Greetings from the Smith Family!

We trust you are all enjoying the much-anticipated warmth of summer in the US.  (It's coldish here...but we're not complaining.) 

A new season of ministry?  We feel that's what is ahead, and we are hopeful that this will breathe renewed life into Oasis and us personally. We are encouraged that God has allowed us to be involved in some life-altering events over the past few weeks.  We've seen God bring about a legal partnership between Oasis and the boards of The Shelter and The Valley (see sidebar on The Valley).  This was the culmination of over two years of work, and we are so excited to have the official documents in hand that outline our relationship.  

Partnership signing

Due to our legal partnership, Oasis has been able to begin recruiting children for sponsorship at The Valley!  This is our FAVORITE part of working in Kenya!  Two weeks ago, we looked into the eyes of an old lady and told her that there was a family in the US who wanted to help provide holistic care for her orphaned grand-daughter.  She could hardly sit still to hear us out!  

We are thankful for you and humbled at your continued commitment to walk beside us serving orphaned children in Kenya!  May God continue to bless you!

Love -

Ann for the Smith Family

One of our favorite things about Pastor Moses, the director from The Valley, is his joy.  He finds every little thing delightful.  People like him are fun to be around.  Joy can be so infectious.

A few weeks ago, he and two of the board members from The Valley traveled to Kijabe for a significant meeting. They arrived in time for dinner and were just tickled to be in our house.  We served Italian chicken, rice and breaded zucchini.  They savored the food and kept remarking on how they've always wanted to try chicken with a different flavor.  They loved the veggies but couldn't figure out what the zucchini was (the Kiswahili word for zucchini and cucumber are the same) until we brought out a whole zucchini and cucumber and showed them the difference. After dinner, as we were sipping chai and eating these magical things called donuts, Rick asked if they'd ever eaten ice cream.  They didn't even know what it was. Then, things became really fun. Try to imagine three guys, who've never put anything colder than room temperature in their mouths, tasting ice cream. They tried it one by one, and each one yelled out loud in shock, laughing at themselves and making faces.  "Aiee, it's too cold!" "Oh, my teeth and my head hurt!" "Surely this is nutritious because it's made from milk." 

Everything about visiting us was "so wonderful!" Even the Kijabe Guest House was "the best place" because they have water for washing that comes down over your head and is warm!  Imagine. 

It was refreshing to be reminded to be thankful for the little things.  And together, we rejoiced over a very big thing. We went to sign a legal Partnership Agreement in the presence of a lawyer between Oasis for Orphans and The Valley.  This will launch us into a much-anticipated season of opening up sponsorship at The Valley!  This group has proven themselves over and over in matters of honesty, integrity, accountability, ability to follow instructions, willingness to work together, hospitality, and so much more.  We feel privileged to partner with them and can't wait to see what God does in The Valley community in the future!