Thomson MarciaKay 2011 Zimbabwe

Georgia Sharpe

From: Reggie Hundley [[email protected]]Sent: Saturday, January 01, 2011 5:08 PMTo: Georgia SharpeSubject: Fwd: Marcia KayThomson N/L 1-1-11

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From: Marcia Kay Thomson Date: January 1, 2011 3:53:41 PM CSTTo: Mark & Marcia Johnson . Barbara Hay .Dave Honeycutt . Sarah Jordan , Don& Nadine Hart . Roland Joseph . Dwain Illman. Judy & Jerry Howell . Reggie Hundley. Lynn & Sally Johnson . Owen &Randy Hester . George lubelt . "Don F. Hulsey". Jon Henninger . Beth AltmanHartley , Frances Johnson . ShellyHilvety . Marilyn Hammond . Jan&CherylJacobs . Val & Richard Hadfield . Phil& Irene Hughes Subject: Marcia Kay Thomson N/L 1-1-11January 1, 2011

Thank you for your prayers and support during the last year even though I was notcommunicatingas I should have been. My computer is now working.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Last night I went to the all night New Years Eve service that was conducted by the youngpeople. It was all night because people that live some distance do not want to travel home in themiddle of the night. Many of the young people come on foot. I had someone to go with me in myweil-alarmed truck and we came home just after 1 A.M. The young people are so enthusiasticwith their music and it is such a joy to see them enjoying being in the house of the Lord. Theshort message was on recognizing how Satan and his forces want to keep us from enjoying theblessings of the Lord. He wants to build walls between those that love the Lord. I pray that thisNEW YEAR we will all be closer to God and not let the devil be successful in tempting us.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

The Christmas Day service was at 9 A.M. Even though many people are out of town for theHolidays we had those that were in town bring out of town visitors and had a good service. Thisservice is for the community and the offering goes to charity. Our Christmas Carol Service onMonday the 13th was well attended.

CAMP FOR YOUNG PEOPLE

December 9-11 the young peoplewenton a campa fewmilesout of townon the Eastshores ofthe lake. I paid the fees for 5 ofthe campers.They came in to hold the church service on the12th. It was obvious that they had had a wonderful time as they shared v^dth us some of thelessons that they learned. The attendance was 212, families of some campers came.

CENTRAL AFRICA MISSION EVANGELISTIC LITERATURE SERVICE (CAMELS)

Many businesses in Zimbabwe have closed down but CAMELS has survived. We are, however,digging out of a financial hole. The business provides a job for 11 Zimbabweans, and keeps mebusy as well. Our main reason for existing is to supply literature for the churches. The ShonaHymnal, 'Nziyo,' is still our biggest seller. NEW BOOKS 'How To Love Someone You Can'tStand' is gaining in popularity. The Masvingo Christian Church has used it in their small groupBible studies. 'Fellowship' is selling. 'Mentoring for Dating Couples' will go on sale in January.We are also working on 'Mentoring for Married Couples.'' Bible Backgrounds' was out manyyears ago but in the meantime Zimbabwe has gone metric. I am working on a metric revision ofthis book.

THE FIRST 3 MONTHS IN USA

My furlough started in November 2009 with the National Missionary Convention. For thatconvention they had a special reunion for the missionaries that have worked in Zimbabwethrough the years. I saw people that I have not seen for years. The only problem was that therewas so little time to spend with each one.

It was the first Christmas that I had been in the USA for many years. Most ofDecember I waswith Central Christian Church in Mt. Vemon IL.

There was not enough time to get to all the churches that I wanted to visit. If I missed you I amsorry. I also fell on the ice (refi-ozen melted snow). This is one ofthe hazards that I do not havein Zimbabwe. It has taken many medical visits and lots ofexercises but by now I have about95% use ofmy shoulder.

ARRIVED BACK IN MASVINGO FOR EASTER

We always have a Thursday evening Communion Service and a 9 A.M. Good Friday Service.Then the Sunrise Service followed by Breakfast and the 9 AM Easter Service. We have rotatinggroups for our church music. I usually sing once or twice a month. But during the holidays whenpeople are away I am often asked to participate in most services.

ALICE FISHBACK SOLD HER HOUSE AND MOVED TO USA

Plan A was that Alice would travel to the States with me in 2009. However, her house did notsell and even in 20101 went to see her several times thinking each would be the last time.September was the last time for me to visit her just before she moved out ofher house. Whengoing to SAI was doing shoppingfor CAMELS and checkingwith Alice's medical team on myshoulder. I also was going to the computer shops.

SUDDENLY MY COMPUTER DIED - NOW IT IS WORKING

Finally it was determined that the computer was in a group of serial numbers that had faultygraphic boards. The replacement did not cost me in repair bills but in trips to the right offices inJohannesburg and the time to wait for parts to be ordered. Just after I got it repaired I left it onthe desk at CAMELS and went to lunch. A storm hit during lunch and when I got back toCAMELS I discovered that there was water all around my laptop. It did not have water on thetop of the lid but when I raised the lid and wiped around with a tissue it was wet. I took thebattery out and let it dry. Then I checked with the experts and they said do not turn it on until atechnician checks it. With other obligations it was a month until I got that done. The miracle isthat there was no sign of water damage and it is working fine.

ZIMBABWE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE

I took video of the graduation in June and then made a DVD with some of the graduation andpictures of the campus. The chairman of the board and principal went to visit some supportingchurches in the USA. They used this DVD in their presentation. If you are interested in theCollege Marshall Hayden [email protected] the USA treasurer, has a copy of the DVD and Iam sure can supply you with up-to-date info about the College.

SCHOOLS WILL SOON OPEN

With your help I am paying the school fees to educate about 15 students. I am always gettingmore requests for help. Please note that for tax deductions checks should be made to CentralChristian Church and mailed to Marcia Kay Thomson, Box 1254, Mt. Vemon, IL 62864. MyForwarding Agent is Jacque Ragain. She will receive the checks and process them through theChurch. Thank you for your prayers and support in my work here in Masvingo, Zimbabwe.

In His Service,

Marcia Kay Thomson

Georgia Sharpe

From: Reggie Hundley [[email protected]]Sent: Monday, February 28, 2011 5:57 PMTo: Georgia SharpeSubject: Fwd: Marcia Kay Thomson n/l 1/3/11

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From: Marcia Kay Thomson Date: February 28, 2011 5:43:01 PM ESTTo: Barbara Hay . Mark & Marcia Johnson .Don & Nadine Hart , Sarah Jordan .Dave Honeycutt . Roland Joseph . Dwain Illman. Judy & Jerry Howell . Reggie Hundley. Lynn & Sally Johnson , Owen &Randy Hester . George lubelt . Mavuto&JoyceJambulosi , "Don P. Hulsey" .Frances Johnson . Shelly Hilvety . JonHenninger . Beth Altman Hartley. Marilyn Hammond . Jan&CherylJacobs . Val & Richard Hadfield . Phil& Irene Hughes Subject: Marcia Kay Thomson n/l 1/3/11

1 March 2011

Dear Friends,

I was planning a monthly newsletter and see I have already skipped a month. There-writing of Bible Backgrounds was a bigger project than I had counted on.However I finished it last week. It is now with the printers. In the meantime Ihave talked to many people and I have gotten the idea that they are lookingforward to using this book. In my early days at CAMELS I was doing the typingand layout. In the meantime we have had others to do this part of the work atCAMELS. I have been using the computer for email, photos and video. I havemade several movies. When in the USA I have done the display board to helppresent the work. On the Bible Backgrounds I went back and scanned the oldbook, updated the wording, changed the measurements to digital and did thelayout of the book. I found out how rusty I was on the desktop publishing. It hasbeen good for me.

We have also finished the work on the series of books from Dr. Gray to create asystem of using married couples in the churches to mentor younger marriedcouples and dating couples to help the churches to have stronger marriages. This

is a series ofthree books. The large book is for those that are setting up theprogram and training the mentors. Then there is the book used for mentoringmarried couples and the book to mentor dating couples.

I also spent three days going to Harare to do business for Tristine Flats. That iswhere I lived when I was working in Harare with Zimbabwe Christian Collegeand where I stay when I am in Harare on business. ZCC also has the flat(apartment) where Jack and Peggy Pennington lived. It is being used for housingKina and Edmore Muzavazi, the bursar and academic dean. There are 24 flats andmany ofthe owners are out ofthe country and have estate agencies handling thebusiness in their absence.

It is good to have Ben and Karen Pennington back from the USA. The pictures oftheir granddaughter are wonderful. You would never dream she has been so smalland so fragile. While they were away Ben made arrangements for a well to bedrilled at the rural home ofNewton Nzviyo. The very day that the drilling rigcame to start the drilling Ben and Karen had left on a short trip and I went out totake pictures of the drilling to forward to IDES. They did not finish on the firstday so we went back the second day and were there to see the water coming outof the ground. Now the pump, pipes water tank and generator need to be put inplace for them to enjoy having a ready supply of water.

In January I went to South Africa for 4 days. On the trip I took in October I failedto visit the dermatologist. I phoned early enough to get an appointment this time. Ihad treatment on 15-20 spots. Only two of them were on my face this time. I putsunscreen on but then I blow my nose and wash my hands and the sun shines onthe unprotected spots. Dr. Darel Pruett would treat me for free but it would costmore to get to Florida than to go to Johannesburg and pay $80.1 also went to thecomputer shop and they sorted out the backup tlmt was too full to back up mycomputer.

The school year starts in January so I spent time and money getting things for themany children that I am putting through school. Morris Govo just started to highschool. He had been the top ofhis class all through grade school so I felt heneeded a good high school education. This was not available in the rural areawhere he lives so we were able to get him a place at Dewure High school. Thismeant boarding school fees, bus fare, new uniforms and was over $500. Therewill be about that much again in May as the blankets and winter uniform will beneeded then. It is much colder at Dewure than in the Chivi area where he has beenliving.

Eska's daughters Langa and Suko were baptized January 23rd. They are two ofthe students for whom I have paid school fees for several years. They and theirbrother as well as Tendai and Tatenda Chitomba are very active in the MasvingoChristian Church youth group.

zee Board ofdirectors came to Masvingo Christian Church for their meeting onJanuary 28th.

Monday at 5:15 we have a prayer meeting at Masvingo Christian Church. Today,Febuary 28, Newton told me he was going to the hospital instead of the church.At just about 5:20 he phoned from the hospital to say that Alice had given birth toa 9 1^ pound boy about 3 p.m. They have named him Nelson. There was rejoicingat the prayer meeting because we had been praying for Alice and the new baby forseveral weeks.

Later in the evening I phoned Florence Warren in Johannesburg to tell her that thebaby had been bom on her birthday. I did not get her but her daughter answeredand said she was in the hospital as they just discovered that she has diabetes. Soour prayers will be directed in a different way to help her cope with this newcondition.

May God bless each one of you as you serve Him where He has placed you towork in his kingdom.

In His love,

Marcia Kay Thomson

Georgia Sharpe

From: Reggie Hundley [[email protected]]Sent: Wednesday, August 17, 2011 6:50 AMTo: Georgia SharpeSubject: Fwd: Marcia KayThomson N/L Aug 17,2011

Did not know if you received this or not

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From: Marcia Kay Thomson Date: August 17, 2011 5:40:50 AM EDTTo: Sarah Jordan , Don & Nadine Hart. Mark & Marcia Johnson . Dave Honeycutt. Roland Joseph . Dwain Illman. Judy & Jerry Howell . Reggie Hundley. Owen & Randy Hester . Lynn & SallyJohnson . George lubelt . Mavuto&JoyceJambulosi , "Don F. Hulsey" . JonHenninger . Shelly Hilvety .Frances Johnson . Beth Altman Hartley. Shawna Hall . Marilyn Hammond. Jan&Cheryl Jacobs . Val & Richard Hadfieid. Phil & Irene Hughes Subject: Marcia Kay Thomson N/L Aug 17,2011

August 17, 2011

Dear Friends,

Last Friday we drove to Harare to take the team from Mt. Vemon IL to the airport. They areback home now. Friday afternoon and Saturday morning I ran around Harare on business andarrived back in Masvingo at 3 p.m. in time to go to the 4 p.m. practice for the music team onSunday.

Monday at CAMELS we started to make plans for the National Church Conference that startstomorrow. Because of being busy I had not realized that CAMELS business had been so slowthat the ftill salaries were not even paid last month. There are several small businesses that havestarted up that are taking many of the jobs that we used to do. This means we need to spend moretime looking at the situation, adjusting prices, advertising and seeing what we need to do tosurvive.

VISIT FROM MT. VERNON TEAM OF TEN

They first visited in Chiredzi and were able to meet the residents of the Marcia Kay ThomsonHouse at the orphan village. The building of this house has been a project over several years.They also spent 3 days in a VBS at Shangarumwe. Five years ago they dedicated the churchbuilding they built on this developing mission station.

Godfrey and I drove to Mashoko Mission to meet them on Friday August 5th. Then we went onto see the new church building at Odzi that we have been helping Hasten build. Then we went toGodfrey's parents' village for a meal before driving to Masvingo. Then we ate at Godfrey'shouse.

Saturday we stopped to see Eska and her family before attending a wedding at Rujeko church inthe morning and were at Masvingo church on the afternoon for the weekly youth meeting and themonthly women's meeting.

Sunday the team split. Some went to Rujeko Church and some to Masvingo Church. Then wemet at Chitomba's house to see the house that they purchased for this family to care for theorphans left when Pinias died. From there we went to have lunch v^dth the Nzviyo family. Someofus went to the 4 p.m. service at Pioneer Lodge for the retired people. We later ate with theDiedericks.

Monday and Tuesday were holidays so we met at Masvingo church where they conductedclasses on Principles of Spiritual Warfare, Healthy Relationships, Church Leadership, Media &Music, Practical Parenting and Health Issues. There were also activities and teaching for thechildren ofthose attending the classes. There was a good turn out ofabout 175 people from 4congregations.

Tuesday afternoon some went to the see the area of the new Rufaro church started by the Rujekochurch. At the present time they are meeting in a school building.

Wednesday they held a VBS at Rujeko with several of the adults observing and helping so thatthey know how to conduct one at a later date. In the afternoon we went to see the GreatZimbabwe and curio shopping.

Thursday we drove around the game park where we saw several African animals. After a latelunch the team stopped by CAMELS Print Shop before doing their final packing.

They stayed with members of the Masvingo Congregation, Cris & Corrie Diedericks and MoiraRobinson, while in Masvingo.

ODZI CHURCH BUILDING

Darel Pruett was here from the USA to facilitate the building of the church very near toGodfrey's parents home east ofMashoko. Before his arrival Godfrey had organized thefoundation of the church. Godfrey went to the building supply and worked on quotes and alsotravelled to the church site several times with Darel during the weeks he was in and out ofMasvingo. When we visited the site just after Darel left the building was at the top of thewindows. Godfrey will continue to check on things until it is completed.

ZIMBABWE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE GRADUATION - CHURCH IN HATCLIFFE

The Graduation June 11th went offvery well. I stayed overnight and attended church with thenew Christian Church - Hatcliffe in north Harare. It was 9 months old and has been started bythe Hatfield Christian Church that is in south Harare. They are meeting in a community hall butit is too small and are praying for a place to rent temporarily and a site to buy to build a building.

PRAISE for visit by the team of 10 from Mt. Vemon. Thanks for relationships strengthened andlessons taught.

PRAISE for the building of the church in Odzi and Darel's visit.

PRAISE for the new congregation in Hatcliffe, Harare.

PRAY for the National Conference this weekend.

PRAY for CAMELS to be able to carry on with the commercial business to help with thedistribution of Christian Literature.

May God Bless Each ofyou as you serve Him,

Marcia Kay Thomson

Georgia Sharpe

From: Mission Services [[email protected]]Sent: Monday, November 14, 2011 8:12 AMTo: Georgia SharpeSubject: Fwd: Marcia Kay Thomson N/L 11/11/11

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From: Marcia Kay Thomson Date: November 12, 2011 4:22:20 AM ESTTo: Sarah Jordan . Dave Honeycutt .Mark & Marcia Johnson . Don & Nadine Hart .Roland Joseph . Dwain Illman . Judy & JerryHowell . Reggie Hundley . SharonHarpold . Owen & Randy Hester . Lynn & SallyJohnson . George lubelt . Mavuto&JoyceJambulosi , "Don F. Hulsey" . Phil& Irene Hughes . Jon Henninger .Shelly Hilvety . Beth Altman Hartley. Shawna Hall . Marilyn Hammond. Jan&Cheryl Jacobs . Frances Johnson. Val & Richard Hadfield Subject: Marcia Kay Thomson N/L 11/11/11

November 11, 2011

Dear Friends,

It has been too long since I wrote to you. This is not only 11/11/11 but it is 48 years since I firstset foot on Mashoko Mission. I have seen a lot of history since then.

Yesterday I returned to Masvingo from Harare. It is the third trip I have made recently. I have anexercise bike that is supposed to give my pulse while I get my exercise. The readings werechanging and I thought it would be a good idea to see if there was a real problem. On the firsttrip I saw the doctor who wanted to have tests taken and then see me again. I had blood tests, anx-ray, treadmill stress EKG, and echocardiography. When I saw the doctor Tuesday he said thatthe medication that I have been taking is correcting my problems. My mitral valve prolapse ismild (first diagnosed in the 1970s). He said 1 could see him in one year for a check up if I wantto. If I had been in Johannesburg I think I could have gotten the tests done in 3 days instead of4weeks.

On each of the trips to Harare I also did other business. I am still the chairperson of the block of24 garden flats (apartments) where I lived when I was with Zimbabwe Christian College andwhere I stay when I go to Harare. In this area of Harare, city water is seldom available. We areworking at getting the owners to go together and drill a borehole. These owners are scattered andcommunication is not easy. Not all of them have email. We are making progress. I have also

done shopping for friends in Masvingo that could not find what they needed at home and havetaken some equipment to be repaired. I also bring paper and other supplies for CAMELS andsave on transportation costs.

Recently there have been people from an area Southeast ofMasvingo attending the RujekoChurch. Over 30 ofthem have been baptised in the last couple ofmonths. This will be the corefor another church. At this time they have not gotten far enough to choose a name, but the area is7 miles from Rujeko. The Rufaro Church started in a simular way. They are Northeast ofMasvingo and now meet in a school building.

On October 141 drove to Bulawayo. The Men's National Conference was being held in Matoposat a camp. I enjoyed spending 2 nights with JoAnn Martin and driving out to the camp in thedaytime. We had a Board ofDirectors meeting for Zimbabwe Christian College and I took theCAMELS Book Store with me. However, there are some of the men that would use the materialfrom CAMELS to a better advantage if I would email it to them. I am now busy collecting theiremail addresses. This does not mean that we will stop printing books because there are still manythat do not have email. I am still working on a reprint of"What the Bible Says About theChurch."

Several plumbing problems have cropped up and it has taken some of my time to sort them out.The extension to the house was built in 2000. It was necessary to get the guttering at the houseand at CAMELS repaired in preparation for our coming rainy season. So far the rains have notstarted. We had a cold winter and now we are experiencing very hot weather. Some temperatureshave been higher that anything since 1962.

Walt Chamberlain spent some time with Ben and Karen Pennington. Ben took him to manychurches to teach seminars. However, I took him to Mashoko Mission to teach on September 20& 21. He taught at Masvingo Christian Church on September 23 & 24.1 taught at Kyle Collegeon the 25th as he was not able.

Odzi Church building is still making progress: The roof is on, the walls are plastered, the cementfloor is being cured. Darel Pruett was one ofthe missionary kids that I taught when I lived atMashoko. He is now a dermatologist in southern Florida. When he came to check on the churchbuilding he brought some medicine to erase some of the sun damage to my face. The Lord isgood to provide such help while I am still busy working and I can just apply the medicinemyself. I can send pictures by email and he can monitor the results.

Kenneth Makusha's ftineral was September 3. This was less than a year after his wife's fimeral.Their daughter, Joyce, has been running back and forth from Witbank, South Africa, (east ofJohannesburg) to Masvingo taking care of their health problems for over a year. After spending awhile with her family in Witbank she has come to set up her dental practice in Masvingo. I amhoping that eventually the whole family can be home in Masvingo.

The National Church Conference was August 18-21 at Dadaya Mission. The Bible Backgroundsrevision was in print and on sale. Later at Mr. Makusha's ftmeral I was able to give a copy of itto David Thurman to take back to the USA for the family to have.

Thank you for reading this far. It is great than even when the pressures ofmaintenance ofhealthand buildings take time the Lord's work goes on. In fact, he can bring us into contact with peoplethat we can witness to because of some of these "problems."

In Him,2

Marcia Kay Thomson