Change is Our New Norm

Well, it seems that things are never dull around here! Since our last post we have experienced quite the wild ride of changes and challenges, while at the same time continuing the same day-to-day life on our hospital ship!

Madagascar has undergone some major restructuring; shall we call it! Starting on Sept 25th protests began by a group of young people who call themselves Gen Z Mada. They were protesting the frequent lack of water and electricity, which is a major issue here. As a result of those protests, a breakdown of the government began and ultimately the President left the country, and a new leader has stepped into place. The majority of the protests happened in the capital city Antananarivo but spilled out into many other cities across the country. Our ship security kept us informed and safe when things were a little unpredictable and we are so grateful that we have been able to continue on our mission and serve the people here.

At about that same time as the protests began, Dan stepped into the Operations Director position to fill in for a short time, which was quite the introduction to the role! It meant dealing with major challenges of travel to and from the ship as many flights had been cancelled and frequently changed. Our goal was to keep our surgeries going as much as possible and thankfully we managed to continue much of our plan, although some rearranging and changes happened also. Dan enjoyed the new challenge, while also still being IT Manager. It was a busy time, but God provided and on Oct 8th Dan went back to just IT Manager.

During the unrest, we also did a partial closing of our 2nd HOPE Center as it is located closer to the area of protests and we had added challenges of earlier curfews in the city. We continued needing it on weekends for our Celebration of Sight patients who come for a quick checkup and celebration. Meaning, lots of people in a short time coming and going! It was an extra challenge for our HOPE Center team to reschedule day crew and manage all the changing elements. Not only that, but shortly after this challenge we had an outbreak of chicken pox coming from in country and had to then change our plan to have our 2nd HOPE Center become the “chicken pox hotel”. Basically it became an isolation center for those exposed or having chicken pox. More changes and challenges! Thankfully the country has settled now and we are free to travel as normal and run our 2nd center as needed.

Our kids did their midterm exams and school photos were taken, but otherwise are going about day-to-day life on board. They are enjoying their friends and have a great group of teachers as well.

Of course, that can’t be all that we have experienced! Currently, ironically during Infection Prevention and Control awareness week, we are experiencing an outbreak of gastro illness on the ship and for myself and the kids a cold. Extra cleaning and hygiene measures are in place, and we are thankful for all those who work hard to keep our ship clean and our volunteers and patients healthy. It’s a big job!

Our Canadian group got together and had a lovely Canadian Thanksgiving gathering, which felt a little like home! The galley had a lovely turkey dinner prepared for the whole crew. Perfect timing! A few of us did some baking and made 400 butter tart squares for the crew and also some pies for our fellow Canadians. What a treat! We had a little fun with some Canadian trivia by our bible teacher and enjoyed each other’s company. So much to be thankful for!

Now for another change! Dan will actually be starting the Operations Director position full time much sooner than planned as our current lovely Operations Director is needed at home. Dan will start next week, and so, is currently working on a plan for the IT Department as working the two jobs at the same time is not ideal. Please pray for the needed volunteer staff for the months ahead and for Dan as he begins a new role at a busy time of planning for the Annual Maintenance Period (AMP).

Speaking of the AMP, our family is currently working on a plan of where we will go. Our South African visas will only give us 90 days in the country, and we must also leave Madagascar before Dec 31st this year for visa reasons. So, we must find another place to live from the end of Dec until Feb 15th when we can be in South Africa until the ship finishes its longer maintenance period. Quite the interesting challenge! We are doing our very best to be as frugal as possible and so our current plan is to fly to the UK (cheaper than back to Canada), and house/pet sit during our time there, which will cut back housing costs for our family as well. We have applied for the house/pet sitting but have not confirmed any bookings at this time. If you have any other wonderful ideas or homes that we could stay in for free that are less expensive to fly to for this time period, please feel free to email us! We are still raising funds for transportation, food and other basic costs that are required.

For those that have supported us we want you to know we appreciate you very much! Our lovely patients on the Africa Mercy also very much appreciate your support! We have seen so many lives impacted in beautiful ways. If you can imagine going from having no hope of being able to access a life changing surgery to hearing of a ship that can provide you with that service for free, you can imagine the impact. It can be a scary process at first, but once here and experiencing the love and care, our patients leave grateful and with a hope for their future.

Thank you for taking the time to hear about our service on the Africa Mercy! It is hard to believe that this year is nearing the end, and we are starting to think about packing up! Oh, and Christmas! We will be in Madagascar for Christmas this year (is our plan for now) and so we have begun planning some ship activities to make it an extra special time. Feels a little strange for days that are just getting hotter and hotter!

Prayer requests:
– Madagascar political situation
– AMP planning for our family and the ship and Academy
– Dan in his new role as Operations Director
– Staffing for the next year
– day crew over the time we are away
– Health and energy to finish this field service well

Praise
– God’s faithfulness
– continuance of surgeries despite unrest in country
– patients having safe surgeries
– increased unity on ship
– growth in our knowledge of God and His word
– leaders who are rooted in following Jesus