Archive for the ‘Mission Trip’ Category

Check our my latest trip to Nigeria. I was so blessed to be able to spend time with my staff encouraging them through leadership training. We re-visited our vision, mission and core values while evaluating our programs and processes. We analyzed our office culture and came up with ways to show Christ’s love better in the lives of those he has entrusted us with. We celebrated our children and continued to work towards progress on our building project for the school. God continues to give us all the strength to be his hands and feet in Egbe, Nigeria.

P.S. My birthday fundraiser for Pastor Alabi was fully funded!! Thank you everyone for helping make my birthday wish come true!

Update on Return Trip to Nigeria

I have had so many people ask me when I plan to return to Nigeria now that international airports are opening. Our visit in June was cancelled due Covid-19 and my team and I have been anxious to reschedule. The most recent COVID testing and quarantine protocols for travelers arriving in Nigeria requires:

  1. We must provide the airline with proof of a negative Covid-19 PCR test result administered within 5 days of departure to Nigeria. The airline will deny boarding of any passenger who does not have said proof.
  2. We must register and upload PCR test results to Nigeria’s online International Travel Portal.  We must pay via the online portal for a Covid-19 PCR retest in Nigeria to occur seven days after arrival at an approved lab.
  3. At the airport in Nigeria we will undergo mandatory health screening and must present evidence of negative pre-boarding PCR test results and evidence of payment/appointment for a repeat PCR test in-country.  Our passport biodata page including our passport picture will be forwarded to all COVID-19 PCR Sample Collection Centers.
  4. Mandatory eight days of isolation.  Present ourselves for repeat Covid-19 PCR testing on day seven.  Once we have received a negative repeat PCR test the quarantine is lifted.

We would have to travel to the small town of Ilorin for our repeat Covid-19 PCR tests 7 days after arrival. The four hour drive to Ilorin is over difficult roads that are frequented by robbers. We have no experience with anyone obtaining a PCR repeat test in Ilorin so have no idea what the challenges might be. We have heard from other missionaries about delays in getting their repeat PCR test results performed in better run and larger cities. Two weeks of our time in country are tied up meeting all the testing and quarantine requirements – and that’s only if there are no problems along the way (no “wahalla”).  Unfortunately, in my experience, it is unlikely this will be a smooth process. It is not a risk I am willing to take nor put my team through at this time. You can pray Nigeria does away with this in country Covid-19 PCR retest so our team can visit and encourage our children, staff and caregivers and bring much needed supplies.

 

Update on School Resumption

We were so excited to get the news last month that schools could finally reopen. It was challenging to get the needed resources like face masks, hand sanitizers and other COVID-19 requirements, but God provided and we are open!

The children were very excited to return. However, we found that the homework packets and the small amount of interaction we were allowed with the children have left the kids behind academically. Thankfully, Nigeria decided to start the school year with the original third term that was missed due to the COVID shutdown.  Repeating the third term should help catch the children up but there are still many challenges that we face.

Starting Nov 1st, the first term of the new school year will begin, and things will hopefully return to normal. Pray for our teachers and kids to persevere and that this pandemic will not have a negative effect on any child’s educational foundation.

Enjoy some of the smiling faces returning to our school.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“There are so many opportunities to serve here in Egbe that would really make a difference and nobody really knows.” This was the topic of conversation when I visited Egbe a few weeks ago. Since I left Egbe, Nigeria in 2017 for Jos, Nigeria, the ministries there have been growing as fast if not faster than C.A.R.E. Africa. It was amazing to see them all a few weeks ago and hear the needs. From teachers, music instructors, medical doctors and nurses, to robotics, auto mechanics and construction the needs are plenty.

As I was putting together the C.A.R.E. Africa flyer for the Mobilizing Medical Missions conference I am attending in Houston this week, I was encouraged to share with you the opportunities to serve in Egbe short term and long term. See the list below and please tell everyone you know that God can use the gifts he has given them to make a difference in this small town of Egbe, Nigeria. Email me for more information at patrice.miles@sim.org.

Pray for our team from C.A.R.E. Africa and also ECWA Hospital Egbe this weekend as we scout out Houston at the M3 Mobilizing Medical Missions Conference for volunteers wanting to answer the call of Matthew 28:19 to go and make a difference.

                                                                    
C.A.R.E. Africa
Nurse Educator
ElementarySchool Teachers & Trainers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ECWA Hospital Egbe
Family Medicine Physician 
Ophthalmologist
Dentist
Physical Therapist

Anesthetist & Nurse Anesthetist
OBGYN Specialty Surgeons
Physician Assistant
Hospital Administrator
Construction Manager
Maintenance Manager
Electrician
Plumber
Auto Mechanic
Hospitality Manager

 

 

 

 

 

 

Centenary Computer Center & Music Academy
Music Instructors
Art Instructors
Computer Teachers
Hardware Engineering
Robotics Teachers
Stem Advisor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fulani Bush Camps
Elementary School Teachers & Trainers

Words and pictures cannot describe the fruitfulness of our 1st trip of 2020. God used all of us and the gifts he has given us to encourage all the kids, caregivers and staff at C.A.R.E. Africa and Foundations Academy. Take a peak below and pray about joining us on my next trip in June. Email me at patrice.miles@sim.org for more details.

In less than a month, I will be headed back to Nigeria with a team of servants going to help make a difference in the lives of so many kids, teachers and staff. It is always overwhelming to put together the schedules for the team. I wonder how each team members gifts can be best utilized in our ministry. I alway want everyone to have the best experience and to leave Egbe, Nigeria forever changed. I am challenged to not just make it about the experience but to also make sure that my staff on the ground are encouraged and inspired. This isn’t an easy task and only with the Lord’s help can all the pieces fall in place for a team with so many gifts and talents. 

Meet the team!

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Stephen and Diana Beville from Louisville, Kentucky.

 

Diana and Stephen visited Egbe, Nigeria in 2014 before C.A.R.E. Africa had started. They helped us put together the new pharmacy at ECWA Hospital Egbe. Stephen is a solution architect with GE and Diana runs our C.A.R.E. Africa markets while also working part time as a career consultant for people with disabilities. Since their last visit they have helped me put together the U.S. C.A.R.E. Africa legal side with accounting, board meetings, taxes and 5013c status. They also started the C.A.R.E Africa markets and our Etsy store. Diana visited us again in Jos, Nigeria in 2018 to run our children’s program at our SIM Spiritual Life Conference. They will be serving in our new seamstress program, documenting our Caregiver cooperative initiative and doing interviews with C.A.R.E. families. 

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Kathy Matheny from Louisville, Kentucky.

 

Kathy is the President of Cardinal Planning & Design. Her company did our land surveys years ago when Lenny and I were in construction building homes. They have been supporters of our ministry in Nigeria and now Kathy is excited to see what she has been investing in. This will be her first visit to Egbe, Nigeria. She will help lead worship at AWANA, teach elective classes, serve in the library at the school and assist with interviews.

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Michael Beaumont from Bluffton, South Carolina.

 

Michael is the lead pastor at Live Oak Christian Church. His last visit to Egbe was in 2014. This will be his fourth trip to Egbe. He is the Pastor at Live Oak Christian Church. He will be leading a one day retreat for the C.A.R.E. Africa staff through a curriculum he created called Leading  Healthy.  In addition he will help with AWANA, our Sports Outreach and our weekly staff devotional and caregiver meetings.  He will assist me with looking at land options for C.A.R.E. Africa’s new center.

 

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Scott Beebe from Bluffton, South Carolina

Scott is the founder of My Business on Purpose and helped C.A.R.E. Africa create our vision, mission, values and goals. He helped us document our practices and coached us through the stages of his model to get us to where we are today. He will be joining the team to do leadership training, serve at AWANA and Sports Outreach, assist Michael at our one day retreat and visit all his old friends as he is a native of Egbe, Nigeria and has visited too many times to count.

We are so excited to see what God is going to do with and through this team.

We need your help!!

We would love to take any of the following items with us when we go.

  1. New or Used Soccer Balls in good condition.
  2. Used Laptops in good condition.
  3. First Aid Kits
  4. Board Games
  5. Used Playstation.
  6. Overcomer Movie
  7. National Geographic Magazines/Science Magazines.
  8. Bibles.
  9. Cake Pans all sizes.
  10. Muffin Pans regular size.
  11. Clothing and shoes starting at size 5T and up to Men’s and Women’s small sizes.
  12. Monetary donations would also help us purchase needed items and/or cover any baggage fees. Any monetary donations can be given to our general fund atgive.icareafrica.org or checks can be made payable to CARE Africa and mailed. Email me at patrice.miles@sim.org for our mailing address.

You can Email me at patrice.miles@sim.org with any local donations I can pick up or I can give you a shipping address. 

“Mummy, can I have a picture of my sponsor so I can see them?” “Mummy, please tell my sponsor I pray for them.” These are just a few of the things my children at C.A.R.E. Africa ask and tell me.

DSC_0433One of the many hats I wear at C.A.R.E. Africa is child sponsorship. With over 60 children it is a huge task, but very satisfying. I know each one of these children and their needs personally so the investment I have in each on of the sponsorships is huge. Words cannot express the joy in seeing a child open a letter or a package from their sponsor when they have never had a gift like this before. I’m speechless when I see a picture of a child’s sponsor taped to the wall by their pillow when checking in on them. The greatest joy is getting to experience a child and a sponsor meeting for the first time in Nigeria when he/she comes on a mission trip with us.

Many of our sponsors may not think their $35 a month makes a big difference, BUT IT DOES. These children are getting an amazing education, attending discipleship programs, receive provisions for themselves and their families and are apart of a community that loves and accepts them. Seeds are being planted and one day we will see the harvest of our labor.

b7157fe1-537c-4294-9f2f-7737925d0087Would you consider making a difference in a child’s life? We have so many in need and many on the waiting list. You can see all the children and the different ways you can help on our sponsorship site at give.icareafrica.org . We have children that require just one sponsor because they only need education, discipleship and provisions. We have children that require two or three sponsors because we are trying to empower the entire family, through a trade, medical needs, house rent or work.

Our suggested single sponsorship is $35 a month and I personally do my best to keep you updated with pictures, cards and drawings from your child 3 to 4 times a year. Make a difference and click one of the children below or visit our sponsorship site at give.icareafrica.org where all of the children in need are listed.

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Here we go!

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Heathrow train with 9 bags

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London pit stop.

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Will all the luggage fit?

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Emma made it all fit!

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Welcoming Crew!

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A few of my girls.

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Seamstress kid hangout.

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One on one time with teachers.

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Seamstress class.

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Quickbooks time….

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What….I didn’t do it.

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The Mummy’s

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Baby Cecilia, Precious.

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Family Interviews

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Charles barbering apprenticeship.

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Giving gifts from sponsors.

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Ring Pop from sponsor.

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Fatoye visit.

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Office Shola

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Solo the Great

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Ayo the road angel.

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Teacher training time.

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Henna

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September Birthdays

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Measuring of land for possible permanent school site.

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More measuring….

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Patrice teaching how to measure land.

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CARE Staff

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Foundations Staff

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WWJD bracelets

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Backpacks! Backpacks!

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Miriam and her style

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More of baby Cecilia!

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Nigeria!

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Southeast Outlook in Jos

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Sponsor gifts.

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AWANA

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Spring of Life HIV/AIDS Staff

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Spring of Life meeting.

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Caregivers praying over teachers.

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Library organizers

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Egg Roll! My favorite!

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CARE’s prayer warrior, Baba Warren

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Yup!

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Teacher training with games.

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One on one time with teachers

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Teacher selfies.

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Spring of Life Outreach

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Outreach

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Jollof rice for the kiddos!

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WE love Jollof Rice!

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Back to School Party

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Sponsorship gifts

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The Emma’s

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Sponsorship gifts

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Toyin selfie

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Teachers selfie

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And it’s time to go back to school!! See you next time!

 

In less than a month I will be headed back to Nigeria. It is impossible to contain the joy I feel! I can’t wait to spend time with my team encouraging them in the tireless work they do.

Last Import - 405 of 581My mother, Jolene Eicher, will be joining me for her third trip to Nigeria. She will be busy interviewing and documenting the stories of several of our caregivers, our children and our C.A.R.E. Africa staff.

IMG_1380 2Ashley Beebe, a school teacher, will make her eighth trip to Nigeria. She will work with our teachers at Foundations Academy Egbe. We will be packing a lot into this short trip.

 

We need your help!!

Screen Shot 2019-08-02 at 8.34.33 AMWe will host a back to school party with the theme “What Would Jesus Do”. Our goal is to help the kids remember in the new school year to model Jesus in all they do. To always be kind, gentle and patient and not lie, steal or cheat. We are taking rubber bracelets stamped with W.W.J.D. for them to wear to remind them each day – “What Would Jesus Do”. We will also provide each child with a backpack, some school supplies, sandals, underwear, socks and more. Can you help us collect new or gently used backpacks from anyone you know? We also need K-12 boys boxer briefs, girls underwear, sports bras, belts and white crew socks (above ankle). Monetary donations would also help us purchase needed items and/or cover any baggage fees. You can Email me at patrice.miles@sim.org with any local donations I can pick up or I can give you a shipping address. 

Any monetary donations can be given to our general fund at give.icareafrica.org or checks can be made payable to CARE Africa and mailed. Email me at patrice.miles@sim.org for our mailing address.

The kids love school and are always excited to receive their new school supplies. Thank you for all you do!

Engage

Posted: December 6, 2018 by Patrice Miles in Lenny Miles, Miles In Missions, Mission Trip, Missionaries, Nigeria, Prayer, SIM

Have you felt led to becoming a missionary but wanted to experience it short term before committing your life to it? Check out the latest SIM video by my amazing husband. We would love to have you or anyone you know come for an internship with our Engage program. Click the picture below to watch.

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DSC_0226This is a great prayer letter that Carmen Marflak sent out. She is currently serving at Egbe Hospital for one month. This is her 5th time to Egbe Hospital. She makes a great observation that there is so many opportunities to serve in Egbe. Medical being the biggest need but anyone can come on a mission trip or serve short or long term and find a place to be God’s hands and feet because there is ministry going on all over the Egbe community. For more information about all the opportunities to serve email jos.sta@sim.org or visit www.egbehospital.com .

Monday, the 16, started out with a full day of surgeries. All day long, I kept watching the clock because I knew we were not going to be finished in enough time for AWANA’s at C.A.R.E. Africa. There was a prayer in my heart all day, for the Lord to “speed up” the surgeon’s hands. Well, God answers prayer! We sent the last patient back to the ward at 3:30; I ran back to the guest house, took a 2 minute cold shower, put on street clothes, grabbed the salvation bracelets, and walked out the door as Emma was driving up to get me.

DSC_0209We had a great time at AWANA’s. There were not the 190+ kids there; there was only about 170 because it was raining and the roads and walking paths were very slick and muddy. The silence in the room was also a miracle. I walked in with the children laughing and talking, noisy!!!!!. Emma raised both his arms and said silence! You could have heard a pin drop. And they remained that way until I was finished telling the story of how Jesus died for our sins, makes us clean and whole inside, helps us to grow in our faith, and prepares a place for us in Heaven. It was an exhausting day, but so exciting and rewarding!

Every Tuesday at 2:30, Dr Jen (one of the SIM missionary doctors) leads a hospital Womens Bible Study. Change of shift here in Nigeria is 2:15. So several of the women from each of the departments come regularly to this Bible Study. For the last 3 months they have been going through the Book of John. Last week they were in chapter 12. So, fortunately, last week, those of us in the OR were finished by 2:30 and could actually make it to Bible Study. There were 14 of us last week. It is a pleasure to listen and answer their questions, and see the eyes light up when they grasp what God is trying to teach them. It is a joy to hear of their struggles and how God has answered prayers. It is also a real treat for me to build a relationship with the other women in the hospital, as well as the ones I work with every day in the OR.

DSC_0521These last 2 weeks in the OR have almost been overwhelming. My first day in the OR was the 11th and I have actually had 1 day off (Sunday, the 22). Tuesdays and Thursdays are supposed to be clinic/office day for Dr Fabruce, with no surgery scheduled on those days. So I am scheduled for lectures for the family practice residents, the Anesthesia trainees, and for the nursing students. But, even on those days, there have been so many emergent patients come through ER, that we have been working late into the evenings. Between all the trauma patients (motor bike accidents, walls collapsing on families, machete fights), the C/Sections, the appendectomies, perforated bowels and the snake bites, we have done very few elective/ scheduled procedures. On Monday, Wed, Friday, we normally start out with 3-4 scheduled procedures, but by the end of the day we have done between 5-7. All last week and this week, the only anesthesia providers have been Jummy and me. Evelyn is on maternity leave, Rebecca and Adeola are both on vacation. We have been getting a little weary by the time we finish the day. But God is good and gives us both a restful sleep at night. I am reminded of

Psalms 3:5 and 4:8, I will lie down and sleep, I wake again because the Lord sustains me.” And “In peace I will lie down and sleep for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety”

DSC_0383 (2)Last Wednesday, a team of mothers and their teen children (10 altogether) came from my home church (Live Oak Christian Church) in Bluffton, SC. They experienced a lot of flight cancellations, and lost luggage (the last of their luggage arrived last evening), but they have been serving over at C.A.R.E. Africa all week; painting the school, doing VBS, making home visits to the sponsored children, visiting the HIV clinic. It has been a joy to have company!!! I am usually alone in the guest house. I don’t get to see them much, because I am finished with breakfast and in the hospital before they get to the dining room. Many evenings, I have missed dinner because of late cases, but the times that we have shared together have been good; hearing what they have done, and the stories of the C.A.R.E. Africa children, helps me to realize that there is another world out there in Egbe, that I rarely get to see. Mission service here in Egbe entails a lot more than just the hospital; God’s Word, Love, and Compassionate service is being made known throughout the community by cooperating groups and missions. It is exciting to see how God works in other areas besides medicine!