For those of you who have been following our work in the Congo; here is an update from Ed Buell.

“I am doing well here and very busy. I am in meetings of one kind or another almost every day in order to get things going at Tracy’s Heart and other projects. We met on Saturday morning with the Coordinator of a program similar to Tracy’s Heart we are starting. It was a wonderful meeting. The lady who runs it is very sharp and knows what is happening and what is needed. They have a training program available which we will send our people to as well. It is for people who will be counseling or dealing with the women and their families in any way. The task is huge but Lord willing we will help make a dent in it as well. That group helped 448 women last year but I think all on an out patient basis. Anyway, I am glad to have their assistance and hope we can work together in the future. Though it is our plan to open the center before I go, we will probably not bring in any women until we have a chance to train some workers first. If we do any helping it will be completely on an out patient basis as we have already been doing with 4 women and then we will see about actually brining some into the home after that.

We do though say a big thanks to International Disaster and Emergency Services for sending us over $5000 to help with rebuilding the wall at Tracy’s Heart. They also sent $10,000 to help some refugees in North Kivu who have been forced out of their homes due to continued rebel activity in their area. I hope to go there early next week to see that project get underway. I will take just a couple of days myself but may leave someone there to continue seeing it through.

Sopo is making good headway on his house. He had the doors and windows installed yesterday so it now secure. He will have a crew of friends there tomorrow morning at 6 am to tear the old house down from inside the new one. (The new one was built around and over the old one.) They will then dig holes for the poles which will be used to separate the various rooms, nail pieces of split open bamboo across these so they can then fill in between with rocks and mud to make walls and to provide insulation from the cold. I am not sue what the next step is after that but we are taking it one phase at a time. I hope to get with the other pastor who lost his house to the earthquake to get him started on his building project as well. I want to get at least a few pictures to send to you before I leave.

We have had a couple of pretty hard shakes the last two nights. Friday night about 2 AM and Sunday about 3:15 AM. I sure wish they would stop. I feel light ones quite often but the hard ones keep us all on edge and a little shaky.

God bless, thanks for the prayers and love which I constantly feel.”

In Christ, Ed

Ed Buell
Field Coordinator - DR Congo
ACM International