team of 30 people from Los Angeles, CA to Capetown South
Africa for another visit to the squatter's camp called Kayamandi.
families with teenage children
returned to the village to continue
working alongside local South
African missionaries Cassie and
Jenny Carstens and building
relationships of trust with the
people of Kayamandi.
the village making crafts, playing games
and telling Bible stories. When the team
was told to expect 20 children, 80
children showed up, ready to play and
hear the Bible stories. Though the event
was designed for children, many women
in the village dropped by, wanting to
participate and listen as well.
with a group of 30 women in the
village who counsel people with
AIDS. The team provided ears to
listen to the ladies' overburdened
hearts. The team also provided
group training and prayer time for
the AIDS counselors.
teams, each with a photographer. The teams walked through the village, were invited into
homes, talked with the families, prayed with them and took family photos of them. The team
returned in a couple of days with a small collection of photos for each family.
fierce rule of apartheid. Even now, white
people rarely come into the village. Most
of the villagers have never had a white
person in their home. They enjoy having
their photos taken. However, it is when
the team returned with the photos as
promised, that the folks really warmed
up. Only after seeing the team follow
through with their promise, could
relationships of trust begin to be built.
who helped out with the Photo
Legacy Project, tells the story
of one family she met. When
the family saw Katie return to
their village with photos in
hand, they stared at her and
said, “You see us. Other
white people walk through the
village but they don’t see us.
You see us.”
talking with a family for a few minutes,
saying a short prayer and returning with
a gift of minimal cost means so much.
Kayamandi. For many of the families, the father has died and
left a young mother infected with AIDS, trying to support her
family and care for her children. Many children are orphaned
because of the high rate of disease. Some are taken in by their
grandmother, some left to raise themselves. The photos that the
team left behind are a simple and inexpensive act of kindness.
For the families, though, those photos are the legacy that will be
left behind when yet another little boy or girl loses a mom or dad.
with the people in the village, we will
continue to find ways to support the
Carstens in their ministry, provide for
some of the basic physical and
emotional needs of the locals and share
God's love with the villagers we meet.
