HALE of a Trip-Back to the Beginning

Imagine the beauty and peacefulness of waking at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro. It was an unbelieveable sight as the sun rose on the world famous mountain, highest in all of Africa. We spent the night at a hostel in Moshi with plans to travel to Machame, a village in the foothills of "Kili".

OMEGA's first team visited Tanzania in October, 2005........exactly 4 years ago. A group from Aldersgate United Methodist Church, in Lubbock, Texas, was the first of many teams for OMEGA. Hosted by Jerry Hale, the group worked alongisde local members of the community to build the walls of a hostel used by the Nkweseko Church in Machame. They also painted dingy walls bright colors and through many other activities developed friendships with the people of this village. When they departed, the newly erected walls were bare brick. In the four years since the trip, the community has completed the hostel which will be open to the public in January, 2010.

Jerry and Ed standing in front of the completed hostel.

That first trip had significant impacts on the lives of those who came. The Lloyd's now live and work full-time in Tanzania, 5 of those team members have made repeated trips as team leaders or members, sharing the OMEGA vision. Three continue their support of OMEGA by serving on the Board of Directors.
Watch for before and after pictures in future blog posts.