Uh oh.... a little set back in Africa

From Wayne:

"Well I have developed intestinal difficulties so I stayed back from the trip today. I was really looking forward to seeing the sights up there but I know I need to take care of myself. I talked to Dr. Brown who lives just two doors down from the house we are staying in and he said I should start taking the Cipril I have right away and that should take care of things. So I'll just take it easy for the next few days and make sure I am ready to travel on Friday.

Today is another beautiful day. The weather here has been just wonderful. It gets into the 80's during the day and cool at night.

I asked people how many folks were in the church yesterday for the celebration and I heard estimates anywhere from 3,500 to 6,000 with an equal number of people outside. It is a huge church and the architecture is marvelous. The roof is low in the middle and rises in an arc on each side of center. The walls are made from individually carved stones representing the individual and unique people of God that make up the church. The pews are arranged in a half circle in front and around the chancel and there is a huge balcony as well. It really is a beautiful church. Of course it is in Cameroon so there is red dust coating everything!

Despite the setback with my stomach I am having a great time. I really wanted to see the school they have for the blind today and see what I could work on as far as assistive technology to help them out. I would like to bring them a laptop computer with JAWS screen reading software on it. Maybe that will be another trip. Well that is it for now. "

From Debbie: I had a follow up email that said the medication was helping and he was resting and reading. Unfortunately this is a common experience for visitors but I'm so sorry he had to get it. I'm not worried...thankful he has a good place to stay and is near the doctor!!

Sunday in Watertown

Aubrey, Lisa and Travis were here in Watertown for the weekend. Not quite the amazing event that Wayne experienced in Cameroon, but we sure had fun. She got a Magna Doodle and was having lots of fun writing. I really appreciated the company. Thanks guys!!

Sunday in Africa

Today was the worship and installation of Bishop Nyiwe of Cameroon. Here's what Wayne writes:

"Today was the big installation service. We arrived at the church at around 8:15 and we processed in at around 8:45. The service was 5 hours long but it didn't seem like that long. It was a wonderful experience. I was sitting behind the bishops in the chancel area! Bishop Zellmer was just in front of me and Bishop Nyiwe, the bishop of Nigeria, the bishop of Norway, the president of the Lutheran Bretheren church in Cameroon were sitting in that row as well. Not bad seats! The music was terrific and the worship was absolutely joyful. At Holy Communion Bishop Nyiwe served us the wine. I took a lot of pictures and a few movies so I can't wait to share them with you. Tomorrow morning we are headed to Tchollire Bible School. It is a bit north of here and it is one of the places Ron and Kathy lived. They are excited we are coming and it should be a wonderful experience. I understand we are staying overnight at a game preserve and we should see hippos along the way. The grass is still high so we may not see other wildlife but we could see lions, elephants, giraffes and other animals. We will be back here by suppertime on Tuesday and then most of the group will get on the train to Yaounde on Wednesday. 4 of us, including the bishop and I, will stay here until Friday when we fly to Yaounde and then get on the Swiss Air plane for Zurich Friday night. That's it for now. "

Friday News from Africa

It has been very nice since Wayne has had access to the missionary's computers. I have been getting an email or two each day. He is hoping to have a quiet day to just walk around the compound today. So far they have been very busy with tours etc. I'm sure he could use some time for reflection.

"Weather is wonderful here. I think it has been in the 80's and cool at night! This is the beginning of the dry season here. Out in the countryside they are busy burning the long grasses so there is smoke everywhere. You would not do well here. (He's speaking to me in regard to breathing issues!) It is dusty and smoke is everywhere. Most of the people in town cook over wood fires. Every day life here is hard work. Nothing is taken for granted. The people here scratch and work for things we absolutely take for granted. Each day most people here are working for enough money to purchase enough fire wood and food to live for that day. Tomorrow they just do it all over again. The taxis here in Ngaoundere are almost all small 125cc motorcycles and they carry everything on them. I have seen entire families of 4 along with their stuff and the driver on one small motorcycle. Yesterday we say a man holding a goat on the back of a motorcycle!"

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Wayne and the group have arrived in Ngaoundere which is the home of ELCA missionaries Phil and June Nelson. They will be here for several days with the highlight coming on Sunday when they will attend the installation of their Bishop along with dignitaries from around the world. Here are some of his recent comments. Enjoy! Give thanks!

"I am at Phil and June Nelson's home right now. They have 3 laptop computers and they are all busy right now with all of us catching up with news from home and letting you know that we are OK and having a good trip. Dave and I are sharing a 2 bedroom guesthouse and the ladies are sharing another guest house. We have a living room, kitchen, bathroom and even a washing machine. Tomorrow the woman who Phil and June hire to do housework is going to do our laundry. Today we went to the Cameroon church council meeting and we were introduced to the council. Bishop Dave is still there. We met President Niewie (SP?) who will be installed as bishop Sunday. This afternoon we hope to go into town and see a market and maybe pick up some things. I'm told tomorrow is a big Muslim holiday so nothing will be open. "

And another:
"After I wrote I remembered another awesome experience from yesterday. David is a student at the seminary and he teaches at the primary school. He invited me to come tour the school and meet the children. It was just awesome. The school has children from 1st grade through 6th grade. We began our tour with the 1st graders. He greeted them in English, "Good morning class." and they responded in English, "Good morning sir." He then said, "How are you today?" and they said, "We are doing well, how about you?" He then said, "I am doing well thank-you. Please sit down." And they replied, "We are sitting down." as they sat. It was just wonderful. I have pictures and video to see. The children love to have their picture taken with digital cameras because then they can see themselves. Anybody with a digital camera is a rock star! I had Deb Grismer take a picture with me and the kids so I knelt for the first picture but they crawled all over me and I cannot be seen in that picture so I took another with me standing. It was wonderful. That is it for now. "

And from today:
"We just finished supper at the Nelson's house. We have been well fed since being here. At noon we had grilled beef loin, potatoes and squash. For supper they made beef stew and coos coos. We have had fresh pineapple, mango, banana's and tangerines for desert. This afternoon Phil and June Nelson took us shopping for souvenirs. I think you'll like what I picked out. I also purchased some fabric for you. Tomorrow morning the tailor will be here to have us put on our albs and make adjustments. We will also get our clothes washed tomorrow. Tomorrow evening we will have our big thanksgiving meal."

A longer message from Wayne

"We are now safely in Ngaoundre after a 5 hour extremely rough ride from the seminary. African roads are an experience!! Our trip to Ngaoundre was made better by a stop along the way. Tom* is the pastor for a group of villages and he stopped at one of them so we could meet the people and see how they lived. These are villages of mud and grass huts. He said they were having a prayer meeting and invited us to attend. We did attend and it was lovely. We sat between two grass huts. They had us sit on the only chairs they had and they all sat on mats. The lay leader did a short study on a Proverb about talking nicely about people. He invited us to lead them in prayer and then I was invited to do the benediction. It was an amazing experience. The sun was setting behind us and there was a nice cool breeze blowing. The huts were surrounded by gardens. I saw long rows of sweet potatoes as well as melons and other veggies. Of course mangoes, tangerines and bananas grow all over the place."

* I don't know who Tom is! Maybe the driver?

Monday update

The latest from Wayne:

"We arrived at the seminary today. We are staying at a hotel that is not to bad. The train ride was long and interesting. We are having wonderful conversations with faculty and students. We are invited to a prayer service for unity in the church led by the local bishop. I just heard we are going to see a local king. Having a great time."

Saturday/Sunday update

Had a longer email from Wayne on Saturday. The group is in Yaounde and at the time he was writing they had visited a university, had lunch at a restaurant and then visited a Bible society. (I think it's Wycliffe??) He was emailing from a missionaries home and was having a very interesting visit with them.

The group is currently (Sunday 5:00 pm CST) traveling via train to Meiganga for their next stop. He said this was a 12 hour overnight train ride. They will be spending 2 days there at the seminary.

More news from Wayne

Another brief email:

"We are in Yaounde and checked in at SIL. We have three 3-bedroom apartments. Very Nice!"

Email from Wayne

Got an email from Wayne this morning.

"It is Friday morning and we are getting ready to head to the airport. The flight from Chicago to Zurich was long and I did not sleep at all. So we were all pretty tired yesterday but did have a nice tour of downtown Zurich. They have an excellent train system and there is a train stop near the hotel. We rode it downtown and walked around taking in the sights.

Today we fly to Yaounde and Sunday we take a 12 hour overnight train ride to the town with the seminary (Meiganga). So I doubt I will sleep Sunday night either. I am having a great time...."

Arrived Safely.

I just got one very brief email.


"Was a long but good flight. Saw the town." (referring to Zurich)

I think he was using the Bishop's fancy phone to send the email. I don't expect to hear much for a while.

He's off!

I just returned home in Watertown after delivering Wayne to the Sioux Falls airport. He and eight others (including Bishop Dave Zellmer) are on their way to Cameroon, Africa. They will board a Swiss Air flight in Chicago at about 7:00 pm and will arrive in Zurich, Switzerland 8+ hours later!! Fortunately they will have an overnight in Zurich to help adjust to the time change. I'll post any news I hear from him!

Getting ready for Africa!!

This weekend is designated as "getting ready for Africa" weekend! Wayne has been making mental checklists and now we are physically getting things done. He's done a great job getting items donated for the mission sites he'll visit (like lap-top computers for the seminary and medical supplies for the hospital). Of course all of this will need to be packed in his luggage. He started his anti-malaria medicine and of course has had all the required shots.

He'll fly out of Sioux Falls on the 18th at 2:45 pm. with connections in Chicago and then landing in Zurich, Switzerland. They'll stay overnight and fly into Cameroon the next day. While there he will be visiting/teaching at the seminary, visiting a hospital and medical center, a game preserve, attending the installation of the Bishop, and spending time with our church missionaries. He has enough memory for the camera to take almost 3000 photos and a journal to keep track of his days. :)

Happy Birthday Grandma Irene!

We enjoyed a nice Sunday afternoon celebrating with family in Aberdeen. Grandma Irene is 91 years old! She had a big party last year, but a more intimate gathering this year. She is doing pretty well, but will go into the hospital tomorrow (Monday) to have a surgical procedure on her leg. Enjoy a few pictures!

Mmmmmm..... cake! Landon and Riley are ready for a piece!

Wesley is looking at pictures of his adorable cousin Aubrey!
Great-great Grandma Irene, Great Grandma Jensen, Grandma De, Ashley and Wesley.

Flowers, Friends, Fun, Food and FAMILY!

What a fabulous weekend! My surprise birthday weekend has been terrific. We had a nice dinner on Friday evening, good friends here for supper and dominoes. When Lisa, Travis and Aubrey showed up we all had birthday cake and enjoyed visiting. Then Eric called to wish me a happy birthday....he heard through cyberspace that there was a party going on!

Saturday and Sunday we had some good food, played more dominoes (Lisa is the Domino Queen!), played with Aubrey and went to church. Wayne preached a great sermon, reminding us that we are all part of the priesthood of all believers. Thanks be to God for the saints who have gone before us and for the promise of eternal life where we'll be reunited!!

Thank you to everyone for the birthday wishes via phone, Facebook, email and of course snail mail. Here's a few pics.