For the past several years, the Missionary Department has been assisting the Johnsons in Kenya.
You are probably asking: "Who are the Johnsons? What do the Johnsons do in Kenya?"
Please review this page to get the answer.
The people of the Kisayani community, which gets about 5 cm of rain yearly, face a daily struggle. People expect only dust and heat. Famine and drought force parents to make decisions about which child to feed on any given day. A handful of food from a relief organization is often the daily ration.
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To help with this problem, Michael teaches at the University of Nairobi Medical School and operates at Kenyatta National Hospital. The Johnsons also work with medical students, doctors, and Kenyan volunteers to hold free clinics in the slums of Nairobi.
Every night over 50,000 children sleep on the cold streets in garbage cans and in alleys in the capital city of Nairobi, Kenya.
They awaken in the morning to look for food in trash heaps and to beg, steal, and prostitute just to survive. These kids need to know that God cares for them. They need the touch of love that only the love of Christ can impart.
Through evangelism, health care, and the giving of food and clothing, the Johnsons provide these kids with the touches of love they need.
There are nearly 2 million AIDS orphans in Kenya. These orphans represent 7 percent of Kenya's total population. Many of these children have suffered severe physical and psychological abuse, and some orphanages sleep 150 kids in 40 beds.
Michael and Kay visit such orphanages (see cover) to play with the children while providing free medical care, books, and crayons. What a joy to serve Jesus as seen in the face of each of "the least of these."
The Johnsons are natives of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They have served in Kenya, East Africa, with World Gospel Mission since 1990. Their quarterly newsletter, "Those Peculiar Johnsons," is based on I Peter 2:9.
Poverty Reduction /Rural Development
Kay cooperates with Kenyan churches and development agencies, helping provide seeds, water pumps, and irrigation systems. As the Johnsons visit the farmers in the Kisayani area, they also provide medicines for clinics and free medical care. However, without food and water, medicines even given freely can do little to fight malaria, typhoid, diarrhea, and meningitis..
Training Physicians And Surgeons
It is not uncommon for patients to wait weeks or even months for lifesaving operations due to the shortage of medicines and supplies. In addition, almost 70 percent of Kenyans cannot afford to see a doctor. These problems affect even Kenya's major hospitals and hurt the morale of Kenyan professionals.
The answer to Kenya's health care needs is in Kenya. Michael is helping establish a family medicine physicians' training program to train doctors who will have the
Christ-filled compassion, commitment, and competence needed to minister to the poor.
But this training will not happen overnight. In the meantime, Kenya and the Johnsons need you. They need you to help care for orphans, assist in rural development, and provide medical care.
