A: We don't know what we're doing yet

Q: What are you doing when you come back?

Hi everyone,

It has been quite a while since I’ve posted. Sorry if anyone was sorely disappointed. Today’s post might be considered a cop-out by some, but I wanted to share it with you because it shares a bit of our heart for the gospel in Africa and because it might help you understand a bit about our future plans. What follows is an email I wrote to EMI in Colorado Springs sharing our history and aspirations for the future. I’ve taken out names and left all but one piece of the original email basically intact:

Greetings from Africa! My name is David Baca and I am currently an intern at eMi EA. I am contacting you regarding the possibility of serving a ministry called Westminster Theological College & Seminary (WTCS) through a construction management role with eMi. I believe our office director may have mentioned this to you, but I have some new questions as the reality of this opportunity comes nearer.

A brief history to bring you up to speed...I'm a BS Arch Eng, MS Eng Management; I've worked in the field at residential construction company for four summers and co-oped in the office at a medium sized design/build contractor; I've been married to Amanda for almost 3 years; we're both 25, no kids, no house. When we began pursuing overseas missions, we first investigated opportunities with the mission agency of the Presbyterian Church of America (PCA), Mission to the World (MTW). After finding that MTW didn't offer any opportunities in the engineering/construction field, through the sovereignty of God we came to eMi, applied, and were accepted for a ten month internship here in East Africa (so that Amanda could teach a full year of school). In October, I went on a project trip to serve WTCS as an intern. WTCS is a school open to all students but run by the Presbyterian Church of Uganda (PCU) and committed to Reformed theology. During the project trip, it became apparent that WTCS would need full-time, on-site, construction management. While the project was being completed in the office, we continued to pray for WTCS, particularly that a project manager would volunteer. Around November/December 2006, Amanda and I began to prayerfully examine our hearts to see if this was an opportunity we should explore and came to the decision, YES! Christ calls us to serve when a need is made apparent and we were joyful to begin considering this opportunity as a new way for us to labor for the Kingdom.

So, fast forward to February 2007, when we delivered the final project reports to WTCS in mid-February. There were three WTCS representatives at the meeting:
• Emma-Dean of WTCS, Ugandan
• Dave-Dean of Graduate Studies, American, MTW missionary
• Scott-An experienced contractor from the US
In early March, Dave (with his wife Darlene) and Emma wrapped up a fundraising trip in the US that involved visiting 17 different churches. Since then, WTCS has received pledges and donations of ~$72,000 of the approximate $270,000 needed for Phase 1. They have received word from several churches that they will be giving donations, but have not received them yet. (Side note: I'm from the PCA and understand a bit about how Presbyterians work...if a group asks for money, it takes a few months for the missions committees to process and approve the proposal. I think it's a good process, unless, of course, you want the money to come in quickly!)

Now that the history is somewhat in place, I'd like to share a little about the present and ask some questions about the future. Our desire to serve God overseas, our close theological and relational connection with the ministry, my existing skills and the desire to learn new ones, together with the need for someone to fill this role at WTCS all point to God's hand being consistently involved in our lives. Amanda and I are both convicted that serving Christ through building WTCS is an excellent way to use our God-given gifts and desires to advance the Kingdom so that He receives the glory. We would be absolutely ecstatic to help fulfill the vision of Westminster. There are a few conclusions we've come to that influence the questions I have:

1. We would like to come back to Uganda at this time in our lives to help with the WTCS construction management. We've decided that serving in an eMi office as a design professional isn't a good option at this time, simply because I don't have any structural engineering design experience.
2. We would like to come back to Uganda by the end of October, at the latest, otherwise we're in an odd position with finding housing and jobs in the US, and, we miss out on the construction itself.
3. Serving at WTCS and learning from Scott is also a bit strategic in my mind. Scott has many years of building experience in the US that could really help me hone my construction skills. WTCS would thus be a good training ground for future construction projects in developing countries.
4. If we can't come back by October, we will probably stay in the US for a couple of years so that I can get my PE license out of the way, with the idea of potentially coming on staff with eMi at a later time.

The questions...

WTCS's Funding Stream: A while back I asked our office director, "How much money should WTCS have in the bank before we come back?" He responded to the effect of "95% of it, if not all." At that time, Scott was not available to work on an as-needed basis. Now that he is, WTCS won't wait until they have $270k in the bank; they'll build as the money comes in, and thus, never have "all of the money in the bank."
1. Can we be approved to come back through eMi knowing that WTCS probably won't have all of the money in the bank in October?
2. Other people's experience suggests the funding stream will "dry up" at times so it will be important to have a plan in place for when that happens...could we develop an agreement so that I am approved to do other types of work (train worship leaders, teach vocational training, teach English/writing at WTCS, mentor younger men at WTCS, etc) as needs arise?

Application Process: As mentioned above, we'd like to come back soon. I’ve learned that the application/training process is becoming significantly longer. A lengthy application/training process could adversely affect our plans, so I'm curious about what the process would be like for us. I'm in a bind, because on one hand, Amanda and I have already lived in Uganda for some time, we won't be working at eMi EA on a daily basis, and we don't want to be in the US much longer than three or four 4 months. On the other hand, saying that we want to forego the training seems too bold. Could you please describe what the application/training process would entail for us?

Personal Finances: (I took this section out just because I’m leery of posting financial information on the internet. If any of our supporters are interested in our current funding situation, by all means, please email me. There wasn’t anything too exciting, just questions about how any extra money in our support account can be used for future work at EMI or Westminster)

Well, thanks for making it all the way through this email. I hope there is enough information for you all to begin processing both the Construction Management and HR side of this situation. I imagine my email probably raised a multitude of questions in your mind, so please email them to me as they come to you. Amanda and I both desire to see the truth of the gospel advance in this continent and pray that we're able to serve WTCS through eMi.

Grace and peace,
David

--
For our supporters back in the States, please pray for Amanda and I as we navigate the next few months. I'm excited and grateful for working with WTCS or getting my PE in the States, although the opportunity to work at WTCS now seems like a once in a lifetime opportunity that might help me in a third world building career.

And here's a picture of the Africa Renewal Ministries project which we just wrapped up last week:

A Visit to a Village

Several weekends ago, a group of us from eMi went to visit our friend Allie, a Peace Corps. volunteer. Allie lives in a little village called Kangulumira, which is about a two hour matatu ride from Kampala. Allie is living pretty much like a local (no refrigerator, no indoor plumbing, cement home) but, she does have a laptop with every- other -day electricity. She even manages to cook some non Ugandan meals, spoiling us with spghatti and meat balls, stir fry, and even a cake on a char-coal stove called a shigiri.

This is Allie's front porch. Apparently one of the Peace Corps. housing requirements is that the house be painted. I guess that only applies to the front? In this picture, David is reading a book called African Friends and Money Matters which discusses the frequent confusion Westerners feel as they become familiar with the African economic system.

Living in "the village" isn't quite what I expected. The houses were lined up along the main road, not in a cluster or circle. Although, when David went to Lira a month ago, he noticed that this was how many of the village huts were arranged. Regardless, many of the precious neighbor kids were coming in and out of Allie's house all of the time. She is the only white person in the village and is quite popular as you can imagine.

On Saturday we took a 5-6 kilometer walk down to the Nile. It was a beautiful day as you can see in this picture. It's pretty common for people to wash their clothes (by hand, that is) and then hang them over a bush or lay them in the grass to dry.

This girl is standing in front of a building that is still being worked on.

I was quite excited to see my first pineapple bush! Pineapples are grown all over Kangulumira.

Children lined the road to greet us. Eight Muzungus walking through town caused quite a commotion! You seriously feel like a celebrity, constantly smiling, waving and hugging the children. They love getting their picture "snapped" and especially enjoy seeing it on the digital camera. Several even followed us all the way to the river!

We hadn't been this close to the Nile since we went rafting last August. We dipped our feet in to cool off, it was quite refreshing after the long hike, (in a long skirt!)

The Whole eMi Gang:

On Side: David, Rob- Civil Engineer from Australia
Back Row: Leah- Architect from Kansas, Jean- Civil Engineer from the UK, Megan- Architect from Oregon
Front: Me and Janet- Waste Water Engineer from New York

This mom effortlessly hauls a load on her head and her back!

A Visit to Entebbe

On Thursday, March 8th, Uganda celebrated Women’s Day. It was quite odd to have a holiday during the work week, but we enjoyed it none the less! David and I took a day trip to Entebbe, a 45 minute matatu ride from Kampala. Entebbe is a beautiful city, green and lush, on the shore of Lake Victoria. We flew into Entebbe early in the morning back in August, but hadn’t spent much time there.


We spent the morning exploring the Entebbe Botanical Gardens, enjoying the vast assortment of tropical plants. The British brought plants in from around the world when they started the gardens in the 40’s, including some Chinese bamboo and California Palm trees. They also had many Ugandan staples as well, including banana, matoke, avocado, cocoa, tea, and coffee plants. We enjoyed watching the fishermen bring in their nets on the shores of Lake Victoria and were refreshed by the shade of the small, dense jungle where the old classic “Tarzan” was purportedly filmed.


David pretending to be Tarzan!




After meandering through the gardens, at the end of our guided tour, we were surprised to discover a tree full of velvet tailed monkeys! Monkeys of all sizes were swinging and playing, eating and chatting. We were mesmerized by them and decided to track them as they traveled around the gardens.



When we had our share of monkeys we walked downtown and ate lunch at a local Pub, recommended in our Bradt’s Guide to Uganda book. Watching CNN kept us occupied while we waited one hour too long for our tasty yet inexpensive food, a spicy Chinese dish chicken pizza. After walking around and exploring Entebbe all morning, we were quite refreshed when we finally jumped into the cool pool at the Windsor Lake Victoria Hotel. The rest of the afternoon was spent reading, napping and relaxing there. We had no problems catching a matatu back to Kampala and enjoyed our nice little get away.


Momma and baby


David communicating with the monkeys


Children who live by the gardens

A Taste from Around the World

Last Friday, the Parent Teacher Fellowship, PTF, (which I am a part of) hosted an International Dinner at my school. The dinner was "to celebrate the diversity of our cultures" at Heritage. Thirteen different countries were represented from our school, each proudly decorating a table with various pictures, flags, maps, and of course-their favorite food! It was so fun to sample the vast assortment of ethnic foods and glimpse what life is like in each culture.


The Philippines roasted an entire pig, which freaked several children out. (And me too!)


The Italians, the table I sampled first, cooked delicious lasagna and demonstrated how to make noodles. They even had gelato for dessert!


Uganda, the largest group represented, went all out with their motake (a staple here, a banana-like plant), beans, and rice and even had groundnut (similar to peanut) sauce wrapped and tied in individual bags made from banana leaves. South Korea had lots of sushi, and Singapore made sweet and sour fish.


Me with my neighbors...Kristen (a 3rd grade teacher at Word of Life) and Heather (the 1st grade teacher at HIS)

America's table was full of Mac & Cheese, pizza, (ordered from a local restaurant), potato and other assorted casseroles, and chocolate chip cookies and many other desserts, of course! I made Texas Sheet Cake. America had the most desserts by far (surprise, surprise!); the Canadians and Italians were the only other countries that even had it!

Besides the food, I loved seeing the different traditional costumes, specifically from the Koreans and the Africans. The local Ugandans proudly wore their Gomesi, a dress worn for special occasions such as introductions, an engagement party, weddings, and sometimes church.

Hoon Hee, one of my 5th grade students, beautifully wore a hanbok, a Korean traditional dress.


Juliette is the 2nd grade teacher at HIS and Laura is the 4th


After the meal, there were contests to see who had lived in the most countries and continents, and who had given birth in the most different places. Each group also was called up front to sing their National Anthem and to tell a few fun facts about their country. A fun fact: gum is not allowed in Singapore, you will be fined if caught chewing. Apparently it’s a very wealthy and clean city. David brilliantly had the Americans, the second largest group represented, sing "Take me Out to the Ball Game" before our real national anthem. Don't worry Cards fans-David was representing us well, proudly flaunting a Cardinal's shirt. We were sure to yell, "Root, root, root for the CARDINALS!" as well when we sang! I'm not sure that the rest of the countries, excluding Canada, understood it because of their love of "football." In case you weren't aware, soccer is much more popular than baseball in countries outside of America. (Maybe David Beckham will help change this in the US?) Our principal, Steve, from England, said the Americans made up baseball because they didn't understand the rules for cricket.

Ethiopia

Next to having the joy and freedom of daily teaching Christ to my students, one of my favorite aspects of teaching at Heritage has been working with teachers and students from all over the world. Before living here, I had little contact with people from outside America. David had several Indian friends in Rolla and I worked with a few Hispanics when I was in B'ham but that was about it. It has been so intriguing, eye opening, and fun to learn and get to know other countries' traditions, customs, expressions, food and daily way of life that are so very different from ours. I easily got wrapped up in the American bubble and forgot that we are just a small sliver of the world!

My 5th graders and I have been reading from the children's version of Operation World called Window on the World, a book which highlights countries from around the globe, discussing the

religions, culture, personal stories from children, and how to pray specifically for the country and the people. It has been a reminder to me and my students of all the vastly different people groups not just represented in Uganda, but in the world… all with the same need of a Savior. (I highly recommend buying it and reading it if you have elementary age children!) One of my students, Husna, who’s parents are from Rwanda and was raised her first 8 years in Canada, says that, through reading the book, “I have learned how other people and countries are suffering and have learned not to take things for granted and how we can pray for them." Kezza, who’s mom is from Texas and dad is from Burundi, says that, "It's interesting to learn about the new countries and cultures and to hear real life stories about the people there. I like knowing that you can help through praying for them." And Tumi, a Ugandan, says, "It's fun to learn about new countries and religious, some I have never even heard of."

Amidst the many different tribes and tongues spoken in Uganda, along with the international community represented here, it is beautiful to see Christ's universal church at work, sharing and reaching Uganda with His love, grace, and mercy. When worshiping and fellowshipping with other believers, it's but a small glimpse and taste of heaven, where Christians are all worshipping our savior, as the church triumphant. (I think of Natalee, my sister.) One day, I too will be praising my Savior with peoples from every tribe and tongue! What a glorious day that will be…

After this, I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could
number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing
before the thrones and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm
branches in their hands, and crying our with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to
our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen." Revelations 7:9-10

We've Shifted!

We are so thankful for our new house! We had been praying sometime for a new place to stay, living "dorm style" at eMi was becoming quite challenging for us as a married couple, living at the office next to the other interns. After 5 months of living in the boys’ quarters (rooms out back for the helpers) and having to walk outside into another room to shower/use the toilet, we are incredibly thankful to be living in our own place. We are now living in a new, three bedroom duplex right up the hill from my school. Another family at eMi found the duplex and wanted to move there, but the builder had a hard time completing it on time (it was suppose to be completed Nov. 1st). After waiting 2 months, they finally started looking elsewhere and we started praying for this place. Finally, in mid-January, the builder, after missing several deadlines, barely came through and finished the job (there's still a list of things that need to be completed, but it's livable!) After we leave in June, the eMi office will move to our side of the duplex and the other half will be used for eMi interns. We are so thankful and are love having our own place again.



Though it was a challenge living in the boys quarters, it was sobering to think that we were living much better than most Ugandans who live in shacks or huts without plumbing, electricity, or privacy. So now, we are even more so living in luxury, and at times do feel really undeserving of it. But the truth of the matter is that we don't deserve the house, and we didn't deserve the one room either. Another undeserved blessing from the Lord was his provision of furniture for us. My friend, Nicolien, the 6th grade teacher at Heritage, moved back to Holland after Christmas and we purchased a lot of her African furniture, including a log-style sofa & two chairs, a kitchen table & chairs, microwave, coffee maker/water boiler, curtains & mattresses from Holland, and a large mosquito net. It was such a blessing and saved us loads of money to buy them used. We purchased an oven from another girl who moved away and are using one of eMi's mini fridges. We and have enjoyed cooking our favorite meals again like homemade pizza, spaghetti, tilapia, chicken enchiladas, and new Indian dishes as well! Cooking here does come with its challenges and expense. The power goes off every third day so many times we end up cooking, eating, and showering by candlelight! Produce is quite inexpensive here but dairy products like cheese, sour cream, and cream cheese are quite costly (though there are cows all over!) We don't have a car so we are dependent on others to take me to the store or else we take a matatu (taxi), boda-boda (motorcycle) or walk. Pam, a MTW missionary here, takes our neighbors (two MTW girls) and me occasionally, which is so nice. Surprisingly, we do eat out about once a week (restaurants are quite inexpensive) and there are many delicious, clean, and safe ethnic restaurants around! We eat out way more here then we did in Rolla! I've had Indian, Italian, Ethiopian, Chinese, Thai, and Mongolian BBQ here to name a few. Yum!

For Valentine's Day, we walked to a nearby restaurant, La Petite Bistro, and enjoyed delicious salads, bread, filet, veggies, and almond incrusted tilapia. Including the bottled water you have to buy, we paid the equivalent of $12 for both our dinner. Not too bad. That price included entertainment, by the way. A guy played the keyboard with the pre-recorded drum beats and sang 80s and 90s love songs the whole time we were there.