Television Program

In September 2005, our hospital partnered with the local public television station to develop and televise a children’s program. Dr. Henry Ine and Melissa Giebel hosted the series “Truth for Youth”, and it was filmed with an audience of 30 local children. The series is a Seventh-day Adventist evangelistic program often used in the United States for Vacation Bible School. The response from the community was incredible! We were blessed to be able to share bible truths through public television without extra cost to us.

African Kids 4 Christ

Thirty local children were chosen to participate in the “Truth for Youth” television program hosted by our hospital in 2005. They learned 25 songs in the course of a few weeks, and there was born “African Kids 4 Christ.” Since that summer program, we have visited multiple local Adventist churches to sing, and have also performed at local Christmas programs and international medical conferences hosted here in Nigeria. The choir is directed by Belen, with Michaela and Joshua joining in song. Our first Video CD "Sing Praise" was finished in October 2007 and has sold more than 4,000 copies in Nigeria. Our second Video CD “Everlasting Love” was completed in November 2008. The VCDs include some songs in the local languages of Nigeria, along with traditional and gospel songs. The profit from the sale of these VCDs is given to the “Kids Kare Fund: Help a Kid to Help a Kid.” This fund subsidizes the hospital bills of poor children who cannot afford to pay for emergency care. We hope to bring a DVD version of these videos to the US soon!

Pediatric Ward Renovation

During summer of 2006, Zachary and Angela Vande Griend from Loma Linda visited our hospital and helped us renovate the pediatric ward with funds donated by Angela's grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. David and Rosalyn Radcliffe. Zachary spent hours painting the walls while Angela and Belen painted a mural of Noah's ark and animals on the entrance wall to the ward. The Vande Griends also bought blue valances to decorate the windows, and then hand-painted animals on wood squares to use as curtain holders. They also purchased a solid wood children's table with benches, which were painted with rainbow colors and placed next to the mural as a place for the children to sit and play with toys. Part of the money was used to buy local wood, which Timothy Gobble, a visiting pre-medical student from Oregon, used to build a beautiful, wood rocking horse for the children's enjoyment. The remaining funds have been used to place a mosquito net over every bed to help protect the children from mosquitoes carrying malaria. We extend a heart-felt thank you to Zachary and Angela for their efforts, and to Mr. and Mrs. David and Rosalyn Radcliffe for providing the necessary funds to improve our pediatric ward. We know that thousands of children will be blessed by the colorful artwork and play area that has been provided for them.

Sabbath School

Our children’s Sabbath school was usually comprised of singing and a story, but we know the children also enjoy using felts and other activities. We appreciate those that have donated felts and other materials to make this possible. We were especially grateful to God when we recently found a cupboard full of felts (worth more than $500) which had been stored long ago, but  (in spite of the humidity, dust, insects, etc.) were in perfect condition!

Playground Project

Since coming to Nigeria, we have had dreams of building a playground for the local children. We had noticed that children here did not have playgrounds or parks to play at, and a simple tire hung from a tree often attracted a dozen children looking for a place to have some outdoor fun. Thanks to contributionsfrom Dr. & Mrs. John and Joyce Lohr (a.k.a. Grandpa & Grandma) and Ms. Aida McWaltbe (a.k.a. Abuela Aida), and the Youth Group from Hood View Seventh-day Adventist Church, the playground project was completed in April 2006.  We would also like to thank the School of Nursing for donating paint for the project, the residents of the hospital quarters for donating tires for our “tire trail” and the Ife Pathfinder Youth Group for helping us do some of the “dirty work”. The childrenlove the swing set, slide, monkey bars, climbing lattice and see-saw, all made from locally available materials.