Albania 2012

Albania, a beautiful country slightly smaller than the state of Maryland, is located in Southern Europe and situated along the shores of the Adriatic Sea, the Strait of Otranto, and the Ionian Sea. Albania is bordered to the north by the countries of Montenegro and Kosovo as well as Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south. This mountainous country with its cool wet winters and hot, dry summers is home to nearly three million people comprising of native Albanians, Greeks, Vlachs, Roma Gypsies, Serbians, Macedonians, and Bulgarians. While English, British English is widely spoken, the official languages of Albania are Albanian (with two dialects: Tosk and Gheg; Tosk being the most prominent of the two), Greek, Vlach, Romani, and some Slavic dialects are also spoken.

It was to this country that in May 2012 I travelled to, partnering with Operation Renewed Hope and Missionaries Mike and Jennifer Fiocchi to conduct medical clinics and evangelistic services for the Albanian people. 

Thank You!!

I want to thank all of you who have followed me on my missions trip in Uganda and for faithfully praying for me. The trip was a great blessing to me and I hope and pray that it was also a blessing to the Stensaas family and the Ugandan people I have met and become friends with.

Please continue to pray for the Stensaas Family as they continue to serve the Lord in Uganda and for the Ugandan people that many more would come to know Christ as their Savior and that they would become national pastors and missionaries ans that they would have a huge impact in their country.

Please pray for me as I know have the task of writing papers, summarizing my trip, the Ugandan culture, and the minisrty in Uganda, as well as studying to take (and prayerfully pass!) the Wisconsin State Board of Nursing Exam (also called NCLEX).

Thank you all for your prayers and support.

Serving God and Loving It,

Cassidy

Safe Arrival

After 24 hours of travel, I have safley arrived back in Wisconsin. I am glad to be home, but I already miss Uganda!!

Homeward Bound!

My time in Uganda has come to an end -- at least for now!! Friday morning I will be going with Bro. Bryan, Mrs Cherri, and Alisha to Kampala. I will be there until I board my plane bound for Amsterdam Sunday at 9:50pm. I should arrive back in Wisconsin sometime Monday afternoon.

Gifts

As the time for me to go back to the States, two of the ladies in the church that I have become friends with have given my going away gifts -- I think to either entice me to stay or to come back quickly.

Annette and Hannah:

They gave me this:

Tao (she cooks the orphans meals; I have to say that the meals I had at the orphanage wre pretty good!!)

She gave me this:

Stitch Removal

Last week Hannah fell and hit her head (her right eye-brow)on a piece of metal. Annette took her to the hospital where the doctor put in a stitch. Annette, a first time mom, did not like the hospital experience and was afraid to take hannah back to have the stitch taken out. Mrs. Sally and Andrea were trying to tell Annette how to remove the stitch herself -- but I volunteered to do it for her -- and Annette was very thankful.

Here are some pictures:

Before:

During: Andrea is holding Hannah -- Hannah is more upset about having to be still than she is of me taking out the stitch:

After: She is smiling in spite of the tears:

Rita and Sophia

When I was in Uganda 2 years ago with the medical team I was introduced to two of the orphans Rita, then age 5, and Sopia, age 7. They did not speak or understand any English. I was given the task of doing nursing assessments - height, age, temperature, blood pressure, listening to heart, lungs, etc. I also took a picture with them. (Sophia is in the green dress, Rita is in the orange shirt)

Over the past 3 weeks I was re-introduced to Rita, now 7, and Sophia, 9. They speak English very well and they were even teaching me some Lugandan. (Rita is on my right, Sophia on the left)