The new Fountain of Hope kitchen is officially open for business!

Two years ago on this same trip, Becca Klimper saw the primitive cooking conditions FOH was using to try and feed all the children. The cooks were cooking over open fires under a makeshift stick structure on a dirt floor. Not the cleanest conditions nor very appealing if you're the cook. Plus cooking outside without an efficient wood burning stove meant the 50% of the wood and heat was being lost - a financial drain. Becca went home and started to find ways to raise money. She submitted a grant proposal to the Northwest District of the Lutheran Women's Mission League (LWML). The ladies at LWML received numerous submissions but the Lord provided and when they voted on what project they would support they chose the FOH Kitchen. Fast forward to today, two years later. The kitchen if finally finished and open for business! This year's team purchased the final paint needed to complete the job, spent a couple days painting before turning over the job to a local man to finish.

We decided to have the official opening ceremony on the same day we cooked the bull the FOH girl's Netball team won in the Sports Tournament and feed every child at the school. The kids were excited as we gathered together to celebrate. The older students led the rest in praise songs as we waited for the official speeches. Pastor Robert opened and told everyone that FOH now had the nicest kitchen out of all district schools! Since Becca couldn't come with the group this year, we asked her mother, Martha, to address the school on Becca's behalf.

Pastor then led the student's in prayer before announcing the kitchen was open for business. Seeing the students praying was amazing. Not too long ago in the history of FOH, the Bukeeka community forbade the school to pray with students and was threatening the school and teachers with witchcraft. Today, the school openly prays, the students pray with all their heart and worship God and our Savior Jesus. It's amazing what the past seven years has done to this community. And when they pray they really pray. None of this polite 20 second dinner prayer here - they close their eyes, cover their faces, and pray out loud so that the chorus of prayers fills the air - it's praying from the heart, without care for what others think, unashamed prayer to the living God. Wow!

The eating began and with so many children to feed, the shortage of plates meant they used plastic sacks to give food to the smaller children - a true sack lunch! Many thanks go to Becca and her family and friends, LWML for raising the money, and everyone who has prayed for continued protection and advancement of the kingdom in Bukeeka. Today was a true celebration of what God has done in this community. Enjoy the photos.

Blessings, John

Photos: Old kitchen, new kitchen inside, Martha addressing the children with the new kitchen in the background, children clapping their appreciation, children praying fervently, close up of a child praying, lining up for lunch, happy children eating their bag of rice and meat.