> Hiber School and HIV/AIDS Assistance

Hiber Elementary School

By Loretta Sassmannshausen

Concordia Lutheran Church

Hiber Elementary School was quite an experience. We were literally mobbed by the kids. They were SO excited to see us! We all spent a lot of time taking photographs of the beautiful children. They loved to have their pictures taken with the digital camera and then to see the photos of themselves.

In 2006, we spent some time there as well. At that time, there were 1,800 students, but only 1 useable classroom building (8 classrooms). As a result, each student was only in class for a couple

of hours each day; the rest of the time, the students played volleyball or other games in the courtyard. They also had no running water. We bought them a volleyball and net and paid to have a waterline run to the facility.

Two years later, there are still 2,000 students. But now, there are 2 new buildings, 5 stories each (50 new classrooms). This means that all of the students can attend classes for the whole day. What an incredible blessing for those children! It was a thrill to see so much growth in such a short period of time!

While we were there, we watched the kids play volleyball, soccer and run several running races. The field was not flat and was very bumpy and rocky. We were amazed that many of the kids ran in bare feet! They will be thrilled when they find out that we are funding a project that will level the field for a soccer field and track!

HIV/AIDS Assistance

Again this year, we spent some time with HIV/AIDS victims. Some are adults that are HIV positive, some have AIDS, and some are children that have lost both of their parents to AIDS. They are quite amazing people! The Ethiopian Church Mekane Yesus helps support these people financially, medically, and most importantly, spiritually. When people in Ethiopia find out they have HIV or AIDS, they are shunned and abandoned by society, friends and often by their families. God is the only place where they can find comfort and peace. We gave them vegetable oil and wheat flour and helped fund medical testing to monitor their disease. Surprisingly, they made each of us a scarf; we were very honor

ed by their time and generosity.