Appreciation Banquet

Last night, Tim Sabiti (pictured below), General Manager for our radio stations in Uganda and Royal School Board Member, opened the Appreciation Banquet in prayer.

School Director, Annet, and Head Teacher, Frank, express their appreciation and pass out certificates.

What a Fun Morning!

From Dan Peters -

What a great Friday morning we had. It was a combined assembly in the new auditorium named
"Alliance Hall".

Besides the Mountain Lake men, about 250 children were there. We expect about 250 more children to report for school in the next two weeks.

The men introduced themselves, gave testimonies, saying the American National Anthem, and gave financial gifts to the seven people who have been serving them so well on the trip
      Theopista COOK
      Joanne ASSISTANT COOK
      Jane CLOTHES WASHING
      Ronald DRIVER
      Frank HEAD TEACHER
      Annet DIRECTOR
      Lawrence CONSTRUCTION FOREMAN

Then the children took over and presented two hours of singing and dancing. Near the end they even got all of the men up dancing. Some of them were even forced to wear grass skirts.

__________________________________


Janell here now - when I woke up this morning, there were about 100 images/videos on the WhatsApp feed.  I am going to share a few of them here, so that you can get an feel for the excitement of the people at Royal School International.  The order of events may not be correct, but at least you will get an idea of how the morning went for the Team.

The Mountain Lake Men sharing their thanks

Thanking the carpenters the Team worked with while at Royal School International

Prayer for the Ugandan Workers

Josiah received two marriage proposals.  He turned them down cause he was only said to be worth three cows.  😄

The new Mayor in Lwanasanga!

Prayer Over the Special Assembly

Mountain Lake Men Singing the National Anthem


Shall We Sing with the Band

Thanking Annet

Royal School International Anthem

The Mountain Lake Men made about 20 of these tables and two stools, so that each teacher could have one in their residence as well as one in their classroom.

Giving name, rank and serial number is about all these quiet men will give.  😀

The Naming of the Auditorium, "Alliance Hall"

Mike Nelson

Thanking Lawrence

Mountain Lake Men Singing "How Great Thou Art"

Royal School Orchestra.  Hey, all you really need are drums, right?

Teachers hiding in the back during the three hour program.  😀

Head Teacher, Frank

What an incredible blessing to have this auditorium. 
It was a cloudy morning, threatening rain, but we did not worry. 
The performers were so excited to have a stage.

We enjoyed traditional dances from many of the different tribes, of which Uganda has 52.

Dance 1

Dance 2

Dance 3

Dance 4

Watch Mayor Mike Dance

All the Men Dance Now!

Dance 5

Goodby Song

Teaches 4 year olds

Teaches 3 year olds

Thanks to Dennis & Lynda Blade and Friends for the new merry-go-round

Baby Class floor being poured.  There was a comment made on the WhatsApp feed that there was a study done in Kenya and they discovered that cementing a floor reduced the incidences of sickness and disease by 30%.

Teaches 3rd Grade

Students make the brooms.  They sell them to pay their school fees.

FYI - Dan said in the WhatsApp feed that two of the Royal School board members, Dennis Blake and Chris Heino, are both board members at the Nowthen Alliance Church in Anoka, Minnesota. 

What Friday and Saturday Hold for the Team

As the Team finishes up their time at Royal School International. let's pray for a blessed time for them all.  Here is a little of what will be happening:

Friday - A Big Day for the Team
      8:30 am - there is an all school assembly in the NEW Auditorium.  The Team will give testimonies and sing.  The kids have planned over one hour of singing and dancing for the Team.

    11:30 am - Lunch, after which the Team will be leaving Royal School International and heading to Kampala. 

      7:00 pm - Mountain Lake Men's Appreciation Banquet

Saturday - The Team will have time to tour the Uganda Museum; go to the National Theatre Courtyard, where local artisans sell their handmade items; head to Entebbe, where the airport is located; and before going to the airport, they will enjoy pizza together on the banks of Lake Victoria.  Their flight will be leaving Entebbe at 11:30 pm (2:30 pm CT).

Let's keep them in our prayers!

Work Tour Continued

As the Team is starting their last day at Royal International School, I am getting more images of the work that has been completed these last two weeks.  Come along and see what God has done.

Here are a couple of videos of the outside of the auditorium - video 1 and video 2

Head Teacher, Frank, has 10 years of experience.

Shelves for the future library/computer center

View a video of Frank's work space and the library/computer center

This double room served as the auditorium until now

Come and see what a class is like as they study for the National Exam

Trying to divert the water

Birds Nesting 

Putting in New Floors

New Retaining Wall and Walkway

It has rained for the last four days- THIS IS A MIRACLE, which means that the tanks are half full. We are in dry season until April. Someone asked Dan how to improve the water situation.  Here is Dan's reply:

"Two years ago, Dennis Blake raised $25,000 for water.  Sadly, all five wells drilled to 300 feet came up empty.  We also made two 60,000 liter concrete cisterns/reservoirs and put gutters on all lower campus buildings.  We had enough water last year, but with this severe drought, our crops died for lack of water.  Luckily, the kids were on holiday til Monday.  We still spend $250 on three trucks, which brought water for construction.

We need another large reservoir on the upper campus near the girls dorm.  But, it requires a large investment:  $6,000 - underground reservoir, $1,500 - gutters and downspouts, $1,000 - tall tank stand, $1,000 - large tank for stand, and $500 - pump.  $10,000 Total.  WATER IS LIFE!  Pray we find a way!"