6/15/2014 Great day at church

Yesterday and today were great days. We were invited to a baptism at the Stake Center in Freetown yesterday (Saturday) that was pretty special. 7 were baptized and one was an old friend of the Stake Patriarch. He has been a long time investigator that finally decided to become part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We could see the excitement in his eyes as he entered the font. It's truly a testimony and inspiration to me to see the change that comes over someone when they decide to put their full trust in the Lord and do his will.
Today (Sunday) we attended the branch in Waterloo, which is located southeast of Freetown, with around a 100+ members and investigators. The generator was on the fritz and the fans and sound system was not functioning. That's both a blessing and a hindrance. When the generator is running, it's hard to hear but the fans keep the air moving. With the generator is down, we can hear, but the heat is almost unbearable in the crowded chapel. Oh well, I guess we just have to adapt and make the best of every situation.

 Coming out of the Stake Center heading to the font in the rear of the building

 Pause for pictures...do you recognize the cute lady in the 

handmade African dress?

 I know there is a trail here somewhere.

 There's that lady again

 Patriarch Kamara baptizing his old friend. 

 Water tanks shared by the Stake Center and Mission Office

 This young lady is the laundry girl (Brooker) for the missionaries

that stay in the apartments above the Mission Office.

 The chapel in Waterloo is on the right and classrooms

on the left. The little old man in the purple shirt walks for two

hours every Sunday to get to church.

 Classrooms and our ride and some almost ripe coconuts

in the short tree. I hope to be able to pick one when they ripen

 The font next to the chapel

 Isn't it inviting....

 The District President Bai Sesay with the District RS President (in white) and 

her counselor in green

 Two cuties that love to pose for a "Snap" as they call it.

I'm not sure who all of the kids are. Some are from the neighborhood

that just come around when there is a gathering. 

These people love gatherings.

 See the almost ripe coconuts. One has my name all over it.

 See...they love to pose.

 The missionaries assigned to the Waterloo Branch

 Just a few misc snaps... this is a construction area where a road

is being upgraded. In the wall of the excavation you can see the 

layers from years past that are filled with garbage.

 A closeup... it looks like an old landfill???

 Center for JUNKS???

They are loading tightly bailed (bundles) of cloths

into wheel barrels. I'm sure some are from DI

 Getting the word out about EBOLA

 I want to see Tim do this with a bathtub!

 Typical sides for our meals

 This is the daughter of Sister Kargbo that Sister Barney is

going to help with their next birth. I was holding her while her mom

was busy.  She was brave for a while, but the "Pumwi" (white person) was

just too scary. I hope to win her over with candy...

 This is very common. We have seen them drop something,

bend over and pick it up, and never touch the eggs, or stuff, on their head.

Try that all you Grand Kids!

 This is a "Moringa" lief that grows here on Moringa trees. ;-)

They are great in scrambles eggs, made into tea, or what ever.

Lots of vitamin C & A

Reminds me of watercress.

This is very common here. Barbed wire and broken glass

on the tops of the walls that surround compounds. 

6/9/2014 Monkeying Around

We visited the Chimpanzee Rehabilitation center just outside of Freetown for something exciting to do. It was interesting to say the least. The Kanzlers and the Barneys were the only ones there, so we got our own little tour. This is where they bring chimps from all over the country to reintroduce them back into the wild, if possible, as soon as possible. Most of them come from peoples homes that thought it would be fun to have a monkey for a pet. Surprise...It's not that great. Now what do we do it.
The entire compound is divided into several sections where they separate the chimps according to age and ability to take care of themselves, as they move through the facility they are weened from human contact. There are a few that will never be able to be released for various reasons.
Enjoy these pictures:

 This is the entrance to the sanctuary and also the parking lot.

 Sister Barney and Sister Kanzler on bug watch.

 The signs are all done by hand to save money I suppose.

 Where is everyone??

 One of the buildings...real thatched roof

 Reception and gift center

 Mostly handmade stuff to buy

 Sister Barney signing in B4 the tour can begin....Oh yes $10 american per person.

 Sponsors board.

 Safari Ants hauling stuff through the compound.

 Information board about the chimps (Fact Board)

 Moses, our tour guide. Hes been here for 18 years.

 Cool painting on one of the buildings. I think the same artist

paints everything in the country...it's the style.

 Below us are the teenage chimps. The netting is for airborne projectiles.

Big Rocks 

 Teen in a tree. They cant climb when they first get here,

but they learn real soon.

 Just launched a rock.

 Play area for the new young arrivals and family groups.

 Always time for a snooze.

 Older ones eating. Notice he has a chunk of food in each foot.

 These are the older and almost ready to go chimps. 

They are fed just once a day. the others are fed 4 or 5 times.

They are expected to forage on there own for food.

 One of the many trails.

 Your taxes at work.

 This is a tunnel that the chimps pass through from their sleeping 

area (building) to the forage area.

 Another tunnel for the chimps.

 This is on top of one of the sleeping buildings, and we are looking for the 

chimps that are in the largest area and being prepared for release.

 This is called a "Jack Fruit" and is the size of two basketballs.

They are suppose to be really sweet.

 If your up for an adventure, and want to be up early by chimps 

howling in the jungle, here is a lodge that they rent for $90 American

 Inside is really pretty nice. No electricity, no water.

 There are 3 lodges to rent, and in the middle is a really nice 

barbecue area. 

 Some of the main trails for the worker bees.

 Another information board about other wildlife.

 Waiting hut, Gathering area for tours.

 Inside the gift shop again

 and again

 Where they keep new arrivals to prevent the spread of disease.

Chimps can get most human ailments like colds, measles, etc.

 Trying to get a peek at us. As soon as we made noise, they all started

screaming and carrying on. They always get fed for visitors.

 Playing tag, or looking for rocks, it's hard to tell.

 I kept looking for Tarzan... 

 Play area

 Look Tommy...here is a rock.

 One of the trails. This place feels and smells just like some

of the places that our family use to go backpacking on the 

Oregon coast.