It has been my privilege over the past 5 years to lead 3 teams that included high functioning special needs adults to serve with CURE at its hospital in Kijabe Kenya, as well as a 4th trip with my daughter who studies for a semester at a college in Kenya. She was much influenced by her experience as a member of our missions teams. The beauty of each trip was observing, guiding, and working along side our disabled team members as they interacted with the hospital staff and patients, relating to them personally, sharing their own stories and encouraging each other. Our teams have formed eternal bonds with many patients and the tremendous staff there, especially the Spiritual Leader Christine Kithome and her associate Pastor Joseph, who we sometimes call my "twin" as we see so many issues identically. when I've been speaking and Joseph translates, often he can finish my sentences in english and then put them into Kiswahili! The team members continue to pray for our Kenyan sisters and brothers, support one of the staff. Even though I have moved on to another place of service, I remain in touch with my Kenya friends and hope to reunite again in the not-so-distant future. They are part of our lives and indeed our Spiritual family. They have blessed us with spiritual refreshment. Kenya staff told us that many of their fellow citizens have the impression that Americans are free from problems, disabilities, and illness or that our national wealth and resources have overcome such things. We show them that this is not the case, that we are indeed facing many of these issues for which there are no easy solutions, that we're in this together before the Lord.