Mr. and Mrs. Radford. In a couple of hours, we will leave the compound and go for dinner.

We are staying in the compound of the Wycliffe Bible Translators guest house. It is very clean and comfortable inside. Students are staying in apartments. All the girls share one apartment and the guys share another apartment. Each apartment has bedrooms with anywhere between 2 to 4 beds. Each apartment has a fridge where we can keep our drinks cool. Also, each apartment has a bathroom with toilet, sink and shower.

Everyone is healthy and happy.

More updates to come!

They have arrived!

Just a quick note to let parents, teachers, friends and other interested individuals know that the team arrived safely this morning. They are at their accommodations and are resting for a bit before we bring lunch and start orientation with them. PTL that the first part of this journey went well for them. We are looking forward to getting to know the team.

Will was immediately glad to see a sign of unity - though they have 2 apartments for the girls and 2 for the guys, they didn't want to be separated and so decided to squeeze into 1 apartment for the girls and 1 for the guys! This shows us that they are already enjoying being together and it is a good sign of things to come!

Stay tuned for updates. But rest assured, all is well!

Mr. & Mrs. R.

6:30 AM

See you in the morning at 6:30AM at Pillar "G"
Please check the weather and leave with plenty of time.
Bring your passports, your addressed luggage, customs card and everything else you need on your packing list.

Eating Sengalese style

Here's a picture of some of the members of the 2003 PCA Missions team eating communally, Senegalese style.

Inside a Ndiaga Ndiaye

Here's a shot inside a nidaga ndiaye. Those are the members of 2003 PCA Sr. Missions Team to Senegal with Mr. Radford.

Ndiaga Ndiaye

These are the vehicles which will transport us to and from the bush. They're called Ndiaga Ndiaye.

In the bush Part 2

Here's the house of the pastor which we will be working on. In 2003, a team of PCA students just like you helped to build it! Now we have the privilege of helping to maintain it! Truly, He who begins a good work will be faithful to complete it!

In the bush

As you will see from our schedule, we will have a number of days of ministry in the Senegalese bush. Having never been to Africa, let alone been to the African bush, I had no idea what to expect. Thankfully Will and Sharon Radford have fleshed out this portion of the trip some more for us.

Here's what they said...

In the bush, sunset will be around 7:15. The difference between here and Canada is that from sunset till it is really dark is only about 15 minutes.

We will take an air conditioned bus from Dakar to the village we will be based in. During the 4 days in the bush, we will use a more “rugged” form of transport called a “ndiaga ndiaye” which you will come to love! The air conditioned bus will return to take us back to Dakar.

We will be set up in tents on a property with a concrete wall around it where there is a church and pastor’s house.

For the main noon meal each day we will eat Senegalese meals, in Senegalese style.

The terrain where we will be working is very dry and dusty.

Overall schedule for “bush time”:

Sunday – leave from Dakar around 3 pm. Arrive at site around 5 pm. Introduce pastors we will work with, unpack bus, eat supper. After dark, around 7:30, we will have a devotional time with one of the pastors, a debrief time, then head to bed!

Monday – 8 am up and breakfast. We will take some students to do children’s ministry in a village while other students stay on the property and work on the pastor’s house. The work will not be terribly difficult – just scraping and painting. One of the pastors who speaks good English will go with the students to do children’s ministry, and will translate directly from English to Serere, the language in this area.

Noon – everyone back on site for lunch

Afternoon – rest time. it will be hot and we will need to rest.

5 pm – kids get out of the school near the site. They will probably come to investigate the “toubabs” (white people). We can do some soccer or some other stuff with them

6:30 – supper

After supper – go to set up and do evangelism in a village about 20 minutes or less away. This is a time to be flexible. Even if we are set up and ready to go at 8 pm…it is possible that people will not gather until around 9 pm.

10:30 or so – back to site and sleep!

Tuesday and Wednesday the same. Thursday we will play by ear depending on what needs to be done, etc. Then we will head back to Dakar, to a pizza supper, showers and bed!

Packing List

Everyone should have already received this. But in case you lose it...

Senegal Short Term Teams

Packing List

Each individual should pack the following:

• Bible!
• Passport!
• Hat & Sunglasses
• Sunscreen & lip balm with sunscreen (you WILL burn without it)
• Camera
• Insect Repellent
• Flashlight
• Personal medications, including allergy meds
• Comfortable closed shoes, sandals and/or flip flops
• Toiletry items - shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, soap, moisturizer
• Extra glasses, if you cannot manage without them, in case yours break or if you wear contacts
• Reading material
• Earplugs if you are a light sleeper
• Beach towel
• Clothing items:

Girls - 3-4 below-the-knee cotton skirts, 6-7 t-shirts and/or tank tops (straps at least 1 inch wide), 1-2 nicer outfits for church, 2-3 pairs shorts, 2 pairs cotton pants or jeans, 1 hoodie or long-sleeved shirt, cool and warm weather PJs, swimsuit (1-piece or full tankini, no bikinis), socks & underthings!

Guys - 2-3 pairs shorts, 3-4 pairs lightweight pants or jeans, 6-7 t-shirts, 1-2 semi-casual shirts for church, cool and warm weather PJs, swim shorts, socks and underwear!

• 1 set single sheets. If you are willing to leave them with the missionaries when you leave, this would help us a lot.
• Required: 1 box cereal, 1 box instant oatmeal packets, 1 medium (plastic) jar peanut butter, 2 packs Kraft Dinner
• Suggested: Crystal Lite or Kool Ade packs, granola bars

Do Not bring the following:

• Expensive jewelry
• Expensive sunglasses
• Cell phones, computers

Each team should pack the following:

• 1 first aid kit including antibiotic cream, band-aids, elastic bandages, anti-itch gel or cream, Benadryl tablets, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, throat lozenges, cough drops, laxatives and diarrhea medication.
• Photocopies of all passports
• Master list of Emergency Contact in Canada info for each team member.

Be sure to include the following in your carry-on:

• A complete change of clothing
• Any medications you need daily

Sweets for Senegal Promotion

Miss Kang's business class produced the following videos to help promote the upcoming Sweets for Senegal fundraiser:

Promo #1

Promo #2

Laundry

When we return from our time in the Senegalese bush, there will be a lady who will do our laundry at SIL. We won't do laundry individually - it will all be thrown into one pile. So, if you have items that could be confused for someone else' (such as socks or underwear) please write your name or initials on them in permanent marker.

Cameras

A note from the Radfords...

If you are planning to bring a camera to Senegal, be aware that there is plenty of sand that has the potential to do some damage to your camera. So, make sure that it is well-protected. Otherwise, bring a less expensive camera.

Say Cheese!

Sweets for Senegal

In just a couple of days, Miss Kang's business class we will be hosting a fundraising event for the upcoming project to Senegal.

On Friday, her students were busy at work making last minute preparations for the event. We are hoping that their hard work and support will bring in the remaining funds needed for our time in Senegal.

Please join us in the high school gymnasium from 6:30 -9:30 pm on Monday, February 13. Bring a cheque to make a donation to this project! Thank you in advance for your support.