Have you ever heard of King Lemuel? If not, t hen you proba- bly don’t remember his mother. We don’t know her name, but her words are recorded in the Book of Proverbs, in the Old Testament. Lemuel’s mother was a wise woman who carefully taught her son/King about the ways that he should live and rule. “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.” Prov 31:8-9 When I first met Pastor Wariaeli some 13 years ago he impressed me as a humble pas tor of a small church in a remote village. We had participated together in pas- tor training sessions in Moshi, Iringa and Dar es Salaam, Tanza- nia, and he had the reputation as a pastor with a huge heart for the widows and orphaned children in his community . In T anzania widows and orphaned children are often considered the lowest rung on the value chain of the society. They are most often “poor, helpless and without the opportunity for justice.” Pastor Wariaeli invited me to visit his village of Karansi where he then shared his vision of a school that would one d ay educate and equip the children of the area. His goal was to bring a quality Christ Centered English based education to the poorest of the poor – g iving them hope for a better tomor- row, grounded in the love of Christ. He was confi dent that a quality education would enable the children to overcome the cycle of poverty that their fam- ilies had known for genera- tions. One way to help t he poor receive justice, is to help them hel p themselv es. This though is a long term proposi- tion. In the interim Pastor Wariaeli has frequently pro- tected the “widow and the orphan” from injustice of vil- lage life, while it has been his goal to see them equipped and enabled to stand up for them- selves. On my first visit to Karansi – Pastor Wariaeli asked if we could prayer walk over a hillside parcel of land where he envisioned a school being built and a “safe haven” estab- lished for the children. As we walked and as we prayed, I was skeptical that it would ever be. However, that hillside now houses PUNCHMI School grades one through seven, a pre-one classroom, dining hall, and computer training building with a library and Administrative area under construction. Five classes have graduated from seventh King Who? by Tim Neet Christmas Fund & Mail Call Christmas Fund - While we have already wire transferred the $7,780 to Tanzania for the pur- chase of Christmas gifts for each of the children in Project Child – we still have the task to col- lect the funds that we have already spent. Sounds like a bad budget plan doesn’ t it? Not really, if you know the hearts and determination of our Child Sponsor s and Donors. So, if you are able and willing to contribute, please send your Tanzania – Project Child Christmas Fund donation to Perimeter Church, per my recent email, hopefully over the Thanksgiving Holiday – or if that is not possible, then before t he end of the year as we need to r econcile our books. We are so Thankful for your continued support. Mail Call – Our last team to Tanzania has al- ready returned bringing back letters from some of the upper grade students in Project Child. There will likely not be another team going be- fore next June – so the next few months we will be sending over “Mail Only” envelopes – NO Gift Packages. If you would lik e to send a let- ter, or Card and Photo to your child please get them to us No Later Than Dec 11. Please un- derstand that most likely your child will not receive your letter before the first of the year as the School and much of Tanzania s huts down the last three weeks of t he year. Once our pack- age arrives in Tanzania – makes it through Cus- toms – and is able to be picked up in Arusha – it must then be transported on the next trip to the village. A good guess is a mid- January de- lievery – but what the heck – we just received some of their Easter letters – so I am sure they will understand. T a n z a n i a J o u r n a l I s s u e 4 4 Dec 2013 Continued on page 2 Pastor Wariaeli Mafie