Teaching, Trees, Transitions and Tears…

Teaching, Trees, Transitions and Tears…

The last two months have been a whirlwind of activity, travel, transitions, and emotions for the five of us!  * It started with closing a chapter of life with an incredible group of young men who have been under our roof for the last two years as well as the culmination of Isabella’s high school years with her graduation from Rift Valley Academy.  * Three weeks in Madagascar with full clinic days and teaching at...

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Celebrating Milestones…

Celebrating Milestones…

SMC turns 11… The Sarobidy Maternity Center celebrated it’s 11th anniversary in May. The Lord has lavished this ministry with His goodness, His protection and care, His grace and His love. It was fitting that the 11th anniversary fell on a Monday-prenatal day at the Sarobidy Maternity Center. The day was celebrated with singing, fetal heart beats echoing out the exam rooms and down the halls, praying with pregnant mamas for...

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Family, Friends and a Return to Madagascar

Family, Friends and a Return to Madagascar

All in the Family… There have been some sweet births at the Sarobidy Maternity Center lately as new babies have entered into the world and joined the growing and extensive Sarobidy family! These particular babies are extra special…  Notiavina is the younger sister of Elina, one of the Sarobidy Maternity Center midwives. With confidence in the care she was receiving, Notiavina experienced deep peace throughout her pregnancy...

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Ultrasounds, Reuniting and Shopping with a Purpose…

Ultrasounds, Reuniting and Shopping with a Purpose…

Ultrasound Training… In 2016, the Sarobidy Maternity Center received a partial grant for a beautiful ultrasound machine and probes to be used as part of our prenatal care. Later, we coordinated with Hope Imaging for two sonographers to travel to Madagascar for two weeks to teach the art of ultrasound for basic scanning of pregnancies, dating, fetal weight, position, etc. Over the last 5 years, three of the Malagasy midwives have been...

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We’re Learning…

We’re Learning…

Over these many years, the Lord, in His mercy, has grown us and taught us through various trials and hardships, revealing to us His character– one of love, forgiveness, and unceasing grace. We have seen the vastness of His protection, His sovereignty, His compassion and His Holiness.   We have so much more to learn about His nature and about ourselves as we desire to be more like Christ. We are thankful that He is never done...

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Education for Life…

Education for Life…

Thank you for all your prayers for our family during our time home in Madagascar. It was full and fruitful, and in an all-encompassing exhaustive way, it was deeply soul satisfying to be back in the land of our hearts with the people and place and ministries that we love. And praise the Lord… there were no major illnesses to report!  After two days of travel, including a 12-hour drive on the pothole ridden two-lane national highway,...

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After God’s Own Heart

After God’s Own Heart

It’s 10pm on Friday night here in Madagascar. As I type this, voices of our kids and their Malagasy friends fill our home as they speak a conglomeration of Malagasy, French and English. There’s 9 teenagers and 4 younger siblings having a sleepover at our place… a normal occurrence when we’re back on the Red Island.  As we sit fully emerged in this world, it’s a hard to believe that just a week ago, we said farewell...

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2 Countries, 3 Ministries, All 4 Christ

2 Countries, 3 Ministries, All 4 Christ

Raising Up a Generation of Healthy TCK’s… Upon returning to Kenya from Madagascar, Rift Valley Academy arranged for Lauren Wells, Founder and CEO of TCK Training to provide a two-day workshop on Third Culture Kids. This is a topic near and dear to our hearts as we love and raise our own TCK’s, as well as, have the privilege to care for other TCK’s in our home and in our midst.  “Expatriates often experience more...

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Join us in CELEBRATING!!! ❤️ (+video)

Join us in CELEBRATING!!! ❤️ (+video)

Thank you all for your prayers as we traveled home to Madagascar last month. It was far too short, but what we lacked in duration, was made up for in the sweetness of our time on the Red Island!  A Slice of Home to Carry us on… During the short but jam-packed time that we were in Madagascar, we enjoyed friends and shared meals, the kids enjoyed their friends and sleepovers, we enjoyed working long hours alongside our teammates and...

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From Premature to Thriving…

From Premature to Thriving…

Life-Saving Impact… “I feel very blessed and happy to care for my baby. Thank you very much to the Sarobidy Maternity Center for the help and the prayers you have given me and my baby. This is my first baby and she was born prematurely… you really helped me with the money I needed in the hospital and especially encouraged and taught me how to care for my underweight and premature baby. At this time, she is very healthy and has...

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A Week in the Life…

A Week in the Life…

There is rarely a quiet day at the Sarobidy Maternity Center. Mondays are prenatal days and are buzzing with women singing first thing in the morning, Bible study on the front porch as birds chirp in the trees overhead. Sounds of baby’s perfect and strong heartbeats come through the dopplers and echo down the halls. Health education lessons are taught in Malagasy and one can hear the roar of laughter from the ladies when various...

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Saving Lives…

Saving Lives…

Birth work is beautiful. It is also quite primitive. The flow of hormones and surges and work and strength to bring a new life into the world. The tenderness of a woman becoming a mother for the first time or perhaps the 6th time. It is a sacred space where Jesus fills the room and one can easily be left breathless at the beauty of His intricate creation.  Birth work is also dangerous. Every 11 seconds, a pregnant woman or newborn...

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Trust Without Borders…

Trust Without Borders…

For the last 15+ years, Jamie and I have known with certainty, where the Lord has been calling us individually, as a couple and as a family. Madagascar. That big beautiful Red Island that is home to nearly 28 million people and that exquisitely feels like home to us. In the fall of last year, while on home assignment in the USA and waiting for borders to reopen in Madagascar, we sensed that the Lord was leading our family to serve at Rift...

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Here and There…

Here and There…

Here in Kenya…. Thank you all for your prayers over these last few weeks of packing, traveling and transitioning to Kenya. Just 10 hours before we were set to leave for the airport, Gavin spiked a fever and was feeling miserable. Within a few hours we determined it best to change our tickets and postpone our flights by 30 hours– enough time to figure out what was going on, hoping he would feel better for the flight, yet still make...

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Banning Together…

Banning Together…

There is something unique and really special about pregnancy, birth and the early newborn period that has bonded women together throughout history, across generations and around the globe. At the Sarobidy Maternity Center, we have the privilege of witnessing this special event happen daily before our eyes– nervous first time moms whispering to each other or receiving advice from women who have already brought several babies into the...

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It Takes a Team…

It Takes a Team…

New Life… The first baby of 2022, a little boy, was born at the Sarobidy Maternity Center early this morning. I never cease to be amazed by God’s intricate design when it comes to pregnancy, birth and the bonding of mom and baby. We’re so thankful for the team of compassionate and dedicated midwives that shepherd life into the world on any given day, at any given hour at the Sarobidy Maternity Center!  We praise...

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For this reason…

For this reason…

Everyday tragedy…  The world over, there’s a massive disparity in maternal mortality with higher rates of death in impoverished communities and women of color. Madagascar, of course, is no exception and reports an average of 10 women a day dying in childbirth and just one qualified midwife per 7,000 people.       Earlier this month, a prominent leader and friend in the Malagasy government in...

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Bandits…

Bandits…

The work of Eden Reforestation Projects continues to grow and flourish in Madagascar– new reforestation sites spreading across the red island, new land contracts with the government, new managers rising into leadership, new employees receiving steady wages, new trees being planted which will in time, lead to new forests emerging once again. It is both exciting and thrilling as well as overwhelming and daunting. In some ways, it’s...

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The Power of Education…

The Power of Education…

Invitation to Education  When we began the work of the Sarobidy Maternity Center 8+ years ago, we reached out to a well-respected local physician who has her own full-scope clinic and asked if she would consider being the back-up consulting physician for our program. She agreed and in these past 8+ years, she’s been an incredible gift– sharing her knowledge and wisdom, receiving our patients when we need to refer them to her...

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A Grim Reality, A Stark Contrast…

A Grim Reality, A Stark Contrast…

A Grim Reality…  In Madagascar, like many developing countries throughout the world, women die all too frequently due to preventable complications in pregnancy, labor and delivery, and the immediate postpartum period– globally 800 girls and women die everyday in pregnancy and childbirth (Unicef).  In January, a young family came to the Sarobidy Maternity Center, the mother holding the hand of her 2-year...

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Traversing the Globe… literally!

Traversing the Globe… literally!

Thank you for your steadfast prayers that traversed the globe with us…. quite literally! If you missed our newsletter last month, we made the decision to return to the USA two months earlier than our scheduled home assignment in order to get Isabella, our oldest, back to RVA, her school in Kenya so she could complete her third term. The five of us departing together was the ONLY way for us to get her safely back to Kenya without being...

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Across the Generations…

Across the Generations…

Maman’i Pao and her family are one of the longer standing families in our community. Historically, they’ve also been one of the most materially poor families in our community. Mother to 14 children, only 7 babies survived birth, infancy and early childhood!! The 7 that did survive all have families of their own now.   Over three decades ago, Maman’i Pao worked with Jamie’s mom, Bonnie, to do some odd jobs...

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4 Lives, 3 Generations, 1 Maternity Center…

4 Lives, 3 Generations, 1 Maternity Center…

In September 2014, Patricia delivered a beautiful baby girl with Rota, the national director and one of the midwives of the Sarobidy Maternity Center. This sweet baby girl was named, Sarobidy (precious), and was the first namesake of the Sarobidy Maternity Center.  This past August, Elisa, a young 19-year old entered our prenatal program. She looked incredibly familiar but I simply couldn’t place her. As we talked and I...

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Raising the Bar…

Raising the Bar…

Continuing medical education for doctors, nurses, midwives or any other health professional is not a requirement in Madagascar. Once a diploma is granted, learning can essentially cease. This lack of continuing medical education, coupled with rogue memorization only heightens the deep fractures that are found in both the educational system and medical system here on the red island.  Though our midwives at the Sarobidy Maternity Center have...

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A week in Madagascar…

A week in Madagascar…

Some of the most common questions we encounter when we’re in the USA on home assignment are:  1. So what’s Madagascar like? 2. Do you like living there?  3. What do you eat there? 4. What’s a typical day look like for you?     Three of the four of these questions are not necessarily the easiest to answer in the matter of just a few seconds.  To be clear, we’re not in the USA and...

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Camouflage and Grace…

Camouflage and Grace…

Last month Jamie and the Tahirin’Ala team drove 30km up the coast to a quickly disappearing forest. This dry deciduous remnant forest is illegally being divided and small plots of land sold to people. Sadly, the first thing most people do when they acquire land is clear cut the trees and bushes and burn the land. Sometimes this is to stake their claim or “clean” the land, other times, to make way to plant crops or build a...

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Small victories…

Small victories…

Amidst the Covid pandemic, Dengue Fever epidemic and continuing to live in planet prison as one friend hilariously referred to it as….  this month has been sprinkled with several small victories to celebrate.      In our newsletter last month we shared about the Dengue Fever epidemic our community was facing. At the time, Jamie and I were recovering and slowly regaining our strength. In these last 4...

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Expectant Midwives…

Expectant Midwives…

There must’ve been something in the air in Mahajanga as up until just this month, three of our Malagasy midwives were expecting babies!!! We praise the Lord for the safe delivery of two of these three babies over the last few weeks!    A sweet baby boy born to midwife and first-time mama, Stéphanie (far right, above)– little Liam decided to make his appearance far earlier than expected and hence was born at...

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Celebrations…

Celebrations…

In Madagascar… For the last three years, the employees of Eden Reforestation Projects and the employees of the Sarobidy Maternity Center pay a small amount each month into the “SAEDEN” Association (Sarobidy + Eden). This association is one the employees created and manage on their own– with the main purposes to support one another with financial resources in times of loss, sickness and grief and...

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Of tragedies and triumphs…

Of tragedies and triumphs…

Tragedies… Like everywhere in the world, tragedies abound in Madagascar on a daily basis. The difference in a country that consistently ranks amongst the top 10 poorest countries in the world is that these tragedies aren’t just headlines but rather are affecting those we know and love on a weekly, if not more frequent basis.           This past month, a long-time ministry partner and friend lost his...

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Thin line between life and death…

Thin line between life and death…

Thin line between life and death… We thank you for your prayers this last month for the women that were due in October. 14 babies entered the world… and by God’s grace, all 14 babies and mamas are alive today. It was the busiest month to date for deliveries at the Sarobidy Maternity Center and it was also the most intense month to date for emergency complications. One baby needed resuscitation at birth, three women experienced...

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Meanwhile in Madagascar…

Meanwhile in Madagascar…

Le passé composé et le futur proche… Four weeks ago neither of us would have been able to tell you what these important french grammatical terms were, how to use them and the know a few of the associated verbs to communicate what you actually want to say. Today… amazingly… we can, albeit in our very limited knowledge! Twenty hours a week, Jamie and I sit in our respective classes. We’re learning the rules of grammar (oh...

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Building for the future…

Building for the future…

In recent months we’ve been growing our program at the Sarobidy Maternity Center in order to provide safe and compassionate care to more moms and babies in our community. In fact, we’ve doubled our numbers. In the upcoming months we’ll be serving nearly 140 women on a weekly basis through our prenatal and postpartum programs. This is in addition to the women that come to our weekly family planning program. We’ve made...

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Bonjour… change on the horizon!

Bonjour… change on the horizon!

Bonjour… Change on the horizon Born to missionary parents 41 years ago, Jamie entered the world in a hospital in the capital city of Madagascar. 19 years ago, I stepped foot for the first time on the red soil of Madagascar with a team that Jamie led. Both of these events have undoubtedly changed the course of our lives. Seven+ years ago, we moved our little family of five back to Madagascar to live and serve the Lord full-time. These past...

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Breath in our lungs…

Breath in our lungs…

Back on this side… Thank you for your prayers last month as Eliana and I made a whirlwind trip half way around the globe for her much-anticipated fourth grade Sacramento trip with her Santa Barbara classmates! The definition of whirlwind in this particular case means 6 different planes for a total of 46 hours in the sky, an additional 23 hours in airports, and nearly 1,600 miles driven in three weeks time! AND… totally worth it on...

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The Sarobidy Maternity Center turns FIVE

The Sarobidy Maternity Center turns FIVE

It’s 3:04am. I typically keep my nighttime festivities to a bit earlier but jet lag is keeping me and our 10-year old awake after arriving back from our whirlwind trip to America just last night. We’ve already had 2am munchies of salami, cheese and crackers, played mad libs, lathered ourselves with essential oils and taken meds to help us get into a sleepy state. Still nothing. Knowing that I’ll likely never get around to...

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Airing the Dirty Laundry…

Airing the Dirty Laundry…

Thank you for your prayers as we traveled back to the great red island earlier this month! It was the most seamless travel from the USA to Madagascar to date! We know this was God’s grace to us as the first two weeks of our return were perhaps some of the harder weeks of transition that we’ve endured in past years– or at least it felt so.   Airing the Dirty Laundry…   Madagascar consistently ranks in the top 10...

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For unto us…

For unto us…

For unto us a child is born… Advent has come and passed, the Christmas decorations are taken down and packed away, the kids are counting the days until Christmas 2018… and yet, the wonder and glory of the birth of Christ remains. The Lord of the heavens and earth born in human form– that of a helpless infant, reliant upon humble earthly parents and yet, the LORD.   It’s amazing to bear witness to the birth of a...

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Sarobidy Maternity Center Video Update

Sarobidy Maternity Center Video Update

The Sarobidy Maternity Center opened in May 2013– to be honest, it was a completely unconventional wild-whirlwind-not-the-most-strategically-planned opening. Six months before opening day, we didn’t have any money, didn’t have any staff, had an entire house to renovate to become a functioning maternity center, didn’t have any charts or educational material, didn’t have any supplies and certainly didn’t have a...

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2017 Video Update!!

2017 Video Update!!

Nearly seven years since our return to Madagascar as a family and like a good and loving father, our God is so gracious! This powerful video captures the essence of the ministry that the Lord has allowed our team to be a part of as we seek to restore health, forests, and Hope in Madagascar. If you’re a cryer, grab your tissues…. I know it makes me shed a few tears each time as I see the Lord’s goodness and His mercy in our midst. Special thanks...

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Earth, Wind and Fire….

Earth, Wind and Fire….

Winds of change… We’ve been back in the USA for two months and thankfully, the winds of change are lessening and life is starting to feel normal again as we juggle the new routines and rhythms of American life. Home assignment is intended to be a time set aside from the demands of ministry on the mission field– a time to be with friends and family, a time to be refreshed in your native language, a time to catch up with...

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Photo Highlight Reel…

Photo Highlight Reel…

Highlight Reel… My brain and heart haven’t been in a place to write a newsletter…. usually my head is spinning all month long with what I want to share. This month it just hasn’t. We decided a highlight reel of images from this last term in Madagascar would be a fantastic substitute… I mean, who doesn’t love photographs– it’s honestly one of my love languages! Easier said than done though–...

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From two sides of the globe…

From two sides of the globe…

Here and there… As I type, we’re on our last day in Madagascar for 2017… late tonight we head to the airport for our 1:50am flight to Paris and then on to Los Angeles. I would be lying to say that it wasn’t with mixed emotions that we’re leaving. peace– we have peace with the place that we were able to leave each of the ministries and peace knowing that the Lord has raised up an amazing ministry team that...

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Ten on Ten- July 2017

Ten on Ten- July 2017

Ten (or more) images a month on the 10th of the month in an attempt to capture the ordinary of life wherever we may and whatever we may be doing at the time. This month the 10th fell on a Monday– a Monday during our kid’s summer vacation, a typical Monday of prenatal program at the Sarobidy Maternity Center, a Monday just two weeks before our departure from our city of Mahajanga to begin the journey back to the USA.  In other words,...

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Goodbye’s, hello’s, repeat, repeat, repeat….

Goodbye’s, hello’s, repeat, repeat, repeat….

Goodbyes… Thank you for your prayers for the three families– the Bright’s, Gough’s, and Jensen’s that left Madagascar earlier this month. The last year has been a gift in so many ways for us personally, as a field, ministry-wise and for each of the families and those they interacted with daily. Goodbyes are never easy but the sadness and tears are truly a testimony to the intensity of the life shared together over...

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Across the board…

Across the board…

Life on the mission field brings an array of emotions across the board… this letter hits a bit on a few of these. Heavy… (This is part of an original blog post that can be found here….) A first-time mom with joyful expectation of delivering a healthy baby boy at the Sarobidy Maternity Center had been struggling with the results of her 20-week ultrasound that showed her baby had short legs. Unbelieving of the news, she received a...

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Heavy…

Heavy…

It’s been months, if not going on years, since I’ve actually written in this space.  My heart aches to write and too often I push this desire aside to complete the unending list of tasks and self-imposed deadlines. Alas I’m putting it off no longer… there’s too much to say, too much to share, too much that I want to invite others into to better understand what full-time life and ministry in Madagascar is really...

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Ten on Ten- April 2017

Ten on Ten- April 2017

Ten (or more) pictures over the course of 10 (or so) hours on the 10th of the month.  This month is extra special as my mom is visiting us from Santa Barbara… she traveled solo half way around the world to be with us for two weeks! We continued our daily routines as much as is possible with folks visiting… workouts, maternity center, eden work, artisan work, school… and all the extras of extra games, teaching grandkids to...

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