Miwani for Mwanza: Bruce the Giraffe

Monday, May 11, 2009

Bruce the Giraffe

Meet the newest member of our M4M Tanzania mission team, Bruce the giraffe. He is named after a member of our congregation who has been participating and been a huge contributor to our Walking to Tanzania Fundraiser.

The giraffe has been adopted as our team mascot and we have been "borrowing" an image of another cute giraffe for our Walking to Tanzania signs and updates. Now that we have Bruce we are legal to use him in our posts and publications.

Click on Bruce to see a larger image of him - he kind of looks like the real Bruce, glasses and all.

Walking to Tanzania Update

Bruce, our little walking giraffe is almost half way to Tanzania - only a few more miles and he will be able to get his hooves on the continent of Africa.

As of May 10 we have accumulated 4581 miles toward Bruce's trek to Tanzania - only 4743 miles left. Now that the weather is warmer we should all be able to get out and walk a few miles toward the total and keep Bruce going.

Keep Walking! Let's make sure that once he is on the ground in Africa, Bruce will be running (not walking) to get to his homeland of Tanzania!

Miwani for Mwanza Mission

In July 2009 the “Miwani for Mwanza” mission team from Atonement Lutheran Church traveled from Overland Park to Mwanza, Tanzania. “Miwani” is the Swahili word for eye glasses.

While in Tanzania the team worked with International Health Partners to begin the construction of an eye clinic at the Nyakato Health Center. The eye clinic is critically needed to serve over 200,000 people in the Southern Lake Victoria area.

Dennis and Paula Lofstrom and IHP-TZ oversee the Nyakato Health Clinic through the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Tanzania.

In June of 2012 another team from Atonement will travel to Mwanza with the goal to finish the eye clinic as well as to serve in various medical roles. Several members of the M4M team are Health Care Professionals and during the trip will be providing medical & eye exams, treatments and eye surgery for the people in that area of Tanzania.

$36,000.00 US is needed to to purchase the supplies to complete the Ahlrichs Eye Clinic, and $21,000 of that has been raised already through a Golf Benefit last fall and the "Spread Some Salt" Gala & Silent Auction this past March.

Your contributions toward the final $10,000 needed to complete the Eye Clinic are greatly apprieciated by the M4M teams, IHP-TZ and the people of Mwanza. Asante Sana!

Click here to make a donation.