Kenya Medical Clinic 2009

 kids receiving flip flops             The waiting room              Distributing food at a local church

      June 4, 2009, a medical team from Tri-Cities Baptist Church in Gray, Tennessee boarded a plane for the 24 hour trip to Nairobi, Kenya.  Not long after landing, they boarded a bus for a three hour drive south, to the town of Machakos.  This was the closest city to our project, which was still a good hour away. 

     In an effort to break down barriers in a denominationally torn area of Kenya, we began our ministry by visiting seven churches that first Sunday morning, each a different denomination.  We showed up, unannounced, and were welcomed to worship with the believers inside.  After worshipping with them, and sharing the news of the clinic opening, we unloaded bags of corn and distributed it to each family represented.  In this drought stricken country, food is hard to come by, and the joy on their faces was just priceless.  In one church in particular, the sermon had been on "God will provide," and when the church had finished praying, they heard the sound of our truck pulling up, and soon realized that we were there to deliver food! God is so faithful and ALWAYS on time!! 

     Then, each morning, we loaded up our supplies, stopped by the local pharmacy to gather more medicine and headed to a small village east of Machakos, intent on ministering to the medical and spiritual needs of this tiny village.  The people are in such desperate need for help, and the stories we could share are endless, but one stands out among the rest.  About the second day into our clinic, someone happened to look out the back window and saw an older woman dragging herself across the fields.  Her legs were paralyzed, but she was so desperate to see a doctor that she literally dragged herself for hours, using only her arms. 

     Thank you to each team member, each prayer partner, and those of you who gave your time and money putting together first aid kits, personal hygiene kits and collecting flip-flops!  You will truly never know this side of heaven, what an impact it made on the lives of those we ministered to!  Click HERE to view the photo album of the mission trip.