Flowers and Trees

My favorite flowering tree.  The orange-red flowers bloom for many months and look kind of like tulips.

Bruce's favorite flowering tree.

You always wonder what the yard is like on the other side of the wall!

Bamboo growing over the 10 foot wall!

There is some kind of green fruit growing up there!

Just wild flowers by the side of the road.

Even the grasses are impressive...so high...and here is a National Forest, beautiful pine trees!

At Lowden Lodge

Poinsettias grow everywhere...gorgeous!

It's sort of like springtime all the time.

Elder Louthan and the Baobob tree...massive!

Beautiful color!

Mozambique flowers

Roses

Is this like a colorful morning glory?

Flowers that we've seen in pots at home grow happily outside here.

These had not been watered and it is the dry season, but they bloom anyway!

Sunshine from the ground!

Good evening, from a beautiful country!

All Africa Mormon Helping Hands Day - 18 Aug 2012

Chainama Branch cleans Police station and Chainda Clinic

Cleaning Chainda Clinic

Young men sweep with traditional brooms outside the police station

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Windows sparkled as did this young woman!

Munali Branch Helping Hands volunteers on the way to the first site.

Our Branch President greets the blind man who is graciously accepting the service.

Clothes were washed.

Dished washed and floors swept

Friendships made....love given

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints worked at giving service in 35 Countries in Africa all on this Saturday, 18th August.  These photos are of just two branch projects.  Chainama branch, where we took photos, met at the community police station.  They cleaned the police station and even visited with the inmates in the jail.  Then they went to Chainda Clinic where they quickly donned masks and gloves for work inside where they dusted and mopped.  Outside they picked up litter and washed windows and swept the grounds.  65 members of the branch were involved giving over 260 total service hours that morning.  Afterwards they had a light lunch at a members house and watched a church video about service.   A wonderful day.   

Our own branch, Munali is featured second here.  Members went into the Kalingalinga compound to give service to 3 homebound people.  The pictures were from the first site where they helped a man who was blind.  I think the servers were more touched than the one who received the service.  The primary children sang to him while the sisters and brothers swept and washed clothes and dishes.  There were some who just visited with him.  Everyone was better because of this day. Many hearts were touched.

I have hundreds of photos of the other projects.  Most were cleaning up garbage along the roadsides or cleaning clinics.  I'll try to include a few more shots....uploading pictures is very slow for some reason today.  But I would love to have you see these wonderful people doing such awesome things!

Kitwe branch cleaned up garbage from the marketplace making this huge mound!

Then they spent the afternoon shoveling the pile of garbage into a city trailer to haul it away.

Johannesburg Public Affairs Training

Our group at the training in Johannesburg.  New Public Affairs director Sean Donnally, front and center.  This is the first time we have been reunited with the other 3 couples that trained in SLC with us and came to Africa at the same time we came.  The Roberts, right of us, the Pugmires and the Hatches.  We also met the Murdocks, serving in Durban South Africa from Monticello, near our home.  We were also privileged to meet the Howes.  Sister Howes is the one we work with when submitting articles for the Liahona and for the area website.   Our trainers from Salt Lake City were incredibly good and the four men who will be the webmasters in South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Uganda picked up the technical part very quickly. 

Our trainers and Bro. Donally with the Public Affairs leaders from South Africa, Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Uganda.

Some training was held at an African type of Pioneer Village.

Pioneer only nicer!

Thatched roofs can be really beautiful.

We watched from the patio as animals came to drink from the pond.

Elder Louthan feeds the Elephant.

The Elephant takes an apple from his mouth!

The elephants come to drink.

Kudu we think...

The Howes (Johannesburg) and the Pugmires (Kenya) consider the menu.

The Murdocks cover part of South Africa, Madagascar and a few other smaller countries.

The Hatches have been our supervisors in the Area Office.

The Roberts cover Botswana, Namibia, parts of South Africa.

Romina from SLC, trains the country Public Affairs representatives who will be starting their own country newsrooms.  All were quick to catch on and almost ready to go on-line immediately!