What's Cookin'?

Bethel Children’s Centre and Huruma are undertaking a much needed and very exciting  project:  A New Kitchen!  While neither this kitchen, nor the new one, would resemble the kitchens you are used to seeing, this project is going to make the lives of the children better by making food safer and food preparation easier.

The current kitchen is a very small square building.  The sides are vertical lumber.  Nothing is sealed.  The oven is a wood burning stove.  There is no ventilation to speak of.  The children are used to cooking in there but the heat and smoke are truly hard to bear.  There is only a board “countertop” in the building - no sink or running water inside.  The “sink” is on the outside of the kitchen and water is carted in buckets.  It takes a strong, resourceful, and talented woman to cook in Kenya.  I am nothing but impressed with their abilities.  But back to the kitchen...
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The head of the orphanage indicated a need for a new kitchen.  Why?  (As if the above reasons weren’t enough.)  Well, the kitchen was always seen as semi-permanent.  The walls which surround the orphanage (to keep the children safe inside the compound) are made of rocks piled between chicken wire.  This stacked rock wall (no mortar or cement) forms part of the kitchen wall.  Here is the part that gets your attention: “the wall has been invaded by rats which hide between the rocks and breed and it has proven hard to get rid of them.”   YIKES!  The rats come out and not only eat the rice and beans in bags but have gotten so bold as to “eat the children’s cooked food.”  Andrew very matter of factly said "this is a serious health issue."  But this is just a another challenge in the running of the centre. 
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The ladies have extra work having to prepare food n the temporary cooking area.  The joy of the Lord is their strength!
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There are many other before pictures and before stories.  More of those later.  But here are some pictures of work being done on the new and improved kitchen!

This is exciting to see!  Things are moving quickly!  Sealed walls = sad rats!  But I am feeling no sympathy!  Praise God from whom all blessing flow!  His mercies are new everyday!