HEADING HOME FOR THE WINTER

It’s hard to believe it’s been 4 months since my last update. I’m been at the Kowak Mission since late April and am now heading home in a few hours for the winter in Kansas City.

What a wonderful year I’ve had at Kowak. It was so different from previous years because I got to meet many of the people in our village and go to their homes to delivery mosquito nets and rosaries (donated by friends and students from Queen of the Holy Rosary Parish) and take their photos. In my spare time on weekends I would walk around for exercise by visiting some of these same areas and having a smart phone with camera I was always being asked for pictures. I would then return the following weekend to deliver the photos. Most had never seen a picture of themselves, of course, so they were thrilled. Fortunately, getting photos developed is very cheap now and only an hour away.

Since I last wrote I went to Kitale, Kenya with our visiting PA, Kathy Dunford to escort her on her way back home. I also wanted to see the Korb’s from the KC area and our long term Maryknoll Lay Missioners Russ Brine and John O’Donohue. We just missed the Korb’s as John’s mother passed away a few days before we arrived. But we had a grand time with John O and Russ and saw lots of Kathy’s friends from her previous hospital and health care jobs. I got several ideas from the head of the hospital (an Indian sister) about things to help our hospital, like odor control powder for the toilets and a unique water filtration system using a clay pot made of American design.

Kathy and I had gone up on a new mini bus (12 passenger) system and it was quick (8 hrs) and easy, so I took it home. On the way up to Kenya I forgot to lock my luggage zippers so lost several computer cords due to sticky fingers. Kathy also lost some money but was not sure how. No problem coming home and the scenery is beautiful in this southwest section of Kenya with many hills and tea plantations. We had lots of good food in Kitale and got entertained by Russ’s primary school students. They are former street children. What a great program he has there.

Fr Conard returned at the end of July from 3 months of home leave. He visited all three brothers around the country and Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Rochester who donates so generously for our hospital support. He immediately started working on building an outdoor area next to the rectory for the big Jubilee Mass for all the priests and sisters of our diocese. It was an all-day event as we had to feed most of the 1,000 in attendance. It is supposed to be at another parish next year but we are pushing the bishop to have it back at Kowak next year since it will be Fr Conard’s 60^th anniversary as a priest.

I made one last trip to Mwanza, our second largest city 4 hours south, to shop for medicine and a few items with our car mechanic, to get some repairs done and to buy a LaserJet color printer for the hospital. We hauled a crankshaft down for grinding and picked it up the next day. I arranged to have the medicines boxed up and waiting at the door for pick-up the next morning at two different pharmacies. I also arranged for the large color printer to be delivered to my hotel that evening to save me time finding parking space the next day to pick it up.  So it was a very successful trip with no punctures (flats) or breakdowns.

Of course the highlight of this last month was the wonderful baseball post-season the KC Royals had, culminating in the World Series Championship. Wow! What a team and what a season. Sure wish my twin brother had been alive to enjoy it as much as we did last year. I’m looking forward to returning home now to catch the end of those celebrations tomorrow night. I was on the bus Monday by 8 a.m. and headed to Nairobi during the last game so my friend Liz Mach was watching the game at home and texting me with the scores, inning by inning. Thank God she is a big sports fan. I feel very blessed.

Tom