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by Captain Beryl Pierce in Zambia –
Western officer Captain Beryl Pierce was appointed to Zambia Territory as the social services and community development officer in June of this year. New Frontier will periodically share her reports from overseas.
First impressions
When I arrived in Zambia, I was met by the entire THQ cabinet at the airport. I felt like a dignitary.
The compound where I live has a corps, a preschool, an extension training center for officers and the trade department, as well as homes for a lot of the THQ staff and some divisional staff. There is always a lot of activity going on.
My home is small, but quite nice and very adequate. I have no heat in my house, and there is no fan either so those are some items that I will probably have to supply myself. It is quite cool here in the mornings since this is winter…I sometimes turn the oven on and leave the door open for a half hour in the mornings since there are a lot of gaps around the front of my house. The food is good…usually rice, potatoes, and maize all at the same meal with a little vegetables and meat sauce. I am able to get lots of fresh vegetables at the market…I carry my own sweetener…Diet Cokes seems to be the only sugar-free soft drink served here.
Chikankata mission and hospital
I attended a Home League rally and learned we were going to the Chikankata Mission (a two hour drive, partly on dirt roads) to deliver curtains and bed sheets. When we got there, I found out that we were hanging the curtains in the high school dormitories. We had a good time; the boys and girls were so excited to have curtains on their windows. It made a great difference in the dorm rooms. Unfortunately, there was not enough for all the windows. We will have to raise the funds to finish the project.
Then we went to the Chikankata Hospital where we put new sheets on the beds in the maternity ward. We brought many smiles there, as well. Our next stop was in the children’s ward where we delivered dolls, oranges and bars of soap to the delight of both children and staff.
It was a very long, but very exciting and rewarding day. I am thrilled to be getting out seeing a few of the 52 projects here in our territory. As funds allow, I hope I will be able to visit them all.
Blessings, my friends––
Captain Beryl
