Saying Goodbye to ACTS

Yesterday I bid farewell to my ACTS colleagues and the Bwesumbu community members that have become friends over the past year. (Read the post that follows this one for more information on the transition from ACTS.) These 10+ months that I have spent with ACTS in Bwesumbu have contained much learning and stretching, tears and laughter, loneliness and belonging. I must confess that many times I just wanted to be in a familiar place where people don’t stare at me, where I can understand the language, where I know how the culture functions, and where I can walk in the woods or ride my bike. However, I have no regrets of coming, and I believe that somehow this year and all it contained fits beautifully into a bigger tapestry of intersecting lives and God’s purposes.

Colleauge Pidson (one of our amazing mechanics) and Patrick, a volunteer and soccer friend.

Speaking in terms of work, I can look back and see that I was able to contribute to the efforts of ACTS and the impact it will have in Bwesumbu. Thanks to all of you who have been a part of this endeavour whether through encouragement, prayer or finances. Here’s a brief summary of the work I (and therefore you) have been a part of:

• Along with my counterparts, Rose and Jovanice, I coordinated the health and environmental education programs. This was mostly administrative, managerial and logistical support, particularly when it involved anything with a computer.
• We completed a home-to-home survey, and I wrote a report on the demographic, health and environmental status of homes in Bwesumbu.
• In February and March I conducted an impact assessment study in a previous ACTS project area that was able to demonstrate significant positive change for the community as a result of ACTS’ work.
• I led 18 of my colleagues through a discipleship class that met weekly to discuss basic aspects of following Christ. I was excited to be able to finish the last study in our book the night before I left!

Teaching discipleship class

The ACTS staff discipleship class

• In the past couple months I’ve been introduced to a conservation farming method, and I taught it to ACTS’ widow cooperatives by planting two demonstration plots.
• Throughout all of this, my hope was to equip and empower my colleagues to better manage the health and environment programs. I taught basic computer skills, gave driving lessons, and have been working with Rose and Jovanice on program evaluation and encouraging them to dream and develop their programs.

The ACTS Bwesumbu water project and its programs will be finishing in September and the ACTS team will move to a new area to start the process all over again. Pray for the team’s transition and for the community in Bwesumbu to care well for the resources and knowledge that has been entrusted to them.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for standing with me through this year. The words from one of my favourite songs run often through my head: “This has been a long road/harder than I anticipated/but it was good.” (From Megan Bream’s “Conclusion”.) I don’t know exactly where the journey of life is taking me, but I am looking ahead with much hope and expectation.

Colleague and budding guitarist Hannington. I helped him figure out chords for some of the his favorite songs, and he's taking care of my guitar while I travel so that he can practice.