Merchandise

We still have a selection of ZOC T-shirts and Polo/Golf shirts which are a great way to advertise the work and give you an opportunity to talk to others about what you are involved with. Email alanl@zimorphancare.org to check if your preferred colour and size is available. T-shirts are £10 and polo/golf shirts are £15 each.

Container Shipment

We are planning to ship a full 40ft container from Newtownards in Northern Ireland to Harare at the end of September. The container will be loaded from 26th – 29thSeptember and then shipped directly to Jabulani. We are looking for all to partner with us to ensure we fill this container with baby goods, food etc and a separate email will be circulated in the next few days with a full list of what we are looking for. Thank you in advance for your help in this and we know God will richly bless you for it. For more details please email alanl@zimorphancare.org

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends, We pray you are well and enjoying Jesus our wonderful Saviour! July has been a very packed month with teams visiting and lots of different things happening at Jabulani! Here are a few of the highlights:-

Teams from Belfast, N.Ireland and Bakersfield, California have been a true blessing to everyone here, they all had a great work ethic and of course fell in love with our children and the land of Zimbabwe! We thank God for the impact they made in all our schools also, over 25000 children were reached with the Gospel and many hearts and lives changed. Praise God! At the moment we have Emma Jayne from Ireland and Leah from USA here working with us at Jabulani and of course Matt and Adele who have only 2 weeks left from their 5 month stay…what a blessing they have been! We don’t know what we are going to do when they leave, we thank God for their love and selfless service to all at Jabulani.

We were of course elated to have little Calvin come to stay with us but he was very seriously ill and after just 8 days he passed away in hospital. This was a major blow to all at Jabulani, much love was poured into his short life and we hold on to the promise that we shall see Calvin again. Thank you to all who sent messages of sympathy, they were much appreciated in a very traumatised household.

The children are growing day by day, Kuda is in good health and has a healthy appetite! She is aware when it is food time and cries when it is not on time! Please pray that God would touch her body,she can see shadows but if her sight improved it would help her with her daily frustrations. She is gaining weight and loves to dance in her special chair to her music, she has great moves!

Grace, Hope and Blessing have started playschool in a friends place close by Jabulani, they go 3 mornings per week with Samuel our own pre school teacher and are gaining greatly from meeting other children. They are of course the most clever girls in the school, not to mention the prettiest also! But I would say that would,nt I? All 3 girls love to dance to Boogie Beebies and watch Balamory and Peppa Pig, full of energy and food they run around all day long…its tiring to watch! We attended their 1st sports day last week and Hope won a race and was runner-up in two others, Grace and Blessing enjoyed the scenery more than the races! Please continue to pray for these special girls, they pray and sing about the Lord every day, they are very clever and get on well together…well most of the time!

Daniel and Joseph are growing in every area of their lives, they talk well, and are forming sentences. They love to play in the pool, even though it is winter time and very cold, they attend Jabulani pre school every afternoon and are learning, they have huge appetites and eat just about anything! Potty training is ongoing and the boys are full of life, they are a great blessing to all.

The staff continue to work well while trusting the Lord, there is good unity and Shelter and Mel have now been promoted to asst Managers working alongside Dorothy, they are great young ladies with a great love for the children and a desire to see Jabulani prosper in every way. Kuda is on attachment with her 6 month nursing course, she is training at St Giles in Harare and doing well, she has passed all her exams and will be back with us at Jabulani in Oct, she will be a real blessing. We issued new uniforms to the staff last week and they were excited, they all look wonderful and we also celebrated some birthdays in the usual Jabulani way!

We want to thank you all for your prayers and support, we can not do this work without you! Some friends have been asking about us sending another container from Ireland to Jabulani/ Zimbabwe Orphan Care and we are in the process of organising this. You will receive information of what is being sent, and if you can help us fill this container we would be delighted, Alan Lowry our ZOC Chairman will be sending e-mails and also post online at www. zimorphancare.org all the proposed goods we hope to ship. Thank you dear friends for all your generosity toward this great work, may the Lord bless you abundantly. We are praying for you every day and appreciate your prayers for us!

Yours for the Children,

Alan and Dorothy

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Merchandise

Spring has arrived and just in time to order your ZOC T-shirts and Polo Shirts for those longer evenings walking in the park. You can email me on alanl@zimorphancare.org to check stocks. Special offer this moth only for ‘hoodies’ in stock are only £15 each.

Upcoming events

I am aware there are a lot of ongoing activities and fundraising planned for 2011 so please ensure you tell us what is happening so we can let others know. We are also establishing a sponsorship and educational trust for all the children individually and would love you to commit to a monthly contribution towards this. More details to follow soon.

Marathon Runners

Gladys Ganiel is planning to run the London Marathon for ZOC again this year. Please log onto http://www.justgiving.com/Gladys-Ganiel to sponsor Gladys and encourage her as she prepares and trains for her run.

After the marathon success Dorothy Graham had last year she is now planning to run a ‘super marathon’ at the end of April is Cape Town, South Africa. More details and sponsorship opportunities to follow next month.

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends, Greetings from a sunny, hot Zimbabwe! We thank you for your prayers and financial support for  our work among the precious children  at Jabulani, we have had a very busy and eventful few months and want to share with you the wonderful things God has been doing among us.

We celebrated Blessings 2nd birthday on 15 January 2011 and enjoyed cake, games and much laughter,  ( see photos ) Blessing is doing so well, she is talking and full of life, always jumping and running and a little bossy boots with her sisters, she is still shy around strangers but is growing in every area of her life, she is a real blessing! If you remember we asked you to pray for her legs which were very bowed and her feet out of shape, well we thank you and praise God her legs have straightened and she has no problems now!

Grace is now living in one of our new houses under the care of Florence, ( now called Grace House! ) she is very happy  and contented, she is exceptionally clever, a great singer and can count to 10, knows all her colours and lots of nursery rhymes, she keeps all the girls in check and loves to dress up, every Sunday she has her sunglasses and bag on show as she makes her grand entrance at Church! What a girl, she talks to everyone and is very sociable, she orders a “ strawberry milkshake please “ at restaurants  with great confidence and is always laughing, she is very lovable and invites the other girls to visit her at “ my house “!

Hope has also moved into the other new house, ( now called Hope House! )  she was always crying and seemed in need of more personal attention, so we moved her in with Grace but found  that Grace was talking for her and she was very quiet, so we moved her to Hope House and she has blossomed like a rose, she is under the care of Tellmore and Samuel who have showered love and  care into her life. Hope is now talking, laughing, running and is a very exciting child, she still has her moments but is much more secure and happy praise God!  She loves to sing and paint at preschool and is great friends with Blessing, please continue to pray for Hope.

Kuda is growing very quickly! She is a very happy little girl and is laughing and moving very well, her physio is very happy with Kudas progress and while she still has many medical issues she can now roll around and clap her hands when we play music, she loves to be loved and kissed, she is very happy when in someone’s arms, although she is getting heavy now! We have given Kuda her very own room where she has her CP equipment and have painted, decorated and got her a new big bed so she is very happy. All the carers are exceptional in their work with Kuda and she would not be where she is today without them.

Daniel is growing and eating everything put in front of him ( and also food belonging to anyone else! ) and is now running and jumping, and shouting all over the grounds, he loves cars and footballs and is a very happy little boy, he and Joseph are very good friends and do everything together, Joseph is also getting bigger and brighter, he also has a good appetite and they both talk in their own language to each other. They have their own boys room and  play with their toys very well together, they seem to be a little in awe of the girls? but I am sure that will change in the days ahead!

Christine who was our manager at Jabulani since we opened has resigned and moved  into a new role with her Church, Dorothy is now interim Manager and the supervisors at Jabulani are working very closely with her  and doing a great job. Samuel  ( former teacher and now our playschool leader ) has the 3 girls, all over 2 years old, every morning in playschool and has them in a good routine where they play and learn together, he is also learning to drive so he can do all the running around and relieve some of the pressure off  Alan!  We have Matt and Adele Corke  coming to work at Jabulani for 4 months at end of March, we are very excited about them coming and know they will be blessed and be a blessing, pray God will use them greatly.

We have built a path round the garden and the girls are walking their dollies and prams around the grounds and love being pushed on their bicycles! This will be  a real blessing for years to come. We had some friends from Lynwood Church in Perth, Australia work with us for 3 weeks and built a fence and some toilets for the children ( see photos ), what a great job they did, the children are very excited and need to “go” about 10 times a day! Thank God for their generosity in supplying and working  so hard to finish these great facilities.

Please continue to pray for our registration with  Social Welfare, we visit with them every week and still no further on than we were 18 months ago! It is very frustrating as we are fully ready for more babies, in fact we are looking after a little girl, Esther, at the moment as a stop gap before she moves to a registered home, please pray this registration will come very soon and we can fill the place with more babies!

We are grateful for all your interest in this great work, we pray Gods blessing upon you in every way, keep praying for us all at Jabulani as we pray for you!

Yours for the Children,

Alan and Dorothy

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Merchandise

Not that the cold weather is upon us be sure to order your ZOC hoodies to keep you warm throughout the winter – you can email me onalanl@zimorphancare.org to check stocks. Special offer this moth only for ‘hoodies’ in stock are only £15 each !!

Upcoming events

I am aware there are a lot of ongoing activities and fundraising planned for 2011 so please ensure you tell us what is happening so we can let others know. We are also establishing a sponsorship and educational trust for all the children individually and would love you to commit to a monthly contribution towards this. More details to follow soon.

Marathon Runners

Gladys Ganiel is planning to run the London Marathon for ZOC again this year. Please log onto http://www.justgiving.com/Gladys-Ganiel to sponsor Gladys and encourage her as she prepares and trains for her run.

After the marathon success Dorothy Graham had last year she is now planning to run a ‘super marathon’ at the end of April is Cape Town, South Africa. More details and sponsorship opportunities to follow next month.

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends, Greetings from a hot and wet Zimbabwe. Jabulani sends much gratitude and a Happy New Year to all our friends who have prayed and supported this ministry over the past year 2010, we are very grateful to you and God for your generosity and kindness to us which has enabled us give the 6 children a wonderful happy home and environment where they are growing and thriving.

All the children have gained weight over Christmas , a party and presents were the highlights and the children were very excited and blessed, the Jabulani staff were also treated to lots of holiday fare and feasted for a few days! Thank you to those who sent presents for the children and for those who contributed in any way to giving our children a very blessed time.

Kuda and Hope celebrated their 3rd and 2nd birthdays respectively in November and little Blessing, who lives up to her name, was 2 last week, as always cake and candles and sweets were the order of the day and we had a great time celebrating together. Log onto the site athttp://www.zimorphancare.org/photos/ to see all the latest pictures of the children.

The grounds are looking wonderful and Teri and Joshua have done a tremendous job, all the grass has grown over the building site and the chickens continue to bless the children and staff with tasty food! All the staff are working for the benefit of the children and doing a great job, their love for the children is very evident and they bless the children in many ways. Samuel has started work with us in the playschool, he is a school teacher who has just completed a 3 month playschool course and is now actively working and teaching the children every morning, they love it! Pray for Samuel that he will be a real blessing and help the children on the road to be all God wants them to be.

Our friends Alison, Tessa and Emma Jayne who were with us for 6 months and worked very hard in Jabulani have now returned back home, we miss them and pray God’s blessing on them and their future service for God wherever that may be, they were much loved by the children and are missed!

Thank you again for your love to Jabulani and for your prayers for all that is happening there, we will be sending you some information soon regarding sponsorship for the children to help us establish an educational trust for each child, please pray and see if God would have you be involved in this great venture. God bless you again throughout this 2011.

Yours for the Children,

Alan and Dorothy

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Merchandise

Not that the cold weather is upon us be sure to order your ZOC hoodies to keep you warm throughout the winter – you can email me on alanl@zimorphancare.org to check stocks. Special offer this moth only for ‘hoodies’ in stock are only £15 each !!

Upcoming events

We are still in planning stages for a concert in 2011 and will circulate more details once we have them – also a date for the diary is 12th December in Ardstraw for a fund raining gospel concert – more details soon. If you are planning anything for ZOC be sure to let us know so we can circulate the details

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends of Jabulani, we greet you from a very hot springtime in Zimbabwe. We thank God for the past month where we have seen great things happen and the children growing and flourishing in every way.

Our children  have all gained weight this month, We have had the team from Dungiven here and they were such a blessing in so many ways, after a cautious start the children gained confidence with Mark, Keith and Cynthia and became good friends! They brought a lot of new clothes for the children which friends in Dungiven Presbyterian church  donated and there was much excitement as the girls especially had a fashion parade! They so love dressing up and hearing how beautiful they are! There were vests and pants also which is a great blessing as the girls are all potty training, they are doing well and progressing with the usual accidents from time to time but we are trusting they become nappy free soon!

Kuda is laughing and giggling away and has a great peace about her at the moment, we are still praying that one touch from the King can change everything in dear Kudas life, she is getting noisier  and louder day by day which is a great encouragement to us all.

Joseph is up and walking everywhere, he is also a very good talker and copies everything the others say!  He is a very happy boy and into everything!

Daniel is also running about and is very close to Florence his care worker, she is very committed to him and protective of him, he runs to her at every occasion and walks around holding her hand, he is a sweet big boy who is quite sensitive but laughs a lot!

Blessing is a little treasure, she and Hope are big friends , they sleep in the same room and are always up to something, they both love playing with dollies and Blessing is a serious book reader! She loves animals and she and Hope can recognize and name the pictures in their books, very clever girls indeed!

Grace is also a great reader and knows everything! She is now bossing Daddy and Mummy about  and is very keen  on Daddy getting her ice cream and chips and sweets and whatever else she fancies! I have to say Daddy is very quick to meet her needs! She is a very sociable little girl, always smiling and singing, and oh yes , she loves her Daddy! I wonder why?

The chicken project is going well, we are now selling half the chickens ie around 45 to a restaurant and getting enough money to buy another batch of 100 and their food etc which gives us the other 45 chickens to eat at Jabulani each month, there is now a waiting list for extra chickens!

We have been chasing after our registration  from Social Welfare for over 12 months now and  we ask you to pray very much about this matter, we cant get any more children ( remember we want another  10 babies ) til we have our registration, someone has moved our files and we just found out that our application needed some alterations  but no one told us! This is ongoing from August and we only found out today please pray this will happen soon, we are totally ready and willing for more babies and many are dying every day, may God break in and enable us to get registration soon.

We thank you all for your prayers and financial commitment to Zimbabwe Orphan Care and Jabulani, we cannot do this work without you, you are helping children live a life they never could have dreamed off, God bless you dear friends and keep on doing what you are doing!

Yours for the Children,

Alan and Dorothy

PS our friend Kerrie from Ballynahinch did not make her trip here in early Sept as Air Zimbabwe went on strike, we really missed having her here, hopefully she will be here in early 2011, pray also for a team from Cornerstone in the Walled City who arrive ( Air Zimbabwe permitting! ) on 5th Oct.

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

We are delighted that Dorothy Graham is running the Victoria Falls Marathon to raise funds for ZOC. Dorothy has been in training while Alan watches on (!!) and she is hoping to raise lots of money for ZOC. You can sponsor Dorothy online at http://www.justgiving.com/Dorothy-Graham and she would really appreciate your donations and support for her.

Merchandise

With the summer upon us we are promoting our ZOC merchandise t-shirts which are continuing to sell well. We also now have large quantities of and Golf (Polo) Shirts available. Pictures of these are on the website. Please do contact me if you would like to purchase any of these items to help raise the profile of the work and also your street cred

Planned events

We have a bag packing in ASDA Strabane on Saturday 28th August and we would be delighted if you where available to help out at that. Please contact me if you are available and I will pass on the details to Sharon Smyth who is organising the event.

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends, we pray you are well and enjoying our lovely Lord Jesus, the winter is over and it is sitting at 28c today, we have had a relatively mild winter and the children have generally been in good health Praise God. We have had a great month of development with all the children, they have all gained weight and are eating very well. We had our daughter Mandy here with us for 5 weeks with her family and she was a great help with Christine in reviewing the diets and nutrition, to see the children thriving is proof that all is working! Our grandchildren Daniel and Lois were such a blessing to all at Jabulani, they played and helped the children with their games and in reading and telling stories to them, what a blessing to have our family involved with these precious new family members!

Kuda is getting longer by the day, she is much more vocal and is shouting a lot! She loves to be nursed and kissed and cuddled, what a blessing she is to everyone.

Grace is the boss, a very clever child she can speak very well, she loves to look at books and hear stories, she is happiest in the playroom where she keeps busy drawing on the whiteboard and making tea! she comes and stays with us in our house every week now and loves going to shops and restaurants, she loves ice cream! Grace is a lovely mannered girl who is a joy to be with and very affectionate with everyone. Grace has moved with Florence one of our Senior Care Workers into one of the new houses and is sleeping on a bed now, pray she will be happy there.

Hope is also growing big, she loves food and is a very pretty child, she is not keen on strangers or new things, she is very happy in a routine she knows and has a habit of crying…very loudly…when things are not just right for her! She is a great runner and loves to race around the playpark with her pram and dolly! She and Blessing share a room together and have great fun as they take off all their clothes and shoes and socks…just for the fun of it!

Blessing is running around and talking a little more, she is very soft spoken and a sometimes serious child but very loving also, she loves her Daddy! We mentioned the problem with her feet and legs and have had those checked, she has no instep so we will need to put something in her shoes to help her and her legs have also been twisted a little before she came to us but the Doctor thinks they should straighten out, please pray they will and she can run around like everyone else. She is a girl who loves little babies and dollies and also someone who starts most of the fights!

Daniel continues to grow, he eats like a horse! He loves to be outside playing and is always pushing the girls down because of his size, but they are learning to push back, he and all the other children got new shoes that Mandy brought out and he loves to walk in these shoes, he won’t take them off! He is walking well and still learning to talk, pray his speech will develop in the days ahead, he has a lovely smile and can be quite shy at times.

Joseph was 1 year old today! Praise God! He is a lovely boy, standing by himself now he will be walking soon, he eats well and has a loud voice, he loves everyone and is very attached to the staff, we had a great party today for Joseph, he is a miracle boy as all the children are, pray he will grow big and strong and be a blessing to all. You can view the photos online at www.zimorphancare.org

The staff are all working so well to help Jabulani to function, Christine has gone back to UK for a break and she has done such a great job that the place keeps running efficiently and well, Dorothy is overseeing everything and getting all the food etc that’s needed but really the ladies are doing a wonderful job. Bibianna who is one of our Senior care workers is having a baby in September and will be going on leave, so we have brought in a new worker call Thandi and she is doing well as she learns things the Jabulani way! The gardens are looking great, we started the chicken project and have lost 10 out of the 100 chicks but they are big and will be ready for eating next week! We got another 100 chicks last week and they are doing well and will be ready in 5 weeks also, we will be selling around 40 of the chickens which will enable us to buy new chicks and food for them while we eat the other 60 each month! Pray they will all be healthy as this is a great money saving scheme for Jabulani along with the vegetables etc we are growing for ourselves we will soon be quite self sufficient!

We thank all who pray and support Jabulani in any and every way, you are a blessing to us and all who are involved with these precious children, we together are saving lives and giving children a hope and a future, we have still not received our registration so we can have 10 more children BUT GOD KNOWS, He is sovereign and in control and He will bring us the babies at the right time, our trust is in Him! We will be saying goodbye to Allison from N. Ireland in a few weeks and she has been a real blessing to us all, a very keen and eager worker who loves the Lord and the babies she has done a great job and we will miss her! Emma Jayne and Tessa are still with us for another few months and they have settled in well and are a great benefit to the work, happy and energetic and desiring to help the children Praise God for their service of love.

We have 2 teams from Dungiven Presbyterian Church and Cornerstone L/Derry coming in Sept and October and Kerrie from Ballynahinch coming for her 2nd trip this year! Pray they will have a great time, that they will be blessed and be a blessing, what a pleasure to have friends visit! We know the children will be richer from the experience of meeting these dear servants of God!

Dorothy and I are well, we are stretched on every side but pushing on by Gods grace, we had a wonderful time with the family and now they are gone the house is empty but our children at Jabulani more than make up for them, pray for us and all the great work here, we love and appreciate you in Jesus Name.

Your Servants,

Alan and Dorothy

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Jabulani Site

The 2 extra homes on the same site in Harare are completed. We have managed, with your help and donations, to construct, pay for and furnish both these properties and also a new dwelling for the staff as well. Please see the website www.zimorphancare.org for all the latest pictures.

Zimbabwe Marathon

We are delighted that Dorothy Graham is running the Victoria Falls Marathon to raise funds for ZOC. Dorothy has been in training while Alan watches on (!!) and she is hoping to raise lots of money for ZOC. You can sponsor Dorothy online at http://www.justgiving.com/Dorothy-Graham and she would really appreciate your donations and support for her.

Merchandise

With the summer upon us we are promoting our ZOC merchandise t-shirts which are continuing to sell well. We also now have large quantities of and Golf (Polo) Shirts available. Pictures of these are on the website. Please do contact me if you would like to purchase any of these items to help raise the profile of the work and also your street cred !!

Container Shipment

Our last container from Ireland eventually arrived into Zimbabwe in May 2010. There was much needed foodstuff, furniture for the homes and other necessities which are not currently available in Africa, and we are thankful for safety and favour with the customs officials.
Planned events

We have been holding some recent events such as coffee mornings and BBQ over the last few months, and are hoping to arrange some bigger fundraising projects for later in 2010 and into 2011. if you would like to get involved with these events please contact me as we always could do with extra help.

Update from Alan & Dorothy in Harare

Dear Friends, we pray you are well and enjoying Jesus! It has been an eventful month at Jabulani and we have known God’s blessing in so many ways. Here are some of the highlights.

We have started a chicken project and built a chicken coop ( see attached photo ) thanks to our friends at City Church Grimsby for helping us in the building, we are buying 100 day old chicks and then feeding them for 6 weeks before eating them! This will safe us a lot of money, we will sell 25 of the chickens and that money will help us buy food for the next hundred chicks in 3 weeks time, and so the cycle goes. Please pray that we will avoid sickness and disease with the chickens and that they will fatten up nicely for us!

Some friends from Lurgan in N. Ireland have also built a Jungle Jim for the children in their playground, this will be a blessing for years to come. Our gardeners have also planted carrots, potatoes, onions, peppers and tomatoes and we pray we will have some electricity to power our borehole and water these vegetables enabling us to become as self sufficient as possible, this is our goal in the days ahead. The grounds are looking great even though this is our winter time and there is no rain and it’s a bit cold, average day temps are 21c/71f and night time 11c/ 50f so all the children are in their winter woolies and hats and scarves, its very funny seeing them waddling around!

Grace had her 2nd birthday on 3rd July and we had a great party, she got a big dolly as a present and is busy dressing and undressing her every day, Daniel was 1 year old on 16th July and again a great party was held to celebrate this very important event. Daniel was brought to us as an 8 hour old baby last year and he has developed into a really big happy boy! A life saved! Hallelujah! God is great, he started walking a few weeks ago and is very agile, he is bigger than all the girls already! He has huge hands and feet so we think he is going to be a giant! Always the first to eat and the first to finish! Hallelujah!

The girls are all talking very well, Blessing of course copying everything the 2 big sisters say, Grace is the leader and a real little bossy boots telling everyone where to sit and how to behave, what a joy they are. All the children with the exception of Kuda gained weight again this month praise God and we would ask you to pray for dear Kuda, she is very long and lean and we want her to gain weight, she is happy and contented but needs to gain some weight, please pray for her. Hope is her usual self and gaining confidence every day, she is in awe of grace and they are best friends! Joseph is now walking round the furniture and will be up and running before his birthday on 2 August, they all get on quite well with a few arguments along the way but we are so grateful to our God for the privilege of being involved in these children’s lives.

Christine and all the staff are well, they are so good with the children, we thank god for them, we also have Allison and Emma Jayne from N. Ireland and Tessa from California with us for 6 months each and they are doing a wonderful job, and have settled well, pray for them as they serve the Lord with us.

We appreciate all of you who pray and support this great work financially, without you we cannot do all the things we need to do as we train our children in the way God would have them to go, God bless you!

Yours for the Children,

Alan and Dorothy

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Fund Raising

Over the last couple of months we have had a great amount of fundraising going on all over the world ! I wouldn’t be able to name everyone involved but special mention has to be given to Glady’s and Gavin who completed the London Marathon in record times, also to David Watson and his family who completed the Belfast Marathon, and Tim Shiels who ran 170 miles over 6 days from Derry to Dublin.

They all used Just Giving which is a great way to controlling your fundraising efforts. Please feel free to continue to support them for their great work. Word has it that Dorothy is in training to complete the Victoria Falls Marathon in Zimbabwe later this year. More on that soon!! Please continue to fundraise in any way you feel practical with the knowledge that 100% of all money raised goes straight to the work in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe Forgotten Children

Many of you saw this ‘covert’ documentary when it was shown on UK television last month, however if you didn’t manage to see it I now have copies on DVD. Please email me on alanl@zimorphancare.org and I will send one to you. It shows the lives of 3 children, ruined by the current regime, and how their everyday life is as they struggle to survive and eat. It will allow you to better understand that the work God has called us to is really making a difference in Zimbabwe.

Date for your diary

For those residing in Northern Ireland, I Caroline and I are planning to host our annual charity fundraising BBQ at our house, 2A Killaughey Road South, Millisle, Co Down, BT22 2DY on Saturday 12th June from 12 noon until 5pm. Please put the date in your diary and plan to join us for what is sure to be a great day.
Container Arrived

At long last the container which was shipped last February has arrived into Zimbabwe this week. I spoke with Alan earlier today and there were 10 of them working to unload it. They are ‘blown away’ by the generosity and kindness that has been shown and how God has touched people’s lives to encourage them to give in this way.

Some boxes were damaged so we pray everything will be Ok when it is unpacked this week. Thanks to everyone who gave and also who helped to pack and load the shipment. Pictures are on our website: http://www.zimorphancare.org/photos

Jabulani Update (from Alan & Dorothy)

Dear Friends, how are you all? We have not been in touch for a while due to my computer breakdown and the loss of all my e mail addresses…but we are back now!

Thank you for your continuing prayer for Jabulani and the precious children there, we have seen lots of changes these past few months and want to share with you about:-

Kuda… she is 3 years old in November and has really grown, she is very long and gaining a little weight, her Cerebral Palsy hampers her in so many ways but she is a very happy girl who is receiving physio every day and is very supple praise God, she is making noise and smiles a lot, pray God will touch her eyes and enable her to see better which would really help her. We have Emma Busby from Lisburn with us for a month and she is a physio who is helping our staff and Kuda herself, we thank God for her and her willingness and desire to serve God among us.

Grace… is 2 years old in July and a proper little lady, she can talk and sing and laugh and run and jump and shout all at the same time! a very clever girl she is very active and very tender hearted, she leads her sisters in many ways and they follow her everywhere, she is very healthy and a total blessing to everyone!

Hope… is 2 in November and also growing very tall, she is the dancer and song leader of the bunch, always in the thick of things and after lots of crying and squealing has settled down to be a loving child, she is big friends with Blessing which means they fight a lot!

Blessing… is just 16 months but is walking and talking and mimicking her sisters, a very happy girl she like the rest is never happier than when she is eating! Please pray for Blessing as she is struggling with her feet, she was totally malnourished when we found her and has not developed as we hoped, she is going to see a specialist soon, pray she will not have to go to South Africa but that her feet will develop normally and she will not need to go to hospital again.

Daniel… is 1 year old in July and is a big noisy boy! He is always hungry, has a few teeth now and is crawling everywhere, he tries to impose his will on the girls but they gang up on him which does not amuse him at all, he has had problems with his feet and been wearing special boots at nights but we pray God has touched his feet and healed him and that he will walk with no problems soon.

Joseph… is 1 year old in August and is a quiet and contented little boy who always has a smile on his face! Joseph is crawling also and eats well, he is happy playing by himself and enjoys noisy toys!

All our staff are doing a fantastic job, they go above and beyond what is necessary and are always working around Jabulani whether they are on duty or not, we thank God for them all, Christine the Supervisor / Manager of Jabulani is doing a wonderful job of training the staff and the home is functioning well.

The new accommodation will be finished next week completely, the builders, plumbers, electricians etc have done a great job and we have a property which is outstanding in its field here in Zimbabwe. We are eagerly awaiting our container which was sent from Ireland a few months ago, there is a lot of stuff on the container which will help us to equip the new buildings out to a very high standard.

Thank you for all those who sent food, clothes etc along with lots of baby needs, these goods will be such a blessing to the work at Jabulani. Thank you to everyone who is contributing financially to the ongoing work at Jabulani, we cannot do this without you! Your gifts and regular giving are enabling us to give these precious children a real life and a future, the cost of living continues to rise BUT GOD is helping us and meeting our needs on a daily basis. If you would like to help us in any way whether financially or physically then please go to www.zimorphancare.org and you will find lots of info there. God bless you, we would love to hear from you.

We have 2 young ladies coming in June for 6 months with us at Jabulani, Emma Jayne is from Dromore, N. Ireland and Natessa is from California, USA, pray God will make them a real blessing and that their own lives will be enriched by the whole Zimbabwe experience. Keep in touch , we would love to hear from you.

That’s all for this month. Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

The 2 extra homes we are building on the same site in Harare are now almost completed. Please see the website www.zimorphancare.org for all the latest pictures. The escalating costs have been met to date, however we still need your prayers and support to ensure we can cover for all the extra work we had to do in order to make these homes ready as quickly as possible, before the prices went up again.
London Marathon

We are delighted that Gladys Ganiel and Gavin McBride from Belfast are running the London Marathon to raise funds for ZOC. Gladys ran it last year in a superb time and together we hope they will raise plenty of money. Please visit http://www.justgiving.com/GladysandGavin to support them in their venture

Zimbabwe Visit

Next Thursday, 25th March, I will be travelling with my wife Caroline and our two daughters to Harare to spend 10 days working with Alan & Dorothy and the team in Jabulani. Having been involved since the conception of the work there almost 2 years ago, I felt it important for my family to all see the work that has been accomplished as they have been such as important part of it all. I look forward to sharing the stories and pictures with many of you when we return.
Merchandise

Our ZOC merchandise continues to sell well and we have only a limited number of hoodie’s (sweatshirts) for the 2009/10 season left. If you would like one please do contact me ASAP. We also now have large quantities of T-shirts and Golf (Polo) Shirts available. Pictures of these are on the website. Please do contact me if you would like to purchase any of these items.

Container Shipment

Our latest container from Ireland is due to arrive in Zimbabwe in April. There is much needed foodstuff and other necessities which are not currently available in Africa and we pray for safety and favour with the customs officials as the goods arrive.

Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org

Container Shipment

We sent our latest container to Zimbabwe just last Saturday (20th Feb) and were once again overwhelmed by the exceeding generosity of friends and supporters from local churches, too many to mention. This shipment contained many necessities not available in Harare including food, clothes, furniture, prams and toys for the babies and children. Thanks to the team who came to load and pack the goods. We anticipate this will be our last shipment for some time as shipping costs have escalated so we are going to source via other routes. We want to thank everyone for their giving to this ministry over the last 2 years.

Merchandise

Our ZOC merchandise continues to sell well and we have only a limited number of hoodie’s (sweatshirts) for the 2009/10 season left. If you would like one please do contact me ASAP. We also now have large quantities of T-shirts and Golf (Polo) Shirts available. Pictures of these are on the website. Please do contact me if you would like to purchase any of these items.

Accounts

As we mentioned at our ‘Night to Remember’, we are about the publish our first set of annual accounts which will be available on the website once they have been audited. Our thanks to David Watson and Ruth for their great help in getting these completed and their work on our gift aid reclaim as well.

Update direct from Alan & Dorothy in Zimbabwe

Dear Friends, we greet you from a very hot summer here in Harare, the temps are up in the 90f range all day and night, its very tiring and sticky but we are not complaining.

These past few weeks have seen lots of work and development around Jabulani and we want to bring you up to date and see how God is answering your prayers! The new family units are progressing very well and we hope to have the buildings finished by Easter. The latest pictures of these can be viewed on www.zimorphancare.org. The houses are great, roomy and spacious and the bedrooms will be wonderful for the children, we hope to have 2 ladies living on the premises full time and then children in the other 2 bedrooms, Praise God the workmanship is very good and the builders are enjoying getting the units ready for the children yet to be born! Please pray we will be able to source all the necessary beds, suites and all the associated stuff we need to make these units HOMES! We want as you know to provide a hope, a home and a future for these precious children and desire to give them a home for life, to live in peace and safety in Jabulani and enjoy family life in all its fulness.

We have employed another staff member, a young lady called Mel, she is 20 years old and is actually one of Dorothy’s girls who she helped through school years with fees etc, she and Shelter another of our carers are a real blessing to the children and us, we met these girls 10 years ago and its wonderful to have them serving the children with us at Jabulani. Bibianna and Florence along with Shelter are our senior key workers and have great love and ability with the children, we also have Violet, Naomi, Kuda and Summery , Tellmore and Itai who has just had a baby girl herself! who do a wonderful job. We are blessed to have Christine our friend from Rotherham, England here as the Jabulani manager, she is highly qualified and has tremendous ability and love for the children and staff, she has been training the staff in all areas of childcare and development and equipping them for the next batch of children we hope to get this year. Pray for unity and the blessing and love of God to fill all their hearts, they are great servants.

We have been continually visiting Social Welfare re our registration and Private Voluntary Organisation status, this process takes forever with millions of forms and meetings to attend, fingerprints taken for all the board members and a multitude of other things which are very wearying BUT we press on! We believe God has called us to do this great venture of faith and know He will go before us and make the way straight, pray for favour with all the relevant authorities and that they will grant us more children, there are many other people waiting on these certificates and registration also, so it is not only us waiting, pray God will open the door for us in Jesus name. We are ready and equipped for more children to come and in Gods time they will.

Now to update you on the babies…the reason for all of the above!

Kuda is now 2 years and 3 months, is gaining weight and has grown hugely these past few months, as you know she has cerebral palsy and has lots of health issues but is a very happy and contented young lady, she loves to hear music and singing and is always smiling and laughing out loud, what a joy and privelage to have Kuda with us.

Grace is now 19 months old she is walking and talking, she is extremely clever and has a ready smile for everyone, she thinks a lot and is just a treasure to have around, she loves to sing and dance… a real wee groover!

Hope is 15 months old and is also walkng and talking, she is a happy little girl but has got very clingy and gets upset when outsiders and visitors come to Jabulani, she screams very loudly! we have been praying very much for Hope and she is settling down, please pray for her that she will enjoy the company and be an open and friendly child, once she knows you all is well but at the start she is very dubious!! She has a great appetite and eats well.

Blessing is a miracle, almost dead when we found her she had her 1st birthday party in January and has gained lots of weight, she is crawling, standing and trying to walk although she is still unsteady and a little weak, she calls dada all day long and is a light to everyone she meets, what a Blessing God has given us with her!

Daniel continues to get bigger by the day, he is 8 months now and a big boy! A great eater he is never happier than when his mouth is filled! He is crawling everywhere and is not adverse to pushing the girls away to get what he wants, he has a lovely smile and a welcome for everyone.

Joseph is 6 months now and a little treasure, he can sit up and loves to shout to everyone, a gentle spirit he is a little charmer, he also is a good eater and loves yoghurt!

So we praise and thank God for all he has done and is doing in the lives of these dear children and all at Jabulani, you have also been a real blessing to us, we thank God for your financial gifts and prayers for us all here, we do not take you for granted, you are a great joy and encouragement to us all. Please keep praying, keep giving, the cost of living is rising here every month but we are trusting the God who started this venture to help us and provide all we need, you are part of this great work, we pray you have been encouraged and blessed as you have read this update, God bless you in every way.

Your Servants for the Children,

The JABULANI TEAM and all at Zimbabwe Orphan Care

Help Us To Help You

We are always keen to help when people want to run events for fund raising – please let us know if we can help your event in any way, or publish it on the website.

Best Regards,

Alan Lowry
Chairman
Zimbabwe Orphan Care
+44 (0) 7711 771 563
Email: alanl@zimorphancare.org
Website: www.zimorphancare.org