September 2011 News & Updates

Our Neighbours Ministry Incorporating Isaiah’s Homes of Love
Newsletter : September 2011

The next newsletter at last…

For those of you who receive Martin’s newsletter you will know that the pressure was on me as he mentioned that I would soon be sending out the news of our recent arrivals at Isaiah’s {for the record I’ve been wanting to do this since the arrival of the 2 baby girls at the end of June}. At that time he said we had 3 new babies, yesterday it was 4 and today this number has risen to 5 gorgeous and precious bundles of joy.

My apologies that this newsletter has been so erratic and not sent as regularly as anticipated but our normal day to day duties keep us so busy so that often we don’t realize how fast the months pass… Gosh we are already into the 9th month of this year, & Noma and Pride will be at Primary School next year.

We look back on the last months and we are thankful for all the support we have received, both financial and through provisions for each of the homes and the people we assist. Daily we see testimonies of God’s grace and love and though many of you are not here to see this, we thank you and want you to know that you are a special part of the work here in Bulawayo Zimbabwe.

A number of fosterings for adoption are in process and sometimes this cannot happen soon enough for those families waiting for finalization of their paperwork. Please pray for each family who has come forward and of course also pray for the children being placed into these families.
Please especially pray for Bridget, Rachel, Mthabisi & Matthew.

Since our last newsletter we have seen baby Brandon placed into his new family and are pleased to report that he has not had any medical difficulties, and has settled well into his new environment. Mom, dad and his big sister are loving having him as a part of their family and often bring him over for a short visit. It is always lovely to see these families as they grow together.

Often I get to spend half an hour or so with the babies before heading home and this is a wonderful way to end a busy day at the office. I have often wondered if the children are impacted as much as we are by the work at Isaiah’s and just the other day I received an email of encouragement and it reminded me

"So faith comes by what is heard, and what is heard comes through the message about Christ" Romans 10:17. So your ministered love to each child, sets up the foundation for them to ultimately hear the Gospel and respond with their heart, mind and soul.”

What an encouragement for our everyday life.

BABIES HOME NEW ARRIVALS

Arrived 28th June 2011
Blessed Vimbai came to Isaiah's Home of Love as a six month old baby who had been living at a local hospital in Masvingo (235km out of Bulawayo). She was abandoned as a newborn baby along a path leading to a nearby village. Blessed Vimbai is translated as “Blessed Trust” which is a beautiful name given to this precious baby girl. On arrival at the home she weighed 5.8kg and was a healthy and content baby who would smile easily. She has settled well into her new environment.

Together with . . .
Ruvarashe came to Isaiah's Home of Love as a three month old baby who had been abandoned as a newborn in the town of Masvingo (235km from Bulawayo). For the first three months of her life she lived in the local hospital. Ruvarashe is translated as “Flower of Jesus”, again is a beautiful name for this precious baby girl. She has settled well at Isaiah’s, feeding and sleeping very well. She has already started to smile and giggles when played with and given her individual attention. On arrival at our home she weighed a good 5.94kg.

Arrived 25th August 2011
Gugulethu was found abandoned on 13th August 2011 near a Soccer Field on the outskirts of one of the high density areas. She was admitted to Mpilo Hospital and placed into the care of Isaiah’s a few days later, she is estimated to be about 5 weeks old now. Gugu has a fairly light complexion with a slim physique, and seems to be in good health, feeding well for her age. Gugu has already learnt the best way to get attention is through crying, this way you are almost guaranteed to be picked up. Having not had a newborn baby around for a few months you soon forget how small they are when they first come in and how quickly they grow.

Arrived 12th September 2011
Baby Revival arrived at Isaiah’s Home of Love only a few days old, having been given up for adoption. His young mother was unable to care adequately for him but we trust that the Lord will provide a family for this handsome baby boy.
Revival seems to have a little bit of jaundice but with sufficient feeding this should pass. Please pray for him.

Arrived 13th September 2011
Thamsanqa was placed into the care of Isaiah’s having spent the first month of his life at the local hospital’s Special Care Unit as his mother absconded in the middle of the night. Her whereabouts is unknown as the details she gave upon admission are false. Thamsanqa is translated as “good fortune”. His big brown eyes compliment his light complexion.


More BABIES HOME NEWS
Keith successfully had his fused fingers separated in March. The operation went very well with the surgeon doing the operation pro-bona given Keith’s family history, we incurred minimal hospital costs and we are continually amazed by how quickly Keith heals and how easily he adapts.

Baby Talent who was placed with Isaiah’s in June on temporary care was reunited with his mother and her extended family in July. It is always good to see a baby with their family and in all cases this is a priority unless there are detrimental circumstances.

The toddlers are always a hive of activity and full of energy. Their uncle and friend Edmore loves to take them out for walks in the Suburb and this occasionally includes a pram ride to the nearby park where they can play on the swings, climb up onto the train and the tank. Great fun is had by all.



Baby Count as at 15/09/11 :- 19 beautiful blessings from God

9 girls
(Nomalanga/Faith/Nobuhle/Blessing/Jessica/Darlene/Vimbai/Ruvarashe/Gugulethu)
10 Boys
(Pride/Mthandazo/Craig/Keith/Tadiwanashe/Samuel/Christopher/Matthew/Thamsanqa/Revival)



OUR NEIGHBOUR’S NEWS
Cosmos Mobile Clinic — Aug/Sept 2011
Bulawayo and the surrounding areas were blessed with another mobile clinic being conducted by the Cosmos Health Team, which is a medical group that visit Zimbabwe from Australia twice a year to provide free quality medical assessment and treatment to under privileged communities.
Our Neighbours Ministry partner with this Team as they visit various areas over a two week period. In this the team also assist the various homes where necessary, and also hold a mobile clinic at the Baptist Church for those of the community we assist.

Trenance was one of the areas visited again this year and this saw about 300 people ranging from all ages receiving assessment and assistance for the varying ailments.

One of the patients was a grandmother who came along with her daughter and her twin babies. Gogo was not feeling well and she decided to bring the babies along also as they were not gaining any weight. The mother of the babies is HIV positive and although she is unemployed she does try to get “piece jobs” to sustain herself and her two babies. At eight weeks old the babies were already being supplemented with mealie-meal porridge as she had insufficient breast milk for both her babies. The Cosmos Team, after intense assessment, have now discouraged “mom” from breast feeding her babies as the little she is giving them has minimal nourishment value for them, and have instead conditionally committed to providing formula milk for the twin babies for a certain period of time.

The babies have been taking the formula feed now for 3 weeks and there has been a remarkable improvement in their growth and their general health. The little boy gained one whole kg and the little girl gained over 500g.

What a blessing to see the benefits of this mobile clinic—saving the life of two precious babies.

There are many other babies out there who also need such a lifeline and if you would like to make such a contribution, we would love to hear from you.
(One 400g tin of formula milk which lasts one baby nearly three days costs U$6.00)



Contact Details :-

Isaiah’s Babies Home : 57 Heyman Road
Suburbs, Bulawayo
Phone: +263-9-230504 (Babies Home)

Our Neighbours : c/o Byo Baptist Church
G.Silundika St / 2nd Avenue, Bulawayo
Phone: +263-9-888269 (O.N. Team)

Admin Office : 57 Jason Moyo Street
Btwn 4th & 5th Aves
Bulawayo
Phone: +263-9-64474 or 64472 (Admin)

Postal Address for All Ministries
P. O. Box 2361, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe

E-mail: isaiahs@yoafrica.com or
martinbarrow@hotmail.com or
ourneighbours@yoafrica.com

Banking Details
If you wish to support us by making a financial contribution, kindly email us for the applicable bank details and tax deductible options relevant to your country of origin.

Website
Our website is up and running, if you wish to view this, visit www.ourneighbours.org
If you would like to check out our regular updates - we are also on Facebook. Our Neighbours

Other Newsletters

Should you be interested in receiving Martin’s newsletters for Our Neighbours Ministry and Isaiah’s Homes of Love and/or the Financial Reports, please feel free to email him on martinbarrow@hotmail.com and he will add you to this mailing list.

If you would like to receive the monthly Ministry Prayer Partners Newsletter kindly email Charmaine on ourneighbours@yoafrica.com

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Thank you for your time in reading of our news.
Luv ‘n’ friendship in the Lord always
Belinda




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