Local church makes mission trip to Kenya
Pouring through photo albums from their recent mission trip to Kenya, Carol George of Uniontown said, “When I look at the pictures, I want to go back.’ “Part of you feels so good about being there and doing things for the kids,’ said Marilyn Fitzsimmons. “… They don’t have television or radios. They don’t have much. But they had the love of God in their hearts.’
The women were members of a mission team that Third Presbyterian Church in Uniontown sent to Kenya this summer.
The team visited Tenwek Hospital and Mosop Mission School, taking care of the people’s physical needs as well as their spiritual.
The team included Fitzsimmons of Uniontown, who served as chairwoman of the team, and is retired from Fayette County Children and Youth Services; her husband, James Fitzsimmons, an attorney with Waggoner and Ferens; their son, Jim Fitzsimmons III, a law student at Florida Coastal Law School in Jacksonville; their daughter, Katie Fitzsimmons, a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh; Luella Salitrik of Hopwood, who retired as a social worker for the Uniontown Area School District and previously worked as a nurse; and her husband, Roger Salitrik, who is retired as an electronics technician for Sears; George, who is a substitute aide for Intermediate Unit I and previously worked for West Penn Power; Shaiyla Kemp of Brownfield, who is George’s granddaughter and is a student at Laurel Highlands Middle School; John McDonald of Uniontown, who works at Allegheny Energy Units 8 and 9 in Gans; and Mimi McDonough of Uniontown, who works for Fayette County Children and Youth Services. All are members of Third Presbyterian, with the exception of McDonough, who is a member of Asbury United Methodist Church in Uniontown.
Several team members recently discussed their trip, which took place June 28 to July 16. They included Marilyn Fitzsimmons, George, Luella Salitrik and McDonough.
“To me, it was very humbling to see how they lived,’ said Luella Salitrik. “They’re satisfied and we always want more.’
The team became interested in going to Kenya through the work of missionaries whom the church supports. Faith Shingledecker, a Connellsville native who works with World Gospel Mission, has been in Kenya almost 25 years. She has visited Third Presbyterian to talk about her work. Dr. Chuck Bemm, a pediatrician who has served at Tenwek Hospital with his family through World Gospel Mission for two and a half years, visited Third Presbyterian before making the move to Africa.
The mission team flew from Pittsburgh to Chicago to London to Nairobi and then took a day’s drive to Tenwek Hospital. The members spoke of the terrible road conditions in Kenya, where it took them almost six hours to drive 100 miles.
In the photo albums, the members found photos of the roads, but they were just as eager to show off photos of the students, many of whom were wearing sweaters.
“It was their winter time,’ George said. “It was pleasant for us. The temperature was probably in the 70s. But for them, it’s cool.’
In addition to their own luggage, the 10 members each brought a duffel bag containing a total of 500 pounds of gifts and supplies for the missionaries and orphans a the school. They brought textbooks for the missionary children as well as foods that the missionaries couldn’t get in Kenya: pepperoni, brownie mixes, shredded coconut and dried fruit.
The bags also held craft supplies for a Bible school, small beanie baby toys, girls’ underwear and socks, baby bibs, Onezies (baby clothing), fabrics and sewing supplies as well as some parochial school jumpers.
The mission team received donations of Onezies and T-shirts from Ohiopyle Prints as well as T-shirts and hats from the radio station Froggy, the Pittsburgh Pirates, Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus, West Virginia University and Gallatin Plumbing that the team gave away to local residents.
The baby supplies were taken to Tenwek Hospital.
Luella Salitrik said, “They only deliver babies when the mothers’ pregnancies are complicated and they only bring in sick babies. Most babies are born in a community clinic or at home.’
Fitzsimmons added, “Kenya has the highest rate of multiple births in the world. No one knows why.’
She also said a lot of the people in the region don’t have electricity or running water. They depend on charcoal to cook and heat their homes. As a result, the hospital sees a high number of patients who suffer from burns and scalding – particularly children.
“They try to treat the burns at home and they put off going to the hospital,’ McDonough said.
“And it also takes them a long time to get to a hospital,’ said Luella Salitrik.
The team discovered that living in Kenya requires a lot of walking. They talked about a man who worked for the missionaries, walking two hours each way. The town with the nearest grocery store was a two-hour walk.
Much of the team’s time was spent helping to build a roof for a girls’ dormitory at Mosop Mission School, making a 45-minute drive one way to the work site. 84 Lumber Co. gave the Third Presbyterian team a $1,000 donation toward completion of the roof before the team left.
The school has about 300 students and 99 children living on the grounds. Many of the children are orphaned because of AIDS. When completed, the girls’ dormitory will house 40 students.
The children came to visit the work site as often as they could.
“They would laugh and have fun with us,’ McDonough said.
Some of the mission team, however, stayed in the mission compound, where they spend a lot of time sewing jumpers for the orphan children.
Fitzsimmons said, “Before we went, people gave us parochial jumpers from St. John and St. Mary schools (in Uniontown) and we took patterns and material and made 14 jumpers.’
Salitrik said, “They wear loose-fitting blouses so their neck holes and arm holes on the jumpers were too small and we had to adjust them. And they’re tall, so we had to lower the hems.’
The members also made pads for isoletes and crib blankets for the hospital, and did mending for local missionaries.
In addition, the Third Presbyterian team held a Bible school for the students, bringing crafts for them. They sang songs in both English and Swahili. English is taught in the school for the older children speak it as a second language.
The Third Presbyterian team members were enchanted with the children.
“They help one another and share with one another,’ said McDonough, noting, “I just wanted to play with the kids and make clothes.’
The Third Presbyterian team enjoyed learning about Kenyan culture. They spoke about a drink called “chai,’ a tea that is made with milk, a lot of sugar and served very hot. Everyone took chai breaks every day.
In one of the classrooms, they ate lunch, which consisted of rice, meat and beans most days, although they had the chance to eat with the American missionaries two evenings.
They visited the Africa Gospel Church, where the local residents worshipped. Services were three hours long and the Third Presbyterian team members were seated up front as special guests.
On the last day, the Mosop School students held a celebration for the mission team, presenting them with certificates and their gratitude.
“They had nothing, but they were giving something back to us,’ said Fitzsimmons. “They were so glad we came.’
Third Presbyterian Church is continuing to raise money for the Kenyans. They want to raise $6,000 or $7,000 to complete the dormitory at the Mosop Mission School. They are looking for sponsors of the orphans for $30 a month that would pay their tuition. They are also buying 100 T-shirts for Tenwek Hospital to give to patients with the hospital logo and the saying, “We treat, Jesus heals.’ Members of the mission team also are speaking about their trip. For more information or to contribute to the mission project, call Fitzsimmons at 724-439-9406.