Author Archives: lauravanmaren

We arrived in Dar es Salaam about week and a half ago, but it some ways it feels like a month has passed! Because we were not sure where we would be living, we stayed in a Holiday Inn downtown for the first few days, that way we could get over the jetlag and have some time to figure out other living arrangements. While we stressed about where to live, God, of course, had it figured out already : AJ’s parents were on a river cruise in Europe the week before we left and they “happened” to meet someone who has a bakery in Dar es Salaam! We were given the contact of the couple who run the bakery here and after some messaging, we decided to attend their church on the first Sunday we were here. We met an amazing group of expats here who warmly welcomed us into their group. After some conversations and tears, we were offered and shown a boarding house on the same property as the church and that is now our home!

After the first few days our vehicle arrived from Zambia, so we could then start venturing out on our own. Wow, traffic here is nuts! Driving in Africa takes some getting used to anyway, but the sheer volume of bodaboda (motorbikes) and bajaj’s who have no rules to follow is comical and overwhelming at first! Seriously, all other vehicles obey traffic lights or follow police signals, but they just cruise right on through, its wild! Not to mention, the main roads in seemingly the whole city are very actively under construction, so there’s a lot of bobbing and weaving happening.

Upendo (the orphanage)

After taking a few days to assess the building here at the orphanage, we can now proceed with the renovations. There are 5 main buildings here on the site: Office, 2 dorms, a kitchen, and a chicken barn. The office is in very good shape as well as the kitchen, so those will be left alone. The chicken barn was vacant so Laura and Levi, with the help of Upendo staff washed it out, and it will stay that way for now. The dorms are what really demands the attention: most of the plumbing is broken or missing. What once were lights, fans and switches, are now holes in walls and ceilings, with some remnants of rusty fixtures remaining. Ceilings are sagging, walls dented and scratched, floors badly chipped, and other than the bunk beds and a badly leaning wardrobe, not a stick of furniture to be seen.

Multiple contractors came this week to price out the work and we are now in the final stages of signing a contract. We plan to start the first dorm on Thursday this week! Furniture quotes are in hand, so we should see progress on that soon also.

Thank you so much to all our friends and family who have been checking in on us as we settle in a new country. Thank you to everyone for all the prayers and support as we undertake this new project. Above all we give thanks to the Lord for so graciously providing for all of our needs. We take comfort in these words from Isaiah: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand“. Isaiah 41:10

Big news from our family – AJ, Levi, and I (Laura) are heading to Tanzania for 6 months. We will be serving through Seeds of Hope Childrens Ministry, living and working at a small orphanage in a rural village called Mlandizi (54km outside of Dar es Salaam). The orphanage is currently in rough shape and our hope is to renovate it and transform in into a Christ centered, safe, loving, and family style home where these children can thrive and know they are deeply valued.

Statistically, in Tanzania there are over 1 million children who have lost one or both parents and many live in unsafe or unstable conditions. Many orphaned children lack education, proper home care, and experience increased poverty. Seeds of Hope’s mission is to provide a safe, consistent home life and education so these children can grow and thrive.

We are incredibly grateful for those who have already come alongside us, encouraging us, praying for our family, and supporting us financially. We would love your continued prayers for energy, wisdom and the ability to love well as we serve in a new culture, as well as for our three children who will remain in Canada to work and go to school.

Stay in touch as we continue sharing what God is doing as we go. May His light shine bright in Mlandizi.

Our time in Zambia is nearly over. I (AJ) have thoroughly enjoyed my time here. I loved the variety of work I got to do: welding, farming, carpentry, joinery, mechanics. Every day was different, and every day there was different challenges to solve. Laura and the kids also very much enjoyed their time here. Levi loved being able to get up and go to work with his dad, he is a hands on learner and this was such a wonderful year for him. Lucas has almost completed his schooling, and has made some good friends here that will be hard to leave. We sure hope they can come to Canada to visit us one day! The babies have stolen Laura’s and Adriena’s hearts. Saying goodbye to all those we care for here will be hard. So while we are very excited to come home, we aren’t necessarily excited to leave. We can’t wait to be home and hug our family and friends. Laura already has some breakfast dates, hiking dates and camping trips set up!

As far as the construction projects I was tasked with, they are basically complete. The youth center was completed a few months ago and the kids have really been enjoying that space. The shop is completed now and is already a very busy place! It really is a great space and came out even better than I expected. There are already plans for starting to teach the highschool kids these technical skills.

We were also tasked with constructing a maintenance work area and a covered car park area. The farmers had a great maize crop this year so a corn crib had to be quickly built too. The roof is on the container shop, and other than some lights and line paint, the car park is also complete.

Once the shop was completed, the existing woodwork shop was moved out of and we used that room to create a larger space for the food and clothing storage.

For the past three months we have also had Aleesha, a friend of Adriena’s staying with us. She has been busy teaching English and Math to the grade one students at Grace Academy. She has been a pleasure to have with us here! And I am certain the kids she teaches love having her too.

Besides work, we’ve kept ourselves busy having fun with the kids here and making the most of the short time we have left. We just went to Mkushi (a city about 3 hrs away) for the night so Laura could participate in an 11km run this morning. She did great and really enjoyed it. The run was very well organized and it was a beautiful setting! That area of Zambia is rich in farmland and the landscape is gorgeous!

This next week and a bit will be full of goodbyes, packing, and otherwise preparing to return home. Although we are excited to get home, it will be a big adjustment, so we just ask for your prayers for that and for safe and uneventful travels.

See ya soon! -AJ, Laura, Adriena, Lucas and Levi

It has been a busy two months! At the end of April our two older children Joshua and Adriena arrived, as well as Aleesha, a friend of Adriena. Having the whole family together again was wonderful, I found being away from them one of the more difficult parts of moving here. We spent the first week they were here at Grace settling in and meeting all the kids. We also had another Feeding program with Sister Josephine. Thank you once again to family and friends who donated to this worthy cause. The families are so grateful for the help with providing food to their children, and it is humbling to be able to serve them in this way.

The following week we headed to Livingstone. Victoria Falls is STUNNING. There is approx. 500 million litres of water per minute flowing over the falls. You are soaked almost immediately when you get close to the falls. It is such an amazing sight to experience!! The rest of the week we spent exploring the area. One of the days we went to Botswana for a day Safari. When we entered the park some of the first animals we saw were lions relaxing in the shade of the trees! From there we saw giraffe, elephant, hippo, many impala and kudu and water buffalo and so much more. There is something so incredible about seeing the wildlife in their own habitat, wandering around free.

Back at Grace we have been keeping busy with different projects and other fun things. Joshua painted a bible verse for me in the youth center which I am so glad for as I have zero artistic abilities. We have been playing a lot of games and taking many walks to the farm with the kids from Grace as well as getting in as much baby snuggles as possible. Aleesha has been teaching math and english to the grade one class and Adriena helps out in the preschool three mornings a week. Adriena also helps me with whatever I am doing here as well which has been great. We are moving my supply room to another room so more hands definitely makes the job easier!

On the construction side of things, the shop is coming to completion, a new covered parking area is well under way, shelves are being dismantled and being rebuilt for the new supply rooms and various other jobs on the go. We have just over a month left of our time here and it is flying by. Please continue to pray for us as our time comes to a close. We are tying up loose ends, and soaking up our time with the people here.

Hi Everyone! Just a quick update on construction for this post:

The crew has been working hard on the shop and its really starting to take shape!

Once the walls were built up to the underside of truss height, we poured a ring beam into the blocks to tie it all together and provide bearing strength for the roof. The trusses were all fabricated on site by Bruno, our welder. It was great fun driving over the bumpy Ndola roads with 12m long steel on the truck!

Once they were complete Levi, Lucas, and I spray painted them while they were on the ground which worked quite well. I was planning to hire a crane to lift the trusses, but the crew decided that they would rather save the money and lift them by hand. We did lift one up, and it wasn’t too bad, but I had a little brainwave so we welded up a crane attachment for the skidsteer with some scrap steel we had kicking around. That worked very well! We had all the trusses up in one day.

While Bruno finished welding the purlins on, the rest of the crew continued the block walls up to the underside of the roof metal. Once all of the walls were up to that height we installed the roofing, we also added a few clear polycarbonate panels to allow some natural light in.

The crew is now bagging the walls (in Canada we call it sacking) which is basically taking cement paste with a sponge and smearing it onto the rough block to fill in the holes. Once that is fairly dry they scrub it with an onion bag to smooth it out. The interior walls are complete and they expect to have the exterior walls completed tomorrow.

We are also currently installing the man doors, garage doors, and priming and painting the interior walls. Once the paint is complete, we’ll get the windows in and start the electrical.

Thank you again for your prayers and support!

AJ

Its definitely been a full few weeks since our last post! We’ve had Tracey, Ray and their boys visiting. We worked on a few projects together, visited a few interesting sites and did another feeding program. Our boys’ best friends from Canada came to visit with one of the boys dad’s to chaperone, which was a fantastic surprise and a we had a great time with them. We had told our boys that we were going to the airport to pick up some delayed bags, the look on their faces when their friends came walking out was priceless! They were so stunned and confused LOL! Lucas, Levi, and friends installed a couple tether ball poles which are already a big hit with the kids here!

John, Susan and team came from Canada for the graduation ceremony, so we got to experience another grad also. It is so wonderful to see these kids from such humble beginnings flourish in this place and go on to be the future of Zambia! In August at the last grad we didn’t personally know any of the graduates and yet we felt so proud of them. This time, having relationships with the grads intensified those feelings!

These past few weeks we have been spending time with our dear friends, the Flowers. They are a missionary family that has been working at a neighboring orphanage just down the road from Grace. This past November their dear husband and father Jamie was taken very suddenly to be with Jesus. Although he is dearly missed, it has been amazing to see how God has lifted them up during this sad time. Kathy and the kids left to the USA after his passing and then returned to Zambia in February to pack up their belongings and move back to Michigan. It was very special to be able to spend time with them and help them with packing and moving. On Friday night we had a going away open house with them and then sent them off on Saturday. We wish them the very best and pray that God will continue to carry them through this difficult journey. They have been such a big part of our time in Zambia and they will be so missed.

We also had the unique pleasure of visiting the local fire hall after meeting them at a truck accident on the highway in front of Grace. The firefighters gave us a very in depth tour, which was very interesting. Lucas was invited to train with them whenever he wants and join in on their Thursday afternoon sports time.

Construction: The youth center is now complete and has been filled with furniture and games now. This past week we had a ribbon cutting ceremony for it and the kids got to enjoy it for the first time, SO MUCH excitement!! The construction team took the afternoon off on Friday to spend some time playing pool, foosball, plinko and just enjoying the space. After working on it for months I think they deserved to enjoy it at least once 🙂

The work shop is also coming along nicely! Most of the walls are at full height now and the door frames are installed. The steel for the trusses has arrived and we plan to start welding those up this week. This building will be such a great space for the crew to work in! Our mechanic currently works outside on the dirt and in the rain, so this shop will be a welcome change for sure!

Time seems to be going by very quickly now. We have 4 months left in our stay. Please pray for us in our remaining time here, that we may be a blessing to those around us. Our older children fly out this month to be with us and we ask for prayers for them as they plan for their trip here, and for safe uneventful flights.

Half way!! We have reached the halfway point of our time in Zambia. It turns our thoughts to home and leaves us with many mixed emotions, excitement at the thought of seeing our family and friends, and anxiety at leaving these people and this place. It is so hard to believe that we have been here for nearly 6 months. In some ways the time as flown by, and in other ways it seems like we have been here forever. I think these next 6 months are going to fly by. Tracey and Ray and their boys are coming to Zambia next week and we are excited to show them our life out here. It will be so great for our boys to get to see their cousins and share Africa with someone their age. There are teams scheduled to come and our big kids have flights booked to come at the end of April. We are counting down the days until we can hug them.

Life in Africa is beautiful and hard. It is so special getting to know the kids here and as time passes we get to know them more and more. The ones who were a little shy when we first arrived are less so, and it has been nice getting to know the ones who hang out more in the shadow of the louder outgoing children. With getting to know them you hear more stories of what life was like for them before coming to Grace. There are stories of heart break that are unimaginable to us. Babies that are abandoned, death of mothers in childbirth, grandparents raising their grand children and can’t afford to take in another. Stories of children being sold, used to work on farms, left sitting in a corner of a room because they are disabled. Where we are is indeed a Place of Grace. A place where each child that comes through the gates is given a new chance at life. Please pray for these beautiful children. Not only that they get their physical needs met, but also that they know that there is a God that loves them dearly and they are here for a reason. There is a purpose for their lives.

On the home front things haven’t changed much. Lucas and Levi are still working on homeschool. Levi loves that he can go work with AJ any time of the day and would choose work over school all the time if that was allowed. This is one of his favorite things about living in Zambia, working with his dad:) Lucas loves all the gross jobs like butchering chickens and pigs and he happily goes out to help with those things. Along with taking care of supplies at Grace, I (Laura) have just started volunteering at the school a couple afternoons a week helping some of the kids with their reading skills. It is nice having things to keep us busy during the day.

Since our arrival we have been attending Kitwe Church in, you guessed it, Kitwe. This is a city about 1.5hrs away from our home in Ndola. This church was recommended to us so that we would have other missionary families to connect with. We initially split our time between the church at Grace and Kitwe Church, but for the last few months we have been attending more regularly in Kitwe. We have made some valuable connections and friends, and very much look forward to our time worshipping with them, and then spending the afternoon together. There are some amazing people and ministries here, Life Song, Living Hope, Abbas Heart, CABU to name a few. They also run a fantastic youth group that our boys attend, and they too have made many friends there.

Construction has been quite busy and productive: The youth center is nearing completion and I think it looks great! We’ve painted the ceiling, installed pvc ceiling in the offices, primed the entire building, installed the exterior stone and beams and wired in the lights. The terrazzo floor is just completed. For those not familiar with terrazzo, its a concrete floor topping about 1″ or 25mm thick which is polished flat and smooth. Its a very sturdy floor and will last for years without any special care.

When hiring a trade like the terrazzo installers, its not like at home where the contractor will supply everything, bring their own lunch, and drive to work etc. Here, the price is really for the labour and expertise. The sand, gravel, cement, pvc, and polishing stones are bought and sourced by us, sometimes even having to go to various different cities to get everything! Transport is provided for all the workers, and lunch also.

We also have resumed work on the shop! The weather wasn’t super cooperative while we poured the slabs, and the rental power trowels were a bit tempermental, but we still managed to get a pretty nice finish on the floors. I’m sure any VanMar staff reading this will be happy to know I pour concrete in the rain in Zambia too! 😂😂 The shop has been a dream of many people for years and it is great to finally see the walls going up!!

One of the other jobs we have done is replace the cabinets in Felson house at Mwaiseni which is the boys dorm when they are in university. The old ones were in very poor condition and they were more of a roach hotel than kitchen storage. There are still a few items to complete, like a range hood and countertops, but I think it looks great so far.

Thanks for following along!

The Christmas season was very different in Zambia compared to the Christmas we normally experience at home. There was no rushing around buying gifts, or going from party to party. There was no snow or Christmas lights twinkling on any homes. If it wasn’t for Shoprite, the local grocery store, who decorated in early October you wouldn’t even think that it was Christmas. We enjoyed a small dinner with the four of us on Christmas eve, and opened some gifts my sister had sent up with the previous team. Christmas morning we went to church and when we got back we were honored to serve the kids at Grace a Christmas dinner. The kids had worked hard on song and dances and we enjoyed watching each of their performances. We missed our kids at home, and our families very much during this season, and yet we are so grateful to be here. We had a simple, beautiful Christmas, celebrating the birth of our Savior with our Grace family. A Christmas that we will remember forever.

Earlier in December Lucas had his 16th birthday. Such an exciting birthday because it means you can finally get your learners license and drive! But not in Zambia. He missed his friends, and didn’t get to get his L, but he still had a great day. We golfed and got spat at by a spitting cobra, and had a fun dinner out where Lucas was very celebrated in true Zambian style with singing and dancing.

Our family also helped out again with a feeding program. This was a special Christmas feeding program with many more children and families being helped. The kids got a meal of chicken and rice and a drink and then were sent home with so many groceries for their families. The kids sing songs and dance and are so grateful for the food. We are happy to help with these programs but it also is so hard to see. Children that stuff themselves with food, two and three helpings, because they don’t know when their next meal will be. Children that are dirty and are wearing clothes full of holes and shoes that are broken or don’t fit. Little ones with obvious lack of nutrition, and sickness. Sister Josephine, who organizes these programs is such a gift to this community and we are glad we can help provide food alongside her.

Other than that life has Grace has been quiet. Many of the kids go home on holidays to family members that can take them in for a couple weeks. Lucas and Levi helped me organize some fun days for the kids that remain at Grace. We did a few different craft afternoons and had sports day where we had some friendly competition against each other. The highlight though was teaching the kids how to bake cookies. We spent many afternoons baking away and all the kids were happy to get plates full of cookies to take back to their dorms.

On the construction side, the roof is on the youth center and the gables blocked in. Interior walls are well underway as is the plastering and sacking. I’m glad for a full crew now in January as a lot of the construction crew used up their remaining leave days in December. I’ve also been helping out on the farm a bit, which has been a fun addition. I love tinkering with just about anything and the folks here are starting to see that. Most every day there are shoes to fix, skateboards that need new bearings (I even made a new skateboard) electronics, small engines, farm implements etc. Word even traveled to the neighbors that I fix things, and a lady brought over her weed whacker for me to fix! I really enjoy it, finding parts is tricky and a huge win when you do find what you need. If I can’t find it I fabricate the new part and when that works its an even better win!

Thank you all for your continued prayers and for following along!

These past two weeks have been busy and flew by way to quickly. My sister Lynda and niece Rebekah came to visit us, and it was such a joy to have family here with us. Its hard to be away from all the people we love, so having them come out to see us sure filled our buckets 🙂

The first few days were spent at Grace. We gave them tours of the grounds, introduced them to all the wonderful kids here and did a few odd jobs. One of the jobs on the list was to clean out the medical room. I don’t think its been touched in some time, the layer of dust on everything was VERY thick. Many hands make light work though and soon everything was sorted through and cleaned up. We also sorted and went through all the donations they had brought from Canada. They are efficient packers and we had so much to put away. Thanks to everyone who donated clothing, shoes, deo, shavers etc! It will most definitely get put to good use.

It was fun to play games and do crafts with the kids at Grace. They sure loved having some new faces around to play with. Soccer games were played as well as lots of games of bump! Hair was braided and bracelets were made and traded!

Friends of ours that live nearby invited us to go to Lake Kashiba with them. October is hot here and a lake day sounded amazing. Plus we got to go somewhere new and beautiful with our guests. It was a 2.5 hour drive there, and another 2.5 hour trip back home, on less than great roads, but it was so worth it!! A cool, clear beautiful lake to dive into! We cliff jumped, swam, paddle boarded and enjoyed our day to the fullest.

October 18 was a holiday here, so we had arranged with Sister Josephine (another organization nearby that AJ’s dad has contact with) to do a feeding program. Some people from Canada generously donated money towards this. Sister Josephine does these more often and finds the neediest families in the nearby villages to come. We were counting on 100 children, but 105 showed up. They all received breakfast and while they ate we handed out supplies for them to take back to their families. Eggs, sugar, oil, soya chunks, maize, salt and some extra treats like candy and biscuits. Not only do the children get a meal but their families now have supplies to provide many more meals at home. We were happy to be able to help in a small way, but it makes you think. How is life at home in Canada so rich and abundant? and here in Africa so many don’t have the basic necessities of life like food and clean water to drink.

If anyone reading this would like to donate to another food distribution please let us know, we would love to do this again!

Part of our time planned with Lynda and Rebekah was a short safari in the Lower Zambezi National Park. We drove to Lusaka (5ish hours) and spent the night there. The next morning our guide picked us up and drove us to the park (another 5 hour drive). After arriving we unpacked, had a little break and then went for a game drive. To say it was incredible doesn’t begin to describe it. We saw elephants with their babies, a pack of wild painted dogs (a rare sighting!), some male lions and then some females with their one month old cubs! There we so many impalas and water buck and alligators! It didn’t feel like it at all but we drove another 5 hours looking at all the animals.

The next morning we woke early and had another full day of driving and looking at all the animals. This time we found the kill of a leopard tucked in the bush and the leopard hiding in the next bush over. We didn’t get a good look at it but still so neat to catch a glimpse. We also stopped for a picnic lunch that ended rather quickly as an elephant and its baby tried to make their way to the water. We were in the way and had to get in the vehicles and out of the way before she charged at us. That evening we had a great dinner overlooking the Zambezi River, with the sounds of hippos and elephants all around us. When we woke the next morning we were treated to a river cruise to an island where we would have lunch. The neat thing was this island was half in Zambia and half in Zimbabwe! There we had a wonderful lunch with elephants a short distance away and on the boat ride home many schools of hippos just floating alongside us. It was an amazing 3 days in the bush.

Sadly we had to bring our guests back to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye. Seeing them made me realize how much I miss all of them. We are so thankful they came out to see us… and we are hoping more people want to come visit Zambia 😉

It is strange feeling that almost three and a half months has passed since we left Canada. In some ways it seems like we have been here for so long, and yet in other ways it has flown by. Every day we get more comfortable in Zambia. We know where the potholes are, and where the police will be waiting to catch speeders. We know where to find the supplies we need, where the good restaurants are and how to find out way around Masala, the local market. We have figured out what we like to eat and have learned to smell all the meat before we buy it. Zambia is feeling more like home.

November has brought the first rains, and boy do we love it! There is excitement in the air as the kids all rush out of their dorms and dance in the rain. It cools things off nicely and seeing all the vegetation turn lush and green is wonderful! It is a busy time on the farm trying to get all the crops in and the farm managers are working so hard! Fun fact about AJ is that he knows a lot about construction, but also A LOT about farming! He has been busy working with his construction crew, but also with the farmers!

On the Construction front, the suite for Aunt Maureen is complete and she will be moving in soon! Levi and I were both happy to do the post construction cleaning since we did so much of that back in Canada together. The youth center is coming along nicely and next week they hope to finish the walls and then put the trusses up. Lucas and Levi help out when they can, especially if it means using machinery:)

Earlier this month a team came and it was so wonderful meeting people from the Fraser Valley (and beyond). They invited me along on many of things they had planned for their trip. One of the days we went to local dump, to feed the families that live there. This was very hard to see and wrap your head around. As soon as someone drives into the dump their vehicle is immediately full of men and boys climbing all over it, searching the load for food and other things of value to them. We met with the counsellor of the dump who escorted our van up a narrow “road” between piles of burning garbage. He was with us to keep us safe and help hand out the food we had brought. Our vehicle was surrounded by hungry men, old ladies and even children. We handed out the food we had brought, and some toy cars for the children. How incredibly heart breaking to see. We have so much, and yet are surrounded by those who barely have enough to survive. Deuteronomy 15:11 For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, “you shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor in your land”.

Another thing I did with these wonderful women was hand out hygiene kits for girls and women. These kits are washable, reusable menstrual products that these girls can use for a long time. They no longer have to miss school or work, or feel ashamed about something that is natural and how our bodies work.

The most fun thing that we got to help with was Christmas at Grace! The team brought gifts for everyone. We celebrated together with a Christmas lunch for over 250 people! That is a LOT of mashed potatoes!! Each dorm put together a skit or song or dance and performed it for everyone (even the Van Maren dorm performed). It was special watching the kids all open their gifts, especially the new kids who have never experienced this before. It was even more wonderful celebrating Jesus’ birth with everyone here.

Thanks for following along and your continued prayers for our family!