Unusual design creates very useful results in Malawi

Since coming to Malawi we have recognized very clearly the need to be reaching out into the needs of the lives of the people we are trying to reach with the Gospel. Many of you already know the work we do with food aid and assisting orphans. We have been delighted this year to have been able to bless three districts where we have churches – all through an organization called Nchima  Trust. The Board for this trust is in England but for the last five years or so Sandra has helped with some areas of administration of funding from this group – they are very active in paying school fees for orphans and funding small projects in Malawi.

Sandra was very surprised and pleased when the Trust decided to donate to the Apostolic  Church 3 Ambucycles for use in the villages.  Many Malawians live a long way from the nearest hospital and apart from the cost of transport,  in many areas there just is no access to any form of transport.

An ambucycle  quite simply is a bicycle with a trailer and mattress so that the ill person can be taken to hospital in a relatively (?) comfortable way.

This week we hired a 3 ton lorry and took the ambucycles to the Phalombe district (not an easy journey in the rainy season!) –  the cycles will be held at a central point in each location and will be accessible to all the villagers. They are expensive to make and not something we could have afforded to do on our own. So we are very grateful to have been able to bring the work of the Apostolic Church  to the wider community in these districts. The local chief accepted the ambucycles and expressed her delight that they would really help the local people get to hospital.