HOPE Reflections. A Message From the President. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world.

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1 Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. HOPE Reflections A Message From the President FALL 2016 What a wonderful and exciting year this has been. Our medical mission continues to grow and prosper in the country of Tanzania. This is made possible through your prayers, kindness and donations. The need is so great, and we could not do it without your help. God bless you all. Our next mission trip is in January We will be doing outreach clinics to assist patients who do not have access and/or the funds to afford health care. We will be spending two weeks working at two different hospitals to assist with orthopedic and spine surgeries. Hope s mission is to have our physicians and nurses teach, not just do, so that we can leave a lasting impact on their medical care. The students that go on the trip receive a cultural medical education and clinical experience that will assist them in their future medical work. Our mission touches the lives of many, and their stories are many; but God really challenged us this last May. I would like to share a couple of stories with you. The first is a 14-year-old girl that we saw at a clinic in Mwanza. Glory was burned beyond recognition in the face and neck area when she accidentally fell into a container of boiling water in the kitchen. She cannot close her mouth or her eyes and is unable to move her neck because of massive scar tissue. Dr. Sarah Powell took pictures and consulted with a plastic surgeon in the States as to what should be done. We knew, however, that surgery may not be possible because we would not be able to hyperextend her neck and intubate her so that she could be put to sleep for the surgery. I had to tell the mother that we could not do surgery on her daughter because the experts were unable to intubate her. Upon returning home, I continued to pray and asked God to either take this sweet child home with him or push me to get her some help. With my many medical connections, I heard of a plastic surgeon from Colorado who would be visiting Tanzania this October. I sent pictures and consulted with him, and he agreed to do the first phase of surgery to help this little girl. When Julius, our Tanzanian Assistant, contacted the family about the surgery option, the mother told how she had not eaten for three days so she could afford the antibiotic cream for her daughter s skin. Hope Ministries sent the funds for the food and medications, is funding the surgery, and has lined up housing for her and her mother. She will be having surgery the first week in October. Please include her in your prayers. I encourage you to go to this link to read more about the trauma this family has had to endure. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page Continued...

2 President s Message continued. Arriving in Tanzania, I received a phone call from a dear friend asking for help. She and a pediatrician were conducting an outreach clinic in Rombo. She told of a mother who had locked her two children in a cattle shed for many years, refusing to let them mix with other children. The mother has severe mental problems, and the father was in a coma in a local hospital. The mother s sister stole the children away to bring them to the clinic to see about getting help. The girl is 8 years old and walked on her hands and feet like an animal. She had no language skills and is the height of a 5 year old. Her brother, who is 10, had no language skills either but made parrot-like answers. Tudor Village Children s Home agreed to take these two children, so I set to work to get the appropriate assistance and paperwork from the social service department. Over the last few months, the Tudor Village staff has encouraged the girl to stand by herself and walk in an upright position. They are now working on her communication skills. The boy is able to say some words and is adapting to his new environment. I was sent a video and was able to see the girl walking and the boy talking. Praise be to God!! When I feel alone and helpless, I turn to God for his strength and guiding light. HOPE Teams Teaching in Tanzania The May 2016 Hope team included Dr. Sarah Powell, an ENT physician from Dakota Dunes, SD, and Marni Johnson Martin, an audiologist from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion. Both went to work with their respective skills to make a difference in the lives of many Tanzanian children. Dr. Powell and Marni had the privilege of evaluating Allen, a 15-year-old young man who was orphaned when his mother died during childbirth. Allen is a very bright young man with a smile and a kind heart that touches all who meet him. Over the years, he has suffered from repeated ear infections, resulting in a debilitating hearing loss that was confirmed by Marni on a hearing test. The frustrations he felt due to his inability to communicate with others led to angry outbursts, resulting in his being placed on behavioral medications. The children s home where he lived felt there was no other recourse than to accept his condition and teach him sign language in preparation for the future. Upon examination, Dr. Powell found both of Allen s eardrums to be perforated from the infections, but she felt that he could be helped. Allen took his first ever airplane ride to Mwanza where Dr. Powell performed the surgery. Allen now hears well and is off all behavioral medications. Allen s special prayers of thanksgiving for the help he was given led to many tears and hugs for Mama Gayle before she left Tanzania. Dr. Powell continues to be in touch with her Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page 2 Continued..

3 Continued... from page 2 Tanzanian colleagues to determine how others may be helped in the future. Marni s contributions as a Hope team member came in many forms. She performed hearing tests on children while in Tanzania. She also set the groundwork for many others to be helped when she taught two nurses how to perform hearing tests with equipment brought from South Dakota. Following up the care she gave, she too remains in touch with the Tanzanian doctor she worked with by providing a method of documentation for hearing studies. The nurses and doctors now do hearing tests regularly in schools because many kids have disabling hearing loss. The education that Marni provided and equipment donation will change the lives of many children. Hope team member Dr. Mark Wheeler presenting scholarships to the orthopedic surgical residents in Tanzania. Hope Ministries helped secure scholarships from the Iowa Orthopaedic Society to fund orthopedic training for two Tanzanian residents. There is ONE orthopedic surgeon per 1,250,000 people in Tanzania. Dr. Bill Rizk of Dakota Dunes, SD performing the first ever Laparoscopic Gall Bladder Removal at Bugando Medical Center. Dr. Craig Block of Dakota Dunes, SD performing the first ever Urethral Stent Placement at Bugando Medical Center. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page 3

4 Shake Your Tailbone A Fund Raising Event for Hope Ministries This truly was a very blessed event! Hope Ministries is a Christ-centered organization that provides the very best medical care, supplies, and medical training in some of the most impoverished places in the third-world country of Tanzania. Inspired by God and conceived by our founder, Gayle Stroschein, in 2013, Hope Ministries continues to gain clarity and strength from God and the people He provides to assist. This was the case for the Shake Your Tail Bone fundraising event. So many people took ownership; it was a marvelous thing to behold. We are grateful to the many people who attended and helped in some very special ways. We must mention the Spinal Chords, an all-volunteer band that really rocked the house and made for a truly entertaining evening. For fund raising we focused on selling vertebrae for $300 with a goal of $20,000 for the event. We sold more than two complete spines and brought in over $27,000 total. It was magnificent. We raised more money than any of us could have imagined. Was this a success? Absolutely!! Not just because of the money (although that was truly exceptional), but because once again God continues to provide so many kind, loving, caring, and talented people to assist with this challenging, yet very fulfilling mission. Thanks to one and all for your support and for a wonderful event. Spinal Chords Front row L to R - Tom Kenny, Paul Gausman, Susie Gausman, Ralph Reeder. Back row L to R - Johnathan Banks, Harry Reeder, Nathan Reeder The Elk Point, SD Housewives some of our most joyful supporters. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page 4

5 The January 2016 HOPE team held a Christmas Party for the children of Light in Africa Children s Home. HOPE brought them a Christmas tree, lights, gifts and a special Christmas dinner. Girls from Light in Africa are very proud to show their uniforms and shoes donated by a loyal HOPE supporter. Girls from Light in Africa wearing dresses donated by HOPE. HOW YOU CAN HELP There is no greater love than when we lay down our lives for another. Hope Ministries cannot do this work in Tanzania without your support. It may be a hug, saying a prayer, or providing financial support you can make a difference. Should you choose to make a donation, please know that ANY amount is welcomed. We offer a few examples of how your donation will be used below: $300 $250 $200 $150 $100 $ 50 Can help provide desperately needed equipment that will help for many years. Can help fund outreach clinics in communities where people have no access to health care. Can provide funds for surgery that could save a life, free someone from pain, allow someone to walk or allow a parent to provide for their family. Can provide food for a food kitchen for street children or for local orphanages. Can pay printing costs for health-related pamphlets, such as HIV information in schools. Can go toward purchasing gloves, masks, and other essential health care supplies needed by HOPE Ministries team. Donations may be made via PayPal at or send a check payable to Hope Ministries to PO Box 962, Sioux City, Iowa Please include your with all correspondence so that we can stay in touch. For more info about joining a Hope Ministries team or other inquiries please call Gayle Stroschein at or at stro@iw.net. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page 5

6 US Postage Paid PRESORT STD Sioux City, IA Permit No. 138 HOPE Ministries Gayle Stroschein, MS, RN President & Founder 401 S. Pearl Street Elk Point, SD Phone: A Non-Profit Organization HOPE Ministries is a nonprofit Christian family that cares for orphans, provides medical care and supplies, provides educational and spiritual support and brings faith, hope, and love to the people of Tanzania, Africa. Shining Christ s light of HOPE in a broken and hurting world. Page 6