During the summer, David Hayward and Joan Lew went to
Kazakhstan for three weeks on a mission’s trip. There they met
some people with disabilities that they had made contact with on
previous trips. Among these is Dima, a young 15-year-old boy with
cerebral palsy. The following are excerpts from David’s diary.
June 22—In Almaty, Kazakhstan:
We noted that there is not much improvement for Dima in physical
strength—they don’t have good physiotherapists, and so the family
don’t really know how to help him—they are wanting to have
expensive injections ($500 US per shot) that are supposed to be
miracle cures—but I am sure are just cruel hoaxes. Families are
very vulnerable to the claims of doctors to have wonderful cures,
and there are few real educational resources available to families
or caregivers, so the need for exercise and activity and proper
support is not understood. I was saddened to see that he is no
more able to use his walker than last time I was there, and
wondered what could be done. A possible answer emerged later when
we were in Shymkent...
July
8—In Shymkent:
After our classes we went to visit the EQUIP TRUST, a ministry
started in Shymkent 10 years ago by a very gifted man from
England. He started an English Library, which I think is the
largest library in Shymkent, and they offer several very good
English classes for adults and kids, run an elementary school
(Christian, I think), and has an English Club, which is largely
run by local believers. They also have an English-language
congregation that is growing in strength and size, and are doing
marvellous things. One of the projects in the works is to build a
factory to build wheelchairs for Kazakhstan. The Trust, quite well
supported by churches and charities from its base in England, is
now being run by a couple from England, Greg and Muriel Chad, who
have expanded the original vision, and have begun an absolutely
lovely school for children with disabilities. There were no kids
when we went, but we toured the rooms, which were beautiful and
full of colour and love.
They are the best-trained people we encountered in Kazakhstan,
and offer seminars for the community when experts come out for
short term visits. I believe that Mercy Ministry would be greatly
strengthened by a connection with this group and have encouraged
Zhanna to send some of her team down there for seminars this
summer and fall, and left some money, from some of you, with the
suggestion that they use some for that purpose. This could equip
them to much better support Max, Dima, Pavel, and the other
house-bound kids. They have a young Kazakh teacher named Olessya,
who has been hired and who is proving to be a real gift from God.
Please pray for this ministry and this young woman. We hope to see
Equip Trust at Missions Fest (In Vancouver) someday soon...
(Please also pray for Dima and his family.)
