Newsletter Highlights:

• Founder Eric Schmidt joining E4 staff after 11 years
• Malnutrition program sees 157% increase in children, grave concern for communities
• Nebo Hospital saves 19-year-old, only charging her $20 for her care
• Monthly Hands of Grace profile
• Project Smile with RBC

We are very concerned about the current malnutrition situation in Congo. Just as we have seen in our country, food prices and fuel costs have increased significantly. The difference is that the people of Congo were already extremely poor. In addition to this, the rainy season didn’t start in April as it always does and rains didn’t come regularly until July. The peanut crop failed because of the delayed rainfall and the rice crop has been delayed. Peanuts are a primary source of protein and fatty acids for most families. Not only are food prices much higher, but it is also harder to even find food to purchase, causing our team to go all the way to the Uganda border in search of enough peanuts, corn, and soybeans. Our program saw an increase of 157% in children this past month. In one week, they had to use all the food that usually lasts for a month. The situation is dire and while we still have funds for this program, we will be running out quickly as we try to supply about four times what was needed before this summer. We ask you to pray with us for the communities our partners serve, as well as Gabon. This is happening to a lesser extent in Gabon. Our own partners in Congo are concerned about feeding their own children for the first time since we started working with them all over a decade ago.

One of the stories we received for June was the account of a 19-year-old young woman who came to the hospital and her body was in sepsis. She had a miscarriage and it turned to an infection which led to a near-death situation. She was brought to the hospital unconscious and was in a coma for eight days. Fortunately, the hospital had all the expertise, medical supplies and medicines needed to save her life! The young woman had less than $20 to pay for her care, and the hospital didn’t charge her for her procedures, eight days in hospital, interventions or anything else, other than the extensive amount of medications they had to use. In all, the total was $220 for her care. The hospital team is able to go to such great lengths without any hesitation to save a life knowing the patient will never be able to pay them back because of their calling to Christian service and the poor fund we have in place. The hospital chaplain also met with her and prayed and shared the Gospel with her. If Nebobonogo Hospital wasn’t there, she would have died since no other hospitals anywhere in the region have the capability to care for patients in such distress.

We are going to start sharing stories throughout the year about how Hands of Grace has impacted the widows and the needy women there. The featured member of Hands of Grace for July is Mama Clementine. Mama Clementine has been coming to the center since the beginning of 2013. She is the mother of several children and is single. She is a key holder for the center because she arrives early. She likes to sing praises to God and have fun. When asked what Hands of Grace has done for her she responded:

RBC (the church's rehabilitation and eye clinic) put together mobile medical eye clinics in four villages in Gabon last month. The team provided eye exams, medications, and glasses to 100 people that also suffer from leg disabilities. The RBC team also distributed mosquito nets to everyone in need of one. At each event, the team shared the Gospel and 21 people came to Christ! They served alongside pastors from local village churches so that the pastors can follow up with them on their faith decision and walk alongside them to bring them into their church body. One man named Etienne was overcome with emotion afterward because he could see clearly again. He shared this with the team, "This morning I did not expect that; now I am again able to read the Bible. Several years ago I lost the ability to read the Bible, but today I can do it again. I have goosebumps. May God bless you."