As we approach the end of our 7th month back in Kenya, we continue to be amazed at how quickly we have settled back in to life here.  In many ways it feels like we were never gone.  We have been fortunate to reconnect with old friends and ministry partners, as well as develop many new ones.  The last couple of months have allowed us to further establish ourselves in our work, as well continue to get in a groove of what day to day life looks like for us.

Family News:

The kids are both loving our lives here.  Sophie absolutely loves school at Rosslyn Academy.  She amazes us every day with the things she is learning….songs in foreign languages, scientific facts about types of rocks and geodes, memory verses, Kiswahili phrases, sight words, how to “fill peoples’ buckets,” pottery in Art, addition/subtraction….as well as how she continues to develop into a caring, compassionate, and thoughtful child.  She has also learned how to swim during her P.E. class at school.  In addition to school activities, she is playing soccer on Saturday mornings with the Ambassadors Football Club at Rosslyn and taking ballet class one afternoon a week.  We were afraid she may be overextending herself, but she is eager to try new things.  We are thankful that she is able to attend an amazing school that provides her with so many unique educational and creative experiences within her school day.

Ethan has also had the opportunity to start taking swimming lessons at Rosslyn and he is a natural.  At 3 yrs. old he is already confident in the water, not quite swimming on his own, but very close.  He has also mastered his balance bike and recently shocked us by getting on Sophie’s pedal bike and riding it with ease!  He likes to tag along with Daddy as much as possible, but on days when he stays home he spends the day with his Aiyah (Nanny) Margaret and her 2 yr. old daughter.  They have become very good friends and through their interaction he is picking up a bit of Swahili and she seems to be learning his English.  It is very cute to watch them communicate.  He has also made several new friends on the Rosslyn Campus and at our office at Calvary.  He continues to develop his naturally funny personality and a bold sense of adventure.

Jessica is enjoying her role at Rosslyn Academy.  She is at the school three days a week and works in Alumni and External relations.  It has been a busy season for their with many projects going on simultaneous and culminating around the same time.  It is a tremendous blessing though and we are thankful for the opportunity.

     
Little Football Player (and Barca Fan!)         He knows how to make her laugh…

                     Buzz Lightyear and Rapunzel at Rosslyn Fall Festival on Halloween…                                                                              

People to People and Ministry:

The last couple of months have provided us with many opportunities to serve as well as continue to develop our relationships with our partner feeding programs.  We are encouraged by the progress that we are seeing at each program.  We are also thankful that we are here to be able to offer support to these programs in times of need, not only in the areas we are focusing on (sustainable development and food security), but also in times of unexpected needs (school fees, educational supplies, land issues, medical needs).

 Delivering a message to a PtoP Child…        Students at Nakuru CMD with science 
materials we were able to donate.


Dormitory Upgrade (Before/After) at Nakuru CMD.
Thanks to Operation Teaching Tools for making it possible!


**Students at Calvary Christian washing up for lunch…
(**Photo by Wes Wicklund)

In addition to our work with People to People, we have started leading worship once a month, and Jamie has had a few opportunities to speak at local churches.  In September, Jamie served as a host for a Rosslyn Academy CFS (Cultural Field Studies) group of freshman.  He took the group to Emmanuel Worship Center in Kanja, Kenya, where they served at Emmanuel Prep. School for 4 days.  The group included 15 students, many of which Jamie taught when they were 3rd graders.  It was a very unique experience for Jamie to be able to work with these students 5 yr’s after teaching them and to see how they have grown and matured.

The CFS Team from Rosslyn… 

We have also been making preparations for our “Christmas Project!”  We have an ambitious goal to provide every child in all of our feeding programs with a Christmas gift, as well as a Christmas meal!  If you want to read more about this project, or are interested in supporting, you can find more info. here:
https://dunningsinkenya.com/2015/10/12/christmas-is-coming/

Ethiopia Trip:

In October, Jamie accompanied Ron and Sharon Wooten and Pastors Wesley and Susie Berry on a trip to Ethiopia.  The group traveled throughout Southern Ethiopia….Dilla, Yirgacheffe, Chelelektu, and Addis Ababa….hosting a Pastor’s Conference, as well as outdoor meetings.  Jamie also had the opportunity to meet with Bishop Desalgn, the leader of the work in Ethiopia, about a micro-finance loan program for Pastors that we are planning to launch in 2016.  We are very excited about this program!  We will be sharing more about this work in the near future.

      
Beautiful Children…

With Bishop Desalgn and Pastor Endiryas, leaders in Ethiopia…


Thousands of people came to the outdoor meetings…

Jamie also accompanied a Hope 4 Sudan medical team to South Sudan and visited our feeding programs at Lokichoggio and Kakuma Refugee Camp.  There were some great developments that we are excited to share with you….but we will save that for the next update.  🙂

Sustainable Development Project Updates

Hosanna Children’s Home Tilapia Pond

Construction on the Tilapia Fish Pond at Hosanna Children’s Home is finished!  The pond has been stocked with 1,500 tilapia fingerlings and 1,500 catfish fingerlings.  In 6-8 months these fingerlings will be full grown and sold in the local market.  The funds generated will help support the feeding program and educational fees for the children at Hosanna Children’s Home.  Thanks for your support of this project!

    Stocking the pond with fingerlings…             Thousands of fingerlings…

Calvary Christian Community School Chicken Project 

The Chicken-Broiler sustainability project at Calvary Christian Community School Ruai is off to a great start!  The project is set-up to produce 200 chickens every 6 weeks.  The first cycle of chickens sold better than expected, and we are now in the 2nd cycle.  The market is currently very strong, so we have assisted in making arrangement to add another staggered cycle.  This means 200 chickens will be ready for market  and sold every 3 weeks!  The funds generated will help support the feeding program and needs of the children at the school. Thanks for your support of this project!

      
 **Chicks Arrive…                    **Chicks grow into Chickens…

   **Chickens Go to Market…
(**Photos by Wes Wicklund)

If you are interested in supporting other projects like these, you can use the information below: 

For Credit/Debit Card Support:
Sus. Dev. Project Acct. #11504P:
http://donations.iphc.org/projects/sustainable-development-for-feeding-programs

Support Mailing Address:
IPHC-World Missions Ministries
PO Box 12609
Oklahoma City, OK
ATTN: James and Jessica Dunning
(Make Checks payable to IPHC)

Sus. Dev. Project Acct. #11504P (Memo Line)

More Pics:
(Because everybody loves pictures of the kids)

   
At the Rosslyn Fall Festival….

         
** Camping with great friends…                            Our little hikers…   

           
               Ethan with Jamie …                                Ice Cream Date after Soccer…  

         
                  At the Falls…                                     ** Exploring Karura Forrest…

 

              Painting Pumpkins at Fall Festival…                                  Buddies…      

**Exploring with Daddy…

(**Photos by Wes Wicklund)

• That we would love God and others as He loves us, and that we will be faithful in all the areas that He is calling us.
• For continued direction, favor, and wisdom in our ministry.
• For our marriage to grow stronger every day.
• For Sophie and Ethan…that they will feel a meaningful connection to our ministry and that they both will grow to love and serve Jesus.
• For the Nation of Kenya, and the individuals, ministries, and churches we support.
• For our extended families as they adjust back to life without us and the kids.
• For good health, safety and protection.