Swaziland Mission Trip

I've always dreamed of our entire family traveling together to one of the Mission of Mercy projects. All of our kids were in transition this year, so the timing was right. Dee and I were to lead a group of WCLN-FM listeners from Fayetteville, NC - there were 31 of us, including my family. We flew out of Raleigh. Our plane was late in arriving in Washington, DC, so we missed our flight to South Africa. That meant an overnight in DC. When we got back to the airport the next day, they had to split us into two groups. Dee led half the group on a direct flight to Johannesburg, and I took the rest through London. My group was to arrive a day after Dee's, but her group had complications and got to the Swaziland border too late to enter the country, they had to turn back and find a place in South Africa to stay. Both groups ended up with unique adventures, but we arrived safe and sound - at almost the same time.

During the week, we helped break ground on two new Mercy Centers. We worked during the morning, then split into groups during the afternoon to conduct Bible clubs at five different Mercy Centers. As I would talk with projects leaders, I would point out different children and ask about them. Time and time again they would tell me about parents who passed away of aids, or who abandoned the kids, or one of many other heartbreaking stories. By the end of the week it dawned on me that none of the kids I met were living at home with their biological parents. They were shifted from home to home - relative to relative. At the Mercy Centers, the staff has to ask the kids to leave at the end of the day. They love staying there - it is their community - being with other kids and with a staff that deeply loves them, feeds them and cares for them.

One of the highlights of the week for Dee and me was meeting our sponsor child - who we call "Sophie." Her real name is difficult to pronounce. We bonded with her and fell in love with her. Sophie's only living relative is her grandfather - and he has abandoned her, and left her in the the care of her step-grandmother. She also stays some evenings with one of the Mercy Center teachers. We always caution people about trying to adopt children when we travel abroad. Sophie's loss of family and the instability in her home life started us thinking about it. As we said goodbye to Sophie on the last day, she held tight to Dee and whispered in her ear, "Won't you please take me home with you?" When Dee came back to the bus, she was in tears. Swaziland laws would require either Dee or me to be present in the country for one year before we could adopt her. We are still praying about it - but mostly praying for Sophie. Both of my daughters and their husbands also sponsor children in Swaziland. They also had the opportunity to meet their sponsor children. Dee and I have been sponsoring children for over 20 years. It made me proud to see my children, who certainly are struggling financially in this transitional stage of life, step up to help others.

After a very impacting week in Swaziland, we flew back with the group to Raleigh. We said our goodbyes and then settled in for an eight hour wait before our flight back to South Dakota. We had our first Starbucks coffee in 10 days, and we sat on the floor at the airport talking about our experiences. During that conversation, one of my children said, "We get it dad. We know why you and mom are so passionate about what you do." There are so many children around the world who have needs. My prayer is that more people "get it" and would impact the life of just one child. Before you know it, we would change the world!