Only a month ago though it was the usual very cold period by local standards, down to 6ºC/ 43ºF. Many people don’t have clothes for the cold, and some suffer seriously. So LAMB was involved in the provision and distribution of blankets and warm clothes. Nice to note was that some individual staff members – Bangladeshi and expatriate - on their own initiative arranged extra supplies.
A reflection on poverty is that sometimes those who have blankets sell their much needed blanket because food is a greater priority.
So, welcome back warm weather.
LAMB’s community activities have since January 1st taken another step forward. This is via a three year project on Disaster Risk Reduction – minimizing the damage done to communities by flooding and by drought. There are several new things for LAMB about this work. The first is that it will actively involve working with churches out in the community areas so that they may take on a more supportive role in their communities. Secondly it is taking us into another of Bangladesh’s 64 Districts, Lalmonirhat, which starts about 25 miles (40 km) from LAMB. In some ways this may not sound far, but rural travel is not always easy and even to the main town in the area takes about 2.5 hours from LAMB. To villages it takes much longer – even without floods. Thirdly, disaster preparedness work as a speciality is new for us, but working with communities and passing on skills is an established expertise for LAMB and we now have trained specialists in disaster preparedness.
We note that for our community work, LAMB is usually working as an arm of larger international partners, some Christian, some not. We recognize that without their overall support and funding we would not be able to work
Back at the main LAMB site, things have been busy as always. At the Hospital, another surgical camp was held for women suffering from an obstetric fistula, (typically damage caused by delay in giving birth). We were fortunate to have a visit by another expert gynaecologist, and financial support to make it possible. Another 15 women were operated on – in this case including some from much further away than is normal for LAMB Hospital, since most of those suffering in the moderately close region have already been seen. Bangladesh still has many thousands of sufferers, so a lot more work is needed.
Also at LAMB site, there has been a change in the way we organise the disability related activities. The activities such as club foot realignment work, therapy, and therapy training for ongoing rehabilitation at the site have now been connected directly into the hospital. All the care of the hospital is more easily available for the affected children. It will also allow the hospital to have better access to the therapy skills in the rehabilitation unit.
At the School, for the last five months of 2010 both the School Director and the Headmaster had to be away. (It was not planned that way). Very pleasing for all at the school was that things continued to run well, and it was a good learning opportunity (if busy and challenging) for all involved.
Lastly, to close on a cheery note, there seem to have been a lot of visitors to LAMB in recent times, and it is very nice to hear that people still have good things to say about LAMB and the way things are done – and ideas about what else could be done.
If you would like to pray for the work that is done here, then a particular request would be the new areas for community work and for the churches with whom we will work.
