Our 2nd Season

Marci and I arrived (as did everyone else on the Global Mercy ship we serve on) on August 11. We have been very busy preparing to open our hospital and begin this “field service”. We anticipate our first surgery will be on September 2.

Marci began school (3rd grade) on August 12. She has five bright little minds in her classroom (one speaks French and very little English). It may seem odd, but the classroom and start of school feels very much like all the others over the decades. The room is small, but modern. It has a “front door” from the school, and a “back door” that leads on to “deck 10”. That deck has a walking track/veranda so there are great views and space to walk around. Marci will be writing a separate post to describe what it’s like to teach on a ship in the Atlantic Ocean!

I have been busy learning. The previous Managing Director graciously stayed aboard so that he could teach me the thousands of things I need to know to successfully lead the ship. He is very bright and seems to know everything. Some days I am pretty “brain tired” from all the learning, but I am getting there. His name is Daniel, and he and his wife, Linda, will be leaving for home (Germany) next week.

In the meantime, it may not sound impressive when I say “we are getting the ship ready”. Let me tell you…. EVERY INCH of the hospital undergoes a sterilization process that includes removing EVERY ITEM and cleaning it three times with different solutions in each round. Lots of doctors and nurses on their hands and knees scrubbing away. Hats off to them!

We also have 300+ “paid Day Crew”. These are Sierra Leonean residents who are hired to come to the ship and assist us with our mission. Some cook and clean, others serve as interpreters in the hospital, and others as chaplains. It is critical work – we couldn’t succeed without them. But imagine the Human Resources work it takes to get all of them set up as employees and “onboarded” in one day. WOW!

When you add the 500+ volunteers, 330+ day crew, and 200+ patients and care-givers, we have 1,000 people a day to feed and care for. It is a small city!

Finally, I will tell you about another event taking a great deal of our time and energy. The Vice-President of Sierra Leone is coming with a huge delegation of dignitaries to give a speech and welcome us to the country for a third and final time. This will happen on August 28 and I will write a separate post to share more about that. Because of my position as the representative leader for Mercy Ships, I will also be giving a speech and hosting everyone while they visit.

Today is a ship holiday”. Most crew get a third day off (this includes holidays) every six weeks. It is a day most go “off ship” to explore the country or for others to relax with a book in one of our many lounges. We work very long days here (typically between 10-12 hours) so it is well-deserved!

Sundays are special. We have church onboard in the evening so that people have the opportunity to attend a local church if they’d like. We LOVE being the “Africa Campus” for Stone Church in Yakima. We attend ‘virtually’ every week and it REALLY helps us feel tied to home.

Finally, we want to take a moment to thank everyone for your financial support, your prayers, and your love. It means SO much to us and provides a connection to home.