Many people have been contacting us to see if we have been ok amidst the cyclone hitting Malawi. We wanted to write a quick update to let everyone know that Christina and I and in fact the area of Malawi we are in are doing alright. Our area, the central region, is not getting hit directly by the storm, the worst we are experiencing is lack of power and running water, but even those we may get a couple hours during a 24 period. Enough to keep things running even for those of us who are used to such comforts.
As for the southern part of the country, the same can not be said. If you have heard about the cyclone on the news, in some ways you have heard possibly more than we have, since internet and communications have not been great in the country recently. But we do have friends whose families are being affected, and we are being told that even the main city in the southern region, Blantyre, is experiencing flooding.
The storm, Freddie, turned from Malawi back into the ocean yesterday, so it seems like the worst of it is over, but many roads, homes and infrastructure have been damaged. 22,000 have evacuated, 200+ have lost their lives, and the country has been without power for the week. It is only now that people are starting to understand the total extent of the storm.
We have also received some inquiries about how to help. For those who are interested in this, we would recommend giving to one of two organizations who are working with restoration and care in the regions affected. We can connect you with some options from organizations we respect. See at the end of this post for more on info.
If you have given to us recently and would like a portion of your donation to go towards cyclone relief in Malawi, please let us know. In many cases we do have ministry funds in reserve for emergencies like this.
In terms of prayer, please pray for the people of Malawi, for those already impacted and for those who will continue to be impacted in the future. Please pray that the country will miraculously not suffer from worsened cholera or food insecurity after all of this, and for healing in the days to come.
As for us, we are doing well. We hope to go to Mngwangwa village tomorrow and teach a group of women from many churches about how to prevent and care for cholera. We are hoping to investigate the borehole they use for clean water, to see if we can help repair it, and also to distribute some chlorine to help sanitize water. Please pray that the teaching will go well, that it will enhance health and healing, and that we will be able to travel safely there and back.
Thank you for your care and support,
Greg and Christina
More info on helping with relief:
World Renew is a relief and development Christian organization which will be helping with the cyclone relief. At the moment their website does not have a link to give to the cyclone directly, but if you mention Cyclone Freddie, or malawi it will make it will be set aside for that purpose.
https://worldrenew.net/
Also, we received the attached pdf from a missionary doctor and friend of ours who is working in the area affected has sent out a request for prayers and donations.