Update on James Place
The James Place has been quiet since we closed in March due to COVID, but that does not keep us from getting things done. We started constructing a new kitchen here before COVID hit, and although it got slowed down a bit, it is finally finished. This new kitchen is a huge blessing to us! It gives our kitchen staff so much more space to prepare and cook meals and plenty of serving space to provide food for the 225+ people we cook for daily. Every staff member that has come by to visit is amazed by the new kitchen and can’t wait to use it.
I have been able to see quite a few of our staff members during this time. I love going on home visits because I can see staff in their home environment, meet their family, and get to know them on a much more personal level. I am so proud of how they are all handling this crazy time. Lockdown in Uganda is far from easy, but they have handled it with patience and grace. They are all anxiously awaiting the day we can welcome them all back to the James Place.
We have continued to pay our staff every month since we closed in March. We have also had the privilege of giving them bonuses to cover the cost of food at home. We are so grateful for all the donations we have received that allowed us to do this. The staff continually tell me to thank all the donors for their generosity. You are quite literally putting food on the table for all 74 of our staff families. You are helping our staff provide for their children so that their families can stay together.
An exciting part of the last few months since we closed is that our staff have welcomed six beautiful babies into the world. Both the moms and babies are doing well, and I can’t wait to have them all in childcare. They are the cutest, and I know they will get plenty of snuggles and love when they come with their mamas to work.
Some of our sewing artisans have spent two weeks sewing jewelry bags to be taken back to Nashville. If you have bought a piece of jewelry at a trunk show, you should recognize these adorable African fabric bags.
We have also been working on some property maintenance and improvements. We had to cut many branches out of our trees because a deadly parasite started growing in several of the trees around the compound. We also sprayed the entire compound to help prevent snakes and insects that tend to show up when people aren’t there. Just because we are closed does not mean the work stops. We are working hard to maintain the property and ensure that our staff are doing alright.
COVID has been hard for the whole world, Uganda included, but there is also so much hope. I see hope in the new babies we have welcomed, hope in the family who has come together after losing their father, and hope that our Lord has good things in store for us. We may never know the purpose of this pandemic, but God promises that his plans for us are good, and we can rest in that peace as we navigate this season of life.
