Hello dear family and friends!

It’s been a while since our last update, and time has flown by!

I can’t believe it’s December 2015! It’s almost been one year of life here in Uganda. To be honest, the adjustment has been a challenging one. There are days where we feel up and running, and others where we are afraid to step outside our front door. Anything can and almost everything has happened to us!

A lot has been said and written about the challenges we face here on a regular basis, and I hope the following can shed some light on why we have chosen to live in Uganda!

Nadine and I have been working hard and we have been joined by an incredible team of people here to make LifeNet International a reality. LifeNet is officially up and running in Uganda, and making a big difference to thousands of people here.

We currently have 10 health center partners, all receiving monthly visits from our incredible training team, covering subjects such as hand washing and infection control, to record keeping and pharmacy management.

We are working to meet the many needs we have encountered: None of our partner health centers were keeping basic sterile supplies for their maternity cases, leaving hundreds of mothers and newborns susceptible to infection and disease.

These are the standards that LifeNet is working to build up in our partners, in order to safeguard women, children and men and ensure access to quality healthcare. It’s a massive task, but one that we are prepared for! We’re in it for the long haul!

Our current network includes 8,300 patient visits each month, we provide monthly training for 90+ healthcare professionals and we are preparing to double in size this coming February, and double that again in June! It’s really exciting and the potential for impact is really what keeps us focused and moving forward.

Nadine has joined LifeNet in an official capacity which is just so exciting for us. She is now in charge of our medical curriculum development. Nadine is responsible for developing resources and tools that will be rolled out across more than 100 health centers in the near future, and many more after that! I would say “no pressure,” but there is no one that could do the job better!

So in the midst of tough times, we are just so encouraged to see the progress that has been made. We are so proud to be a part of the work being done here, and to have the privilege to see God open doors and to work with incredible people.

I wanted to talk about giving, and how you can be proud to be a part of the work that is being done out here with us! December is the month where most Canadians give, and I want to remind you that through the end of this year, LifeNet has a donor who will match any contribution you make to support our work in Uganda.

It’s just such an exciting opportunity, and every gift counts! (and right now, it counts double!)

Today is #GivingTuesday and after all of the Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping, it’s worth it to stop and focus on supporting a worthwhile cause!

I would invite you to visit our partner website through SIM Canada HERE to donate to LifeNet, double down on your dollar and help us to grow from 10 to 40 health centers in 2016 in Uganda!

Please pray for us as well! With the coming growth comes more job interviews, vehicle purchases, and health center partners! There’s so much work to be done. Pray for health and for wisdom, and please pray for a healthy balance between work and life for us.

That’s all for now! We are excited looking at what’s ahead, and we hope you can join with us in giving!

Sincerely,

Josh.

P.S. For those of you still caring for, supporting and praying for Shammah Health Center, they have gone through some changes and down-sizing given the challenging financial circumstances currently in Burundi. The plan is to keep on pushing forward, and they continue to be supported by the ongoing efforts of LifeNet International in Burundi to adjust to the staff changes and to maintain the excellent quality of care! Thank you for your prayers!