Staff Fellowship in Kibaale

This past Thursday was the last Staff Fellowship of the year down in Kibaale. The staff hold these every week as a time to come together, worship the Lord, and learn from one another. Since it was the last one of the year, it was a little bit special. We had our usual time of worship and teaching, and then the extras began. Peter, the new Ugandan Director (first time in 18 years that the leadership team at the Center has been fully Ugandan!), spoke about his vision for the direction in which he wants to lead the Center, which was great to hear.

Also, two of our staff would be leaving Kibaale for good (or at least for a while) at the end of the year, so there was an added program for us ("us" is me and a girl from Canada named Natalie). Natalie has been in Kibaale for three months helping with the Special Needs class in the Primary school, and she is also leaving Uganda in the middle of December. Even though I've only been here six months, and Natalie just three, the staff wanted to send us out in style.

I got the chance to say a few parting words to the staff I will dearly miss.

Samalie, one of our directors, was pleased to give Natalie her present.

And Patrick, another one of the directors, was happy to give one to me.

It's a good look for me, right?

"Greetings from Uganda"

More decorations ...

When I said they wanted to send us out in style, I was serious! This is a whole African get-up that actually has West African origins (in Nigeria), but still, it's pretty cool. Except for the fact that it's huge! I'll have to ask our Tailoring teacher to sew it for me so it fits. I told the staff that I would wear it next week on payday when they all come into the office to pick up their salaries, so hopefully I can get it worked on before then!

Natalie loves her new African robe!

Another tradition at Ugandan ceremonies, whether it's a wedding or simply a goodbye-party, is cutting the cake. Our friends Sean and Jamie did the same thing before they left in September, so I knew the drill. Cut the cake into pieces, and then serve the guests.

The staff definitely enjoyed their food.

It was nice to be honored at the Staff Fellowship, but it was also very sad. I have absolutely loved my time working in Kibaale, and it will be hard to leave this awesome staff and some cool relationships that have started to develop over the past few months. This wasn't exactly the right time for closure either, because there's still one more week left in the school term, and it will be a busy week. But this night served as a very real indicator that my time here is almost up. It humbles me to witness how our staff serves each other, the students, and the surrounding community. It has been a pleasure to serve alongside them, and it will be a place that I will miss very much as I come home.