Greetings from South Carolina,
Summer is passing almost too fast for us. Philippe and Joel have already
started high school and Heidi leaves us to return to start her third year at Lee
University in Cleveland, TN.
Our only family mini-vacation was a 2,000 mile (round trip) to Delavan,
Wisconsin where I (Bert) gave a VOM/CEF presentation to the Christian Dental
Society. We all enjoyed the new scenery and Christian fellowship there. Though
we have lived in several foreign countries, I was the only one in our family to
have visited the dairy state. And, yes, Debbie found a cheese store with the
smelly kind at Lake Geneva, WI.
Sad news is that one of our CEF executive committee members, Dr. Mike
McMahon, had a heart attack during a hiking expedition with buddies in the
Sierra Nevada Mts. three days ago. He underwent an angioplasty and is recovering
in a Fresno, CA hospital. Drema, his wife, traveled from their home in VA and is
at his side now. Please pray for them and for their daughters, Morgan and
Katlyn. We first met the McMahon family when they came to Cameroon to serve with
us at Hopital de Meskine in 1999. Mike also serves as a board member with
Partners In Compassionate Care. We are praying for Mike's complete recovery. We
would also appreciate your prayers for Mike and his family. [Sept 6th update: Dr. McMahon is recovering well. He
is to have a cardiac evaluation in one week, and he expects to be back at work
in his medical practice part-time in two weeks.]
Another Tech Serve team will leave in a week or so for Chad. They plan to
repair the hospital roof which was damaged by a storm, to finish the cabinets
and put all the finishing touches on the "big" building. They also plan to build
the first 14 bed patient ward. The next container filled with hospital supplies
and cement leaves for Chad from Arkansas next week. The shipping charges for
this container are being paid by Exxon-Mobil (Chad). Please pray for its safe
and timely arrival.
We hope to build two more wards and add more guest housing before we open the
hospital next year. Dr. Roy Jones from the UK will start serving with CEF next
July (secunded from Africa Mission UK). We hope to start the medical workers
training at Hopital de Guinebor II next summer and to open the hospital perhaps
in October 2009.
My wife, Debbie, and I will travel to Chad next month to evaluate the
project, to sort through medical supplies, to meet with Dr. Roy Jones and his
wife, Jane, to discuss recruitment of national staff and deal with other
administrative issues with our Chadian staff. We would appreciate your prayers.
CEF board member Debbie Williamson, from Corpus Christi, Texas, is here in
South Carolina helping out in the CEF office for six months. She is a real
blessing.
Our Chadian administrator, Ndilmbaye Moidi, has informed us that his wife has
a serious liver disorder. Their only child is only a few months old. Please pray
for this family.
I'll spend one week in Idaho next month, before leaving for Chad, speaking
with different groups about the CEF as well as the VOM ministries. I would
appreciate your prayers.
Please pray for Chad, a troubled land that needs the Lord.
We thank you for your interest and for your financial and prayer support.
In Christ,
Bert