Pothawira

 Injured hand of the little guy with Erb's Palsy

 Crowd of orphans - (Peter's car is the one coming towards us.)

 Sonogram machine in the clinic - it is kept covered by a quilt because bats are roosting in the ceiling and the droppings would ruin the machine.

 Eddah preparing to bandage the injured hand.

 Peter's office in the clinic, with Karri, Peter and Joseph

 Food storage room in the dining area (for the orphanage). They try to feed the kids protein in some form every day. Eggs are a great source of protein!

 The cooking area for the dining hall - preparing nsima for the evening meal

 Joseph standing in the living area of one of the orphan duplexes

 Maggie holding one of the orphans, Peter.

 Bedroom set up in the orphan duplexes

 Hanging out with the kids - Maggie and Eddah Maseko, along with Karri, are holding some of the orphans.

Here is the little guy with Erb's Palsy

Karri with one of the twin's. He wasn't too sure about an azungu (white person) holding him!!



Pothawira - 'Safe Haven' in Chichewa, Anne Maseko Alaniz's project outside of Salima. You can find out more about this project by checking out the Youtube video, just search for Dr. Anne Alaniz.  Currently there is a clinic that is nearly complete. They lack power (not unusual - Peter has been waiting over a year for the power company, Escom, to set up power). They also lack an inspection by the Medical Council.  As in many third world countries, the process to get something done can be long and tedious.  Last year the clinic was near physical completion (except for power) - this year the physical completion is essentially done but still waiting for all the necessary paperwork and beaurocracy to be finished.  There is the possibility (according to Peter) that a donor may give a generator to supply the power until Escom comes through (and for all the times when the power fails).  Pothawira also includes a church / school, a dining hall and duplexes for orphans. Currently there are 5 duplexes finished, each with 10 orphans in each side, for a total of 100 orphans.   They have been in the orphanage for a few months now.  Each side of the duplex has a bedroom with bunks for the kids (complete with mosquito nets), a room for the guardian / 'auntie', a toilet and a shower, and a living area.  Having an inside 'sit down' toilet and a shower are both unusual in an orphan home. The dining hall has no furniture at present, but the kids and aunties sit on mats to eat. This is not unusual here - most people do not sit at a table to eat their meals. The pantry is well stocked and the kids get  protein of some sort every day.  I saw one of the little guys with Erb's Palsy (a birth injury) who now has very limited use of his right arm. He also had an injury to that right hand - I suspect it is because he can not move his hand well enough to get it out of harm's way!  There is a set of twins, about 8 months old, who are truly fat and happy - well, happy until the azungu picked one of them up!  The other kids came running to greet us and all appeared well.  The plans are for the clinic to open (Phase 1, outpatient) with a plan for Phase 2 - labor and delivery wards, followed by Phase 3 - complete hospital with inpatient care for men, women and children. Peter Maseko, Anne's dad, is the clinical officier who be running the medical portion of the project.

Praise Reports:
We made it to and from Salima and the lake without injury.
Praise for the 100 little lives that are now vastly improved by living in Pothawira.

Prayer needs:
Continued safety
That the Pothawira clinic will be soon opened and ready to serve the community!