Durban: Team Zoomer Edition

Once upon a time, there was a little white Corsa with no air-conditioning, no radio, and no power-steering. It had been through a lot over the years, piloted by many different drivers, dutifully transporting them to various project locations all around Durban. Then one day, a couple girls flew in from the UK, and everything changed.

Introducing team Zoomer (you can guess how the car earned its new name):

Team Zoomer includes Zoomer (SA), Lauren Ghent (CAD), Abi Whitehorn (UK), and Rachel Fletcher (UK)

During the months of April and May, I was incredibly blessed to work alongside this vibrant and hilarious duo. The support and encouragement of other Durbs-based volunteers and residents was fantastic, and God blessed our efforts and taught us so many lessons along the way.

Here are some moments:

Lamontville

English class at Lamontville was a weekly favourite. We worked through the curriculum that Jude Norcross had assembled during her time here. The kids were incredibly keen to learn, even though they had already sat through a full day of school. Once I had to cover the class by myself, and of course that was the day that 30 of them showed up.

Lamontville conveniently has one of the best picture-taking backdrops around.

We grew to adore these kids. They’d play with us on the streets afterwards, and take us down to their houses to meet their parents. So much friendliness and community in this township.

Durban was in the fever heat of summer for awhile, so this became our fall-back fun activity with the kids at our various projects. Always a huge hit, sometimes literally.

Happy’s (Mason Lincoln Special School
for the Physically Impaired)

Happy’s dominated our Fridays, with good reason. This was in the midst of a lesson about Lazarus. The kids learned that our God is so powerful, He can even raise people from the dead. This was of course followed by everyone getting cocooned in toilet paper. We brought Siphiwe with us on Fridays, he taught the older class, which was always packed with a couple dozen keen students. It still blows my mind how open to the gospel message people are, here.

It was sometimes a struggle to come up with a craft or reinforcement activity that all the kids could participate in, due to the broad range of physical abilities at the school. This mosaic mural was Abi’s brainchild, and “Jonah and the Big Fish” now adorns one of the classroom walls.

Nozipho

My favourite part of the week was Saturday afternoon, when we’d visit Sis. Nozipho at school. She is a graduate of Happy’s who now attends the Durban ecclesia, and she is working through her first year at the University of Kwazulu-Natal. In addition to be hilarious and bubbly, Nozipho is a living exhortation about perseverance and contentment. Having lost much of her mobility to arthritis, she types out all her assignments with one finger. Amazing.

Awhile back, Nozipho had to have an operation on her knees, and was in the hospital for several months. One of her dreams while cooped up recovering was to spend some time down by the river in the Genders’ backyard, in a hammock. So, a couple weeks ago while in town from the UK, Phil Ashcroft rigged a few up (admittedly easier said than done. There was tree-felling involved). Such a great afternoon. Such an inspirational sister. Such an amazing friend.