World Mission - Uganda

Uganda
Support of the orphans, students at the Diocesan Training Centre and special projects in Bunyoro-Kitara, our link diocese in Uganda

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Newsletter: 15 February 2009

AZUR up-date and Prayer Request

Dear Friend of Bunyoro-Kitara,

My purpose in writing this e-mail is to share with you an amazing miracle and a fantastic blessing that our Lord and Saviour has accomplished for the people here in up-country Uganda, in the town of Hoima.

I believe that this miracle provides us with unequivocal and undeniable proof of the fact that our Father in Heaven is indeed in control of all things here on earth, that he cares for us and provides for us, and that he protects and provides for us out of his inconceivable love. I also believe that this miracle clearly demonstrates that to accomplish his will, he most often chooses to use the hands, and feet, and hearts, and minds of very ordinary people, just like you and me, to care for those of his children who are totally incapable of helping themselves.

ASK YOURSELF

After you have read through this long account of the evolution of the Azur Christian Health Centre from an unsuccessful, derelict and failed enterprise into a wondrously healthy and life giving health care facility over a short six year period - ask yourself if this miraculous transformation, which was made a reality with the help of literally hundreds of people's prayers and financial gifts, could have ever occurred without the Father's personal intervention.

Please join with us in the prayers listed at the end of this e-mail.

The AZUR Christian Health Centre and Our New Surgical Ward

1999

When I arrived here in Hoima ten years ago, Bunyoro-Kitara diocese was one of the largest and most poverty stricken dioceses in all of the Church of Uganda. Our Bunyoro-Kitara diocesan health centre had been closed for well over ten years due to a total lack of funds. The health centre building had fallen into a very dilapidated condition and some local people had moved into and were living in the derelict building. Most of the furnishing and fixtures had long since gone missing, windows were broken out and most of the doors that were not missing were hanging by a single hinge.

2002

The Lord stepped in and took complete control. Very early one morning in 2002 I received a phone call from our recently elected bishop-elect Nathan Kyamanywa, who was at the time visiting with good friends of our diocese at Christ Church at Grove Farm in a suburb of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. Bishop-elect Nathan told me that our friends at Christ Church had raised the funds needed to rehabilitate Bunyoro-Kitara diocese health centre building and to help us reopen this critically needed health centre. He also asked if I would provide our friends at Christ Church with the plans and details of what was needed to rehabilitate the existing health centre building and the cost of all of the proposed work.

2003

To make a long story short the building was completely rehabilitated, refurbished and expanded into the building that today serves as our AZUR Christian Health Centre out-patient clinic. The AZUR Christian Health Centre was reopened in August of 2003.

2004

The following year our amazing friends at Christ Church once again raised the funds needed to completely rehabilitate, refurbish and modernize what had once been the Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom's Princesses home into what is now our doctors' house and to purchase a refurbished Toyota van, which we have converted into a much needed ambulance.

NOTE: All of the AZUR Christian Health Centre land and what is now our doctors' house was given to the church by Princess Alexandria Komukyeya in the early 1980s through her last will and testament with the request that her bequest be used to provide health care to the poor people of Bunyoro-Kitara Kingdom.

2006

The following year funds began to become available from our local people and from friends in the UK that enabled us to begin construction on our 20 bed general ward and this new blessing opened for patients in July 2006.

2007

Thanks be to the grace of God and a wonderful family in the UK funds became available to construct and equip our new maternity ward and delivery facility. Construction of this new building was completed in July 2007 and our first baby was delivered about two weeks before the official grand opening of the wonderful new facility.

In mid 2007 we received the unbelievable word that a major portion of the funds were being made available to us by the Anglican Relief and Development Fund to enable us to begin construction of our new surgical theatre with an eight bed surgical ward . A month later we received word that another wonderful friend in Pittsburgh was making the remaining funds needed to complete the construction phase of this blessing available to us. Now we had all of the funds needed to complete the construction of our new surgical ward and theatre.

2008

On 11 September 2008 our wonderful friends at the ARDF sent us the word that another amazing, anonymous donor was making available the funds needed to purchase all of the reconditioned equipment that was necessary to fully equip our new surgery.

Now we had all of the funds available that were needed to complete the construction of our new surgery building and we had all of the funds needed to purchase the equipment required to fully equip our new surgical facility. But, we still needed the means to ship the container of surgical equipment all the way from Grand Rapids Michigan in the United States of America to Hoima Uganda. Once again our friends at Christ Church at Grove Farm found the funds needed to pay for this very expensive shipment.

We were now certain that the only remaining major hurdle that lay before us was for us to receive all of the approvals we needed from the Government of Uganda, the Ugandan National Drug Authority and the Ugandan Revenue Authority for the tax-free entry of our container into Uganda. If you have ever dealt with the seemingly uncaring bureaucratic road blocks that are thrown up by the American and European governments you will appreciate the hopelessness of this daunting hurdle here in Uganda. However, when Joseph, Rev James and I made a three day visit to Kampala and all of the various governmental agencies the doors and hearts of the Ugandan bureaucrats opened and they could have not been, in any way, more helpful than they were.

2009

By the Grace of God our container safely rounded the African Horn, Somalia and all of the pirates, and arrived at the port of Mombassa in December of 2008. After our container cleared customs in Kenya, and later in Kampala our container of surgical equipment was finally delivered to the Azur Christian Health Centre here in Hoima on 20 January 2009. We immediately unloaded the container and inspected the condition of the shipment. Once again, by the Grace of God our full shipment was intact and everything shipped arrived.

Sadly, our new x-ray machine, one of the items that we were most anxiously waiting for, was badly damaged in shipment. The very heavy head of the x-ray had not been disassembled from the body of the machine for shipment and in the course of the long sea and land journey its mounting bracket was broken and it smashed into the control panel badly damaging both components. However, all of the rest of the shipment did arrive in good condition.

We immediately set about the task of unpacking and installing all of our new equipment; and by the Grace of God that task is now completed and our new surgery theatre has become an accomplished fact.

The results of our Father's amazing gift, given to our people through you and your prayers:

• When we opened to the public in mid 2003 our patient count was about 200 patients per month. Today our patient count has grown to more than 1,400 patients per month.
• Today, one year and a half after we first opened our maternity facility we are consistently delivering over 100 new babies into the world each and every month.

Our prayer request to you, on behalf of all of us here in Bunyoro-Kitara:

• Please pray that we will become good and faithful servants to the people of Bunyoro-Kitara; and that we will faithfully use your wonderful gifts to bring glory to the name of the Father and Son.
• Please pray that we will find a way of replacing the two gas heated sterilizing machines that were mistakenly shipped with two electrically heated sterilizing machines that can be used in our new surgical facility.
• Please pray that we will be able to find a way of refurbishing our badly damaged x-ray machine, as this essential piece of equipment is badly needed.
• This is one of our people's most fervent prayers - a prayer for experienced and dedicated Christian medical professionals.

Please pray with us that we, with your help and prayers, will find and be able to employ the most essential and critically needed elements required to make our Azur Christian Health Centre and our new surgical facility operational.

Please help us find experienced and dedicated christian medical professionals willing to give their lives in the service of the poor and needy here in this part of Uganda.

Photos Attached to This E-Mail:

the Bunyoro-Kitara Diocese Health Centre as it was in January 1999

the Azur Christian Health Centre
left to right: general ward, maternity facility, surgical ward and theatre
note: the outpatient clinic, doctors' house, staff house, generator facility and administrative building are not pictured.

the surgical ward and theatre

the damaged x-ray machine in the x-ray room

the examining room with some of its associated equipment

the surgical theatre with some of its associated equipment

the post-operating room with some of its associated equipment

the Most Revd Henry Luke Orombi (archbishop of Uganda) and Bishop Nathan Kyamanywa ministering to some of the patients in our general ward

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this page was last modified on 15 February 2009.