Pan-African Mormon Helping Hands Day 2009

On Saturday, August 22 we had 16 members and 7 investigators complete a service project for Mormon Helping Hands Day. We met with the Ndlambe Municipality and were assigned to pick up trash on a 2.3 kilometer stretch of road leading out of town along side the Nemato (Nelson Mandela Township) Township. The municipality provided trash bags and gloves for us and sent a driver with a truck to take the bags to the dump site. We worked for four hours and filled 200 bags! That's not a typo - we filled 200 bags. That was equal to about 90 hours of service and the municipality was very appreciative. Several motorists stopped to thank us. Many of our members had never participated in a service project before, and they asked when we were going to do it again. The city worker who was picking up the bags all morning commented that if he needs to hire part-time workers he will know where to find good workers.

The coral tree - one of the few trees that drops its leaves during the African winter.

Two flowering bushes (for my friend Marge)! September is the beginning of Spring and there are many beautiful blooms.

Sunrise on our morning walk.

We often see women carrying wood like this. We are told they use it for cooking. Some prefer cooking over an open fire even if they have electricity. The power company raised rates 31% on July 1 so perhaps it is a cost-saving measure. The house in the background is an unusually nice one.

Lunchtime in the township.

We always see goats in the township, but this day we saw donkeys rummaging through trash bins!

When we go out in the township to make visits, children usually gather around and are eager to have their picture taken. Lyman gave these kids a few coins and they raced off to the neighborhood shop to buy candy!
That's all for now. We are well and keeping busy. Our little branch is growing. The two young elders are working hard and we will soon need a larger building for meetings! We miss all of you and appreciate your letters, emails and prayers.

the Godfreys

email: katherinesgodfrey@gmail.com