Tabitha Center

Claudine Selenga teaching the women in the vocational center.

The Tabitha Center is a new ministry here in town started by Claudine Selenga.  She began this ministry after having a Bible Study with her own daughters and some neighborhood girls.  The study she was doing with them was called "Choose Life" published by Would Relief.  Claudine found that these neighborhood girls were very confused about basic facts of life.  She realised the great need throughout Kinshasa for young women to have basic training on their position in life, options for living outside of prostitution, and valuing others.

Figuring out the pattern to a favorite skirt.

Kinshasa is a city with approximately 12 million people.  Many girls come to Kinshasa with hopes of completing school and   then getting a job to support themselves and their families.  Life in Kinshasa is very expensive and many families cannot afford to finance their children all the way through school.  Often the girls drop out and resort to prostitution.  Many children in families in Kinshasa are thrown out on the streets either after being accused of sorcery (witchcraft) or a step parent refuses to accept them into the new marriage to a biological parent.  One-third of the children on the streets are girls and many of them resort to prostitution.

Claudine has a desire to reach out to these girls and help them with training in tailoring, cosmetology or cooking in order to find better options for living.  The first Tabitha Center was opened in the neighborhood of Bendal next to a bar.  The building had been a brothel until the ministry took it over to make it into a vocational school. 
When I visited several weeks ago, I noticed their daily schedule on the door.  Each day begins with Bible and then studying "Choose Life".  Then the vocational training begins.

When I arrived it was already close to 10 a.m. and only one girl showed up.  When I enquired as to why, I was told that many of the girls already have their own children and they have to wait for someone to babysit for them.  Others need transportation to get across town.  I asked if they would begin at the beginning of the schedule when the girls arrived.  The answer was, "Of course!"  So the girls will get Bible teaching and life training even with a relaxed schedule.
There is a great need for these vocational schools to be located in neighborhoods throughout Kinshasa so girls do not have to travel by taxi to get to school.  Claudine's vision is to begin 15 vocational training centers by April 2014.  I just had supper with the mission director, Jim Snyder, on Thursday last week.  They had just dedicated another center.  In five years they want to see 1,000 centers opened in Kinshasa being directed by women in the church who can teach what they know already.

Personally, I like this dress and would like one made for me.

Reach Global, the American extension of the mission is hoping to team with the Tabitha Centers and send out teams to encourage the women serving in these centers.  They also are financially assisting to start the programs.
If you are interested in assisting with this ministry to can receive more information by contacting

Ready to get to work!

Reach Global
901 E 78^th St., Minneapolis, MN  55420
You can follow this link to give a donation. Then follow the "give" link.  Then you can specify for the Tabitha Center Project #2200-5414.

Today, March 10, 2014, I went to visit the Tabitha Center again.  Claudine was there with several women to meet me and tell me about the center.  I took my friend Tasha and her daughter with me.  I really enjoyed talking with Claudine.  My Lingala has not improved over the last 10 years since I have been working so much with English speaking students or students learning English.  It was refreshing to speak Lingala with somebody from Tandala area again.

 Claudine was waiting to start their day with some other ladies when I arrived.  It looked like they were in between classes.  Two of the ladies that came had just finished up the classes with Claudine at the Bendal Center and were getting ready to do an internship in other neighborhoods. 

 It was nice to meet Claudine face to face finally.  We are still getting to know each other and hope to spend some time with some English lessons in the near future.

 Just recently the Bendal Tabitha Center started teaching the women how to do hair.  This will give the women another vocation to earn money for their families. 

 Yes, we drove my truck to the center.  I still appreciate those who gave so that I could have this truck to get around in Kinshasa.  I also greatly appreciate my husband who keeps it repaired and in shape.

Adah and I got to pose with the ladies.

Tasha and I plan to go back with our fabric to ask the Tabitha Center to help us with our sewing.
For a most recent update on the Tabitha Center click on this link: Installation #9 and #10.

Repair Man Two

Found the leak! How to fix it.

Saturday morning workout.

Well, the saga does not end.  The water pump just kept right on running and none of our faucets were turned on and all the toilets were filled already.  So after walking around the house and checking things out several times, Rod finally found that there was a wet spot in our front lawn and we had a couple of dry days.  So the pump was turned off.  Of course, I am such a patient wife I was all joy at not having water coming into the house all night and morning. (Said with a sarcastic voice, just in case you really thought I was patient).
  Saturday morning, Rod was up bright and early and ready to start digging.  In support I put on my jogging clothes and ran around the yard to get my exercise.  There really was only one shovel, so I really couldn't help with the digging. (smile)

Green pipes

Repairmen Two

Matthew Lind, the REAL repairman showed up and worked with Rod at deciding how exactly to repair the pipes and what kind to replace them with.  They replaced the galvanized pipes which we decided were only five or six years old with PVC, green PVC.
And I must say that the new part on the washer is great and we no longer have to put a towel in front of it.  Rod is still working on how to get the hot water to come into the washer.  But I am very thankful for the dry flows and the water pressure coming into the washer now.

Matthew and his family have been here for a year. They came for the year to help with repair projects for our MAF team.  It has been a very busy year for Matthew.  He has repaired his own roof on his house, rebuilt a wall from a fallen tree, built an IT building for our program, and helped two families move to new homes. Those are some of the major projects. He has been on call for smaller repair projects.  We are truly thankful for him and his family being here.  What is very exciting is that they are going back to candidacy to be full time with MAF.

The Repair Man

The wrong part flown in from America

Rod returned on Sunday Evening after 4 1/2 weeks in America.  Before he arrived I sent him a list of all that needed to be repaired when he got back. During the 36 hours of his flying back my watch broke which I use for lots of useful things, like being on time places and timing my cooking and baking and my exercise routine.  (A friend is going to America next week and will be able to bring one out to me).  On Monday the pump went out on the washing machine.  So Rod has spent the past four days repairing things around the house as well as helping at the hanger and flying.

The equipment for repairing the air-conditioner.

My highest priority for Rod to fix before the washing machine went out was the truck air-conditioning.  Driving through Kinshasa traffic is always an adventure but having to have your windows rolled down adds to the adventure and causes an insecurity in my heart that I really don't enjoy facing.  Rod brought the parts back for the air-conditioner. One of the parts didn't fit properly but it was the part replacing the "unbroken" part of the ac so it was okay.  But last evening when he went to put the freon in, it leaked!  Rod said, "Like a sieve."  So here we are with new parts put in but it doesn't hold freon.

The washing machine was a different story.  We have a friend who was coming from America so we quickly ordered a new pump for the washing machine.  In the meantime we still needed to wash clothes so Rod began looking through washing machines left around our MAF homes to find a pump.  He found one and put it in but it leaks. So yesterday I was able to do laundry BUT I had to keep a towel in front of the machine to keep it from leaking all over my washroom and pantry. While Rod was repairing the pump he also repaired the water "intake" which means I now have water pressure in my washing machine.  Before I was running hoses into it and occasionally flooding the pantry when I would forget to turn it off.  Last evening our friend arrived from the states with the part.  We do hope this one will fit.

I have a house helper, Tata Oscar who helps me with the laundry and yesterday as we washed with the front off the washing machine he was over joyed to see the parts all work.  He kept saying over and over, "Bamondele bazali na mayele mingi."  "White men have so much knowledge or wisdom".  I tried to tell him that an African could have invented a washing machine too but he just wouldn't believe me.  I need to find some stories of African Americans who have invented different things and show him their pictures and tell their stories.

Other repairs Rod has completed and they have stayed repaired is the security light outside and the battery light switch. It is comforting to have my man back so I guess you can say my heart is better too.