Mark My Words

Mary and I have the pleasure of interacting with the same handful of people on a daily basis. We have introduced to you Comfort, out housemother, and Wisdom, our make it happen man. The final member of our three-man team is Mark. It would take me days to express all that Mark does for Kingdom Cares International, the Asikuma community, the volunteers, the teachers and of course the children, but I am going to try and highlight some of the amazing work he does.

 

It is easy to tell when Mark in on the compound. The first thing you hear is the roar of a motorbike, which is immediately followed by the chanting “Doctor, Doctor, doctor”. It is not just the kids who are chanting either. I have caught Comfort chanting for Mark a few times too. The children love having Mark around and we do too. He ALWAYS maintains a positive attitude and keeps a cool head. Whenever Mary and I have questions he is more than willing to answer them or lend a hand if a situation comes up.

One of Mark’s many roles is disciplining the children. The only time a child is hesitant about going to talk with Mark is when they know they have done something wrong. The children respect Mark immensely, so having to talk to him about their poor choices is daunting for them. Again, Mark always keeps his cool and talks with the child about the situation at hand and decides the best was to discipline the child. He firmly believes that there is a difference between discipline and punishment.

Another one of Mark’s many roles is a translator. Mary and I host bimonthly seminars for the teachers in our school. Mark is always at our seminar taking notes and helping to re-teach areas he thinks the teacher will find difficult to understand. Mark also helps to translate for the few kids in our house that speak only a few words of English.

Mark also handles most of the medical needs for the children in the house. If someone gets a cut playing soccer or trips over a rock Mark is there to pick him or her up, dust him or her off, and bandage him or her up. He also handles more serious complaints like headaches and severe stomach pains. He talks with the child to find out their symptoms and then quickly makes the best decision for the child based on his medical experiences. The children feel safe and trust Mark’s opinion on what would be the best thing to make them feel better. Every “patient” also gets a healthy dose of love and sympathy as part of their treatment.

The final and most important role that I see Mark filling day after day is a loving caregiver. When the children come into contact with Mark they feel valued and loved. Living with 33 other children can be hard sometimes, but it is people like Mark who will make a lasting impression on these children’s lives. He is there when they need to cry, cheering them on with they are promoted in school, checking in on them in the middle of the night when they are sleeping, and kissing their boo-boos.

I am truly amazed and humbled by the work that Mark does for the Kingdom Cares Community School and the mission center. This place would not run a smoothly as it does without Mark. My hat is off to the man that wears many.

Please continue to follow us on this journey and share what we are doing. We are always more than willing to answer questions or give more information. If you feel compelled to make a donation or support the school in some other capacity please either email us at kccschool15@gmail.com or visit Kingdom Cares International.

Peace and Blessings,

| Anna |