Patricia is back in Amecet.

Two days ago I got a phone call from the grandfather of Patricia and Aaron, they are twins and were in Amecet fro two months, last year. It is a sad story, their mother has a mental problem and after the babies were born, she tried to strangle one of them, she disappeared some days after they were born and the grandfather asked us to help. They did well and wer discharged at the end of August.

 This picture was just before they were going home. They were happy, alert and active. The grandparents were happy to care for them. Their mother is not at home, she is run away and they don't know where she is.

In the phone call the grandfather told me that Patricia is not well, they took her several times to the health centre, she even was admitted, Aaron is okay, he is eating well and is crawling, starting to pull himself up to stand. 

Yesterday, Elias, Anneke and I went to the village to check on another child, Yoweri, he has been twice with us and we wanted to see how he was doing now at home. Yoweri was doing fine and it was so nice to see the family caring for him. After that we drove to the home of the grandfather to see the situation. And yes, Aaron is doing fine, but Patricia is very weak, skinny and sad..

Left is Patricia and right is Aaron (he is wearing a dress!!) We sat fro a while, asking questions and trying to get the picture, why one twin is doing well and the other one not. We got all their medical papers and we left with Patricia and her medical papers. When we came in Amecet, we weighed Patricia and she weighs only 3,5 kg. and she is 10 months old! Today we took her to the doctor and did many tests on her. Up till now, nothing came out, so we focus on feeding and drinking for now.

So Patricia is back with us and we pray we can help her back to her health. It is a sweet little girl and when she looks to you, with those big sad eyes...........

The Ugandan "Theo and Els"...

Sometimes you have plans or dreams for people, and then it goes completely different. As most of you know, we had a second home (Amecet n' Amun) where the older HIV+ children lived. They were going to school and they were trained in taking their ARV's medicines every day. All those children lived first in our first home, Amecet n'ainapakin. They came in sometimes very sick and I have sat many hours with very sick children. When the ARV's came, we could see such a change in the children, they started to play and they could make it to school.

We still have a lot of contact with all these children, many of them are  adults by now and they do well in life! A number of them are still studying for nurse, teacher, lab technician, some of them did a life skill course like tailoring, hair dresser or welder. Last year I wrote about one of the girls who got pregnant, Catherine's baby was born on April 23, 2015, you can read about that in the blog of that day. Later that year we heard about one of the other girls, Dinah, who also got pregnant and send away from school. Of course this was not our choice for them, they made their own choice and have to live with the consequences now. Catherine is gone back to her family, her uncle helps her. Dinah has been living the last months back with her mother in the village. Her baby was born 2 weeks ago. Today they came together to Soroti, Catherine has been staying with Dinah to help her. And it is so good to see what a great mother Catherine has become... she is crazy about her little boy, whom she called Theo, after my brother. She said that she is so thankful and that she got so much help and support from Holland, so she named her boy after a Dutch guy, my brother, she has met some times. Dinah's baby is still small, but has gain 500 gram in almost 2 weeks, she is doing well, And guess what name Dinah gave her little girl???? yes, Els. So today Theo and Els came to visit us!!!

We have to see how we can help them in the future, for now they do very good as mothers. Theo has been tested and is HIV-, Catherine was very happy with that result, for Dinah's baby it is too early to test, but she got ARV's for the baby and when she is 6 weeks old, they come for the test.

Our boys went for their first schoolday..

A big day!!!! Our boys went today for the first time to school! Sagal (left) is just 4 years old, but he came in Amecet very sick, weak and malnourished. It is a milestone for all of us, to see him standing in his school uniform, ready to go to school. The two boys at his right are twins. They came in Amecet on the request of the the local authorities in their village. Their mother has a mental problem and the boys were working for their food.... They were carrying water to the local restaurant and they were paid with food. We have been looking for relatives, but no one, up till now is willing to take the two boys in. They are doing all three well, health wise, but also social wise, it was hard to listen for them and to obey when they were told to go and eat, or bath. We see a big difference in them. I just picked them from school and they all told me that they will go again tomorrow!!! I have also uniforms for the twins now, so tomorrow, they go in full swing!!It is so good to already start their education, because that will change their world!!!

We said goodbye to Innocent...

Simon left yesterday morning to Kampala and he arrived back in Soroti after midnight! He brought Innocent's body in the coffin and the mother and sister with him. They slept in Amecet and we placed the coffin in our night duty room. This morning, Simon wanted to proceed further to their village, so at 7.15 am, we gathered together as staff and children to pray together and say goodbye to Innocent. As I came into the room where the coffin stood, I was really touched by what I saw. Three of his friends, Apio Ruth, and the twins Moses and Peter, were sitting together on the bed, looking at the coffin. They were talking about Inno, they said that Inno was now sleeping in the box, and that he was gone to Jesus. It was so natural, so beautiful, no fear, no crying, just talking about their friend in the "box". It ministered to my heart.

The staff came in the room and we together thanked God for the time we had been able to care for Inno and for comfort for his family and also for us. Innocent looked so peaceful and he looked so much better than the last time that I saw him alive. We remembered how friendly and caring Inno always was towards the little children and how he giggled. We spoke out our questions why he had to die after all these chemo's, but we trust God, that He knows why. 

The coffin was carried out and placed at the back of our car. Simon was going to pick some more relatives and started his journey to their village. There will Innocent being laid to rest........

R.I.P. Innocent

It is Sunday morning, I got a message from Elias at 3.30 am, that Innocent had died, his mother who stayed with him in Mulago hospital in Kampala had called him. I was shocked, I send a message back, but the next message came in, no, he had still a heartbeat, he wasn't dead, they had put him on oxygen. I prayed and waited till the next message came, yes  it was confirmed now, Innocent had passed away at 4 am this morning. More messages went over from Elias, Simon and me. Then I tried to sleep a bit more, praying for the mother who must have been so scared and confused.

Innocent came in Amecet in April 2015, you cane read his story in the blog of November 10 2015. He was started on chemo therapy for Cancer in Mulago hospital in Kampala, the first weeks they went every week by car up and down, later he stayed there, together with his mother, who is now doing much better. He went trough the whole chemo therapy and the doctors were pleased, the cancer disappeared, but his body couldn't cope with it. He got malnourished and weak. I feel also confused, why did he had to go through all this chemo, to die now??? Innocent suffered so much!

It is Sunday morning and I just gave Simon money to go to Kampala, at 6.30 am. he is on his way now, to help the mother and to get the body of Innocent, to bring it to their village for his last resting place. I just told my girls about his death, we are all confused and sad.

It is Sunday morning, we will be going to church in some hours, I am confused and asking questions to God. One thing I know: Innocent is out of his suffering, He is smiling again and he is in the arms of Jesus.

Jobby Job went back to his family!!!

Today we said goodbye to Job, and it was not easy.... Job has been with us in Amecet for almost one year!!! But he was ready to go and the best place for him is to be in his family!

He was brought  into Amecet in Feb.2015, with the story that both of his parents were dead. He was small and weak and we struggled with him from the beginning 

These two pictures are from April

He was on IV drip, on oxygen and fed by NG tube, Janneke was very busy with him. He got blood transfusion, and was put on anti TB drugs. He did better, but so slow and he always was weak and vulnerable. But since November he started to put  on more weight, his personality started to come out more and more, His blood tests came out good and we started to play and react on people. It is hard to see in that little weak baby the Job of today!! Everybody loves him and it was hard to say goodbye!!

A car full of people from Amecet, left to the village today, to bring Job to his relatives. It was quite far and I was told that it was deep in the village. His auntie will be the one to care for him at home. The grandmother was also home and when she heard the car coming, she ran into the hut and it took quite a while before she dared to come out.. We brought together with Job a mattress, a mosquito net, blanket, some clothes, some little toys, his drinking cup and his medical book. The family was happy to receive Job back in their home and we pray that Job will be a blessing to them and will bring as much joy to them as he brought to us in Amecet!

Some update about the older children in Amecet..

It has been a while since my last blog, but it doesn't mean that nothing is happening in Amecet..... We have been quite busy. In the blog of December 7, I wrote about Siliver. Yesterday we brought him back home, he gained 7 kg in the 2 months that he was in Amecet. Our Social workers have been talking with him and also they went to the village to talk with his relatives. Siliver wanted to stay with his grandmother and Simon and Elias have been talking with the relatives and together they agreed that Siliver will be staying with his grandmother, Siliver was very happy!!!

A difference of 2 months and 7 kg. between these 2 pictures!

This is how his grandmother greeted Siliver, when we brought him back!!

We also have been getting new children in Amecet, my last blogs was a lot about babies, but we still have also bigger children in Amecet.

At the end of January, we received a phone call from another organization, if we could help with Charles, a 13 years old boy. We got directions and Elias and me went to see the situation.

We talked with the parents and with Charles. He is HIV+ and is sick since November. Lost a lot of weight and is very weak. We felt we could help, also beacause he has a good support behind him from his parents, for after Amecet. So on Feb. 1, Charles came to Amecet. 

His ARV's were changed and tests were done, he was sick and so weak, he received blood transfusion and is doing better, but we do need to see him eating more and better, he is still very malnourished (20 kg). But to see him coloring and smiling is a big improvement. We are treating the wounds he has on his face, but because of his low immunity, the healing also goes slow.

In the meantime we got one of our girls back in Amecet, Norah has been in Amecet in the past, but last year she has been with us also for a while, she was very weak of TB and was admitted for a period in Soroti Hospital. Now she came to Amecet, just before the Amun week in January, at the end of the Amun week she fell sick again and we went to the Doctor for tests and treatment. She was even admitted in Soroti hospital, where she is still at the moment. They found out that she has an infection and she is resistant to most of the drugs we use, so we had to buy special very expensive drugs to treat this infection. We hope and pray she will be better soon. We go visit her once or twice every day, we also have to bring food for her and her sister, who takes care of her, while being in the hospital.

I can give some news also about Innocent, he is still in Mulago hospital in Kampala. We do not see him often, but we do have telephone contact with his mother and older brother, several times a week. Innocent is finished wit his chemo therapy, and the doctors are very content with how that went, but the big problem is now malnutrition, he is very weak, was fed for w while with a feeding tube, but he seems to do better now. He is eating him self and all the tests came back negative, so that is good news. Please keep praying for him, he needs your prayer support!