Freetown Journals: May 2024

The Sales team (including Chief Steward Paul, right; and
Assistant Steward Mendy, left) in the Cafe

"God has placed each part in the body just as he wanted it to be. If all the parts were the same, how could there be a body? As it is, there are many parts. But there is only one body."

-1 Corinthians 12:18-20

Serving up smiles in the Cafe!

Now with about 5 months as Global Mercy Sales Manager in the books, I am loving this new role. The title might be a bit of a misnomer, as the Ship Shop, Cafe, and Post Office on board are not revenue-making operations. They are there as a way to bless the crew and provide an oasis in the midst of work. Our little team made of me and three staff has seen some routine turnover, and it's been wonderful to see new team members blossom and get excited about serving the crew and making them smile--We're getting a lot of mileage out of a 3-D printed smiley stencil one of the families made!

An "African Fabric Fashion Show" is an annual tradition
on the ships, and is one of the Crew and Day Crew's
favorite activities to do all together! I wish you could hear
the cheers of encouragement as friends and coworkers go
down the "catwalk"!

An especially fun aspect of the role is helping to coordinate community activities, and when you have such a large and diverse community all bringing their interests and ideas forward, it can amount to some very lively and colorful life outside of the office! On any given night of the week, you could pop into Bible studies, dance lessons, worship evenings, a film festival, the crafting group, the sewing enthusiasts, a presentation, a Brazilian Ju-Jitsu class, or a national holiday observance... the list goes on! (I've included more photos of community life at the end of this post)

On April 27 (in addition to being the Dutch holiday known as "Kings Day"), Sierra Leone celebrated 63 years as an independent nation. The best word I can think of to describe Sierra Leonians is "Courageous". Anyone here who has been alive since 1990 has lived through civil war (1991-2002), the Ebola virus epidemic (2014-2015), and finally (like the rest of the world) the COVID-19 pandemic. Literal volumes have been written to record and analyze everything Sierra Leonians has overcome (I recently listened to the audio version of Fevers, Feuds, and Diamonds by Paul Farmer, which focuses on the context and aftermath of the Ebola epidemic). Many are raising their families in neighborhoods where intermittent electricity and running water is a fact of life, and the streets are so narrow and steep that there is no margin for error, let alone space for intrepid toddlers to run free.

Visiting Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary

Out in town, signs of need are almost everywhere you look, and it can leave the mind feeling drained. I'm intentionally sparing much detail on this, because "signs of need" are not what defines Sierra Leone.

What does define Sierra Leone? In short, the people. If you ask one of the many Sierra Leonian crew on board (as of last month, there were 22!), that is most often their response, and what makes this the nation they are proud to call "Mama Salone".

A photo from a patient Naserry's homecoming.
(Photo credit: Tirsa Tapia)

This is not Mercy Ships' first visit to Sierra Leone. A walk through one of the main hospitals, Connaught, introduced us to many dedicated doctors and nurses who have received training from Mercy Ships at some point in their careers. And to be sure, you need to be dedicated to work in the medical industry here, making sure the community has reasonable access to medical care in an unforgiving professional ecosystem.

An anesthesia training course participant honing her skills in
the GLM simulation center. (photo credit: Elizabeth Brumley)

I am constantly reminded that Mercy Ships cannot fill every need that might be held out in front of us. In a nation that is striving for healthcare, electricity, access to water, and jobs, the need to stay focused on the piece that God has given Mercy Ships to manage is very important. Within the GLM, each department then manages an even smaller piece of this, in what one chaplain named Jim recently referred to as the "Mercy supply chain". I absolutely loved this image! It highlights that we cannot do what we do without each one contributing to the full in their area of calling, and it serves as a small snapshot of what it means to live and serve in God's Kingdom, wherever we may be. In this way, we bring the Kingdom to earth in a bigger and more wonderful way than any of us could have done on our own.

"For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully."

-Romans 12:3-8

Patient Marie before her goiter removal surgery on board (Photo credit: Abigail Beinetti)

Patient Marie after her goiter removal
surgery (Photo credit: Tirsa Tapia)

A gospel song I heard in a local church that we visited recently has stuck with me. It is written by S.O.J Macauley in the Krio language, making it uniquely Sierra Leonian. Most recently I heard one of our Dining Room Day Crew singing it while she emptied the dish carts.

The chorus translates to:

"When you work for God,

there will be no losses;
He is the Master Businessman,
who knows how to pay you."

May the Master Businessman help you to flourish this week. As Chaplain Jim said, "Go give 'em heaven!"