This precious little girl is Tendo Victoria, and we would
love to share with you her story.
On Sunday afternoon, we found out a
baby had been dropped into a pit latrine, and she was a little girl who
had jut been born that morning. They are not sure how long she was in
there, but thankfully someone passing by eventually heard her cries and
called the police. Joseph was called and
went immediately to meet them and take the baby to the hospital. When
she arrived there, she had maggots coming out of her ears, her umbilical
cord was still attached, and they had to pump a lot of poop and insects
out of her stomach from the latrine. Despite that, the doctors and
nurses were surprised at how healthy she seemed. Guardianship of her
was given to Joseph & Sara, who named her Tendo (which means praise
in Luganda) Victoria (because of the victory that she was still alive,
despite all odds). We were so excited when Joseph came back to Rafiki
and told us some of the details, and said that she would be arriving the
next morning! They still needed to do some tests and keep her
overnight. We started preparing all the clothes and diapers, and I felt
prepared and excited to care for her and even to get up with her in the
night for feeding and such. It seemed as though maybe this was one of
the reasons God had planned for me to come here in the first place, and
even though I hadn’t met her yet I knew I loved her already. The next
morning, though, we heard from Auntie Sarah, who had stayed overnight
with Tendo at the hospital. She said that the baby had passed away. I
felt so overcome by grief and sorrow, and I still do not fully
understand why God allowed it. We went to the hospital, and prayed over
baby Tendo. Then, we took her to the mortuary and as we were leaving
the nurse asked who wanted to carry her in the car. I heard someone
else’s voice say from my mouth, “I will”. The drive felt so surreal,
and it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done to take her in the
mortuary, lay her on the table, and walk away. At the same time,
though, I feel like God revealed something so important to me today.
What the world threw away, he rescued and cherished and took to be with
Him. Instead of letting her die in that latrine, all alone without
anyone even noticing, He chose for her to be surrounded by people who
were showing love to her and recognizing her life. Even in her one day
here on earth, God used her to show his incredible, redeeming love. I
will never forget Tendo, or this experience, and I plan to share her
story for the rest of my life.
--Amanda Weber, Rafiki Volunteer
Last week on Sunday, I was informed of a baby girl who had been
dropped into a pit latrine. (a small hole in the ground used as a
toilet) I felt so horrible and heart broken to hear this. All day my
mind was preoccupied with thoughts of this little baby. She was a day
old and had been abandoned and thrown away as if she were nothing more
than trash. The police contacted Joseph about her. She was going to stay
the night in the hospital and the next morning we were going to meet
baby Tendo Victoria, and welcome her into the Rafiki family! Immediately
I felt that this was God’s will that Tendo come to live at this home.
Rafiki has been preparing to receive a different baby for some time, but
she has never showed up. I thought how amazing it was that God had
prepared us for a baby, but not the one we expected! Tendo was a welcome
and unexpected surprise! I was feeling both anxious and excited to meet
her!
The next morning, everything changed. We heard the news in the
morning that Tendo had passed away. I felt in shock, numb, unable to
process. One minute we were so excited to receive the newest member of
our family, and the next, we found out we would never even get a chance
to meet her. The morning was rushed, as we were all frazzled, shaken up,
and in a hurry to get to the hospital to pick up Tendo’s body and bring
it where it could be ready for burial. Upon hearing about her death, I
felt so far removed from the situation. But I knew as soon as I saw her
lying there, I would never be the same. I was right. When we walked into
the hospital and I saw her tiny, 6 – pound body laying covered up on
the bed, I began to cry. And cry. I felt like it was endless tears. When
I looked at her little, lifeless face, I just started to cry more. I
can’t explain the pain of this loss. I was prepared to love this child,
yet I never had the oppurtunity to know her. Though I did not know her,
the pain of the loss was, and still is, so strong. I do not know what it
is to lose; to suffer. But that day I experienced a small part of that.
I am changed. I am wrecked for a good, normal life. I am in the middle
of a broken world. These orphaned, abandoned, broken children are no
longer statistics. They are names, faces, and personalities. They are
people who I love. My heart hurt so much to be weighed down with the
loss of this precious life. I will never forget Tendo. And I pray one
day I will meet her in Heaven, this time, to see her smile. Despite the
pain, I thank God that He allowed me to be here, and to love and
appreciate Tendo at the end of her short life. She is not forgotten. I
struggle to see the big picture or plan beyond this, but I do know that
God’s will is sovereign. He see’s us through, and has been here
comforting us all through the last several days. He is evidently still
at work, even through the pain.
--Niomi Klassen, Rafiki Volunteer
In the midst of our grief on Monday over the loss of Tendo, God
brought joy to Rafiki in the form of this sweet girl. That same day, we
went to serve at Sanyu Babies home (as was previously planned). It was
difficult, but very good to continue to serve God even in our sorrow,
and be surrounded by so much life. And there was a lot of it - 50
babies is crazy, in the best possible way! When we were done there, we
heard from Joseph that he had gotten a call from a different police
station about a young girl who had been abandoned. We went there to meet
him, met Janat, and brought her home to Rafiki with us! It is amazing
how quickly it all happened and I believe that God had intended for this
to be her home all along. She is around 1 1/2 years old, and her mom
is assumed by the police to be a commercial sex worker and mentally
ill. She was recently checked into a treatment facility and determined
to be unable to care for her daughter, while the father is unknown, so
the police requested that Janat be cared for by Rafiki.
She is adjusting so well here already, and is getting along great
with all the other kids. We have all noticed that she is a completely
different girl than the one we drove home from the police station Monday
(see first picture). She has an infectious laugh and such a sweet
spirit; the first time I handed her a doll, she gave it lots of kisses.
Yesterday we took her to the clinic to get tested and examined by a
doctor, and found out that she is HIV negative! Apart from the fact
that she isn’t walking yet, he said that she is a healthy, normal
child. It was a tough experience for me, because I had to hold her down
while the doctor drew blood (and he had to poke her many times, as her
veins weren’t very visible), but I was glad to be there for her through
it and am so thrilled to hear that she is healthy. I feel really lucky
to get to know this beautiful girl, and that I was able to be here for
her first few days in her new home!
--Amanda Weber, Rafiki Volunteer
After saying a heart wrenching good bye to Tendo, we went to the Sanyu
Babies Home, as originally planned. It was surprisingly refreshing and
so happy to see all these living, and healthy babies around us. We were
able to play with the babies, feed them, change them, and love them.
They were so sweet and cuddly! There was one precious baby boy,
Jeremiah, who I really wanted to take home with me! I think after the
loss of Tendo, it was a blessing to be able to hold and love some
babies. While at Sanyu, Godfrey got a call from Joseph. The police
contacted him about another young girl who was in need of a home, so off
we went to police to pick her up. Her name is Janet, and she is about 1
and a half years old. Her mother is mentally ill, and I take it that
the father is out of the picture. Janet is really the most beautiful
little girl I’ve ever seen. Joseph signed the papers right away, and
immediately we took Janet back with us to Rafiki. I held her on my lap
most of the way, and she cried the whole time. It felt so horrible to
not be able to do anything to comfort her. I felt so helpless and lost. I
wanted so bad to love her, but there was nothing I could do to comfort
her. When we got back to Rafiki, she did much better. She is a very
healthy little girl, and after a few days she already seems comfortable
and at home. She loves the kids, and they love her. She is now a part of
the family. That day, we lost, and we gained. I felt that it was too
much, too overwhelming to experience all in one day. But yet, I am
thankful that Tendo is in Jesus’ arms, and I am thankful that God has
brought Janet to a loving home and a new family. The Lord gives, and the
Lord takes away. It was the hardest day since I have been here, and it
was also one of the hardest days of my life so far. It was
a challenging, tragic, and horrible day that God is going to use for His
glory. The following days, my heart has simply hurt, but through it all
is when I need to lean on Jesus more and more. He is teaching me so
much! Good has already come from this situation. Tendo’s story is
changing lives!
--Niomi Klassen, Rafiki Volunteer
