Wings of the Dawn

International Institute for Children

6^th ANNUAL REPORT

FISCAL YEAR ended June 30, 2002

BY SMALL AND SIMPLE THINGS ARE GREAT THINGS BROUGHT TO PASS.

- Alma, the Younger

Table of Contents

PART I - Description of Organization and Purpose........................................... 3

PART II - Description of Projects........................................................................ 4

PART III - A Brief History of our Organization................................................... 6

PART IV - African Journal (July 2001)................................................................. 8

PART V - Brazil Journal (May 2002)................................................................. 14

PART VI - Budget for Fiscal 2002.......................................................................20

PART VII - Financial History for Fiscal 2002....................................................... 22

PART VIII - Current Budget for Fiscal 2003.......................................................... 23

PART IX - Principles of Accountability and Control.......................................... …25

PART X - Steps for Implementing Short-Term and Long-Term Objectives.......… 26

PART XI - Staff Personnel................................................................................… 27

PART XII- Our Annual Photo Journal..............................................................… 28

PART I - Description of Organization and Purpose

Wings of the Dawn International Institute for Children is a Nonstock, nonprofit corporation, organized under the laws of the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1996. It is currently headquartered in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Its mission is to assist citizens of less-developed countries of the world provide for the education of their children. Our focus is on directly assisting schools and libraries in Africa, primarily by making books and education enrichment materials available to them in the language used by the student in the classroom.

The initial focus of this organization, was on the children of Mozambique. In this connection the short-term goal was, and still is, to make quality textbooks, literature and basic educational materials in the Portuguese language more available in Mozambique, in places where schools already exist and in places where schools could be established if these materials were available. The long-term goal is to aid the government and nongovernment organizations (NGOs) in establishing infrastructure in Mozambique for the improved education of its people.

This organization launched a similar school assistance program in Nigeria in 1999. Nigeria was chosen as a country of focus because of the great need for education assistance among many of its schools. We determined that such a project was not only feasible, but in many ways less daunting logistically. English is the official language of government, commerce and education in Nigeria. Also there is an almost inexhaustible supply of surplus books in English available for donation from the United States.

During this past fiscal year 2002, Wings of the Dawn has gathered and/or shipped more than 50,000 volumes of books and school supplies for schools and libraries in Nigeria and Mozambique. In fact more material has been gathered and organized for shipment this year than in the preceding 5 years of our existence combined.

We look forward to continuing this project in both Mozambique and Nigeria for many years to come, as long as this project remains relevant to the needs of the people we serve. We welcome like-minded people to join us in these projects and to commence similar projects in other countries.

PART II - Description of Projects

We have projects in two African countries, Mozambique and Nigeria. Mozambique is a nation of southeast Africa which is successfully emerging from a bloody and prolonged civil war. This war, which ended nearly 10 years ago, resulted in the deaths of a million people, including thousands of children, and the dislocation of nearly a third of its surviving population. Formally a colony of Portugal, it received its independence in 1975. The language of education is Portuguese. Because of the war, many of Mozambique's basic institutions, including its educational system, are severely impaired. The majority of Mozambicans are under the age of 20. Officially, the government of Mozambique strongly encourages all children to attend school while between the ages of six and sixteen.

However, because of lack of facilities and teachers, there are tens of thousands of young Mozambican children who are turned away from existing schools. Because of extreme crowding, the period of instruction for most primary-aged children is limited to three hours daily. Classrooms with more than 50 pupils are the norm. While the government has done an admirable job in providing basic text for most existing schools, there are many problems associated with quality, distribution and the scope and depth of the materials themselves. Other types of books and educational materials, such as dictionaries, encyclopedias, maps, globes, protractors and compasses, math flash cards, athletic equipment, art supplies, are virtually nonexistent. Paper products and writing tools, are in short supply.

Through past shipments of books and school supplies to Mozambique, (derived mostly from Portuguese-speaking Brazil) and with the help of three non-government organizations (World Vision, Concern and Humana’s People to People (ADPP)), we have assisted many schools and thousands of children in the four southern provinces of Maputo, Gaza, Sofala and Manica.

Nigeria, located on the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa, is Africa’s most populous nation. It is also a country that has experienced much of political turmoil, ethnic strife and a tragic civil war after achieving independence in 1960. However, in 1999, the people of Nigeria elected their first civilian government in more than 15 years. The new president, Olusegun Obasanjo, has pledged to steer his country away from political corruption and to focus on improved education as a top priority of his administration. This commitment is late in coming. Nigeria is a country of vast mineral resources and should be much better off economically. Yet, its schools, like those of Mozambique, are poor and crowded and lacking in books and basic education materials. Here too, many children cannot attend school at all because there is no room for them.

During fiscal year 2001, we shipped a full container of school and library books to Lagos, Nigeria. The materials shipped, including more than 14,000 volumes of books were distributed among more than a dozen primary and secondary schools and public libraries in the States of Lagos and Ogun in southwestern Nigeria and Abia State in the southeastern part of that country. The non-government organizations coordinating the distributions were Africa Refugee Foundation (AREF) and LDS Humanitarian Services. During fiscal year 2002, two more containers, containing books and school supplies in similar quantities were shipped to Nigeria for distribution to schools and libraries in the same regions mentioned above and in Kaduna State (in the central region of the country).

So far, we have shipped more than 60,000 volumes of books to these countries since our founding in 1996. Nearly 50,000 more volumes are collected and waiting shipment from Brazil and the United States and will be sent to Mozambique and Nigeria during the coming fiscal year.

In the planning stages are two additional projects. The first will be an “adopt a school” program, which will include collection of materials for specific schools in Nigeria by sister schools in the United States and exchanges of letters between students. The purpose of this program will be to promote inter-cultural awareness and friendship between children in Africa and the United States in addition to providing more assistance to certain needy schools. The second program will be the establishment of a material center in Lagos for the purpose of providing learning opportunities to young people in that city in addition to what may be available in traditional schoolroom settings.

PART III - A Brief History of our Organization

On December 31, 1996, Wings of the Dawn was formally incorporated in the Commonwealth of Virginia as a vehicle for addressing problems with education in the poorer, less developed countries of the world. The initial country of focus was Angola. However, because of continued instability in that country and concerns that there would be a resumption of hostilities (which have since been validated) our focus shifted to Mozambique instead.

The country and people of Mozambique are desperately poor. For the foreseeable future, it is unlikely that this people will achieve a standard of living that is conducive to personal development without outside assistance. However, except for a brief period during the flooding of the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers in the year 2000, Mozambique is not in the newspaper headlines. Its problems are mostly unnoticed by the world at large. Since the end of its civil war, the world's focus has shifted elsewhere. Many of the NGOs (non-government organizations), especially the relief organizations once very active in Mozambique, have left or are reducing the level and scope of operations because of the perception that there are more pressing demands elsewhere. In the field of education, development continues to lag far behind the need. A large number of schools are either under construction or in the planning stages, usually with NGO assistance. Nevertheless, many children attend no school at all. The majority of children attending school do so under deplorable conditions.

Furthermore, there is a general dearth of books and other educational materials throughout this country. To our knowledge, no other NGO is specifically seeking to address this problem of the lack of books. We know of a number of projects in the United States by which books have been collected and sent to African countries. But these books are generally written in English and are of only limited utility in Portuguese-speaking Mozambique.

To learn first hand what the educational problems in Mozambique are, the executive director, Mr. J. Peter Baumgarten personally toured the country during April and May of 1997. During a period of nearly three weeks he visited 17 schools in three provinces and interviewed dozens of teachers, school officials and government officials. Contacts were established among people who are eager to assist Wings of the Dawn in bringing books and educational materials to Mozambique.

In subsequent years, progress and growth have been steady. In the second year (fiscal year 1998), nearly 1,500 pounds of books and school supplies were gathered and shipped from the United States to Mozambique. In addition, affiliate chapters of Wings of the Dawn were established in Brazil. These chapters immediately began collecting books in the Portuguese language. The first substantial donations from outside donors were also received that year, including gifts-in-kind of school supplies from individual contributors at storefronts, and a $2,500 gift from one individual benefactor, and a credit for about the same amount from Safeway Stores applied to purchasing Portuguese literature. Also, 1998 was the first year our organization qualified for participation in the Combined Federal Campaign (or CFC, which is the United Way affiliated program for federal employees).

The third year (FY 1999) saw the following achievements and advances: First, nearly 3/4s of a ton of books and school supplies arrived in Maputo. These materials were received by the three pre-designated schools in that province including: (a) Escola Comunitaria 4 de Outubro de Polana, (b) Escola de Pre-ensinamento do Sao Damasco, and (c) Escola de Pre-ensinamento do Patrice Lumumba. The distribution was made in September 1998, at the beginning of the new school term, under the personal supervision of Mr. Baumgarten. Other advances included the expansion of our charter membership to include a significant contingent of members in the State of Maryland and the founding of our first Internet website at .

In our fourth fiscal year, one container holding 11,865 books in the Portuguese language was shipped from the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Maputo, Mozambique. The books were mostly school texts, including math, Portuguese, history, geography, literature, English and some sets of Encyclopedias and library reading books. All of these books were written in the Portuguese language. These were distributed to schools and libraries located in the provinces of Maputo, Gaza and Manica, through three NGOs, World Vision (of the US), Concern (of Ireland) and Humana People to People (of Denmark).

In December of 1999, Mr. Baumgarten and Mr. Ade Otenaike of the Board of Directors visited Nigeria. There, they surveyed schools in Lagos and Ogun states and established contacts. Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country. It is also a country of tremendous mineral wealth. However, it is mostly undeveloped, its progress impeded by civil strife and internal corruption. It has tremendous need for outside assistance of its education programs. All schools visited by these two representatives made urgent requests for aid in the form of books and other school supplies to supplement the scarce materials already on hand. Upon returning to the United States, our organization initiated its first English language book collection project. We have since received numerous contributions of books from local libraries, schools, individuals and the Library of Congress. By far, the largest contributor was the Fairfax County School system. More than 400 boxes containing more than 13,000 volumes of school texts and library books, enough to fill one 20-foot container, were collected and sent to Nigeria in December of 2000, and were disseminated among more than a dozen schools and public libraries in southern Nigeria.

As of the date of this writing (September 18, 2002), we have sent six separate shipments, of books and school supplies to Africa, including more than 60,000 volumes of books. An additional 45,000 volumes of books are already collected and are being readied for shipment from Brazil and the United States. We have sufficient funds on hand to finance these shipments and to carry out all our program goals for the year, thanks largely to generous individual contributions from the general public and foundation grants from LDS Charities. We also have fine prospects for continued growth of our organization and programs, and expansion of our efforts into other disadvantaged countries.

Obviously, we cannot assume general responsibility for the education of all children in Africa. The African people must do that themselves. But we can assist this great people by stimulating and encouraging the growth of learning. “By small and simple things are great things brought to pass.” said Alma, the Younger. This saying is also our motto and it encourages our efforts. We hope that it also encourages your generous support.

PARTS IV and V which follow, contain more historical information in the format of journal entries, giving a day by day account of our executive director’s activities and experiences during his travels to two project countries: Mozambique and Brazil, during Fiscal Year 2002.

PART IV - African Journal (July 2001)

-M O Z A M B I Q U E-

July 1, 2001

Tonight, I am in Johannesburg at last. It was a two-day delay and it has cost me one effective day in Mozambique. As it is now, I will only have 4 days to see and do what I need to do before returning home. It also prevented my meeting with the LDS Charities Representative on Friday. I left the Otenaike’s home at 4:00 a.m. I did not clear customs and begin the trip to Johannesburg until 3:30 p.m. So this has been a lonely day for me.

When I arrived at the Lagos airport this morning, I met an Adventist Pastor from Sao Paulo named Renato, a fine young man. I invited him to join in our efforts in Sao Paulo. I gave him my card. If he has an interest, he will contact me one way or another.

I will retire to my bed early tonight. I need to complete my contact at LDS Charities in the morning and be back at the airport by noon tomorrow to complete my journey to Maputo.

July 2, 2001

I am in Maputo tonight - at last. Because I missed my booking last Saturday, I was on stand-by status for today. One flight in the early afternoon took off without me. I was beginning to make plans to use the overnight train. But fortunately, I was able to wiggle my way on to the evening flight so the train option did not need to be used. Thus, concluded my fourth day in transit from Lagos.

I want to put as much as I can into the next four days to view the ADPP projects that we are benefitting in Maputo and in the Sofala and Manica States, and to renew old contacts and establish new ones. The highest priority however, will be to make certain all problems are ironed out as to this last shipment from Brazil. The shipping agent has made a mess of things by booking passage of the shipment to Maputo instead of Beira as I requested. There have been other difficulties as well. I will need to learn the status tomorrow.

My reason for spending last night in Johannesburg was to confer with the office of the South East Africa Area Presidency, to exchange information, and particularly to encourage their endorsement of renewed funding. This morning, I met with Elder Clifford G. Harman, the Area Welfare Agent. Our discussions were useful. I believe we will secure some funding again from LDS Humanitarian Services but perhaps not as much as last year. That will be too bad because we are sending more materials next year than ever before. Nevertheless, for today, and for tonight, I am very thankful and glad to be here.

July 3, 2001

This day went very well. First, I took a taxi to Elder and Sister Ludwig to deliver some church books which I had brought in my suitcases. Elder Ludwig helped me find a Cambio and a travel agent to buy tickets to Beira. The exchange rate was $1 to M22,200. Compared to the $1 to 13,000 of 18 months ago that is an effective annual inflation rate of 40%. How do these people cope? My round-trip ticket to Beira was also cheaper than expected - only $173.00. Well, not that good - but I was expecting to pay much more. For example, I saved $100 by using this certain travel agent instead of buying directly from the airline. I know because I checked. Also, the relative strength of the dollar against the Metricais helps significantly.

Now about the project. Today and tomorrow I am visiting all the campuses which ADPP sponsors in the Maputo/Machara area, which have received books and school supplies from Wings of the Dawn in the last two shipments in 1999 and 2000. Those include the Teacher’s College called Escola dos Professor do Futaro (or EPF or School of the Teachers of the Future), the three Escolas de Esportiva (grades 1-7) located in the Bairros do Machara, Patrice Luminnba and in Maputo itself, the ADPP Collegio Basico/Technico (a combination trade and secondary school), the Cidadella da Criancas (grades 1-7), which I will see tomorrow in Costa do Sol and finally One World University, where they teach teachers how to teach in the teachers college. In addition, ADPP sponsors adult education, both day and night, at its Machara compound.

Now each of these schools has its own separate library. In at least one case, the library only got started with the materials we sent. Some of the libraries used to have only English and Danish language materials. Now these libraries contain mostly Portuguese language materials sent to them from Brazil by Wings of the Dawn.

Question: Are these libraries functioning as such or are they just storage lockers?

Answer: These are libraries in the true sense. In each instance they are clean, well-organized, stocked with books organized by classification. Also, there is a checkout system which I have verified that the students are using.

All told, ADPP’s system in Maputo has more than 1,665 students. One of the delightful surprises of the day was to see how the young children were making use of the colored paper tablets. These children are really producing some very artistic results. I took several pictures of walls where these pictures were displayed.

Remember the 300 or so notebook binders we sent? What became of them? Well, most are still in storage at the teacher’s college (EPF). But they are gradually being given out to students as they enroll in the teacher’s college, which they then use, as we do, to organize their work.

Question: How much does school cost here?

Answer: $US 243 per year for primary and secondary; $4000 for 3 years study at EPF.

Question: Where does the money come from?

Answer: From ADPP itself and from donations by persons and businesses.

Also stationed there at the campus of Machara this summer is a group of BYU Students. They are helping ADPP with their education projects. All are return missionaries. All speak fluent Portuguese. I was told that their leader was Brother Fails. I asked, “Willis Fails?” And I was told “yes.” He is here along with his wife and daughter. Well, I had to see him because he and I served missions together thirty years ago in Brazil. It was a nice reunion and he was, I think, almost as glad to see me as I was to see him.

July 4, 2001

The day got off to another slow start. But we still accomplished all we set out to do. We saw the Cidadella de Criancas at Costa do Sol this morning. At the school, I attended a history class with 7^th graders. The lesson of discussion was of oppression by the British South Africa Company and by the Dutch in Southern Africa. The teacher who brought me to the class was somewhat apologetic of the topic. I said, “don’t worry. I am neither British nor Dutch. My ancestors come from Denmark, Germany and Russia.” Besides, I am an American and we fought against the same kind of oppression from the British. After class, I saw the whole school, visited most of the classes; and also saw the dormitories for the 70 orphans living there. Besides academics, the school also teaches practical skills including sewing (crochet, embroidery and dressmaking), metalworking (welding), pottery making, woodcarving, and animal husbandry (pigs, goats and bovines). My guide said more than 400 students attend here in grades 1-7. The library was not the best. Most of the books came from our donation, but more space is needed. They are looking for funding to expand the library space, then for more books. (I shot a whole role of film here).

The last school visited today was also grade 1-7, Escola Esportiva de Xippameninu, on the west side of Maputo. Here I took only a couple of pictures because I was running low on film. But this was a little unique in that there was a separate reading room and a room where the books are stored. All of the books in the collection came from the Wings of the Dawn shipment in 1999. I asked the director if these materials are really being used. I asked him to be frank. He assured me that the students were using them and that more were wanted. He said there was a checkout system and showed me a stack of returned books on the table awaiting re-shelving. It is gratifying to note that most of the ADPP libraries have a checkout system.

I also visited Telma Cavelcante at Centro de Estadudos Brazileiros. I asked her for help from her Brazilian contacts in sponsoring a permanent campaign for book collections to send to Africa. She said she would study this and get back with me. She has our literature and website address.

Also visited Michelle Gallagher of GOAL which has 6 community schools in Maputo and similar projects further north. We discussed possible future partnership with our agencies like what we have with ADPP.

I flew to Beira tonight. I am completing this entry by flashlight because the power has been out for the last 15 or 20 minutes. One last item: There is an airport tax for all flights out of Mozambique Airports. For domestic flights, the charge is M55,000 or $US 5.00. I opted to pay in Metricais because that is about $2.50 less. But the tax man insisted I pay M110,000 for my stamp. Why? He explained that because I bought the ticket in dollars, I must pay the tax in dollars or the dollar equivalent. I protested because this was never explained and it was not written on the sign. The sign only said Domestic Tax $US 5.00 or 55,000 Metricais. He wouldn’t budge and I lost. I think the real reason is that I am white and American. Therefore I can afford to pay more. Tomorrow, I see ADPP projects in the Sofala and Manica Provinces.

July 5, 2001

I did not sleep last night. The Hotel Infantile turned out to be a modern-day motel Minus 6. Power outages. No air conditioner, no services and loud music through the streets all night long. Now, I am quite tired and will sleep tonight no matter what.

The day was full. Left the hotel at 8:00 a.m. and met Erin Butterworth, the Director of the Escola Esportiva de Beira. It has 350 students 80% of whom are orphans. It covers grades 1-7. School was originally a swimming club before the war. So now this may be the only primary school in the world with its own Olympic size pool. But it is not the sort of pool that you or I would want to swim in. It is green and cloudy and even has fish in its depths. This school has also been a focal point for remodeling by LDS Charities, which has changed former dressing rooms into classrooms, and funded the construction of a volley ball court. (A sporting school like this one has an active Physical Ed. Program in addition to its academic curriculum.) The school doesn’t yet have a library. But it has funding already in place to build one, a place designated and carpenters needed for its construction. This school is slated to receive a consignment from the current shipment just arrived, of 540 books.

Other ADPP projects slated to receive books are in the Nhamatanda District of Sofala Province: Escola de Artes e Oficios - 810 books, Escola de Professoros do Futura - 1,080 books, Child Aid (literacy preschool) - 270 books. Also government institutions will receive the following: Escola Primaria Accordo de Lusaka, Lowego - 405 books, (a training school for teachers, some classes held under shade trees), and Pedagogical workshops in Districts of Caise, Chemba and Maringere (Resource Center) - 675 books, Escola Secendarie e Biblioteca de Nhamatanda - 675 books, District Department of Education in Nhamatanda or Sofala Dept. of Education - 945 books.

The afternoon was spent touring the ADPP Compound in Nhamatanda, in the company of three energetic, resourceful and imaginative administrators: Dina Bak, Amy Sosnowski and Emilio Torres. The campus has a teacher’s college and a vocational school. Dina and Emilio explained that the scope and vision of their program was to teach skills to students to help them build their lives and their country.

There is a village growing up next to this ADPP Compound which now boasts a primary school staffed by ADPP student teachers. It also has a medical clinic built and staffed by ADPP. I am especially impressed with Amy and Emilio. Both in their early 20's and each in charge of the teacher’s college and vocational school respectively.

Disease is a problem here. Both Amy and Emilio have, themselves, suffered with bouts of Malaria this past year. Amy swears she is diligent about taking her medicine, but she still gets sick from malaria notwithstanding.

Also, there was a cholera outbreak in this village (that I walked through today) only 3 weeks ago. Fortunately, they were able to quickly stop its spread by isolating the patients. To prevent further outbreaks, Emilio’s vocational school has as one of its projects, the building of latrines in the village. The goal is for each family to have their own sanitary latrine, which the family digs for themselves under ADPP’s direction and specifications. They manufacture tops for the latrines right here at the vocational school.

Late in the afternoon, I continued on to Chimoio, Manica Province, to the ADPP Compound here. I met Bente Jepson at last - my main collaborator for this year’s shipment. A full day here in Chimoio is planned for tomorrow.

Some ideas - lobby for in-kind donations of sporting equipment from retailers and manufacturers. Another one that I discussed with Dina Bak was to bring scouting materials, in English or Portuguese, to help the boys learn more practical living skills in addition to teaching scouting ideals.

July 6, 2001

Chimoio is a quiet place, high on the Altiplano at nearly 2,000 feet in elevation. The air is fresh and the sky is blue, not polluted. My host gave me a large mosquito net for my bed. I used it but I don’t think it was needed last night.

Today was long for me. I attended the dedication of a new school with my ADPP Host: Escola dos Formigas do Futuro. Then we visited the neighboring government primary school, 4 de Octobro de Chimoio, and the Resource Center at Josina Machell, in addition to the EPF (Escola de Professore do Futuro - Teacher’s College). All four of these are to receive books from the current shipment.

The resource center at Josina Machell is impressive and is a model for what ADPP plans to open at its other schools for adults and children alike. It has four top-of-the-line computers with Windows ‘98, a large color TV, VCR and Satellite hook up and a very modest and small (less than 100 titles), yet impressive display of books to be used only in the center. I took no pictures because I was out of film, having used it to photograph children at the dedication. I then began the 3 hour journey back to Beira, which is essentially the first leg of my trip back home.

Not a highlight was the scene at the airport in Beira when I arrived there. The previous flight to Maputo had been canceled two hours prior and it was rumored that the 9:50 p.m. flight, the one I was to be on, was over booked. So there were lots of anxious people waiting to get on that later flight. When the check-in desk finally opened, what was once a line in front of the check-in soon dissolved. I was standing with my luggage not far from the front of the so-called line. Suddenly, I was behind nearly everyone. Most of the men in the line had gone up to the desk and were all reaching with their tickets over the counter, all at once, each in the hope that the all-powerful check-in clerk would check his luggage and issue him a boarding pass. The clerk was maddeningly slow, sometimes disappearing for 5 to 10 minutes at a time. To add to the tension felt by all was one Arab/Muslim gentleman, having the most ingratiating smile ever to be seen, who checked not less than 20 pieces of luggage for himself, wife, and two small children. It was all madness and chaos. The clerk did not insist on anyone staying in line, but simply checked people in helter, skelter, whoever managed to push his ticket closest to her face.

I was close to the front as I said, but not even in competition for one of the few remaining seats available. I had pretty much resigned myself to staying the night in Beira. (The country director for ADPP, Briget Holm, who had given me a ride back from Chimoio, had even arranged for me to stay at the agency’s residence in town for the night if necessary.) I was determined to keep my petty dignity in tact and not get involved in the fray. (After all, I had been stranded once on this trip. What was another night in Beira?) However, I was disappointed because I had plans and appointments that would cancel if I was not in Maputo the next morning.

Suddenly, a short little pugnacious, Portuguese man appeared. He was not going to stand for this nonsense. He was going to get on that flight and he was very used to having his way. But not only was he going on that flight, but two other women standing just in front of me would go too because he assisted them. He was very loud and vehement in his protest and forceful in his demand that he and the people in the front of the line be accommodated, rather than the men who were mobbing the desk. With that accomplished, he looked me straight in the eye, gave me a wink and then became the most effective advocate I have ever seen on my behalf. Because of his efforts, I did not spend the night in Beira. Rather, my bags were checked and my economy-class ticket was exchanged for a boarding pass in the first-class section. I thanked him for coming to my rescue in so timely a manner. But who was that masked man? I did not get his name and sadly, I will never know.

July 7, 2001

I woke up this morning still hearing in my mind the children who sang and danced yesterday at their school’s dedication. Such enthusiasm and fervor for their music. Such athleticism in their dance. I cannot hardly imagine how they do it with their bare feet on the hard, rocky ground. To see and hear them, and to be present for the occasion was certainly a highlight for this journey.

I spent the day visiting with friends and the craft market downtown.

July 8, 2001

I deliberately scheduled my departure for today for two reasons: 1) to permit plenty of time to get back to Maputo in case I was delayed up North, which nearly happened last Friday, and 2) to attend church with the Maputo Branch and renew friendships. They have a new meetinghouse. I also met the new missionary couple, Elder and Sister Ludwig. It was a good day and now I am on my way home.

July 9, 2001

In just over 21 days, I have traveled over 21,000 miles in 13 separate airplane flights and by automobile; and visited 30 schools and 6 libraries in two African nations. I have verified distribution and plans for distribution of 36,000 books among 20 schools and four public libraries and several resource centers, directly benefitting more than 12,000 school children over the last two fiscal years. We also laid the groundwork for higher achievement for next year and the years ahead. For those who say that things like this can’t be done by little people, we are here to say that they are right. However, we also affirm that through the exercise of faith and great perseverance, all things become possible through the help of the Divine Hand.

So this homecoming finds us on a pinnacle, on another summit so to speak. Looking back I see that we have accomplished most of our objectives. Looking ahead, I see that we are now poised to accomplish greater things. There are still higher mountains ahead waiting to be climbed. I close with the words of the French Climber, Rene Daumel:

You cannot stay on the summit forever, You have to come down again. So why bother in the first place. Just this: What is above knows what is below; but what is below knows not what is above. One climbs, one sees, one descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know.

I too have been to the summit, and I for one, intend to conduct my life and Wings of the Dawn in a way that assures continued progress, that we may climb and reach the summit of this adventure again and again. Now it is back to work for all of us.

PART V - Brazil Journal (May 2002)

Sunday, May 19, 2002

This morning, I arose at 5:00 a.m. to prepare for my church meeting as usual. Of course, I awoke thinking of my trip to Brazil, as I was planning to leave for the airport as soon as I could finish my assignments at church. Always full of self-doubt and worry at the outset of these journeys, I prayed for help. As I did so, a very direct message came into my heart and mind. It said, “Proceed, and do the best that you can.” My fears were immediately swept away. I arose from my prayers determined to proceed.

Monday, May 20, 2002

It is a good thing I did not have anything planned for today, or I would have met with constant frustration. The plane arrived on time in Rio this morning, but from then on there was a delay in getting luggage, getting the car, having the car jack (anti-theft device) get stuck and needing to get a locksmith, and a delay in finding Pedentrina, our principal contact here. But all I had to do was get established in Petropolis and make contact with Pedentrina. That was finally established a few minutes ago. (This was difficult to prearrange other than vague statements of likely arrival times in letters because of poor and unreliable telephone and Internet connections.) But all I set out to do today was accomplished. Tomorrow, the work begins. We will learn how well collections have gone in Petropolis. The next day, we will see how things have gone in Campos.

A highlight for me was seeing the Marcos and Regina Bostos family again and reestablishing that contact. I spent the evening with them as their daughter taught a Family Home Evening lesson on Free Agency. The dinner was fine too, and the company was the best. More good news: Pedentrina and Valeria made it to the Campinas Temple Dedication with personal funds Lyle and I sent for that purpose. It was our big thank you to them for all that they have done for Wings of the Dawn.

Tuesday, May 21, 2002

Today, I learned that we have about 350 boxes of books in Petropolis. For sure we have well beyond 300 boxes. Furthermore, they are all boxed and counted, complete with an inventory in long hand. But the problem is that these goods are not collected in one spot. Rather, they are spread out between nine schools and one church. I just don’t know how to go about collecting from so many places. (Another problem is that some of these schools are not easily accessible by truck.) What to do? In some fashion we must find a very large truck with a driver and loaders who are willing to cope with these logistical hassles. Is this even possible and still be reasonably within budget? How long will this take? I have two days to collect the books and one more to deliver them to Sao Paulo. Also remember that there is a collection to pick up in the city of Campos, about 250 miles from here. This is a small collection of 127 boxes; but how cost efficient is it to combine the collections in Sao Paulo? We are about to find out. And why Sao Paulo? Because so far, we have not found a place big enough to store them locally. Furthermore, we have a collection of 70 boxes already there.

So it appears that we may be victims of our own success. We have about 550 boxes of books in three cities! But if we can’t find a practical way to combine the collections, much of the work and the collections will be wasted. This simply must not happen. We will have to do all we can and trust God to open doors on our behalf.

I was not anticipating this problem to contend with or that we would have so many books. Valeria was telling me that she had more that she wanted to add to the collection. I had to tell her “no more for now. Wait until next year.” Valeria is a jewel and a saint. She has done so much for us. How happy I am that we were able to reward her in part for her efforts by sending her to the Temple Dedication in Campinas. She deserves far more, but has never accepted anything for her effort.

I just spoke a minute ago with President DeSouza of Campos. I finally made the connection. I am expected there tomorrow evening. Two big priorities will be to hire a truck and talk to Pastor Paulo to make certain his storage place can hold an additional 480 boxes. We have a big problem if he can’t.

This morning, I had another great experience in prayer. Sometimes I feel guilty about this project. It really takes so much out of people to do this. There is always that question: What right have I to ask people to do so much? And should I be doing this myself, spreading myself so thin, especially since my calling as bishop? And as before, a feeling of peace came into my heart. The spirit also whispered to my mind specific words from D & C 58:26-28. “For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is commanded in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant, wherefore, he receiveth no reward.”

“Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will and bring to pass much righteousness.”

“For the power is in them wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.”

Wednesday, May 22, 2002

I spent a sleepless night worrying about how I would arrange the pick-up and transport of so many boxes of books from so many places. And also wondering if Pastor Paulo, the Adventist in Sao Paulo, would still accept so many. Well, this morning, I made contact with Pastor Paulo and he again agreed to store the materials. I also found a freighter who agreed to transport all the materials from Petropolis to Sao Paulo (including the pick-up for R1200 ($500 in US dollars). This is well within budget. Afterwards, we traveled to Campos, R.J. We are now in the home of President Tarbas de Souza, of the Campos Stake. His daughter, Leonara (Nara), has collected 200 boxes (about 5,000 books) for us. We will attempt to arrange transport from here to Sao Paulo also.

We have spent a very pleasant evening with this family. We inspected the collection, gave some guidance and will finalize arrangements tomorrow if possible.

The highlight of the evening was visiting the home of a very special lady, (a Roman Catholic) Marcia, who has taken in 15 homeless and abused children. It was a good time with much of laughter and singing. I had the privilege to make friends with one little boy, three years of age who is HIV positive. I picked him up and he enjoyed being held as mush as I enjoyed holding him. I don’t think I have ever been so close to that illness before.

Thursday, May 23, 2002

In Campos today, I spent much of the morning meeting and thanking people who helped Nara with her part of the project. I presented a glass trophy to Nara as well as 4 symbolic baseballs. She will keep one and distribute three to her principle assistants. (The symbolism of the baseball has to do with the need to keep ones eye on the ball at all times or risk dropping or missing it. So also must we keep our eyes on our goals if we are to achieve any form of success.) Besides, the Brazilians find the American Baseball unique and curious. It looks like they will be a hit. The glass trophy simply reads “For your service to children of the World - Wings of the Dawn.”

Also, this morning, we made arrangements for pick up of Nara’s boxes at 8:30 a.m. Monday by Itapemirim. We decided to use a firm separate from the Petropolis firm, because we were certain that Nara would stay on top of it and it would be easier for her if she is dealing with a local party face to face. Also, their bid was about R100 cheaper.

We took Nara to work, sold more American dollars to cover land transport costs, coordinated again with Pastor Paulo, who will let us have storage space at his Sao Paulo center. We lunched with the de Souza family then departed. Both Pedrina and I agree that the de Souza family is one of the most spiritual, happy and loving families we have ever seen. We arrived back in Petropolis in the early evening.

One more matter of interest. Nara will finish boxing her books this Saturday. Some of the older street children whom we met last night will assist her with these final preparations.

Friday, May 24, 2002

The week is winding down to the weekend. The preparations for the transport next week have been made. We have hired the carriers. We helped Valeria finish preparing the last of the collection for shipment, and then parted ways until next Monday morning.

I spent the rest of the day in Sao Jose do Vale do Rio Preto with Odilei’s family. The evening was spent in conversation and games.

Saturday, May 25, 2002

I spent the day with Odilei’s family. This was also the day Nara was to finish preparing the Campos shipment. I hope all went well. I sent an e-mail home. I also called and spoke with Lyle and Amanda. Odilei generously allowed me to do this on his account.

So a very busy week comes to an end. Having been with people in close quarters for most of the week, I crave time alone. I hope that tomorrow I may have this. With our preparations complete, I pray that all of this will bear fruit.

Sunday, May 26, 2002

I attended church in three wards today. I attended part of the Petropolis Ward and was able to coordinate with Valeria Martins about tomorrow’s pick-up from nine schools. I attended the Imperial Ward and sat by Regina Lopes Bostos and her family. I also met a homesick missionary from the United States. I visited with him for an hour. I did this because it appeared to me that he needed to just talk. It seemed to give him relief. All of his companions have been Brazilians. I did my best to encourage him to learn the language and not give up. He seemed to enjoy our visit. I plan to write to him. I will add him to my missionary letter list. He comes from Baltimore, MD.

I have been cold every night since I have been here in Petropolis. There is no central heating in the hotel where I am staying. Last night, when I retired to bed, I even kept my coat on. After a few minutes, I was warm enough to begin removing my outer clothes to sleep.

Monday, May 27, 2002

I woke this morning and went directly to the rendevous point, wondering if we had managed to set anything in motion. It turned out that we had. We picked up most of the books in Petropolis. We have just a few more in Correias. I do not know if we have a final count yet. Also today, 236 boxes were picked up by Itapemirim. All of these materials should be in Sao Paulo by Wednesday. This was overweight by one ton so we owe Nara Souza R100 more. I will need to send it from our home in Virginia.

Nara said that she had plenty of help Saturday and took both still and motion pictures. So things are moving along pretty well. I hope matters are well underway and complete by mid-week so I can go home on time without problems.

Tuesday, May 28, 2002

How to describe today! One word: “Frustrating”. Any account I give of it will sound like whining. So maybe I should just skip writing this altogether. But an accounting is necessary.

First, the last of the books were retrieved by the freighter. However, the truck in which the books are in broke down and won’t arrive in Sao Paulo until after my planned departure. There is nothing to do for it other than give the balance payment to Valeria with instructions to pay the freighter after she verifies that the shipment was actually delivered. She can do this as well or better than I can.