HOME IN ST. GEORGE, UTAH

Arthur Glenn and Elaine Glenn are now enjoying their retirement in their home in St. George, Utah. We miss all of our friends in Africa and keep in touch with them as much as we can. We are just back from Hawaii and planning to drive the Alcan Highway to Alaska this fall.

SUCCESS AT LAST...

We have been derelict in updating our blog since we got home from our mission in Africa. After many many months of effort we finally got clearance from the U.S. Embassy in Uganda to bring Mark home with us to the U.S. We returned to Uganda in August and came back with him on September 1st. The adjustment to his new life will take him some time. But, he is such a sweet little boy; we all love him dearly.

This is Mark with his new cousin Madison; Julie's little girl. We can now feel that our mission in Uganda is officially over but we are starting an exciting new adventure in our family.

FAREWELL TO UGANDA………FOR NOW!

Well the time has finally come that our mission has ended and we are returning to the U.S. We are sad to leave the wonderful dear friends we have made in Uganda. But, we are anxious to see our family, especially our grandson who we have never met as he was born while we were gone. It was easier to leave our friends in Uganda because we know we will be coming back soon (more about that later).

These are our fellow missionaries in The Uganda Kampala Mission. Elder and Sister Barlow replaced us as the Country Directors. They have previously served in the D.R. Congo so will find Uganda a great place to be. We had an open house at our apartment so that the contractors we worked with could meet them.


This is Ronald, Emma, Eddie and Sam. They have all done great work on our water and sanitation projects which have brought clean water to 420,000 people in Uganda and Sudan.


Elder Barlow with our Drilling contractor, Ali.


Elaine and Sister Barlow with Hannington, our Project Monitor in Kamuli.


Art with Eddie and Ssimbwa at our Pineapple project in Mukono.


Our dear friends, Olivia and Mark, at the handover for the Peace and Hope sewing and gardening project. This project has allowed women to earn money to pay school fees for their children; one of the greatest challenges in Uganda.


We got to dress up in traditional Ugandan attire of Gomesi (women) and Kanzus (men). Here we are at Eddie’s Introduction which is a long, very tradition engagement announcement event. With us are Ronald, Harriett, Susan and Shaquilla.


Eddie and Winnie at the introduction ceremony.


Some of our friends from Mengo at the Christmas dinner we did for the New Hope for Africa Orphanage: Harriett, Olivia, Kezia, Tina, and Pres. Sylvester, the Branch President.


This is truly a great man in Uganda. We could not bring ourselves to say good-bye to our monitor, mentor and dear friend Ssimbwa Busulwa. We could not have done anything we accomplished during our mission without him. Ssimbwa is without a doubt “one of a kind”; he could find and do anything. We worked with the government on seven emergency response projects ranging from flood to war refugees to famine. On every occasion, Ssimbwa could locate and purchase the needed supplies before the government could mobilize transportation. Luckily, Ssimbwa will be coming to the U.S. to visit soon. So, for now, it is not "good-bye" just, “see you later”.



Now, the reason we will be going back to Uganda soon. This is Mark, a 6 y.o. orphan we met while on our mission. We have been appointed his Legal Guardians by the High Court in Uganda. He is now staying with Olivia and going to the International School in Kampala. As soon as we can secure Immigration clearance and a visa for him, we will be bringing him to the U.S. to join our family. Without the help of Olivia and Eddie this would never be possible; we owe them a lot! He is a wonderful little boy who we love dearly. We truly left a “piece of our heart” in Uganda…for now.


It was quite a change leaving the jungles of Uganda for the desert landscape of our backyard in St. George, Utah.



We spent a few days with Shanna and our grandkids in Salt Lake, bought a new car and cell phones and we were back in the world of retired people. We did get to see T.J. on his way to the prom. Unfortunately, Zack was away at college but we got to see him for a quick visit.



Then, we headed through the snowy mountain passes of the Northwest to see our granddaughter Madison in Seattle, Washington.



Along with our daughters: Mom Julie and Aunt Michelle.


Next, we drove to Washington, D.C. to meet our new grandson Lincoln for the first time and see our son Matt and daughter-in-law Nichole.



Our children have all found out quickly who becomes number one in the family when the kids arrive and rightly so; they are all little angels. It was such a treat to see them after 18 months.




On the way home we stopped in Florida to see Art’s sisters; Gloria and Wynona and families. Then, a day in Louisiana with Elaine’s brother Manny and family.



Then back to Salt Lake, St. George …and civilian life.

Scenes from the Bududa landslide

As shown in our last blog, the Bududa landslide buried three villages, killed an estimated 400 people and displaced thousands more. We were finally able to get pictures of the slide area and one of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps which will house 4,300 people until they can be relocated to other areas. No one will be allowed back into the slide area which will be designated a mass grave site by the Government.

Villagers digging; trying to locate to bodies of friends and family members.


Area where boulders were brought down by the slide.



Huts at the edge of the slide area. 100 children in this village were buried where they took shelter in a trading center.


One of the (IDP) camps near the slide area.


Some of our tarps being used to made shelters


The cooking pots being put to good use in the camps.

Church is providing aid to landslide victims in Uganda

300,000 homeless after landslides
Monday, 8th March, 2010


OVER 300,000 people in the Mount Elgon region and the neighbouring lowlands of Butaleja, Budaka and Tororo districts have been displaced following the landslide that devastated Bududa in eastern Uganda last week, the state minister for relief and disaster preparedness, Musa Ecweru, said yesterday, report Taddeo Bwambale and Cecilia Okoth.

Another 500,000 people from the Rwenzori and Kigezi regions in western Uganda are at risk of landslides and floods, the minister added.

We have had an Emergency response Project approved to supply blankets, tarpaulins, cooking pots and soap to the survivors of the landslide who are now displaced into IDP camps until the rainy season ends in May.


Here we are turning supplies over to Musa Ecweru, Uganda's Minister of State for Emergency response and refugees. This is the sixth Emergency response project we have we have been able to do with The Prime Minister's Office.

This time, we are not allowed to go into the area because of unsafe conditions and the risk of disease as the effort to recover more than 350 bodies continues. The supplies are being taken, by the Army, to the camps being set up for the internally displaced persons (IDPs).


As usual, we would not have been able to collect all the necessary supplies without our assistant and Project Monitor, Ssimbwa Busulwa. He is now heading back to Sudan to finalize the borehole drilling there. We only have 12 more days left on our mission and we will sorely miss our dear friend, Ssimbwa. He is an incredible man with a heart of gold who we deeply love and who never gets tired of doing good. It is impossible for us to measure the impact he has had on the Humanitarian work which is being done in Uganda. Luckily for us, he often travels to the U.S. so it will not be, "Good-bye" when we leave...only, "See you soon".

WHEELCHAIRS FINALLY COME TO SUDAN…

After trying for 16 months, we were finally able to get the 400 Rough Rider wheelchairs delivered to Sudan



On the day wheelchairs were being distributed to recipients in Nyamlel, South Sudan an unexpected visitor arrived. Angelo Deng Bak was brought from the village of Marial Bai, some ten miles away, riding in a plastic lawn chair taped on the back of a bicycle peddled by his grandson.



He had people put him on the ground so he could bow down in the dirt in front of Ssimbwa. Angelo said that all he had in the world was 50 Sudanese Pounds (about $25) but he would give it all to us if he could buy one of the wheelchairs. When he was told he would be given a chair free of cost he wept openly.



Eleven year old Lino Tiek Dut suffered a compound fracture of the femur in his right leg three years ago. He cannot bend his leg and still has an open wound. There is not an orthopedic surgeon in all of Southern Sudan to treat him. Since his injury, he has had to either be carried or crawl on the ground by himself. He was beaming in his new whirlwind Rough Rider wheelchair as he maneuvered around the area.



Many of the people are missing limbs because of the war or as a result of landmines. The UN estimates that there are still two million landmines in Southern Sudan. Injuries from the mines are an ongoing problem



It is hard to describe the suffering and needs of the people in this part of Southern Sudan unless you see it first- hand. There are far more needs than resources but the Church is bringing hope to people who are trying to rebuild their lives after long years of war. The weather fluctuates between the rainy season which brings floods and the dry season which brings dust storms, drought and famine. Even getting supplies to remote villages like Nyamlel and Marial Bai is a major challenge. All of this is compounded by the UN sanctions against Sudan. This sometimes makes transport into Sudan difficult; we cannot work with anyone who has dealings with Khartoum in the North. Getting the wheelchairs transported from the production plant in Nairobi, Kenya to Nyamlell, Sudan was a different kind of challenge for us. Many transporters refused to take shipments into that area of Southern Sudan because of inter-tribal fighting, poor road conditions and the risks of losing the shipment, truck or both.




As an alternative, two hundred of the wheelchairs were trucked from Nairobi to Entebbe, Uganda to be flown to Nyamlell on United Nations aircraft. However, only a helicopter and small fixed wing aircraft flew from Juba, the capitol of Southern Sudan, to Aweil some thirty-five miles from Nyamlell. It was then decided that another plan had to be undertaken and the search for willing transporters began. Eventually, after several months of searching, arrangements were made to transport the two hundred wheelchairs in Entebbe to Nyamlell. At the same time, another two hundred were transported from Nairobi, Kenya to Nyamlell. When the trucks arrived in Nyamlell the springs were broken on one and both trucks lacked funds to purchase fuel for the return trip. However, the much needed wheelchairs had finally safely arrived at their intended destination. We were much relieved!



Many of the wheelchairs were fitted and distributed by Ssimbwa Busulwa, who serves as project monitor for the Church’s Humanitarian efforts in Uganda and Sudan. Nothing much would have gotten done during our time here without Ssimbwa. Other chairs were distributed in the out-lying villages of Marial Bai and Gok Macar. At the official hand-over ceremony for the wheelchair project, Angelo Deng Bak again came; this time in his new wheelchair. He said, “This chair is the greatest gift God has ever given me”.



Besides the war injuries there are many other causes of disability in Sudan. This man was suffering from Elephantitis





Some wonderful, generous private donors in California; Craig and Marilyn Faulkner, donated funds so that we could take lapboards, book bags and school supplies to the children of Nyamlell. Also the Butler 8th Ward in Salt Lake City and a Ward in Washington sent supplies to take with us. Many of the Primary cildren sent notes and letters in their packets. The excitement of the children for these items was incredible; most of them have never had supplies of their own before. They were fascinated by the small pencil sharpeners,balloons,etc. It was great fun just watching them.



Just a subtle reminder of where we are…





We are also drilling 10 deep borehole wells in Nyamlell and the surrounding villages. This will allow the people to stay in the same area without having to move with the seasons to find water. Much of the area was totally lacking in latrines so ten community latrines are being built in the villages with the boreholes.



During our earlier visit to Sudan we were in the village of Marial Bai with President Edward and Sister Erin Christensen, the Uganda Kampala Mission President. The villagers heard that the people who were bringing the wheelchairs to Sudan were there. Thinking that the wheelchairs had already arrived, they gathered in numbers under a large tree; some of them crawling there on the ground. When they found out that the wheelchairs were not yet there, many of them wept. When Sharon Eubanks, manager of major initiatives for Church Humanitarian aid worldwide heard this story she was determined to see that the project was successful.



There were many times that the project was delayed by obstacles; some seemed unsurmountable...but the wheelchairs have finally come to the people of Sudan.