Update on Richard's SECOND Eye Surgery

We just received news that the second eye surgery has gone really well and the follow up checkup revealed that he now has 20/20 vision in one of his eyes - which is a welcomed blessing, as you can all imagine! Thank you for your thoughts and prayers! Please pray for continued healing and that the remainder of their trip will go smoothly!

Again, we will keep you updated!

Update on Richard's Eye Surgery

Richard just called to ask for prayer. He had the first eye surgery on his cataracts this morning and was ill after surgery with upset stomach.

He apparently caught a cold while touring Boston in a trolley on the 4th of July, and is suffering today with congestion and a severe headache. As long as he does not have pain in the eye for the next few days that will be a good sign that all is well and there is no infection.

He undergoes the second eye surgery on Friday the 11th.

Please pray with us for these special needs. We will keep you updated!

Richard & Kathy - on their way home for a visit!

The following is an email we received from Kathy right before their departure from D.R. Congo to the U.S. yesterday:

"Just enough time to send this picture you might enjoy: Richard giving English materials to a group of students coming at the last minute from the ISP, the Teachers' College. Good thing he gave them four tapes and CDs with about 100 different messages, Radio Bible Class, A. Rodgers, Dr Dobson, and Dr Gangle. an English NT, GALCOM radios, and tracts in various languages, to share with any at the University who had need. As it ended, there were about twenty students who straggled by asking for materials for their English assignment. They were quickly satisfied that the resources were already on campus for their research into good pronunciation. Their professor really likes Radio Kahuzi."

And a note from Richard:

Here we are, the night before we leave Bukavu for the States !

Never know if we’re coming or going, with all there is to do to get the radio station and journalists and household, workers (three men who will guard while we’re gone) and animals all taken care of – and for the month of July -- before we leave. I don’t think we’ll go to bed tonight as usual with these long trips!

We just want to thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, for your wonderful gifts which have made it possible for us to get it all squared away, so we could make the trip! We were truly trusting the Lord – against hope with many details -- to help us; and He has helped us through you!! We know it’s all in our Lord’s Planning for each of our lives! How awesome are His Works!

You are in our prayers, too, and we ask for yours as we make this trip, a very important trip, and we Praise our Lord for your faithfulness to us and the work through the years!

Love and with Thanksgiving in our hearts,

Rich and Kathy

A New Milestone

Bercky, our Radio Kahuzi journalist during the wars (1996 to 2007 ) rejoices to receive and prepares to deliver the "FM transmitter in a suitcase" to Walungu, where he now directs his own FM station for the Mwami and will maintain and operate our relay station high in the mountains overlooking Bukavu and Lake Kivu. Re-establishing this Translator Site is the beginning of our goal to form an FM relay network throughout the region.

Bercky and the Mwami operated this same translator for us for about a year -- until the war in 1996, when that village and the FM translator were pillaged by the invading military. Today Bercky is installing a longer coax cable to place the antenna even higer for better outreach. He is also changing our relay from FM-to-FM to SW-to-FM to avoid interferance from other FM stations in Rwanda crowding our FM frequency.

Because there is electricity only part of the time, we are preparing a 4-battery bank with charger to run the system on 48 volts DC. Lord willing, in other sites in the different provinces, we will use solar panels to recharge the batteries.

Radio Kahuzi Journalist Traveling with Senators and Ministers

(Gregoire - left - preparing for journey with Senators and Ministers)

Gregoire, our journalist, will go with Senators and Ministers today and distribute 52 Shortwave to cover all the localities of the Fizi Territory and blankets for the vulnerable ones / retournees from Refugee camps. Gregoire will be recording the meetings for our archives and for broadcast to the population upon his return. One aspect of these meetings is to announce and plan the installation of our network, as well as to obtain commitments from representatives of each of the tribes / language groups to work with us to establish listener groups / radio clubs to record and send feedback to our broadcasts, to maintain and guard our equipment and to develop a site that is secure for each of our transmitters.

These government officials are willing to work with us to install 4 or 5 Relay Sites in that part of South Kivu. We will have pictures and video of this meeting and of all the leaders from Fizi Territory at Fizi Center, 11 -12 April.

Our plan is to purchase the first of five 250 Watt FM translators, which will pick up and reach further into the valleys of the Fizi Territory.

Please pray for the LORD's Wisdom and Direction.
Keep Looking UP! And Keep On Keeping ON!!

Love, Richard & Kathy

Another Request for Radios from Militia Forces!

Hi again !

What fast follow-up ! Praise the Lord for Samuel Katambwe, Coordinateur of the Kahuzi Radio Clubs developing at Kigalube and Kiluma.

He is back with the Pastor President of the radio club and another letter, this time from the Interhamwe Commander over Thomas. And another Activity Report from the club. They are opening radio clubs in several more villages with one requested by the Hutu refugees.

The Comandant Oscar at Kigulube thanks us for having the courage to greet them each time and to have sent radios to them. They have need of our programming and information and are committed to make it a must to follow our transmissions. He encouraged me to send another five Galcom short wave radios and he will give them to civilians and military under his supervision.

It is very positive to see that the civilians have the ok to form a listeners' club. With that there is the responsibility to have at least one community activity to help others near them that are in need. Now we will be more sure they are listening to a chapter a day from the Bible in their Kinya-Rwandan language. We are going through Romans again this week.

Lord willing, we will send radios, blankets, tracts, Gospels of John, a soccer ball, a ram of paper, some bics, etc. to help them organize the community radio clubs..

It's late. Shaking continues this morning, so Kathy is sleeping in the car...
I'm headed for the couch til morning.

Keep Looking UP !

In His Love, Richard & Kathy

Earthquake Update from Rich and Kathy

These last two weeks have been really stressful to say the least. Two Sundays ago, as we were getting ready to go to church; suddenly, the house started rocking back and forth with such force, I thought it was going to come down. The whole thing took 30 seconds, but it was so forceful, that the “experts say” that if that had gone on for any more time, Bukavu would have come falling down. I have never felt so helpless and scared in my life. It was just out of this world. Since Feb. 3, when it hit, we’ve had another big one and then, the after shock waves keep coming and coming. We’ve been kept busy, trying to get back to normal life, but always mindful, that anytime the tremors come and we have to run out the door. It’s really no fun and really sooo stressful. Yesterday and now today, the 20th, I haven’t really felt any, except once yesterday, I felt the house budge a little.

Quite a few new cracks in the walls, one that really expanded. Many houses that weren’t built properly came down, and even some of the old timer houses have big cracks and separations in the walls. After that first quake, when we went out into the street to see how the neighbors were doing, all shaken, we were surprised to see walls around the neighbors yards had fallen down, something we have never seen around here. Usually the earth quakes are just little so this all has been just devastating for so many folks.

This all reminds us of how when the rapture takes place. In a twinkle of an eye, just like this earthquake, without warning, it comes. Sure reminds us of how frail we are and how powerful God is and God’s forces are!!!

Anyway, today is much better, not so nerve wracking, still sleeping by the front door at night, just in case it comes again. A few nights, when the quakes were so bad, I slept in the car, that way when they came, the car just rocked back and forth, not the whole house. Got more sleep that way.

Thank you for your prayers, we truly have needed them these past two weeks, as always, but more so in this situation. They say the rocks in the rift shifted, and just have to get back in line again. This area is part of the great rift valley.

Better close and get some lunch ready. We’re o.k. and thanking our Lord that much more didn’t happen.

Love and praying for you each day.

Rich and Kathy

Commander of Militant Forces Requests Galcom Radios

Sammy delivers radios to Interahamwe

Galcom Radios Delivered to Militia Forces Upon Their Request!

Greetings from Bukavu, and Sammy, a brave young man in the heart of the jungle !

This is the third time Samuel Katambwe Imbundo Dadien has come to get Galcom radios to take back to his village of Kiluma, one kilometer from Kigalube, a stronghold of the Interhamwe armed forces. He has developed groups of listeners among the Interhamwe and in his community where he is the President or Coordinateur of the Kahuzi Radio Club.

Please pray for this strategic ministry, as we try to reach the hearts and minds of this warring army of refugees from 1994 Rwanda, because some of them are accused of violating thousands of the women and girls in that area and even Walungu near Bukavu. Since July 2008, our objective has been to reach these warring factions and also those of Lauren Nkunda in North Kivu -- by adding Kinyarwandan broadcasts and sending Galcom short wave receivers by various carriers to the leaders, themselves, asking to supply more for their troops if they are willing. This outreach has been a happy success, and very popular there and in the Fizi territory among the former Mai Mai.

Today Sammy brought a letter from an Interhamwe Commander, Thomas NKURUNZIZA, who listens to Radio Kahuzi and wants very much to receive the Galcom rechargable radios so he can listen regularly to our full variety of programming and information.

We hope you will be as delighted and interested as we are in this affirmation in the right direction ! They are listening to hear how they will be able to leave the Congo Jungle Basin ! Recently we broadcast an interesting VOA interview, where they indicated one group of Interhamwe are now beginning each day with prayer and gospel singing, before they disperse for their days work in the jungle.

We hope and pray that solutions will be found and that hearts will be changed -- for the sake of our women and children, too long victims of refused alternatives !

Keep Looking UP ! And Keep On Keeping ON !!

Sincerely, Richard & Kathy McDonald