Okapuka Ranch

We were supposed to cross this river. This was the dry season. So we called and ended up driving up the NO ENTRY area and crossed on a foot bridge. EXCITING.

This was the view out the jeep. I chose the middle seat above the driver. She was the owner of the reserve.

A great family of Wart Hogs. They were all over.

No close up picture here. The rhino was right there. I could have reached out and touched this family.

We were instructed not to SCREAM or touch. So I was obedient.



Yo-Yo Day

I am embarassed about not writing and doing pictures. We have been super busy and had computer problems.

Here is a sample of our Preparation-day. Up at 6:45, walked until 7:38, breakfast, showers, organize go to the church 9:30am to meet electrician at 10. But first go to Katutura chapel to see if the lady next door is home so she can give us the yard clippers to cut down this very thorny bush like tree. She is leaving to take her blind son to the Mental Hospital. He lives with his dad. She gives me the clippers and we put them in the car then go to Windhoek Branch. We put gas in the car. Every 5-6 days we go 300km. How many miles? Who knows, a lot.

We call the electrician at 10:10, he will be here in 20 minutes. Call him in 30 minutes, he will be here in 15-20 minutes or NOW, not NOW, NOW as we would have hoped. We called the elders to pick up the clippers from us at Windhoek. They come and then we explain which bush/tree to cut.

The electrician did show up in less than 20 minutes. We had waited 45 minutes for him total. Take him to Katutura chapel to check out electrical. He says he will be done by 1. We leave him. We go back to the Windhoek chapel for correlation meeting. I wash all the blackboards after meeting. Not quite all, only about 4-5. Back home for a quick lunch, and to pick up the foot board for a stroke member that dad forgot to bring. We go back to Katutura and guess what, he isn't done.  I wash the black boards in Katutura, sand the holes I filled in YW room yesterday and scrub off the black marks on the outside walls some kids drew on the last few weeks. Will have to talk to the primary kids in a week when we have Primary. I also put up announcements and pictures of the YSA activity on the bulletin board.

The electrician is done, but he wants to be paid NOW, NOW. Doesn't he know the church doesn't do things like that. So we go to the nearest ATM give his worker boys $1200N and make them write a receipt. We would go deliver the foot board, but we got a call from DHL with two packages for me, from distribution. Whew. Back home and we just got the packages.

Got a phone call from an investigator who said she was 20km from Windhoek. She doesn't have a place to stay, but trusts God that he will help her.

Now back to deliver the foot board. Doug has been talking with Phkama from Cape Town about purchases for Katutura that we have to get ordered and picked up. I called the painters wife and have the color of paint to get to paint the room tonight before Katutura's correlation meeting at 7. I also have to get the food for a German meal tomorrow as the Elders are coming to dinner and the one being transferred is from Germany. I am fixing chicken schnitzel, cucumber salad, green beans, apple strudel. I am tired already and it is only 2:50pm.

We didn’t paint until Thursday am and it looks wonderful. It will be my last painting in Namibia. The rollers are long thick nap because the paint is like medium concrete to pour. It splatters EVERYWHERE and on EVERYONE. 

Welcome Elders

Our Zone Leaders: Elder Motsepe from South Africa,  and Elder Lindstrom from Rexburg, Idaho.

Our Katutura Elders: Elder Park  from New Mexico, and Elder Uneh from Nigeria.

Elder Larrabee from Kaysville, Utah, and Elder Schneider from Germany.

Our Windhoek Elders: Elder Rogers from Washington,  Elder Penman from Alaska, Elder Nilsson from Oklahoma, and Elder Slabbert from South Africa.

Early Church in Namibia

We arrived in Namibia Feb. 10th, and have loved learning about a new culture and country. The first formal Church organization came in 1973 when Otto Krauss was called as the presiding elder. The first church meeting had been held in his home April, 1972. 

The first missionaries in Namibia arrived in 1978, with the first branch organized in Windhoek in 1983.

Windhoek Branch

The Katutura Branch is leasing this building. We are looking for land to build a church. The weeds are all removed thanks to a group of 3 Institute brethren.

On August 22, 1992, Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, dedicated the land of Namibia for the preaching of the Gospel. His dedicatory prayer was a blessing upon the people, the land, the resources and the opportunity for religious liberty so that the Gospel of Jesus Christ could be taught to those who desired to learn.

The first Church-built chapel in Namibia was dedicated in Windhoek on July 6, 1997.

NAMIBIA

Republic of Namibia
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "Unity, Liberty, Justice"
Anthem: "Namibia, Land of the Brave"
Capital (and largest city)		Windhoek 22°34.2′S 17°5.167′E / 22.57°S 17.086117°E / -22.57; 17.086117
Official language(s)		English
Recognized regional languages		Afrikaans, German, Oshiwambo
Government		Republic

 

George Becomes International

A most unlikely pair to be transferred: Elder Smith and Elder Fransen.  We were planning on Elder Smith because he had been here for 3 tansfers, but Elder Fransen only 1. Transfers are every 6 weeks. Just in case, I had the four elders get in any possible companionship to leave and here they are.  Elder Smith went to Port Elizabeth and Elder Fransen to King Williamstown.

Welcome Elder Fozard from England.

Welcome Elder Henrico from Tanzania but most recently from Namibia. So we had a lot of questions to ask him.  Our disctict does not have anyone from America now. We are totally international. What a great mix! It was a tearful goodbye.

Namibia

As I look at this picture of Africa and the world it is hard to believe we are really here on the African continent.

 

On Saturday, President Probst issued a new call to Windhoek, Namibia. We will leave here Wed., Feb. 9th, for Cape Town by car and then fly out the next day for Namibia. It is about a 3 hour flight. The time zone is one hour behind us so you can deduct onel hour from our normal 9 hour ahead of everyone in the mountain states time zone.

 

The Republic of Namibia gained independence from South Africa  on March 21, 1990. It's western borders are the Atlantic Ocean and it shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north and Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south.

 

Namibia is rich in agriculture, mining and tourists.  The deserts, sand dunes and game reserves draw many people to this country.

 

The country has about 2.1 million population in and has a multiparliment democracy.  English, German and Afrikaans are the three chief languages.

 

The church in Windhoek ( pronounced Vindhook) has 2 established branches. We look forward to assisting in whatever way is needed. There are 10 missionaries serving in this wonderful country.