KEEPING UP THE GOOD WORK

BUILDING MAINTENANCE AND REPAIRS on Testimony House have been going on from time to time over the last 40 years.     The Plot on which the house stands was purchased from the Colonial Government in 1908,   We have believed that the House literally rose out of the ground around 1910 which would make it about 105 years old to-day! But it is possible it was erected a little later, say 1920.    Many Boers from South Africa trekked up to Kenya as from 1908, and settled in what is now Eldoret.    We believe one such family purchased the land on which our Home now stands.    They would have travelled up by ox-mud waggon; a long hard journey.
The house was built from mud; mud dug from the surrounding ground, and baked in bricks by the sun. Once finished it was lightly plastered to give it what still strikes the eye as a substantial and attractive house.     There is no proper foundation. Heavy rocks were laid upon the surface of the ground as 'footings' and the brickwork laid out on a smooth platform of mud.    But now the house has become elderly, and like many of us who have also arrived at that status in life, it needs regular care and attention.     Especially the termites are working hard to give themselves a foothold in the brick work, and take the place over.   Many of the walls are hollow now.      THIS MONTH one of the gable ends of the house became in danger of falling down.
Water had been seeping from the roof into the exterior and even interior walling, and worrying cracks were appearing.    Daryl felt that the time had come to find a Builder who would be willing to tackle the situation.   They are not too happy working on such structures as ours.       Well as you see he found one, and a little team of very 'amazed' builders arrived to 'patch up' our ageing home.
THEY DID A GOOD JOB, and the exterior walls now look as good as new.  But they had to use some light steel bars to strengthen joints and cracks, and then cover the brickwork finally with 'chicken wire' before plastering.     We had to do the same some years back with the front of the house and it has held well, so we are hopeful all will be well on this occasion also.
INTERNALLY the same principle has been followed.     I will include a few photos of the exposed brickwork - apart from cracks we were quite surprised at the good condition of the bricks.


These few views of the original brickwork with the plaster removed
show just a little of the building style used by the man who built it those years ago.  No cement was able to be used. and bricks were laid upon plain mud  in layers.      Such methods of building ARE still to be found today, but not often, and certainly not for such a large construction.  

The Picture to the right is of a building under construction in Rwanda.   Note the surface foundation of rough hewn stone or rock. This is of course a very cheap way of putting up a house, but perhaps not very up to date - on the other hand it can provide a good hundred years of wear and tear, and may still be good for a long time into the future.     I lived in a house in U.K. that was 800 years old.   And Testimony House is well worth taking care of for the future.   A warm, comfortable home, that still speaks to this modern and less enduring generation.       However it is true that Testimony House  will need careful monitoring as the years go by if it is to remain safe and strong enough to endure the task of sheltering and suffering the use of more than 40 people day in and day out into the future.

We had found Jacaranda Cottage, across the road, built at least thirty or more years after Testimony,
to have been less cared for, and in places water from the roof had been seeping into the mud walls without any restraint, so that in places serious reconstruction and even renewal was needed.   Since moving out of the house, we have been able to shore up and strengthen the weaker areas enough to keep it going on a less demanding basis.     We would in some way like to keep it UP rather than ruthlessly pull it down since it has been 'home to more than 150 children since we began to own it in 1975, and many still see it as 'home'.    But it was never an easy house to run since it was never intended to cope with as many occupants, residentialy, as we forced it to do.      THUS we will slowly retool the internal space to provide less demanding facilities that might at the same time assist the ministry of TFH as a whole to assist itself financially.      The OPPORTUNITY to consider this has only just been realised as a very real and possible asset.      Indeed, if it had not been for Stuart and Janet Brown of The Kirkby Trust in England, then a very real chance to expand and improve what we have would have been missed, quite apart from seeing a NEW Home up and running.

THIS IS A PHOTO of Stuart and Janet Brown of Kirkby Trust, taken at another function in the UK, where they donated some 20,000 pounds to assisting the Bradford Cancer Crocus Appeal.    They are, both, two very dear and generous hearted people who both walked quite unexpectedly into our lives here in TFH, and left us with the Gift of a completely new Jacaranda Cottage, and the quite un-thought of chance to use the old 'condemned' premises to provide new life and innovation into the entire work.    Our Thanksgiving for this will take time to fully measure, since the 'benefits' are still dawning upon us, even as the Jacaranda Family of 35 is still, day by day, discovering the joys of their NEW home together.
We had prayed for many years for the opportunity to have a New Jacaranda Cottage; many years!     God's ways of answering are usually very unexpected.    The very ways He has of involving other human beings, part of His Family, is
beyond guessing!    But He arranged for Stuart and Janet
to call in here one day, and put it on their heart to make an offer which was the Answer to our Prayer.    Truly Amazing.
And the Timing was right, and the Answer is beginning to unfold as one beyond our imagination!

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OCTOBER is almost ending.     The Promised 'El Nino' and its deluge of rain, has not so far appeared, though today the weather is very overcast and cool.    AND we need water still.   I personally have not felt too well still; partly the weather, and partly ????    I have continued to feel very fatigued.   My doc is neither sympathetic nor helpful in that he merely says 'You are 75 and should expect to feel older.'    Anyway I feel there is a great benefit in not having a helpful doctor down here, since I am the more thrown back upon my Lord and Master, Himself, the greatest Physician,  I am otherwise in every way well.    I am due to travel up to Nairobi next Friday with Daryl and others to our nieces Wedding on Saturday.    We hope to meet with Steven there as he will be flying in from the U.K on Friday as well, and will then return to Eldoret with us on Monday.     I am not looking forward to the journey there and back, and my Diabetes does not make it easy to travel these days in any case.    I may not decide to go with them all.    Also it might be best for me to remain since if ALL of us go we shall leave no one of substance in Charge of the Work here.     I shall be grateful for your prayer and for the Lord's Guidance in this.

We thank all of you who have prayed for us during this last week, and for all who may have been part of the Answer to our Prayers in relation to our needed Provision for this week.    God Bless you all.

Our love always to you all in Jesus Name,

John, Esther, and Daryl Green