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Captain Martin Cooper shares a day in the Marshall Islands. –
I am sitting down at the computer after a very long day of doing things that are common here but most uncommon when I lived on the mainland. My day started off with buying a battery, boat fuel and items to repair a boat leak. We filled a toolbox with “stuff,” then loaded five bikes, fishing poles and extra line, along with school supplies, into our newly rebuilt 18-foot boat.
As the boat left for its new home on the Arno Atoll, I was reminded of the old TV show, Sanford & Son, for it was fully loaded with two men and all the “stuff.” The boat will be used for outreach, to transport the needy and the sick, and to fish for food. It was bought with donations and repaired by many of our neighborhood young people and a few of the local drunks who have some great skills and just needed an invitation to join in. It’s kind of funny who God uses to do his work, and yet so many will be blessed by these “outcasts.”
We spent the afternoon filling requests from our outer islands. We heard that a cargo boat was heading out their way, and we needed to send school supplies, vehicle repair items, fishing items and a refrigerator, along with a 50hp Honda motor. Life here is slow, with sudden 90 mph bursts that last two hours, and then we stop and think “What’s next?”
The photos represent two days in our lives. On the Arno Atoll, we admired the newest Salvation Army building, which is made of local material (grass hut); its beauty speaks for itself. At the Rita Corps (Majuro Atoll) we dedicated three babies and enrolled new members. The place was packed. That night we attended The Salvation Army in Laura, where we were again treated to a full house and a native stick dance.
We want to say thank you to everyone who helps us reach out and touch the Marshallese people. Your kindness impacts and changes the lives of children, young people and families.