Hope on Hooves
Nancy Richards – Seattle Chapter
When Fr. John Mollel, the Vicar for our Lake Stevens Church, returned to his home parish in Arusha, Tanzania, in 2016, I accepted his invitation to visit, wanting to see opportunities to do mission work and go on a safari. Receiving unbelievable hospitality, I knew I would return, and I made a presentation to the Seattle Chapter about the trip and my volunteer opportunities.
In 2018, Fr Mollel passed away, but he left me a strong forever friend group. In early 2020, I saw on Facebook (FB) that Sam was buying goats at $25 USD for single mothers in Karatu, TZ, near Arusha. The women use the milk for their families, sell it, or make cheese. The goats have kids a couple times a year, soon creating herds. Goats gives these women independence and a means of support. I told Sam I’d buy a goat, and two days later I received a picture of my goat and family with a hand-written thank-you sign. I was amazed. Thus began my goat journey—Hope on Hooves.
By May 2020, stressed out by the pandemic, unable to volunteer locally, I asked God what I could do to help. I had posted pictures on FB of my goats so my friends could see the families. I said if anyone was interested in purchasing a goat for $25 or a cow for $130, they could buy it through me, and receive pictures of their goat or cow with the family they were helping. The response was overwhelming!
Now volunteers Lotha, Rodgers, Kajuju and Sam help interview the long list of women requesting a goat. All the volunteers are teachers and take time away from their families or work to help. Delivering animals, volunteers find many of these families also need food, clothing, household supplies, and medical assistance.
I track the donations, make thank-you signs, and email them before the deliveries. Seeing the pictures of the goat recipients, many send additional money. The volunteers are so excited to be able to purchase the needed food, clothing for the children and moms, beds, bedding, medicine and furniture. The volunteers may also drive them to medical appointments, attend doctor appointments with them, and keep me informed, taking nothing. One hundred percent of the donations go to the families. So incredible.
In December 2020, one of our Seattle Affiliates, Carolyn Creighton, made many phone calls and was instrumental in getting over 40 Christmas Goat orders from our group!
Donors are very open to helping these families. One Seattle couple paid for leg surgery for a little boy, Geoffrey. This year we saw another miracle:
A woman’s whose toddler son, Said, had water on the brain, begged us to help him. Without committing to covering possible surgery, we said we could take him to Arusha for a consultation, and I would try to raise some funds. A recent $200 donation covered travel, MRI, blood tests and a doctor visit. A neurosurgeon saw him on a Wednesday and said to stay at the hospital—two UK neurosurgeons that specialized in this type of brain surgery were flying in on Friday. The surgeons did surgery the following Monday.
I was really worried: the hospital didn’t give the volunteer, Kajuju, much choice, and he had signed the papers without knowing the cost. After the surgery, he explained the situation to the surgeons, and they did the surgery for free! The only cost was $120 for his hospital stay. We also paid for his mom’s meals for a month and transportation home. The day after Said’s surgery, out of the blue, I received donations for $100 and $250. Not sure why I was worried. Said goes back in May for a follow-up appointment. His head has started to reshape.
As of March 2021, we’ve delivered 171 goats and 17 cows, funded lots of medical assistance, and provided food, clothing, school uniforms, school books and playground toys, tables and chairs, beds, mattresses and bedding.
I plan to return to Tanzania in summer, 2021, and meet many of these families. I will send pictures to those who have donated and/or sent prayers. I would absolutely love to have others around the country join this mission of Hope. You can FB me, at Nancy Richards Hurlbut, message me, or email me at nancyrichards@live.com.
This article first appeared in the May/June issue of Not So Far Afield.